Chapter 2 - The Silent Record
Roman pulled a black leather glove onto his right hand and lifted the small notebook from the tray.
The paper was thin, lined, yellowed at the edges. The handwriting inside was small, precise, and written in faded black ink. Hundreds of pages were filled with meticulous dates, times, and names.
Eva stepped closer, unable to stop herself from looking over his shoulder. Roman did not push her away.
October 14, 1998. 02:14 AM. V.B. entered study. Opened safe behind the ocean landscape. Removed ledger B. Left at 02:30 AM.
August 22, 2004. 11:45 PM. R.B. (age 14) sneaked out west window. Returned 03:10 AM with bruised knuckles. V.B. did not notice.
June 11, 2016. 04:00 AM. V.B. heart failure. Sebastian C. entered panic room with ledger. Lock engaged from outside by—
The entry abruptly ended there.
Roman’s thumb pressed hard against the paper, his knuckles turning white inside the black leather glove. V.B. was Victor Bellaro—Roman’s father.
"The night my father died," Roman murmured, his voice echoing in the tight tunnel like grinding stone. "The official report said he locked himself in the panic room during an armed attempt on the estate. He died inside of a massive coronary before the room could be opened."
"And Sebastian?" Eva asked gently.
"Sebastian told us he was in the north wing when it happened," Roman said. "He claimed he ran to the study when he heard the alarms, but the panic room was already sealed from the inside. He said he couldn't open it because only my father had the biometric clearance."
"He lied," Eva said, pointing to the journal entry. "The writer notes that Sebastian was inside the panic room when it locked. And someone locked it from the outside."
Roman closed the book with a sharp snap that sounded like a gunshot in the narrow space.
"Someone who had access to this tunnel," Roman said. He looked up the dark vertical shaft toward the hidden acoustic horns. "Someone who watched my father die. Someone who kept Sebastian trapped in that room for ten years... or put him there three days ago when Sebastian finally figured out the truth."
Daniel stepped forward, pulling his radio from his belt. "I'm calling the entire night shift down here. We'll tear these brick walls down to the foundation."
"No," Roman said sharply, turning his dark eyes onto his security chief. "You will not use the radio. You will not call anyone."
Daniel hesitated. "Boss? If there’s an intruder inside the structure—"
"If someone has lived inside these walls for ten years, Daniel, they know every frequency on your radio," Roman said coldness dripping from every word. "They know which floorboards creak. They know which guards take three minutes longer on their smoke breaks behind the greenhouse. If you make a sound, they vanish into the foundation."
Roman turned to Eva. "Where does the airflow come from?"
Eva closed her eyes, blocking out the sight of the dark tunnel, concentrating on the physical sensation of the air against her skin.
"It’s pulled from the north," she said softly, opening her eyes and pointing toward the left fork of the T-junction. "It’s cooler, damper. It smells like river moss and wet silt. It leads toward the old wine cellars beneath the kitchen."
Roman nodded once. "Daniel, take Paul. Go back out through the linen cabinet. Lock the panel behind you. Place two men you would trust with your life at Sebastian’s bedroom door. Do not speak to Mrs. Delaney. Do not speak to the shift supervisors. If anyone asks why the estate is on lockdown, tell them there was an electronic breach on the outer fence."
"And you, boss?" Daniel asked, looking nervously at the pitch-black left tunnel.
"I’m following the wind," Roman said. He looked at Eva. "With my housekeeper."
"I am a maid, Mr. Bellaro," Eva corrected him mildly. "Housekeepers get paid forty percent more and don't clean grout with toothbrushes."
May you like
For a fraction of a second, the corner of Roman’s mouth twitched—not a smile, but the ghost of one, brief and startling against the brutal tension in his face.
"If we survive the night, Ms. Quinn," Roman said, stepping into the dark left passage, "I will raise your salary."
