Page 6 of Always Be an Us

This place must have been something back in the day.

My own footsteps echo as I move to the largest window in the room. Then, I cover my nose and draw back another curtain, allowing light to wash into the space. Now I see the winding staircase in the middle of the room leading upstairs. I also see that some of the walls at the back have been broken down and covered by wooden panels. In fact, cracks appear in just about every wall, some of them extending into the foundation of the building.

A drop of liquid lands in front of me.

I stare up at the ceiling and notice that there are holes in it. The roof creaks when a bird lands on it, which tells me it’s not very solid either.

On second thought, I suppose this building is amazing in its own way—in that it is still standing.The phone rings, shattering through the eerie silence. I slide it out of my pocket and put it to my ear. "Hello."

"Are you there yet?" My father’s tone is forceful and no-nonsense. It's the voice that used to scare me straight as a little boy, but now it doesn’t phase me.

"Yes," I answer, stepping further into the room.Creak. Creak. Creak.

"And? How do you find the place? What do you think?"

"I’m thinking I want some of whatever you were smoking when you decided to buy it."

Dad coughs like he’s not sure whether he wants to tell me off or laugh at the joke.

"It’s a dump, Dad," I say. "Worse than that, it’s a dump that you paid nearly half a billion dollars for. And it will probably require at least three million to get it to any sort of working condition."

Dad sighs. "I was afraid that would be the case. Well, I’ll just increase the amount I sell it for."

"Landing isn’t going to buy the hotel once he sees the state it’s in," I say. "Especially once he sees the town. It has a four-figure population, and they have two gas stations. It’s not an ideal tourist destination."

"I disagree," he says. "The town may not look like much, but I remember it being a hot tourist spot back when I was younger. Not to mention that they sold us on the experiences."

"What experiences? The one bar in town where they spill food on you? Or the sketchy gas station where you can also buy hot dogs?"

"You got food spilled on you?"

"I don’t want to talk about it."

Dad sighs. "Alright. Look, the hotel has a lot of blooming history. A hundred years’ worth. Royalty and a bunch of Old Hollywood celebrities have stayed there at different points in time. Not to mention the reported history of paranormal activities. It’s called the Grand Pearl Hotel for a reason because of the mystical —"

"Yeah, yeah you’ve told me the story," I say, already tired of hearing it. My dad can go on about history all he wants, but I know the true reason he bought the damn place. It's where he met my mother. Maybe that’s why he’s so attached to it. The old man has gotten a lot more sentimental with age.

"All that hocus pocus stuff might have worked back in your time, but we have the internet now. No one believes in that shit anymore." At the very least, no one worth their money would pay for a rundown hotel in a podunk town in the middle of nowhere. "Didn't you tell me the hotel went out of business years ago? I think it was for good reason?"

"Well, their business struggled due to the missing Pink Pearl."

"Pink what?"

He sighs. "You didn't read the brief I sent you on the history of the hotel, did you?"

"Skimmed it," I murmur. I was busy at the time and also too furious at the fact that he was making me take on this nothing of a project.

There are skyrises to be built in New York.

Luxury apartments to be built in Miami.

And a billion other meaningful work things I could be doing.

But no. Instead, I'm in this tiny lake town working on an old, rundown hotel.

The only reason I agreed to this was because Dad promised to step down as CEO if I completed the task.

Which means I will finally be able to take over the family company. No more bullshit projects for me.

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