Chapter Two

"Teodora," the tall, muscular bald man called out to Theora in thickly-accented English. "Teodora."

Theora sat on the floor and up against the wall of the wooden shed. A lone nearby window was covered in chain-link fencing.

"What's the matter?" the bald man asked. He had a square jaw and was in his early-to-mid forties. He wore black sweat pants, a gray t-shirt, black combat boots, and a .45 semi-automatic pistol in a shoulder holster. "You no talk?"

Theora crossed her arms and stared stonily at the bald man. Her teeth were now on edge.

I haven't been "Teodora" in ten years, Theora thought as she glared at the bald man. There is no one by that name in this room.

"The woman you know today as 'Theora Jones' ," Mr. Best began. "was christened Teodora Anastasia Barbu in Bucharest, Romania."

Mr. Best, Edison, and Murray stood in Mr. Best's lavishly appointed home office. Mr. Best - a slender man in his mid-sixties with silver-to-gray hair - stood behind a Louis XV desk, facing out towards Edison and Murray.

Richard "Dick" Best was the founder, Chairman, and owner of Network Three, one of the world's first global television networks.

"My wife and I adopted her from a Romanian orphanage," Mr. Best continued.

"Interesting," said Edison.

Mr. Best paused. "Mr. Carter, there's a million things that you don't know about her," he warned.

"Like what?"

Mr. Best crossed his arms and turned his back to Edison and Murray.

"She has a dark side," said Mr. Best as he stared at the wall behind his desk. "A wild, untamed side."

Edison then remembered what Theora had once told him ... "There's a lot I haven't told you about myself."

"If you don't mind my asking, what has she done … that's so terrible?" Edison asked.

"Sex, drugs … that sort of thing," Mr. Best replied.

"When's the last time you saw her?" Edison asked.

"Ten years ago," Mr. Best replied. "Shortly before she left school. After that, she sent me a note saying that she'd legally changed her name … and I never saw her again."

"Have they made any demands?" Murray asked.

"They want a 30-million credit electronic bond," Mr. Best replied. "They said they'd call back at eleven-hundred hours to arrange a drop-off."

"We'll do everything we can to find her," said Edison.

Mr. Best turned back to face Edison and Murray and plucked a business card from a silver-plated holder on his desk. He took a pen from its silver-plated holder and scratched a pair of phone numbers - home and cell - on the card.

"Mr. Carter, when you see her, would you please give her this?" Mr. Best asked as he handed the card to Edison.

Edison slipped the business card into his wallet and said, "Will do."

"Who w-w-walks away from an 2-b-b-billion c-credit f-f-fortune?" Max Headroom asked. Edison was now back at Network 23, hunched over Theora's computer, with Max appearing on the monitor.

"Someone with a VERY good reason," Edison replied. He then made a few keystrokes and called up a vidphone. The image of Bryce Lynch appeared on the monitor.

"Bryce, it's Edison," said Edison. "I need you to trace a number."

"Shoot," Bryce replied.

"Area code five-one-two, five-five-five, one-four-seven-eight."

"Timestamp?" Bryce asked.

"Oh-six-thirty hours," Edison replied.

Bryce made some keystrokes off screen. A police mug shot of the bald man with the square jaw appeared onscreen.

"Cell phone," Bryce replied. "Registered to an Oleg Bakunin." He then made a few more keystrokes and added, "Russian Mob Boss. One of Interpol's Most Wanted. Wanted on multiple counts of drug trafficking, conspiracy, extortion, solicitation of murder …"

Guy's Mob, all right, Edison thought.

"The call came from some place in Clapham County," said Bryce. "They appear to be clustered around this one site … kind of a wooded area."

"Hideout?"

"Maybe," Bryce replied.

"Thanks, Bryce," said Edison as he hung up the vidphone.

"What could the Russian Mob want with Theora?" Murray asked.

"They must've found out her connection with Dick Best ... and they want to cash in," Edison replied.

"What now?" Murray asked as he stood behind Edison.

Edison turned around to face Murray and said, "We wait."