The Elevator By William Sleator Novels & Stories

"No! No! The flowers are perfect! It's our Chairman! He's... he's in a very bad mood today. He specifically wants to see you. Please, this way!" He led her to a private elevator that said CHAIRMAN ONLY. The doors opened with a fingerprint scanner. Elise hesitated. "This elevator... is this for me?" "Yes! Only the Chairman and his family use this elevator! Please!" Elise stepped in, more confused than ever. The elevator shot up so fast her ears popped. 88 floors in 20 seconds. Ding. The doors opened directly into a corridor. And Elise's breath stopped again. The entire 88th floor was one giant office. No cubicles. Just floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking all of London, even bigger than the p

His lips curled faintly. The elevator got to the twenty-eighth floor and opened. The person manning the elevator monitor gasped. Indeed, Slade might look like a brute, but he had more intelligence than most. Every possibility was often calculated with brutal accuracy. He had anticipated he would be stopped by the security and technical team. Only an idiot would let him go all the way up while doing nothing. So he stopped two floors before his destination. He stepped out of the elevator and made his way to the fire escape.

He was like a bubble gum that was impossible to get rid of. "Fine!" Lana gave in. "O' great savior, why don't you come in and have a seat?" Liam didn't say anything, but his body obediently followed Lana into the elevator. The elevator in a high-end residential area wasn't small in itself, but when Lana and Liam were standing inside, Lana felt it was so cramped that it was hard to breathe. Fortunately, the elevator soon reached their floor, and Lana invited Liam in. "Welcome, the great Mr. Liam. It's truly an honor to be graced by your presence." Lana said said as she bent down to place a pair of slippers for Liam.

I slipped mine in and the panel sucked it in, holding it in place as some digital process read the card and instructed the elevator to take me to the appropriate floor. That, at least, was interesting, and a phenomenal way of keeping out solicitors and other unwanted visitors. If they couldn’t even find your floor listed, they couldn’t “stumble in by mistake.” I was surprised when the doors opened. The elevator had moved so fast and silently that I hadn’t realized we’d ascended thirty-three floors already. Not only that, but my stepfather’s inner sanctum was positively pristine, more so than I’d even imagined.

“Ms. Monroe is the majority shareholder. Per her grandfather’s will. She has the right to attend.” The phone rang. The guard answered. Listened. Hung up. “Elevator to 60,” he said. Handed her a visitor badge. “But I’m warning you, Ms. Hayes is already up there. She’s not going to be happy.” Elena pinned the badge to her sweater. It felt like a target. The elevator was glass. It rose fast. The city dropped away. 10 floors. 20. 40. Her hands shook. Not from fear. From being vertical too long. From three days on concrete.

Ethan muttered under his breath, “That was unsettling.” Serena pressed the elevator button. The doors opened immediately. As if they had been waiting. Inside, there were no buttons. Just a single illuminated panel. 16 The doors closed with a soft click. The elevator rose smoothly. Ethan shifted beside her. “You realize this is exactly how secret organizations operate in movies.” Serena didn’t smile. “This isn’t a movie.” The elevator stopped. The doors slid open. The sixteenth floor was silent. Not empty but quiet in the way powerful rooms often were.

The BlackWolf Corp. elevator was a monster of steel and mirrors. Thirty-two stories tall, with a speed that sent your stomach up to your throat, and a silence broken only by the almost imperceptible hum of the cables. Ethan Moore rushed in at the very last second, his leather briefcase slapping against his thigh, still-hot coffee in his left hand. He pressed the button for the 17th floor with a sweaty thumb and took a deep breath, trying to pull himself together.

He led me inside. The interior was modern but cozy. Cream walls with tasteful wooden accents, a living room that was spacious but not overwhelming, a staircase leading up—but when Orrin pressed a button, I realized there was also an elevator tucked neatly by the wall. “We won't want Elias using the stairs, especially since he's started crawling,” he explained casually, pressing the panel. “Or if… you know… we end up with more kids running around.” My cheeks warmed. I shot him a look. “Already planning ahead, are you?”

I remained oblivious to the curious side glances and furtive stares I received from the people passing by. The elevator doors slid open with a soft, metallic ding, I stepped inside, my heels clicking on the polished floor, and turned to face the front of the elevator. The two guards followed closely behind me, their heavy footsteps echoing off the walls as they took up positions on either side, standing at attention with their backs to the doors. One of them, his hand resting on the control panel, pressed a single button - the top floor - with a deliberate motion. As the button illuminated, the doors glided shut with a smooth, whisper-quiet motion, enveloping us in a warm, golden light. The

So Damien it was. The elevator doors slid shut with a dull hiss. The moment it started moving, something felt wrong. A grinding sound from above. A shudder crack through the floor, like metal scraping against metal. Then the lights flickered. Once. Twice. Elena lid stretch The elevator lurched upward. Too fast. Way too fast. Elena’s stomach dropped as the floor indicator flew past 15… 18… 22… “Stop!” she shouted, slamming her palm against the emergency button. Nothing. The button didn’t even light up. Dead.