As he spoke, an agent approached and handed a large, sealed evidence bag to Brooks. She took it, her eyes scanning the contents before looking back at Daniel and Megan. The immediate weight of the near-disaster was now accompanied by the procedural heft of the investigation to come.
Brooks held the bag up to the light. “We’re cataloging strains now. Some of these aren’t standard. Someone was experimenting. Possibly manufacturing hybrids.” She gave a firm nod, as if confirming her own grim assessment. “And we’ll find out who.” The house creaked faintly above them, old wood settling, or perhaps releasing a breath after decades of keeping secrets. Daniel and Megan stood side by side, the gravity of the moment settling in their bones.
“So what happens now?” Daniel asked quietly.
Brooks motioned to her team. “We’ll clear the grow lab. Remove the fungi. Sanitize the entire lower level. You two won’t be allowed inside until it’s declared safe.” She paused, her tone warm despite its firmness. “After that? You’ll get your house back.”
Megan blinked, surprised at the sudden prick of tears in her eyes. “Our house,” she echoed softly, as if reminding herself.
Brooks gave a small nod. “It’s worth saving. But it’s going to take work.”
Daniel slipped an arm around Megan’s shoulders, drawing her close. “We can handle work,” he said, though his voice trembled with leftover adrenaline.
Just then, Brooks’ radio crackled with a call from another agent. She took a step toward the ladder but glanced back with one last note of reassurance. “We’ll take it from here,” she said. “You two did exactly what you should’ve. And thanks to that—nothing got out of control.”
Then she disappeared down into the hidden room beneath their home, leaving Daniel and Megan standing together in the dim, dust-flecked light of their living room—shaken, rattled, and finally, unexpectedly hopeful. They listened to the muffled sounds of the federal team working below, a strange and solemn orchestra that marked the end of one terror and the beginning of a long, uncertain restoration.