Page 104 of Too Old for This

I pick it up and hit theMessagebutton, but the call goes straight to the front desk. A woman with a nasally voice answers. She does not bother with a polite greeting.

“Ms.Dixon?”

“Yes?”

“I’m sorry to bother you with this, but we’re having an issue with your credit card.”

“What kind of issue?”

“After you extended your stay through Wednesday,” she says, “we tried to run another authorization hold on the card. It was declined.”

Dammit, Norma.

“Really? That’s surprising.”

The woman on the phone doesn’t respond to that.

“Hold on. Let me get you another card.” I grab Norma’s wallet. She has several credit cards. I reel off a number. The woman on the phone clicks it into her system.

“Declined.”

“All right, how about this one?”

Click, click, click.

“Declined.”

After four attempts, there are no more cards to try.

“You could try calling the bank. They might extend your credit.” That nasally voice makes her sound judgy. I don’t want to deal with this woman any longer.

“I’ll leave this evening. Can you please be sure to cancel any hold you have on the original card?”

“I can do that.”

“Fine. I’ll be gone within the hour.”

Before she can say anything else, I hang up. And I start packing.

—

The path up always seems so long and laborious, like you’ll never get there. But it’s nothing compared to when you fall back down. It happens quick. All you feel is the pain of hitting bottom. It happened to me in Spokane, when the police leaked my name to the press. And now it happens to Norma.

She was staying in an upscale hotel with nice linens, decent food from room service, and excellent housekeeping.

Not anymore. She has checked into the Dew Drop Inn, the only roadside motel in Baycliff. It’s also the only motel located across the road from the town’s strip club, Frisky. Housekeeping costs extra, and the food comes from a vending machine. But the rooms are cheap, they take cash, and the woman at the desk barely looked at me.

The room has one queen-size bed, two nightstands, and a dresser. The TV is bolted to it. A table and two chairs sit near the front window, which looks out over the parking lot. The neonFriskysign blinks in the distance.

I put Norma’s things in the closet, her toiletry bag in the bathroom, and I wipe off one of the wooden chairs next to the window. Finally, I get to her phone.

Yes, Burke has already texted.

Burke:Have you talked to her since dinner?

Norma:No. I’ve been a little busy. Had to change hotels. I’m at the Dew Drop now.

Burke:Never heard of it. But it’s important you talk to Lottie as soon as you get a chance.