Sudden Vacancies (6 page)

Chapter 14

A few days later, a full-page advertisement was taken out by the hotel.

“We at the Paradise Hotel understand your concerns about what has happened recently. We know that people are worried about the recent events and we are working diligently with law enforcement to resolve the situation.

“While the investigation continues, we can assure you that our hotel is open for business and that all activities normally appreciated by our clientele are still available. No events have been cancelled. We are also offering discounted rates on select rooms for a limited time.

“We have revamped our security measures, among other things, to ensure that our hotel will continue to be the premier place to host your event. Our first class staff is here and waiting to meet you.”

Sandra had gotten several of the hotel employees to read over the ad. While Andrew and Bruce had been against mentioning anything about the recent events, Tina and Sally had argued that the public would appreciate openness. Anything less would look like the hotel was trying to cover up what had taken place. Sandra agreed.

All agreed that increasing the number of rooms being rented and offering reduced rates for a limited time was a good move. Weekend specials, which included restaurant passes and welcome packages, were discussed and put into place.

Now it was just wait and see if anyone was willing to take a chance.

*****

Two days after the last death, the hotel seemed to be running at a normal pace. While the added security had given the appearance of making the hotel a safe place to stay, there was still doubt in several people’s minds about the hotel’s ability to stop any future murders.

Andrew walked through the foyer early in the afternoon, pleased to see that everything seemed to be working smoothly. Nodding at Sally as he walked past reception, he noticed her helping a guest check-in.

The man appeared to be of Chinese descent and only had a small overnight bag with him. Figuring he was a businessman who had come to Columbus for a short meeting, Andrew continued through the foyer and onto his next project.

After arriving at the hotel and getting settled in his room, the Chinese man removed the business card from his wallet and called the hotline number for the ‘“girls on delivery’” service. As he waited for her arrival, he enjoyed the idea of spending the evening with a white woman.

The woman was dressed in highly scandalous clothes. The boy shorts she wore rode up the curve of her buttocks, and the front came only a few centimeters above her pubic bone. The demi bra barely covered her breasts and the sheer shirt she wore over everything left little to the imagination. Her makeup was heavily applied and showed signs that it had been applied many hours before.

He and the woman were seen attending Bruce’s performance at the Blue Plate. The man purchased some flowers from the florist station to commemorate the night with her. Returning to the hotel room, they had ravenous sex. The hotel records would later show that an adult movie had been purchased on the pay-per-view system during the time they were in the room.

Afterwards, the woman left the hotel with a worn-out gaze and her makeup in need of repair. Sally, Bruce, and Tommy were all walking out of the hotel, having finished their shifts at the same time, when they noticed the woman leaving.

“What kind of a slut is that?” Sally asked them as soon as the call girl left.

“I don’t know, but I saw her at the restaurant tonight. She was with some guy who looked to be of Chinese descent,” Tommy said.

“I remember him, I checked him in earlier this afternoon. He didn’t check-in with her,” Sally responded. “I bet he must have paid a pretty penny for her. Are you thinking what I’m thinking, that the Chinese man is next?”

Chapter 15

Sally was right. The next morning, the Chinese man was found on his hotel room bed dead from some kind of neck trauma. No blood was found and no sign of a weapon or forced entry was identified.

“Andrew, Sally told me that she, Bruce and Tommy saw one of the streetwalkers leaving the hotel last night as they were heading home. Bruce also remembers seeing her in the restaurant with the latest victim. I gave that information to the police and they are interviewing people now to get an ID on the woman. They are going to want the security tapes from yesterday pulled as well.” Sandra couldn’t believe this was happening again.

Andrew nodded, “Already done.”

“Good. I think we also need to implement a new protocol that all hotel guests must check-in and show their ID before being allowed entrance to the foyer.”

Andrew nodded, “That might be doable. Let me figure out how to get a list of guests and set up a station inside the front doors.”

A new security measure was then developed. The hotel asked for personal identification cards to be presented by all people who came into the hotel. These included cards for the employees and the guests. No one was allowed into the hotel unless a person had a reservation to get into the hotel or the person worked there.

This new protocol would serve two purposes according to Andrew’s way of thinking. First, it would eliminate outsiders from entering the hotel and significantly shorten the suspect list should another death occur.

Second, it would determine if someone inside the hotel was responsible for the murders if another one occurred. Although the employees hoped that no one from within their ranks was responsible for what was going on, everyone felt more comfortable with the new protocols in place.

The police were able to identify the woman who had visited the Chinese man, and after questioning her, it was determined that she had no useful information. According to her statement, the man was alive when she left the hotel room around 11 o’clock that evening. According to the coroner’s estimation, the Chinese man died sometime between 2 and 4 a.m.

With the new protocols in place, Andrew and Sandra were able to lessen the fears of the guests and employees. Unfortunately, a sense of dread hung over the hotel and nerves were stretched thin.

*****

Sandra was in a huge panic—what was going on with the place? Maybe Andrew was right—there was something terribly wrong happening in her hotel and the future of the hotel was at stake.

Chapter 16

Sandra Jones went over to the local police department to address the media. The local police chief had called a press conference after his office had been bombarded with phone calls and reporters shoving cameras and microphones in his officer’s faces.

Sandra had agreed to join him in an effort to help build some positive PR for the hotel even in the midst of the latest tragedies.

