Before they pulled away, Roden gave the old man another obliged handshake and thanked him thoroughly for all of his help.

"No thanks needed." The old man beamed back, leaning through the window of the car so that he could address them all. "It was my pleasure ta help. You jist do what ya need ta do now. Come back around soon, an' let me know how it all turned out. That'll be thanks enough for me."

"Certainly. No problem." Roden gave one last appreciative smile, and zipped off down the road. No one complained about his speed, not even Manda. It seemed to each of them that they couldn't get to where they needed to go fast enough.

"Alright," Max said after a few minutes. "Which way do we go from here, Martin?"

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

Ess sat on the immense bed in the over-sized bedroom, and waited. She had no choice but to wait. After the man with the broken nose had his men force her through the gigantic, elaborately adorned entry doors of the most ostentatious house she had ever laid her eyes on, she was dragged up a needlessly wide staircase that rose higher than the stairs to her third floor apartment. Ess made sure that the climb proved a challenge for the men, as she would not go to her doom peacefully. However hard she fought, though, in the end she ended up in an opulently decorated bedroom that was nearly twice the size of her own home.

The dark wood paneling and intricate deep-colored Indian style rugs lent a menacing feel to the space. The massive four-poster bed looked like an antique monstrosity in the middle of the room, while a dimly lit corner held a sitting area that consisted of a very formal looking chair and love seat. In front of an unlit fireplace, which had an ornately carved cherry wood and white marble mantle piece, sat an exceptionally dramatic chaise lounge. It looked poised and ready to catch a swooning damsel upon the entrance of Dracula or some other sinister creature.

If Ess hadn't been in dire circumstances, she would have been somewhat diverted with the spectacle and the grandeur. As it was, it only lent an aura of malice to her predicament.

Once in the room, the man with the broken nose gave her a quick tour, which was rather uncomfortable and awkward for both parties involved. He directed her to the large walk-in closet just off of her en suite bathroom. There were many outfits for all occasions, or so he made her aware, and all the clothes and shoes were in her size.

"Boss had all of your sizes and preference information given to a personal shopper. She took care of the details. If there's anything in there you don't like, Boss will have it replaced with something else." He didn't bother to hide his disinterest and distain for her as he spoke. Lastly, he instructed her to clean up and rest. It was late, and Angoli wouldn't be seeing her until the morning. "I'm leaving now. Too much girly shit for me for one day. Someone will be along to fetch you in the morning for breakfast. You'll be eating with Mr. Angoli, so you better be ready when you're called."

With that he swept out of the room, followed by his thugs who had been hovering at the doorway.

Ess spent a good hour checking any possible modes of escape, the obvious one being the door. She found that it had been locked from the outside, and there appeared to be no lock on the inside. How unfortunate. Her kidnappers could keep her in, but she wouldn't be able to keep them out. Next were the two large windows. The panes could be swung open, but there were bars blocking any attempt at escape. Even without the bars, the drop looked far too risky to attempt without causing severe injury. Even a ballsy move like climbing up the fireplace's chimney had been thwarted by the narrowness of its chute.

As all hope of escape diminished, Ess began to give in to the idea of her capture. She would have to play out her part for as long as she could. With this resolution in mind, she headed to the bathroom. The one positive thing to come of this change in circumstances would be a real shower.

The bathroom held a surprising number of products that Ess used on a daily basis, from her face lotion to her deodorant. There were a few extras, as well, such an imported Japanese night cream and a deliciously scented bottle of Coco Mademoiselle by Chanel. A quick rummage through the closet revealed a full wardrobe in her size, most of the clothes were actually in her taste, with a few gaudy exceptions.

Obviously, the kidnapping had been well planned out. They had to have broken into her apartment and gone through her things in detail in order to be so well prepared for her arrival. Ess had never even noticed. She never suspected anything in her home had been out of place, and had been so oblivious and passive to everything in her life that she didn't even realize it had been invaded. She became angry with herself for being so truly unaware. It was all her own fault that she found herself in this dilemma now. If she had only paid attention to the world around her, she could have been prepared, and may have been able to prevent her own demise. She had only herself to blame.

She resignedly turned on the shower and began to clean up. If there could be any chance for escape now, she must be alert and ever ready. There were no deluded hopes and vain plans now. Her only possibility would be opportunity . . . and maybe Max?

So, after the comforting shower, she simply sat on the bed, waiting for opportunity to offer itself, and fearing to permit herself to sleep. The bed proved very comfortable, however, and at long last, sleep finally did prevail.

The next thing she knew, someone had entered her room and thrown open the curtains. The light came streaming in, stinging her eyes, and making her surroundings appear out of focus. It was morning. Such sudden alertness caused her heart to pound the blood into her head, producing sharp pains throughout her skull. As her eyes adjusted to the light, she noticed a man standing beside her bed.

The wait was over.

* * *

"Tell me, Max," Manda turned towards the back seat, "Why was it you said that calling the police would be useless?" Max had mentioned it yesterday when they were walking to the car from the cabin, but he had never elaborated. Manda forgot to be skeptical about it at the time, so she decided to make up for it now as a means to break up the long silence in the car.

"Because," Martin interrupted before Max could speak, "Marcus Angoli controls the police force, along with every other government office in the city. They jump when he says jump and they look the other way when he gives them the ol' wink-'n-nod."

Manda gave him a dirty look for answering a question that had not been directed towards him, but continued her inquiry. "How come I've never heard of this guy then, since he has so much sway in the city? I would think that he'd be mentioned on the news or in the paper, or he'd be in the social gossip columns."

Martin had the answer on the tip of his tongue, but he hesitated, lest he should receive another severe look from Manda. "Go ahead, Martin." Max cued. Obviously, Martin loved having all the answers on Angoli. He had always been a bit of a gossip about what he knew. That's how Max had come to be so informed about the man; and that's probably why, despite Martin's best efforts, Angoli would never promote him from his position as acquisitionist.

"Well, Mr. Angoli doesn't want to be in the media. He has control of that, too. Any kind of spotlight, whatsoever, jeopardizes his control. Can't have the federal authorities looking his way, so he stays behind the scenes. Kind of a recluse in a way. But no one makes a move without his approval."