Chapter 6 - The Neon Haven
Three miles away, the suburban sprawl disintegrated into a neglected commercial strip lined with auto repair garages, pawnshops, and flickering neon signs. Clara had dragged the boys on foot through residential side streets, avoiding main avenues and constantly checking over her shoulder for headlights creeping along the curb.
Toby was whimpering, his legs exhausted from the walk. Leo walked in stony silence, clutching Clara’s free hand so hard his knuckles turned white. They stopped in front of the Starlight Motor Lodge, a low-slung, single-story motel with an asphalt courtyard puddle-streaked with motor oil.
Inside the cramped front office, a bored clerk behind a plexiglass window barely glanced at Clara’s disheveled hair or the mud splattered across her jeans. She laid down forty dollars from her emergency cash reserve—nearly everything she had left in the world.
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""One room, one night,"" the clerk mumbled, sliding a brass key across the counter. ""Check-out is ten tomorrow. No refunds.""
Room 108 smelled of damp carpet and stale tobacco. Clara locked the deadbolt, fastened the security chain, and dragged the heavy laminate desk against the door. Only when the barrier was set did she allow herself to sit on the edge of the frayed floral bedspread. She peeled off Toby’s shoes and tucked both boys beneath the thin blanket. As soon as the children’s breathing deepened into sleep, Clara pulled the black hard drive from her pocket. She had no computer to access it, but as she inspected the drive in the harsh bathroom light, she spotted a small piece of tape on the back with a handwritten address: 424 Industrial Wharf - Locker 19.
