Barely

Chapter 45

The heavy footsteps paused in the sudden silence, making Lily's heart pound even harder in tense anticipation. For a long, agonizing moment, nothing happened except the faint sound of harsh breathing from the intruders.

"See anything outta place?" one of the gruff voices eventually spoke up again, sounding perplexed.

"Nah, just looks like a regular walk-in closet to me." There was a disdainful snort. "Barely even big enough to fit a broom cupboard in this fancy-ass place, let alone some kinda panic room."

Lily didn't dare move a muscle, lungs straining against the effort of holding perfectly still and silent as the men continued their judgemental sweeping of the area just beyond the hidden door. She could only pray the panic room's seamless camouflage held up under their scrutiny.

"Yeah, you're probably right," the first voice allowed after another tense pause. "Waste of time looking too hard in here. C'mon, let's take a look at the rest of the upstairs before reportin