Chapter 6 - The Cracking Foundation
Evelyn took a small step back, her eyes scanning the crowd of guests who were now whispering frantically among themselves.
"Ethan, you're not thinking clearly," Evelyn stammered, her composure rapidly disintegrating. "Lily’s wild stories are getting to you. You're in shock—"
"Get me a sledgehammer," Ethan barked, pulling himself up onto the pool deck. His wet clothes heavy against his skin, he pointed toward the pool house. "MARCUS! Get the sledgehammer from the tool shed!"
"Ethan, stop this madness!" Evelyn shouted, her voice dropping its soft facade and turning sharp, grating, and frantic. "You are embarrassing yourself in front of our friends! You're letting a hysterical seven-year-old ruin our future!"
"MARCUS, GET THE HAMMER!" Ethan roared, his voice echoing off the concrete walls of the estate.
Marcus didn't argue. Driven by the sheer intensity in Ethan’s eyes, he ran toward the pool shed and returned moments later carrying a heavy, ten-pound iron sledgehammer.
Ethan grabbed the tool, its heavy wooden handle solid in his trembling hands. He walked to the shallow end, stepped down into the water, and waded out until he was waist-deep near the secondary pump access panel built into the stone patio wall—the upper entryway that led down into the old maintenance void.
"Ethan, if you do this, we are finished!" Evelyn screamed, her face contorting into a mask of pure rage. "I won't stay here and be humiliated by your insane suspicions!"
She turned to flee toward the main house, but Marcus and another guest stepped into her path, their expressions grim and unyielding.
"Let me through!" Evelyn shrieked, clawing at Marcus's arms.
CRACK!
The deafening sound of iron smashing into reinforced masonry echoed across the patio. Ethan swung the sledgehammer with every ounce of strength in his body, striking the tiled access wall near the pool deck.
Water splashed everywhere as concrete dust and broken ceramic flew into the air.
CRACK!
On the second swing, the outer wall gave way, revealing a dark, hollow cavity beneath the patio floor—a forgotten drainage space leading directly under the pool's structure.
A horrific, stale odor of damp earth, decay, and chemical sealant poured out of the breach.
May you like
Several guests gagged, covering their noses and stepping back in horror.
Ethan dropped the hammer into the shallow water. He grabbed a heavy-duty waterproof flashlight from the patio table, knelt by the jagged opening, and clicked the beam on.
