The morning sun had already begun to paint the city in hues of gold by the time Nick made his way into the bedroom, a new day dawning with promises and challenges alike. The suite, their latest sanctuary, bathed in the soft, comforting light of morning, felt like a transient home filled with both the echoes of their recent trials and the quiet hope for recovery and revelations yet to come.

Nick approached the window, drawing the drapes aside with a flourish, allowing the morning sun to infiltrate the room. The light danced across the walls, casting long, warm shadows and imbuing the space with a serene glow.

"Wake up, sleeping beauty," Nick announced with a playful tone, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. "Time to get you up."

Sal, was nestled under the blankets, stirring at the intrusion of light and the familiar voice.

"What the fuck?" he grumbled, reaching for a pillow, and hurling it with more accuracy than Nick expected for someone just roused from sleep.

The pillow sailed across the room, landing with a soft thud against Nick, who couldn't help but laugh at Sal's feigned annoyance. "Oh, come on. You know you love attention," Nick retorted, dodging another pillow with ease.

As Sal's eyes adjusted to the light, and he began to sit up, rubbing the sleep from his eyes, his gaze fell on a tray arranged on the side table. A dish laden with scrambled eggs, perfectly crispy bacon, home fries, and golden toast awaited him, alongside a steaming cup of coffee and a glass of fresh orange juice. The sight brought a genuine smile to his face, a reminder of the small comforts and kindnesses that still found their way to them even in the most unexpected places.

"Kai sent it up," Nick explained, his voice carrying a note of amusement. "Called it our 'honeymoon breakfast.'"

Sal couldn't help but chuckle, the warmth of the gesture cutting through the remnants of his sleep-induced haze. "That Kai... he's something else," Sal mused, his appreciation evident.

Nick's smile widened at Sal's response.

"Turn the tube on please. Let's see what's going on here in Mongolia."

Nick obliged Sal's request with a nod, reaching for the remote that lay on the nightstand. As the TV flickered to life, the screen cut sharply to the vivid colors and crisp imagery of a local Mongolian news channel, immediately recognizable by the distinctive banner scrolling across the bottom.

The camera, obviously attached to the bottom of a helicopter, panned across a breathtaking aerial view of the Gobi Desert, its vast expanse of sand and dunes stretching endlessly under the bright sun. It was a scene of rugged beauty, one of the many faces of Mongolia that captivated visitors and locals alike. However, today, the desert held a new, unsettling feature that drew the attention of the world.

Centered on the screen was a massive cavity in the sand. An unnerving hole where there once was solid ground. The edges of the cavity were sharply defined, as if the earth had simply collapsed into itself, leaving behind a gaping maw. The scale of the sinkhole was difficult to comprehend, with the surrounding dunes serving as a deceptive measure of its vast depth and width.

The news banner at the bottom of the screen ran updates in rapid Mongolian, which Nick could only partially understand, but the urgency in the news anchor's voice and the dramatic footage spoke volumes. The cavity appeared almost unnatural in its precision, unlike any typical sinkhole. Its abrupt appearance in the desert landscape suggested a sudden, forceful collapse.

As the camera zoomed in, the severity of the situation became more apparent. The cavity's interior was shadowed and steep, the walls sliding down to an unseen bottom. Here and there, remnants of what might have once been the entrance to a cave or underground structure were visible, now just part of the collapsed chaos.

The camera lingered on the eerie sight of the collapsed desert cavity, the news anchor's voice grew somber, touching upon a concern far graver than the geological curiosity itself. Amid the rapid Mongolian, a word was repeated, catching both Sal's and Nick's attention: "tourists."

The realization dawned with a sinking feeling. The cavity, with its precise, unnatural appearance, might not have been devoid of human presence at the time of its collapse. The desert, vast and often seen as inhospitable, had its allure for adventurers and tourists alike, drawn to its mysteries and the promise of solitude among the dunes. The possibility that tourists could have been exploring the cave, seeking the thrill of discovery in the remote stretches of the Gobi, turned the situation from a scientific anomaly into a potential tragedy.

Nick muted the TV, the room falling into a heavy silence as they both processed the implications.

"You think?" Nick questioned, already knowing what Sal's response would be.

"Not an accident. A warning."

The muscles in Nick's jaw tightened, as he turned to Sal, "But to kill innocent people..." his words trailing off.


Sal's voice was low but laced with a simmering anger that mirrored the tension in the room. "They're killers, Nick. They have no regard for life," he said, the words heavy with a mixture of contempt and resolve. His gaze, locked with Nick's, carried the shared understanding of the enemy they facedâ?"an adversary whose actions were devoid of any semblance of morality or concern for the innocent.

As he spoke, Sal pushed himself up a bit straighter and clenched his fists at his sides. The fact that their opponents would not hesitate to endanger lives, to treat human beings as mere collateral in their schemes, only steeled Sal's resolve.


Nick reached for the volume, unmuting the TV as they listened intently, trying to piece together more details from the broadcast. The news anchor mentioned a search and rescue operation underway, with authorities and local guides combing the area for any signs of the missing, hopeful yet cautious in their expectations.

Sal's resolve crystallized in the silence that followed his declaration, an unspoken signal that deliberation had given way to action. Without breaking the charged connection between him and Nick, he reached out, his hand finding the phone that lay on the bedside table. The movement was deliberate, an extension of their shared determination to confront the darkness that loomed over them.

Picking up the phone Sal dialed Vinnie.