"Nita? Nita, are you still there?" Effie called into her phone several times, but Nita''s voice never came back.


    Her grandmother looked over, concern creasing her face. "Effie, what''s wrong?"


    "Nita dropped her phone-I''m going to look for her, see what happened," Effie replied, grabbing her jacket.


    Her grandmother cautioned, "Be careful. If anything feels off, get out of there right away."


    Effie chuckled as she pulled on her shoes. "So you''re telling me to act like a scared little turtle and hide if there''s trouble?"


    Her grandmother shot her a look, lips twitching at the corners. "Better to be called a coward than to end up hurt. Nothing is more important than your life."


    "Fair point. After all these years under your influence, I must''ve inherited your survivor''s instincts. I''m all about self-preservation," Effie teased.


    Her grandmother couldn''t help butugh, giving Effie a yful nudge. "You and that smart mouth of yours."


    Effie grinned and called back, “I''ll be back before you know it, Grandma." "Alright, take care."


    As soon as the door clicked shut, her grandmother''s smile faded. She fumbled for her sses, quickly dialing Lyman''s number.


    Effie hadn''t been on the road long when Vinson Elliott and Randell showed up.


    Effie, who had just started her car, caught a glimpse of movement in the mirror and tensed—until Vinson rolled down his window, shing a wide, reassuring grin. Effie exhaled, relief flooding her.


    "Effie!" Vinson called, waving. From the passenger seat, Randell leaned over and greeted her, "Hey Effie, fancy running into you out here! Where are you off to?"


    Effie didn''t bother with pleasantries. "You two aren''t fooling anyone. What do you really want?"


    Vinson shrugged, unbothered. "We''re just following orders. Lyman told us to keep an eye on you, so here we are."


    "I''m looking for Nita. As soon as I find her, I''m heading straight home," Effie said tly.


    The mention of Nita wiped the smile from Vinson''s face. "She got herself mixed up in this too?"


    "She said she was out looking for new clients," Effie replied.


    Vinson scoffed. "That woman will chase any deal, huh? She''s already a manager does she really need more money? How much is enough?"


    Randell shot Vinson a sideways nce. "Why are you so worked up? Do you have a thing for her or something?"


    "Oh, give me a break," Vinson


    retorted. "Get your mind out of the et gutter. She''s my employee-ofe?


    course I care. If something happens to her, I lose one of my best people."


    Randell smirked. "Shouldn''t you be happy to have someone so driven on your team? What''s there to be annoyed about?"


    Vinson frowned, caught off guard by the question. Why was he so irritated?


    "I''m not some heartless boss. I didn''t force anyone into this. If Effie gets mad at me over this, then what?"


    There it was the real worry. Vinson wasn''t afraid of Effie; he was afraid of the man behind her.


    Soon, they pulled up in front of the old building where the escape room game was supposed to be—a long-abandoned private school.


    The ce had a grim reputation.


    Years ago, a student had died on the grounds, and since then, ghost stories had flourished. Eventually, fear drove students and parents away, and the ce fell into ruin.


    Vinson shivered, skin prickling with goosebumps. “Jeez, the grass is taller than I am. Even in broad daylight, this ce is creepy as hell. What kind of idiot woulde here for fun?" he muttered.


    The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and


    continue reading tomorrow, everyone!