Destination Uknown (part 5)

This post is part of a writing challenge by Bertek D, Penumbra. It’s a bit of a departure from my normal post. The idea is to pick up from where a previous author left off and write a segment of your own that ends in a cliffhanger. I have taken the liberty of mixing in qualitiesof a character that I am developing for a separate project but I think it works well.

Please visit the other authors for the full story.

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

There was so much spinning in my head. If I told Ann about my sister’s abilities she would eventually figure out our true bloodlines. The family would not be pleased and I was already in hot water over the incident with Sylvia. Something had to be done to snap Agatha out her current mental state. I told Ann to please wait while I checked on my sister. As I climbed the spiral staircase I ran my hand along the carvings on the rail. The symbols were like Braille. To an outsider the symbols were just strange art but in my family it was a secret message. It was the combination to a lock. I topped the staircase and proceeded down the hall to the third door on the right. The spare room was used for storage. The stacked boxes were crowded in with just enough room left to pass along the wall. They were full of the trinkets and more mundane items my family had collected over the centuries. The musty smell of the boxes filled my nostrils as I slid along the wall. Finally, I came to open space in the back. An antique mirror hung on the wall. The dark wooden frame held symbols that match the carvings on the rail. I had to activate them in the right order or a booby trap would solve my problems permanently. I took a deep breath and entered the combination. As I touched the last symbol they all lit up in sequence and the glass became liquid. I stepped through the mirror and into the secret library that held my family’s real inheritance. If there was a cure for Agatha’s condition it would be found here in the other world.

I Pulled my antique Zippo from my pocket and lit the wick. In the soft yellow glow of the flame I could see rows and rows of books. I was looking for the lever that activated the gas lights when something moved in the shadows. Nobody else should even know about this room much less be creeping around in the dark. My grandfather’s sword hung in display near the secret door. For the first time in almost a century it’s rest would be disturbed.