Hotel of Madness Page 16

  “League or Feds.”

  “League.”

  “That would make this your first time.”

  I grunt at the old man as I toss the supplies into the room.

  “They're looking for you. The League seems a bit more serious about it, though.”

  Arthur gingerly leaves his bed to dig through the contents of my supply run. His beard is a solid grey, and he has lost a significant amount of weight since I pulled him out of the Potomac River. He finds a Snickers and tears through the packaging.

  “Need the calories,” he grunts.

  “How much time have you left?” I don’t want to take it there, but seeing him like this, I can’t help but wonder.

  “My guess is, the only reason why I survived is that I was holding the Trident.” The Trident being his weapon of mass destruction. “But like… Sharky? Well, not entirely like Sharky but kind of like Sharky, the effort required to keep me alive burnt through all its reserve. And mine too, as you can see… Well, no regrets. I guess the Trident phased out of our reality to heal or something, and I need to eat something still alive and sentient soonish.”

  So does Sharky, for that matter. Not sure how I know, but I know, and I’m not really looking forward to that.

  “Are you going to tell me why the League wants you?”

  Arthur looks at me with a strange look on his face, half boy with a cookie jar, half very hungry wolf. “Another educated guess, they’re probably hoping to try me for crimes against humanity, reckless endangerment, and the deaths of two million people.”

  “You can't be serious.”

  “Why not? End of the world. Might as well cross your eyes and dot your tees.”

  I’m rather shocked and appalled. “You saved the world!”

  He shrugs. “They’ll give me community service.”

  I shake my head. “Well, those League guys were rather aggressive.”

  Arthur looks at me sharply. “What did you do?”

  “Well, they're alive. But they're also outside.”

  “You… you brought them here!?”

  “As opposed to leaving them on the side of the road!?”

  We stare at each other. But then I hear Arthur’s stomach audibly growl while his iris glows mucus green.

  “You can’t be serious.”

  “Why else would you bring them here?”

  “I don’t know! Everything happened really fast.”

  “Ok.” He gets up slowly, but that is deliberate. I know he could be surprisingly quick despite his current condition. “Ok… I just want to have a chat.”

  “You're going to eat them!”

  “Well, yes! Well, no, ok, maybe yes. But I only need to eat one! That isn’t cannibalism.”

  “YES, IT IS!”

  “Technically, yes. BUT I’m only eating their souls.”

  “Why is that a distinction for you!”

  He shrugs. “I don’t know. Doesn’t make a lot of sense if you put it that way. BUT if I leave one alive, maybe I can negotiate a commuted sentence.”

  “How would that work?”

  He smiles. “Ok, sidekick, let me teach you how to negotiate with a hostage.”

  “Why would a Hero need to know that?”

  “One who is a Necromancer by trade? Oh, and did you strip them naked.”

  I laugh. “Of course, I’m not an amateur.”

  About the Author

  William Tchatchou is the author of the Hotel of Madness and other short stories that are lost to the void, still begging to be published. As of 2021, He is the proud owner of two really bad dogs that are only potty trained due to sheer willpower.