The Safe Zone - Reckoning (Book 2)

Chapter 13: Ties that Bind

Lena:

The air in the camp felt thick, almost oppressive as if the weight of all our secrets and doubts had finally taken form. I sat on the edge of my cot, staring at the tent wall, my thoughts swirling in endless loops. We had the information we needed—proof of the Directive's plans, their experiments, and the terrifying truth that Zara had been a part of everything. But now that we were back in the heart of the resistance, it didn't feel like a victory. If anything, it felt like the walls were closing in.

Trust. That was the word that kept haunting me. I had trusted Zara, and she had betrayed us. I had trusted the resistance, and now I didn't know if even they were indeed on our side. How could I fight alongside people who might be playing a deeper game, just like Zara had?

And then there was Ethan.

I glanced at the tent's entrance, where I knew Ethan was standing outside, talking to Callum. He had been distant since we returned from the Forgotten City—distant in a way that made me wonder if he was doubting things, too. If he was doubting *us*. Our partnership, our choices. Everything we'd been through together had brought us closer, but now, I felt a crack between us for the first time. And I wasn't sure how to fix it.

I ran my fingers through my hair, trying to steady my breathing. I didn't have time to fall apart, not now. We were on the edge of something big, something dangerous. If the Directive controlled both the Enforcers and the resistance, we were walking into a trap. But without allies, we couldn't fight back. We couldn't win this war alone.

Footsteps sounded outside the tent, and I looked up just as Ethan stepped through the flap. His face was grim, his eyes shadowed with exhaustion, but there was something else there, too—something challenging, unreadable. He hadn't been the same since Zara's betrayal. None of us had.

"We need to talk," he said, his voice low and serious.

I nodded, already feeling the tension in my chest tighten. "About what?"

Ethan sat on the edge of a nearby crate, his hands resting on his knees as he stared at the ground momentarily before speaking. "About the resistance. About Callum. About everything."

The knot in my chest grew tighter. I knew this conversation was coming, but I wasn't ready. I wasn't prepared to face the possibility that the resistance—the only thing we had left to hold onto—might not be what we thought it was.

"What are you saying?" I asked, my voice barely more than a whisper.

Ethan sighed, running a hand through his hair. "I'm saying that we need to be careful. We don't know how far the Directive's influence goes. Zara was working for them, and if she was compromised, there could be others."

I felt a cold chill run down my spine. He was right, of course. We didn't know who we could trust anymore. But the idea of turning on the resistance and doubting Callum and the people who had fought alongside us for so long felt like too much.

"We can't do this alone, Ethan," I said, trembling. "We need allies. We need the resistance. If we start questioning everyone and doubting Callum, what do we have left?"

Ethan looked up at me, his eyes rigid. "I'm not saying we turn on them. But we need to be smart. We can't trust unquestioningly anymore. We have to be ready for anything."

I swallowed hard, feeling the weight of his words settle over me like a lead blanket. He was right—he was always right when it came to survival. But I wouldn't say I liked it. I wouldn't say I enjoyed looking over my shoulder every second, wondering if the people I was fighting with were secretly working against me.

"You think Callum knows something," I said quietly. It wasn't a question. It was a statement. I could see how Ethan's jaw tightened at the mention of Callum's name.