Chapter 35 – Shady hotel

Mimi is sitting at the foot of the bed and has been watching TV for two days. She normally never watches TV, but now she has nothing else to do. Her hands are tied behind her back and her ankles are tied together with a chain to the leg of the bed. There is a piece of tape over her mouth. On the edge of the TV cabinet is a bottle of water with a straw ready for her, which fits exactly in the hole in the tape. She can just reach it when she gets down on her knees. Sitting back down on the bed is difficult.

She doesn’t care much about what’s on TV, cartoons are still doable.

When Danni is there, she has more freedom. When he’s gone, she is left so captivated. She gets food and drinks on time. The food is reasonable, but definitely not like Claire’s cooking. The food is just as boring as her days and she has time to think. She worries about her housemates, who knows what dangerous things they are doing in the meantime. She misses her family terribly. That is something she has never thought about before. For the second time in her life she feels at home in a place. The first time was the ballet academy. On her tenth birthday she received the letter that she had been selected for the academy. She felt like a fish in water there. She was good and when she started dancing with Marc she became even better. She had already been selected for the higher education. During an audition it seemed as if her knee was on fire. The knee injury was so serious that she could no longer dance. She was only seventeen years old. She had to stop and that broke her. Dancing was her dream. She fell into a slump. During the recovery period she received support from Lisa and Marc and her other friends from school. After a conversation with Lisa, Mimi decided to become a programmer. During that education she recovered, she got energy again. One by one the friends from school broke off contact with her, even Marc, but Lisa did not let her go. She is the best friend anyone could wish for, thinks Mimi with a sad smile.

Jean Paul and Lana go into their workshop to convert a large crate into a work cart. They make wheels and a drawbar. In the meantime, Lisa makes a white felt hat for Jean Paul. They don’t have much time, so they put on their overalls. Lisa tucks Lana’s hair under a headscarf. Finally, she puts some brushes in a bag next to Lana and white cleaning cloths in the pockets of Jean Paul’s pants. Claire watches in admiration as the duo is transformed by a work team.

The two excitedly go to the hotel and enter in full work gear with their cart full of work supplies. They tell the uninterested receptionist that they have been hired by Jan Schaap, the owner, to repaint a wet wall in room 15. Jean Paul has seen on the key board that that room is available. The man’s face looks surprised for a moment, but then it clouds over again. With a hand gesture, they are sent upstairs. The man can barely keep his eyes off the screen behind the counter.

Jean Paul hesitates. “Can we get the key?”

The receptionist sighs tiredly, takes the key from the rack behind him and throws it to him. Jean Paul catches it cleverly.

On the way to the elevator he gives his girlfriend a wink. They can go ahead. They take the elevator up and look for the abandoned room. There they put their things out.

When everything is ready, Lana goes back into the hallway. On the way she studies the escape plan to know how the hotel is put together. She whistles a tune at each door that she is sure Mimi will recognize. At one door she hears a muffled cry. She quickly runs back to Jean Paul to call him.

“I think I found her.”

Lana runs back, kneels in front of the door and picks the lock open with some handy tools from a case. Jean Paul is standing next to her when she opens the door a crack with a broad grin. He takes a step back in surprise with his hands up. “I don’t want to know how you learned this,” he whispers.

In the room, they see Mimi sitting handcuffed on the bed. Her friend’s eyes widen in surprise when she recognizes the two. Lana puts a finger to her mouth, because they don’t want to make a sound. She rushes to her to hug her, while Jean Paul cuts the handcuffs with a knife. Without saying a word, they run to the room where their stuff is.

Jean Paul looks out the window. “Someone is walking across the parking lot, but he’s still far away.” He looks at Mimi. “The man is dressed in black and looks like a mercenary.”

She nods. “That’s Danni.”

“We have to hurry,” says Jean Paul and points to the cart.

Mimi folds herself into the cart, she is flexible from all the dancing. Her friends pile the small ladder and paint supplies on top of her. She is no longer visible.

With pounding hearts they go downstairs and leave the elevator at the reception, but the receptionist doesn’t even look up. They leave the hotel through the back door. In the parking lot around the corner they see Danni enter the reception. The handymen with the cart rush across the parking lot. Mimi stifles a cry, her teeth chattering from the force.

From a distance Noa and Marc watch as the two disappear into a side street. To be on the safe side they stayed nearby. They see Lana and Jean Paul leave. Lana pushes with a blissful smile on her face and Jean Paul pulls the cart forward with a satisfied look. Noa and Marc sigh with relief. Mimi is safe. They can continue with their plan.