The breeze

 "You can't be serious," Laura said, a disbelieving laugh bubbling out of her. She stared at the email on her phone screen, the words blurring slightly as she squinted against the harsh office lighting.

"As a heart attack," her colleague, Mark, replied with a smirk, leaning back in his chair. "The boss wants us to organize the office retreat. In the middle of the desert. Can you imagine?"

Laura could, unfortunately. She'd been to enough of these corporate shindigs to know that 'team-building' was code for 'mandatory fun'. The thought of three days with her colleagues, pretending to enjoy sand dunes and trust falls, was already giving her a headache. But she had to admit, the desert was a new twist.

"Well, at least it's not another paintball tournament," she said, trying to put a positive spin on it. "I can't take another bruise from HR."

Mark chuckled. "Yeah, but have you seen the itinerary? We're supposed to 'find our inner zen' with morning yoga and sand meditation. I'm more likely to find a scorpion in my shoe."

The room buzzed with the hum of computers and the distant murmur of colleagues, but Laura's mind was already racing ahead to the weekend. She knew it would be hot, uncomfortable, and probably not very relaxing, but there was something about the unpredictability of the desert that intrigued her.

---

The desert was vast and unforgiving, stretching out like an endless canvas of golds and oranges that seemed to melt into the horizon. Laura and Mark had driven for hours, the GPS insisting they were 'almost there' despite the lack of any discernible landmarks. Laura rolled down the window, letting the dry heat wash over her face.

"This is insane," Mark complained, wiping a bead of sweat from his brow. "Why would anyone want to do this?"

Laura took a deep breath, filling her lungs with the hot, dusty air. "Maybe it's a chance to get away from it all," she said, her voice hopeful. "No emails, no deadlines. Just us and the dunes."

As they pulled into the makeshift camp, Laura couldn't help but feel a strange excitement bubbling up. Sure, it was hot, and there wasn't a single tree in sight, but she had a feeling this retreat was going to be different.

---

The first night was a blur of awkward icebreakers and forced laughter around a campfire that seemed more suited to a horror movie than a corporate event. Laura found herself in a tent with three colleagues she barely knew, all of them trying to get comfortable on the rocky ground.

"I'm telling you, I heard something," one of them, a young intern named Emily, whispered, her eyes wide with fear. "It's definitely out there."

Laura rolled her eyes, trying not to let the tension get to her. "It's probably just a coyote or something," she said, though she couldn't shake the feeling that there was something more out there, just beyond the edge of the firelight.

---

The second day dawned with a fiery sunrise that painted the sky in a blend of pinks and purples. Laura stepped out of her tent, the coolness of the early morning a stark contrast to the heat that would soon engulf them. The retreat facilitator, a woman named Aria with a penchant for crystals and flowing fabrics, called everyone to the central area for the first activity: a silent hike.

"We're going to connect with the energy of the desert," Aria announced, her voice carrying over the stillness. Laura and Mark exchanged a look of skepticism, but there was something about Aria's calm confidence that made Laura want to give it a try.

---

As they trekked through the sand, Laura noticed that the silence was unlike anything she'd ever experienced. It was as if the desert was holding its breath, waiting for something to happen. The only sounds were the crunch of their footsteps and the occasional whisper of the breeze. And then, she heard it.