The Culprit (5)

Seeing the maid run away like a scared rabbit pumped Richard's adrenalin, and he felt his excitement buildup as he rushed down the stairs after her. However, he was in for a surprise as lady luck could only help in so much. His luck may have run out or he only had one dose of it. No one would ever know but when he rounded the corner, she was not there. 

She had turned just moments before him but he found it deserted. 

"Where did she go?" He whispered as he heaved up and down, almost out of breath because he was very, very out of shape. Maxi was right; Richard was not an exercising person, so the hard few-second ran had left him panting so badly.

He slowed down a bit to catch his breath but still walked confidently. When Richard was about halfway down that corridor, he frowned and started looking around carefully because there was no exit down that path, just a couple of rooms.