Chapter 8 - The Safe Beneath The Water
"An industrial floor safe... right beneath where Liam and I stood just hours ago," Arthur said, his voice shaking slightly as he stared through the glass window at the sunken metal box.
"Liam must have known it was down there. That's why he bought this specific villa—he wasn't just laundering money, he was searching for whatever is locked inside that safe," Elena realized, her hands clenching into tight fists.
"That explains why he was so desperate to keep us away from the pool, and why he reacted with such violence when I lifted Lily near the edge," Arthur added, watching the last few inches of water swirl down the central drain.
The pool was now completely empty, leaving behind a damp, echoing concrete basin that smelled of stagnant algae, rust, and decades of forgotten secrets.
"We need heavy tools to get that safe open, Dad. We can't do it with our bare hands," Elena said, looking around the pump house for crowbars or heavy hammers.
"There's a maintenance toolkit in the utility closet by the cabana, but we have to move fast before the police finish securing the front perimeter," Arthur replied, stepping out of the pump house into the cool night air.
They hurried across the patio toward the cabana, their footsteps echoing loudly against the hollow-sounding concrete of the drained pool basin behind them.
Arthur grabbed a heavy steel crowbar and a pair of industrial bolt cutters from the utility rack, handing the tools to Elena while he hoisted a heavy sledgehammer onto his shoulder.
"Let's finish this before someone comes around the back," Arthur muttered, leading the descent down the concrete pool ladder into the deep end.
The footing was slick, and the air down in the basin felt heavy and suffocating, far removed from the luxurious resort atmosphere of the afternoon.
They reached the rusted safe, and Arthur immediately drove the sharp end of the crowbar into the thick rubber seal surrounding the heavy steel door.
"Help me pry it, Elena. Put your weight into it," Arthur grunted, his muscles straining against the unyielding metal as Elena threw her full weight onto the other end of the iron bar.
With a sharp, deafening pop that echoed across the empty courtyard, the heavy steel door of the safe finally broke free of its rusted hinges and swung wide open.
Inside the dark cavity of the safe sat a single object wrapped securely in layers of heavy plastic sheeting and duct tape.
Elena reached inside, pulling the heavy package out into the dim moonlight, and carefully sliced through the tape with a maintenance knife.
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The plastic fell away to reveal an antique wooden jewelry box encrusted with sparkling emeralds—and resting right on top of it was a familiar gold-trimmed luggage tag bearing Liam's initials.
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