Montag was quick to take in his surroundings. A keen and experienced eye like his own only needed a few innocuous glances to pinpoint where exactly he needed to go. The question now, though, was how to get past those two guards at the staircase.

Before he could begin to put that next piece of the puzzle together however, his inner monologue was suddenly interrupted by an intrusive tap to the shoulder from behind. A smooth voice that would wring out uncontrollable temptation from most men, but one that was laced with poison in its tone, addressed him teasingly from behind. He didn't turn around to face her though, not just yet. As usual, he played it cool, remaining calm even as his mind was kicking into high gear. Eduard could tell from her voice though, and the fact that she hadn't immediately reported him to some higher-up, that she was no more welcome inside this villa than he was. Apart from that though she was a total mystery, and so for that reason he remained cautious. He had to admit though, he hadn't done himself any favours by walking straight towards the laundry room, of all rooms.

Plate in hand still, the undercover detective slowly, but surely, turned himself to face this newest obstacle. A slender, fairly tall, and all around classically attractive woman was what faced him, with slight feline features that were a perfect match to her voice. 'Carol' was the name that appeared on her nametag, but the young man very much doubted that that was anywhere close to her real identity, especially once he spotted that tattoo on her neck. The snake and dagger etched into her skin pierced his vision, and suddenly the venom to the woman's voice made sense. 

[color=goldenrod]"Hey, take it easy, it's only my first day. It's only natural for me to get at least a little lost, especially in an environment like this. And besides..."[/color] Montag's eyes sharpened slightly, and if 'Carol' looked especially carefully, she'd probably see a very discreet curl of his lips edging into a slight smile. He could feel her advancing closer towards him, almost as though she were trying to push him further into the closet, away from prying eyes. That didn't deter him though, and he made no outward acknowledgement to it. [color=goldenrod]"I doubt you're the type Mr. Arnault would be pleased to see, or to hear about. Or is that tattoo just a fashion choice?"[/color]

A glance over her shoulder, and Eduard also noticed a few inconspicuous individuals dressed similarly to the one man he'd come across before. Was this them? The people that would set the chain of events leading to Marie's death in motion? Were they the trigger themselves? Or was it just bad luck? Before he had time to really mull, he attention was brought back to 'Carol' when her hand jittered at her side. Though she was good at hiding it like himself, Montag observed, nerves couldn't help but show themselves in some capacity.

What was becoming increasingly clear, however, was that this woman probably had the power to make or break the whole operation at this point, depending on how Eduard could handle her and how she might react. It was risky, but if he played his cards right, and with a bit of luck, she could be the key to finally reach Marie. And he wanted to hurry, especially when it seemed like each time the detective looked out to the garden again, another coated man would stand amongst the others to grow what would eventually probably become an intimidating and dangerous force.