Drowning Silence

Excerpt

Kenzi’s eyes are so wide they could pop out of the sockets. “Do you see that?”

I stare at the wall, not sure what I’m looking for. If there’s a door, I definitely don’t see it.

“Well?”

“Where?”

She points to the wall, making an impatient sound.

I study the brick, not seeing anything.

Until I do. There’s the slightest crack running between some of the bricks.

I gasp. “Is that a hidden entrance?”

“There’s only one way to find out!” She presses her palm all over the bricks around the crack. “Help me figure this out.”

I kneel, pushing dirt and pebbles out of the way to feel around the bottom. Inside, when we’ve found doors like this there’s often—not always—a button or lever near the molding. This would be the outdoors equivalent.

“Got anything?” Kenzi uses her sleeve to scrub dirt from the wall.

“Not yet. You?”

“Nothing.”

I groan. “You’d think there’d be a master list of all this stuff somewhere.”

“If there is, it’s as hidden as some of these entrances. I’ve looked over several sets of blueprints, and none of them show a single thing.”

On one hand, I’m impressed by my ancestors having managed to create and hide these tunnels and rooms, but at the same time it’s super annoying that they didn’t pass any of this information along to their own offspring. Not that it’s surprising, given everything I’ve seen and read from various journals.

Kenzi steps back. “There has to be something we’re missing. The crack is in the shape of a door.”

“Unless it’s a decoy.”

“It’s too well hidden to be one.”

I step back and squint, trying to see if we’re missing anything. Now that she’s brushed away most of the dirt and grime, the crack is clearly in the shape of a door. Even though the decoy idea was mine, I don’t buy it. We’ve never found a fake entrance before. This has to be the real deal.

My aunt turns to me. “What do you think?”

“We need to keep trying.”

She returns to pressing on the wall, and I squat back down to the bottom of the wall, looking and feeling for anything. There has to be something.

Then I feel it. Barely. Where the brick meets the dirt, part of the wall sticks out just slightly. It’s hardly noticeable, but it’s there.

Kenzi stops and glances down at me. “Did you find something?”

My breath sticks in my throat for a moment. “I think so!”

“Well?”

I push with one finger, then two.

Nothing.

Then I press the spot with my foot.

Something creaks.

Kenzi and I exchange wide-eyed glances.

I leap back.

“Don’t stop!” She nudges me closer.

Mind racing, I push my shoe against the spot again.

Creak.

Kenzi yelps. “Keep going!”

I can hardly believe we’re on the verge of discovering another entrance to the house, though given it’s the fourth wing—the only unexplored place left—I shouldn’t be surprised. Maybe it’s another underground tunnel.

Nothing is impossible on this property.

There isn’t another creak, so I pull my foot back and press it against the raised area again.

Creak.

It doesn’t seem like holding pressure there is the key, so I push the spot multiple times. Each time produces another creak. Dirt shifts and falls to the ground. The wall shakes.

Kenzi grabs my arms. “It’s going to open!”

We take turns pressing on the raised part until the door opens enough for us to squeeze in.