Jiang Lan pounded on the door until her arms gave out, slumping to the floor in the narrow, suffocating darkness of the storage room. It was too quiet, as if the very air had fallen silent. A crushing darkness enveloped her, wrapping around her like a thousand silken threads, strangling the breath from her. She crouched on the cold floor, hugging her knees tightly. The only sounds in the entire ro