Preparation

He slowed his car down and pulled into the turn lane on the shoulder of the road. He eased his car into the parking lot in front of the motel office and shut off the engine. It had been a long drive through the snow-glazed mountains, but Lucien had finally arrived.

The motel was outside of town by a few miles, so there would be less competition for the rooms during the games happening in town. And with less people at the hotel he would have more privacy than at a hotel in town. People wanted to have easy access to the games while they were here, and the closer they are to town the less they had to worry about snow and ice keeping them away from the excitement of the games. All of that was just fine with him.

He got out of the car and headed to the office to pay for a room. He strode easily, his footing sure and steady. Though it were below freezing outside, he didn’t seem to be bothered at all by the weather. At all.

He rang the bell on the reception desk. A man of average build with disheveled clothing appeared through a doorway and approached the desk. “How can I help ya, sir?”

“I’ll need a room for a few days,” Lucien answered, casually sniffing the air. The man behind the counter smelled of cheap rum and clothes that hadn’t been changed in two days. Other people may not smell the odors that clung to the clerk, but Lucien certainly could smell them.

“Sure thing. How long will you be staying?”

“Probably a couple of weeks,” replied as he wrinkled his nose. He knew it wasn’t very polite, but it was just a natural reaction to the clerk’s scent.

“Two full weeks?” The man could hear the dollar signs chiming with a church choir.

“Yeah, two weeks. But I was wondering if I get a discount for a weekly stay? I’ll pay all of it now. That way you won’t have to hunt me down for the second week.”

“We usually charge a hundred dollars a night when the games are in town, but since you’ll be paying up front for two weeks I can let ya have the room for eighty a night.” The man watched Lucien’s face to see any signs of hesitancy. “For the whole time you’re here, that would be $1,120.00 up front, and I’ll wave the deposit on the room.”

“Sounds like a deal,” Lucien said. He reached into his pocket, pulled out a roll of bills, and counted out twelve one hundred dollar bills. “There ya go, paid in full. Use the change to get yourself a good meal. And some good cologne.”

The clerk took the bills and placed them in a drawer under the counter. He handed a card for Lucien to fill out that listed all his information. It was a standard form any hotel would want you to fill out.

“After I unpack my suitcase and take a shower, can I fill this out and bring it back to you?”

“Oh, ok. Yeah, that would be fine,” the man with the rum smell said. “Just let me get you a key to your room.”

Lucien took the room key, told the clerk thank you, and went back outside. He moved his car closer to the room he had paid for and took his clothes from the trunk and moved them inside. He closed the door and locked the deadbolt.

After unpacking, he showered, the hot water running over and relaxing his muscles, the steam from the hot water cleansing his pores. He stepped from the tub and grabbed a towel. He wrapped the towel around his waist, covering his lower body. The rest of his muscles flexed sinuously under his dark skin as he walked to the bed.

He lay down to take a nap. He wanted to make sure he was rested before his hunt began. It had been years since he had touched or smelled them, but he was confident their scents would be familiar to him, once he found them.