Tales of Gloomsdale #3: Awake at Sunrise

Chapter Ten

"Dawn, what are you doing hanging outside our door like that? Don't tell me you want to help the maid clean," one of the twins teased.

I turned my gaze from the door of our hotel room to stare at my brother. Mom and I had traded places. Mom had made me watch over him once I returned to the hotel room while she left to search for the other one. He kept his hands hidden behind his back. I grabbed his arm, causing him to yell in protest.

"Hey! What's your problem, Dawn?" he demanded, yanking his arm away.

I didn't know whether to be relieved when I saw that there was no injury. Not like the mark marring the maid's pale skin, shriveling her thumb to her wrist exactly like my little brother's injury...

"I've been meaning to ask you, Jason," I began. "How exactly did your brother get hurt? One moment, you two were trying to kill each other, and the next—"

"We always get hurt while fighting," Jason pointed out, rolling his eyes. "I would be more surprised if we didn't. Mom says she should attach a leash to both of us."

I paused. Mom did say that. "Well, yes," I admitted. "But Jake's injury was... really bad. Did you see it? It looked painful. Like he really hurt himself."

"Serves him right," Jason muttered. "He's always making fun of me."

I turned my head as I saw Mom approach us. "Any luck in finding Jake?" I called.

Mom shook her head despondently. "No, unfortunately. I have no idea where he's gone. He could have run away and tried to get back home, for all I know. Why do your brothers always have to be such pests?"

"You're telling me," I agreed.

"Hey!" Jason protested, crossing his arms.

Mom stared at the closed door. I could vaguely hear sounds of shuffling and cleaning from inside. "It was very nice of her to clean for us again," Mom said. "Especially since she's already busy."

"Why would she be busy?" I demanded. "We seem to be the only guests here. The others I saw all seem to have left."

"Yeah," Jason agreed. "If anything, she's being lazy."

"Don't say that," Mom scolded. "I didn't even ask her if she could clean the mess you and your brother made. She just offered."

"Probably because she doesn't have anything else to do in this place," Jason quipped.

Those words made me freeze in shock. I remembered what the maid had said, about how Mom had asked her to clean. Had she been lying? She had said the twins had been fighting, too... how did she know that, if Mom hadn't told her?

"I'll go see how your father is doing," Mom said. "Dawn, keep an eye on your brother. Don't let him wander off. Attach a leash to him if you have to."

As Mom left, I couldn't help focusing more on the hotel room than my brother, paying attention to the sounds outside. The cleaning and arranging abruptly stopped, before the footsteps returned a moment later. But they sounded different this time. Something about them set me on edge as the maid – or whoever it was inside – became closer. I jumped backwards as the door swung open and the maid stared down at me. I closed my eyes, feeling like an idiot. Why had I been hanging around outside like that? She must think I'm a complete weirdo.

But she didn't seem surprised. Her voice was soft and kind. "Are you two looking for your brother?"

I opened my eyes. "Well, yes. He's gone missing... again."

"I know where he is." I stared at her eagerly. "He's inside at this very moment."

"Really?" My eyes widened, along with Jason's.