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Ana said, shaking him off as politely as possible.
    “It’s good to see you again, Ana,” Neil said. “We came by because we’re most anxious to get started with The Arctic Gladiators .”
    “Nice name choice, by the way,” Bernie interjected.
    “Thank you,” Ana responded. “I do understand you want to get started. I was about to meet the man selected by the casting department, William Redding.” She hesitated. “Are you here so we can all meet him together?”
    “No, no,” Bernie said.
    “Right. That would be quite impossible for us to do.”
    “Oh? Why’s that?” Ana asked.
    “Because we just sent Mr. Redding back to the Carlyle Hotel to get his belongings. He’s flying off to Alaska this afternoon to help set up for the shoot. Our film crew will be flying out there with him.”
    “My God, so suddenly?” Ana burst out. “When is taping officially supposed to start? Mark and I still need to discuss exactly what I’m supposed to do—”
    “There’s not much for you to do, production-wise,” Mark interjected. “At least not until you return to the office. While you’re out in the Arctic, however, all you need to worry about is being as comfortable as you possibly can for the twelve days.”
    You mean I’m supposed to concentrate on not dying. “Like I said, gentlemen, this is all so sudden. I thought I was going to get the chance to at least meet William before we started—”
    “What difference does it make if you’ve met him or not? You’ll meet him in the Arctic, and that’s good enough,” Mark countered.
    “But aren’t there logistics I’ll have to work out with him before taping starts? As his partner? As the producer? As the—”
    “Yes, of course,” Bernie cooed in a soothing voice.
    “Looks like we did hire a smart one,” chirped Neil to Bernie.
    “I told you so,” Bernie said.
    “Right,” Mark said, directing his comment to Ana. “That’s why you’re going to fly out tomorrow night, so you can meet William as soon as possible.”
    “ What? ”
    “Didn’t Mark tell you?” Bernie asked, both he and Neil turning to look at Mark.
    Mark gave them a look of angelic innocence. “I gave Ana a lot of information to digest this morning. I figured I’d wait until after she had lunch to give her the rest.”
    Ana felt her stomach flop. “ But I have personal things I have to take care of!” Her thoughts were whipped into a tizzy ticking off all the things that would need to be done. “I’ve got mail to sort through. Bills to pay. I have to find a cat sitter—”
    Mark set his stance, shoulders squared off, jaw firm. “You’ve got until tomorrow to sort all that out. I’m sure that will be plenty of time.”
    This can’t be happening.
    Bernie had a serene smile on his face. Certainly he wasn’t worried about the outcome. The odds were one-hundred percent in his favor.
    Neil was looking at her with his head cocked as if trying to figure out why she was bothering them with the ridiculous, irrelevant details about her private life. She was going to do what they said anyway, so couldn’t she do it faster?
    These men were like a freight train. Headed straight for her. She could either hop on board or get run over. Nothing like getting railroaded. Literally. “I’m not sure I actually agreed to any of this,” she stammered.
    “Your options,” Mark said slowly and deliberately, “are limited to one—take it.”
    Bernie and Neil laughed.
    “That’s one way of persuading,” Neil added.
    Bernie coughed. “Of course, we want you to do this because you want to do this. To make this show our biggest hit ever. And to show us your appreciation for an unheard of job promotion from the secretarial pool. I know you want to prove your determination, guts and spirit to this fine company.”
    Ana gulped loudly, a garish sound she was sure they all heard. “Yes, sir.”
    “That’s more like it,” Neil said.
    “Right move,” Mark added.
    “But there’s a catch,”