A Secret Passage

“W-What’s the plan, Miss Carrington?!” Someone scrambled up from the ground and grabbed Raina’s wrist in a panic.

She wasn’t sure if she was imagining things, but she could’ve sworn Leif—who always looked cold and detached—actually glanced over at that person.

“I knew it. I knew you’d have a way out… But it’s all fire out there, cough, cough… What can we even do?”

“I’m not trying to pressure you, Miss Carrington, but I’m really not doing well. One minute I’m freezing, the next I’m burning up. Cough… cough…”

“I’m scared.”

The person let go of her wrist right after that.

Raina crouched down to take their pulse. “You’ve got a fever. It’s not too bad, but try not to move too much—save your energy. I’ll treat you once we’re out of here.”

The guy blinked, stunned. “O-Okay… Miss Carrington.”

She stood and pointed ahead. “Everyone, listen up! No questions—just follow me. This way!”

“That way? Isn’t that where the storage rooms are? What’s over there? Is there even a way out?” someone mumbled.

Mr. Shaw shot that person a look, and they instantly shut up.

Then he said firmly, “You heard her. Do what Miss Carrington says—follow her.”

“Yeah, yeah! If she says there’s a way out, there is! Let’s move!”

“We’re gonna die if we stay here anyway. Might as well follow her!”

“Anyone who can walk, help the others! Stick together—don’t fall behind!”

Leif was still supporting Mr. Shaw, but the guy who had been helping before walked up and offered awkwardly, “Uh, I’ll take over. You should, uh… go stay close to Miss Carrington.”

No one really knew who Leif was, but since he came in with Miss Carrington, he had to be someone important. Maybe a friend… maybe even her boyfriend?

At a time like this, it was better for him to stick with her.

Even Mr. Shaw agreed. “Yes, sir… we don’t need you here anymore. Please… look after Miss Carrington. Thank you.”

Leif gave a small nod. “Got it.”

He let go of Mr. Shaw and strode after Raina.

Seeing him catch up, Raina suddenly remembered—right, Leif was still here.

She had dragged him into all of this without thinking—car chases, crashing gates… now they were stuck in a burning building. Guilt flickered in her chest. But this wasn’t the time to apologize, and honestly, even if it were, she wasn’t the type to get all sentimental.

Besides, Leif looked… totally fine. Not a hair out of place, not a wrinkle on his suit. The guy looked like he’d just strolled out of a boardroom, not into a fire. Calm, composed, like this was no big deal.

She opened her mouth to say something, then closed it again. What was she even supposed to say?

After a beat of silence, she finally asked, “Mr. Vexley… you okay?”

He raised an eyebrow. “Nope. I’m terrified.”

Raina: “…”

Her lips twitched. “Don’t worry. I’m here. There’s a secret tunnel ahead, through the warehouse. It leads outside.”

Leif glanced at her. “A secret passage?”

Yup. That was exactly what it was.

Turns out Raina had actually been thinking about that secret tunnel just moments ago—trying to figure out exactly where the entrance was.

The No. 1 Experimental Base was top secret. Only researchers with special chip access were allowed in—no random people could get inside.

Back when Mrs. Carrington was still alive, Raina had never actually been inside the base. But the moment Leif crashed the car through the gate, she caught a glimpse of the layout inside—and suddenly it all clicked. She hadn’t been inside before, but she had seen all of this before, long ago.

The lab area, the sterilization zone, the warehouse, the storage rooms…

Way back, she’d come across all this in what looked like useless, discarded files Mrs. Carrington had handed her.

The warehouse was just ahead. The fire around here wasn’t too bad, so the group stumbled inside. Raina and Leif stayed at the back, making sure everyone got in safely. Once the last person was inside, the two of them worked together to shut the heavy metal door—scorching hot from the flames outside.

The fire was raging out there, and inside the temperature was already climbing. Sweat poured down everyone’s faces.

Someone wiped their brow, fanning themselves nervously as they asked, “M-Miss Carrington… this door’s sealed tight. What if the fire reaches it? What then?”

Even if the flames didn’t get in, they were stuck in this airtight space with a whole crowd of people. Sooner or later, they’d run out of air.

No one said it out loud, but everyone was thinking it: either get burned alive or suffocate. Neither was a good way to go.

Raina stayed silent. Leif stuck close to her side, step for step.

She glanced around, then stopped by an unassuming shelf to the left side of the warehouse. She was about to move it when Leif beat her to it.

The shelf wasn’t light, but the big CEO had crazy strength. Still, he seemed worried about hurting Raina and said, “Step back. Don’t get too close.”

At a time like this, Raina didn’t argue. She stepped aside.

Leif moved the shelf—and behind it was a hidden metal door, almost blending perfectly into the wall.

“Is that… a secret room?” someone gasped.

“We’ve been in this lab so long, and we never knew there was a door here!”

“Does it lead outside?!”

“Are we actually going to get out of here?!”

Leif was closest to the door. He lowered his voice: “I’m afraid not.”

“What? No way? Why not? There is a door, right?”

He pointed to the center of the door. “There’s a lock—password protected. Without the code, this door won’t open.”

“Can’t we just bust it open? We’re a lot of people—if we all push together, we can break it, right?!”

“Yeah! Didn’t we break through that glass wall earlier? If we all try, we can definitely break this one too!”

“Well, we’ve gotta try. Sitting here waiting to die isn’t an option…”

Raina shot Leif a look. He looked so serious, but somehow she felt like he was messing with them on purpose.

She pressed her fingers to her forehead, took two steps forward, and said, “Don’t listen to him. I have the password.”

“The password?! Miss Carrington, how do you have the password?”

“This is the place she brought us to. Of course she knows the code. Look at all of you, acting like scared little kids…”

“Miss Carrington, please don’t lie to us… My… my heart really can’t take this anymore…”

***