The Hotel - 9

The rest of the morning went as well as could be expected given the circumstances. The screen worked, once we figured out what to do with it when it wasn't hiding the bed. In the end, there was an easy solution. In the black-out between scenes I would remove it, or set it up, as the situation warranted.

"You'd better dress in dark clothes," Caitlin suggested.

"Will do," I said, glad I'd brought along a black shirt and slacks.

We ate lunch around one, our choice of turkey sandwiches or burgers. Most of us opted for the burgers, which came with bacon, tomato, and lettuce, topped with spicy mayo.

Afterward, we ran through the second act. Then I told everyone they were free to do whatever they wanted until dinnertime. Several of them headed straight to the elevator, with Phil suggesting to Noah that they explore the area around the hotel. "But not across the lake. I'm not into a close encounter with a wolf." Noah laughed and agreed.

I wanted to thank Felicia, again, for all her assistance. When I got to the reservation desk she wasn't there, but Edwin was.

"Giving her a break?" I asked when he looked up from the computer.

"Yep. She deserves a few minutes to herself."

"No kidding. We've been running her ragged, I'm afraid."

"Believe me; compared to some of our guests, you're easy to work with."

"You'll have a full house come Friday?"

He nodded. "We're booked up for the weekend, which is normal. People getting away from the city for a while."

"Can't say I blame them, and this is the perfect setting."

Edwin chuckled. "I agree, but then I own the place."

"May I ask why you decided to have us perform this weekend, instead of having what I presume is your normal band?"

"It's good publicity and might draw some people who've never been here before." He gave me a long, searching look. "As I think I told you when I hired you, I saw one of your shows, six months ago, and was impressed."

"You did," I replied, feeling a bit uncomfortable at the intensity of his gaze. "I should get moving and leave you to whatever you were doing."

He smiled wryly. "Something very boring. Checking the reservations for the Thanksgiving weekend and praying we don't get six feet of snow."

"I'm surprised you stay open once winter hits."

"We have an arrangement with the guys who clear the streets in town to plow our road as well. When it gets so bad the road is covered again before they finish, we close for however long is necessary." He glanced out the front windows, frowning.

I looked, too, and saw why. It was only four in the afternoon but already getting dark. Going to the window I looked up at the sky. It was filled with gray clouds. Turning back to him, I asked, "Is it going to snow this early in the year?"

"It's been known to. Not hard, thank God. Usually just a skiff to let us know winter is definitely around the corner."

"Good." I grinned. "It would be nice to have an audience for our show."

"You will, I promise."