CHAPTER 3 – The Cave Hidden Beneath the Desert
Emily should have walked away.
Every logical thought told her to return to the tour camp before sunset.
Instead...
She followed the white snake.
It glided silently across the sand, stopping every few yards to make sure she was still behind it.
The deeper they traveled into the desert, the stranger everything became.
There were no footprints.
No birds.
No insects.
Even the wind had disappeared.
The silence felt unnatural.
After nearly an hour, the snake disappeared between two towering cliffs that formed a narrow passage hidden from the outside world.
Emily squeezed through the rocks.
On the other side...
She gasped.
A lush oasis lay hidden in the middle of the endless desert.
Crystal-clear water shimmered beneath towering palm trees, surrounded by ancient stone ruins that looked thousands of years old.
It was impossible.
No map had ever mentioned this place.
The white snake stopped beside a massive stone doorway carved directly into the cliff.
The entrance was sealed by an enormous circular slab covered in mysterious symbols.
As Emily stepped closer, she noticed dozens of snake carvings covering every inch of the stone.
Then she froze.
One carving wasn't carved at all.
It was a human skeleton.
Still kneeling against the wall.
Its hand clutched a leather journal that had somehow survived the years.
Emily carefully picked it up.
Most of the pages had crumbled into dust.
Only one sentence remained readable.
"If the White Guardian chooses you... never open the second door."
A cold chill ran through her body.
Before she could think, the white snake pressed its wounded head against one of the stone symbols.
A deep rumble echoed through the canyon.
The giant stone door slowly began sliding open.
Cold air rushed out from the darkness below.
Emily shined her flashlight inside.
Stone stairs disappeared deep beneath the earth.
The snake entered without hesitation.
Emily swallowed hard.
Every instinct screamed that she should turn back.
Instead...
She stepped into the darkness.
She had no idea someone else had been watching her the entire time.
High above the canyon...
A man lowered a pair of military binoculars.
He smiled.
"After twenty years..."
he whispered.
"Someone finally found it."
Then he reached for his satellite phone.
"Activate Team Alpha."
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"Target confirmed."
"Do NOT let the girl leave the desert alive."
