Celeste couldn’t sleep.
The flash drive still lay beside her laptop. Her mind kept going back to the last name on that list:
Emilia Moreau—Status: ACTIVE. LOCATION UNKNOWN.
Her mother was alive.
That truth had shaken something deep inside her. Everything she thought she knew had fallen apart.
She got up from bed and walked to the balcony. The night was cold. Quiet. But her heart was racing.
A light blinked again on the distant island.
On. Off. On. Off.
She stared at it. The pattern repeated every ten seconds.
She was sure now. It was a signal.
Behind her, the door creaked.
Damien stepped out. “You haven’t slept.”
She shook her head. “How could I? She’s alive, Damien.”
“I know.”
Celeste turned to him. “Why didn’t you tell me you spoke to her?”
“I was trying to protect you. Sh
