The Hotel Called Bloody Crown (rewriting)

Chapter one: Knocking

Chapter one: Knocking on the Door

James' POV

The money was the most valuable component in achieving a comfortable life. Only the fool and the poor would say otherwise. Because with money, you could afford nearly everything-fame, women, expensive holidays, houses and cars, and the list would go on and on... Once you tasted the luxury of the things that money provided, it was hard to let go of it because you wanted more and more and that more was never enough. You couldn't stop. But there was still one thing which could stop you. That was the chance of that life being taken away from you forever.

Everything I had worked for and every client I had taken, it was all meaningless now, just because of a single failure in twenty years of my perfect career. It sounded funny, but the company didn't tolerate losing clients and money because I screwed up once. It was the cruel society that we lived in now.

I stared at the monitor in front of me, reading the e-mail for the tenth time and trying to understand the way to fix things.

To Mr. James Hardwood,

I am sorry to report you that you have lost another client today over the failed product sale. Since we have been coworkers for the past ten years, I will be honest as your prospects are not looking dazzling. By the record, you have lost twenty valuable clients this week, and that truly damaged the company's profit...

They only care about the profit, don't they? I sighed and continued reading it until the end.

However, due to being one of the best workers that this company has employed over the years, the council is providing you with another chance to prove yourself. The meeting will be held in Los Angeles on Friday at nine a.m. in Initech.

Good luck, James, I hope everything works in your favor.

Nathan Sommers

Counselor of Productivity and Working Strategies.

I had to be a fool, I thought as I closed the laptop with my right hand and leaned on the chair. I didn't know what I was doing with my life anymore because here I was, six hours away from my home in the city of glowing lights and never-ending hope with no idea how to come up with a product that would save my career. And the meeting was tomorrow, early in the morning. By the alarm clock, glowing in the surrounding darkness, it was three o'clock in the morning. Yeah, great strategy, James.

Just before I brought myself up and cleaned my messy table in front of me, the vibrations of my phone in my pocket stopped me in the middle of my track. I reached for my mobile and on the bright screen, the name Sharon and the picture of the girl with brown frizzy hair appeared.

Without thinking, I pressed "answer" and brought my mobile closer to my ear.

"Where are you, James, God damn it?" her voice sounded husky and I couldn't tell if she was worried or mad. Maybe both, knowing how women got upset so quickly.

"In Los Angeles," I replied shortly. Perhaps, I should have explained the current situation, the problem I had encountered, the risk of losing my career and money. But I didn't.

"What the hell are you doing in Los Angeles? Are you with Lucy again? Don't lie to me, James. I know I'm not the only one you're seeing these months," her voice wasn't getting any calmer as she shouted at me, making my foot hit the floor in a rhythm. Good luck there was no guests in this hotel, otherwise, I would have a big problem here, too. I felt my eyeballs rolling into the back of my head as I let the annoyed sigh.

"Business trip, Sharon. Nothing else is going on. I'm having a problem with my company, that's all," I explained, knowing that nothing else would make her shut her mouth. God, women are so annoying these days.