Sothing shifted.
Not a sound but a pressure.
The kind that presses against the back of your neck like a cold barrel before the shot ever cos.
Lara felt it before she understood it.
Her instincts flared—hot, sharp, alive.
Danger.
She didn’t jerk. Didn’t flinch.
That was how people died.
Instead, her fingers tightened slowly around the grips of the twin pistols strapped to her thighs. The tal felt warm against her palms. Familiar. Steady.
Her breathing slowed.
The jungle had gone too quiet.
No buzzing insects. No wind dragging through leaves.
Even the birds had decided to mind their business.
Then—
SNAP!
Twigs cracked under the heavy pressure of boots.
Not one pair but several.
Lara pivoted in one smooth motion, both pistols raised, arms locked, eyes cold and precise.
The bushes parted.
And she froze.
The man stepping out from behind the tree wasn’t an enemy.
At least—not one she expected.
Ares.
But he didn’t look like the composed strategist she knew. His fatigues were streaked with dirt. His jaw was tight. His eyes... frantic. Searching for soone.
When they locked eyes, sothing unspoken passed between them.
His gaze showed relief, and hers shock.
What is he doing here?
For half a heartbeat, neither moved.
Then another voice cut in.
"Sis, what’s with the gun pointing at my handso face? Careful with that. You might accidentally pull the trigger."
Logan stepped out from behind Ares, flashing that crooked grin that usually ant trouble. But today, there was a crack in it. Relief sat heavy in his voice, barely disguised under teasing.
Behind them, more n erged from the brush.
Among them—Liam.
His gaze didn’t go to her face. It went to the guns.
Assessing. Calculating.
When did Lara ever hold weapons like that? Liam thought, eyes narrowing slightly. And why does she looked like the female protagonist of a famous ga, Lara Croft?
Lara caught the look. Of course she did.
She lowered the pistols casually—not back into the thigh holsters—but into her backpack.
To keep them from prying eyes.
Ares stepped forward first. His voice ca out rougher than usual. "Where is Shay?"
There was no greeting, just urgency.
"She and Sandro are in the cave," Lara replied evenly. "Follow ."
She turned without waiting.
On the ground behind her, the hare she’d hunted lay abandoned in the dirt.
What a waste. She thought. Looked like dinner plans just changed.
The n fell into formation around her.
Logan moved up beside her, unable to hold himself back. "Sis," he said quietly, lowering his voice now that the others were out of imdiate earshot. "How did you escape? Who rescued you?"
There it was. The real question.
Lara didn’t hesitate.
"A masked man rescued us. Then he left."
Behind her, Ares’ footsteps slowed for half a second.
Liam’s eyes flicked toward him.
Masked man? Liam’s mind was already running scenarios. No insignia. No intel about a third faction operating here. So who the hell got to her first?
Ares’ jaw tightened. If soone else reached her before we did... that ans we’re already behind. Whose person is he?
"Is he from the military?" Ares asked sharply. "Or one of the rebels? Any distinguishing marks?"
"I don’t know." Lara shrugged like it didn’t matter. "He was highly skilled and it was dark."
Clearly an understatent.
She had already co up with that alibi.
Let them chase a ghost. Better that than the truth. She could not implicate herself.
Ares gaze looked complicated for a mont.
"And the guns?" Logan interjected, glancing at her backpack. "You just... picked those up on the way out?"
"There’s a hidden room in the rebel’s stronghold," Lara said. Calm. asured. "Stacked with weapons and ammunition. The masked man led us through it. It connects to a tunnel. That’s how we escaped."
Logan almost tripped on a rock when he heard about the guns in the room.
"And that rifle?" he asked, nodding toward her back.
Lara stopped walking.
Right. She’d almost forgotten.
She unslung the rifle with easy familiarity and tossed it to Logan without ceremony.
He caught it automatically, but the weight surprised him.
"Yes. Got it there. I don’t need it anymore."
Logan stared at her.
Since when does she say that like she’s bored of firearms?
Ares’ gaze sharpened.
Liam’s thoughts darkened.
She’s different.
Despite the ordeal, she was neither shaken nor fragile.
She walked like soone who had walked through fire and morized its language.
Lara’s eyes drifted briefly toward the direction of the hidden tunnel.
Her voice lowered.
"Those rebels aren’t ordinary," she said. "They have enough weapons to arm a battalion."
"Like they’re preparing for a rebellion."
This ti, it was Liam who tripped.
Her indifferent words also wiped the grin clean off Logan’s face.
We thought this was a small insurgent case, Logan thought grimly. Not an army.
He caught himself quickly—but not before everyone noticed.
"A battalion?" Liam repeated slowly.
And in his chest, sothing heavy settled.
Because if she was telling the truth—
This wasn’t a rescue mission anymore.
It was the beginning of a war.
"We’re here."
Lara stopped a few ters from the edge of the steep-sided gorge.
The earth dropped off sharply in front of them, carved open like the earth itself had been split by a blade. Below, a ninety-ter waterfall roared down in a white, furious column, crashing into a dark plunge pool that churned like it had sothing to prove.
Mist rose in thick sheets, soaking the air. The sound was relentless—violent water smashing against stone, echoing off the gorge walls like distant artillery.
Logan stepped up beside her and let out a low whistle. "You’ve been hiding behind that?"
Or a death trap, Liam corrected silently, scanning the cliff edges, the tree line, the rocks along the rim. Every vantage point. Every possible sniper nest.
Lara didn’t admire the view.
She pointed.
"I only found three entries to the cave," she said over the thunder of the falls. "Two are too small for you to enter."
Her gaze slid briefly to Logan’s broad shoulders.
He smirked. "You calling thick?"
"I’m calling you oversized," she shot back calmly.
"And the third?" Ares asked.
Lara pointed her finger toward the plunge pool below.
"Down there."
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