SPLASH! I missed the patio by inches and landed in the deep end of the pool, which I guessed must be at least fifteen feet deep. I was surprised to be alive. I resurfaced to find Alex reading a triangular book. Hooray, I thought, Alex is alive! He was reading the same book I tripped on. There is something strange about the book. Well, lots can be strange about a triangular book. The name, though, is odd...The Castle Under The House, I whisper. Then it hits me. The name....it's the stolen book! But how did Alex survive, I wondered. "Don't worry, Harrison. I landed on the couch. Did you go feet first into the water?," Alex asked. "Y-y-yes. T-t-that pool is v-very, very c-c-cold!," I replied. "Let's go talk to the Sarquets and get out of this odd place," Alex said. "There's a towel over there. Why don't you dry off?"
"How does your search go, Alex?," Ms. Sarquet asked in the hall. "I see your assistant went for a swim." "You know that hole in the skylight? Someone blow torched that hole," Alex stated. "Really? That glass should be indestructible," Ms. Sarquet said as Alex started to lean on the wall. "He - and I'm certain it's a he - didn't just push out the glass in the..." Alex didn't finish because suddenly the wall he was leaning on opened and he fell through a crack. That was followed by the breaking of wooden steps and loud whacks and thuds. Then the noise stopped, accompanied by an "Ow! Why was that sliding wall there?" "Oh, are you alright?," Ms. Sarquet worriedly asked. "I didn't know that passageway was even there!"
"I'm alright, Ms. Sarquet," Alex answered. Mr. Sarquet joined us as we entered the secret passageway cautiously. The Sarquets and I occasionally picked up a piece of broken step and tossed it over the edge of the stairs to see how far down we had to go. Very far. The only light was behind us, coming from the secret passage entrance into Fare Well. It was almost gone by the time we reached the hundredth step (yes, I was counting). Suddenly, Alex's joking voice was right in front of me. "Welcome! You have reached the ground floor! Watch your step. There is lots of junk down here." It was so dark that I couldn't see a thing. Then Alex announced, "When I was in the library, I picked up this flashlight." This was followed by lots of banging and clicking from what I guessed was the flashlight. "Turn on, you stupid thing!," Alex yelled as he hit it on the railing. "Turn on, dang it! Why won't you turn on? There we go." We were blinded by a sudden light.
Alex then said, "I found The Castle Under the House book and I read some of it. It mentioned a Fare Well Castle that sank into the ground and then was covered up with sediment to form a hill. Glen Hill. then, in the past two centuries, someone built a house on that hill: Fare Well Estate. Now, there is a rumor that the castle contained gold, lots of gold. I read this as well. From my knowledge, I remember that the last owners died by poison as they ate dinner. You did that, if I am correct, Mr. and Ms. Sarquet, so that you could buy this house and get to the castle. That door over there probably leads to it. Looks like someone has been here already."
Alex pointed calmly to toward a door that had been cut from its hinges that I hadn't noticed until now. "Yes, we did. Alex, you are very, very smart. You would probably want us to come with you to the police and turn ourselves in, but you'll never get that chance, Alex. Good-bye," Mr. Sarquet said as he took out a pistol and loaded it. "Good-bye." Then there was a bang, and Alex fell to the ground.
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