Infinite Loop - Chapter 33

Chapter 33

Warren awoke the next morning feeling a sense of dread enveloping him. The feeling remained after he got dressed in the same suit he’d worn for several days. It got worse after he checked Amber’s room to find it still unlocked. The bed remained unmade, just as when she left. He could only hope that the police or Krupin’s thugs failed to catch her. Either way, he had to leave just in case.

As Warren walked to the motor court office, he noticed his beaten body was responding better. The bruised face appeared less swollen. But he remained extremely sore.

I’m not running any marathons soon!

Inside the office, he found the manager glaring at him.

“You’re not a cripple, as I was told.”

“I’ve got some bruises still, but I’m getting better. Seems your fresh air around here must have something to do with it,” Warren’s sarcasm caused the man frown to turn ugly.

“Sis and I had a family quarrel, and she took off,” Warren continued. “How many nights did she pay you for?”

The man asked for the key. His tone and manner indicated Warren was no longer welcome.

“Key’s in the room. Any taxi’s around?” Warren inquired doubtfully.

“The phone is down the road. Cost you a nickel to call a taxi,” the owner pointed to the white cafe.

“Thanks for nothing,” Warren responded, “I’ll make sure others hear about your flophouse.”

Out of spit, he slammed the door and began his trek to the roadside diner. As he felt his muscles loosen, Warren began thinking about Amber. Deep down, he was concerned about Krupin’s minions and whether they might have caught up with her. He recognized she was a spirit like him, stuck in this purgatory movie. She just didn’t know it yet, and he really did not want her to find out the hard way.

It’s the only way it makes sense.

Still, it also got Warren to think about all the other people he met.

Is everyone a spirit wondering in purgatory? Are we destined to become characters like this?

He speculated about religion and how his damn purgatory worked. It only gave him a headache. Start off as a minor cog in the wheel, go through various reincarnations and end up relevant to the end of the story. As he thought of his predicament, he grasped that this was the first time he had lasted beyond a couple of days in such a script. Moreover, this time it appeared his character was vital to the ending. Still, he couldn’t rely on his belief. Certainly, Warren could not let his guard down.

Warren shielded his face as a series of farm trucks and cars drove by, kicking up dust along the road. He fanned the dust away.

Amber’s expression came when she left came back to him. She didn’t believe him in her past, but she soon would. That meant this was more than a starting point for Amber, who was vital to helping Warren escape the reaper so far.

Her dreams remembered her death, just like mine.

That idea went to the pit of his stomach, and he hated it.

After entering the front door, Warren immediately went to the phone booth inside the diner, where he called for a taxi. Shirley, the bucktoothed waitress, beamed a smile at him as she poured a coffee while he took a seat at the counter. There were several customers next to him who glanced at Warren before returning to their breakfast conversations.

Warren had a couple of hours to kill before Cassidy showed up, and it was time to put his plan into action. He had nearly finished his second cup of coffee when the taxi arrived. Warren gave the waitress a buck and a wink before he walked out.

Always leave myself a friend!