Downfall by Robert Rotenberg

Author:Robert Rotenberg
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Touchstone
Published: 2021-02-02T00:00:00+00:00

30

Even though it was a cold, rainy night, Roshan was thankful for the work. When the members of the golf club heard about his accident, they’d put together a collection to get him an Uber account for one month for him to get to and from the golf club. Despite Babita’s protest, he’d insisted on coming to take the night shift. Since his leg was still sore, he got to drive the security golf cart. Two other guards would have to walk the perimeter. All were equipped with walkie-talkies and high-powered flashlights.

He’d brought a blanket from home and wrapped it around his legs to try to keep warm. He wore a bright headlamp that let him see from side to side by simply turning his head. He had a set route that took an hour to complete. The sky was cloudy, brightened by a three-quarters moon that had crested the trees. First he went through the parking lot to make sure the cars were not damaged before he drove through the front nine holes, returned through the parking lot, then drove along the path in back of the club and around the back nine holes.

When he’d started, the parking lot was full of cars and the party was still going. He said hello to the young people who did the valet parking. Most of them were the members’ kids and would make much more money in tips for a few hours of easy work than Roshan and his fellow guards would earn for being out here all night.

By the time he finished his second trip the party was over, everyone had cleared out, and the parking lot was empty. The rain had stopped and the temperature had plummeted, turning the pools of water on the golf cart pathways to ice.

Babita had prepared a thermos of hot coffee for him. He parked in front of the clubhouse and took a fifteen-minute break so he could have a drink and warm up. The air was still and clouds had covered the moon. His knee was beginning to ache but he wasn’t going to tell Babita about it.

He started on his third round. Because the lights inside the club ballroom were turned off, now the path in front of it was dark. Roshan didn’t mind. He knew the route well and he enjoyed the quiet.

He was far down the path when he spotted something large lying across it, in his way. He yanked the steering wheel to pull his cart onto the lawn just in time and slammed on the brakes.

He swung himself out of the driver’s seat and hobbled over to the path. Oh no, he thought, as the moon peeked out from behind a cloud, casting light down on the deserted lawn, and he saw what was there. A body. Lying face-down. He could tell it was a woman because of her long hair. The light from his headlight illuminated blood that had poured out of the top of her head, staining the path.

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