Chapter 6: The Ghost Beneath the Estate
Chapter 6: The Ghost Beneath the Estate
Three soft knocks echoed through the bedroom.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
Aria stood frozen beside the bed, her heart pounding so loudly she could barely hear the rain outside.
The note trembled in her hand.
Trust no one inside this house.
The doorknob didn't move again.
No voice followed.
Only silence.
She slowly stepped backward until she reached the nightstand.
Her eyes landed on the small brass bell every servant had told her to ring if she needed anything.
Her fingers hovered over it.
Then stopped.
If the note was true...
Who would answer?
Outside the bedroom, Dante walked down the corridor with his left shoulder wrapped in fresh bandages.
The doctor had ordered him to stay in bed.
He ignored him.
Luca caught up beside him.
"You should be resting."
"I'll rest when I know who's trying to kill my wife."
"The security team is questioning everyone."
"And?"
"No one's talking."
Dante stopped walking.
"They're lying."
Luca nodded.
"They're terrified."
"Of me?"
Luca looked away.
"No."
"They're terrified of whoever gave the order."
That answer bothered Dante more than he admitted.
Back inside the bedroom...
The knocking came again.
This time only once.
Aria swallowed.
"Who is it?"
An elderly woman's voice answered through the door.
"It's Maria, Mrs. Rossi."
"The housekeeper."
"I brought your evening tea."
Aria hesitated before unlocking the door only a few inches.
Maria stood alone, holding a silver tray.
Her warm smile looked genuine.
"Forgive the late hour."
"I heard about what happened."
"I thought warm chamomile might help you sleep."
Aria accepted the tray.
"Thank you."
As Maria turned to leave, she quietly whispered without looking back,
"Lock the door after me."
Then she disappeared down the hallway.
Aria quickly shut the door.
Beneath the teacup rested another folded piece of paper.
Her hands shook as she opened it.
The answers are beneath the chapel. Midnight. Come alone.
Across the estate...
Dante sat inside his office while workers replaced the shattered windows.
The investigation board remained untouched.
Every photograph.
Every report.
Every missing record.
His eyes stopped on one picture.
Six-year-old Aria.
The white bandage around her wrist.
He picked up the photograph.
Something about it bothered him.
"Luca."
His friend looked up.
"What?"
"Enlarge this."
Minutes later the image appeared on a large monitor.
Luca zoomed in.
Closer.
Closer still.
Neither man noticed it before.
The bandage wasn't covering an injury.
It was hiding something written on her skin.
A number.
A-17.
Dante frowned.
"Children don't receive serial numbers."
Luca's face darkened.
"No..."
"They don't."
Meanwhile...
Aria stared at the clock.
11:57 p.m.
The note lay beside her.
Every instinct told her not to go.
Every unanswered question pushed her toward the door.
Three minutes later...
She quietly slipped into the empty hallway.
The mansion was silent.
Most lights had already been turned off.
She followed an old stone corridor leading toward the private chapel at the edge of the estate.
The small chapel had belonged to Dante's grandparents.
Its wooden pews were empty.
Candles flickered before a marble altar.
She looked around.
"No one?"
Then she heard a voice behind her.
"You're exactly like your mother."
Aria spun around.
An elderly priest stepped from the shadows.
His silver hair framed a deeply lined face.
She had never seen him before.
"You knew my mother?"
He smiled sadly.
"I baptized you."
Her breath caught.
"My father said the priest died years ago."
"He wanted you to believe that."
Without another word, the priest walked toward the altar.
He reached beneath a carved wooden cross.
A quiet click echoed.
Part of the stone floor slid aside.
Hidden stairs descended into darkness.
Aria stared in disbelief.
"What is this?"
"A place few people remember."
He lit an oil lantern.
"Come."
She hesitated.
"Please."
"If I wanted to hurt you..."
The old priest smiled gently.
"...I would never have asked you to come."
Together they descended beneath the chapel.
The underground chamber was ancient.
Stone walls.
Dust-covered shelves.
Dozens of wooden crates.
Family records dating back generations.
"This..."
Aria whispered.
"...has been here all along?"
The priest nodded.
"The Rossi family hid many things here."
He stopped before a weathered wooden chest.
Inside were journals.
Letters.
Photographs.
One leather-bound diary rested on top.
The cover bore elegant handwriting.
Elizabeth Sterling.
Aria's mother's name.
Her knees nearly gave way.
"My mother's diary..."
The priest nodded.
"She entrusted it to me."
"For the day you were finally safe enough to read it."
Tears blurred Aria's vision.
"My father said she destroyed all her journals before she died."
The old man's eyes filled with sorrow.
"Your father has told many lies."
Before Aria could open the diary...
The chapel bells rang violently overhead.
One.
Two.
Three.
Then came shouting.
Gunfire.
Someone screamed outside.
The priest's face lost all color.
"They found us."
At the same moment...
Dante burst into the chapel with half a dozen armed Rossi soldiers.
The front doors had been forced open.
Two guards lay unconscious on the stone floor.
"Aria!"
His voice echoed through the empty sanctuary.
Luca pointed toward the altar.
"The floor!"
The hidden staircase stood open.
Dante drew his pistol.
Without hesitation, he ran into the darkness below.
Deep beneath the chapel...
The priest shoved the diary into Aria's hands.
"No matter what happens..."
"You must protect this."
Heavy footsteps thundered down the stone stairs.
The old priest looked upward.
"They're here."
But when the first armed figure appeared...
It wasn't one of Dante's men.
The stranger wore black tactical gear.
A white skull mask covered his face.
He raised an assault rifle.
May you like
And aimed it directly at the priest.
End of Chapter 6
