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Chapter 13.5: The End of Lara Croft's Story
Lara woke up with a severe headache. The last thing she remembered was the face of someone she wanted to crush with her own hands, but after that, she couldn't recall anything.
She got up, put on warm clothes, and stepped out of the Eskimos' house. In the Arctic, the most striking thing in sight was the whiteness of the surroundings—so much that it could sometimes feel intimidating.
Lara thanked the locals and walked toward Brains and Alex, who were discussing something.
"Thank God, so much time has passed since you were unconscious. I was worried you wouldn't come back and would leave me here with all these scary people…"
Lara glanced at Brains' calm face and paid no further attention to his words; she knew his habits well.
"Are you okay? No problems… Can you tell me what happened inside?"
Alex looked at Lara with concern and gently asked her about the events after the collapse.
"I don't know… I don't remember anything. How did I get here?"
"You were unconscious on the sled. The dogs found the way and brought you to us, that's all."
"Oh… thank you, Alex."
She smiled and walked over to the dogs, petting them while starting to think.
She knew that approaching Paul in that situation would have been a death sentence, but she had to try. That watch was the last memento from her father.
Lara thought it was a pity, but moments later she heard the ticking sound from her jacket pocket. She felt the bulge and hurriedly reached inside, pulling out the watch.
It was her father's pocket watch, with a picture of Lara's mother on the lid. Tears streamed down Lara's cheeks as she looked at the photo; joy and sorrow were both reflected in her tears.
She knew that the one who found the watch for her and saved her was the tall man with white hair and pale blue eyes. She didn't know his name, but she sincerely thanked him for protecting her, even if it was his duty.
She promised herself that if she ever saw him again, she would reward him for his deeds. But Lara didn't know that William had already received his reward in his own way; perhaps if she had known, she wouldn't have admired him so much.
Lara, Alex, and Brains were ready to return to London and get some proper rest. The Yupiks were also very happy because they had both received payment for the dogs and gotten their dogs back, meaning a pure profit. The foreigners left without any hassle.
Three days after their departure, the tomb raiders noticed a white-haired man carrying a white bear's pelt, with a young wolf pup sitting on it, looking around curiously and a bit hungry. He was heading toward the Eskimos' village. That man was William, accompanied by his new companion, Beta.
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