Probably a few errors in this. I grew impatient and so have submitted it in pretty much original form. More to follow if you like it. GA
*
Alexandra Bingham regarded her brother over the top of her sunglasses. She knew what he held in his hand but pretended not to. Her tummy slid in anticipation.
"What is it?" she asked. "I can't see you properly, you're in the shade."
"It's the key," the young man replied, "to the apartment. I'm sure it is."
Alexandra, sunbathing forgotten, sat up in her deck chair. "You mean ...?"
"I think so."
Daniel left the obvious question unsaid -- Should they use it? Having found the key -- just sitting there -- on the kitchen worktop Daniel was undecided. As usual he left the decision to his more daring sister.
"Where was it?" Alexandra asked as she padded across the tiled deck that led from the pool area to the double patio doors at the rear of the villa.
Daniel stepped back into the cool interior of the kitchen; his sister followed and pushed her sunglasses up into the tangle of her blonde hair.
"Just there," Daniel replied and nodded towards the spot, "just sat there in plain view."
Alexandra grinned at her brother. "We've got a couple of hours before they get back ..."
Butterfly wings fluttered in Daniel's stomach; he knew what his sister's sly look meant. "I dunno, Alex. If Dad knew we'd been in there ..."
"How's he going to know? They won't be back for ages. We've got loads of time to sneak in and have a look around ... We won't disturb anything. Oh, come on, I've always wondered what's down there." The young woman smirked and added: "I reckon it's a kinky sex dungeon. You know ... ringbolts from the ceiling, a case full of rubber and latex ... Big dildos, that kind of thing."
Daniel rolled his eyes. "You always have to push it and take things too far. The idea of Dad in rubber kit ..."
"Well I'm going to take a peep. You can stay here if you like."
Alex snatched the key from her brother's hand. Barefoot, she strode from the kitchen. The young man stared at the empty doorway through which his sister had disappeared. He pictured her moving down the stairs that led to the lower part of the villa; the place his family had owned for as long as he could remember, and where he'd spent the majority of the summer holidays since he and his sister had been little. Now, with Alex being twenty-one, and he nineteen, Daniel thought that these family holidays would become a thing of the past. Both he and Alex were growing too old to be holidaying with parents.
He'd never seen inside the mysterious apartment in the cellar. The understanding was silently implicit -- It was their parents' private place, a place where Alexandra and Daniel had no business.
Daniel had been mildly curious for years, but hadn't been overly concerned, but now there was a chance to see beyond the blank-faced door ... and it could be the only opportunity he'd ever have ...
Daniel found the door ajar, the key protruding from the lock, mocking him like a stuck out tongue.
"Alex ..." he called nervously as he pushed the door wider. "Where are you?"
The girl called out: "In here."
Daniel followed the sound of her voice. He moved into the shadowy interior. The apartment, in essence a cellar, was windowless and cool. His heart hammered in his chest as he moved through the tiny vestibule. He shouldn't be in here; he and his sister were trespassing. Despite his anxiety Daniel walked deeper inside. As he moved beyond the small vestibule he searched for details. The place was disappointingly like the rooms above. There were no signs of depravity, no ringbolts in the ceiling that Alex had hoped for, this was no stygian dungeon. Instead Daniel saw tiled floors and matt-finished walls painted in flat primary colours -- the same as the rest of the villa.
The room Daniel stepped into was sparsely furnished. A single, large sofa sat against a wall. There were no pictures, no vases, and no television -- nothing at all in the way of decoration. From where he stood, to his left, through a doorless arch, Daniel saw a typical wet room -- a toilet, bidet, and shower. What was the mystery surrounding the apartment? Why the key?
His sister's voice came from the room straight ahead: "I'm here."
"I don't get it," Daniel said as he entered what was obviously the bedroom. "What's the big deal? There's fuck all in here."
Alexandra sat on the bed and turned her face to her brother, her eyes gleamed in the low light that breathed from a lamp in the corner.
