"Stay here," he closed the door and turned the key in the lock.

Anna tried to stand, but the room spun before her eyes. Concussion? Seemed like it. She focused on her breathing, trying to clear her mind. The radio lay several meters away from her. If she could reach it…

At that moment, Sophia moaned and opened her eyes. A foggy, unfocused gaze slid across the room and stopped on Anna.

"You… came," the girl's voice was weak, barely audible. "Katya said you would come…"

"Katya?" Anna leaned closer. "Which Katya?"

"Katya Voronova," Sophia spoke slowly, as if choosing her words. "She's here… with us. Has been for a long time. Waiting."

The sounds of fighting in the corridor grew louder. Someone shouted commands, footsteps could be heard. It seemed the raid had begun.

"Sophia, can you stand? We need to leave."

The girl tried to rise but unsuccessfully. Her body wouldn't obey her, like a puppet with cut strings.

"Can't… Too tired…"

"It's okay, I'll help you," Anna gathered all her strength and rose from the chair. The room was still spinning, but not as badly. "We'll get out of here."

She helped Sophia sit up by supporting her under the arms. At that moment, someone began pounding on the door.

"Anna! Are you in there? Answer!" Dorokhov's voice sounded muffled but recognizable.

"Here!" she shouted. "The door is locked!"

"Get back! I'm going to break it down!"

Anna dragged Sophia to the far corner of the room, shielding her with her body. A few seconds later, a shot rang out, the lock shattered to pieces, and the door flew open. Dorokhov stood on the threshold, with two special forces officers behind him.

"Are you all right?" he quickly surveyed the room, making sure there was no danger.

"Yes. Sokolov hit me, but nothing serious," Anna nodded toward Sophia. "But she needs urgent medical attention. They gave her some kind of drugs."

"Medics are on their way," Dorokhov helped lift the girl. "We've taken control of the upper floors. Berkut tried to escape, but we detained him. But Sokolov appears to have slipped away. Escaped through some emergency exit."

"He won't get far," Anna carefully guided Sophia toward the door. "Put out an APB on him. And check this entire basement. Who knows how many more 'patients' are being held here."

In the corridor, forensic specialists were already bustling about, photographing and describing every detail. Police officers opened the doors of other rooms—most of them turned out to be empty.

"It seems Sophia was the only one… at the moment," Dorokhov supported the girl from the other side. "But judging by the equipment, there have been many 'guests' here."

When they reached the first floor, a medical team was already waiting with a stretcher. Sophia was carefully laid down and connected to an IV.

"Condition is stable," reported one of the doctors after a quick examination. "But we need to get her to a hospital urgently. We don't know what they gave her."

"I'll go with her," Anna turned to Dorokhov. "You make sure everything here is checked down to the last cabinet. And contact Elena Andreevna. Tell her we've found Sophia, she's alive, we're taking her to the hospital."

"Got it," Dorokhov nodded. "What about Berkut?"

"Let him sit in a cell for now. I'll interrogate him later, when I'm sure Sophia is okay. And find me all the information about his 'Key'—what kind of drug it is, how it works, what the consequences might be."

In the ambulance, Anna took Sophia's hand. The girl looked fragile and pale under the bright lights, but her breathing was even, and her pulse was stable.