Chapter 47 - The Edge of Survival
Weche and Kibet didn’t stop running. Their bodies screamed in protest, their lungs burned, but they forced themselves forward. The darkness of the forest wrapped around them, the scent of damp earth thick in the air. Every branch they pushed through left scratches on their skin, but they barely noticed. They had no time to feel pain.
Their only priority was survival.
They reached the cave where they had hidden the horses—four strong beasts, their breath steady, unaware of the chaos unfolding around them. Weche and Kibet didn’t hesitate. They threw a few heavy stones into the saddlebags of two horses, whispered quick commands, and sent them galloping in the opposite direction. The sound of hooves thundered through the night, fading into the distance.
It wouldn’t fool the Kilwa army forever. But they didn’t need forever.
Just a few precious hours.
They mounted the remaining two horses and took off, keeping low as they rode. The terrain was treacherous—dense undergrowth, uneven paths, the occasional fallen tree forcing them to slow their pace. The forest had always been their ally, but tonight, it felt like it was testing them, pushing them to their limits.
Dawn was beginning to break when they sensed it.
A shift in the air.
The subtle wrongness of the silence.
They had been found.
Six Kilwa soldiers emerged from the trees like wraiths—four gunmen and two swordsmen, their expressions smug, their movements slow and deliberate. They thought this was already over.