But I was already there. I had already made my decision. I told myself that my nervousness was simply fear of doing something unfamiliar.
I took the card and entered the hotel.
The elevator climbed slowly.
By the time the doors opened on the sixth floor, my hands were trembling.
I walked down the corridor, found room 608, and tapped the card against the lock.
The door opened.
I stepped inside.
And my life changed.
The Python on the Bed
The suite was dimly lit.
A lamp stood beside the bed, and the curtains were drawn across the windows. The air conditioner hummed softly, filling the silence with a steady mechanical sound.
“Adrian?” I called.
No answer.
I set my handbag on a chair and reached for the lamp.
The room brightened.
Then I saw it.
A huge green python lay coiled across the bed.
Its thick body stretched across the white sheets. Its scales reflected the light, and its head rested slightly above the mattress.
