Evergreen Hotel, Honolulu.
It was late in the evening. Dusk splashed vibrant, fiery colours against the sky, deep red and orange clashing aggressively with purple of the approaching night. Maddie slowly opened her eyes, wondering for a moment where she was. Then she remembered the flight. With a little sigh, she turned over and her eyes landed on the bedside clock. It was 7:21.
“God…” she groaned, rolling onto her back again. She stared blankly up at the ceiling for a while. After calling her father, mumbling a few words of assurance and a promise to call him back soon, she had unpacked and dropped onto the bed, exhaustion finally getting the better of her. That was nine hours ago.
That was when her stomach signaled her rather urgently. Maddie got up, suddenly ravenous. She hadn’t eaten for nearly twelve hours. She ran a few brush strokes through her tousled hair, checked herself in the mirror, and grabbed the keys Gin left on the kitchen bench. She vaguely remembered that there was some cold salad in the small fridge, but she was having none of that.
She closed the door behind her and strolled down the hallway, towards the lift. She pressed the lift button and waited.
The elevator stopped at her floor with a ding, and the door opened. Maddie looked up, and she thought, oh no. I don’t deserve this.
“Oh hey!” the puffy, fat man that had been her seatmate ambled out, grinning. “What a coincidence. I didn’t expect you run into you again.”
Me too, she thought grimly. Oh, me too. She smiled weakly and pointed.
“What?”
“Uh…you’re kinda blocking the way,” she said, trying to sidle past his bulk but failing. He she noted, didn’t smell too good either.
He grinned. “Oh. Right. Sorry.” He moved away.
Maddie stepped into the lift. As the door closed, he called, “if you need help getting around the place, just look me up. I’ll be happy to-”
Mercifully, the door closed. Maddie expelled slowly, feeling more then slightly disturbed. Creep, she fumed, then was surprised at herself for the unreasonable feeling that came very close to hatred and repulsion she felt for this stranger. Why was she acting like this? He was only trying to be friendly. Maddie shuddered. The very idea sickened her. From the first moment he looked at her, with those piggish, leering eyes, Maddie detested him. But it was something else as well something that clawed at her guts, that instinctive feeling that screamed warning. She had no idea what that was either.
The elevator stopped at the second floor. Maddie sighed and walked out. Some vacation this was going to be, she thought glumly, and stepped out.
“Do they have to crowd around like that?” Lesley asked, wrinkling her nose. The limousine drove away amongst blinding flashes of light exploding from cameras.
“If they want to get run over, let them,” Aaron shrugged. “It’s their own fault, anyway. Right, Nick?”
Nick wasn’t paying attention. He was gazing out the tinted window, his thoughts far away.
All of our time spent in flashes of light…
“Nick?”
“Huh?” he looked up, startled. “Sorry. What did you say?”
“I said, it’s their own fault if they get run over.” Aaron repeated. “You all right? that cream didn’t get into your ears by any chance?”
“Shut up,” Nick said jokingly, ruffling his younger brother’s hair. Aaron jerked away. “Get lost!” he yelled, carefully rearranging his hair in that weird way he adopted nowadays.
Nick raised his brows condensingly. “Ooh, touchy. Why do you brush it back like that? It looks weird.”
“ Kayla did it!” Aaron said angrily. “It’s not weird, and I like it, so there.”
Kayla was Aaron’s personal make up artist. “I gave her more credit then that. I don’t think Sara likes it either.” Nick said, teasing him.
Aaron’s face flushed. “What do you know what Sara likes or not?” he retorted. Sara, Aaron’s current girlfriend, was the kind of girl that you had to impress.
“Aaron, he’s just teasing you,” BJ said, smiling.
Aaron grumbled and looked away.
Nick looked at his mother, his eyes questioning. Jane just shrugged, indicating that she did not know either.
Everyone was pretty quiet for the rest of the drive. Rob had told them as they got off the plane that he had booked another hotel, just in case things got out of hand. Nick frowned slightly, trying to remember the name. Oh, that’s right- Evergreen.
“Would you like anything else, ma’am?”
