Page 38 of Haunted

I skid to a stop, my bare feet sliding on the smooth marble. This corridor is too long, too straight. Cora couldn’t have made it to the end already, and there were no side passages?—

A grinding sound fills the air. Stone against stone, deep and mechanical.

The wall to my left shudders and then begins to move. Slowly, inexorably, it slides across the corridor I just came from, sealing off my path back. Where there had been an opening seconds ago, now there’s only solid stone.

I press my palms against the new wall, pushing desperately. “Cora!”

My voice echoes in the empty corridor, but there’s no response. The maze has swallowed my best friend whole, and I’m alone.

I press my back against the cold stone wall, forcing myself to stay absolutely still. My breathing sounds thunderous in the silence, each exhale seeming to echo off the maze walls like a beacon for whoever’s hunting me.

Listen. Focus.

The footsteps I heard before have stopped, but thatdoesn’t mean anything. They could be anywhere now, moving silently through corridors I can’t see. The maze feels like it’s breathing around me, alive with deviant observers at every turn.

A pebble skitters across marble somewhere to my left.

My heart slams against my ribs. That wasn’t random—someone made that stone move.

I hold my breath, straining to hear over the thundering of my pulse. The silence stretches on, oppressive and terrifying. Every shadow could hide a predator. Every flicker of torchlight makes me flinch.

Then I see him.

A figure emerges from an alcove I swear was empty moments ago, stepping into the torchlight with casual confidence. He’s tall, broad-shouldered, and dressed in black leather pants. But it’s the mask that makes my blood turn to ice, bright blue, and covering the lower half of his face with a skull pattern.

His head tilts as he spots me, and I can feel his gaze assessing me. A low chuckle rumbles from his throat.

“Well, well.” His voice is smooth. “What do we have here?”

Knox. I recognize that cocky tone, the way he moves like he owns every space he occupies. Xavier’s youngest brother, the one who always seems to find everything amusing.

He takes a step closer. “Red silk suits you, sweetheart. I have to say...” His gaze drops to where the fabric barelycovers my thighs. “Xavier has excellent taste in wrapping paper.”

My stomach lurches. I press harder against the wall, wishing I could melt into the stone.

“What’s wrong?” Knox continues. “Cat got your tongue? You were so talkative at the club.”

He’s close enough now that I can see his eyes through the mask’s openings—bright blue, lit with cruel amusement.

“I was hoping you’d run,” he purrs, voice dropping. “The chase is always more fun when the prey puts up a fight.”

I press my back harder against the stone wall, my heart hammering as Knox takes another leisurely step forward. “You know,” he says conversationally, like we’re chatting at a coffee shop instead of him hunting me through a maze, “The statues are so boring.”

He reaches out, fingers almost brushing the red silk at my shoulder. I flinch away, and his low chuckle sends ice through my veins.

“There we go. That’s the fear I was looking for.” His voice drops to a purr. “Tell me, sweetheart, what did you think was going to happen when you signed that pretty little NDA? That you’d waltz in here, ask some questions, and waltz back out?”

My throat feels like sandpaper. “I thought?—”

“You thought wrong.” Knox’s hand hovers dangerously close to my face, not quite touching but close enough that I can feel the heat radiating from his skin. “See, the thing about Xavier’s little games is that onceyou’re in, you don’t get to leave the same way you came.”

His fingers trace the air inches from my cheek, and I can’t help the small whimper that escapes me.

“Music to my ears,” he murmurs. “Let’s see what other sounds you make when?—”

A growl echoes through the corridor. Low, dangerous, and absolutely feral.

Knox’s entire demeanor changes instantly. His hand drops away from my face, his head snapping toward the sound. I notice his expression shift from amusement to tension.