Missing for 15 years — his father found a secret room hidden behind the garage wall.

Robert Chan never imagined that his decision to renovate his old garage in Portland, Oregon, would turn into the most disturbing discovery of his life.

It was a Saturday morning when he began removing the rusty shelves that had occupied the west wall of the garage for decades.

His beautiful wife had insisted on the renovation ever since they moved into that house 3 years ago.

Careful with that wall, Rob,” Linda warned from the doorway.

“It seems more fragile than the rest.

Robert tapped lightly on the wall with his knuckles.

The sound was hollow, unlike the solid concrete he expected to find.

Frowning, he picked up a hammer and began carefully removing the plywood sheathing that covered the surface.

The first piece of plywood came away easily, revealing a layer of drywall behind it.

This doesn’t make sense,” Robert murmured.

Why would anyone put drywall inside a garage?” He continued tearing away the boards, and as more of the wall was exposed, he noticed something even stranger.

There was a door, a metal door painted the same color as the wall, almost invisible due to the precision with which it had been hidden.

Linda,” he called, his voice heavy with urgency.

You need to see this.

Linda approached quickly, her eyes widening at the sight of the hidden door.

My God, Robbie, there was nothing about this in the house documents, nor in the original plans.

Robert tried to turn the doororknob locked.

He looked around the garage until he found a crowbar.

With considerable effort, he forced the lock until something gave way with a metallic snap.

The door opened slowly, revealing complete darkness.

A strange smell escaped from the compartment, not exactly bad, but stale, like air trapped for too long.

His hands trembled as he turned on his cell phone flashlight and directed the beam of light inside.

What he saw made his blood run cold.

It was a small room, perhaps 3 m by 60, with a single bed against the back wall.

There was a small table with a chair, some shelves with books, and most disturbingly chains attached to the wall beside the bed.

My God,” Linda whispered behind him, her hand flying to cover her mouth.

Rob, this is this is a prison.

Robert cautiously entered the confined space.

The bed had worn sheets, but surprisingly clean, as if someone had taken care to keep them tidy.

On the opposite wall were children’s drawings, a child’s scribbles, some with names written underneath in clumsy handwriting.

He leaned closer to read better and felt his legs weaken.