Chapter Nine
The City Is My Mistress
A breeze drops down the stairwell as Boone enters the building. Street noise echoes above.
The roof hatch is open.
Hello?
No response.
Time slows. Then stops.
The doorjamb’s splintered. Wood fragments litter the floor. The frame is cracked. The deadbolt screws are torn out. The door’s ajar.
He pushes in, hand steady. The hinges groan.
Brando?
No tail thumping—j…