Chapter 5

Grace drove for an hour not following any preplanned route but looking for an hotel that was attached to a busy shopping mall and had multistory parking. It was then she found what she was looking for. She drove the car into the car park, found a spot close to the elevator, and leaving her cases inside the car, taking only her large handbag she went to the elevator and punched in the number for the hotel lobby. She was pleased to note this was the only hotel number on this elevator’s number pad. The rest were for car and mall floors.

She checked in for only one night and paid in advance, particularly asking for a room between two occupied rooms and facing the elevator. The clerk did not raise any eyebrows at this request with a demeanor that spoke as if this was normal. His only question was if she had any luggage. She smiled and said she traveled light.

The room was on the sixth floor and had a Queen sized bed that she flopped on. She closed her eyes and within a minute she was asleep.

It was over an hour before she awoke. She rummaged inside her bag until she found the paper with the Ike Man’s phone number. With her heart beating fast, she dialed the number.

It was almost answered immediately.

“Van de Berg.”

Grace gulped. She paused long enough for the voice to inquire sharply if there was anyone there?

“It’s Grace,” she said, “Grace Williams. You know me as Princess Canis.”

“Ah,” the voice at the other end instantly changed to delight. “The beautiful bitch.”

Grace’s heart jumped, missing two beats at the word ‘bitch’.

“Yes,” she said, “Can we meet?”

“Of course. I’ve been waiting for your call. When and where?”

She gave the address and name of the hotel but told him she would meet him in the food hall in the mall. He said he was only half an hour away.

After putting the phone down she then realized she hadn’t checked if there was a food hall and it would be just her luck if this was the only one in the USA that didn’t have one.

She rang the reception and inquired how to find the Food Hall and then asked on what floor the hotel opened out onto the mall and was told the Atrium. She was told there was a map of the mall on her room desk.

“Excuse me, miss,” Grace was about to put the receiver down.

“Yes?”

“In view of your request when you checked in that suggested you might be in trouble, a man asked us if I would confirm you were staying here and for how long? He said he was your husband and you both had had a row.”

“And you told him?”

“We are not able to confirm or otherwise.”

“Did that satisfy him?”

“No. He swore and said your car was in the car park downstairs and offered me money. I called security. I thought you should know. Do you want me to call the police?”

Collecting her thoughts, Grace replied, “No. He’s right. He is my husband. We have had a huge row. Not the first. If he comes back you can tell him I am here but not my room number.”

“He’s still here. He’s sitting outside the hotel on a public bench. Security are still watching him.”

“Thank you. Your name?”

“Roland,”

“Roland. Invite him back in. What’s your most expensive restaurant?”

““The Golden Spinning Wheel, Madame.”

“Make reservations for two. What time do you open?”

“Six.”

“Perfect. However, I repeat, on no account tell him my room number. If the dinner is good and he is conciliatory I might invite him back to my room. Thank you, Roland. I will remember this.”

“All part of our service, Ma’am.” there was a click as the receiver went down

Grace immediately used her cell phone to call the number she had used to call for help after she had been assaulted.

When the same voice as before answered she angrily told him what had happened and she wanted her privacy. The voice said he would call back.

Three minutes later her phone rang and she was assured the person there was not one of their security personnel but they would deal with it. She then told the voice about the dinner reservation she had made.

For the first time the voice showed some difference in tone from the dead bored one that he had been using.

“Send Maureen in my place,” Grace told the voice, “I’m sure she’d like a good meal before she bumps him off. Make sure she gets him to pay the bill first. I don’t want it to appear on my bill.”

She switched her phone off. She noted the voice had not asked her where she was staying.

She looked at the time and decided she had enough time to shower. The pain killer Tabbie had given her was wearing off so she took another one. Fifteen minutes later she was out, dried, make up applied, and only wishing she had brought with her another dress, sent down to the atrium and into the mall. It was full of people and Grace was glad of that.

Having looked at the map she quickly found the Food Hall and she was again pleased there was only one entrance/exit.

Five minutes later she saw Ike Man walk in. Suave, assured, immaculate, he could have been a film star. She had purposefully stood in the shadows of a column and allowed him to walk pass her before coming out behind him and tapping him on his left shoulder.

“Hallo, Ike Man,” she said.

Isaac (the Ike Man) spun around and pulled Grace into his arms. Time passed by as they kissed. They didn’t care that people had to almost bump into one another to walk past them. People stared at these two adult lovers acting as if they were teenagers.

Finally they both came to their senses and when Isaac suggested they sit down and eat something Grace realized she was hungry. There was a Mexican restaurant right where they were standing and like one mind they waited in line there. Isaac chose beef tacos and Grace chicken fajitas. Isaac ordered a bucket of Dos Equis XX that comprised six beers and ice. Grace told him he’d be drinking five of them. He laughed and said he would take her other two home with him and she would have to come with him to drink them.

They sat down eating in silence and sipping their beer, staring at one another.

After a while Grace broke the silence.

“You’re staring at me,” she said, “Wondering why a nice girl like me fucks dogs.”

He said nothing.

“When I meet people in the streets and see them looking at me, I wonder if they know that only a few hours ago a dog was on my back fucking me nearly to death and I was loving every moment of it.”

Isaac still said nothing.

“My life changed a week ago but it had already been planned when two families, mine and my husband’s including him, were wiped out by a cruise ship that hit their boat...”

Grace then went on to tell Isaac everything that had happened up to their present meeting. [author: read The Longest Tie]

Isaac only interrupted Grace when she told him about the incident with the Bitch Queen. She could see anger and darkness in his eyes that for the first time made her feel uncomfortable for a second, but she shrugged it off as he was obviously upset at someone threatening and hurting her.

“You hinted at inviting me back to where you are staying,” she said. “I would like to accept but unfortunately I am unable to have sex because of the fisting the Bitch Queen did to me. Not for a week and I have to be back home in five days. I am very sorry.”