The Real Heiress Rules the World (Sloane Rivers) novel Chapter 433

Chapter 433 The Stranger in the Sand

Chapter 433 The Stranger in the Sand

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Sloane immediately tended to the wounded man’s leg. “Good thing Marcus reacted fast. Otherwise, he’d have lost more than just a limb.”

Everyone’s faces went pale. None of them had imagined those small scorpions could be that deadly. A chill crept through the group as the realization sank in.

Lucas checked their supplies–what little water they had left. “We’ve lost two–thirds of our reserves,” he said grimly. “From now on, fifty milliliters per person per day. No exceptions.”

Marcus’s expression hardened. “Without water, we won’t last two days.”

“Then we move and search as we go,” Lucas replied quietly, the weight of their situation pressing on him.

The mood turned heavy. Hart broke the silence. “From what I saw earlier today, there’s definitely a water source nearby. If we keep moving forward, we’ll find it soon enough–fresh, drinkable water.”

The others‘ cracked lips curled into faint smiles. They swallowed hard, hope rekindled. “If Hart says there’s water, there’s water,” one of them said. “He’s crossed more deserts than any of us.”

Laughter spread through the camp, thin but genuine.

Sloane and Lucas exchanged a look. Neither said a word, but the worry in their eyes said everything.

“All right, enough talk. Get some sleep. We start searching at dawn,” Marcus ordered. “Whoever oversleeps doesn’t get a share of the water.”

“Yeah, yeah, sleep!” someone muttered, forcing a chuckle.

At first light, the team packed up and resumed their march. The Black Desert glowed with a strange dark–red hue under the morning sun. Every step crunched softly, the sound brittle and unsettling.

“Wait!” Shawn, who was leading, froze and pointed ahead. “What’s that?”

Everyone turned in the direction he was pointing. A shadow flickered across a distant dune and vanished behind it.

“After it!” Marcus shouted, sprinting forward.

They climbed the dune–but there was nothing. Just an expanse of untouched sand stretching endlessly in every direction.

“Hell no…” Hart muttered, wiping the sweat from his brow. “This place is cursed.”

Two hours later, Lucas caught sight of movement again–a silhouette darting behind a rock formation. This time, they moved quietly, surrounding the spot from three sides.

When they closed in, they discovered not a person but a ruined oasis.

“A water source!” Shawn exclaimed, running ahead–only for his face to fall. “Damn it… someone destroyed it!”

The pool at the center had been blasted open, a wide crater in the sand. The little water that remained stank of rot. Around it, the date palms lay chopped and splintered, their trunks scarred with fresh axe marks.

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5:18 pm M

Chapter 433 The Stranger in the Sand

“Animals!” Marcus roared, kicking a stone across the cracked ground. “They’re trying to kill us!”

Just then, Sloane caught movement behind the rocks. “There! Someone’s there!”

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This time everyone saw it–the flash of a figure ducking away. Lucas gave a sharp hand signal, and the group split into three teams, moving fast and silent.

The figure must have realized it was being hunted. It bolted through the sand, running hard. After about five hundred meters, it slowed and turned, confused–no one was behind it.

“Strange… where did they-” The person muttered, stepping back toward the rocks–only to walk straight into the ambush.

Marcus lunged forward, slamming his boot into the man’s chest and knocking him flat. “Let’s see you run now!”

The stranger yelped in pain, curling on the ground.

“Talk!” Hart barked, delivering another kick. “Who sent you?”

The man groaned, gasping for air. “What the hell–why are you attacking me? I don’t even know who you people are!”

Marcus grabbed him by the collar, yanking him upright. “Cut the crap! Who sent you?” he snarled, his voice low and dangerous.

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