Flawless Ruin

JULIET

I freeze.The office is plunged into darkness, and every nerve in my body is screaming at me to get the hell out of here.

But what if I’m not alone?

I stand there, in the black, shivering and wondering what to do.

Then I hear a noise nearby. Or do I? I spin around, my heart pounding so loudly that it’s hard to hear over the thump. But I swear I can hear someone breathing. “David?” I whisper, hopefully.

There’s no answer.

It’s just your imagination, Juliet. Calm down. I try to reassure myself, but my body doesn’t listen.

“David?” I ask again, louder.

Nothing.

I blink until my eyes adjust to the darkness. Lights from neighboring buildings flood through the windows, and it illuminates the office around me.

Think.

I grab the phone on my desk to dial security, but when I lift the handset, there’s no dial tone.

I find the base of the phone and press the buttons; but hear nothing.

The line is dead.

I gulp.

OK, time for plan B.

I grab my bag and jacket and use the flashlight on my phone to guide my way back to the elevators.

But as I head down the hall, I hear a muffled noise.

Footsteps. They’re coming up, steadily, behind me.

Oh God!

I break into a run, dashing to the elevators. Finding the panel, I frantically jab at the DOWN button.

But nothing happens.

Of course, I realize: If the power is out, the elevators would be dead.

Fuck.

I pause a beat, listening for the footsteps. I can’t tell if it’s footsteps, but I hear something.

I have to get out of here.

I race down the hall, and find the door to

the stairwell. Pushing it open, shining my beam on the steps, I hurry down as quickly as I can. My footsteps echo on the concrete, my heart is in my throat.

Please, let me get out of here.

I’m about three flights down when I hear the click of a door opening somewhere above me.