“Oh no,” Alex whispered.

Ctrl+Alt.

If Ctrl + Alt conflicts with other software (like another VM manager), you can change it: Go to > Preferences . Select the Hot Keys tab.

The mouse pointer shuddered. For a heartbeat, nothing happened. Then, like a deep-sea diver surfacing, the white arrow burst through the barrier. It streaked across the screen, free and wild, landing on the host’s taskbar with a triumphant little tap.

If you're still having issues with releasing the mouse, ensure that your VMware Workstation is up to date, and check for any specific settings or issues related to your guest operating system.

Then it happened.