‘Ann?’
Ann didn’t answer. Ann was dead asleep, her skirt pulled back over her knees, her head angled onto my shoulder. I eased out of the car, resting her head on the back of the seat, closing the door gently so I wouldn’t wake her. The light was coming from a cabin at the end of a wide pea-gravel court. A football goal-post sign straddled the court entrance. The sign carried the one word: MOTEL.
I was looking up at the sign when the door to the cabin opened, spilling a patch of amber onto the gravel. A man was standing in the doorway. A shotgun was in his hands.
‘Who is it?’ he shouted.
‘Put up the gun,’ I said. ‘I’m looking for a place to stay.’
‘Who are you?’ He still hadn’t moved from the doorway. He was a short, squat guy silhouetted by the light so that I couldn’t see his face. He seemed to be bald, and he seemed to be in his undershirt, with his suspenders unhitched and hanging down over his trousers.
‘My name’s Phil Colby.’ I said.
‘I don’t know you, Colby,’ he answered.
‘I don’t know you either. I’ll want two cabins. Are you open?’
‘Why two cabins?’
‘There’s a girl with me,’ I said. ‘My fiancée.’
There was a long pause while the man in the grey flannel undershirt digested what I’d just said. He put the shotgun down inside the doorway then and said, ‘You wait there,’ and then went into the cabin. When he came out a moment later, his suspenders were back on his shoulders and he carried a long six-cell flashlight. He sprayed a circle of light onto the gravel, walking with his head down, his face still in shadows.
‘My name’s Barter,’ he said when he reached me. ‘Mike Barter.’
I extended my hand but either he didn’t see it in the darkness or he simply didn’t feel like taking it.
‘Nice meeting you, Mr Barter.’
‘Where’s the girl?’ Barter asked.
‘In the car.’
He walked toward the car, keeping the circle of light on the ground ahead of him. When he got to the car, he lifted the flash and stuck it in the window.
‘Hey!’ I said. ‘She’s sleeping. Get that flash out of the car.’
He didn’t seem to hear me. He leaned halfway into the car and by the time I got to him the light had swung down and was on Ann’s exposed legs. The skirt had hiked up a little higher, so that her thigh showed in the harsh glare of the flash. I clamped my hand onto Barter’s shoulder and swung him around.
‘Are you convinced?’ I said tightly.
‘Convinced about what?’
‘That she’s a girl?’
‘Pretty,’ he said.
‘Thanks.’
‘I think I’ve got two cabins for you.’
I could see his face now. It was a round face covered with beard stubble. It had a broad flat nose and small glowing black eyes embedded deep in layers of flesh. I didn’t like the face.
‘Adjoining cabins,’ I said.
‘Sure,’ he answered.
‘With bath,’ I said.
‘Shower’s in back of the office,’ Barter said. ‘We’re building some cabins with showers in ’em but they won’t be ready ’til July 4th. That’s when my season starts. Officially, we ain’t even open yet.’
‘We won’t be staying that long,’ I told him.
‘How long did you plan on?’
I looked at his face again, and I still didn’t like it. ‘Just overnight,’ I said.
‘Mmmm. Well, shower’s still in back of the office. You interested?’
I was debating at that point whether or not to climb back into the car and forget all about Mr Barter’s motel or settle for what would certainly not be a Waldorf suite. It seemed important to me, however, to get Ann into a bed. That is, get her asleep in a bed. Her own bed, I mean. I mean...
‘We’ll stay,’ I told Barter.
‘Seven dollars for each cabin,’ he said. ‘In advance.’
‘Fine.’
‘Want to come up to the office?’ I glanced at the car and Barter caught it. ‘Don’t worry about the girl. She’s all right where she is.’
‘Sure,’ I said. I followed Barter up to the cabin with the light. There was the inevitable sign announcing the fact that this was the MOTEL OFFICE. The inside of the cabin was done in knotty-pine wallboard. There was a desk, and a closet, and a few filing cabinets, and a chair. On the wall behind the desk was a nude picture of a voluptuous blonde, under which hung the excuse for the picture: a minuscule calendar. Some eager male had scribbled what he’d like to do with the blonde in pencil across her belly. Barter opened a drawer in the desk, pulled out a register and turned it so that it faced me.
‘Just sign in for yourself. Girl can sign in when you leave in the morning.’ He saw the puzzled look on my face. ‘It’s for the record. Anybody renting a cabin’s supposed to sign the register. Unless you want to check in as Mr and Mrs, in which case I’ll give you one cabin and you can sign for both of you.’
‘We’ll take two cabins,’ I said.
‘To each his own,’ Barter said. Then she’ll have to sign the register in the morning.’
‘All right,’ I said. I signed and then fished out my wallet. Barter went to the closet to get some towels. When he came back to me, my fourteen dollars was on the desk, and my wallet was back in my pocket.
‘I’m giving you twelve and thirteen,’ he said.
‘Are they adjoining?’
‘Well, not exactly. Eleven and twelve are adjoining. Thirteen’s got a little driveway between it and twelve.’
‘Then give me eleven and twelve.’
‘Can’t. Somebody’s in eleven.’
‘Then give me thirteen and fourteen.’
‘Somebody’s in fourteen, too.’
‘All right,’ I said, disgusted. ‘All right.’
‘If you want to start getting your stuff, I’ll take the towels up.’
‘Fine,’ I said.
We went out of the office and he trudged up the path with his flashlight and then a cabin light splashed on, and I saw the number ‘13’ under the light and then Barter entered the cabin with his towels. I went to the car and leaned in. ‘Ann,’ I whispered.
‘Mmmm?’
‘Ann, are you awake?’
‘Urhmmm,’ she said.
‘Ann, I’ve got a place for us to stay the night.’
‘Good,’ she said.
‘Do you want to get out of the car now?’
Ann didn’t answer.
‘Honey?’
Still no answer. I sighed, went around to her side of the car, opened the door, and then reached in for her. She hardly stirred when I picked her up. I braced myself, hiked her a little higher in my arms as soon as I was clear of the car, and then went up toward the cabins. Barter was just coming out of number 13.
‘Got it all tidied up,’ he said. ‘Sheets was changed this afternoon, and I just now put clean towels in.’ He looked at Ann, studying her hard. ‘Dead asleep, ain’t she?’
‘We’ve had a long trip,’ I said.
‘Pretty girl,’ he answered, his eyes never leaving her face. Then, ‘Why don’t you put her in thirteen? I’ll get twelve ready for you meanwhile.’
‘Fine,’ I said. I climbed the steps and went into the cabin. It sported the same knotty-pine wallboard as the office. There were two windows and a bed and a maple dresser and a sink and a closet. I went to the bed, dropped Ann down on it, and then yanked the covers from under her. I noticed there was a kerosene heater in the cabin, but there seemed to be plenty of blankets on the bed, and I doubted if Ann would need the heater. I took off her shoes, left the cabin light on, and then went back to the car for her bags. She was still asleep when I returned to the cabin. I put both bags in the closets, and then I went to the bed. I propped her into a sitting position, unzipped her dress down the back and somehow managed to get her out of it, in spite of the fact that a sleeping girl is all dangling arms and legs. I left her in her half-slip and brassiere, pulling the blankets to her throat. I hung the white dress on a hanger in the closet. Her purse, which I’d taken from the car, I left on the dresser. I flicked out the light then and walked outside.