Daniel felt the hair on his arms rise. Before either of them could ask more, the agents began lowering the ladder into the opening. One by one, they disappeared beneath the floor, flashlights slicing through the darkness as radios crackled softly. “Lower level is intact,” one agent called up. “There’s a metal door… definitely rusted, warped. And the growth is worse down here.”
Another voice: uneasy, not hiding it. “It’s like the wall is breathing.” Megan pressed a hand to her mouth. A long pause followed, the kind that made Daniel’s skin crawl. Then an agent’s voice, hushed but urgent: “…Brooks. You need to come see this.” Halpern descended next, climbing down the ladder with stiff precision.