-=Martina's Point of View=-"Finally!" I thought as the time to leave came. It seemed like a long-awaited release, a turning point I had been looking forward to.I took a moment to check my reflection in the mirror to ensure that my appearance was not too casual but also not too formal. As I looked at the image reflecting back at me, a smile instinctively formed on my lips.When I checked the time, it was exactly eight p.m., and I realized Kian was probably waiting for me at our secret rendezvous location. The anticipation of our secret encounter heightened the intensity of the moment.Reflecting on that hidden passage reminded me of the day I dug into the enigma, hoping to discover the truth behind its existence, but only to fail miserably.I still couldn't get any answers about how a secret passage was built inside this castle going to what everyone considered the most dangerous place on this island, but I didn't think much of it anymore because I was ripping the benefits of having
-=Martina's Point of View=-Speechless, I found myself in a state of confusion as Zeke guided me toward the dining room for breakfast, increasing my confusion.He instructed one of the servers to serve my breakfast and feeling hungry, I ate the food in silence, but my mind was working overtime as I secretly observed my surroundings.I didn't feel or see anything out of the ordinary, and Zeke was acting in his usual way, but for some reason, I could tell that there was something off at the moment, especially when Zeke asked me about my morning walk.First and foremost, I haven't seen or spoken to him since I was at Kian's earlier, so it doesn't make sense why he would presume I went for a morning stroll unless he was hiding something.Honestly, I wanted to confront him, but I was having second thoughts about doing that. Since I wasn't caught sneaking out through the secret passageway, I could still keep my secret, so I was still contemplating whether to confront him or act like nothing
-=Martina's Point of View=-I probably stared at her for a couple of minutes, looking at her with a dumbstruck expression on my face, before I finally snapped out of it and managed to speak."You are?" "Yes, let me just change my clothes before we leave, and you might want to tell Zeke that we are heading out," she answered nonchalantly, and even before I could say another word, she just turned around and walked away, just like that.I kept staring at her until she vanished from view, and it seemed to me that I must have been staring at her with awe-struck eyes, like a deer in a spotlight.I surveyed my surroundings, flushed with embarrassment, hoping that no one had witnessed my awkward moment, and thankfully, no one was in sight."Zeke, right," I muttered to myself.I started to walk, trying to locate where Zeke was, when I met one of the maids, who graciously told me where Zeke was.I walked to the second floor of the castle and walked to where Zion's study room was. When I arrive
-=Martina's Point of View=-I could really feel that there was something off with Annie today. Don't get me wrong, she was helping me find Kian, and she was bringing me to places that Kian might have visited, but for some reason, I couldn't shake this feeling that she wasn't really that serious."Duh! Of course, she was feeling guilty helping me look for my lover when she respected and admired Zion, who happened to be my husband," I sarcastically told myself, which was why I was thankful for her help.I know she didn't really want to help Kian considering that he is the man I chose instead of Zion, but she still decided to help me, which only showed how big her heart is."Maybe we should take a break first, Martina," Annie suggested after we tried to check the third location.The sun's rays were blistering, and my vision was practically blurred from sweat. I honestly didn't care because all I wanted was to find and save Kian. However, I couldn't help but feel sorry for Annie, who was
-=Martina's Point of View=-"Good morning, Martina!" I was greeted by Annie's enthusiastic voice when I opened the door after hearing the continuous knocking, and it turned out to be Annie."Why... what are you doing here?" I asked, still sleepy from being jolted awake."Well, I figured that we could leave early, so we can search for Kian, and look, I even brought you your breakfast. Relax; I already talked to Sir Zeke, and he agreed," she explained."He agreed to what exactly?" I asked."He agreed for us to leave the castle again, and he agreed for me to bring you breakfast. Look, I got your favorite," she said.She invited herself in without waiting for my invitation. I just shook my head at her intrusion and felt guilty that I forgot to tell her that I already talked to Kian last night, and it didn't cross my mind to tell her since it was already late and I was really exhausted after searching for Kian almost the whole day.We shared the breakfast she brought, and while she kept on
-=Martina's Point of View=-Just like they said, it was easier said than done, and that was exactly what happened to me.I thought it would be breezy to get the study room's key from Zeke, but it seemed that it was almost impossible.I've been keeping an eye on Zeke every now and then, and in none of those instances did I even see the key from him. It also made me wonder if maybe he wasn't bringing that key all the time, which really frustrates me because if he didn't have that key, then where else could I find it?"Is there something bothering you, Martina?" I was startled when I heard Annie's voice wake me up from my deep thoughts.For a moment, I forgot that she was with me in my room as we were casually talking about things and plans we had for the future."No, it's nothing," I replied with a shake of my head. I heard Annie sigh, and when I looked at her, I saw understanding on her face."You don't have to lie, Martina. I know what was bothering you," she said, making me feel nerv
-=Martina's Point of View=-I took a deep breath while looking where Lucy, the keeper of the keys, bedroom was. I was feeling so nervous that I had half the heart to turn around and forget the whole thing, but I was reminded that Kian needed my help.I honestly didn't remember meeting someone with that name, but then again, there were a lot of helpers in this castle, and it was impossible for me to remember all of their names or even recognize their faces. For all I know, I probably hadn't met her before, or maybe I did, during my arrival on the island, but since I was so nervous, I didn't take a good look at her face.I arranged my visit to Lucy's room without alerting Annie, making sure she was busy charging her electric bike outside the castle and Zeke was nowhere in sight to avoid generating suspicion.I'd wager everything that if he found out I was going to meet Lucy, he'd already know what my goal was, and he could not know it, or else that would be the end of my investigation.
