“A lock?” Grayson cursed. “How are we supposed to get into the passageway when we don’t know where an entrance is?”
“There has to be one in that room that I was using.” Severine’s fingers lingered on the small lock and then she gasped and pulled the keys her father had hidden out of her pocket. She chose the largest one, as the lock was bigger than the others in the house, and tried with shaking fingers to get the key in the lock, then had to stop to take a deep breath. The key slid in and turned without an issue. “No wonder Father had those secret keys. He must have had locks installed in the secret passages after he bought the house.”
“The very nature of secret passageways precludes the need for locks,” Grayson told her with a frown.
“Not when you half-steal your mansion. The fellow who built this place originally was alive when Father picked it up from the bank. He used his connections at the bank where the mortgage was held, so the bank didn’t work with the family and he bought it for a song. All legal except the bank probably would have helped the man if not for Father.”
Grayson cursed again, and Severine didn’t blame him. The burning shame of what Father had done to that man was a black seed in her heart.
Turning the key hadn’t opened the hidden door so Grayson pulled every book from the shelves and felt around. The latch was at the side of the bookshelf, near the wall. He found the opening, put his fingers in and pulled. The shelf slowly swung inward.
Severine started and then glanced back at Grayson. It was what they expected and yet they were still surprised to see that long black stretch of passage, which was only wide enough for one person.
“We need a torch,” he said, but Severine stepped into the darkness without it only to turn back and dig through her father’s desk until she found the gun. She then turned and stepped back into the passageway. “Do you know how to use that?”
Severine nodded and he said, “Most women should know how to use them.”
She was tempted to lift a brow and demand an explanation for such an unexpected opinion for a man. The darkness seemed to lean into her and loom ahead as though it were more powerful in the passageway than it was in the open. She felt around and found a button for a light.
“He must have added electric light when he added the locks,” she said. The solitary bulb that burned overhead whimpered in the darkness, barely giving a circle of light.
She could imagine a trap around any bend, or ghosts slipping through the walls, or voices in the darkness. She could imagine a hand bursting through the floor and grabbing her ankle.
She knelt down and put the scarf in front of Anubis’s nose and let him breath the scent in deeply. He barked once and Severine said, “Finden.”
Anubis put his nose to the ground and sniffed around. Then he tugged her forward. She looked back at Grayson and nodded, then wrapped her hand tightly around Anubis’s collar and let him lead her into the darkness.
Chapter Eighteen
Anubis understood Severine quite well, but she’d never made him stay with her while they were searching before. And of course, before—when she’d been training him—it had always been fun. She knew he felt her tenseness and he made an unhappy noise in the back of his throat.
“There’s a doorway here,” Grayson said before they’d gone a half-dozen steps.
She glanced back and saw him take hold of the handle. It didn’t open when he turned it and she paused, turning back and using the largest key again. The door opened and she gasped. On the other side was another office, lined with shelves and maps on the wall, file cabinets, a bottle of her father’s favorite alcohol, and a sketch of Severine on the back of her horse.
Anubis grunted and Severine sighed. She wanted to dig through the room and discover more of her father’s secrets. The ones he’d been more precious with than the things she’d overheard while she glided around his office as a child. If he was open about legally stealing this house, what did he hide?
“They’re not in here,” Grayson said.
Severine yanked herself away from the room and locked the door. “Lisette,” she told herself, but she spoke aloud so Grayson replied, “Yes.”
They moved forward and Severine started paying more attention to more than whether Lisette or Grandmère were just ahead. The hall was floored with shining wood just like the regular hallway. The walls were lined with wood panels that shone with quality even though they were lined with dusty cobwebs. There were even paintings on the walls and she noticed they were original pieces featuring the property.
Anubis moved forward, sniffing without the intensity of a sure trail to follow. They reached the end of the hall and found a turn. Grayson placed a hand lightly on her shoulder and said, “This passage must be between the walls of that big dark green dining room.”
Severine was surprised he knew. She was completely lost.
An idea occurred to her. She reached out and took hold of the painting and tugged. It swung out, and there was a tiny handle set in a square of wood not flush with the wall. Grayson pulled it open and a small slit appeared just lower than his eye level.
“The first owner must have been shorter than you.” There was something about the moment that demanded a whisper. He stepped back and she pushed up on her toes and saw into the empty dining room.
“We need to find those who are missing.” Severine closed the little door and swung the painting back in place
