A loud sound erupted in the study as the wall holding the portrait pushed back and slid to the left, revealing a dark secret passage.
Zale’s eyes lit up. He took one careful look around and placed a step forward. Soon enough he was taking more into the passage as his body became fully submerged in the darkness.
VROOM!
The wall pushed forward and came to a close, sealing him up in the room alone. For some reason, Zale did not falter or fret. However, he held his breath and shut his eyes.
‘Where would the switch be?’ He questioned in his mind.
No sooner had the question left his lips than a bright light shone on his face and he was forced to open his eyelids carefully.
Several lights illuminated the very big study room, leaving the latter speechless as his eyes took in the place before him for the first time.
.....
Only once had he been told of this place when his father almost lost him. never had he been brought here either but after losing his father, he recalled his father’s words.
‘Should anything ever happen to me and you need assistance, I have all the deadly assistance you can need, hidden behind that portrait.’
Zale smiled at the triumph he was going to get.
Soon he pushed the door in his path open and was welcomed into the brightly lit hidden study.
The room had everything one would need, including a big bed, chairs and a desk along with a refrigerator.
One look around and Zale got to understand one thing. This secret room wasn’t built just for his secrets, it was his hideout should things ever get messy.
After going through all the things here, he went through files till he found a book like a journal and untied it.
“Deadly Men,” Zale read out what was on the back of the book and flipped it open.
The first name his eye met after glancing through the first page housing his father’s initials, his eyes widened.
Like a drum roll sound, Zale stared unblinking at the name, his gaze never faltering from it.
“T-this...” He blinked. Continuously he thought about what it was until his mind managed to calm down.
“The Deadly Iceberg,” he read aloud.
His brows furrowed in confusion. If the deadly Iceberg was here as number one on the list, then why did his father join forces with another to kill him?
At the side of the name towards the end of the line on the page, Zale’s eyes glanced at the small writing there.
“Too dangerously calm. Must eliminate.”
An ‘X’ symbol was out in place of the message, further compounding Zale’s confusion.
His eyes quickly scanned through the remaining names on that page and soon he realized some were already dead, leaving a few just alive.
“What was dad doing?” Zale questioned in a whisper. His fingers brushed the names on the page while his thoughts ran wild.
Soon his eyes locked on something pushing out from the book and immediately opened to that page.
A small note fell out. Zale toon it up and peered at it. “The Craving Crab owes me a favour.”
His smile grew under the bright light in the room.
Favours. He loved it when people owed that.
“Thank you, dad, even in death you are helpful. I shall not let this opportunity go to waste.”
********
For the next few days, things were peaceful for everyone. Their tracks had been cleaned up, leaving the Anders to clear their mess if they so wished.