“Devandra, pick up... please pick up…” Vania muttered softly, biting her lip as she stared at her phone screen.

She had tapped the green button three times, and three times the call had been disconnected immediately. No dial tone. No signal that Devandra’s phone was still active. Her heart clenched with anxiety, her fingers trembling as they gripped the cold device.

She paced back and forth in the villa bedroom, her eyes occasionally glancing at the half-open suitcase in the ...