POV: Lucian Voss

The elevator doors slid open with a soft ding, but I didn’t move. I just stood there, frozen in place like a statue. My hands stayed at my sides, stiff and useless. My breath felt stuck somewhere between my lungs and throat. Even though the doors were open and the hallway stretched out in front of me, I couldn’t bring myself to take that first step. It was like my body refused to move, even though my mind was screaming at it to do something. Anything.

The familiar sounds of the top floor of Voss Tower slowly drifted in. I heard the faint clicking of heels against...