Mike was surprised. He furrowed his brows, looking her up and down, seemingly assessing whether to trust her. Rhea leaned on the car window frame, a wide smile daring him to follow. He suspected an ulterior motive, however, glancing at her car, then back at his own.

"This place is remote; few would notice if I abandoned my car here," he thought. "Rhea calculates everything. She led me here, likely expecting me to hesitate." "Why? Are you afraid?" Rhea tapped her steering wheel. "Forget it then! It's a one-time offer, got it? Bye!" She waved, started her car, and began to reverse.

"Wait a minute!" Mike couldn't afford to let this be a trap. He'd been tailing her for two days and couldn't give up now. It would be far more difficult to discover her activities otherwise. He realized, "Rhea knows I've been stalking her. She exposed me on purpose. Besides, I'm running out of time."

After a moment's hesitation, he approached Rhea's car, opened the passenger door, and sat beside her, despite the smug look in her eyes. "I have to do this," he thought.

Rhea drove around his car and headed off. Mike instinctively gripped the door handle, watching her. "Are we going to your parents' house?" Rhea narrowed her eyes, her smile vanishing. "Just shut up and sit tight, okay?"

She floored the accelerator. Mike frowned, glancing at her solemn expression. It was too late to change his mind; he chose not to overthink it. Rhea drove swiftly, soon reaching her parents' house. However, she didn't approach the front gate; the approach was too conspicuous.

A pond lay behind the house, a less-traveled route. Rhea steered her car into a garage and shut the door, plunging them into darkness. Mike exited, noticing it was an ordinary garage. "This is where—"

Before he could finish, a section of the garage wall silently slid open.

"It's a secret door! I can't believe it," he thought, astonished. He'd seen many secret chambers in villas and castles around the world, but never expected one in a typical residential house.

Rhea ignored him, heading inside, confident he would follow.