Chapter 231 The Watcher Below
Twenty minutes ago...
The sharp slam of the door still echoed through the street as Dickson chased after Lana. Inside the old house next door, the same door that had closed on him creaked open once again. The old man stood in the doorway, his wrinkled hands resting lightly on the frame as he stared in the direction of Liam’s home.
His tired eyes squinted as if searching through time itself.
"What problem have you gotten yourself into now, little man..." he muttered under his breath, the words thick with a strange mixture of affection and exasperation.
With a quiet sigh, he closed the door.
The moment the latch clicked, everything about him changed. His once-hunched back straightened with an eerie fluidity, joints no longer stiff but smooth like a well-oiled machine. The slow, heavy shuffle of an old man was gone, replaced by precise, confident steps that made no sound on the wooden floor. Though his skin still hung wrinkled and aged, his body moved like a man in his prime. The disguise was flawless... until now.
Moving quickly, he reached into his coat and pulled out a small, brass key with a glowing red tip. He headed straight for a room near the back of the house—one that looked no different from any spare room in a suburban home. It had faded wallpaper, dusty shelves, and an old wardrobe with one missing handle. But he didn’t hesitate. He marched right up to the wardrobe, gripped its edge, and yanked the door open.
Behind the coats and old blankets, the false back panel clicked loose.
With a mechanical hiss, the floor beneath the wardrobe shifted, revealing a narrow platform and a sleek steel control panel embedded in the wall. An elevator. Without pause, he stepped onto the platform and inserted the brass key into a hidden slot. A soft pulse of red scanned the tip, and with a low hum, the elevator began to descend.
Down it went.
The wooden walls disappeared behind dark metal plating. The light dimmed, replaced by subtle, pulsing LEDs that guided the descent. The ride lasted nearly a full minute before slowing to a stop with a faint clang. The doors hissed open.