Chapter 5 - the second keyhole
The room went dead silent. Marisol gasped, covering her mouth with her hands. "The man... in the wall?"
Theodore’s eyes narrowed, but there was no anger in them—only a deep, calculating intelligence. "What man, sweetheart?"
"The shadow man," Coraline said softly, pointing toward the door. "He lives behind the wood. He told me to give you the shiny circle so you would come help."
Theodore’s pulse hammered against his ribs, though his face remained a mask of stoic steel. He stood up, picked up the iron key resting on his desk, and inserted it into the lockbox found inside the wall cavity. With a dry pop, the ancient lock yielded.
He lifted the lid. Inside lay several items: an old silver pocket watch, a thick leather journal, and a modern digital flash drive that looked glaringly out of place among the vintage relics.
Beside the flash drive was a hand-written note on crisp white paper. The ink was fresh.
May you like
Theodore, the note read. If you are reading this, the little girl did her job. Do not trust Dominic. He is liquidating the northern warehouses tonight. Look behind the brickwork in the cellar.
Theodore stared at the handwriting. The bold, slanted cursive was unmistakable. It was his brother Julian’s handwriting—the brother he had buried thirty years ago after a fire destroyed their family’s summer retreat.
