Chapter 10: The Voice Below Us
The silence after the third voice was worse than any scream.
Nobody moved.
Nobody even breathed.
The two boys stood frozen on opposite sides of the hidden room, both staring toward the darkness beneath the crawlspace.
Lily gripped my hand so tightly her fingers hurt.
“Dad…”
I looked down at her.
“It’s okay.””
But the lie tasted bitter.
Because it wasn’t okay.
Nothing about this was okay.
I turned the flashlight toward the far corner of the room.
The beam shook with my hand.
“Who’s there?””
No answer.
Then came a soft sound.
A child humming.
A song I knew.
My stomach dropped.
It was the lullaby I used to sing to Noah when he was little.
The one I had never sung outside our home.
The one nobody else knew.
The boy near the doorway whispered:
“Dad…”
The boy inside the room said:
“That’s not him.””
I looked at both of them.
“Then who is it?””
Neither answered.
That terrified me more.
Vanessa stepped forward.
“No.””
I looked at her.
“You know.””
She shook her head quickly.
“No, Marcus.””
“Then why are you scared?””
Her eyes moved toward the darkness.
“Because I thought we destroyed it.””
The words landed heavily.
“We?””
She closed her eyes.
“I didn’t do this alone.””
A cold feeling moved through my body.
“Who helped you?””
Before she could answer, the humming stopped.
The hidden room suddenly felt smaller.
A voice came from the darkness.
“Vanessa.””
My wife froze.
The voice continued.
“You promised me.””
She whispered:
“I’m sorry.””
I turned toward her.
“Who are you talking to?””
She didn’t answer.
The boy inside the room stepped forward.
“Mommy.””
Vanessa looked at him.
The boy tilted his head.
“You said you would never leave us.””
Us.
Not him.
Us.
I noticed it.
And so did Vanessa.
She looked terrified.
“What did you create?””
She covered her mouth.
“I was trying to save Noah.””
I felt anger rise.
“From what?””
She looked at the two boys.
“From dying.””
The room went silent.
The boy by the door looked down.
The other looked away.
I stared at Vanessa.
“What are you saying?””
Her voice cracked.
“When Noah was six, he got sick.””
I remembered.
The hospital.
The endless nights.
The doctors.
The fear.
“He was getting worse,” Vanessa continued.
“The treatment wasn’t working.””
She wiped her tears.
“I found the research program.””
I shook my head.
“You told me it was a clinical trial.””
“It was.””
She looked at the floor.
“At first.””
The boy in the room whispered:
“She lied.””
Vanessa flinched.
“They said they could preserve his memories.””
I stared at her.
“And you agreed?””
“I thought I was saving my son.””
Her voice broke.
“I thought if something happened, I could bring him back.””
The boy near the door spoke quietly.
“But she didn’t bring him back.””
Nobody spoke.
He looked at the other boy.
“She made another one.””
My chest tightened.
I looked at the boy.
“What happened to Noah?””
The boy didn’t answer.
The room went silent.
Then the voice beneath us spoke.
“He’s still here.””
Everyone turned.
The floor beneath the hidden room creaked.
Something moved underneath.
Vanessa stepped back.
“No.””
I looked at her.
“What?””
She shook her head.
“That’s impossible.””
The voice returned.
“You always say that.””
My flashlight pointed toward the floor.
A small panel near the wall shifted.
A hidden opening.
Another door.
Another secret.
Lily whispered:
“There’s another room?””
Vanessa looked like she might collapse.
“No.””
I stared at her.
“How many secrets are under our house?””
She didn’t answer.
The hidden panel opened slowly.
A small hand appeared.
Not reaching.
Just resting on the edge.
A child’s hand.
The boy near the doorway whispered:
“That’s him.””
The other boy looked afraid for the first time.
“No.””
I looked between them.
“What?””
The boy swallowed.
“That’s the first one.””
My heart stopped.
A weak voice came from beneath us.
“Dad?””
I stepped closer.
The voice continued.
“I’ve been waiting.””
My eyes filled with tears.
Because I knew that voice.
I knew it better than anyone.
It was Noah.
The original Noah.
But before I could reach him, Vanessa grabbed my arm.
“Marcus.””
I turned.
Her face was filled with fear.
“If you pull him out…”
May you like
She swallowed.
“You might lose all three.””
