Chapter 25
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Mercury
I take a breath, feeling the air in the room—it’s stagnant, heavy with the weight of tradition and the unspoken history of the land around us.
I look at the table, then I look at Daniel.
His face is a mask of calm, but I can see the tension in his shoulders.
Beside him, the elders sit like statues carved from the very mountain I’m talking about.
They’re waiting for me to justify why a group of outsiders is bringing war to their doorstep.
I don’t blame them. I plant my hands on the rough wood of the table.
It is solid, grounding me as I prepare to lay it all out.
I start by looking at each of them. I need to make sure they understand this is not a game, it’s not some reckless power play.
“We set out to find the truth, but what we found is a cancer,” I say, my voice steady. “When we started, we thought we were looking for a simple hideout. We thought it was a rogue group of assholes playing hunting games in the woods. We were wrong. It goes much deeper than that.”
Nathaniel, the elder to Daniel’s left, leans forward. His eyes are full of fire. “You speak of a cancer. That is a heavy word, son. Tell us what you mean by that.”
I nod, respecting the gravity in his voice.
“We found a hole in the side of the mountain. It was disguised with brush, expertly woven to match the ridge. When we peeled it back, we found steel. Not just a piece of scrap metal, but a reinforced, military-grade door set into the rock. It was locked with a heavy chain, and it was clear that someone had been there recently. The scratches on the padlock were fresh.”
“And you think this is connected to the people who hurt the girl?” Daniel asks. He gestures toward Finley, who is sitting near the edge of the circle.
“It is,” I reply. “We searched the perimeter. We didn’t just find one hole.
We found a network. This isn’t just one location.
It’s a system of bunkers, carved deep into the mountainside.
They have sensors, too. Tripwires linked to silent transmitters.
” I look around the circle again. I need them to visualize this.
“These people aren’t just camping. They’re monitoring the forest. Every square inch of the area near their entrances is a kill zone.
They have set it up so that if you walk the wrong path, you trigger an alarm that tells them exactly where you are, while they remain hidden and safe behind their steel doors. ”
A murmur ripples through the elders. It’s not fear. It’s anger.
“A kill zone,” one of the elders whispers. “On our land?”
“Not quite on your land, but close enough to be a threat to anyone who wanders too far,” I answer, not letting on what Orbit told us just yet about some of their caves being found holding caches of weapons and ammunition.
“We spent hours scanning the area. We found at least two entrances, but we suspect there are more. This is an insurgency, plain and simple. They are using the terrain to their advantage, and they have spent months, maybe years, preparing for a fight.”
“You say you have mapped two entrances,” Daniel notes. “How do you know there are more?”
“Because of the layout,” I explain. “We saw the way the terrain dips and rises. The ventilation shafts, the way they have clear lines of sight from the ridgeline to the lower trails. It’s designed to allow movement between these bunkers without ever being seen.
It’s a hive. And the most chilling part is the arrogance.
They’ve left the trash, the remnants of their time there, strewn about in places they think no one will ever look.
They think the law can’t touch them out here.
They think they’re untouchable.” I pause, letting that sink in.
“Why tell us now?” Nathaniel asks, his voice cutting. “Why not just take your own men and handle this?”
“Because we aren’t the only ones in danger,” I explain.
“Finley isn’t the only victim. There are others.
We have evidence, or at least strong reason to believe, that people from your tribe have vanished into those tunnels.
People who were never seen again. We aren’t just protecting our own interests.
We’re trying to find the missing. We’re trying to stop the rot before it spreads any further. ”
“You suggest that our people are in their holes,” Daniel says. His voice is dangerously quiet.
“I suggest that is a possibility we can’t ignore,” I answer. “We’re talking about a group of hunters who don’t see human beings as people. They see prey. And if we don’t stop them, they’ll keep hunting until they have nothing left to kill.”
“What do you need from us?” one of the other elders asks.
I don’t see which one asks that question, but I answer anyway.
