The 34th Floor

The 34th Floor - Chapter 46 - Cade

The 34th Floor

Chapter 46:

Cade

I led us through the darkness with no particular sense of direction. It was synonymous to our entire journey in the house. The four of us had turned corners, climbed stairs, and crawled in and out of places that we had no previous intention to. There was no map or compass to point us in the direction of our escape, but for the very first time, it actually seemed as if we might find a way out.

With our knees scraping against the rough interior and our heads grazing the ceiling, we clambered through a seemingly lengthy tube. Our limbs were fatigued, our stomachs were growling, and our minds were at the verge of succumbing to madness if our stay were to be prolonged.

“How many passages does this place have?” Rachel grumbled from behind me.

“I don’t know, but this better be our last one,” Grace mumbled, followed by the sound of the boisterous growl of her stomach.

“Same,” Noah muttered, raising one hand to caress his sculpted torso.

“Let’s hope so,” I said, looking over my shoulder.

The three ceased their crawling when noting I had unexpectedly halted. It was when they raised their heads and looked up that they noted the stone gate hindering my continuation. A heavy, charcoal door, circular in shape and akin to the intricate door of a vault, stood blocking the passage to what lied on the other side.

“Could this be it?” Rachel asked in awe, attempting to rise on her knees to look over my towering figure and as a result, hitting her head against the wall of the tube.

“The function of a vault is to guard and protect a priceless or costly item. Could it be that this door is Richard King’s way of guarding the sacred escape from the penthouse?” Grace asked, her mind racing a mile a minute as she took in every inch of the door for hints.

“I highly doubt it. That’s too easy,” Noah pessimistically stated.

Grace was hardly fazed by his words, but Rachel was quick to toss Noah a glare over her shoulder.

“I am not turning back now, so let’s find out,” I announced, rubbing my hands together.

At the center of the miniature vault gate was a metal wheel with eight prongs sticking out all around. I gripped the wheel by one of the eight prongs and pushed downwards, satisfied as I heard the click and clack of gears turning and twisting. I pushed the wheel in a circular motion becoming restless when the door refused to click open at my twentieth turn. Rachel, Grace, and Noah wanted to do everything in their power to help, but there was only room for one person to seat themselves in front of the wheel. It was only when I began to lose hope that the vault door released itself and liberated the passage-way.

“34,” I whispered, marveling at the absurdity.

“34 turns?” Rachel incredulously asked. “How convenient. Someone would have given up way before.”

“But it makes sense,” Grace stated. “Do you remember when we figured out this place had four major floors? The 4th, 14th, 24th, and 34th?”

“Yeah,” Noah mumbled, turning his head to the side as if to conceal the redness beginning to fill his cheeks.

“You definitely should remember. I told you the wall read 14th and you wouldn’t believe me,” Grace pointed, devilishly smiling as Noah attempted to hide his embarrassment.

“In my defense, my assumption was still accurate,” he grumbled.

“Just not correct,” Grace was quick to retort.