Mystery Noir

Sins and Lies Part 9

Doc,

It's in town.  Frankie's has been destroyed, with a lot of people inside. Jackie and I and some of the more moderate people at the meeting got out. I'm sorry for not emailing you right away, respond when you get this so we know you're alive.

-R

The email had been sent several hours ago, probably about the time I was fighting Jack in the parking lot. If you could consider me almost dying a fight.

I opened a response window, only to jump out of my skin at the knock at the door. I scrambled to catch my laptop from smashing to the ground, only to bang my injured wrist off of the coffee table. Cursing, I stood and crept forward, grabbing a knife off the t. v. stand as I moved toward the door. In the bed, Penny still slept soundly, which worried me. Did she always sleep this deeply? Or was something wrong? I had not checked on her, though she had been breathing when I had gotten out of bed.

She had been alone in the room with a vampire and I had not even checked to make sure that she was ok. When did I start just trusting anyone, merely because someone else vouched for them?

"Room service!" There was a muffled yell through the door that had me relax enough to walk the last few steps to the door and check out through the view hole once more.

A woman in uniform and a rolling cart filled with a couple covered platters stood there, though she was turned to watch down the hallway.  I couldn't see much around her, but it appeared that something was going on near Paul and Felicity's room.

I unlocked the door and opened it, frowning, glancing at the area around the woman before looking at her. "Thanks."

She winced when she saw me. "You look hurt, is everything ok?"

"Just clumsy." I offered, giving her a careful smile. "My friend is still asleep."

The woman nodded and allowed me to pull the wheelie cart into the room before offering me a touch screen tablet to sign. She turned to look back down the hallway and I paused to follow her gaze, seeing a cleaning cart outside the doorway. There would sound of vacuuming coming from within the room, and nothing really seemed out of place to me.

"Usually they don't get to this floor for another couple hours." The woman said absently, a small frown on her features as she turned back to look at me. "Everything has been really weird all day."

"What do you mean?" I offered absently, giving her an understanding smile.

"Just electrical and climate control issues. The stairwells were frozen shut this morning. Frozen, in the desert. And we had an elderly couple a few floors down die in their sleep. Everyone's jittery. The night security guards said the camera systems all shorted out last night, and half the lights were burned out."  The woman paused, then flushed a dark red colour. "I'm sorry ma'am. We do have it under control and there was no danger to you or any of the guests."

"It's ok. I understand. That's a lot to deal with." I gave her a reassuring smile, but she merely took back the payment pad and rushed off toward the elevator.

She only hesitated for a moment as she passed Paul and Felicity's door, though whatever she saw had her continuing on her way in a hurry.  I frowned in that direction until someone stepped out of the doorway. The woman was wearing what appeared to be some form of an indistinct uniform, with a backwards ball cap.  She took a couple steps out into the hallway before offering me a nod and a slight wave,

With a smirk, she turned and reentered the room.

I frowned and stepped back into mine, closing the door. I carefully slid the locks closed as well, as if I could do it quietly enough that the supernaturals cleaning up the dead vampire mess couldn't hear me. Then I turned around, almost stumbling over the room service trolly that I had somehow forgotten all about despite the smell of food and coffee wafting around me.