Chapter 197
The antiseptic scent of my office, usually a comforting backdrop to my work, felt suffocating tonight. I paced back and forth, the worn carpet muffling my anxious steps. The image of Maria's father, his eyes glowing with that unnatural light, was seared into my mind. Each tick of the clock seemed to amplify the urgency, the knowledge that time was running out.
Dafa was late.
Or maybe it just felt that way. Every minute stretched into an eternity as I replayed the conversation with Nurse Davis, the discovery of the locket, the chilling realization that Maria's father was at the center of this nightmare.
I stopped pacing and stared out the window, watching the city lights twinkle in the distance. A city unknowingly on the brink of disaster. My city.
Finally, a knock.
My heart practically leaped out of my chest. "Come in!" I called out, my voice sharper than I intended.
