“That’s right, and we’ve told her parents several times.I don’t think they object, per se.”
The third man handed the heavy bin to one of the other men, who strode forward purposely, slowing down as he passed Fang.
“Then what?”Devon asked.
Fang shrugged.“I think Hen—DI Mortimer is simply worried that Emily or Bess will give way to their respective biological clocks before he can brace himself to the idea of being a grandfather.It’s all speculation, but it’s the only thing we can think of.”
“You can ask him when he gets here.”Devon frowned at his phone.“I hope your uncle isn’t going to take long fetching him.The Boot Camp place is very popular, and although we’re booked for the whole night, I don’t want them getting ideas about giving away our slot.You sure your niece will like it?”
Fang noticed from the corner of his eye that the man with the bin finally reached the hotel, whereupon he turned around and stared at his companions for a good half minute before entering door to the kitchen.“You haven’t seen her since she was, what, four or five?She’s smart as a whip, and very focused.She’ll love the whole idea of being a survivor in the zombie apocalypse.”
“Ahem,” Devon said, pulling out his phone.“What I have reserved for your enjoyment is nothing quite so lame.Where is the ...ah.Here we go.”
One of the remaining van men bolted up the narrow gravel path to the hotel.He carried a gray gym bag.
Fang’s phone pinged.He read the message.“Iain says he has the detective inspector, and they are on their way back.Should be here in a few.”
“Good.We’ll have to get going in the next fifteen minutes or we’ll miss the wing buffet.Let’s
see....Darkness creeps, and in its depths, death lurks in the form of a horde of maniacal zombies.Your mission is to negotiate the corridors of our specially built facility, dodging smoke, stairways, rubble, and dark rooms.In your race against the clock, you’ll test your wits—and the aim of your laser rifle—against the horde of zombies who seem to know every move you take.Tell me that doesn’t sound like fun!”
“It’ll be a lot of fun, Dev; you can stop worrying we won’t like it.”
“I’m not worrying about you,” Devon said, idly watching as the third van guy strolled past them with studied nonchalance.He carried the type of padded bag frequently used by cameramen.“It’s the inspector who concerns me.And now evidently your uncle broke his knee.Luckily, I had the Boot Camp place do the less activity, more escape-room-ish setup, since I wanted to keep it reasonable for your niece.”
“That girl can probably run faster, farther, and longer than both of us.Combined,” Fang said, mildly startled when all three men burst from the hotel and hurried past them to the van.His phone burbled again.“Good.Iain and the inspector are here.Shall we?”
As they rose and turned toward the hotel, Fang saw the face of one of the servers peering out of the window briefly before she seemed to melt into the dark interior.
A thought flitted so quickly through his brain that he almost didn’t register it: where Emily went, chaos inevitably followed.
He dismissed it along with the ever-present worry about whether the move to the US was smart, if he’d have trouble finding a job, and how difficult it would be fitting in.“Let the stag do commence.”
“Amen and fuck yeah,” Devon responded, following him into the hotel.
Fang dismissed the single twinge of concern about the oddness of the hotel employees.It was all bound to be nothing.
EMILY: Guest Rooms
Tap.
I paused in the act of brushing my hair.
Tap.
I stared at the radiator.“That had better not be you.It’s hot enough out.”
It said nothing.I returned to awkwardly angling my head down enough to see it in the mirror that had, due to the eaves, been set at roughly belly-button height.
Tip.Tap.
“OK, what the hell is going on here?”I asked, straightening up to look around the room.“Is this place really haunted?If so, kindly go to another room to wait for the ghost dudes.”
A flash of white at the window caught my eye.
“Bess?”I hurried to the window and fought with the stiff Victorian latch to swing it open.“What on earth ...are you in a tree?”
“Yes, and it’s damned uncomfortable.Here, take Herbert.”
