Chapter 3: Beneath the Floor
No one moved.
The dining room had become unnaturally quiet.
Twenty guests stared at the dark hallway.
A candle flame trembled beside a vase of white roses.
Then another heavy *BANG* came from beneath the floor.
One of the guests stood.
“What was that?””
Victoria answered too quickly.
“Old pipes.””
Luca turned toward her.
“Pipes don't knock.””
“They can.””
“Not like that.””
Victoria's face remained composed, but her fingers were trembling.
Luca noticed.
So did Elena.
A man near the end of the table whispered, “Is there a basement?””
Luca didn't answer.
He was staring at the floor.
His father had once told him never to go beneath the west wing.
Luca had assumed it was an old man's superstition.
Now he remembered something else.
The night his father died, he had found his father standing in this exact hallway.
Pale.
Angry.
Holding a silver key.
Luca had been seventeen.
He had asked, “Dad, what's down there?””
His father had looked at him for a long time.
Then he'd said, “Some doors are locked for a reason.””
At the time, Luca had laughed.
Now he didn't.
“Everyone stay here,” he said.
Victoria stepped forward.
“Luca.””
He ignored her.
“Elena.””
She looked up.
“Come with me.””
Victoria immediately objected.
“Absolutely not.””
Luca looked at her.
“Why?””
“Because she's terrified.””
“She has a reason.””
“She works for us.””
“That doesn't mean she doesn't have a voice.””
Victoria's expression hardened.
“You're taking the word of a frightened maid over your fiancée?””
Luca held up the key.
“I'm taking the evidence.””
Victoria stared at him.
Then she whispered, “You don't know what you're doing.””
“I know enough.””
Luca turned toward the hallway.
“Elena, show me the door.””
She followed him.
Victoria stayed where she was.
For a moment.
Then she followed too.
The three of them entered the dark wood hallway.
The guests remained behind, whispering among themselves.
The mansion seemed enormous now.
The farther they walked, the quieter it became.
Elena stopped near a wall covered by an antique painting.
Luca frowned.
“This?””
She nodded.
“Behind it.””
Luca reached for the frame.
Victoria suddenly said, “Don't.””
His hand stopped.
He turned.
“Why?””
Victoria stared at the painting.
“I just…”
She swallowed.
“You shouldn't.””
Luca moved the painting aside.
A narrow iron latch was hidden behind it.
His eyes narrowed.
“This wasn't on the original blueprints.””
Victoria said nothing.
Luca pulled the latch.
A section of wood shifted inward.
A narrow staircase appeared.
Cold air rose from below.
Elena stepped backward.
“No.””
Luca looked at her.
“You don't have to come down.””
She shook her head.
“No. That's not what I mean.””
“What?””
She stared into the darkness.
“She said it would start again.””
Luca's expression tightened.
“What would start?””
Elena didn't answer.
Victoria whispered, “Elena.””
Elena flinched.
“Stop.””
Victoria took a step toward her.
“You're confused.””
“No.””
“You were frightened.””
“I remember.””
“You don't know what you saw.””
“I know what I heard.””
Victoria's face changed.
Luca looked between them.
“What did you hear?””
Elena stared at the floor.
“Someone crying.””
Luca went still.
“Whose voice?””
“I don't know.””
“Male or female?””
“A man.””
Victoria suddenly turned toward the dining room.
“I think we should leave.””
Luca blocked her path.
“You're not going anywhere.””
Her eyes flashed.
“Move.””
“No.””
“Luca, I'm warning you.””
He almost laughed.
“You're warning me?””
Victoria stepped closer.
“You have no idea what you're about to uncover.””
“Then tell me.””
She said nothing.
“Tell me.””
Silence.
Luca looked at Elena.
“What happened after she locked you downstairs?””
Elena's hands shook.
“She left.””
“When?””
“About an hour ago.””
“Then how did you get out?””
Elena reached for her apron.
“She forgot to lock the second door.””
Luca looked toward Victoria.
“Why would she forget?””
Elena whispered, “Because something happened.””
“What?””
“A sound.””
“What sound?””
“A man shouting.””
Victoria suddenly grabbed Elena's arm.
“Enough.””
Elena cried out.
Luca immediately seized Victoria's wrist and pulled her away.
“Don't touch her.””
Victoria stared at him.
Her eyes filled with rage.
“You think you're protecting her?””
“I know I am.””
“You don't understand who you're protecting.””
Luca released her.
“Then explain.””
Victoria's mouth opened.
Nothing came out.
From below them came a muffled thud.
Elena covered her mouth.
Luca turned toward the stairs.
The silver key felt heavy in his palm.
He descended three steps.
Then five.
Then ten.
The darkness swallowed the light from above.
Behind him, Victoria remained at the top.
“Elena,” Luca called.
“Yes?””
“Stay there.””
He continued down.
At the bottom was a narrow stone corridor.
Old.
Damp.
Cold.
A single light flickered overhead.
At the far end stood a steel door.
Luca recognized the lock immediately.
His father's private crest was engraved above it.
He held up the key.
Behind him, Elena whispered, “That's it.””
Luca inserted the key.
It fit perfectly.
He didn't turn it.
Not yet.
Because something was wrong.
The door was vibrating.
Very slightly.
Luca placed his palm against the steel.
A faint sound came from the other side.
Breathing.
Slow.
Human.
His eyes widened.
He turned toward Elena.
“Did you hear that?””
She nodded.
Victoria's voice came from the stairs.
“Luca.””
He looked up.
Victoria was standing halfway down.
Her red gown looked almost black in the basement light.
Her face was pale.
“Come back upstairs.””
“No.””
“Please.””
That word stopped him.
Victoria never said please.
Luca stared at her.
“What is behind this door?””
She shook her head.
“I can't tell you.””
“Why?””
“Because once you open it, everything changes.””
Elena's voice trembled behind him.
“She dropped the key after locking me downstairs.””
Luca looked at Victoria.
“Why did you have my father's key?””
Victoria closed her eyes.
Then opened them.
“I didn't.””
Luca lifted the key.
“You're lying.””
Another bang exploded from behind the steel door.
Everyone jumped.
Luca stepped closer.
The breathing stopped.
A long silence followed.
Then a man's voice came through the door.
Faint.
Broken.
But unmistakably alive.
“Luca…”
His blood ran cold.
Victoria stumbled backward.
Elena began crying.
Luca stared at the door.
He knew that voice.
He had heard it every night of his childhood.
But it was impossible.
His father had been dead for twelve years.
Luca slowly raised the key.
Victoria whispered, “Don't open it.””
He looked at her.
“Why?””
She backed away.
“Because if he knows you're here…”
She stopped.
Luca's eyes narrowed.
“If who knows?””
Victoria's face collapsed.
And from behind the locked door, the voice came again.
“Luca…”
This time, louder.
“Don't trust—”
The words were cut off by a violent crash.
Luca gripped the key.
Victoria turned toward the stairs.
Elena stared at her.
And Luca finally understood one thing.
Whatever was behind that door had been waiting for him.
For years.
He reached for the lock.
Then stopped.
May you like
Because Victoria whispered one last sentence from the darkness behind him:
“He isn't your father.””
