Chapter 2 - The House Nobody Was Supposed to Enter
Adrien Reichi owned a house on the northern edge of Chicago that looked less like a residence and more like a private fortress disguised by wealth.
The property sat behind stone walls and iron gates.
There were cameras on every corner.
Motion sensors beneath the gardens.
Private security at the entrance.
A second security team inside.
Rachel had seen secure facilities before, but never one designed like this.
The irony was almost laughable.
Adrien’s house was supposed to be safer than the tower.
Yet when she stepped through the front door, the first thing she noticed was that the electrical system was old.
Not unsafe.
Old.
The original copper infrastructure had been preserved beneath modern upgrades.
“Who designed this?” she asked.
Adrien removed his coat.
“My grandfather.”
“Then he was either brilliant or stubborn.”
“Both.”
Rachel ran her hand along the wall.
“There are concealed conduits.”
“Normal for a house like this.”
“Not like these.”
She opened her meter bag.
Adrien watched.
“You really talk to wires.”
“I listen to what they’re doing.”
“That sounds like talking.”
“You wouldn’t understand.”
“I understand more than you think.”
Rachel looked up.
“For someone who owns half of Chicago, you spend a lot of time standing over electricians.”
“I’m learning.”
“That makes one of us.”
They searched for nearly an hour.
Nothing.
No hidden cameras.
No unauthorized modules.
No suspicious wiring.
Then Rachel entered Adrien’s study.
She stopped.
There was a grandfather clock against one wall.
Beautiful.
Antique.
Carved walnut.
She walked toward it.
Adrien noticed.
“What?”
Rachel crouched.
“The floor.”
“What about it?”
“Warm.”
He stared.
“The floor is warm?”
“Thirty degrees.”
“It’s winter.”
“Exactly.”
She removed a section of carpet.
Underneath was a steel grate.
Adrien crouched beside her.
“I have never seen this.”
“Someone installed heating beneath the study.”
“Why?”
Rachel looked at the grandfather clock.
“Maybe the heating isn't for the floor.”
She opened the electrical panel beneath the desk.
A cable ran directly into the wall.
Not on any modern plan.
“Found it.”
Adrien’s face hardened.
The cable disappeared behind the clock.
They moved it.
Behind it was a narrow steel door.
No handle.
No keypad.
Only a fingerprint scanner.
Adrien placed his hand on it.
Nothing.
He tried again.
Still nothing.
Rachel examined the wiring.
“It doesn't read your fingerprint.”
“Then whose?”
She traced a second cable.
“Someone disabled the authentication.”
“How do we open it?”
“We don't.”
Adrien looked at her.
“Why?”
“Because the person who made it doesn't want us opening it electronically.”
She pointed toward the lower frame.
“Mechanical lock.”
He stared.
Rachel pulled a specialized pick from her kit.
“You carry that?”
“I’m an electrician.”
“You're also apparently a burglar.”
“I prefer technician.”
She worked quietly.
Thirty seconds.
A click.
The steel door opened.
Behind it lay a staircase.
Adrien drew his weapon.
Rachel took a flashlight.
“You stay behind me.”
Adrien looked at her.
“That isn't happening.”
“Then stop pointing your gun at the stairs and watch where you're stepping.”
He almost smiled.
They descended three levels.
At the bottom was a room filled with equipment.
Servers.
Monitors.
Power regulators.
Recording devices.
And dozens of folders.
Rachel froze.
“This is a data center.”
Adrien walked toward the nearest monitor.
A file loaded automatically.
LIVE FEED — REICHI RESIDENCE.
Another.
LIVE FEED — REICHI TOWER.
Another.
LIVE FEED — PRIVATE CLUB.
Another.
LIVE FEED — MARITIME TERMINAL.
Adrien went still.
“This isn't just my house.”
“No.”
Rachel pointed.
“It’s connected to everything.”
Tomas entered behind them.
His expression changed when he saw the room.
“My God.”
Rachel found a system log.
Thousands of surveillance events.
Some dated eight years earlier.
She opened another.
A list of names.
Politicians.
Judges.
Police commanders.
Competitors.
Family members.
She turned to Adrien.
“You have been collecting leverage.”
His face was unreadable.
“I didn't build this.”
“You're sure?”
“Yes.”
Rachel believed him.
Not because of his words.
Because he looked genuinely horrified.
A hidden recording started playing.
Adrien’s own voice filled the room.
“I want the docks cleared before midnight.”
Another recording.
“I don’t care what Caruso promised them.”
Another.
Then one Rachel had never heard.
A woman’s voice.
“Adrien is becoming suspicious.”
A male voice answered.
“Then remove the electrician.”
Rachel's blood went cold.
Adrien turned.
“Rachel.”
The recording continued.
“She discovered the electrical bypass at the gala.”
“Then make sure she takes the blame.”
Rachel stepped backward.
“Who are they?”
A file appeared on screen.
PROJECT NIGHTFALL.
Under it were six names.
Vincent Caruso.
Marianne Cole.
Chief Engineer Daniel Price.
Tomas Bell.
A lawyer.
And one final name.
Adrien Reichi.
Rachel stared.
“Your name is there.”
“I know.”
He looked at the screen.
The date beneath the project was seven years old.
Adrien had signed the file.
But another detail stopped Rachel.
Status:
ACTIVE.
Last authorization:
TWENTY MINUTES AGO.
Adrien reached for his phone.
No signal.
Rachel looked at the server rack.
“Someone knows we're here.”
The room lights shut off.
Adrien grabbed Rachel.
A red emergency glow appeared.
Then the speakers activated.
Vincent’s voice filled the room.
“You really should have left the electrician alone.”
Rachel stared into the darkness.
Adrien's voice became dangerously calm.
“Vincent.”
“I warned you.”
“You just made a mistake.”
Vincent laughed.
“No, Adrien. You did. You trusted a stranger.”
Rachel looked at Adrien.
For the first time, she saw uncertainty in his face.
Vincent continued.
“She is not who you think.”
The line went dead.
Adrien turned toward Rachel.
She expected suspicion.
Instead he asked:
“Is there anything you haven't told me?”
Rachel stared.
“No.”
“Good.”
He stepped beside her.
“Because I believe you.”
Rachel blinked.
“You don't know me.”
“No.”
He looked toward the darkness.
“But I know Vincent.”
He pulled her closer to the exit.
“We're leaving.”
“Why?”
“Because someone just activated a system that even my security team doesn't know exists.”
He looked at her.
“And they did it using my authority.”
Rachel's voice lowered.
“Then whoever is behind this has access to your identity.”
Adrien nodded.
“And probably my blood.”
Outside the hidden room, footsteps approached.
Slow.
Measured.
Several men.
Adrien raised his weapon.
Rachel tightened her grip on her tools.
The steel door began opening.
Then Adrien whispered:
“When the lights go out, run left.”
Rachel nodded.
The lights died.
May you like
Gunfire erupted.
And Rachel ran.
