Chapter 127
Stephanie's Point of View
The handle rotated with extreme slowness between my trembling, sweat-slicked fingers, and the wooden door opened with a faint creak to reveal stone stairs extending deeply into the darkness below. Swallowing with immense difficulty, I pressed my cold palm against the concrete wall to support my depleted, staggering frame, then took my initial steps and initiated my descent with lethal caution.
The basement was not dark, pitch-black, or ancient and desolate as I had previously imagined; rather, it appeared like a luxurious, hidden sanctuary with meticulously illuminated lights and walls painted a clean white that entirely repelled any suspicion of danger.
