CHAPTER 5 — THE VIDEO THEY BURIED FOR SIXTEEN YEARS
Richard remained perfectly calm.
"So..." he smiled. "You've been reading old family stories."
Ethan didn't answer.
He slipped the anonymous message into his pocket.
Something told him every word was true.
That night, while everyone slept, Ethan searched every room in the mansion.
The envelope marked "Phase Two Begins" had disappeared.
So had Richard.
Then Ethan remembered something from his father's letter.
"If they discover the nursery, they'll search the house... but they'll never think to look beneath the chapel."
Behind the old family chapel stood a forgotten stone mausoleum.
Its iron gate had rusted shut years ago.
Using the key his grandmother had given him, Ethan forced it open.
Inside...
There was no coffin.
Only an underground tunnel.
At the end of the tunnel sat a dusty projector and dozens of film reels labeled with dates from sixteen years earlier.
His heart pounded.
He loaded the final reel.
The screen flickered to life.
It showed the night his father died.
Michael wasn't alone.
Richard was standing beside him.
"So this is about the company?" Michael asked.
Richard laughed.
"No."
"It's about the vault."
"What vault?"
"The one Father built."
Michael's expression changed.
"You'll never find it."
Richard leaned closer.
"Oh... I don't need to."
"Your son will."
The recording suddenly filled with shouting.
A struggle.
Then...
A gunshot.
Michael collapsed.
But before the camera fell, he looked directly into the lens.
"If Ethan ever sees this..."
"Run."
The screen went black.
Ethan stood frozen.
His father hadn't died in a car accident.
He had been executed.
Suddenly...
A slow clap echoed through the tunnel.
Richard stepped out of the darkness.
"You finally found it."
Behind him stood four armed men.
Richard smiled without a trace of guilt.
"I left that film here on purpose."
"I wanted you to know the truth."
Ethan tightened his fists.
"You murdered my father."
Richard laughed.
"No."
"I murdered your father..."
"So you could lead me to something far more valuable."
He pulled out an old blueprint.
"The Blackwood Vault."
"For sixteen years, your father kept its location hidden."
"Only his bloodline can open it."
Richard stared directly into Ethan's eyes.
"And congratulations..."
"You just became the key."
Before Ethan could escape, one of the men injected him with a sedative.
His vision blurred.
The last thing he saw was Richard whispering into his ear.
"Your father died protecting the vault."
"You'll open it for me..."
"Even if it kills you."
When Ethan finally woke up...
He wasn't in the mansion anymore.
He was locked inside a steel room.
On the opposite wall was a massive circular vault door.
Above it, glowing in red letters, were the words that changed everything:
ACCESS GRANTED...
May you like
WELCOME HOME, HEIR.
To Be Continued...
