A Second Life, A New Power novel Chapter 396

"If you're going to swear, then swear to the Great Almighty." Demi turned her head slightly, her voice calm and cool.

Ana froze. All the courage she'd worked up moments before began to crumble.

"Alright, let's keep moving," Nigel said, waving the group forward.

They'd argued enough. By now, anyone with half a brain could see what was really going on.

Everyone glanced once more at Ana and then began to move on.

"I swear! I swear to the Great Almighty I didn't fake my injury to make things harder for Demi!" Ana blurted out, her voice high and frantic.

Overhead, dark clouds began to swirl as if summoned on cue.

Just then, thunder cracked through the sky. A bolt of lightning lit up the area where they stood, illuminating the sheer panic on Ana's face.

Everyone's mouth dropped open in stunned silence. This was ridiculous.

Ana was about to have a breakdown. This couldn't be. She had been hoping to just slip by unnoticed.

"Anyone still calling this a coincidence?"

"She swears, thunder rolls. That's a new proverb in the making."

"She's seriously blowing my mind. This woman is something else."

The group turned to look at Ana, who was still frozen in place. No one even knew what to say anymore.

Wendy finally broke the silence. "Alright, it's getting late. Let's get going."

She and Caitlin had been riding on the lion this whole time, so focused on Demi's side of the drama that they'd forgotten to get down.

The others began moving again.

Suddenly, Ana let out a guttural scream and crumpled to the ground, sobbing.

Daniel opened his mouth, about to say something, but Thomas beat him to it. He strode forward, eyes reddened with fury.

"Ana!" he snapped. "Did you do that on purpose? Why would you do something like that?"

Ana stayed crouched on the ground, weeping.

Daniel let out a long, weary sigh and motioned for the camera crew to shut off the cameras.

This time, they didn't argue. The staff signaled the cameraman to stop recording.

"We'll wait for you up ahead," the staff said, clearly sensing this was a conversation they didn't want on film.

Daniel nodded. The staff walked on.

He turned back to Ana, who was still sobbing on the ground. "Why did you do it?" he asked helplessly.

"I really... My foot really did hurt a little," she whimpered.

"Can you still walk? If not, maybe it's time to withdraw from the show," he offered gently, choosing not to call out her lie directly.

Ana stayed quiet for a moment. Then she sniffled and said, "I... I want to keep filming."