The Fair and The Castle

Neddy rounded a corner on the second floor of the hotel and the lights flickered again, casting odd shadows the length of the hallway. Too little light was coming through the window at the end of the hall. Neddy suddenly became keenly aware that she was alone. The halls of the hotel were typically bustling with guests, but not now. It was that odd space of time between check-in and check-out. Guests staying over were out enjoying New York City. Everyone else had left or was waiting in the lobby for their rooms to be cleaned. Which is what her friend Cora was supposed to be doing. Cora was a good ship, for the most part, but she had a habit of taking naps in the opulent rooms when she was supposed to be readying them for new guests. They’d laughed about it before, but this time Neddy was mad. That morning, she had finally steeled herself to approach Mister Burnham, while he was having drinks with colleagues in the Palm Room, a glass roofed lounge, where the hotel’s elite guests converged to see each other. A package arrived for him and although she wasn’t a courier, Neddy had wrestled the parcel away from the desk attendant and zipped to the Palm Room, practicing her speech as she maneuvered around bellboys and guests. After she introduced herself, Neddy handed Mister Burnham his package, which she could see was a roll of blueprints. He was kind and shook her hand as she explained what a fan she was of his work. The man even seemed surprised when she was able to name some of his buildings. That’s when her boss decided to interrupt. Neddy was humiliated as Mister Pyke chastised her for stepping away from her desk. Burnham stepped in. “She was tending to my delivery.” This chastened Pyke a bit and he asked if Burnham was checking out. He was. This was Neddy’s last chance. And her boss was ruining it for her. He took her by the elbow and lead her away from the group of architects. “Your friend Cora has gotten lost again.” Pyke said, an iron grip still on Neddy’s elbow. “Find her!” As she wandered down her third hallway, she heard a rustling in one of the rooms. “Cora?” She took swift steps to the door, reaching it just as it flew open and a couple in the throes of romance stumbled out into the hallway, laughing and touching each other, completely oblivious to her presence. Neddy jumped out of the way to avoid being rolled over by them. They disappeared around the corner, plunging Neddy back into deafening silence. “Cora!” She shouted, filled with impatient annoyance. Neddy took the skeleton key out of her pocket and twirled it around her finger. The rattle of the elevator cage echoed through the corridor as the loving couple sealed themselves in for their ride to the lobby. Neddy looked back in their direction. The lights flickered again. When they stabilized, she saw him. He was just a shadow, peaking from around the corner, but he was there, watching her. She turned her head quickly, hoping he hadn’t noticed her noticing him, as she kept him in her peripheral vision. The shadow man moved and was gone. Not knowing exactly where he was only made the sinking feeling in her stomach worse. Neddy turned on her heels, moving faster. The lights flickered. She looked over her shoulder. The man was in a different shadow. Closer. Her breath caught in her throat. Neddy started to run. She felt him moving behind her. As she rounded a corner, she spotted Cora’s cart by one of the rooms. “Cora!” Neddy ran around the cart and banged on the door. The man leapt around the corner, rushing toward her. Neddy jammed her key into the lock, threw the door open and locked it behind her. She heard the man stumble as he bumped into the maid’s cart. Then nothing. No footsteps, no efforts to steady the cart. Silence. Neddy put her ear to the door, hoping to hear retreating footsteps. Nothing. He wasn’t even trying the door handle. She closed her eyes and held her breath. What was he doing out there? She could feel him just beyond the door. The moment seemed to stretch on for hours. “I think you’ll like my work?” He said quietly as if he knew her ear was against the heavy, wooden door. As if he were whispering at her shoulder. The hairs on the back of her neck stood up as she jumped away. She covered her mouth with both hands to stop herself from yelping. If nothing else, he would not know she was afraid of him. The doorknob jiggled. His work? His work. Cora. “The fun we could have.” He said calmly. Neddy backed further into the dark room. His work. It felt like his voice was in the room. Neddy could hear her heart beating faster in her ears. Then she noticed the odd smell hanging heavy in the air. She spun around and dove for the wall to turn on the light. The sight before her was grotesque. Flashes of her uncle’s butcher shop zipped through her head, mixed in with the gore laid out on the bed in front of her. Blood, matter and muck. It was clear that there was a body, but is was difficult to make out. Recoiling, Neddy’s eyes went to the desk by the wardrobe. She grabbed the letter opener, then slammed the lights off. The door knob jiggled again. Slower this time, as if he were trying to open the lock. Neddy backed herself against the wall. Inched closer to the door. Slowly she reached her hand out to the door knob. Letter opener gripped in her other hand. The jiggling stopped. Neddy put her fingers on the lock. She closed her eyes. Took a deep breath, then…. CLICK. She unlocked the door.