Ch. 3.1 - On a Dark, Deserted Highway...

[Philulhu]

Saturday, October 26th, 1929 11.15am.
Harrison’s Hotel, Merrimac Bay, Mass.

The two vehicles travelled east, stopping just briefly at a couple of roadside cafes to show staff the picture of James and ask whether he had been seen. At both places, they were met with a shake of the head, but good wishes for their search.

At the junction with the main road, they carried on over towards the coast.The road towards the coast was quiet, although at this time of year that was not unexpected. The further they got though, the poorer the road condition was and all four men had been shaken up and down by the time that the hotel came into view.

It sat by the left side of the road, with views towards the sea and over the large empty car park. At first sight, it looked abandoned, with the windows shuttered and the paintwork shabby. A wooden sign with the name “Harrison’s Hotel” swung in the wind by the entrance to the car park.

As they nosed their vehicles onto the car park, heavy drops of rain started to fall onto the windscreen and the wind whipped fallen leaves around.

[Mr. Handy]

William parks his car near the door, so that he doesn't have to go far through the rain. Holding his hat on his head to keep from losing it to the wind, he hurries to the hotel.

[HoneyDog]

Howard follows William to the door. He doesn't like the look of this place.

[Bullfrog]

Lawrence parks his truck next to William's car. He then follows the rest of the group to the hotel.

Upon arriving, he turns to the group to speak:
"Mighty fine weather we're having."

[Philulhu]

The hotel looked deserted. The door was locked and a faded sign stuck to the inside of the glass said ”Closed for family bereavement.”

Through the window, the hotel lobby was dark and the windows cobwebbed, making it difficult to see far inside.

[peper757]

Thomas moves quickly in an attempt to shelter from the rain. He takes note of the sign, and says "They're closed. We might find that there's not anybody around to help us.".

[Bullfrog]

"We won't get anything done just standing here. I say we kick down the door."

Lawrence backs up, ready to ram through the door.

[Mr. Handy]

"Hold on a minute," says William, holding up a hand. "Let's not get carried away. There may be someone there, anyway. We should try knocking." He raps on the door.

[Philulhu]

The door rattled in the frame as William knocked, and a few flakes of paint fell and were carried away by the wind.

They waited, but there was no reply.

[HoneyDog]

“I don’t think anyone’s been here for a long time” says Howard. He shivers. "Maybe we should go check the other place".

OOC,Is there anything which looks like a garage visible?

[Philulhu]

OOC,No garage is visible from your vantage point.

[Mr. Handy]

"I agree," says William. "If we need to, we can come back here another time, when they're open and when it isn't raining cats and dogs. There's no reason to break and enter."

[peper757]

"Not worth the paperwork..." Thomas remarks to himself. "I agree, the other place might be more lively."

[Bullfrog]

"We should at least check around the outside of the building. For all we know, this place might not be as deserted as it looks.", Lawrence remarks, "Better safe than sorry."

[HoneyDog]

"You're right" agrees Howard. "Let's take a quick look". He sets off around the building.

[peper757]

"Right behind you." says Thomas as he follows Howard closely.

[Philulhu]

The rear of the hotel looked even more abandoned than the front. A pile of old beds and broken furniture was piled against on wall and the windows looked as if someone had used them for target practice with a BB gun.

[Bullfrog]

"I am highly disappointed by this turn of events. I'm considering the breaking-and-entering plan again."

[Mr. Handy]

"How did that happen?" wonders William aloud.

[peper757]

"Looks just like regular vandalism to me." Thomas says. "If this place really is abandoned then there wouldn't be much to stop a couple of punks coming down and using the place as target practice." he explains.