Marilyn by J.D. Lawrence Read Free Book Online Page A

He captured his disappointment in the creases of his face, but made no noise. He released one finger at a time, making sure not to let the handle snap back. It didn't work. His moist finger slipped and the handle snatched backwards, its stiff plastic slapping against the door.
    'David, what are you doing?' O'Sullivan growled, glaring at Jack with wide eyes.
         'There was a draught, I was just checking the door to see if it was closed properly,' Jack answered, immediately
         'Well?'
         'Well, what?' Jack replied, trying to wipe the stroppy tone from his words.
         'Was it closed properly?' O’Sullivan barked.
    Jack jumped.
    'No. It wasn't. It’s closed now, though. The draught has stopped. I'm Sorry. I didn't mean to make a noise, I won't do it again.'
    'You better not, do you hear me, boy?'
    'Yes, sir.'
    O'Sullivan focused his attention back to the road, losing himself, twitching with the squeak.
     
     

THIRTEEN
     
    They drank the rest of their coffee, not waiting for it to cool. They silently studied each other from opposite ends of the room.
    Elwood's thoughts kept circling back to a few hours earlier. He questioned himself and took a deep breath.
    'Marilyn,' Elwood started. 'That man you saw at the restaurant, you know, the one with the scar? I… I can't be sure, but I think he stayed here, about five hours ago. I recognised him from your description of the cut under his eye.'
    Marilyn sat upright, tense, the anger and confusion so blatantly obvious on her face.
    'You what? Are you serious?' she demanded. 'How could you? Was Jack...?'
    'He was alone, Marilyn,' Elwood interrupted gently. 'Jack wasn't with him. That's why I can't be sure it's the same person.' Elwood cleared his throat and rubbed at his lips. 'But it certainly sounded a lot like that guy from the way you described him. A mark under his eye, a torn and ragged jacket. There was something off about the guy, I knew pretty much as soon as I saw him. I felt like... I don't know, like he was hiding something.' He dropped his head. 'I just didn't know what. You know, I didn't really have any reason to question his motives, he was seeking shelter from the storm. I'm sorry, Marilyn.'
    Marilyn, softening, placed her coffee mug on the floor next to her feet, the cold trickles of spillage dripping onto the carpet.
    'Did he give you a name, did he give you anything, anything at all, Elwood?' she pressed, taking charge. 'Did he use a name?'
         'He said it was David. David O'Sullivan, if my memory serves me correctly. Now, I don't know if that's an alias, or what.' He threw his arms into the air, palms facing the ceiling. 'Like I said, he did seem like he had something to hide. So that may not be his real name. We can check the log-in book, but I'm pretty certain that's what he said. I'm usually quite good with names and faces.'
    Marilyn swept her fingers through her hair, keeping her body active, keeping the swarm of emotions at bay.
    'Can you remember what room he stayed in, what number?'
    'It was Number Five, it's the best double room I have here. I put him in it because I felt bad for the guy. Now, I wish I had hit him across the head with my bat. Bastard.'
    'Have you been there since, to his room?'
    Elwood raised and shook his head, keeping his eyes to the carpet.
    'I haven't. If I'm truthful, it was your knocking that woke me back up. I thought it was him changing his mind about breakfast. 'He gave me the key deposit as..' He stopped. '...As a tip and I told him to post them back through the letterbox.'
    'Right, OK. Where is it? I want to see his room. I want to see where he kept Jack,' she ordered, not taking a single breath.
    'Marilyn. I didn't see Jack. This may not be the same man. He was alone.'
         'You don't know that for sure,' Marilyn enforced. 'He could have hidden Jack in the car, without you seeing. Did you see the car, can you remember what he was driving?'
    'I can't, I'm sorry,' Elwood stated sullenly.
    'Never