Chapter 27: The escape plan
Sarah had been searching the container walls for what felt like hours. Her shoulders ached from the awkward position, and the ropes around her wrists had rubbed her skin raw. But she didn’t give up.
Finally, near the back corner of the container, she found what she was looking for. There was a small piece of metal that stuck out from where two walls met. It was sharp and rusty.
"Perfect," Sarah whispered to herself.
She positioned herself so the metal piece was against the ropes on her wrists. Then she started moving her hands back and forth, trying to cut through the rope.
It was slow work. The metal was sharp, but the rope was thick. Sarah had to be careful not to cut her own skin while she worked.
"What are you doing?" Mei asked quietly.
"Cutting the ropes," Sarah said, still working. "If I can get my hands free, maybe I can untie my feet too."
"Then what?" Isabella asked. "The door is locked from the outside."
Sarah paused her work for a moment. "I don’t know yet. But I have to try something."
The other women watched her with a mixture of hope and fear. Some of them had given up completely, but seeing Sarah’s determination was starting to give them hope again.
"Even if you get free," one of the women said, "there are guards everywhere. They have guns."