A bad taste filled my mouth. This was wrong. There had to be a solution somewhere, somehow.
People who weren’t in line seemed to be stressed and upset, even arguing. I tried to eavesdrop, though the noise level was high.
“They said there was one cancellation.”
“Right. And that maybe one room will open in two days.”
“What do we do until then? Wait and sleep in the lobby hoping to get it?”
“First come, first serve. I was nowhere near the first person in line.”
I glanced past a wide, polished hall toward a lobby great room and saw a fire burning merrily in a huge hearth. A couple of people were sitting on couches in that room, but their heads were down. They didn’t seem any happier than the people out here.
With the heat turned too high for the room occupancy, tempers were flaring.
I couldn’t hear what the clerks were saying, but people were gesticulating and banging on the counter. It looked like some were leaving. The line moved at the speed of death.
When I finally got to the front, I could overhear better. There were certainly no more rooms to be had. But also, no one had checked in yet. That meant no rooms had been filled. Why? That had me intrigued.
The guy in front of me demanded a refund. Okay, I thought. That’s one down. But why was everyone else waiting around? And why had no one checked in?
Finally, it was my turn. I approached the front desk. The little man in glasses who greeted me looked frazzled and overwhelmed.
I set my reservation printout on the countertop. “Frazier, Dale,” I said.
He ran his hand nervously through his hair. “Hello. Sorry for the long wait. The bad news is we have no more rooms even if you have reservations. The good news is there might be a solution.”
It would be no use to argue with him, or blame him, or yell at him. I decided to hear him out. Calmly.
“Tell me the solution.”
“We get people to agree to share rooms. Singles paired up in single rooms and couples paired up in double rooms. It’s the only way to make the numbers work out where everyone has a place to stay.”
“Paired up with a stranger?”
“I’m afraid so.”
That was somewhat risky. Who knew where any of these people came from, let alone their criminal histories?
“Hmm. Sounds dicey.”
“We have no other solution except to close down everything. Our owner doesn’t want that.”
“All right, then. Would it be like a lottery? Is that what all these people are waiting for?” I gestured about the room.
“That, or you can pick someone out right now.” He hit a key on his keyboard and frowned at the screen. “It says here your designation is human alpha. The shifter half of the resort is down the road. They tend to be a little more peaceful and trusting than regular humans. You might have better luck meeting an appropriate roommate there. I can transfer your reservation.”
“Are they double-booked as well?”
“I’m afraid so. But my friend clerks there and he’s telling me it’s a bit more civilized than here. I’m afraid the crowd is going to rise up and start throwing furniture at us.”
“All right. I’m willing to switch if I don’t lose my reservation. Or my place in line.”
“I’ll make sure of it.” He typed for a few seconds, then looked up at me over his glasses. “Done.”
I grabbed my suitcase on wheels and hurried outside and into the refreshing cold air. I couldn’t get away from the heat and din fast enough.
As I drove further down the lane, I wondered if maybe I should turn around and go home. This was a fiasco. I didn’t care about the money, which I knew could be refunded, but I had nowhere else to go for Christmas.
