Page 65 of Echos and Empires (After #3)

Despite the tension coiling inside her, she steadied herself. She focused on her breathing, on controlling her racing mind. The weight of the world pressed down, but Emma pushed back. She had no choice. She would face whatever was coming. She was ready. As ready as she could be.

“Did you really think you’d escaped me, girl?”

Victor’s voice came from nowhere and from everywhere, echoing off the cavern walls like a sickening song. Emma’s blood froze in her veins, then ignited into a desperate fire. He’d found her. She was in danger. The babies were in danger.

With a choked breath, she scrambled to act, to react, to survive.

Her mind raced like her pulse as she pulled herself, Ranger, and the lantern deeper into the cave, away from the voice that seemed to seep through the very rocks around her.

His presence was everywhere. A poison. A vile infestation that threatened to smother her fragile hope.

“I’ll admit, your friends surprised me.” Victor’s laugh was cold and sharp. “But I’m not done yet.”

Emma’s limbs shook with adrenaline.

A shot exploded in the cave, and the lantern shattered, leaving her in darkness.

Emma had heard him before she saw him. He hadn’t expected her to be this much trouble.

She hadn’t expected him to find her. Sunlight barely reached the spot where she crouched, holding her breath.

But she had been here before, trapped by a man intent on doing her harm.

She had learned what to do, how to survive. She hadn’t learned what to do with him.

Victor moved in the shadows, thinking he was invisible. But she could hear him. She could sense him, and she could see his outline.

Emma was different now, and her fear only sharpened her instincts. She wouldn’t let him win. She couldn’t.

Ranger growled and it seemed to vibrate through Emma. She wasn’t alone, she had him. Emma didn’t need the men. She didn’t need anyone. She needed to trust herself, and she was getting there. She was getting better.

Another shot rang out, closer this time. But she knew what to do. She knew how to fight back. Victor was taunting her, acting like he had already won. But he didn’t know her. He didn’t know what she was capable of.

Her heart was a wild drumbeat in her chest, each thud a reminder of the life she carried. The babies needed her. They needed her to survive. They needed her not to be afraid. She refused to let fear take over. Refused to let it make her weak.

Moving further into the cave, she embraced the darkness where the sun couldn’t reach.

Emma pushed against the fear the dark brought, against the weight of it all. She launched herself into action, relying on the skills she’d honed, the instincts she’d developed. Her body was heavier, slower, but she fought against that too.

Ranger was beside her, a fierce companion. Victor was on her trail, persistent and cruel. She countered his moves with deliberate strikes, focused on survival. Focused on protecting her babies.

She wouldn’t let Victor take this from her. Not now. Not ever. His taunts grew louder, and Emma’s resolve grew stronger. She would outlast him. Outlast the fear. Outlast the darkness. She had no choice.

“Selfish bitch!” Victor’s voice rang out in the smaller space in the cave, echoing in her ears before he moved.

Victor charged at her with fierce determination, his eyes full of ruthless intent in the dim light from the flashlight he’d suddenly had.

But Emma, fueled by a surge of desperation and love, countered with swift agility, dodging his grasp with expert precision.

Her body moved instinctively, absorbing the impact and reacting with trained reflexes.

Everything around her was chaos and danger, but inside, she was focused.

In control. Her blood ran hot with adrenaline and fire.

Each movement, each escape, gave her more hope, more belief.

She could do this. She could win. She could survive.

Her limbs moved as if part of a well-rehearsed dance, evading Victor’s advances with a confidence that grew with every beat of her racing heart.

She knew she was different now—stronger, faster, and more resilient than she’d ever been.

The memories of Chris and Bash drilling her, of their unwavering belief in her, flooded back and filled her with a fierce resolve.

She had been scared to imagine herself in this moment, but now she was here, and she was ready.

More than ready. Victor’s presence loomed, his taunting echoing through the cave, but Emma pushed back with everything she had.

