The knock came hard against the reinforced gate — three sharp strikes, followed by a voice calling through the metal, breathless and urgent.
"It's Ethan! Please, I need to talk to someone!"
Erik was already moving before the second strike finished, Kai a half-step behind him, both reaching the gate in time to see Penelope arriving from the other direction, drawn by the same urgency in the boy's voice.
Erik keyed the lock and pulled the gate open. Ethan stood on the other side soaked through, chest heaving like he'd taken the stairs at a dead sprint, eyes wide with something closer to genuine fear than Erik had seen from him since the night of the jewelry district run.
"What happened," Erik said, already scanning the stairwell behind him for signs of pursuit.
