Page 115 of Bliss with a Billionaire

“Probably nothing,” he answered. “Probably an empty box of dust. What in the world could Lydia possibly be leading us to?”

“I don’t know, but she seemed to think it was enough that someone would destroy you to find it.”

Grant rolled his eyes. “Lydia always had a knack for the theatrical.”

“There’s another door!” Sierra shouted from down the passage. “It’s locked!”

They closed the gap between them, finding a large metal door blocking the way with a large keyhole in the center over a wheel.

“Do you think the key opens it?” Julia asked.

“One way to find out.” Sierra snatched the key from her fingers and shoved it in the lock.

“Maybe we should–” Grant began.

The glare he received from Sierra stopped his words.

She twisted the key in the lock. “It works!”

After a tug on the wheel, she stamped her foot against the dirt floor. “It won’t open.”

“You have to turn the wheel, duh,” Kyle said as he spun it.

The door fell away easily. A rush of stale air escaped from the dark room beyond.

“What is this place?” Sierra asked as she flicked on her flashlight again.

Julia stepped inside with her, toggling on her flashlight and shining it around the space. “Looks like an underground vault.”

Grant stepped inside, his light sweeping over the file cabinets and shelves filled with bins and boxes. A table sat in the middle of the room, a laptop on top.

“What is in all of these boxes?” Sierra asked as she tugged one free from the shelf and dumped it on the table.

Kyle flicked on a light. Bare fluorescent bulbs blinded everyone for a moment until their eyes adjusted.

Sierra pulled open the box and reached inside. “Whoa. Where did Lydia get this?”

Grant glanced at the emerald necklace dangling from his daughter’s fingers. “She probably stole it. Wait a minute, that was your grandmother’s. She stole all of this.”

“Of course, she did. That’s why she was living with us.” Sierra twisted to eye the other things on the shelf. “I bet this is all stolen.”

Grant clutched the necklace tighter. “This is how she was funding the stock buy-up. I wonder how much of this she fenced.”

Julia approached the file cabinets, her brow furrowed as she studied them. “I wonder–”

A rumbling interrupted her words, followed by a loud boom.

“What is that?” Sierra asked as the ground shook under them. “Is this an earthquake?”

“I don’t know,” Grant said as he took a step toward the door. A massive cloud of dust blew into the space, filling the air. Choking coughs broke the silence left behind.

Grant blinked the dust from his eyes, waving to clear the air. “What was that?”

Julia stared out the door, her face turning a ghostly white. “I have a bad feeling that wasn’t anything good.”

Grant peered out the door. “The lights went out in the hall.”

“Oh, no,” Julia said, her voice low and breathy.