Viviana’s head snapped up from her monitor the moment the silence registered.

It was the wrong kind of quiet.

For the last twenty minutes, the quiet had been filled with the soft tap-tap of Axel’s fingers on his iPad and his occasional, thoughtful hums. Now, nothing.

"Axel?" she called, swiveling in her chair.

No response.

Her heart gave a single, hard knock against her ribs. She stood up so quickly her chair rolled back and hit the wall.

"Axel, this isn’t funny. ...