-=Martina's Point of View=-I secretly glanced in Zeke's direction, who was busy giving instructions to one of the maids in the dining room, while I ate in silence.I was trying to gauge if he knew about my visit to Lucy's room. I was kind of worried that Lucy actually told Zeke about it, and the result was Zeke having doubts about my real reason for meeting Lucy. Didn't he already catch me trying to approach Zion's room already?I kept monitoring him, but I didn't notice anything different from him, or maybe he was just good at pretending."Or maybe you were just overthinking, Martina," I cascaded myself, and maybe I was just overthinking things, but can anyone blame me?I mean, I felt like what I was about to do was a make-or-break for me. If I succeeded, then I would be able to help Kian, but in case I am caught, I can already say goodbye to helping Kian with his condition.I had no idea what Zeke had hidden in the drawer on the table in the study room until now, but this instinct
-=Martina's Point of View=-The beating of my heart began to beat faster as I could finally see the island from afar."Wait for me, Zion," I silently said, feeling the sorrow and longing of a woman who was away with the man she loved.Ever since I left Nancy's province and experienced that bizarre and mysterious event, bits and pieces of my previous life memory came back to me, but not enough for me to know everything, but enough for me to know that I was Esmeralda and Zion is the man I loved during that life.I remembered telling him from my previous life that I would remember him whatever happened, but I betrayed him since I didn't even recognize him and worse I thought of leaving him.I felt so ashamed to see him again, but my desire to be with him won me over, and I promised myself that I would never leave Zion again.While looking at the island, it felt like some invisible hand was pulling me closer to the island as if the island recognized me, and I recognized it as my home, Zio
-=Martina's Point of View=-I kept feeling this ache ever since my visit to that place, and as I awaited our arrival back at my dad's place, this ache was getting more intense."Can you tell me what's really going on, Martina?" I heard Nancy ask."Nothing; I just needed to go home," I answered.Before, when I thought about home, I always referred to my dad's house, which had been my home ever since, or at least before Fionna and her daughters arrived, but now, when I thought about home, I couldn't help but think about the island and Zion's mansion.The pain I felt intensified when I thought about Zion. I couldn't help but feel guilty knowing that he wasn't feeling well when I left him after I found out the truth.I felt ashamed of what I did; yes, it was shocking to learn the truth, but I promised Zion, or rather Zion, that I would love him forever, and yet, in the first instance of the test of our love and my faith in him, I disappointed him.I could still feel Nancy's gaze on me fro
-=Martina's Point of View=-It has been ten minutes, but still, nothing happened. I was really expecting something to happen considering that I came to this place without my full consciousness.I stood up from the big rock where I was sitting, waiting for something to happen, but it didn't."Esmeralda..."I tried calling her name; maybe there was something that she wanted to tell me, but even after uttering her name in the air, still nothing happened."Esmeralda!"This time, I yelled louder, but after holding my breath and waiting, nothing peculiar ever happened.A bitter smile appeared on my lips when I realized how much of a weirdo I may be if someone found me there.Imagine a guest wandering in this part at this hour. People may think that I actually lost it, and they would probably send me straight to the asylum if I told them how exactly I came here."Anything?" I thought to myself when another ten minutes had passed, and when still nothing happened, I took a deep breath and fina
-=Martina's Point of View=-I awoke to the crowing of roosters, and as I looked out the window, I observed it was still dark. When I looked at the clock, I saw that it was only five o'clock in the morning, still early for me to wake up, however when I was about to go back to sleep, I was disturbed by Nancy who was already wide awake.I didn't even notice her waking up and leaving the bed."Good morning!" She said in a loud voice making me grimace."Could you keep it down, it's still early and I still wanted to sleep," I murmured."No, Martina, five a.m. is already considered late in the province because almost everyone wakes up around four and Mom told me to wake you up for breakfast," she added, and she didn't leave me an opportunity to go back to sleep as she pulled the sheets over my eyes."You're really ruthless," I said, which she just laughed at.I had no choice but to force myself out of bed, and before leaving the room, I decided to do some stretching first, to remove the slee
