Chapter 2 - The Hidden Passageway
Panic immediately erupted inside the locked parlor as Uncle Richard frantically rattled the heavy brass doorknobs.
Aunt Martha began screaming for the household staff, but her shrill voice only echoed uselessly against the soundproofed walls.
Leo did not waste a single second watching his family descend into total chaos.
He quickly turned his attention back to the glowing keypad hidden inside the wall cavity.
His grandfather had once jokingly told him that his birthday was the key to unlocking the family's deepest secrets.
Leo typed in the six digits of his birthdate with trembling fingers, praying the old man had not been kidding.
A soft electronic chime echoed from the device, followed by the heavy grinding sound of hidden gears shifting inside the fireplace.
The entire stone hearth slowly slid to the left, revealing a pitch-black, narrow tunnel leading deep into the mansion's foundation.
"Grab the boy before he gets away!" Uncle Richard suddenly yelled, his eyes darting toward the newly opened escape route.
Richard lunged forward with astonishing speed, his large hands reaching out to grab Leo by the collar of his shirt.
Leo ducked under his uncle's grasping arms and threw himself blindly into the dark passage.
He hit the cold dirt floor hard, scraping his knees, but scrambled backward just as Richard tried to follow him.
Leo slammed his hand against a glowing red button on the inside of the tunnel wall.
The stone hearth aggressively slid back into its original place, narrowly missing Richard's fingers and sealing Leo inside the darkness.
The young boy sat on the freezing ground, trying to catch his breath while the muffled screams of his family faded away.
He pulled a small emergency flashlight from his jacket pocket and clicked it on, revealing a damp, brick-lined corridor.
As he began to walk cautiously down the secret tunnel, a sudden chill ran down his spine.
He could clearly hear the sound of heavy boots walking on the floorboards directly above him.
A voice filtered through a nearby ventilation grate, speaking in a low, menacing whisper.
"The old man is alive, and the kid knows everything," the voice said coldly.
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Leo froze in absolute terror, recognizing the voice immediately.
It was his own mother, and she was talking to the very people trying to kill his grandfather.
