The engineer muttered, “That can’t be right.” A police officer leaned closer. “Old mine shaft?” Daniel shook his head slowly. The soil was too loose, too fresh. He’d seen collapsed mines before. This wasn’t one of them. His stomach tightened. Whoever made that line hadn’t done it decades ago.
Claire approached, her voice trembling. “Daniel, please get back inside.” But he couldn’t tear himself away. The screen flickered again, the camera dangling deeper into shadow. And there it was: the outline of a tunnel, braced with rough timber, pointing away from the house into darkness.