"Right, yes. We have that thing we have to get to," Anna said, already stepping toward the door.
Probably best that they took off before Tess got back with more ideas and more to-dos.
"I'll join you," Diana added, with a pointed look to Babushka.
"Don't vant to be late," Babushka agreed.
"Late for what?" Zach asked.
"Anything," Babushka answered with a wave of her hand.
The four of them made a hasty exit, leaving Piper and Zach alone.
"You can take off if you need." Piper shifted her weight from one foot to the other. "I still need to check out the audiovisual setup."
"Want company?" Zach asked, hands in his pockets. His casual stance did nothing to diminish the intensity of his attention as it rested on her.
The silence stretched between them uncomfortably.
"Don't you have underwear to design or something?" she asked, but there was no bite to her words.
"I'm multitasking. Besides, I'm good with tech stuff." He moved to stand beside her. "I'll have you know I once built a custom inventory management system for my family's flower shop and installed new sound systems in all the shops. Before I found my true calling in men's supportive undergarments, of course."
Piper rolled her eyes but couldn't suppress a small laugh. "Fine. You can help me check the AV closet." She pointed toward a discreet door near the bar area.
They crossed the space together, an evening breeze beginning to stir. The door was tucked almost invisibly into the wall's paneling. Piper tested the handle as Zach snagged the basket Babushka left behind.
The door turned smoothly, revealing a small, climate-controlled room lined with equipment racks. The space was cramped but efficiently organized, with digital mixers, amplifiers, and various control panels mounted in neat rows.
Zach followed her inside, pulling the door shut behind them.
"Impressive setup," Zach said, tracing his fingertip along a touchscreen controller.
Piper nodded, making notes on her clipboard. "Good capacity, state-of-the-art equipment. If Anna wants music during the ceremony, we'll need to run tests for sound bleed, but?—"
A sharp click interrupted her mid-sentence.
They both turned toward the door.
"Did that...?" Zach asked, already moving toward the handle.
"It couldn't have," Piper said, but the sinking feeling in her stomach told her otherwise.
Zach tried the handle, then tried again with more force. It didn't budge.
"We're locked in," he confirmed, giving the door another futile tug.
Piper stared at him; clipboard clutched to her chest. "That's impossible. These doors don't automatically lock from the outside."
"And yet..." Zach stared down at the door handle.
"This is ridiculous. There has to be another way out."
"No windows, no second exit," Zach observed, running his hands along the walls as if hoping to discover a secret passage. "Just us and about a million dollars' worth of sound equipment."
"No signal in here," Zach said, checking his phone.
"Mine, either," Piper sank down onto the only chair in the small room. "How did this even happen? These doors are designed specifically not to lock people inside. It's a safety hazard."
