Pink Neon Dreams by Pink Neon Dreams

Author:Pink Neon Dreams [Evernight] (mobi)
Language: en-us
Format: mobi

Chapter Twelve

He’d like to leave within the next twelve hours, but Daniel wasn’t sure it was possible. As soon as Cecily drove away in her bright red vintage car, he gathered up some of his gear and drove to the Strip. He sought a motel, a cheap one, but he avoided the one where he’d stayed before. Although he doubted they would remember him in a town where guests came and went daily, Daniel wanted somewhere where they would.

The dump he selected didn’t even offer a name on their sign which read “ROOMS—CHEEP”. The rundown property suited his purpose, and he liked the fact guests had to drive through an arch to reach his room. The U-shaped units surrounded the central parking space on three sides and centered on an empty pool. Huge cracks marred the concrete and indicated why it wasn’t in use, but Daniel figured it served as a monument to broken dreams, too. He paid for two weeks in a single room. When he carried some minimal baggage, stuff he wouldn’t need anywhere else, into the space, he winced. Mildew climbed a large part of the visible walls and two cockroaches scuttled into the shadows. A stale aroma combining rank piss and sour beer hung in the air. Ancient cigarette burns marred the battered dresser and he doubted the sheets had been changed in months. He tossed his bag onto the bed and put his work issue phone beside the television set.

Daniel used his pay-as-you-go phone to call a number he’d lifted out of the pages of some free shopper paper at the airport. He expressed interest in the 1976 pickup truck advertised for sale and asked if he could get a ride to see it. At first, the woman who answered the phone sounded wary, but he charmed her into sending her son to pick him up. A sullen young man, face pocked with pimples, arrived fifteen minutes later. A half hour after that, Daniel exchanged cash for the pickup and drove away. At the first car wash he spotted, he scrubbed it and cleaned the interior as much as possible. A quick stop at a dollar store yielded sanitizing spray to kill any remaining gnarly bacteria and a cheap seat cover to hide the ugly tear on the passenger side.

At Cecily’s, he did motor staples, checked the oil and fluids. Overall, for the cheap cash price, the truck appeared to be fairly sound. He thought it could make the trip to Texas without trouble and if not, he’d figure out something else.

Daniel drove past Pink Neon, confirmed Cecily and her cousin were still inside, and then returned to her place. She wasn’t back yet so he let himself inside and poured a tequila shot. He tossed it back and savored the burn as it traveled to his gut. If he’d been alone, he would’ve followed it with more, but Daniel stopped with one.

He needed all his wits to deal with the situation, he decided. Despite

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