A few hours later...
Ares received an encrypted message from the Laguna Governor. He was summoned to go to the southern part of Isla, the opposite side of where they had visited the other day.
The boat engine cut through the lake like a blade through silk, low and relentless, leaving a trembling wake behind it.
The island ahead rose from the mist like something half-remembered — too dark, too still, as if the world had decided to forget it existed.
Lara held Shay close, one arm wrapped tight around the girl's small body as the wind snapped at her hair and clothes.
Shay had fallen quiet sometime after they left shore, her earlier excitement swallowed by the heavy hush that seemed to live on the water.
Ares stood at the bow despite the protests about his injuries, broad shoulders cutting a hard silhouette against the fading sky. He didn't lean, didn't brace, didn't show weakness — just stood there like the boat was an extension of his will.
