But if they didn't go, Celeste would eventually succumb to the Shadow Eater. She had only survived the first wave because of her chronic insomnia.
This ti, they had no choice.
Victor spread the docunts across the table, scanning through them. After a mont, he frowned.
"According to the reports, we should retrace the locations where the previous victims were sent after receiving their classified orders.
"But…" He tapped the page. "It says here that every single one of them lost their mories after returning.
"Captain, do you rember anything?"
Victor's ability to cut straight to the point was exactly why he'd made a good leader in the military.
Celeste shook her head. "Nothing."
"Then where exactly is our mission taking us?"
"Ravenwood," Celeste said.
There was sothing… off about her tone. A flicker of hesitation. A mont ago, she claid she couldn't rember. Now, she suddenly had an exact location.
And her reaction made everyone suspicious.
They stared at her, waiting.
Celeste cleared her throat. "I… found sothing in my inventory that doesn't belong to . It might be sothing I forgot. The tag on it has the Ravenwood insignia."
She kept her eyes glued to the docunts as she spoke, avoiding their gazes.
Which was strange.
Celeste wasn't the type to dodge eye contact, she always looked people straight in the eye. But right now… she was definitely hiding sothing.
"C-Captain," Leo said hesitantly. "Are you sure it's not just a mix-up? Even if it has a location tag, that doesn't an you actually got it from there."
He was trying to reason with her, but the way he addressed her—Captain, felt oddly forced, like he wasn't used to saying it.
Still, the others agreed with his logic.
Celeste finally looked up and fixed Leo with an icy stare. A chill ran down his spine. Did I say sothing wrong? He couldn't recall anything out of line, but the way she was looking at him made it seem like she was about to kill him.
After a long, tense mont, Celeste rolled her eyes, then reached into her pocket. She pulled out a small, black bundle.
Without another word, she tossed it onto the table and headed for the door.
"Get ready. We leave in two hours. et at Peachtree Airport."
The second the door shut behind her, Leo—ever the curious one, reached for the bundle.
"Whoa—!"
The mont he unwrapped it, he nearly flung it back onto the table. It landed softly, unfolding before their eyes.
For a second, no one spoke.
Lyla's face turned red as she quickly looked away. The four n, however, just stared at each other. Then at the lacy, black thong lying on the table.
Leo had been quick to suggest it was a mix-up. Yeah. Not anymore.
So the "Ravenwood insignia" Celeste ntioned… was on this?
For a long mont, nobody moved.
Finally, Lyla stepped forward, plucking a small white tag from the fabric. Stamped on it was an oval-shaped logo.
Ravenwood National Park Resort – Exclusive Item.
The truth was out.
Williams clicked his tongue. "No wonder the Captain was embarrassed. This is your fault, Leo."
"Yeah, definitely Leo's fault," Victor added, turning to leave.
"Wait—I—!" Leo sputtered, looking for a defense.
Lyla scoffed, picking up the underwear. "You're such a perv," she muttered before heading upstairs.
Leo was left staring at the ceiling, questioning his life choices.
Ethan patted his shoulder with a sympathetic shake of his head. Then, without another word, he sighed and followed the others upstairs.
Leo stood alone, utterly baffled.
"Weren't all of you doubting her just now? How did this suddenly beco my fault?"
___
Two hours later.
Lyla stood outside Peachtree Airport, watching the plane ascend. Tears welled in her eyes as she watched it vanish into the sky.
Softly, she whispered, "Goodbye, Ethan."
Inside the plane, Ethan absentmindedly touched his lips. He could still taste the faint sweetness of Lyla's lip balm.
She had kissed him. Out of nowhere.
That little troublemaker… She had been so worried about him, hesitating to speak multiple tis before their departure.
Ethan grinned, glancing out the window as the plane climbed. Then, out of nowhere, a sharp pain stabbed through his chest.
It disappeared just as quickly, so he brushed it off as nerves from his first flight. Despite having lived two lives, this was sohow his first ti flying.
He gazed out for a while, but once the plane entered the thick clouds, everything outside turned into a dull, gray mist.
With nothing to see, he shut his eyes to rest. Before he knew it, he was asleep.
A light slap on his arm woke him.
Leo was standing over him. "We've landed."
The five of them had brought nothing, completely light-packed. Which was quite a contrast to how Ethan had left Ember City.
Back at the villa, he had packed everything. Extra clothes, toiletries, even his VR headset. Leo and Victor had laughed at him the whole ti, but he hadn't understood why—until they reached the airport.
Celeste had looked at him, deadpan.
"Are you moving out?"
Then she dropped the bomb.
"You're not bringing any of that."
And just like that, Ethan understood why the others had been snickering. Apparently, he was the only one who didn't know the rules.
A complete rookie.
With no choice, he had to hand everything off to Lyla before boarding. Still, he had asked, just to be sure.
"Not even my VR headset?"
Celeste didn't even dignify that with a response. She just turned and walked away.
That silence said everything.
After landing, Celeste led them to a parking lot. They walked until they reached a rugged black Humr.
Williams exchanged a glance with Celeste, then pointed to the front tire. Victor nodded, crouched down, and slid under the vehicle. A few monts later, he erged, holding a key.
No one spoke on the way. It wasn't awkward, just… silent.
Ethan, however, felt completely out of the loop. Forget understanding—he didn't even have the faintest idea what was happening.
As for the others, with just one glance or one nod, they all knew what to do. anwhile, Ethan felt absolutely lost.
After getting in, Leo reached under the backseat and pulled out five heavy-duty backpacks. He tossed one straight to Ethan.
The mont Ethan caught it, he almost staggered under the weight.
"Damn," he muttered, testing it with his hands.
Easily 160 pounds. What the hell was inside this thing? Bricks?
Curious, he unzipped it and started digging through. And imdiately, he understood.
Inside was a full survival kit—climbing gear, thick boots, a sleeping bag… and weapons.
A handgun. A submachine gun. A machete. Ropes. It was basically a mobile arsenal.
Ethan pulled out the pistol, inspecting it. He had no clue what model it was.
"You know how to use that?" Leo asked.
Ethan shook his head.
Leo smirked. "I'll teach you when we reach the mountains."
Williams hit the gas, gunning the Humr down the road. Celeste fed him the coordinates.
Their destination was a place just beyond the famous Warrior's Rest.
And whatever was waiting for them there… Ethan had a feeling it wasn't going to be pleasant.
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