Beside the chamber was a heavy curved shape.
A black triangular cover.
Almost exactly like the object that had risen through the water that afternoon.
Naomi stared.
Then whispered, "Grandma, what did you know?"
The next morning, she called the county records office.
The clerk was polite but confused.
The Crescent Branch project was old.
Several departments had reorganized since the original work.
Some records existed only on paper.
Others had been transferred to regional archives.
Naomi explained that she was concerned about an unstable pond on private agricultural land and had found references to an old county water-control structure.
The clerk gave her the name of an engineer who might understand the historic system.
His name was Benjamin Mercer.
He was seventy-three, retired, and had worked for the county's former water resources division during the final years of the project.
Naomi called him.
At first, he sounded irritated.
"Who's this?"
She introduced herself.
Then mentioned Ruthie Vance.
The line went quiet.
For several seconds, she thought he'd hung up.
Then he asked, "Ruthie's granddaughter?"
"Yes."
Another pause.
Then he said, "Is the pond still there?"
Naomi felt her stomach tighten.
"Yes."
The older man's voice changed.
"Is something wrong with it?"
She described the rising waterline.
The sinking bank.
The bubbling.
And the black object that emerged when the rope tightened.
For a long moment, Benjamin said nothing.
Then he whispered a word she couldn't quite hear.
Naomi leaned closer to the phone.
"Mr. Mercer?"
He took a slow breath.
"Don't let anybody near the northeastern bank."
She looked toward the window.
"We've fenced it off."
"Good."
He paused.
Then asked something that made her heart race.
"Did the black gate rise by itself?"
Naomi swallowed.
"I hooked something with a rope. Then the water started moving, and the black metal came up."
Benjamin exhaled.
For several seconds, she heard only the faint sound of his breathing.
Then he said, "I was afraid that might happen one day."
Naomi stared.
"What is it?"
The older engineer hesitated.
Then answered.
"It's part of a structure that was supposed to be taken out of service almost forty years ago."
She looked toward the old drawing.
"Then why is it moving?"
Benjamin didn't answer immediately.
Finally, he said, "That's what scares me."