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Ыоуве Been Warned :: Patterson James
Страница: 103 из 138It’s notnerves or nausea, it’s something different. And this isn’t the first time I’ve felt it.
Streets, time, everything seems a blur to me. I’m so pre-occupied with the feeling, I almost miss Penley’s arrival at her gym.
I focus my eyes and watch her walk in. At that exact moment, the feeling takes over, consuming me. I know what it is. Dread.
And I know when I felt it last too.
Here.
Right outside Penley’s “gym.”
Otherwise known as the Fálcon Hotel.
Chapter 80
I WANT TO RUN, but I can’t decide which way to go.
I’m desperate to get the hell out of here, and yet I absolutely have to keep following Penley and see where this is going. I take a step forward, then back. I’m a human yo-yo.
Finally, I run.
To the hotel.
I push back the fear – the dread – and sprint up the front steps beneath the Fálcon’s red awning, slowing down only as I enter the lobby. Which I remember – from my time here after I moved from Boston. Block it out, Kris. Not relevant now.
Here comes the first tricky part – seeing which room Penley’s heading to while still not being seen.
Where is she?
Nowhere. I scan the swank lobby with its minimalist decor. They’ve redecorated, I see. The furniture is all black, as is most of the clothing. It’s like a Prada convention. There are thin people everywhere, but not one of them is Penley.
I rush to the two elevators on the wall to the left of reception. The first is open and waiting, the second heading upward. A digital panel on the wall tells me where. I watch and wait until it stops on the fourth floor.
Off I go, taking the empty elevator. When the doors open, I peek out, hoping to see Penley from behind, moving toward a room.
Instead, the hallway’s empty. I feel like one of those characters in a scary movie, with the audience shouting, “Get out of there, Kristin. Run! Get away!”
I won’t do that. I worry that I’ve missed Penley or that she’s not even on this floor.
Then comes a woman’s laugh from a few rooms down. Or is it a cackle? Either way, I know it instantly. It’s the Pencil.
I get close and listen, my ear maybe an inch from the door. When they’re not laughing, they’re talking, and though I can’t quite make out the conversation, I recognize the other voice in the room. It’s him.
Stephen.
I listen for a minute to their frolicking. They almost sound like kids in there, albeit very naughty ones.
Streets, time, everything seems a blur to me. I’m so pre-occupied with the feeling, I almost miss Penley’s arrival at her gym.
I focus my eyes and watch her walk in. At that exact moment, the feeling takes over, consuming me. I know what it is. Dread.
And I know when I felt it last too.
Here.
Right outside Penley’s “gym.”
Otherwise known as the Fálcon Hotel.
Chapter 80
I WANT TO RUN, but I can’t decide which way to go.
I’m desperate to get the hell out of here, and yet I absolutely have to keep following Penley and see where this is going. I take a step forward, then back. I’m a human yo-yo.
Finally, I run.
To the hotel.
I push back the fear – the dread – and sprint up the front steps beneath the Fálcon’s red awning, slowing down only as I enter the lobby. Which I remember – from my time here after I moved from Boston. Block it out, Kris. Not relevant now.
Here comes the first tricky part – seeing which room Penley’s heading to while still not being seen.
Where is she?
Nowhere. I scan the swank lobby with its minimalist decor. They’ve redecorated, I see. The furniture is all black, as is most of the clothing. It’s like a Prada convention. There are thin people everywhere, but not one of them is Penley.
I rush to the two elevators on the wall to the left of reception. The first is open and waiting, the second heading upward. A digital panel on the wall tells me where. I watch and wait until it stops on the fourth floor.
Off I go, taking the empty elevator. When the doors open, I peek out, hoping to see Penley from behind, moving toward a room.
Instead, the hallway’s empty. I feel like one of those characters in a scary movie, with the audience shouting, “Get out of there, Kristin. Run! Get away!”
I won’t do that. I worry that I’ve missed Penley or that she’s not even on this floor.
Then comes a woman’s laugh from a few rooms down. Or is it a cackle? Either way, I know it instantly. It’s the Pencil.
I get close and listen, my ear maybe an inch from the door. When they’re not laughing, they’re talking, and though I can’t quite make out the conversation, I recognize the other voice in the room. It’s him.
Stephen.
I listen for a minute to their frolicking. They almost sound like kids in there, albeit very naughty ones.