Barett witnessed something he never should have—Demitrio, the new chieftain, tangled in an act of betrayal with his wife’s younger sister, and in broad daylight.
The younger sister was only fifteen years old!
They locked eyes. It was too late for Barett. He couldn’t run. He couldn’t escape. Even if he could, the chieftain would catch up with him.
After the chieftain was done, he fixed his clothes and slowly approached Barett, his gaze sharp and full of menace.
"Village Chief...I did not see anything, nor hear anything." Barett stammered in a small and desperate voice, his legs were shaking.
The chieftain smirked, and Barrett’s heart turned cold.
"You are smart and that’s good," he said. Since you are intelligent, I will let you go."
Before Barett could heave a sigh of relief, Demitrio, without warning, lifted him like he was a sack of grain, then carried him to the edge of the cliff.
The chief, whom he had previously seen as his hero, the one he aspired to become, held him by his two feet and left him dangling over the cliff for a full five minutes.
It was only five minutes, but to Barett, that five minutes stretched like eternity. Five minutes that seared themselves into Barett’s very bones.
With blood rushing to his head and the view of the churning water below, fear like he had never known before consumed him. Any longer and he should have fainted.
"Please... let me go... please," he whimpered as he begged.
"This is a warning of what will happen to you and your brothers if you speak of what you witnessed today." Demitrio’s sinister voice overwhelmed his olfactory senses, drowning the roaring of the river below.
"Barett, what is wrong?" Lara has somehow arrived in front of him. She was worried when Barett turned into a statue, staring blankly at the river below.
"Barett?" Lara asked again when he noticed how pale Barett was.
Barett shook his head and blinked a few more times.
"Nothing." Barett smiled awkwardly, trying to put up a brave front.
"Barett!" A single name. Different voices reverberated, sending echoes throughout the canyon.
Barett’s body dangled under the bridge. Lara’s left hand was grabbing his right wrist. Lara had a bad feeling about it. Barett’s hand was too sweaty. She uncoiled the rope around her waist to tie him up, but before she could do so, the thirteen-year-old boy slipped from her hand.
"Bareeett!" The cry pierced the stillness, more urgent and frantic than the first. It reverberated through the air, sending shivers down the spine and leaving a chilling echo that lingered in the surrounding jungle. The haunting sound seemed to twist and curl around the trees, causing even the birds, perched high on their branches, to take flight in a flurry of wings, fleeing from the unsettling disturbance.
"Abel! Stay where you are!" Jethru shouted. He had stepped back onto the bridge when he spotted the panic in Abel’s eyes, and he knew the teenager wanted to run to help his brother.
Thankfully, Gideon and Percival held him back, each grabbing an arm. They didn’t speak—didn’t need to. They understood instinctively that rushing in would only add to the danger.
Lara acted by instinct. She caught a glimpse of Bener almost near them. She threw the rope to him and shouted. "Brother, my life depends on you."
Then, within a second of Barett falling, she jumped headfirst, following the path where he was barreling down, his arms and legs flailing in the air. It was human instinct to grab something when falling.
He was fortunate. His actions, along with the narrow canyon, trapped the air and greatly reduced the speed of his fall.
Lara, on the other hand, who had parachuted several times, was an expert at speeding up her fall.
There was one time when she was tasked by her father to steal a piece of very sensitive information from a tycoon whose office was on the 66th floor. Her partner died, shot in the head by the guards. His death gave her the precious few seconds to shoot the window and throw her body out of the high-rise building.
She knew how to control her fall, how to speed it up to evade the bullets coming after her, and how to slow down to give her ample time to open her parachute and escape.
Right now, she needed to get to Barett fast. She folded her legs and arms to reduce the surface area exposed to the air, thus minimizing the drag.
In no time, she reached the boy and held him in a tight embrace, trapping his hands to stop his flailing. She shifted their bodies so they were lying prone, as if they were swimming. She needed to maximize the drag to slow down their fall.
The rope went taut. Lara heaved a sigh. Her brother did not fail her.
"Barett, it is fine now." She said as she tried to comfort the teenager who was shivering in her arms.
"Please stop. Let me down. I did not see anything. I did not hear anything. Put me down, please." Barett mumbled incoherently.
"Barett, it’s okay now. I’ve got you," Lara said, tightening her embrace. They dangled a third of the way from the bridge to the river below.
However, Barett did not stop mumbling. Lara frowned. He was exhibiting the behaviour of someone who had suffered a traumatic experience and was triggered.
"Barett," Lara called out, her voice loud yet gentle. However, Barrett responded by kicking his legs. He was moving too much, causing them to sway excessively. Lara had no choice but to lock his legs with hers to keep him still.
"Barett, it is me, Kane Mendel." Lara used Kane’s voice as he was the one who had the most interaction with the teenager. "I got you buddy. Tell me what’s wrong." Lara coaxed.
"I saw him... the village chief," he said, shaking. "And he saw me. Then he held me by my feet." Barrett trembled as if remembering something scary. "I.. I was upside down as I watched the strong current of the river rage below me."
"Hush. It is okay now. Hook ... I mean Demitrio is gone and he cannot hurt you."
"Cousin, I caught him cheating with his sister-in-law, and so he threatened me." Barett croaked.
Lara was no longer surprised. It was something that Hook would do.
"I am here. Your cousins are here. No one can hurt or threaten you. Not anymore."