She walked over to the massive floor-to-ceiling windows. The heavy blackout curtains had been drawn back at some point while she slept, and the afternoon sun blazed through the glass. She pushed the balcony doors outward and stepped onto the cool marble terrace. The salty ocean breeze immediately whipped through her hair.

She rushed to the edge of the ornate stone railing. She leaned over, looking down, desperately hoping for a path to the ground.

Her heart sank into her stomach. Below her was a sheer, deadly fifty-foot cliff drop. The dark ocean waves crashed violently against jagged rocks at the bottom.

She looked up toward the roofline. She spotted two black dome security cameras. Their red lights blinked, tracking her every movement on the terrace.

Realizing the balcony was a fatal dead end, she retreated inside. She took a deep breath, smoothing her facial expression to hide her rising panic.

She walked to the locked bedroom door. She knocked politely, pretending to have calmed down.

The lock clicked. Martha opened the door, looking at Celestia suspiciously.

"I just want a brief walk outside," Celestia asked, keeping her voice steady.

Martha hesitated. She looked Celestia up and down, then agreed. She signaled two guards in the hall to follow them at a strict ten-pace distance.

Celestia was escorted down a grand, sweeping spiral staircase. Her eyes darted everywhere, memorizing the layout of the exits, the windows, and the doors.

They stepped out into the expansive, manicured gardens. Celestia took mental notes of the guard patrol routes and the timing of their passes.

She walked near the edge of the path. She accidentally brushed her shoulder against a tall, perfectly trimmed green hedge.

She heard a faint, dangerous electrical hum.

She froze. She realized the decorative hedges concealed high-voltage electric fences. They completely cut off the perimeter of the estate.

She pointed to the vast ocean horizon. She casually asked Martha where the mainland was located.

Martha smirked. "The mainland is a three-hour boat ride away," she stated, pointing toward a distant private dock.

Celestia squinted against the bright sun. She saw a massive, multi-deck mega-yacht moored at the concrete pier.

She also noted the heavy presence of armed men patrolling the dock. A naval escape was entirely impossible.

Suddenly, a loud, rhythmic chopping sound filled the sky above them.

Celestia looked up. She watched a sleek, black helicopter descend rapidly toward the estate's private helipad on the far side of the lawn.

She watched men in black suits unload cargo boxes. She realized the yacht and the helicopter were the absolute only ways off this rock.

Desperate, she subtly altered her walking path. She moved closer to a groundskeeper who was kneeling and trimming the rose bushes.

"Please help me," Celestia whispered frantically to the gardener as she passed by him.

Samuel Finch kept his eyes glued to the dirt. He completely ignored her whisper, his hands shaking slightly out of fear for his job.

Martha noticed the slight deviation in Celestia's path. She immediately stepped between Celestia and the gardener.

Martha grabbed Celestia's arm with a surprisingly strong grip. She forcefully pulled Celestia back onto the main gravel path.

"Do not harass the staff," Martha warned, her voice dropping to a threatening hiss.

"Can I at least use a landline?" Celestia pleaded. "Just to call my mother to say I am safe."

Martha looked at her coldly. "All communications on this island are encrypted. They are strictly restricted to Mr. Sinclair's personal clearance."

A heavy, suffocating blanket of despair settled over Celestia. The sheer impossibility of her physical situation became horrifyingly clear.

She turned her head back to look at the vast, empty ocean. She vowed internally that she would find a blind spot. She had to.

Chapter 3

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