Chapter 3: One Question Answered
~Area…still unknown, 9:23 A.M~
A sharp knock came on the door and Lara opened her eyes. She sat up in bed and looked at her surroundings. Obviously it wasn't her bedroom which she is used to waking up in. "It looks like everything that happened. Being kidnapped, being dragged to some unknown place, and meeting Caylis wasn't all some strange dream. Which means that what she told me about the Cabal wasn't a dream too." she thought somewhat bitterly. Lara stood up from bed and walked over to the door. After another sharp knock Lara opened it to see the same blond haired man that brought her to this place and most-likely kidnapped her. She stared hard into his grey-blue eyes, which shown much indifference to the hostile glare. "It's you again." Lara growled.
"I can tell someone can't get over the fact that they were kidnapped." the blond coolly replied. This man was just too calm to be human.
"Let's see if you enjoy being kidnapped and dragged to some random place!" Lara yelled. The man didn't even flinch.
"Well, I just came here to tell you that Caylis thinks you may want to see something after breakfast…which would have been hours earlier if my wi…I mean my leader did not decide to wait for you. For a tomb raider, you wake up very late." there was a slight hint of annoyance in the man's voice.
"What? What time is it?" Lara asked. The man looked at his watch.
"It's a little before nine-thirty."
"What I haven't woken up that late in quite a while." Lara thought and then looked hard to the man again. "That chemical you used on me was supposed to do that, didn't it?" Lara asked with a suspicious tone.
"I don't know. It was an experimental anesthetic and I had nothing to do with it. You can ask the person who made it during the meeting. Now come on. I'm sure everyone is sick of waiting." he said as he turned and walked down the hall and down the stairs. Lara sighed and walked after him. The man waited at a door near the left stairwell in the foyer, she didn't notice it before. "Come on. Everyone's waiting for us." the blond said to her as she stepped off the stairs. He opened the door and walked in at the same time that Lara did.
There was much talking in the room and it was clear what it was. Just by seeing a large dining table made it simple to see that this was a dining room and a fairly large one. There were fifteen people sitting at the table each one talking to someone. Lara's eyes searched for Caylis and found her at the far end of the table talking to a woman seemingly in her mid-twenties or younger and holding an infant. Lara also saw the blond man sit in an empty seat next to Caylis and next to two children that should be four or five years old. The blond man tapped Caylis shoulder and whispered something to her. Caylis turned to see Lara at the far end of the room.
"Lady Croft. Forgive me for not seeing you there. Please sit down." Caylis cheerfully said gesturing to a seat to the left of her. Lara walked over and sat down, she noticed out of the corner of her eye that the seat next to one of the children the blond was sitting next to was empty. "I see that you are interested in where my brother is supposed to sit." Caylis said.
"What?" Lara asked in confusion.
"My brother. He sits there. He left here when I was only sixteen years old. Yet, a month ago he nearly died of an injury. I knew that he would be where he was and brought him to get medical treatment. That's what I was talking to Ofelia about." Caylis replied as she pointed to the woman that sat next to Lara. The woman turned as Caylis said her name. She looked to be about twenty-five years old and looked to be of Spanish and Latin American decent. She also seemed similar to someone she saw before, but Lara couldn't remember exactly where.
"I…I'm Ofelia. Ofelia Boaz." the woman said, her voice quavering.
"Boaz." Lara answered in shock, finally remembering who this woman reminded her of. The woman that Eckhardt had thrown into what Boaz called "The Pod". The woman that was mutated and that Kurtis had to fight. Is it possible that she could be related.
"Yes." Ofelia said, but gave a look that shown that she knew why Lara was shocked.
"That," the blond began. "Is the past and the past is over. I don't want anything about what happened in the past to be mentioned this early in the day." He was obviously irritated, contrary to how calm he was earlier.
"I agree with Vaughn." Caylis said as she looked down at the infant she was holding in her arms. "It's better to leave the past alone for now." Everything in the room turned quiet, no one, not even the two children that sat next to the blond haired man, who apparently was named Vaughn. For the remainder of breakfast, no one uttered a word. After everyone was finished Caylis stood up. "I'm holding a meeting at noon. I also want Ofelia and Rosa to stay here for a few moments. I hope everyone has a good day and I will speak to all of you later." she addressed. The room cleared out quickly and chatter resumed as everyone left. All that were left were Lara, Caylis, Ofelia, and a girl barely in her twenties that looked similar to Ofelia, obviously the Rosa girl that Caylis addressed.
"Yes Caylis?" Ofelia asked once everyone was gone.
"I think you should bring Lady Croft down into the fortress. I'm sure she should see a reason why I wanted her here, besides possibility of death by Cabal." Caylis began. "I'd do it myself, but I have some work to do. Besides, I think both of you need to go to check on my brother."
"Oh, of course Caylis. Just consider it done." Ofelia answered her leader. Caylis have another slight smile.
"Thank you. Remember, noon, like I said." Caylis quickly walked out of the room. Lara looked at both women.
"We might want to get this done as soon as possible. It might answer a question you have been having for the past month, possible even more." Rosa said after some silence. She began to rush to a door at the back of the dining room. "Come on. We don't have all day!" she shouted impatiently after seeing that neither Lara or Ofelia had not moved.
"Please excuse my sister. She has no patience for anyone." Ofelia quietly said to Lara as she walked over to the door.
"Why am I doing this again?" Lara thought. "Oh, that's right. I have no clue where I am and it wouldn't be surprising if they are plotting to kill me." Lara followed both women into the next room, which was bare, besides a large grandfather clock. Lara looked at Ofelia, who was walking to the clock. She opened the glass casing around the clock's face and rotated the minute hand three times. The clock slowly shifted and a darkened staircase was revealed behind the old clock.
"Come on. I'm sure you'll be surprised." Rosa said as she disappeared down into the pitch black darkness. Ofelia placed her hand on the wall and began to also sink into the darkness. Lara anxious to find out what question that Rosa was talking about followed both women.
"What was she talking about anyway. I have no questions about anything…except. Oh, would I quit thinking about that!" Lara thought as she thought of Kurtis again. Up ahead, Rosa had opened a door at the bottom of the staircase. A bolt of bright light shot through the staircase. Lara rushed down the stairs and continued to follow Rosa and Ofelia. Once Lara had passed through the door she found herself in a pale colored hallway with some shatterproof glass windows looking into some of the very few rooms in that hall.
"Ms. Croft, I think you should follow me from this point. Rosa has some work of her own to attend to." Ofelia said in almost a whisper as Rosa rushed down the hall. Ofelia looked on at her sister for a moment and then gestured for Lara to follow her down the hall. After passing two rooms Ofelia stopped at one with a large window looking in to it. "Ms. Croft, I hope this will bring an answer to one of your questions." Ofelia opened the door and walked in with Lara following close. It was an infirmary that this hall was, Lara had discovered after walking into the room. There were five hospital beds in this room. Four were empty, but the one that was farthest away from her was occupied. There was a man lying on the bed, his eyes closed and his abdomen bandaged. Yet, most of all he was the one that Lara expected to be dead. The one who plagued Lara thoughts for a month.
"Kurtis." Lara muttered.
When I say that Kurtis is alive, I mean it. Well Lara has one question answered and quite more that aren't. Well, I hope you enjoyed this chapter and review if you please.