She launched deliberate strikes, sharp and precise, daring him to keep up.

Daring him to think he could actually win.

The world tightened around her, shrinking to this battle, this fight.

Her heart pounded with a brutal rhythm, the melody of survival.

It fueled her optimism, kept her alive. Every dodge, every counter, brought her closer to believing she might actually make it.

She could see herself emerging victorious, could see herself proving him wrong.

The babies would have their names. The men would be there to hear them.

She would be there to say them. She let herself believe it, let herself picture it.

She could overcome this. She could rise above the chaos, the loss, and the fear that threatened to swallow her whole.

Emma allowed herself to imagine the victory, to hold on to the hope of outlasting Victor and the dark future he promised.

He thought she was weak, but she wasn’t.

He thought he could take everything from her, but he couldn’t.

She was faster than she’d ever been, and the more she fought back, the more she believed she could do it.

She could be the person she knew they all needed her to be.

Her strength was a wild thing, a relentless force that refused to break.

She was winning. She was surviving. The thought pushed her further, faster, against the weight of it all. She wouldn’t let him win. She couldn’t.

Her determination was a living thing, growing inside her as she moved. As she fought it gave her the edge she needed to keep going, to keep pushing. She could do this. She was ready. As ready as she could be.

Ranger hurled himself at Victor, his teeth bared in a fierce attempt to defend. Emma’s confidence crumbled as she watched Ranger flung aside, a pitiful yelp escaping him as he landed.

It felt as though a part of her soul had been violently ripped away, inciting a frantic frenzy within her. She thrashed and clawed, her heart pounding with urgency as she tried to reach Ranger, all the while striving to hold Victor at bay with every ounce of determination she possessed.

She wouldn’t let it end like this. She wouldn’t let Victor take this from her. Her love for Ranger, for the men, for the babies inside her fueled her every move. She would make it. She had to make it.

A voice shouted in the darkness, startling her. “Emma! Move!”

Liam’s voice.

She couldn’t believe it was him, couldn’t believe they had found her in the nick of time, like always. Hope surged, and for a moment, she was too stunned to react. A second beam of light flared as Liam came into view.

She couldn’t move. She didn’t have the strength. But she didn’t have to do this alone. Not anymore. Liam was here, and that meant she could be okay. That meant she would be okay.

A gunshot rang out, deafening and close. Her mind reeled with the chaos, trying to make sense of it all. Victor landed on top of her, his weight crushing. Emma gasped for air, for anything that made sense in this madness.

“You won’t win,” Victor’s voice was tight with pain.

He was still alive. How was he still alive? She had thought they would save her. She had thought they would save her from this. Victor’s hand went to his shoulder, bloodied and shaking. He laughed, a low, menacing sound.

The fear clawed at her, fierce and overwhelming. Emma struggled against Victor, against the panic that threatened to consume her. But Liam had come for her. She couldn’t give up. She couldn’t give in.

The weight on top of her lower half shifted. Another shot fired, and Liam’s scream nearly broke her. She wouldn’t survive this. Not this time.

“Emma, take it. My arm, I need my right arm to hit him and not you.”

She knew it was Liam’s gun. She didn’t know how she’d do it with Victor pressing against her, his hands clawing close to her neck.

but her hands were already reaching for it.

Even though she couldn’t see the gun, she heard it clatter against the cave floor.

Emma rolled, driven by desperation and adrenaline, grabbing it with trembling fingers.

There was no time to think. Victor’s hand reached for her, bloody and unrelenting. She couldn’t let this happen. Couldn’t lose everything she’d fought for. Emma aimed and fired, the recoil jarring her, her heart pounding in time with the shots.

Her body acted before her mind could catch up. She was shaking, terrified and resolute. Victor’s body jerked, once, then again. He looked surprised. Surprised and afraid. His hand fell short, inches from her throat.

Emma struggled to process, to understand what had just happened. She had killed a man once before. She hadn’t thought she could do it again. She hadn’t thought she would have to.

