9:30 AM. St. Nicholas Hospital.

Aria walked into the fourth-floor wing with purpose. She was dressed for battle in a blood-red blazer and wide-leg trousers, her hair slicked back into a flawless, severe ponytail.

She reached the nurses' station, ready to breezily sign in and march to Room 4.

But as she approached, a large, unfamiliar security guard stepped in front of the hallway entrance. He wasn't hospital security. He was private.

Aria stopped, her heels clicking sharply. She looked the man up and down.

“Excuse me,” she said, her voice dripping with ice. “Step aside.”

The guard didn’t move. Behind the desk, a young nurse named Lila looked up,...