The drive flies by, and soon enough, I’m pulling in behind my beloved Grimm. Normally, I would have raced around to the front and immediately checked in on Anna and the store, but I decide to trust in her and take some much needed time for self-care. Nothing would change in the next hour.
Proud of myself, I head up to my place and unpack my small bag. I putter around, getting laundry started and changing clothes, since I had slept in the ones I had on and wore them home.
I tame my hair while I’m at it and then look in my fridge, not surprised when there isn’t much to eat. I figure I’ll go down and check in with Anna and then go find some grub. Grabbing my small belt bag, I bound down the stairs, zip around the building, and head toward the shop door.
As always, I get a small thrill of pride to see it. I head inside, happy to see Anna helping a customer choose between two different wet mounts. While I wait for her to finish, I head back to the storage area to make room for the new purchases I brought home with me.
I shuffle some inventory, organizing some of the holiday merchandise a little when my stomach reminds me all I’ve had today was coffee. I head back out to the store to talk with Anna just as the customer is leaving.
“How did it go?” I ask.
“Oh, it was great! The weekend was pretty busy, but I had so much fun. How was your trip?”
I pause, thinking how to answer. “I turned out to be exactly what I needed. Thank you so much for covering. Could you help me bring some stuff in from the car?”
“Of course!” she says.
Anna jumps up, and we head out the back emergency exit, which is closer to the car. She is young and exuberant. Her friendly nature will be an asset to the store, and her energy is contagious. I feel myself smiling just from her presence.
I prop the back door open so we can ferry in the boxes. We get things settled into the back storage room and then both stand back, hands on hips, and survey the packed space. It feels good to have a wide selection of inventory for restocking, but I will also need to stay on top of it since more will arrive soon.
“Did you bring in my garment bag?” I ask Anna as I look around, but don’t see it anywhere.
“What garment bag?”
“The big black one with my new jacket and corset.”
I frown, retracing my steps. Now that I think about it, I don’t recall taking it out of the hotel closet or putting it in my car.
“Oh no! I forgot it at the hotel!”
I had been so distracted when I was leaving, I had forgotten to grab it out of the closet. Disappointed in myself, I really hope I can get back the expensive pieces I fell in love with.
“Quick, call the hotel!” Anna exclaims.
At the sound of the sleigh bells on the front door, she scurries out to greet the incoming customer, leaving me shaking my head at myself.
I hope Anna is right, and they put it aside for me. Although I am not looking forward to driving to Philly and back just to pick it up, it is a small price to pay, as shipping would be a fortune because of the weight.
Besides, I wouldn’t want to ask the hotel to ship it and chance it getting lost in the mail. I groan and quickly pull up the hotel’s phone number and dial it. I’m thankful it’s a boutique hotel, so I don’t end up in some centralized call center.
The front desk picks up and I explain who I am and the situation. They politely ask me to hold. I tap my foot impatiently and start chewing on my thumb cuticle as I worry. After what feels like an eternity, a new person comes back on the phone.
“Hello, Ms. St. James. I am so sorry to tell you this, but I checked with housekeeping, and they recalled seeing a garment bag and putting it on their cart to bring to the lost and found. But before we could call you, someone must have called the business number printed on the bag and it was picked up.”
“I’m sorry, I don’t understand. Who picked it up?”
“Someone from the business. They assured us they would get it to you. I am so sorry for the mix-up, and I hope you will stay with us again soon.”
“Sure, thanks,” I reply flatly and end the call with a groan.
It isn’t the hotel’s fault I forgot the bag, but I’m frustrated, nonetheless. Thankfully, all is not completely lost. However, I am also anxious about how I can get the items back.
Does this mean I’ll be seeing Luke again? I’m not entirely sure where his home base is. I don't want to wait until the Poe convention to get my corset and jacket back, but I'm worried about seeing Luke again after he didn't even say goodbye and had one of his ‘boys’ drop me off.
My poor thumb cuticle that bore the brunt of my worry is now bleeding and throbbing. I grab a napkin from the little kitchenette and hold pressure on it. A torn hangnail is the least of my worries.
I feel my heartbeat pulse in my finger as I hold pressure on it and feel sympathetic toward the poor confused organ in my chest. I feel a little hollow inside to be reminded of Luke.
