IV

Henri looked a bit disappointed as he turned to answer her question. "It is about a block away from 'Le Needle'. I suppose you would be tired from your flight. Ah well...haha...I will just have to 'pick you up' again another time then, yes? I'll drive you to the Radisson directly." Ann nodded gratefully and smiled politely at him in response. All she could think of was getting out of that car and away from Henri's company, getting some sleep and then figuring out the strange flight attendant mystery. She was grateful her new boss had chosen the Radisson. She wondered what kind of room he had reserved--the expense to which he had gone would give her some insight into how much he valued her as a new employee.

Ann blotted out Henri's monologue and fought to keep awake. They finally arrived at the hotel drop-off. A smartly-dressed bellboy opened her door and another unloaded her luggage from the trunk. Ann could hardly get her brain to work well enough to thank Henri and tip the bellboys. She walked up to the front desk and was greeted by a pleasant, sophisticated young woman. "Welcome to New York, Miss Haymoure. Mr. Lannabe called a few moments ago to make sure we would welcome you properly. I hope you will find everything in your suite to your liking." As she spoke, the young woman handed her a card-key in a folder, and then accepted the passport Ann extended towards her. She clicked away on her computer and then handed the document back. Ann thanked her and turned towards a long row of elevators. The young woman spoke up, "oh--you'll need to take one of the odd-numbered elevators to access our VIP suites, ma'am. And your suite is on the top floor." "Oh," Ann responded, "Um..thank you." She could barely function, she was so exhausted. She entered elevator number 3, punched the last floor, 20, and found her way to her suite, barely noticing her posh surroundings. She arrived at door number 390, slid her card key through the slot, and entered the room. Ann stopped short and gazed about herself in amazement. Her fuzzy brain perked a bit, and she sighed in awe. Directly across from her was a large picture window which wrapped halfway around the room. New York City lights blinked pretty colors at her as she gazed out. The sitting room was lavishly decorated, and there was a bar near the door with pink champagne and hors d'oeuvres set out for her enjoyment. A small smile curved her mouth. It seemed Mr. Lannabe did indeed value his new employee. Ann found her luggage neatly lined up beside the large mirror-clad sliding doors of the closet in the adjoining bedroom. She rummaged through her carry-on for her toothbrush. She was too tired to wash her face, but Ann had never been able to fall asleep if her teeth weren't brushed first. Ann finally pulled back the pouffy, downy covers of the king-sized bed and slid between the silk sheets--yes...they were silk, she thought with a sleepy grin--and sighed a contented sigh and immediately drifted into a dead sleep.