Love Condemned: Beginnings by Stephanie Brown Page B

pointless to have them open and laid on the bed to rest before he had to leave. It felt good for him to lay flat and stretch his legs even if they hung off the end of the bed. 
    He closed his eyes and listened to the air conditioner turn on and off in a battle to keep the temperature in check. He slowly started to drift off when he heard a knocking sound. It was not for his room, so he was not too concerned, but it sounded close. He did not think too much more about it and fell asleep for a short nap. 
 

Chapter Twelve
     
    It seemed like a very short time, but his watch said it was just over 20 minutes since he fell asleep. He was glad that he did not over sleep or he would have missed out on lunch with Miranda before they went on their first tour. He got up and walked into the small bathroom. He saw his reflection in the mirror that showed his unkempt hair and the lines across his face from the creases in the pillow when he slept. He attempted to shake off the weariness as he splashed cold water onto his face. Once he was satisfied with his hair and used the bathroom, he headed out to find Miranda. 
    When he left his room, Adrian found Miranda's door open slightly. Adrian thought that maybe she left it open so she could hear him leave his room. He knocked on the door and called out, "Miranda, are you ready for lunch?" He slowly pushed the door open, not wanting to walk in on her without warning. "Miranda, are you in here?" After no answer, he did a short survey of the room. It was completely empty except for her plaid bag on the bed and some clothes spread all over the place, even a white leather jacket thrown on the floor.
    Adrian thought that she must have went downstairs to wait for him and forgot to close her door all the way. He stepped back out of the room and closed the door. When he turned to head back down the hall, a young couple stood near their door, kissing and giggling. They both stopped to regard Adrian before they got the door open, and then resumed their kissing in the room. Adrian decided to stay clear of the death trap and walked down the stairs. When he got to the lobby, it was empty. He went over to the restaurant in the hotel to find Miranda. He was greeted by a young Italian woman who tried to speak broken English to him. Adrian did not waste his time with her but instead he waved her off and walked into the restaurant. 
    Adrian walked the place twice and there was no sign of Miranda. He stopped to ask the host ess if she had seen a girl matching Miranda's description, but there was no success. He proceeded to ask the front desk the same questions, but only received the same answers. Miranda was nowhere to be found.

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    As had been a reasonable possibility, Alice walked through the door. "Hello," said Miranda, but there was no response from the tour guide. Instead, she looked over her shoulder once and then continued toward the windows which had been opened. She still hadn't said a word and the look on her face was one that made Miranda think something was wrong. Very wrong. 
    With a puzzled look on her face, she regarded how Alice fished a key from her pocket and closed the windows, locking them. Then she closed the curtains. Miranda tilted her head slightly, lowering the hand in which she held her jacket. "Is something the ma--"  
    She forgot the next syllable of t he word she was trying to utter. Instead of being a friendly, helpful tour guide Alice stared at her and retrieved a small hand gun from her jacket. Alice held her gaze as she raised the gun. For a moment, Miranda wondered if it was even real, but the look in Alice's eyes told her enough. In shock, she stared at the weapon, feeling her heart turn into ice, unable to move. Her jacket fell out of her limp hand, abandoned on the floor. The corner of Alice's mouth twitched upwards while she nodded satisfied and gestured at a corner of the room out of view from the door. Miranda was willing to do pretty much anything if