Chapter 22 - THE ROOM BEHIND THE BRICK
The revelation hung in the air like poison.
Evan’s mind raced through every childhood memory—the locked door at the end of the third-floor gallery that was always described as an old linen storage room; the trays of food his father personally carried upstairs every evening at seven; the strange tapping sounds that echoed through the plumbing in the dead of winter.
"Agnes was the rightful heir under the 1884 covenant," Madeline explained, her voice urgent. "Charles had her declared legally dead so he could take control of the family trust forty years ago. He locked her in Room C. Over the decades, she went mad. But she knows every secret, every dollar, every crime Charles ever committed. Vanessa found her through the ventilation shaft three weeks ago. Vanessa was offering to help Agnes escape in exchange for the bearer bonds."
"And Caroline?" Evan choked out. "Why did Caroline die?"
"Caroline found the passage," Madeline said quietly. "Caroline heard Sophie talking to 'the lady in the wall.' Caroline went into the crawlspace with a flashlight to investigate. She found Agnes. And Agnes panicked."
"No," Evan whispered.
"Agnes didn't kill her," Madeline said grimly. "Charles did. When Caroline threatened to go to the state police with what she found behind the nursery wall, Charles drowned her in the pond to protect the family name. Gregory Shaw helped him stage the accident."
A sudden sound shattered the conversation.
From the floor directly above them came the sharp, metallic crack of a gunshot.
Then a scream—high, terrified, and piercing.
May you like
It was Sophie’s voice.
Evan didn't think. He dropped the flashlight, gripped the crowbar, and sprinted up the stairs three at a time, his heart pounding against his ribs like a sledgehammer. Grace and Madeline were right behind him, their footsteps hammering against the polished oak treads.