“We need to know the land. We have the gear, the training, and the numbers.
We can hit them, we can dismantle their network, and we can drag them into the light.
But we don't know these mountains like you do.
We don't know the secret paths, the hidden trails, the caves, the places they might be using to move unseen. If we go in blind, we lose. If we go in with you, we win.”
“And if we refuse?” Nathaniel asks. “If we tell you to leave our mountains to us?”
Since I don’t think they’ve completely grasped the severity of the situation, I’m able to remain calm.
It’s how I get before I go on a mission to track someone down; I’m completely focused and look at the evidence I have right in front of me.
Their questions are valid ones and if nothing else, I’ll honor their heritage to this land by respectfully answering whatever they ask.
“Then we’ll keep fighting,” I reply. “We have a job to finish, and we aren’t going to leave until these bastards are gone. But if we do it without you, we might miss something. We might miss a trail, or a hidden entrance, or a sign that someone is still alive down there. Do you want to risk that?”
Daniel sits back. He’s quiet for a long time. The tension in the room is like a tightened bowstring. I wait. I don’t fidget. I don’t look away.
“You have seen these traps yourself?” Daniel asks, looking at me. “You have seen the technology they use?”
“I have,” I convey. “I’ve held the tripwire in my hand.
I’ve seen the transmitters. They’re using civilian-grade tech, but they’re using it with a military mindset.
They’re prepared to defend their ground with everything they have, all to be able to continue to play their sick, twisted games.
Like I said, they’re a cancer and we need to get rid of it. ”
“They have weapons,” Daniel states. It’s not a question, it’s a shock.
“Yes,” I tell him. “They have guns. They have knives. They have bows and arrows, and other pull string archery equipment. And they have the element of surprise. But the biggest weapon they have is the ignorance of the people who live around them. They rely on the fact that no one will look for them. We’re taking away that advantage. ”
“You are reckless,” one of the elders says, but there is a glimmer of respect in his eyes.
“We’re determined,” I correct him. “There’s a difference.”
“You want a tracker,” Daniel says. “You want one of our people to walk into the belly of this beast with you.”
“I want someone who can read the land,” I reply.
“Someone who can tell me if the wind has shifted in a way that suggests a hidden shaft, or if the birds are acting strange because of human activity. I want someone who belongs to this place. Because this place is under attack.” Daniel looks at the other elders.
A silent conversation passes between them, a language of glances and nods that I can’t read.
Finally, he turns back to me. “You are asking us to risk our people.”
“I’m asking you to join us in protecting them,” I expound.
“We’re already here. We’re already fighting.
I’m just asking for the best chance to succeed.
Our purpose in reaching out is to make y’all aware of what’s going on literally in your backyard, and most likely, has involved some of your people over the years. ”
“You speak of these hunters as if they are animals,” Nathaniel remarks. “Are they?”
“In their actions, yes,” I emphatically decree. “They act without conscience. They don’t care about the lives they destroy. If that makes them animals, then yes, they are the worst kind. The kind that needs to be put down.”
“And what happens after?” Daniel probes. “When the tunnels are cleared? What happens to the mountain?”
“The mountain stays intact,” I promise. “We aren’t here to claim land.
We’re here to reclaim safety. Once they’re gone, this place will belong to you again, just as it always has.
We go back to our lives. You go back to yours.
The difference is that you won't have to worry about who’s watching from the shadows of the tree line or the peak of the mountains. ”
“It is a hard thing you ask,” Daniel says.
“It’s a hard reality we’re facing,” I counter. “But three of our own women have already been impacted by their insidious poison. Sutton was fortunate that we figured out what was going on, while both Finley and Skippy paid the price. Actually, Skippy still is, to be honest, as she’s in a coma.”
“We will discuss this,” Daniel vows, standing up. “We will consult with the spirits of the land, and we will talk among ourselves. You have given us much to think about, Mercury. Much to fear, and much to consider.”