After listening to the police chief give a brief list of information regarding the investigation currently taking place, he handed over the podium to Sandra. “Good afternoon, it has come to my attention that there are some serious problems at the Paradise Hotel relating to a series of deaths.

“I am not going to sugarcoat any of the things that I am going to say here. As you just heard the police verify, they believe that the deaths are all related and possibly the work of a serial killer.

“As far as we know, the people who have died were innocent people who wanted to enjoy their time at this hotel. Unfortunately, it seems that someone took offense at this. These people were here for a variety of reasons.

“Take Mr. Saul Brandon, a man who came in for a convention. He was in the vending trade business for almost twenty years. It’s clear that he enjoyed serving people and my staff knew him to be a very respectful and thoughtful individual.

“Mr. Michael Jerry was another person who clearly cared about people. When he arrived here, he came with the intention of attending the wedding of his brother. He served as his brother’s best man and even though he was not married, I have been told that he always wanted to find that one special woman to spend the rest of his life with. He wanted to be friends with those that he came in contact with and knew that somewhere out there was a woman who would be his perfect match. Unfortunately, his life was cut short and his dream will never be reached.

“The people who died here were real humans who wanted to come here to enjoy what we have. Unfortunately, the peace and comfort that is supposed to come with this place is gone.

“We have implemented very strong security measures since the first body was found, and yet those measures don’t seem to have been able to stop these deaths. At this point in time, it appears that someone currently residing or working at the hotel is responsible for the deaths that have occurred.

“There is absolutely no way we can speculate on what is going on here or who might be responsible for anything at this point. What we can tell you is that we are distraught and concerned over what is happening at our hotel.

“As a result, we have decided to take a serious step towards working to correct this problem. We are officially going to suspend all new bookings at the Paradise Hotel until further notice. As a result, anyone who does not have a room already booked will need to find other lodging.

“People who already have bookings or reservations with us will be allowed to use them. Their reservations will not be cancelled and all services that we have to provide will continue to be offered as planned.

“We are uncertain as to what we will be getting ourselves into in the near future but we are going to control the population of those who are in the hotel as it is. We will not be able to take in any new people and those who come in must provide information on themselves through either their identification cards or their documents showing that they have reservations here.

“We are hoping that there will be a resolution to this case so we can reopen our hotel to all people who are interested. Until then, the best that we can do is to limit what is happening here.

“I would also like to add that I am aware that there are people out there who might be nervous about staying here or might think twice about coming. I would like to state that for the time being, we are waiving our cancellation fees for all reservations. You may contact us either by phone or online. We will provide you with a full refund with absolutely no penalties or other charges added to it.

“Again, we will not accept any new reservations. “Once again, our deepest sympathies go out to the families and friends of those who have died here and we will continue to work with the police during the complete investigation of this case.

“For now, I am going to turn the microphone back over to the head of the police department who will take questions from this point on.”

Sandra Jones had her entire livelihood tied up in the hotel. Every other type of business endeavor that she ran up until working at the hotel always seemed to struggle.

Even when she was in high school, she couldn’t seem to do much. Her personal business of mowing lawns worked well for a while but backfired after oil leaked from her mower onto one person’s lawn and then again, when she accidentally mowed over someone’s massive flowerbed.

It seemed like everything she had gotten into in the past was destined to fail, usually from forces that she could never control. The risks were great but she had to persevere over them all if she was to actually get somewhere in her field.

Still, she worried tremendously about what was happening around here. She was at risk of losing it all.

“This can’t go on for long,” Sandra said to herself. “Right?”

Chapter 17

The employees at the Paradise knew that time was running out. The deaths could no longer be seen as accidents; someone was killing people at the hotel. Was it someone who was a guest? Or was it someone they worked with?

“I really can’t tell what’s going on here,” Andrew said. “I don’t know who could be responsible for this as we’ve got a large roster of employees who work here.”

“I swear, Carla had something to do with this,” Bruce said. “I mean, once you’re a junkie you’re always a junkie, right? I bet she had some kind of a fit and is just taking people out.”

“I don’t know, what about Randy? He needs money,” Sally told him.

“Well, whatever the case is, someone has got to pay,” Bruce said glumly. “Well, I’ll be back on Tuesday. I may as well start saving my money because I have no idea how much work I’m going to get out of this place.”

“See you later,” Sally said. She then waited until Bruce left the room. Once she was sure he wouldn’t hear her, she turned to Andrew, “You think Bruce has something to do with it? Think about it, he’s washed up as it is and you know he’d like money.”

“Seriously, I really wish you weren’t so naïve,” Andrew said.

“Really? Well then, where were you during these murders? Maybe you know a little something about them that I don’t?”

“For the record, I wasn’t even here on one of the days when a murder took place. I hardly ever go out anywhere outside of the security office when I’m here. Why in the hell would anyone ever assume that I did something like this?”

*****

The next day, the hotel was at half-capacity as several people chose to leave their hotel rooms early or cancel their reservations.

The Paradise Hotel was sitting high on a good pile of money. The hotel could afford to go through something where there was a limited amount of business for a few days.

But what if this keeps going on for weeks on end? Sandra cringed just thinking about the results if things didn’t resolve themselves soon.

Suddenly, something suspicious came out at the florist’s space.