I sprinted across the slick, wet roof, my boots sliding on the treacherous tar paper.

Behind me, the deafening roar of the machine gun drowned out Marcus's rifle fire.

I didn't look back.

I couldn't look back.

I reached the rusted iron railing of the fire escape on the north edge of the building.

I practically threw Lily over the side, landing on the grated metal platform with a jarring thud.

I turned back to the roof just as the machine gun fire ceased.

The helicopter was hovering directly over the center of the building, its searchlight locked onto a motionless figure lying on the tar.

Marcus was down.

A scream tore from my throat, raw and agonizing.

Eleanor stepped out onto the skid of the helicopter, holding onto the frame with one hand.

She looked down at Marcus's body, then turned her cold, calculating gaze toward me.

Even through the rain and the distance, I could feel the absolute zero of her stare.

She raised a small, black remote control in her right hand.

“I told you, Clara,” her voice echoed through the megaphone.

“I am the architect of everything.”

She pressed a button on the remote.

Deep within the bowels of the asylum, a series of massive, sequential explosions detonated.

The ground beneath my feet heaved violently as the supporting columns of the stone building gave way.

The entire structure began to collapse inward, a terrifying symphony of groaning metal and shattering stone.

The fire escape tore away from the brick wall, groaning under the immense strain.

I grabbed Lily tightly, wrapping my body around hers as the iron platform began to tilt downward into the abyss.

The helicopter banked sharply, turning away from the imploding building and ascending into the dark, stormy sky.

I locked eyes with my mother one last time as she flew away, leaving me to fall into the ruins of her design.

The ground rushed up to meet us in a blinding chaos of dust, rain, and darkness.

The platform snapped completely, sending us plunging into the void.

I closed my eyes, tightening my grip on my daughter as the world disintegrated around us.