Freddy and Hazel’s sibling relationship broke down when their parents’ will was read, revealing an unfair division of their properties. But after moving into the abandoned place he got, Freddy discovered a trap door leading to a hidden area that revealed why he was given that home.
Hazel interrupted, fidgeting in her chair, “Mr. Schneider, but why did I get the main house?”
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Mark interjected, the corners of his lips rising slightly, “Your parents met me. They know we had plans to get married and have children. Freddy likes to travel and never brought a girl home, so the big house should naturally go to a potential family.”
“Really?” Freddy retorted sarcastically, but it was only because Mark’s attitude always got on his nerves.
Mark chuckled, “Your parents agree, obviously. They did this. Not me.”
“It’s more than fair, babe,” her fiancé insisted.
Freddy and Mark stared at each other in a standoff. Mark broke the tense silence, making insinuations about Freddy’s lifestyle leading to his parents’ decision.
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Hazel attempted to defend her brother, but Mark spoke over her, insisting they deserved the mansion versus the abandoned house.
Freddy’s voice cracked as he confronted his sister about their parents’ old-fashioned views, particularly regarding his own life choices.
Hazel shook her head despite acknowledging that their parents struggled to accept certain aspects of Freddy’s life.
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Freddy laughed mockingly. “It’s the 21st century, Hazel. They could watch TV and movies and see how it works.” He continued, explaining that his parents started treating him differently after realizing his inclinations.
“Stop it!” Hazel frowned. “I will not allow you to talk about them this way.” She finally told her brother to accept their parents’ decision, making Mark smile wider.
Hanging his head, Freddy nodded at Mr. Schneider, accepting the will, and walked out of the lawyer’s office, his shoulder slumped on the way out.
Freddy moved into the abandoned house as soon as he received the keys. It was better than he imagined it. His father had bought it for a decent price, but after marrying Doreen, they moved into the big mansion that Hazel inherited.
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It still stung that his parents didn’t think he was good enough to get it. Hell, I’m not good enough to receive a fair split of their estate. But it didn’t matter anymore. It was his new house, and he had to take advantage of it.
On the first day, Freddy assessed everything that needed repairs and settled on remodeling the bathrooms and the kitchen. But after doing a little research on the internet about renovation costs, he sighed loudly. It would take thousands of dollars to make the place livable again, and that was only on labor costs.
Spoiler alert: It was complicated. Freddy, a theater kid turned world-traveling photographer, embraced this challenge as his most complex endeavor. He hoped to debunk stereotypes about his capabilities by documenting the renovation process on social media.
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Two weeks later, Freddy finished the kitchen and moved to the bathrooms. But he stared at the main one for a long time, sighing. Renovating was a lot of work, and the bathroom seemed trickier than changing a few cabinets and the tiles. Perhaps he should invest money in professional remodelers.
“Hmmm, maybe I can do something else,” he wondered, walking through the house and talking to himself. “The bedrooms need new paint certainly. And the floor. Wait, what is that?”
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He bent a knee and touched the strange unevenness on the floorboards, and surprisingly, his hand went through the floor. “Yuck! It is rotten,” Freddy noted, wiping his hands. But when he focused again, he realized a strange hollowness that shouldn’t have existed.
“What?” Freddy muttered aloud and got his phone. With his flashlight, he took a better look and saw… stairs leading into the darkness.
Days later, he contacted Mr. Schneider, curious about the house’s floor plans. “How do I find the floor plans for this house?” he asked, hesitant to explore the hidden staircase.
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Mr. Schneider suggested checking the municipal office. “You know…My father’s old house had a bomb shelter that we didn’t know about until he died. Built it right during World War I.”
The lawyer offered to find more information and get back to him. Several days later, Freddy received the floor plans, confirming the house indeed had a basement hidden beneath a trap door.
So, he took a slash hammer and destroyed all the rotten parts, which corresponded with the size of the trap door. The rest of the floor seemed normal enough. “Oh, man. I bet it’s flooded down there,” Freddy muttered as he started going down.
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He had his phone flashlight out and could smell the heavy scent of mildew and moisture in the air. “Great, this will be more money,” he muttered as he reached the bottom of the stairs. From what he could tell, it was just a regular room.
Except…there was a desk in the middle, littered with papers and an old-fashioned typewriter. “Spooky, but… interesting,” Freddy muttered, rolling his eyes at the idea that he had been the typical female main character in a horror flick.
Among the papers, he found poems signed by his father. Oh, my God! Dad was a poet and writer. Digging deeper, Freddy uncovered an ornate box beneath the papers.
