it burned her. She stared at the wood
actuall
ne buzz
kidding. G
ugh. She threw her phone onto the sofa. He was play
he peephole. The
hed the grief about Irving into a small, dark box in the back
e big sunglasses on the subway. She arrived
dusty. By early afternoon, she couldn't avoid the inevitable anymore. She needed to deliver a st
ut, a hand-long fingers, a heavy silver
bounced
stepp
button was undone, revealing the holl
nd didn't lo
d, pressing the bu
gainst the back wall.
r. "It's my building,
nd. Then, suddenly, there w
g the files. The lights flickered and died. The ele
er hip hitting tswallow
ered on, casting the small
, breathing hard. "My
e had flown out when she fell. She s
A spiderweb of cracks obscured everythin
cried, tapping the
ng beside her.
o her eyes. "The evidence! I had the scree
ng her frantic tapping. "Forge
his eyes look black. "I'm fine. But I l
els. He looked around the small, enclosed space
t was jerky. He pressed the
he said. His
g the railing so hard his knuckles we
okay?"
ne," he
oke piece of Italian wool-and dropanded. "It wil
the jacket. "Yo
down,
. Ezra sat down next to her, extending his long
ad back against the metal wall. His
ophobic," Hali
his eyes. "Don'
You're s
rough gritted teeth. "Just
m. The invincible
anized. She talked about the coffee machine on the 12th floor that al
y been forty minutes. Ezra's breathing slowly evened out. His
e. The trapdoor in the ceiling opened. A bemaintenance. We hav
oked at Hali. His gaze was
first,"
his hands. He interlaced h
my hands,
ated. "You
o
s strength surprising her. She reached up and grabbed the
the elevator car, then onto th
d back to
s he swung his leg over the
ttural sound of pain,
caugh
into the concrete wall of the maintenance shaft. Ezr
Hali whispered
e leaned against the wall, refusing to put
," he gri
ough the fabric of his trousers, she couldn't see a
" the maintenance guy said.
s one flight up to the 40th floo
stepped under his arm, wrap
e he wanted to push her away, to maint
weight se
ou," he
tairs slowly. Step.
li asked quietly
aid, his voice strai
caught a glimpse of his ankle. The skin was twisted, marred by jagged,
y was there, looking as close to p
hed forward, takin
and pushing them both away. He adjusted
red, not looking at Hali. "The latest mo
need-" Ha
omp issue," Ezra c
vate office on that floo
t aching. Not for her broken phone. But for
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