Maddie looked up. “No, thank you,” she declined. The waiter nodded and left the table. Maddie toyed absently with the deep blue napkin, tracing the green pine emblem with her index finger. Inside the small, brightly lit restaurant, Somewhere, music played softly and a handful of people were sprinkled around the small, brightly lit restaurant. Maddie liked it here, rather then the boisterous, noisy and crowded one on the ground floor.
She looked down at the courtyard below, watching vehicles and taxies, with their harsh, bright twin lights, stopping in front of the entrance, then roaring away again. She watched, thinking of nothing in particular. Random thoughts flew through her head; it was actually pleasant, not having to focus. It seemed that Liz was right. “…you think too much, Maddie. Just relax for once. You’ll kill yourself one day.” She would have laughed at the irony if she were here.
“Here you go, ma’am.” The waiter had come back. “Enjoy your meal.”
Maddie looked up, startled. “Thank you,” she murmured, then picked up her fork and began to eat. She chewed slowly, a habit of hers dating back to her childhood, her attention wondering back to the view outside.
“Day-dreaming?”
Maddie looked up, this time really surprised. She relaxed when she saw Michael, Gin’s boyfriend. “Oh, hi.”
“Sorry I scared you.”
“It’s okay.” She bit her lip, coughing uncomfortably.
“Mind if I sit down?” he asked after a moment.
“She nodded. “Of course not. Go ahead.”
He sat down on the chair opposite her. “Go on with your dinner. Don’t mind me. I’ve eaten.”
“Oh.” Maddie swallowed a potato. She ate in silence for a while, then cleared her throat. “So, you finished your shift?”
“Oh, no, not yet. This is my break time.” He replied easily.
“Oh. OK.”
He was looking at her curiously. “You OK?”
“I’m fine!” Maddie said, just a trifle brightly.
“You sure? You’re really quiet.” He smiled. “Gin told me that you’re usually-uh-”
“Noisy?” Maddie supplied. He grinned ruefully. “Not the word I’d have used, but I guess that will do.”
Maddie smiled. “I guess she’s still thinking of me as I was back when we were in school.”
He tilted his head. “Really? I think you’re changed.”
She looked up at him inquiringly.
“Gin showed me the photo.” He added. “You know, the one with you and her and some other guy in front of Disney.”
Maddie froze. “You…saw that?” she asked shakily, trying to sound natural.
“Yeah.”
Maddie lowered her gaze to her plate again, distressed. What else had Gin told Michael about her? He mustn’t know. No body should know.
Luke…
“Have you sailed before?”
“…You’ll love it. There’s a small condition…”
“Well, I’ll just leave you to your dinner, then,” Michael said cheerfully, hiding his puzzlement. He got up.
Maddie hardly saw him leaving. she closed her eyes and swallowed. No. it was over. It can’t bother her now. It was behind her.
She pushed her plate away, suddenly losing her appetite. She got up and walked out of the room, feeling sick.
Just as soon as she left, a limo arrived at the courtyard below.
Maddie stepped into her room. It was pitch dark. She blinked, then felt her way along to corridor and found the switch, turning the light on. The empty room stared back at her, mocking her. She shook her head slightly, then walked over to the kitchen. On the fridge there was a small yellow note. It was from Gin. “…I guess you’re settled in. sorry I can’t see you tonight. We’ll talk later, OK? Gin.”
Maddie put the note down and walked into her room, turning the light on.
She nearly screamed.
Pinned to the wall by a small knife, was a note. The writing was crude, scrawled.
THINK YOU CAN RUN? WE’LL DO SOMETHING ABOUT THAT.
Maddie gripped the wall, a sudden dizziness sweeping over her. Who-? The words slammed into her, burning into her brain.
THINK YOU CAN RUN?
On unsteady feet, she lurched over to the bed and stared at the note. She ripped it off, her hand shaking. Her legs gave way and she sat down on the bed, hard.
Who? Who had come into her room? Who would write this?
Who knew she was here?
Maddie dropped the note, staring blankly at the white wall across from her.
THINK YOU CAN RUN?
“Why?” she asked softly. “why won’t you leave me alone?”
