Nothing.
Hunter couldn’t hear a sound, and no matter how hard he looked, he also couldn’t see any indications of a secret floor panel that could lead him to a secret, underground room.
But just because he couldn’t see it, it didn’t mean that it wasn’t there. Hunter knew that only too well.
After so many years investigating ultra-violent crimes, Hunter had come across a few Murphy doors that had led him into secret rooms. Some were badly built, hidden inside a wardrobe or under a staircase, and were relatively easy to spot, but some had been so expertly created that they were practically impossible to find unless they’d been activated.
Murphy doors were usually activated either by pressing a button that had been hidden somewhere or by pushing a lever; in that kitchen, there were plenty of places to hide both.
Walking over to the high cupboards on the north wall, Hunter used his flashlight to look under them, while feeling the edges and corners with the tips of his fingers. There were five cupboards built against that wall, but Hunter found nothing under them – no button, no lever, no false panel.
Next, he simply opened all the cupboards, took a step back, and paused. Four of them had several items in each – pans, pots, cups, plates, jars, glasses, kitchen utensils, kitchen supplies – all the normal items that he would expect to find in most kitchens – but in one of the cupboards, the first one on the far right, there were only two cans of tuna on the lower shelf. That was it. Nothing else.
Hunter thought about it for a millisecond.
If he had to constantly activate a secret mechanism to release some kind of trapdoor somewhere, he would want quick access to it. If the release mechanism was hidden inside a cupboard, he wouldn’t fill that cupboard with stuff, otherwise he would have to move all the stuff out of the way first before getting to the mechanism. Once activated, he would have to move everything back to its original place. And he would have to do that every time he wanted to access his secret room. Not exactly practical.
Hunter returned to the first cupboard and pushed the two cans of tuna to one side.
He couldn’t see anything.
Holding his flashlight with his left hand, he used his right one to feel the back panel inside the cupboard.
He pressed its edges, searching for a click-spring mechanism – the most used mechanism for concealed false panels.
He pressed the top edge – nothing.
Bottom edge – nothing.
Center – click.
The panel dislodged.
Hunter’s heart stuttered.
He pulled it open to find a lever.
‘Bingo,’ he whispered, as he reached for the lever and flipped it down. As he did, he heard a new clicking noise come from behind him. Hunter directed the beam of his flashlight back to the floor and searched, but nothing seemed to have changed. No secret door had sprung open… no black or white square had clicked out of place.
But he had definitely heard a new clicking sound once he flipped the lever.
Must’ve been another false back panel somewhere.
Behind him, all the cupboards there were located under the sink.
Hunter got down on his knees and opened them all. It tookhim just a couple of seconds to find it. He was right – a second false panel had sprung open – this one revealing a round, metal button. Hunter pressed it and heard the thump of a lock opening just a few feet to his right.
And there it was.
A secret, heavy and steady floor door, leading down to what Hunter knew would be the killer’s torture chamber.
He took a deep breath, checked his weapon and took the stairs down.
Sixty-Seven
Hunter took the cement steps going down to the house’s cellar as cautiously as he possibly could, counting each step as he took them, and he was immediately surprised. This was a deep, deep cellar. It took him eighteen steps to get to solid ground. And it was pitch-black and cold down there.
As Hunter climbed down the last step onto the adobe floor, he paused, the beam of his flashlight circling the room that he was in, while his eyes took in everything they could.