Sell the Hotel (4)

Rhodes would have screamed if he had been less careful. He only grabbed the women's elbows and dragged them inside the elevator. He slammed the button for the sixth floor. A growl came out with his words. "We are not talking about that."

The receptionist froze from start to finish. She had heard of that ghost story. A maintenance guy once died while working on a stuck elevator. He had a heart attack and worked through it. When the elevator got to the first floor, the other maintenance people only saw his dead body inside. Based on gossip, that ghost never showed up during working hours.

She figured it was too early. When they ran into him, the ghost was 'clocking out' of work.

However, she didn't know why the ghost knew Rhodes's name. It even smiled at him as if they were friends. Her gaze stuck to Rhodes's back.

The elevator stopped at the sixth floor. Rhodes walked out and didn't check if Frieda and the receptionist followed him. He just wanted to finish his business here as fast as possible. The doctor arrived at the manager's office and knocked, reining in his frustration.

"Dr Huxley?" The secretary gasped softly. She glanced inside for a second before smiling at him. "Mr Matthews is still on a call. Please wait inside."

"Thanks. Frieda's here, too…" Rhodes remembered the girl. He left her by the elevator by mistake. However, the two women followed him with more than a meter between them. At his changed demeanor, Frieda jogged to join him.

The secretary allowed them into the waiting lounge. She settled a few reminders with the receptionist before sending the other away. She offered coffee and juice, leaving for the pantry.

Frieda sat on the other end of the long couch. She easily saw Rhodes leaning his arm on the armrest, hiding his face from her. Her lips pouted. "Uncle, it's okay. I won't ask. I doubt you have answers. I mean… you don't have your memories."

Rhodes leaned on the back support. His hand continued to hide his face. "It's creepy. Things that I shouldn't see kept showing up. I want to be brave… but my backbone is resting from an illness."

"Is that metaphorical?" Frieda frowned, but Rhodes only laughed. She rolled her eyes and stared at the empty secretary's desk. "It's okay… You're not the only one. Do you know? Multiple people told ghost stories after their stay in Faded Rose. They had been doing that for years. We're just unlucky to run into one… and for it to guess your name? Or that… it knows you. You're famous, you know."

"Thanks." That was all Rhodes replied.

The door to the inner office opened, and Giles walked out. His hand massaged his forehead, and his eyes were closed. His brows frowned so deep that his inner anger showed. Whoever spoke to him must have made ridiculous demands. 

He grumbled, "Anna, cancel all my meetings for today. Tell them I died or something…"

However, the secretary didn't answer. The manager looked at his secretary's empty desk. "Did she leave already? She's supposed to work till clock out…"

"Not really. She's fixing refreshments for your guests." Rhodes caught Giles's shock when he turned to the doctor. Rhodes sighed. "I did say I'll be here today. Are you busy? Does everyone know you're letting go of your employees today?"

"You even took Frieda." Giles loosened his necktie and sat on the single couch closest to his daughter. The secretary arrived by then, but he only gestured for her to serve her tray. He didn't care if she returned to fetch a glass for her boss.

Rhodes watched as Giles took one of the glasses and poured juice for him and Frieda. He didn't give it to her, but Rhodes figured it was for his daughter. His eyes looked at the manager's face, taking in the exhaustion written all over it. Managing a dying hotel had never been easy, especially when miracles didn't happen to it.

Giles finished the full glass. He finally met Rhodes's gaze. "Are you waiting for me to tour you around personally? I'll just ask someone else to do it."

"Someone from the Iveren family came to see you. You're just busy." Rhodes took out the calling card and played with it on his fingers. The card's graceful movements were enough to amuse Frieda. However, Giles didn't watch it for more than a second.

"They had been calling. Might as well allow them to demolish the hotel," Giles murmured, his gaze falling to the floor. He glanced to the side, catching the secretary frozen in her spot. He spoke louder, "I know everyone's parents and their parents worked here. But the hotel has outlived its glory. It's a dead tree attracting all sorts of bad luck…"

"But Dad… won't the old district get angry?" Frieda gritted her teeth in uncertainty. "If you sell the land to the Iveren family, it's like supporting their views of modernizing the county. You already got punched by one of those old people."

Giles clicked his tongue. He murmured while pouring another glass of juice. "They could only punch me. They can't lend me money or threaten my entire family like those rich bastards."

He then paused and glanced at the shock in Frieda's face. He cleared his throat. "Frieda, how's your studying going? Shouldn't you focus on that for now? Leave this messy affair to me. Don't worry. We're not leaving the Flower House."

A snort came as a response, but Giles figured it was Rhodes instead. Rhodes leaned against his chair and sighed. "No wonder you didn't speak about that carjacking. You figured those thugs were tipped. They wouldn't know you have that kind of money if no one told them. What kind of connection does a chop shop have, anyway? Can they see through someone's belongings now?"

"How did you know they were from that chop shop?" Giles gasped and flattened his lips. He glanced at the secretary and got up from his seat. "Let's talk inside, Rhodes. You want to snoop around, right? Anna, keep Frieda company."

"But, Dad!" Frieda got up, but Rhodes held out a hand. He rose from his seat and followed Giles to the inner office. She only stomped and fell back to the couch.

…

Rhodes closed the door behind him. The inner office was clean and filled with a dark aesthetic. It was smaller than the space outside, but Rhodes didn't expect a big office in an old hotel. However, the pink rose motif was evident in the cabinets and walls. The cleaner didn't seem to mind the pink roses as he wiped the shelves with small movements.

Giles sat on his seat again. He closed the laptop and sighed, and his thumb and middle finger pressed against his temples. "Let's not talk about those in front of Frieda. It was my mistake to open the conversation then and there."

The doctor watched the old man at the side. "…are you not going to ask him to leave first?"

"Ask who to leave?"