My Husband Forbade Me from Entering the Basement and Installed an Alarm – One Day, I Snuck In #2

I never thought my marriage would turn into something out of a crime thriller.

When I met Daniel, he was just a regular guy. He was charming, funny, and a little awkward when nervous. We dated for two years before we got married, and everything felt… right.

We weren’t rich, but we were comfortable and happy. I mean, we lived in a small house in the suburbs and worked regular jobs, which sustained us. I was a freelance designer, and Daniel managed a hardware store.

We spent weekends watching terrible reality TV while eating way too much takeout.

It was normal. We were normal.

Until the basement incident.

It started a few months after the wedding.

One night, we were cuddled up on the couch with bowls of ice cream when Daniel suddenly sat up straight.

“Hey, Lia,” he said. “Just by the way, don’t go into the basement, okay?”

“What? Why?” I asked. “Please tell me that there’s no mold!”

He grinned, leaning in like he was telling me a secret while eating from his bowl.

“No, there’s no mold, honey. But I am working on something down there. And it’s going to be a surprise.”

“What kind of surprise?” I laughed, secretly hoping that it was an office space for me. “Tell me!”

“You’ll see when it’s ready, honey,” he said, kissing my forehead. “Just trust me on this one.”

So, I did.

For a while.

At first, it was cute. I imagined some grand romantic gesture, like that home studio I always wanted, or maybe even a wine cellar since we always talked about having one someday.

But then, things got weird.

One afternoon, I was looking for my old winter clothes. It was almost the turn of the season, so as usual, I was going to switch up my closet, adding all the winter clothing.

That’s when I realized that most of our boxes were still in the basement.

I didn’t think much of my actions, except that I was going downstairs and getting my clothing.

That was it.

But do you know what happened next?

Daniel physically stopped me before I could open the door.

His face was tight, and his grip was firm. I was so sure that I’d have a bruise on my wrist.

“Don’t, Lia,” he said.

“Babe, really? I just need my stuff.”

“What stuff?” he asked, frowning.

“My winter clothes. I told you, I wanted to sort out my closet today. I don’t have much time during the week, and I want to see what needs to be laundered first.”

“I’ll get it for you,” he said.

My stomach tightened.

“Dan, what’s going on?”

His voice softened, but there was something off in his eyes.

“Just trust me, love,” he said. “I don’t ask much of you. But I’m asking for this.”

“Okay,” I smiled. “This surprise better be insane.”

He chuckled and nodded as he went to the basement. And then, later that night?

My husband installed an alarm system on the basement door.

That was when I knew. Something was definitely wrong.

I tried to shake it off, but I couldn’t. Not when my husband was treating me like an alien in my home. But it only got stranger.

A few nights after that, as I was in the kitchen making burgers for dinner, I heard Daniel on the phone.

I wasn’t trying to eavesdrop on my husband, but I didn’t have any music on, and there were no sizzles from the stove either.

“Everything will be ready soon!” he said, his voice low and urgent. “I’m almost done! I promise you, I’ll be there soon, and I can guarantee that nobody will suspect a thing.”

I froze.

“Nobody will suspect a thing?”

Who was…? What?

My pulse hammered as I continued to cook. It was clear that whatever was going on in that basement wasn’t a surprise for me.

It was a secret. A dangerous-sounding secret.

And I was going to find out what it was.

The next day, I waited until Daniel left for work.

I stared at the basement door for a while, my heart pounding. The alarm was loud, but I didn’t care. I punched in the code I had seen him use for our home security system.

It didn’t work.

Of course, the man I had married was doing shady things in our basement.

You can figure this out, Lia, I muttered to myself.

I knew I wouldn’t have plenty of time after the alarm went off. Daniel would get the notification, and I was sure he would fly home to see what I was up to. But would the police also get a notification? Or a security company?

Or was it just Daniel?

I was so confused.

I grabbed a hammer from the garage and smashed the alarm keypad with one swift move. The alarm blared through the house, but I didn’t stop there. I pushed the door open and rushed down the stairs.

And when I reached the bottom, my stomach dropped.

Right in the middle of the room was a massive wooden chest, while the rest of the basement was left untouched.

I flipped it open and nearly fell back at the contents.

Gold.

The wooden chest was filled with gold jewelry, golden candlesticks, goblets, and ornate objects that looked like they belonged in a museum.

I felt sick to my stomach.

Where had these items come from? Was Daniel… a thief? Had I married someone who was smuggling stolen artifacts?

