The Chosen

The door.

Someone was pounding at her bedroom door…

Christ, I feel like shit, she thought. She felt slimy with sweat in her nakedness, pulling on her robe as she swung out of bed. Twice she nearly stumbled. When she opened her door, Dan B.’s concerned face peered through the gap.

“Look, Vera, I’m sorry to wake you up, but it’s getting late, and—”

“Well, what time is it?”

Dan B. tried hard not restrain his frown. “It’s, like, close to four.”

He must mean four in the morning, but then the sunlight in the rive of her curtains showed her sunlight. Four in the afternoon? She couldn’t believe it; nevertheless, when she looked at her clock she knew it was true. “I guess I’ve got the flu,” she lied as an excuse. “Haven’t been feeling too good this week. I’ll be down in a minute.”

“I need to talk to you now.” Dan B. and his bulk shouldered into the room. He appeared nervous, on edge. Vera felt tempted to object until he blurted out: “Feldspar closed The Inn. When I asked him why, he walked away.”

Vera winced to gather her thoughts. “He closed The Inn?”

“That’s right. And he wouldn’t tell me for how long.”

Vera’s adrenalin rushed. “We’ve got reservations for tonight! He can’t close The Inn!”

“Well, he did. You better find out what’s going on.”

Oh, don’tt worry, I will! she thought. “I talked to him last night, for God’s sake. He didn’t say anything about closing.”

“Look, Vera, I’m just the chef, I don’t know anything about what’s going on. All I know is there’re a lot of fucked up things happening, and I can’t figure out any of them. For one, Donna’s acting really weird lately.”

Vera didn’t know how to react to this. In the dream she’d had the other night, she’d seen Donna, but then she still didn’t feel secure that it was a dream…

“And Lee’s gone,” Dan B. said.

She squinted forward. “What do you mean he’s gone.”

Dan B. held up his hands. “He’s gone. He left. He didn’t show up for prep so I checked his room. All his stuff’s out. The room’s empty. I can’t find him anywhere.”

Lee’s gone, the thought finally hit her. “I’ll be down in a minute,” she said. “I’ll find out what’s going on.”

Dan B. backed out of the room; he looked suspicious. Vera showered quickly, tripped over the pile of books she’d bought the other day, and dressed. She about stormed downstairs, turned into the front office, and cursed when she found Feldspar’s office door locked. Then she stormed into Kyle’s office. The door was unlocked, but there was no sign of Kyle.

“Goddamn it!” She went to his desk, dialed Room Service, and cursed once more when no one answered. Someone should be there! she thought. There were room guests who’d be ordering dinner! At once the sheer frustration flattened her.

Then she noted Kyle’s top desk drawer slightly open.