“It’s me, Eric! Can you hear me? Knock back! Say something!”
The steel could carry even the faintest sound. If she tapped, he would know.
But silence pressed in, heavier by the second.
This wasn’t good.
Eric fumbled for his phone, flicked on the flashlight, and his breathing grew louder, his chest rising and falling sharply.
The harsh light revealed sweat rolling down his temples.
“Xander!”
“Yes!” Xander answered at once.
“The hospital staff is handling it! The maintenance team is already on the way!”
It wasn’t enough.
Eric’s chest tightened as wild thoughts consumed him. He wanted to wrench the elevator doors apart, to dive down and find Hadley, to see with his own eyes whether she was safe.
But the choice wasn’t his to make.
If Hadley was unharmed for the moment, forcing the doors open might only throw her into danger.
“Stay right where you are!” Eric shot Xander a quick look, then turned toward the stairwell.
“Keep me updated!”
“Wait, Mr. Scott! Where are you heading?”
Eric raced down the fire escape, leaping to the next floor before veering around the corner and sprinting straight for the elevator.
“Hadley!” His fists pounded against the metal doors as his voice rang with urgency.
“Hadley Pearson! Can you hear me? Please answer!”
Silence pressed back at him.
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Pulling out his phone, he tried dialing her number, only to see the call fail—no signal reached inside the elevator shaft.
Without stopping long, Eric spun around and charged down another flight of stairs, hammering on the next set of elevator doors in desperation. His cries echoed the same plea.
One floor after another, over and over, his voice rang out.
“Hadley! Can you hear me? Where are you?”
Not a single reply came.
The emptiness pressed in, offering no sound in return. Eric pushed forward relentlessly, sweat streaming down his face, his shirt damp and sticking uncomfortably to his skin. Although the air was stifling, a bone-deep chill coursed through him.
Inside the stalled private elevator, Hadley remained trapped by herself.
The whole ordeal had unfolded in mere minutes—one terrifying plunge, and now she was stranded, trembling from the shock.
Darkness swallowed the space. Curled into a corner with her back pressed to the wall, she fought to steady her breathing, clinging to the hope that someone would come.
Out of nowhere, a loud thump echoed from above, and then a faint voice broke through the silence, calling her name.
“Hadley! Hadley Pearson!”
.
.
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