Chapter 7: The House Beneath the House
I had spent fourteen months searching for my son.
I had searched forests.
Hospitals.
Abandoned buildings.
Places where children had been reported missing.
I had followed every rumor, every false lead, every cruel message from strangers claiming they had seen Leo.
But I never searched beneath my own family’s history.
And now I knew why.
The truth had been hiding there the entire time.
Ethan Vale.
My wife had gone home with Maya after the police insisted they needed to move her somewhere safe. Officer Harris had doubled security around the house, around Leo’s hospital room, around every person connected to the investigation.
But Ethan had already proven something.
Locks did not stop him.
Walls did not stop him.
Fear did not stop him.
Only finding him would.
I sat in the empty interrogation room, watching the video again.
Ethan’s face.
His calm voice.
His smile.
That smile bothered me more than anything.
A person who enjoys hurting others looks angry.
A person who enjoys control looks calm.
Ethan looked like a man who believed he was doing something right.
The door opened.
Elena walked in.
She looked exhausted.
Older.
Like fourteen months of secrets had aged her decades.
“You shouldn’t be here,” I said.
She closed the door behind her.
“I know.””
“You lied to me.””
“Yes.””
“You watched me bury my son every day.””
Her eyes filled.
“Yes.””
The honesty almost made me angrier.
“Why?””
She sat down across from me.
“Because Ethan threatened Maya.””
I looked away.
“You keep saying that.””
“Because it’s true.””
“Then why didn’t you tell me?””
“Because you would have gone after him.””
I laughed bitterly.
“You’re right.””
“And Ethan wanted that.””
I looked back at her.
“What?””
“He wanted you angry.””
She leaned forward.
“Daniel, Ethan has always been obsessed with reactions.””
I frowned.
“What are you talking about?””
She looked down at her hands.
“When we were children, he used to lock himself in the basement.””
“Why?””
“Our parents punished him.””
“For what?””
She swallowed.
“For hurting animals.””
The room became colder.
“He was twelve when I realized something was wrong.””
I stared at her.
“And your parents hid it?””
She nodded.
“They were ashamed.””
My fists tightened.
“So they covered it up.””
“Yes.””
“And then he grew up.””
“Yes.””
“And nobody stopped him.””
Her silence answered.
I stood up.
“All those children.””
Elena nodded.
“I know.””
“Leo.””
She closed her eyes.
“I know.””
I paced the room.
“Where is he?””
“I don’t know.””
“You saw him fourteen months ago.””
“Yes.””
“Where?””
She hesitated.
That hesitation was enough.
“Elena.””
“I can’t tell you.””
I stared at her.
“You still think protecting secrets is helping?””
“No.””
Her voice cracked.
“I think secrets are the reason we’re here.””
For the first time, she looked truly afraid.
“Ethan built something.””
“What?””
“A place.””
I stopped.
“What kind of place?””
“A place where he kept the children.””
My stomach twisted.
“Where?””
She looked at me.
“Under the old Vale property.””
I froze.
The old family house.
The place my parents sold after Ethan disappeared.
The place Elena refused to visit.
The place she always said was “dead.””
“You knew?””
“I suspected.””
“Again.””
She looked away.
“I found drawings there years ago.””
“Why didn’t you tell anyone?””
“Because I was seventeen.””
Her voice became small.
“I was a child too.””
That sentence stayed with me.
Because for the first time, I saw Elena differently.
Not as my sister who betrayed me.
But as someone who had spent her whole life running from a monster she grew up beside.
Still, it didn’t excuse what happened to Leo.
Nothing could.
Officer Harris entered suddenly.
“Daniel.””
I turned.
“What?””
His expression was serious.
“We found the location.””
My heart stopped.
“What location?””
He held up a file.
“The video was uploaded from an abandoned property.””
He looked at Elena.
“The Vale house.””
A wave of anger moved through me.
“You said nobody knew where it was.””
Elena stood slowly.
“Ethan knew.””
Officer Harris nodded.
“And he wants you there.””
I looked at the address.
A place I had never been.
A place where children had disappeared.
A place where my son had probably spent months terrified.
“No.””
Both of them looked at me.
“I’m going.””
Officer Harris shook his head.
“Absolutely not.””
“He has Maya.””
“We don’t know that.””
I showed him the message.
His face changed.
“We need a team.””
“No.””
“Daniel.””
“He’ll hurt her if he sees police.””
Officer Harris stepped closer.
“And he’ll hurt you if you go alone.””
I looked at him.
“I know.””
The room went silent.
Because we both understood.
That was exactly what Ethan wanted.
A father walking into darkness.
A brother trying to fix what he failed to stop.
A family trapped by the same secrets.
Before anyone could stop me, my phone rang.
Unknown number.
I answered.
“Daniel.””
Ethan.
His voice was calm.
“You’re taking too long.””
My grip tightened.
“Where is Maya?””
A pause.
Then:
“She’s safe.””
“Let me talk to her.””
“No.””
“Ethan.””
“You always think love means protecting people.””
His voice lowered.
“But sometimes love means letting them face what they deserve.””
My blood ran cold.
“What does that mean?””
“You’ll understand when you see the room.””
The call ended.
Officer Harris looked at me.
“What room?””
I stared at the address.
And remembered Elena’s words.
He built something.
A place.
A room.
Then I realized something.
The hidden room beneath the floor.
The scratches.
The drawings.
They weren’t where Ethan started.
They were copies.
Practice.
A blueprint.
I looked at Elena.
“How many rooms did he build?””
Her face went pale.
“Daniel…”
“How many?””
May you like
She whispered:
“Three.””
