Hotel Room Horror

Maria knocks on the hotel room door. No answer. She waits another ten seconds and knocks again this time shouting out “Housekeeping!” Maria waits another ten seconds and knocks again. Still no response, so she takes out her master key card an opens the door while saying “Housekeeping coming in!” But as she enters the room she sees it is completely empty Maria gives a mischievous smile. Perfect. She turns around and dead bolts the door. Maria walks over to the open suitcase on the bed and begin rifling through it, sunscreen, bathing suits, evening attire. “What the fuck?” She says quietly to herself. Maria continues rifling through the belongings of whoever is occupying the room but whatever she is looking for isn’t there.

She sits down on the bed and turns on the television. Might as well relax a little bit before I get out of here, Maria thinks to herself. About ten minutes later Maria hears voices walking down the hallway. “Oh shit.” She says as she jumps up and runs over to the door and undoing the dead bolt. She freezes and looks around the room for someplace to hide. The voices are getting closer. The voices are right outside the door as Maria dives under bed and covers her nose and mouth to drown out the sounds of her heavy breathing. 

She hears the door open and then close and then she hears a voice. “I can’t believe you acted like that down there, like some wild animal. You’re a jerk, you know that?” Maria hears a women’s voice and can see her feet walking over to the desk chair and sitting down. She kicks off her flip flops and rests her feet on top of the bed.

“Yeah, yeah, Maureen. That man’s eyes were looking at you for a little too long so if that makes me a wild animal then I don’t give a fuck.” The man’s voice is gruff and angry. Maria hears him open the mini fridge and grab a drink. It must be can because Maria can hear the pop of the can opening. “You were the one actin’ a fool down there.”

“Actin’ a fool? How was I actin’ a fool Don? I was swimming for fucks sake!” Maria hears this lady, whose name is Maureen she is assuming, slam her hand down on the hotel desk.

“Swimmin’ that’s what you call that? You was puttin’ on a show for all dem fella’s at the bar like you was in the God Damn stripping olympics.” The man comes into Maria’s view and gets really close to Maureen’s chair. So close he begins pushing the chair back with his knees. He then bends down and puts his hands on the arm rests of the chair and pushes it with full force in to the wall. The force is so hard Maureen’s head must snap back and whack the window because Maria can hear the thunk and the screeches from Maureen. 

“Don! What the fuck? Why in the hell would you do that for?” Maureen must try and get up but Don pushes her back down into the chair. “Don! Stop it! Let me get up!” There is a slight hint of panic in Maureen’s voice. Maria is definitely scared but she can’t deny that she is also very curious in Maureen and Don’s fight. 

“Shut up Maureen! Shut up! I am so sick of hearing your whiny voice.” Don chugs the rest of his drink and crushes can and throws it across the room where it dings against the wall and softly thumps onto the carpeted floor. 

Panic is definitely visible in Maureen’s voice now, “Don baby, relax. You are right I was actin’ inappropriate down at the pool. You are my guy though Don only you.” 

Don is quiet for a moment and Maureen must think he’s taking the bait because she slowly gets up and walks over to Don. Maria can now see both of their feet standing in front of one another. Maureen’s dirty and bare feet and Don’s boots. Who the hell wears boots to the pool?, Maria asks herself. Maria is starting to feel uncomfortable because she can hear Don and Maureen making strange noises. Oh great, she thinks, now I have to listen to them do it? Maria rolls her eyes and is about to close them and try to sleep through their love making when she realizes the noises that are coming from Maureen aren’t sounds of pleasure but sounds of her trying to breathe. Maria watches as Don lifts Maureen off the ground with his hands and arms raised, Maria can only imagine, and wrapped tight around her neck.

Maureen starts kicking her feet wildly. Maria watches the filthy soles of her feet pathetically try and make contact with Don’s privates. Maria is shocked and can’t believe this is happening to her right now. She wasn’t even supposed to be here! She stole her mom’s work key card and snuck over to the motel today to try and score some drugs. Fuck. Her mom calling the cops on her is the least of her worries now. She is literally watching a woman die. 

After what seems like a very long time, Maureen’s legs go limp. Don just unwraps his hands from around her neck and lets her body fall and hit the floor with a large thunk. 

“Oh. That was loud. Good thing we are on the first floor then, huh Maureen.” Don laughs at his attempt at a joke and gives Maureen’s behind a kick with hit boot. The way Maureen fell positioned her body so her head was turned and facing Maria. Her neck had dark, purple bruises that they looked almost black. The terrified look on her face makes Maria want to scream. She scurries back against the carpet to get further under the bed, then stops. In her panic she hadn’t realized how loud she’d been. Don must’ve heard something because all of a sudden Maria hears his boots pounding on the carpet and making their way over to Maureen’s body.

