I was goingto get yelled at.
My sneakers squeaked against the tile floor as I stepped into the lobby. Even though the lights were low, it still felt bright. The walls looked similar to the ones Thea worked between—stark white and sterile. The desk in front of me was vacant but shiny enough that I could make out my reflection as I stepped forward.
There were hallways to my right and left, pinging off the lobby like different routes on a circuit board. I hadn’t been here before but the man who’d dropped me off told me to follow the widest hallway. Forehead pinched, I spun in a circle, studying each one of my potential routes before deciding the one behind the desk looked the largest.
My steps were weighted, growing heavier and heavier as I circled the oversized workstation and started down the hall. It got darker the longer I walked, and I couldn’t help but wrap my hands in the bottom of my sweatshirt.
I was going to get yelled at. I just knew it. It had been almost four weeks since I found ghost’s post, and I still hadn’t been able to figure out who or where he was. Couple that information with the fact that Mr. Thomas hadnevercalled me into his office before, andI knew.
A noise escaped my throat. It was weak, but still it echoed off the walls I moved between, bouncing from one side to the other. The reverberation made me feel a little less alone as I came to a halt in front of a set of doors.
The gold, polished handle I reached for was the fanciest thing I’d ever seen. Fingers wrapped around the ring, I noted how cold the steel was before I tugged the door open with a grunt.
Fluorescent lights poured over me from every direction, highlighting the expansive office and all the lavish furniture it held. I wasn’t sure where to look as I tried to take it all in—the seating area, the bar, the chandelier.
It was all soopulent—and if you asked me, a little flashy.
My hand slipped off the handle. The edge of the door hit me in the back hard enough to send me stumbling forward. A wave of uncertainty threatened to knock me off my feet when the door latched shut behind me. I gnawed at my bottom lip. I didn’t feel any pain but the familiar, metallic taste of blood met my tongue.
I shouldn’t have come without Daddy.
“Hello?”
Mr. Thomas’ office was vast… andempty.There were more white walls and a three-foot marble sculpture that reminded me of mashed potatoes. Geometric shapes were woven in the large rug beneath my shoes. Hundreds of square feet lie before me and there wasn’t a single plant in sight.
I frowned.
That’s probably why he’s so grumpy.
His desk was the centerpiece of the room—an oversized thing made entirely of glass. It looked like something from a spaceship, and it was the only thing that interested me.
I weaved through a couple of suede chairs and placed the tip of my finger on the edge of it, grinning at the strange sound it made and the smudge it left behind. It faded quickly, and I continued doodling shapes against the glass, wondering if Daddy would buy me a desk just like this. It washuge.I bet it could hold five monitors and a couple of keyboards.Easily.
Mr. Thomas probably used this cool spaceship desk for stupid, boring stuff like paperwork and humdrum phone calls.Ew.
“Who are you?”
I flinched. The violent act caused my arm to lash out, and my elbow connected with a stapler. The little contraption hit the floor with aclankand skidded across the room.
Ohmygod.
My cheeks burned, and I slapped my palms against the heated flesh to hide the evidence of how flustered I was.
Tobias Thomas was standing in the doorway, a crease in his forehead. He had one hand braced on the doorframe, while the other was still wrapped around the handle like he was prepared to turn around and bolt back down the hallway at any second.
“Uhm, hello. Hi.” My hands flapped a little as I tried to remember everything Thea taught me about meeting new people. “My name is Silas. It's, uhm, nice to meet you, Toby.”
The bright freckles lining his face paled.Did I say it wrong?“How do you know my name?”
Hands in my sweatshirt, I glanced around the room. My toes curled inside my shoes, and I kind of wanted to run away.
I wasn’t scared.
I just… wasn’t sure what to do. I didn’t think Toby knew who I was, and Thea told me I shouldn’t just tell people I'm a hacker—even if it’s the truth.
I tried to smile. “I work for Mr. Thomas, and uhm, everybody knows who you are.”
That wasn’t a lie.