But here she was, here they all were.

Her instincts were all she had. All she could rely on. It was more than she ever thought she’d have, more than she thought she could manage. The cave felt like it was closing in, but she stayed focused, stayed strong.

Victor slumped against her, his body heavy and lifeless.

The chaos stilled, but Emma’s heart refused to slow. Her breaths came ragged and uneven, as if her body hadn’t realized the fight was over. As if she couldn’t let herself believe it.

The fear had been all-consuming, but now there was room for something else. Room for relief. Room for hope.

The gun was heavier in her hand, a reminder of everything she had done. Everything she could do. She was stronger than she knew. Stronger than she ever let herself believe.

Emma felt the shift in the cave, felt the violence drain away. The silence wrapped around her, leaving her trembling. Leaving her exhausted and free.

The nightmare had ended, and Emma was still here. Still alive. Still fighting for this life.

Emma jumped up, her voice echoing in the cave as she shouted for Liam.

Her panic twisted into desperate relief when he answered, telling her he was okay.

“Just a scratch, but no way in hell was I going to risk shooting with him closer to you and my dominant arm injured,” he called, wincing as he clutched his side.

She didn’t believe him. She wanted to. She couldn’t let herself.

Somehow, Liam was already getting hurt protecting her.

“Ranger!” Emma choked on the word, pointing wildly. “Liam, please, the light.” She needed to see. Needed to know. Liam nodded, shining the flashlight on the spot where Ranger lay. She was there in an instant, tears flowing, her heart breaking and mending all at once.

Ranger’s leg was at an awkward angle, but he was alive. Alive and licking her face, thumping his tail weakly. “Oh God,” she sobbed, holding him tight. “I thought I lost you.”

There were footsteps, voices, the clatter of weapons. Alex, Bash, William—rushing in, shouting her name. She couldn’t focus on any one of them, couldn’t wrap her head around the chaos. It was too much, and not enough.

Alex cursed when his flashlight landed on Liam. “You idiot! You jumped off the truck!” He was at Liam’s side in seconds, assessing the wound.

Emma was supposed to help him. She was supposed to know what to do. But her mind was a whirlwind, and she couldn’t.

“And it’s a damn good thing I did. He was already here,” Liam snarled as Alex was already tending to his arm. “Fucking arm…again.”

Bash’s face was a mix of anger and concern. “Emma! Jesus, we thought—” His voice cut off when he saw Victor, lying dead.

William stared, wide-eyed. “You did that?” He looked from Victor to Emma, to the gun still in her hand. She didn’t know how to answer. Didn’t know how to make any of this make sense.

Chris entered, blood covering his face. Her heart dropped at the sight, a wild surge of fear rushing through her. But then she saw his eyes, steady and certain, and she could breathe again.

“I thought—” Emma’s voice broke. She was crying, laughing, unable to process the confusion and relief. “I thought you wouldn’t come back.”

“We promised,” Chris said, wiping at the cut above his eye. “You think we’d break that?” He looked at her with such intensity that it almost felt like a rebuke. “Fucking got the jump on me by shooting two of the men I was with.

The cave was chaos, a storm of emotions and injuries. Emma couldn’t focus on any one thing, any one person. Her tears wouldn’t stop, and her heart wouldn’t slow.

“Liam, you’re hurt. I—Ranger’s leg—Alex, you need, Chris,” She tried to make sense of it all, but she couldn’t and her words were little more than a jumbled mess.

“Emma!” Liam’s voice cut through, bringing her back. “It’s nothing. Really. With Victor dead the battle is done but the war isn’t over. Not yet. You need to make a statement.”

“What?” She looked at him, confusion and disbelief written on her face.

“We need to get you to the comms tower.” He was insistent, even as Alex bandaged his side. “You have to send a message to the island. You have to let them know what happened.”

She didn’t understand. Not yet. But she would. She always did. And this time, they were all here. This time, they weren’t going anywhere.