Back aboard the Elysian Pearl, the atmosphere buzzed with excitement and movement, everyone rushing, preparing for the wedding of the year. Everyone, except Ella.
She couldn't shake the unease crawling under her skin.
Last night, Georgia vanished. She never returned to the party. Ella had searched for her quietly at first, slipping away from the celebration to check corners of the ship where Georgia might have gone to recharge, lounges, balconies, quiet hallways. Nothing.
She knocked on Georgia's suite door. No answer. She called—voicemail. Still, she hadn't panicked. Georgia had always been this way. When her social battery ran low, she'd retreat into silence, slipping on her headphones, shutting out the world.
But morning changed everything.
The bride was missing. The ceremony was only hours away, and Georgia's door remained locked, no matter how furiously Ella pounded on it. Her calls continued to go unanswered.
Something was wrong. Dread prickled down her spine.
