Felix leaned back in his chair, relaxing again. Yes, he could still make it out of this unscathed. There was just one loose end. Dehydration would take care of her in the next day or two, but if by any chance she should be discovered before then, she could identify Felix. She could tell them about Felix, the tunnels, everything.

Maybe its a mercy the road was flooded, he thought, recalling the night he had taken the girl through the tunnels to the vehicle he kept waiting nearby for just that purpose. It had rained heavily, and with the road washed out hed been unable to drive the girl far away, as he had with the other victims. Instead hed been forced to take the girl on foot a short distance before leaving her.

Which meant she was close enough that the discovery of her body would certainly cast suspicion on Mr. Roth. It also meant, however, she was close enough that Felix could get at her without much trouble, as he would soon do.

First the girl, then Candy.

Candy, after all, must have talked. Why else would she have disappeared? She must have talked and led the agents right to Mr. Roth, and that was a betrayal Felix could not stomach.

He gritted his teeth, thinking about what he would do to her when he got his hands on her. He would kill her, yes, but not before she suffered. He would show her what happened when you didnt keep your mouth shut.

But first the other girl, he thought.

It was going to be a busy day.

Composed again, Felixs eyes scanned the bank of monitors, studying the behavior of the various guests as he had done so many times before. A few were by the pool, a few others at the golf course behind the villa, but most were in the ballroom, drinking and dancing as if all were right in the world.

As if their benefactor werent sitting handcuffed in a small room that very moment.

Ingrates, Felix thought, clenching his hands as he rose from the chair. Instinctively he reached for the hidden panel behind which he kept his AK-47, but when the panel popped open, there was nothing inside.

Felix began to sweat. Who had been in there? Had the FBI found his stash?

Then he remembered: He had hidden the rifle, along with the blackmail footage, in the passageway. He sighed, realizing that perhaps it was best he did not have any automatic weapons with him at the moment. He suspected Mr. Roth would not have been very happy to come home to a score of fresh bodies to deal with.

The music nearly deafened Felix as he entered the ballroom. He found the mixer and jerked the master plug from the outlet. A satisfying silence fell over the room as the dancers looked toward him, puzzled and angry.