Their Light

Chapter 1

Hadley

My head hurt. I couldn't think of anything else beyond the pounding of the drum in my skull. Taking a few deep breaths, I pushed through the pain. The building panic racing through my veins helped. I couldn't remember anything. Cracking my eyes open, I winced at the fluorescent light overhead. I rolled onto my side, groaning as I surveyed the unfamiliar room.

No windows, one flickering light, one large steel door, and cold stone surrounded me in the small room. I scrambled to my feet, stumbling as I moved to the door. It felt like I was wading through mud. I slumped against the door and pounded on it. There wasn't a handle or any obvious way to open it. It didn't budge. I slammed my hand into it in frustration.

"Hey!" I shouted, my voice cracking. There wasn't an answer. Adrenaline had my heart racing, but I needed to think. I moved away from the door. With each second that passed, my body felt more like my own again. I paced around the room before settling in the far corner, away from the door. A cool breeze drifted through, making me shiver. I pulled my thin jacket tighter to me.

I hadn't thought my life could have gotten worse, but I was obviously wrong. After years of weird and bad, I should have been used to it by now. I was probably a horrible person in a past life, and karma was dealing out the punishment. I'd been on the streets for three years and had avoided any serious trouble. Until now.

Wracking my brain, I tried to remember what had happened. I remembered leaving work. A local motel hired me as a maid a couple weeks back. As long as I only worked at night, the manager agreed to pay me cash. It was not the sort of place a girl wanted to find herself at night, but I had to take what I could get. I had just turned eighteen, so I was planning on quitting, but I needed enough money to pay for the last month at the warehouse.

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"Girl, where are you at?"

Nick's voice drifted in from the hall. It echoed from the moldy carpet to the chipped ceiling, all the way to the room I was currently trudging through. I knew tonight had been going too smoothly. I had finished most of my work, and it was never a good thing when my boss was looking for me. Groaning, I stood up from the stained tub. No matter how much I scrubbed it, it would never be spotless.

"Girl!" Nick's voice was louder. I could tell he was running out of patience, not that he had a lot of that on a good day. I rolled my eyes and made my way to the door of the room. Stepping out into the hall, I spotted him standing down by the front desk.

The Sleepy Motel was small and straightforward. The central lobby forked into two hallways. There were emergency exits at the end of each hallway, but the main entrance was at the center. Nick's office was located directly behind the front desk. He usually stayed in it during my shift, only bothering me when I had to pick up my pay.

"Yeah?" I raised my voice so he would hear me. He glared at me as I slowly made my way over to him. I had a hard time keeping my face blank. I needed this job even if I had to put up with no-good-Nick.

"Suite 6 just checked out," he informed me. This wasn't unusual. People checked in and out throughout the day and night. I didn't know why the rooms were suites, though. There wasn't anything remotely nice about them. I bit my tongue to hold back a groan, because I knew what was coming next. "I need it cleaned and prepped tonight."

"It's almost three," I reminded him. My shift was over at three most nights. His eyes flared with anger as he took a step closer to me.

"I don't give a shit was time it is. You will do your job, or I will have a very interesting phone call to make."