He must think Maureen is still alive because when he comes over he kicks her back and says her name. When there’s no response he kicks her back harder and yells her name, “Maureeeeen, you still there girl?” Maria is looking right into Maureen’s eyes and she knows that there is nobody there. After Don is satisfied that Maureen is dead he sits down in the desk chair and lifts his feet onto the bed and falls asleep 

Maria has no idea how much time has passed and she has no idea if anyone is even looking for her or if her mother has noticed her master key card is missing from her wallet. Maria trying her hardest to stay quiet and not cry because she thinks Don is still sleeping or at least still in the room. She definitely didn’t hear the door slam and Maureen’s lifeless eyes are glowing white now in the darkness under the bed. 

The bed creaks as Don moves his feet off the bed and Maria hears the desk chair squeaking as Don sits from a reclining position. “You can come out from underneath that bed there darlin.” The sound of Don’s voice makes Maris jump and she hits her head on the metal wire of the bed frame. She feels tears and tugs as she desperate tries to untangle her hair. She hears Don laugh then he gets deadly quiet. “I said get out!” He shouts.

Maria scurries out from under the bed and pushes herself back against the wall and realizes she’s trapped. Behind her is a wall, to the right of her is the wall in front of her is Don and now to the left of her is a wooden end table. She’s fucked. 

Don is still sitting in the desk chair and he leans down so his elbows are resting on his knees and his face is resting in his right palm. In his left and is a gun and it’s pointed right at Maria. “How long you been under there for?” Don asks her. 

Maria tries her to best to use her street voice but all that comes out is a small and quiet, “A long time.” 

Don leans back in the chair and nods his head. “A long time. So you seen what happened to my friend Maureen? That was a really sad accident.”

Maria starts nodding her head enthusiastically. “Yes, yes. It was an accident. It was self defense! She came at you I saw the whole thing. You have a witness. I can help you.” 

Don is nodding his head and seems to consider Maria’s idea. “That is true, you are a witness and the thing is darlin’ even if I thought you was tellin’ the truth to claim self defense would be a whole awful lot of work and then I have to deal with lawyers and prosecutors and blah blah blah and it’s probably not going to go too well for me, well given my priors and all. So I think it would save me a hell of a lot of time and money to just shoot you right now.” 

Maria begins to sweat. She also realizes she peed herself and she’s embarrassed by it. Then she thinks, how silly to be embarrassed when I’m about to die. And the thought of dying brings Maria back the current situation. “Please. You don’t have to do this. I’m just a kid. A stupid kid who was looking for drugs. I’m not supposed to be here. I stole my mom’s key, she works here. Please. I want to live.”

“Tsk, tsk, tsk,” Don says as he shakes his gun is disapproval at Maria, “you came in here to steal from me? And you stole from your mama? Oh no girl, that story didn’t help you any.” Don laughs and Maria groans. “Get up.” Maria stays frozen to the ground. She can’t move. “Are you deaf. I said get up!” Don yells. Maria stands up and Don directs her to lay down on the bed. 

“Oh no. Oh no no. Please no.” 

“Shut up. It ain’t what you think.” Don forcefully lays Maria down on the bed and straddles her with the gun pointed to her head the whole time. “I’m not interested in no little girls. No. Shooting you is gonna be too messy. I’m gonna choke you instead.” And with that Don drops the gun on the pillow next to Maria and wraps his big hands around Maria’s neck and squeezes until she has bruises as black as Maureen’s. 

Out in the hallway Maria’s mom is speaking to the night clerk at the motel desk as the sun is rising outside the window. “Chris, are you sure you haven’t seen Maria at all?”

“No Arlene. I am so sorry. I haven’t. It’s been dead here all night.” Arlene shudders at Chris’s choice of words. At the same moment a hotel guest is walking behind Maria dragging a very large and obviously very heavy suitcase. “Sorry Arlene, hold on one minute. Was that your final trip to the car sir?”

The big man smiles and gives a thumbs up to Chris. “Yes my man it is. Car is all packed up! Had a great stay. Thanks man!” 

Chris smiles and waves at the big man. “You’re so very welcome sir!” Arlene watches as the man walks by her and gives her a smile and a wink. She watches as he drags the heavy suitcase behind him and watches the red rug underneath get bunched up and stuck under the wheel. The big man kicks the suitcase a few times to get to come free from the rug. Once he finally gets it he looks up at Chris and Arlene and laughs and says, “Way too much souvenirs ! Good thing we decided to bring the extra large suitcase this time.” Chris laughs but Arlene stares watching as the man struggles to lift the extra large suitcase into his already crowded trunk.

“That was such a nice man. Poor guy. Was telling me how his wife left him! Reconnected with an old friend while on vacation and that was it. Decided to up and leave her whole family. They got two little ones at home too. At least they have a lot of souvenirs if that’s any consolation.” Chris starts to laugh and is looking at Arlene waiting for her to join in but Arlene is lost in thought watching that big man drive out of the parking lot thinking she really should have written down his license plate number.