I scrambled for my phone and called him.

It rang once. Twice. And then…

“Why are you calling?” he demanded, his voice sharp.

“What the hell is in our basement?” I asked, surprised that he hadn’t received a notification about the alarm.

There was a beat of silence. I could hear the aircon and the steady hum of the fridge in his office.

“You went down there, Lia?”

The rage in his voice sent a chill up my spine. Not even a minute later, I heard a car engine rev.

“I’m coming home,” he said.

Then the line went dead.

Daniel was home in minutes. He stormed inside, his face twisted in fury.

“I told you not to go down there, Lia! I told you specifically!”

“What is that gold, Daniel? Where did you get it?” I demanded, standing my ground.

He ignored me completely and rushed to the basement. I followed as he grabbed the heavy chest and hauled it up the stairs.

“Dan, stop…”

But he was already shoving everything into the trunk of his car.

“You shouldn’t have done that, Lia.”

Then he slammed the trunk with so much force that it shook the car. Before I could react, he jumped into the driver’s seat and sped off.

I watched, stunned.

My husband had just taken a box of gold and disappeared.

What the actual hell?

Two days passed. Daniel didn’t call. He didn’t text. He didn’t come home.

I didn’t go to the police. I didn’t even know what I’d say.

“What do you mean? Lia? Really? Your husband just disappeared?” Sarah said.

I was on the phone with one of my colleagues and accidentally let everything slip out.

“Well, I mean… I don’t know, Sarah,” I said. “He was so angry. I’ve never seen Daniel that mad. And for what? A box of things?”

“Gold, Lia,” she said. “Are you sure that he’s not shady? Like, involved with criminals or something?”

“I haven’t the foggiest clue,” I said. “The man literally changed in front of my eyes.”

“I’ll cover for you at work,” she said. “But you try and figure this out. And stay safe, Lia. If something feels wrong, just call the police. Husband or not, vows or not, your safety matters.”

I needed to hear that.

But I didn’t go to the police. I didn’t even know what I’d say. But then, on the third morning, there was a knock on the door.

It was my grandfather, Patrick.

His old eyes twinkled as he stepped inside, holding a box of pastries.

“So,” he said, smiling. “Tell me, did Daniel take the gold?”

I blinked.

“What?”

He chuckled, shaking his head.

“I knew that boy wasn’t right, Lia,” he said. “I just knew it. It was a feeling I had in these old bones.”

“Grandpa, what are you talking about?” I asked, my stomach turning as I spoke.

My grandfather sat down on the couch, completely unbothered.

“It was a test, sweetheart,” he said. “I set the whole thing up. And I hate that I was right. I hate it. But I’m glad, you needed to know the truth.”

“Right, I need you to explain everything you know,” I said. “I didn’t even tell anyone that Daniel was gone. So, how do you know about the gold?”

“Daniel? No way!”

“Oh, he didn’t get that far,” Grandpa grinned. “My friend took one look at that junk and called me right away. I figured that it was time to check in on you. And bring pastries for good measure.”

“So, you did it? You gave Daniel the gold?” I asked, trying to make sense of everything.

“Yes, I gave him the gold,” he explained. “I told him that it was my inheritance, passed down from my great-grandfather. I told him that I wanted the box to be with the two of you now and that nobody in the family knows about it. I asked him if he could sell it and that we would split the money when he did.”

I felt like the floor had vanished under me.

“And he agreed?” I whispered.

“Not only did he agree, Lia,” Grandpa said, laughing, “but he planned to take all of it for himself.”

I swallowed hard.

“Grandpa… what kind of gold was that?”

And that’s when he really started laughing.

“Oh, sweetheart,” he said, wiping his eyes. “It’s not gold at all!”

I froze.

“What?!”

“It’s fake, Lia!”

The room spun.

My husband had stolen a box of worthless metal and left me for it! He had thrown away our marriage, our life, everything for something that wasn’t even real.

I sank into the chair, covering my mouth. I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

“Well, I guess you dodged a bullet, huh?” Grandpa said, laughing.

“But he left me for nothing?!” I gasped.

“No, Lia,” he said. “He left because he was nothing. We can sort out the legalities tomorrow. I have a lawyer friend, too. Now, let’s have a cup of tea and dig into those pastries, honey. Everything is going to be okay. We’ll sort everything out. Don’t you worry.”

And somehow, for the first time since Daniel had driven away, I smiled.