“Lock every exit!” Devandra shouted into his phone as he sprinted toward the emergency lift. “No one leaves this building without my authorization!”

The voice on the other end sounded panicked.

“Sir, the security system is still unstable! We can’t close the automatic gates—there’s already a vehicle leaving the premises—”

“Damn it!” Devandra cut the call, slammed open the stairwell door, and raced downward, taking two steps at a time. His breath came in ragged bursts.

The red emergency lights flickered along the walls, throwing ghostly shadows that chased him as he ran.

On his phone screen, Lyra’s tracker pulsed—her device moving fast toward the main city road.

When he...