Chapter 48 Unlocking the Secret Space
When he got the message, Charles was perplexed. Raymond was preparing to get a divorce; he had just learned that afternoon from Mr. Heller that he needed help drafting divorce documents.
But now, what was going on so suddenly...
Banning everyone but the lady of the house from going upstairs obviously meant one thing: creating an opportunity for her.
If no one went to the third floor, given her capabilities, wouldn't she crack open the secret room in minutes?
Charles took in a deep breath, left to imagine what might have happened between Raymond and Paige that night.
Paige, sound asleep, was blissfully unaware, now a step closer to that hidden room.
Awakening to the start of a new day, Paige realized she need to make breakfast, but sitting up, she found Raymond was not by her side.
Slipping into a robe, she called out while heading out, "Raymond?"
No response. Paige turned to look for her phone and noticed it was nearly nine o'clock; she had overslept.
Raymond would usually be at work by this hour.
Paige quickly dialed his number. After all, despite having consummated their marriage the night before, her regular husband seemed to be planning a divorce.
As she was pondering, the call connected.
Raymond's voice came through, "Awake?"
Paige breathed a sigh of relief, "Why didn't you wake me? I overslept and didn't make your breakfast."
Raymond replied, "Charles picked up breakfast. It's keeping warm in the kitchen for you. Eat before you go to work, I've called in sick for you."
Paige paused; a realization hit her; she was being taken care of by her husband!
A silent chuckle escaped her lips as she leaned against the door, asking in a hushed voice, "Not thinking about divorce anymore?"
Raymond seemed utterly unprepared for her question, and it took him three seconds to respond.
"Madam, with your lace underwear on, how could I not give in? However, you've starved me for days; don't you think I deserve a lavish feast in exchange?"
Imagining Raymond, dressed in his sharp suit, delivering these lines amidst a bustling office setting made Paige's cheeks blush.
"I can't talk now; I’m already running late for work."
With that, Paige hung up first.
The thrill of their rapid progress brought a lingering smile to Paige's face as she delightedly held onto her phone a little while longer.
Breakfast, predictably purchased from outside, seemed to be extravagantly pricey at a glance.
By a ‘stroke of luck’, the gardener from the villa, too, was running late, and Paige just managed to hitch a ride in his vehicle.
Today, the villa echoed a peculiar silence; on inquiring with Sean, she learned it was the cleaning service's day off.
While delivering the floral arrangements, Paige encountered virtually no one; a golden opportunity she couldn’t resist tapping into.
After adorning the other rooms with flowers, Paige made her way to that particular room. With her efforts the day before, she had become so accustomed to the lock that opening the door was almost second nature to her.
It practically swung open in a whisper of a 'simple' turn.
Upon entering, Paige discreetly fixed a minuscule surveillance device next to the doorway, a gadget Cecil and the R&D department had crafted specifically for this day.
After placing the monitor, Paige then quietly closed the door. Turning up her phone once more, she could now see the external view.
With one camera at the staircase and another outside the room, Paige had successfully installed two devices to be promptly alerted if anyone approached.
Yesterday's probe was a mere tease; today's agenda was to explore the knight statue and unlock its concealed chamber, an act that was bound to take a bit more time, which was why she needed a clear picture of the outside situation.
As Paige stood before the statue, on the other end, Raymond too switched on his computer, his gaze not missing a beat of Paige's movements from the comfort of his office.
Across Raymond's desk, Charles, tablet in hand, also observed the live feed, his brow furrowed with concern.
"Raymond, if this keeps up, Madam's going to find the entrance," Charles apprehensively noted.
Raymond shot Charles an icy glance. "Is that a problem?"
Charles clammed up. Raymond's new found indulgence in his wife knew no bounds!
What lay hidden in that room was no secret to Raymond, but he was now nonchalantly allowing his wife to stumble upon it?
Sure enough, Paige’s sharp-wittedness shone through. After a thorough exploration of the knight statue, her hands eventually landed on the sword the knight was brandishing. A careful tinkering with the sword led to the hidden chamber's door swinging wide open right before Paige's eyes.
Surveillance cameras were tucked away even in hidden spaces, cunningly concealed from view. As Paige tiptoed in, her footsteps triggered the motion-sensitive lights to flicker on. Descending the staircase, she had hypothesized that this secret space was buried beneath the villa, and she was right.
Who would have guessed that this subterranean place could be accessed from the third floor? Paige continued her descent into the depths of the basement. She estimated that beneath the villa's three stories, there lay two more levels of a public parking garage known to all.
But she eventually made it to what she assumed to be the third sub-level. Paige was met with row upon row of shelving units as the room expanded. She thought they looked like bookcases until she got a further look and realized they were actually holding paper files instead of books.
Ignoring everything else, Paige beelined for the shelves marked with dates from a decade ago, in August. Her fingers paused on a blood-stained file marked with August 9th. A shiver ran through her as she carefully extracted the file.
After composing herself, Paige flipped open the folder. Inside, more bloodstains marred the documents. Quickly, she whipped out her smartphone and snapped pictures of every page. At the final flip laid an aged, yellowed photograph; it was unmistakably a photo of the villa.
Not wanting to waste a second, Paige photographed it and returned the file to its place. She then took several deep breaths and sprinted up the staircase.
Exiting the underground room, she closed the door, checked the surveillance to ensure all was clear, and then made her exit. With the disabled high-tech security, and her phone in hand, she made it out just in time before bumping into Sean.
"Ms. Sackler, in such a hurry? Something come up?" Sean inquired.
Paige contained her emotions and replied, "Sean, there's something I need to take care of. I've finished arranging the vase; might I leave early today?"
Sean nodded, "If your work's done, of course you can go."
With a grateful smile, Paige hastened out of the extravagant home.
Elsewhere, Raymond slumped back in his chair and muttered under his breath, "Now, I suppose it's time for you to ask for a divorce."
