Chapter 181 A Secret Room
Arriving at the Winters Estate, Amanda was taken aback by its sheer size. She realized that searching for Aiden within such a vast property would require time and effort. She could not help but ask, “What do you guys do with such an enormous estate? It’s gonna be challenging to locate someone within its vast grounds. You’re not suggesting we search every nook and cranny, are you?”
Elias sensed the resentment in her voice but chose to remain silent, quietly enduring it.
Boris approached them. “Mr. Elias, how may I assist you?”
Since Elias had the advantage in his territory, he issued a direct command. “Search every corner of the entire estate, both inside and out. We must find a person.”
Boris looked puzzled. “Whom are you looking for?”
Finding someone in such a vast estate was no easy task, and even he had not explored every corner.
“Aiden. Make sure to check the surveillance footage as well.”
Though filled with doubt, Boris nodded. “Understood, I’ll get on it right away. By the way, should I also check the Tranquil Residence where Mrs. Winters resides?”
Do that!”
“Understood.”
Later, Elias and Amanda headed toward the surveillance room to review the footage thoroughly.
She asked, “Could Aiden be with your mother? But she doesn’t seem particularly fond of him…”
If Aiden were hidden there, would he be mistreated?
He explained slowly, “If Aiden is truly there, my mother won’t mistreat him. Despite her dislike for him, he’s still a descendant of the Winters Family.”
Hearing his words, she felt relieved. Now that I think about it, it does make sense. After all, Aiden is the bloodline of the Winterses. Mrs. Winters wouldn’t dare to mistreat her grandson, right?
Meanwhile, Boris had taken action. Amanda and Elias arrived at the surveillance room to meticulously examine every piece of footage, not letting any clue go unnoticed.
After over an hour, she pointed at the monitor displaying the garden and exclaimed, “Look! That person looks suspicious. It’s the middle of summer, yet he’s wearing a coat. Maybe he’s hiding a child underneath it!”
She had a nagging feeling that she had a wild imagination, but her intuition insisted that there was something peculiar about the man in the coat.
Yacob pressed the pause button and zoomed in on the screen. Indeed, a suspicious man was captured on the screen, tightly wrapping himself with a thick coat despite the scorching weather.
Elias furrowed his brow slightly. “Who is that man?”
Yacob carefully examined the footage and shook his head. “He doesn’t seem to be one of our men. He might belong to Old Mr. Winters…”
Elias’ expression changed abruptly. “Find out where he went!”
Yacob continued to retrieve the surveillance videos along the garden path to determine the destination of the man in the coat.
Amanda’s heart pounded with excitement as they were on the verge of uncovering the whereabouts of Aiden’s hiding place. Ever since the previous kidnapping incident, she had been haunted by the memories. Although she knew Aiden was safe now, she could not help but feel anxious.
After searching for a while, Yacob finally made a breakthrough and reported, “I found it! The person in the coat entered a secret room. After half an hour, he emerged with the coat unbuttoned. If I’m not mistaken. something was hidden inside the coat.”
“A secret room?” Elias furrowed his brow. How am I not aware of the secret room in the estate?
Yacob replied, “The secret room was built by Old Mr. Winters in the past. Very few people have entered it, and I haven’t been inside either, so I’m unaware of its contents.”
“Forget about its purpose or whatsoever. Let’s go check it now!” As Amanda’s primary concern was to find. Aiden, she wondered if he had cried or not.
Elias turned and followed behind her. Watching her anxious figure, he could not help but feel sorry for her. His brow furrowed in distress as he realized Howard had crossed the line this time.
Soon, they arrived at the location of the secret room built by Howard.
Yacob knew the secret room was located here but was unsure how to access it. “Mr. Winters, I know the entrance to the secret room is located here, but I’m not familiar with the method of accessing it.”
Elias gazed at the large tree before him. Could this be the entrance? He never anticipated that Howard would have a hobby of building a secret room within the estate. The purpose of this room remained a mystery to him.
“Is this tree the entrance? How do we get in?” Amanda approached the tree, examining it from different angles. No matter how she observed, it appeared to be an ordinary tree. It was difficult for her to believe that such a tree could serve as the entrance to a secret room.
Elias gazed at the imposing tree before him, and a rush of childhood memories flooded his mind. It felt as though he had recalled something….
“I think I remember this tree. Grandpa brought me here when I was a child…” However, his memories from then were hazy since he was too young. He suspected Howard had taken him inside the secret room.
A glimmer of hope appeared in Amanda’s eyes as she turned to look at Elias. “Really? So, you know how to
get in?”
“I remember that it’s somewhere around here…” He approached the tree and explored the trunk with his hands. Eventually, his fingers came across a button hidden at the back. As he pressed it, a faint sound of shifting stones could be heard nearby.
The three turned their heads in unison. To their confirmation, it was indeed the entrance to the secret
room.
“This is it! This is the entrance!” exclaimed Yacob.
Elias furrowed his brow as he suddenly remembered that Howard had brought him into the secret room
when he was young. They had stayed inside for several days before finally leaving. Is this some sort of hobby that Grandpa has?
Unable to contain her excitement, Amanda entered the secret room with Elias and Yacob closely trailing behind her.
Inside the secret room, they discovered a long corridor with dim lighting, creating an eerie and creepy atmosphere.
“Aiden must be scared being locked up here, but why can’t we hear any sound?” She felt that the corridor stretched on endlessly.
Finally, they reached a corner. Smiling, she walked over and soon discovered a door that required. fingerprint authentication. “What should we do?” she asked.
Yacob was similarly clueless. After all, fingerprint authentication meant that only specific individuals could. gain access.
Unexpectedly, Elias approached the door and placed his fingerprint on the sensor. To everyone’s surprise, the door opened automatically with a beep.
Amanda and Yacob were taken aback by the fact that Elias’ fingerprint could unlock the door, especially considering that he was unaware of the secret room’s existence.
Elias muttered to himself, “I must’ve been here with Grandpa when I was young. I didn’t expect my fingerprint would work after all these years…”
When he entered as a child, his grandfather had taken his fingerprint..
After stepping inside through the door, they discovered a small villa-like space that was fully equipped. The interior decoration followed a Cludan style and exuded a dignified atmosphere that perfectly matched Howard’s aesthetic preferences.
Amanda’s attention was drawn to a slightly ajar bedroom door. Just as she observed it, a nanny emerged with a milk bottle.
“Ah! The nanny was startled by the sudden intrusion.
She paid no attention to the nanny’s surprise. Noticing the baby bottle in the nanny’s hand, she promptly entered the bedroom.
Sure enough, she found Aiden fast asleep on the bed with traces of tears on his little face and a pout at the corner of his mouth as if expressing his sense of grievance.
She sprinted down the stairs but suddenly remembered her pregnancy and slowed down. Clutching the test strip in her hand, she wondered what Elias Winters' reaction would be once he heard the news.
Yet, when Amanda was halfway down the stairs, she saw two figures in the living room—Elias and a sexy woman. Slowing down her steps, she held the handrail tightly and felt her heart sink. That was because she saw her husband and the woman behaving affectionately as though they were a smitten couple.