Josh stood off to the side until the woman who was with the detective had walked out the front door. He’d overheard her reserve a room with two queen beds and say there were two adults and a dog. The hotel clerk handed her the keycard for room twelve on the first floor and told her what time the Continental breakfast would be served the next morning. The woman signed the registration form, thanked the clerk, and pocketed the keycard as she walked out.
After approaching the counter, Josh waited for the clerk to acknowledge him then asked for a single. He mentioned that he’d like a first-floor room if one was available.
“I do have a vacancy on the first floor. Room ten is a single and available if you’d like that one.”
“Sure. They must all be similar, aren’t they?”
“Yes, sir.” The clerk passed the form to Josh. “I’ll need to see your driver’s license, and then you can sign here.” He tapped the form. “Include the make and model of the car you’re driving as well as the plate number.”
“No problem.” Josh pulled out the fake ID and watched as the clerk barely gave it a glance then handed it back.
“I’ve got cash. Is that okay?”
The clerk joked. “As long as it’s green, we’ll take it.”
“Good enough.” Josh signed the form using the fake name Mike Stiller, then he took the key and went to the room. Not wanting to accidentally pass the detective in the hallway, he would hunker down in his room until later.
I wonder where they’re going. Bringing the dog along likely means it’s a weekend thing, and I don’t even have a change of clothes or a toothbrush.
Checking a map of the area on his phone, he found a twenty-four-hour big-box store where he could get a few supplies. He’d make his move after midnight.
Muffled voices sounded through the thin walls. Josh tiptoed to the locked door of the adjoining room and pressed his ear against it. He heard bits and pieces of a conversation between the detective and the woman about arriving at Giant City the next day.
Josh whispered to himself. “Giant City? What the hell is that?”
He pressed his ear even harder against the door. The detective continued talking, that time about setting up the tent at the campsite first then checking out the lake.
After grabbing his phone, Josh took a seat on the bed and typed Giant City into the search bar.
“Hmm, it’s a state park in Makanda, Illinois. Let’s see where that campground and lake are located.” Enlarging the park on his screen, Josh found a campground right on the edge of Little Grassy Lake. “That has to be it. I’ll be following them, anyway, but that seems to be the most logical location. Now I’m wondering if I can just sleep in my car or if I actually have to buy a damn tent.”
Going back to the website, he did a thorough search and didn’t find anything that specified he needed to use camping equipment. The park offered a self-serve reservation form that he could fill out and then pay with cash for an available campsite.
“That’s the route I’ll go. No headaches and no paper trail.”
Josh turned on the TV, mindful of the time. He needed to hit that all-night store sooner rather than later since he didn’t want to stay up too late. He was sure McCord and the woman would leave somewhat early—likely after breakfast—since the park was still a few hours away.
The voices from the next room finally stopped, and everything went quiet. Josh needed to make his move so he could get back to the hotel and grab some shut-eye. He pocketed the keycard and the car keys then crept to the door. He opened it, stepped out, and closed it as softly as possible then made his way down the hallway to the end, where the brightly lit red exit sign was located. He’d be good to go after that since the room windows didn’t face the parking lot side of the building.
Okay, now to grab a pair of pants, a couple of shirts, socks, a toothbrush, and toothpaste. That’s all I really need.
Pulling up the saved map and route on his phone, he saw that the store was less than a mile away.
“Perfect. In and out in no time.”