WHEN NIGHT BREAKS

Emma woke up with a start. She was shocked to find herself in a dimly lit room surrounded by the curious stares of people clad in different states of undress and shades of colors. The girl with the nylon dress tutted. The dress had an excessively low neckline that made her cringe. Her make-up looked more like the combined work of five preschool kids vying for dominance on a shared art paper. "No, this won't do, too bad for our image," she said while smacking gum. "A respectably dressed girl like you in a shack like this?" "What would our customers think?" the girl with the crossed eyes intoned. "That we kidnap rich girls and demand ransom from their families". The gum-smacking girl continued. "Gal you gotta go,” sang the guy with the feminine appearance. Where was she? The events of yesterday all seemed blurry to her. She remembered having lunch with Evie, her assistant, and everything went blank from there. Who were those people around her? They bore a close resemblance to hookers, but how could this be when she'd always prided herself on living a boring life of building an empire of great fortune and had no space for the fantasies that could only render one deficit of more time and virtue. Drago, Alicia, and Rachel watched in amusement as Emma scanned the environment with her nose turned up, a marked look of derision in her eye. They were used to the uppity looks of people. They had chosen this life and didn't have to feel ashamed or apologize to anyone about it. So long it paid the bills. Dear God, she was in a brothel, Emma thought. She needed someone to explain what had happened to her. As if he could read her thoughts, Drago told her "I was taking a leak when I saw you at the back of the building, out cold". Still snapping his fingers and moving his body like a dancer, he said on a note that bore impending doom, "Whoever did this wants you dead" Then he added quite carelessly like an afterthought and in a singing voice "He wants you gone baaaabyyy" The others giggled. "Aint you just a monster, laughing at another's misfortune?" a husky voice asked. Emma looked up at the new voice that joined the group. She was a stately woman, somewhere in her fifties. She was fashionably dressed and had the look of a tiger. It was as if she was always on the prowl seeking easy prey. She stretched out a hand to Emma. "Hi I'm Maggie, everyone around here calls me Miss M". Emma was surprised to see beams of intelligence radiating from her eyes. "You must be famished darling, what do you say to a cold cup of orange juice and a toast"? Emma found herself taking the hand and while nodding her head like an agama lizard. Emma rose as gracefully as she could, trying to maintain some dignity despite last night's events, with the last bits that involved her kidnap, totally erased from her memory. Regardless, she found herself warming up to Miss M, who seemed to truly care about her predicament. With a shaky smile and wobbly steps, she allowed herself to be led to a table with an assorted combination of fruits and teas of all kinds. If not for the almost nude wears of the tenants, the sultry music playing in the background and the raucous laughter of patrons that intermittently that disturbed the somewhat serene atmosphere, the place could almost pass for a respectable saloon, she thought. “Let’s get some food in you child”, Miss M, was saying “You must be famished”. She laid out the toasts she got from the kitchen on a china plate with beautiful floral patterns and set her cup of juice on a saucer. Emma observed that her movements were gingerly and quite sophisticated. “What are you doing in a place like this?” she blurted, too curious to rein her thoughts. For a full minute, Miss M was quiet and gave Emma an appraising look, trying to determine if Emma was worthy of her time and effort. The girl was bold. Emma really didn’t care what happened to her anymore or what people thought of her. She was already living her worst nightmare. How could she, the CEO of Transcending Globals be found in a ridiculous situation as this? Not being able to remember her assailant was worse. How would she close the gaps and prevent a repeat occurrence of this nature, if the culprit was still at large. She could only imagine the chaos her absence in today’s meeting would cause. kidn*pped just when she was about closing a big deal with a start-up company. Because that’s what her company represented, helping other businesses to grow. “Sorry about that Miss M, you don’t need to answer that question. Sometimes my mouth runs faster than my brain” Emma murmured with her mouth full. The toast was really good. “Thank you Miss M for the meal, I’ll be out of your hair as soon as I’m pointed to the right direction. I need to get back to my family as soon as possible, before anyone notices that I’m missing. Wouldn’t want to cause too much trouble”, Emma continued, finishing up her toast. “Could you wait a few seconds, while I go back to the room to get your personal effects” Miss M said as she walked briskly in the direction of the room with Alicia, Drago and Rachel. She heard them whispering, Miss M's voice was the loudest. "I'm afraid, her fortune is about to get a lot worse. Colin wants her” she said in an ominous tone. The silence from the others was thick and foreboding. It felt like a death sentence. Who was Colin? Why would he want her? Who were these people that thought had any control over her life and could just hand her over to a complete stranger? And for what purpose? “Maggie, do you have my package ready?” A voice drawled. It was deep and sexy. She Emma felt the shivers, her body breaking out in cold sweat. surprised to have her body respond to him in a strange way.