{"id":326,"date":"2023-06-12T01:00:49","date_gmt":"2023-06-12T06:00:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/?p=326"},"modified":"2024-02-10T10:23:14","modified_gmt":"2024-02-10T16:23:14","slug":"no-tell-motel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/no-tell-motel\/","title":{"rendered":"No Tell Motel"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The sky was charcoal gray as Feral Eclipse pulled into the gravel pit that passed for the motel parking lot. The sign\u2014half lit, half falling off\u2014read \u201cRest Eazy Inn\u201d<\/em>, like it was a challenge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rico peered out the window and groaned. \u201cThere\u2019s literally duct tape on the roof.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cassie leaned over. \u201cIs that… barbed wire<\/em> on the fence?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jonah pulled his hoodie tighter. \u201cYeah. Yeah it is. I think it\u2019s there to keep us<\/em> in.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The band tumbled out of the van, road-weary and rain-damp, dragging bags toward the motel office\u2014a foggy glass box that smelled like despair and cat pee. The desk clerk was a 400-year-old man with a nicotine-stained beard and a voice like a chainsaw filled with gravel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou the ones in 4A through 4G?\u201d he rasped. \u201cDon\u2019t touch the mini-fridge. It bites.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gabriel blinked. \u201c…what now?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNo refunds,\u201d the man added, tossing them seven keys with mismatched plastic tags.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Ten minutes later, Thane stepped into his room.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And immediately howled.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not a metaphorical howl. A full-chested, claws-out, pissed-off alpha<\/em> roar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The bathroom light flickered like it was haunted. The tile floor was cracked and sticky. The mattress had one spring poking out and a suspicious stain the size of a dinner plate. And in the bathroom\u2014three<\/em> cockroaches were having a conference in the sink. One was wearing what looked like a piece of hair gel wrapper as a cape.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gabriel opened the adjoining door between their rooms and instantly flinched back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThane? You okay\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNO. I AM NOT<\/em> OKAY.\u201d Thane was standing shirtless in the bathroom doorway, holding a motel towel like it had personally offended his ancestors. \u201cTHERE ARE BUGS IN THE SHOWER. I SAW FANGS<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Across the hall, Mark was calmly wiping grime off the inside of his window with a t-shirt. \u201cMine just smells like mildew and broken promises.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rico poked his head out of his room. \u201cMine smells like… cherry cough syrup and despair.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMine has a dead cricket in the fridge,\u201d Maya reported, stone-faced. \u201cHe had a tiny tombstone made out of a hotel mint.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cassie emerged, holding up a single flip-flop. \u201cIs this blood? Or barbecue sauce? Or both?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thane stormed out of his room, claws out, fur bristling, ice-blue eyes blazing. \u201cI swear to Luna, if another roach<\/em> waves at me, I will burn this place to the ground with my bare fangs.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gabriel tried\u2014tried<\/em>\u2014to be the voice of reason. \u201cThane. Deep breath. We\u2019ve stayed in worse.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNo,\u201d Thane growled, \u201cwe haven\u2019t<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mark strolled out behind him, still calm, still grumpy. \u201cMine came with a tiny Gideon Bible and a raccoon footprint on the ceiling. But hey\u2014at least the lights work.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The group stood in the parking lot for several seconds. Rain started to fall again. Jonah dramatically dropped his duffel bag in a puddle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI vote we sleep in the van.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Everyone, including Thane, simultaneously muttered, \u201cSeconded.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They reloaded everything in grim silence and piled back into the van. At least it didn\u2019t have roaches. Just old fries under the seats and Gabriel\u2019s three empty coffee cups rolling around like soda cans in a washing machine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cassie pulled her hoodie over her face. \u201cNext stop better just have bedbugs,<\/em> not boss fights.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The sky was charcoal gray as Feral Eclipse pulled into the gravel pit that passed for the motel parking lot. The sign\u2014half lit, half falling off\u2014read \u201cRest Eazy Inn\u201d, like it was a challenge. Rico peered out the window and groaned. \u201cThere\u2019s literally duct tape on the roof.\u201d Cassie leaned over. \u201cIs that… barbed wire […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-326","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-tour-life"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/326","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=326"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/326\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3248,"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/326\/revisions\/3248"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=326"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=326"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/tourblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=326"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}