For a long moment after Vanessa spoke, the underground archive felt unnaturally quiet.
The dim lamp on the desk cast a warm yellow circle over the old document, but the light didn't make the room feel any less tense. Dust floated slowly in the air, disturbed by the movement of people who had entered a space that had been untouched for years.
Marco leaned closer to the desk.
"Okay," he said slowly, "I think everyone in this room is thinking the same thing."
Vanessa didn't look at him.
"And that would be?"
Marco pointed at the contract.
"Who's the name?"
The stranger didn't answer immediately. Instead, he rested his hand lightly on the edge of the desk and studied Vanessa's face.
"You read it first," he said.
Vanessa glanced down again.
The old paper looked fragile, the ink faded but still legible enough under the desk lamp. The contract had clearly been written decades ago, long before the mansion above them had even been built.
Seven names.
