When Keira caught sight of it chugging down the hillside toward them she almost cried out in surprise. It couldn’t have been farther from the luxurious cream-colored limos! The funicular looked more like a tram, a large, sloped aluminum box with windows. Its strange angled shape looked completely bizarre to Keira and a little jolt of peril went through her at the sight of the extremely hazardous-looking contraption.

It drew to a halt and all the passengers from inside filed out of the funicular. Once they’d cleared out of the way, the staff member opened the gates and the awaiting crowds surged forward. Keira gritted her teeth. It was now or never!

Cristiano seemed very at ease and completely oblivious to her stress as he led her to the top pod and climbed inside. Keira slid into the plastic seat next to him, relieved to find that there was a pole she could hold on to.

Once all the cars were filled with people, Keira heard a whirring electrical noise that told her the journey—and her terror—was about to commence. Then the tram surged upward in a slow and steady motion that felt far too fast and jerky for Keira’s liking. Her stomach somersaulted. She hated the sensation of it, and it was made far worse by the fact they were traveling backward.

Suddenly, they plunged into a tunnel, the brickworks rushing past, then emerged out the other side. Keira found they were crawling up the hillsides, between houses and shrubs. The higher they went, the more ocean could be seen, and the more Keira shivered with discomfort.

Then they plunged into another tunnel, this one much darker than the last, with only very weak yellow lights set sporadically into the walls. The tram veered to one side and another passed them, coming the opposite direction. Though the passing point was clearly designed that way, Keira couldn’t help the way every muscle in her body stiffened.

When they emerged out of this second tunnel, the scenery was much more rugged. There were no houses now, just lush green bushes and bright white flowers. And, of course, the gorgeous twinkly ocean in the distance. Boats bobbed on the surface of the water, looking very small now, and growing ever smaller.

“Is everything okay?” Cristiano asked her. “You look tense.”

Keira noticed that she was squeezing the pole very tightly. Her vertigo was becoming more intense the higher the funicular took them.

“Sorry,” she said between clenched teeth. “I’m a little scared of heights.”

The tram followed a curve then, making Keira’s heart flutter uneasily. She tried not to think of the height and instead focus on the gorgeous views of wild limestone crags and deep blue ocean.

Finally the funicular began to slow, and Keira realized with relief that they were pulling into the station at the top. It looked the same as they one they had left minutes earlier, sloped, and filled with people ready to get on board.

Pulling into the station, the tram juddered to a halt and Keira leapt up, all too eager to get off the hazardous vehicle and onto solid ground.