Finding Ella

Chapter 4

Ella's bare feet pounded over the grass as she dashed down the hill towards the side gate that the guys had brought her through when she first arrived. Her blood was thundering in her ears, the terrifying possibility of being chased and caught once again was nearly enough to bring her to her knees. Having tasted a moment of kindness and freedom, however brief and false, seemed to only make the fear worse now. She'd almost made it and suddenly she was back to running for her life again.

The moon was high in the sky and almost full, giving everything an eerie silver glow and mercifully allowing her to see where she was going. Thank the stars for small blessings because she never would've made it in the dark. As it was she could make out almost everything around her, the moonlight helping to guide her way.

The gate loomed ahead as Ella raced past the majestic elm trees that dotted the beautiful property. Her ankle was screaming in pain, making her footsteps unsteady but she couldn't afford to slow down. Running so hard that she almost didn't stop in time to keep from slamming into the closed gate, Ella came to a stumbling halt at the keypad that was the only obstacle between her and freedom. The only problem now was trying to figure out what the code was that would let her escape.

Ella forced herself to slow down for a moment and take a deep breath. She couldn't just put in any old code; no doubt the guys would be alerted the moment a wrong code was entered and they would be after her before she even made it out of the compound. They'd probably come after her anyway, but she could at least give herself a head start. That meant no putting in a code; she had no idea what it could be and the odds of getting it right on the first try were like a billion to one.

Plan B then, find another way out.

Another way out was easier said than done, the compound was built for security after all and was a veritable fortress. Ella turned around and slowly scanned the property; taking note of the walls, the cameras, the trees and everything else she could see in the pale moonlight.

Think, Ella! There had to be another way out, there was always another option.

She retraced the property again with her eyes, carefully taking in every detail. There! One of the huge elm trees along the boundary of the property had a branch that reached just over the flat surface of the top of the wall.

Making sure to stay as close as possible to the huge concrete barrier, she sprinted to the base of the tree. Heart hammering in her chest, Ella looked up into the branches. It was going to be tough and would no doubt hurt like hell with her feet cut up and her injured ankle, but she could do it. Without wasting any more time, she reached up, grabbed hold of the first branch and started to climb.

The rough bark against her tortured feet made tears spring to her eyes, but she kept going, pulling herself up onto each thick limb of the tree before reaching for the next. Finally, she made it to the branch that stretched out over the wall. Swinging one leg over so she was straddling it, she cautiously leaned forward and inched along until she was directly over the ledge. Keeping a strong hold, she carefully swung one leg over and lowered herself down until she was dangling just a foot above the wall.

Taking a deep breath she let go, dropping to land on the top of the wall. She wobbled for one heart stopping moment before regaining her balance. Looking around from her vantage point, she realised the forest was only a short distance from the wall meaning she could disappear quickly. She just had to get down first.

Ella lowered herself to her hands and knees before shuffling around and slowly easing her legs over the side until she was resting on her stomach, her legs hanging in mid-air. Being careful not to lose her balance, she gradually lowered the rest of her body until she was holding on to the edge with just her fingers. Squeezing her eyes closed and sending up a quick prayer, she took a deep breath and let go. She landed with a thud as she toppled over backwards as her feet hit the ground. She'd made it.