“Nope,” Nolan said, pulling out his gun. “I’ll lead the way.”
“But I have the book,” Lila held it up.
“You can tell me where to go,” Nolan told her, and Mia’s heart jolted at how protective he was being of her daughter.
“Fine,” Lila relented. “I need to close everything and reset it anyway, so no one can follow us.” She grinned. “There’s a puzzle you have to solve to get the closet to open.”
That sounded like her father’s work, Mia thought.
They stepped into the dark tunnel. They all pulled out their phones and switched on the flashlights.
The tunnel was narrow, the walls lined with old brick. It smelled of earth and age.
“I wonder if William knows about these tunnels?” Mia asked as they walked.
“I wonder if my grandmother does,” Brian snorted. “She won’t be too happy being on the board of the development and not knowing about secret tunnels.”
That made Mia smile despite everything. She remembered Brian’s grandparents. They’d been good friends of her parents and Uncle William. They’d always been so nice and kind to Mia.
They walked for what felt like several minutes before reaching another door.
Nolan tried to open it, but it didn’t budge.
“Unless you can solve complex cryptographic ciphers,” Lila said, moving forward, “you’re not getting through that door.”
Nolan stepped aside but stayed close, keeping them all covered, his eyes constantly scanning for threats.
Lila examined the lock mechanism, referring to her book, then began working on a series of symbols and numbers.
After a few minutes, there was a click.
The door opened.
They stepped into another basement.
This one was different. Newer. More maintained.
A memory hit Mia hard. “I know this place.”
Her eyes roamed around, and as they did, motion-sensor lights flashed on.
They all jumped as the door behind them shut automatically.
They turned to see Lila resetting the lock.
“Just in case,” she said, turning back to them. “I reset the code.”
“Great job, Lila,” Nolan told her.
Then he glanced around the room, and his eyes met Mia’s.
Despite everything, Mia’s heart fluttered, and her breath caught.
“You say you remember this place?” Nolan asked.
Mia nodded. “I’m not sure why, but it’s important.”
“Because of this?” Lila moved to what looked like a round temperature dial on the wall.
