Chapter 2 - The Hidden RoomThe man in the hallway didn't rush.
That scared me more than if he had.
Professionals moved slowly when they knew they already controlled the room.
I pushed Elena and Caleb behind a stone column.
Three silhouettes appeared through the darkness.
Black clothes.
Gloves.
Suppressed weapons.
The first man stepped into the firelight.
He lifted something in his hand.
A watch.
Silver casing.
Cracked leather strap.
My stomach tightened.
Daniel had worn that watch every day for eight years.
I knew because I had bought it for him.
The man held it up.
“Looking for this?”
I raised my firearm.
“Put it down.”
He laughed.
Then every light in the mansion switched on.
My eyes adjusted.
The room was empty.
No men.
No weapons.
No watch.
Nothing.
I heard a faint click behind me.
The fireplace.
A hidden panel had opened inside the stone wall.
Caleb stared at it.
“My dad said that was the door.”
I turned.
There was a narrow opening behind the fireplace, just large enough for one person.
I had owned the estate for nine years.
I had never known it existed.
That meant someone had been using a section of my house without my knowledge.
I entered first.
A narrow staircase descended beneath the mansion.
The air was colder there.
Elena followed.
Caleb stayed close.
At the bottom was a concrete corridor.
No dust.
No cobwebs.
Fresh footprints.
Someone had been here recently.
I raised my weapon.
The corridor opened into a small room filled with monitors.
My security feeds.
Every camera in the estate.
Someone had been watching us.
The screens showed the living room from different angles.
I saw myself pretending to sleep.
I saw Elena walking into the room.
I saw Caleb approaching the desk.
I saw myself opening my eyes.
Then one monitor rewound automatically.
I watched Caleb walk toward me again.
But this time the footage was different.
A shadow stood behind the curtains.
Watching.
Someone had been there before Caleb reached the room.
I stepped closer.
The image froze.
The shadow turned toward the camera.
A face was visible for less than a second.
I knew him.
“Thomas.”
Elena looked at me.
“Who is Thomas?”
“My head of security.”
The mansion suddenly felt much larger.
And much less safe.
I opened the console.
The system had been accessed remotely.
One file had been copied.
Its name was:
MERCER_PROTOCOL_11
Eleven.
The same number of months since Daniel disappeared.
I clicked it.
A video appeared.
Daniel Mercer sat in front of a camera.
His face was bruised.
His right eye swollen.
He looked exhausted.
But alive.
Elena made a sound behind me.
“Daniel.”
The recording began.
“Marcus, if you're watching this, then I failed.”
I froze.
He knew my name.
He knew this recording would reach me.
“I don't have much time. Victor Kane is alive.”
Elena covered her mouth.
Daniel continued.
“He isn't trying to kill you. That's what they want you to believe.”
My pulse quickened.
“He is trying to force you to open the vault.”
I stared at the screen.
“Do not trust anyone in your organization.”
The video glitched.
Daniel looked directly into the camera.
“Especially the man who tells you I am dead.”
The screen went black.
Then one final frame appeared.
An address.
OYSTER BAY.
Elena whispered.
“That was the place on the note.”
I turned toward the door.
A red light began blinking on the console.
Someone had just accessed the room remotely.
Then a voice came through the speakers.
“Marcus Vale.”
I raised my weapon.
The voice continued.
“You have ten minutes to leave your mansion.”
A pause.
“Or the boy dies first.”
Caleb's face went white.
The speakers clicked off.
I stared at the monitor.
Ten minutes.
Whoever had done this knew about Caleb.
That meant they had been watching longer than I realized.
I turned to Elena.
“Pack nothing.”
She looked confused.
“We're leaving.”
“Where?”
I picked up the recording.
“Oyster Bay.”
Caleb grabbed my hand.
His eyes were wide.
“My dad said something else.”
“What?”
“He said never go there alone.”
I stared at him.
“Why?”
Caleb swallowed.
“Because that's where they buried the first man who betrayed you.”
I felt the blood drain from my face.
I had never told Caleb about the betrayal.
May you like
Not once.
And yet he knew.
Related Stories
