Hotel Lamia

JENNY

I leaned over the bar, scanning the room. Nope, he was definitely gone. He didn’t even pay for his drink. That would have to come out of my tips. Crap!

I released a heavy sigh before putting the black bottle back on the shelf. I had always wondered what kind of wine was in these bottles. It was thicker and richer than regular red wine, but it smelled incredibly dry, though. Not really my thing. I preferred mixed drinks or hard liquor.

I stepped down from the stool and put it back under the counter. As I rose to my full height, I noticed a £50 note on the counter. I glanced over the people around the room, but everyone was deep in conversation. No one was walking around.

I frowned as I looked back at the note, contemplating what to do. I grabbed it and put in under the counter. If someone had lost it, they would most likely come and ask for it. If no one did, I could use it to pay for the drink.

It was rather strange, though. I’d only had my back turned for a few seconds. I hadn’t noticed any movement in the mirror either.

Looking at my watch, I saw it was just an hour until closing, so I turned to Pete. “Same procedure as last year?” I asked with an exaggerated posh accent.

“Same procedure as every year, James,” he replied with an equally ridiculous, but light, voice.

I snorted, grabbed a tray, and walked to the nearest empty table and started collecting abandoned glasses.

Oriana’s laugh echoed through the room.

“Why is that funny?” I heard one of the men at her table ask.

“Because he is obviously in denial,” she replied, still laughing.

“Denial about what? It’s not a big deal. We bed hu...” His words turned into a deep groan, like he suddenly was in pain or something.

“Shhaaa ha ha! No matter! Did you see the plans for the tenth?” Oriana said, abruptly cutting him off.

I kept moving around, collecting glasses, making sure to keep my back to them, even though I was most definitely eavesdropping.

The second man cleared his throat. “Yes, it’s looking good. When do the renovations start?” he asked.

“In four weeks, if everything goes as planned,” Oriana replied, taking another sip of her deep red wine.

I already knew his hotel was part of a worldwide, very exclusive chain. Compared to other hotel chains, it was tiny because there were only a handful of them spread across the world.

For some reason, it’s not something that anyone talked about. I only knew because I’d overheard the executives drunkenly blabbering about it in the bar a few months ago. I assumed the “tenth” they were talking about, was the tenth hotel in the chain.

“It will be marvelous. The best one yet!” Oriana said, her melodic voice dancing through the room.

In the corner of my eye, I saw her wildly gesturing with her hands as she spoke. The two men at her table were also from the top floor, but I didn’t know their names or positions. The shortest of the men, the first one to talk when I first heard them, leaned over the table and lowered his voice. He might have thought he was being quiet, but he was intoxicated, so his voice was still more than loud enough for me to hear.

“Why did you cut me off earlier?” his tone dripped with annoyance.

“Because this is not the place nor company to discuss it among,” Oriana whisper-shouted back at him.

I was done with this section, and to avoid being caught listening, I had to move along, so unfortunately I didn’t get more of the conversation.

I glanced toward them at every opportunity I got, though. The drama of rich people was quite entertaining, but the executive drama was definitely my favorite.

These people were so secretive and suspicious. Why did none of us ground-level employees even know about the other hotels. Like, what’s the big deal?

I was cleaning the tables furthest away from the remaining guests when someone cleared their throat behind me. I turned around to see Oriana standing there with a suspicious half grin.

Crap! Did she know I had been listening?

“May I help you, ma’am?” I asked with a nervous smile.

“You’re different! More. Aren’t you?” she said as she looked me up and down.

“What do you mean?” I asked, slightly confused. Her dark eyes were a little glassy, revealing that she’d had a few.

She laughed and waved her hand. “Like, you’re not just, like, any random human.”

I frowned at her choice of words. “I’m still not sure what you’re on about, ma’am,” I said, trying to sound calm.

“I know. But you will at some point,” she said, her lip curling into an amused smirk.

Her face suddenly turned serious as she stared deeply into my eyes. She began squinting, like she was searching for something.

My eyebrows knitted together in confusion, but I returned her eye contact. I started feeling strangely calm and determined, but I didn’t understand why.

She suddenly burst out laughing, clutching her stomach. “Fucking hell, woman, you got some massive balls! I like you already!” she said, biting her lower lip like she was suppressing a smile.

I continued to stare at her, dumbfounded.

She looked me up and down a few times.

“Eh, thank you, ma’am,” I said, stumped.

“You’ll be fine. Vale, Soror!” she said as she turned and walked away.

What the fuck was that all about? I thought to myself.

I watched her walk back to her colleagues, swaying slightly. They all walked out of the room together.

She was probably way more drunk than she seemed. There was no other explanation for the weird stuff she’d said.

After I finished cleaning, I went over my cash settlement. “Pete, did anyone pay you for a drink I made or put one on the company tab?”

He turned to look at me. “Nope! I’ve just gone over the tab, and it’s all in order,” he replied.

“Oh, good,” I replied, nibbling on my lip.

That £50 note had to be for the Sazerac, though the drink was only £15. Or maybe it was a big tip from someone. Either way, it would pay for the drink, and it would all add up.

With everything done for the night, I went to the locker room to get my bag. I halted as I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror.

My eyes fell to the spots where I’d felt the heat almost a week earlier. My heart did a little twist, and I felt sadness seep through me. Closing my eyes, I took a deep breath: in through my nose and out through my mouth.

It didn’t help. The feeling was still lingering. I picked up my bag and pushed open the heavy back door leading to the alley.

The dim light by the door was dead, and the alley was pitch black. Like, unnaturally black.

The door slammed shut behind me, making me jump. My heart started hammering in my chest as I squinted my eyes, trying to see anything around me. I searched for the door behind me with my hands, but all I could feel was the cold, hard concrete wall.

It shouldn’t be this dark. It wasn’t natural. I should still be able to see the lights from the main.

My nostrils flared, and I gritted my teeth as I stretched my arms out in front of me, trying to find my way out of the alley. I felt a drop of sweat roll drown from my temple. I was on high alert, straining my ears to try and pick up any sound, but all I could hear was my own shaky, labored breathing.

I was waving my arms in front of me when I finally felt the brick wall. This had to be the building next to the hotel. I touched my fingers on the rough surface and walked along it, thinking that I would eventually end up at a corner and hopefully be able to find someone who could help.

“Oomph!” I exclaimed as something crashed into me, slamming my entire front against the wall.

Something freezing cold was clutching my neck, holding me in place. The rugged bricks scraped into the side on my face, piercing my skin. I felt blood dribbling down my cheek and drip onto my chest. I tried to scream for help, but no sound came out.

The cold spread down my spine and up the back of my head, etching through my skin and deep into my muscles. The pain was unlike anything I’d ever felt before. My knees buckled as it consumed my whole body.

Then everything disappeared as I blacked out.