Chapter 20 - SECRETS IN THE BASEMENT
Two months after their wedding, Jonathan and Maria returned to Sterling Manor to begin renovating the historic estate.
While workers were upgrading the plumbing beneath the east wing, contractors discovered a heavy iron door hidden behind drywall.
Jonathan descended into the cellar, holding a heavy flashlight as he inspected the rusted mechanical lock.
Using a set of master keys left behind by his late father, Arthur Sterling Senior, Jonathan turned the heavy lock.
The iron door creaked open, revealing an old subterranean study untouched for over forty years.
On a desk sat leather-bound journals and military intelligence files dating back to the Cold War era.
"What is this place, Jonathan?" Maria asked softly, holding his arm as she looked around the dusty room.
Jonathan picked up a leather folder stamped with the official seal of the United States Department of Defense.
"My grandfather wasn't just a corporate industrialist..." Jonathan realized in awe. "He ran covert defense logistics for the government."
May you like
The discovery revealed that Sterling Manor was built on top of a secure federal communications vault.
***
