The secret vault
292 Words
The steel door slid open with a deep metallic sound.
Oliver and Tracy stepped into a hidden underground vault beneath the Lancaster estate.
The room was unlike anything Tracy had ever seen.
Ancient journals.
Family portraits.
Locked safes.
Shelves filled with documents dating back generations.
"This place..." Tracy whispered.
"...has been hidden for over fifty years," Oliver finished.
Marcus walked toward a large wooden chest in the center of the room.
"This is what Phoenix has been searching for."
He carefully unlocked it.
Inside lay an old leather journal wrapped in a faded silk cloth.
Oliver picked it up.
The cover bore the Lancaster family crest.
He slowly opened the first page.
His face changed instantly.
"What is it?" Tracy asked.
Oliver handed her the journal.
Written across the first page were the words:
"To my son... never trust the promise unless you know who made it."
Tracy frowned.
"Who wrote this?"
Edward Lancaster stepped forward from the shadows.
"My father."
Everyone turned to him.
"He was the first Lancaster to discover Phoenix wasn't what it claimed to be."
Before anyone could speak, the mansion's security alarms blared.
Marcus checked his tablet.
His expression became grim.
"They've found us."
"Who?" Oliver asked.
Marcus looked up.
"The Phoenix Council."
At that moment, the lights went out.
A loud explosion shook the mansion above.
Dust fell from the ceiling.
Edward looked at Oliver.
"They're here."
Oliver took Tracy's hand.
"No matter what happens..."
"I won't let them take you."
The vault doors began to shake as someone tried to force them open from the outside.
And a familiar voice echoed through the darkness.
"Open the door, Oliver."
It was Daniel.
But whether he had come as an ally...
Or an enemy...
No one knew.
- Writer
