(Ava’s POV)
The facility didn’t announce itself.
No fences. No warning signs. Just a stretch of dead road that shouldn’t have existed anymore, cracked asphalt swallowed by weeds and time, leading to a low concrete structure half-buried in a hillside like something trying to forget it had ever been built.
Lark killed the engine a hundred yards out.
“We walk from here,” she said.
“Because?” Mara asked.
“Because engines echo,” Lark replied. “And curiosity travels faster than sound.”
Brian winced as he pushed the door open, but he didn’t slow us down. I could feel the strain radiating off him now, and every careful step a negotiation between pain and pride. I stayed close without hovering. He hated hovering.
The air felt different here. Not watched exactly. Measured.
My phone stayed s