-=Martina's Point of View=-I awoke early the next morning, surprised that I hadn't dreamed of Esmeralda and Kian again. I hoped I wouldn't dream about them any longer.Who wants to dream about anything irrelevant to them, even if the woman in the dream happened to look like you and the man you love is always with her?I probably stayed in bed for a few more minutes before deciding to get out, and the first thing I did was double-check that I had everything I needed. Last night, I organized my belongings for my trip with Nancy, going to their province and going to that place.It probably took me about ten minutes to finish inspecting my bags, and then I started getting ready.I took a quick shower which probably lasted for fifteen minutes, and after drying myself with the towel in my bathroom, I walked naked back to my room and wore the clothes I had chosen earlier which was a pair of blue shirt and faded jeans with my favorite sneakers.I was putting on my shoes when I heard a knock
-=Martina's Point of View=-"What do you mean it's not real? Are you saying that my wedding ring is a fake?" I asked in disbelief."Unfortunately, that is right, miss. It may look real, but upon closer inspection, I confirmed that this isn't made of real gold and diamonds," he said.He continued his explanation, but to be honest, the details slipped my mind as my focus wandered. However, a feeling of suspicion washed over me as I spotted them exchanging secretive glances."Could it be?" I thought to myself."Well, there you have it; you heard it from the expert; your ring was indeed fake, and just as we agreed on, you would go out with...""Actually, I wanted to have a second opinion," I suddenly said, cutting him off."Come on, don't be a sour loser," Benz said."Perhaps I am, or perhaps the test results were incorrect," I said nonchalantly."Are you telling me that I tested your ring wrong?" The employee of the shop said indignation was written on his face."Yes, but was it wrong to
-=Martina's Point of View=-The following day, Dad decided to return to work, but before leaving, he made sure to share breakfast with me first."What do you plan on doing later?" he asked."Nothing much; I was planning to just stay at home, or maybe I could just go out and buy something," I said."Okay, if you wanted to leave, you could use the car instead of commuting; it's much more convenient that way.""Okay," I said.I planned to ask Nancy to drive me just in case I decided to go out; we could also buy the things we might need once we leave tomorrow. Speaking of Nancy, she continued addressing me as her mistress, and I didn't stop her anymore, since, in a way, I kind of missed hearing that. When I heard her calling me that, it made me feel like I was still in the castle.I walked with Dad and watched him leave, and when I could no longer see his car, I decided to look for Nancy so we could talk about our plans for tomorrow.I found Nancy in the kitchen; she was busy cleaning the
-=Martina's Point of View=-While gazing at Mommy's grave, I couldn't help but reminisce about the joyful memories we shared, but it didn't take long for the pain of her loss to resurface once again.I yearned to take advantage of this time to release all of my bottled-up emotions and let my tears run freely, but the fact that Dad was behind me kept me from doing so. I didn't want him to see my tears again, knowing that it would only add to the burden of grief he was already carrying after losing Mom and having been in an accident."Sorry, Mom, if I only got to visit now. I miss you, and Dad misses you so much," I said in a gentle voice.I felt my dad putting his arm on my shoulder as if he were giving me the comfort I needed because I really do miss Mom.After that, there was quiet between us; there were moments when words were unnecessary to express our emotions, and this is one of those instances.I was talking to Mom in my head, and when I caught a glimpse of Dad, I knew he was do
-=Martina's Point of View=-I didn't know how long I was asleep, and I didn't plan on waking up yet; however, I was woken from my sleep by a continuous knock on the door."Next would be Annie's voice," I thought to myself, but I was confused when I didn't hear Annie's voice but instead someone else's."Martina, are you awake? Your dad is waiting for you," I heard Nancy say, so I immediately opened my eyes.I awoke in the familiar surroundings of my room back in our old house, rather than the castle room I had become accustomed to. It occurred to me that I had left Zion's castle after discovering the truth."Martina?" I heard Nancy calling my name again."Yeah, I'm awake; just give me five minutes," I answered, and after that, I heard her footsteps.I took a deep breath and tried to remember everything that happened. I couldn't believe that it had only been more than twenty-four hours since I left the castle, and I couldn't ignore the sadness in my chest.I genuinely missed everyone on