Chapter 8 - THE BRICK WALL.
The only sound inside the living room was the rhythmic hum of Jasper’s collar.
Maya approached the fireplace while Arthur and the other lawyers followed at a respectful distance.
She ran her calloused hand along the soot-stained bricks. There was no handle, keyhole or visible seam.
The blue beam shifted and focused on a slightly discolored brick beneath the oak mantel.
Maya pressed her palm against it.
Nothing happened.
Disappointment rushed through her until she remembered the collar’s first activation. The system did not recognize only the cat. It recognized her biology.
She leaned forward.
A retinal scanner hidden inside the mortar flashed to life and swept a green line across her eye.
A massive mechanical clunk echoed from inside the wall.
Dust fell from the ceiling as the back of the fireplace slid inward and moved silently aside.
Behind it was a dark, steel-reinforced corridor.
Stale air flowed from the passage, carrying the smell of ozone, electricity and old paper.
Maya looked down at Jasper. The cat sat calmly at the threshold as though he had been waiting for this moment.
May you like
Maya drew a trembling breath.
Then she stepped into the darkness.
