Noted

Chapter 15

We drove for countless miles until midnight was soon far behind us, as was New York. It was easily six-teen hours later; and Troy couldn't keep his eyes open any longer. He knew we needed to stop and rest for the night. Since it was winter, sleeping in the truck was out of the question, so, finding a preferably old and seedy motel–with poor security cameras–was our best bet.

After a while, he came across what seemed to be the precise kind of motel we needed. After pulling into the driveway and turning off the motor, he looked over at me, I was half asleep with my head laying against the window. He reached over and swept my hair away from my face, tucking it behind my ear.

I opened my eyes slowly. "Where are we exactly?" I asked with a yawn.

"Somewhere close to Richmond," he replied.

"Hmm...never been..."

"I can't imagine why you would have..." he laughed. "We have to stop for the night," he added. "It snowing now, and I'm exhausted."

I looked outside now and saw that we were parked in a very secluded motel parking lot. It looked like one of those motels you'd see in a typical movie; one where the guest is obviously going to get axed to death but is too stupid to realize it. The neon sign that read Motel was half lit up and flickering sporadically, while the lot only hosted one old vehicle, which seemed as if it had been sitting there for years. Other than a light on in the office and a small illuminated "vacancy" sign stuck to the office door with duct tape, the motel itself seemed completely abandoned.

"Are you sure you don't want to keep driving?" I asked as we got out of the truck, grabbing only a bag of food and leaving the rest of our belongings in the truck.

"We have no choice," Troy sighed. "We both need to rest."

We opened the wooden office door and walked into what really looked like an old horror film location. There are tapestry's everywhere; from the couches, to the cushions, to the drapes, and even the walls had a matching wallpaper. The reception area was decorated with wooden figurines of various animals, and it felt like they were all starring at us.

"I don't like this place," I whispered.

"It's just for tonight," Troy whispered back.

We looked around for a staff member and found a man sleeping in a rocking chair, behind the main desk. Troy tapped the golden bell that sat at the edge on the desk, and it broke the second he touched it. It was enough to wake the sleeping man, at least.

"Sorry, son," the man said obligingly. "I must've nodded off again; not many people pass by here, I would say. How can I help you?" He was very polite.

"We need a room," Troy asked, or, more like demanded.

The sleepy man raised his right eyebrow and gave Troy a suggestive look in regards to needing a room late at night with a girl. Troy's face went red at the idea, and he quickly looked away from the man who now cleared his throat and asked, "How long will you be staying with us?" He then gave them a creepy smile.

"One night only," Troy said, looking away from the man's intense stare.

"That's all you need, huh?" the man said laughing  and then turned to retrieve a room key. I rolled my eyes.

While Troy and the creepy guy were discussing the price for the night, I let my eyes wander around the room. I noticed that the only thing that was somewhat from the current era, in the reception area, was a small television that hummed in the background and hung behind the front desk. I watched it attentively, curious as to what was showing at that time a night. It was the news channel, and once weather segment was over, the anchor went on to the Olivia Swan murder case. Of course.