Morning broke over Mansfield House with tendrils of mist clinging to the gardens. The storm had passed, leaving the air crisp and charged with expectation. Blake woke first, his internal clock still on Johannesburg time. He slipped from bed, careful not to disturb Laura and Monique, and moved to the window.
From this vantage point, he could see the entire property—the manicured gardens giving way to dense forest on three sides. The fourth boundary led to a cliff overlooking the South China Sea, waves crashing against jagged rocks below. It was beautiful, yet somehow foreboding. An island unto itself, hidden from the bustling metropolis of Hong Kong.