Chapter 59
Agila towered over her. His shoulders were broad, and his muscles were thick under his shirt.
Alcohol didn’t cause him to wobble; it fueled him. He grabbed Lara’s waist and pulled her toward the staircase carved into the stone.
She didn’t resist.
The second floor opened into a wide space—a table, a dozen chairs. Must be a strategy room, a planning ground where decisions that ruined lives probably started.
And then the single room.
The wooden door was thick, reinforced. Heavy enough to muffle screams.
He shoved her inside.
She let him.
The room was bare, only a bamboo bed wide enough for three people. No mattress—just hard bamboo slats and a lone pillow. A small window near the ceiling allowed air but no escape.
Too high. Too narrow, but not for Lara, who was still slender.
Agila locked the door. He did not want her to escape and spoil the fun,
“What a pity,” he said, grinning as he loosened his collar. “Only you tonight. It’s not fun without variety p>
His eyes darkened.
“Strip.” It was a command.
For a split second, Lara’s vision sharpened into something dangerous. Her fists clenched on their own, and her lips pursed.
Her hands itched to strike.
Then—
A flash.
A woman appeared in her mind like a memory pulled from another lifetime.
She wore a sleek red dress that clung like a second skin, every step deliberate, every glance measured. Her smile promised pleasure and concealed danger.
She didn’t seduce for approval. She seduced to control. To disarm. To win.
The vision lingered for half a breath, imprinting itself over Lara’s instincts like a blueprint.
Then it was gone.
The room rushed back in—the smell of sweat and liquor and the weight of Agila’s gaze.
Lara drew in a slow, steady breath, letting it settle deep in her lungs. She felt her pulse even out. Felt the sharp edge of anger smooth into something colder. Sharper.
When she looked up again, the coldness was gone.
In its place—she smiled, not shy, but seductive.
“Why don’t you come here?” she purred, tilting her head just enough. “Wouldn’t that be more fun p>
Agila barked out a laugh.
“So you’ve got tricks.” He stepped closer. “I thought you were boring p>
He approached slowly, savoring what he believed was submission.
The moment he reached for—
Lara shoved him.
Hard.
He landed on the bamboo bed with a thud. The frame rattled, but he barely reacted. His body was dense, solid as concrete.
He smirked.
“Don’t be too hasty, handsome,” Lara cooed, masking the disgust curdling in her gut. “It wouldn’t be fun p>
“It’s good you know how to play,” he said lazily. “If the others were as smart, they wouldn’t have suffered so much p>
She was perched on top of him, knees planted on either side of his waist, owning the space like it was hers.
Underneath her, his abs tightened instantly—hard, carved, flexing with anticipation.
She felt the tension surge through him, the way his body reacted on instinct, mistaking her position for submission.
He thought he was in control. He had no idea she was the one setting the pace.
Her fingers traced the line of his jaw, the curve of his cheek—light, almost affectionate.
He closed his eyes.
Moaned.
“You’re a tease,” he breathed. “I can’t wait p>
“Don’t worry,” she whispered. “We’ll get there p>
She cupped his face with both hands.
Lowered her head slowly, as if offering him exactly what he wanted.
For a heartbeat, the world narrowed to his anticipation.
Then—
SNAP.
The sound was sharp. Clean.
Lara twisted his head with brutal precision, force exploding through her arms.
His neck broke instantly.
Agila’s eyes stayed wide, pupils blown with expectation that would never be fulfilled. His body went slack before his brain understood what had happened.
Silence swallowed the room.
Lara stood over him, breathing steady, hands not shaking.
She stripped him quickly and checked his pockets.
A handgun. A satellite phone. A jungle knife, A pocket knife, and thick rolls of cash.
Her lips curved.
“Perfect p>
Agila’s body lay limp on the bamboo bed, but she moved like she had all the time in the world.
Panic made noise. Panic made mistakes. She did neither.
Her eyes swept the room—every corner, every crack in the stone, uneven seams in the walls. The place wasn’t just a pleasure den. It was a command center. Men like these always built exits for themselves.
She found it.
Along the eastern wall, one stone slab sat slightly misaligned. Too clean along the edges.
She pressed, tested, pushed.
A hidden door swung inward.
Behind it were dozens of rifles. Handguns stacked in disciplined rows against cold stone. Ammunition crates tucked low.
These weren’t just careless thugs. They were organized. Armed for war.
Beyond the cache, a narrow staircase spiraled downward into a tunnel carved straight through the earth.
A clean escape route.
Lara studied it, weighing options.
The tunnel likely led outside the perimeter, miles away from the stronghold. Stepping into unfamiliar terrain at night—with two children—was gambling with darkness she couldn’t see.
She didn’t gamble blind.
She shut the hidden door quietly and waited.
Time stretched.
Voices downstairs grew louder… then sloppy… then faded.
Bottles rolled. Chairs scraped. Eventually, one by one, the stronghold fell into the heavy breathing of drunken sleep.
That was her window.
She slipped through the narrow ventilation window, her movements controlled and silent. The stone scraped her palms, but she didn’t flinch. Using a rope she’d taken from the hidden room and a dagger, she scaled the exterior wall and pulled herself onto the roof.
She tied the rope to a roof beam, measured the distance, then hurled the dagger hard. It spun once before embedding into the thick branch of an overhanging tree just beyond the perimeter.
She secured the rope, tested the tension, then slid across the line, her body cutting through the dark like a shadow. She landed outside the inner circle without a sound.
By the time she made it back to their hut, the jungle had shifted. The night creatures were louder now—long, eerie calls that sounded almost human if you listened too long.
Inside, Shay and Sandro were still asleep.
Lara knelt beside Shay and gently pressed her Anmian acupuncture points behind the ears. The little girl’s breathing deepened instantly, slipping into a heavier, dreamless sleep.
She couldn’t afford Shay waking mid-escape.
Then she touched Sandro’s shoulder.
His eyes snapped open—confused, ready to panic.
Lara leaned close and spoke in a low, steady voice, breaking the escape plan down into simple pieces.
“Are you ready?” she asked.
Sandro swallowed and nodded.
He trusted his Aunt Larissa.
That trust tightened something in her chest—but it also sharpened her focus. She couldn’t fail.
Lara wrapped Shay in the black tubular cloth and secured her snugly against her chest, binding the fabric tightly enough to keep the child stable but loosely enough to breathe comfortably.
One arm free.
One hand holding Sandro’s.
She stepped back into the night and retraced her path toward the tree with the overhanging branch.
Every shadow felt heavier now.
Every sound mattered.
There was no turning back.