Chapter 3 - The Master Ledger
Leo clamped his hand over his mouth to stop himself from making even the slightest sound.
He could not believe that his own mother was actively involved in this sinister plot against Grandpa Henry.
Hot tears stung the corners of his eyes, but he forced himself to wipe them away and focus on surviving.
He crept away from the ventilation grate, moving deeper into the winding labyrinth beneath the historic estate.
The air grew significantly colder and smelled strongly of old paper and damp earth.
After what felt like hours of endless walking, Leo stumbled into a wide, circular room illuminated by a single flickering bulb.
The room was absolutely filled with tall metal filing cabinets, dusty servers, and a massive wooden desk covered in documents.
This was clearly Grandpa Henry's secret base of operations, hidden away from the rest of the corrupt family.
Leo cautiously approached the desk and shined his flashlight over the scattered, highly classified papers.
They were financial records, but not the kind that proved the family's legal wealth.
These documents meticulously detailed years of embezzlement, fraud, and illegal offshore accounts managed by Uncle Richard and Aunt Martha.
Grandpa Henry had clearly been building a massive criminal case against his own greedy children.
Sitting dead center on the wooden desk was a thick, black leather book bound with a small padlock.
Leo recognized it instantly as the legendary master ledger, the one book his grandfather always warned him to protect.
He searched the desk drawers frantically and finally found a small silver key hidden beneath a fake bottom.
He unlocked the ledger and opened it, his eyes scanning the incredibly detailed list of bribes and blackmail material.
This single book contained enough evidence to send his entire family to federal prison for the rest of their lives.
Suddenly, a loud, metallic clanging sound echoed from the tunnel he had just walked through.
Someone had successfully bypassed the fireplace lock and was now aggressively hunting him down in the dark.
Leo quickly shoved the heavy ledger into his backpack and looked desperately around the room for another exit.
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He spotted a rusty iron ladder leading up to a heavy steel hatch in the ceiling.
As he grabbed the first rung of the ladder, the single lightbulb in the room suddenly shattered into a million pieces.
