Free Web NovelChapter 228: Chapter 228 Pressure
Elara
What should have been a two-hour drive took only ninety minutes. My assistant had pushed the speed limit the whole way. I did not tell her to slow down.
Kevin, the hotel manager, met us at the entrance. He looked like he had not slept in a week. His shirt was wrinkled. His eyes were red. The stress was written all over his face.
"Elara." He did not bother with small talk. He just turned and led me inside. "You need to see this for yourself."
He took me to a room on the second floor. The moment he opened the door, I felt it. A low, constant thrum coming through the walls. Not loud enough to be called noise. But loud enough to make sleep impossible.
"It is only nine o’clock," he said. "It gets worse after midnight. Every standard room is like this. The only ones that are fine are the top floor suites."
I stood in the middle of the room and just felt it. The vibration ran through the floorboards. Through my shoes. I could see why guests were leaving bad reviews.
"Three-point-eight stars." Kevin rubbed his face with both hands. "We were at four-point-six two months ago. I tried talking to them. They will not even return my calls. I filed a complaint with the city. Nothing."
I listened. Let him get it out.
If this kept up, we would have to relocate. But moving a whole hotel operation cost money we did not have. Our margins were already tight. fɾeeweɓnѳveɭ.com
And it was not just about the money. The people who worked here were watching their jobs fall apart. Some had already quit. The ones who stayed were barely getting by on base pay alone. ƒreewebɳovel.com
I understood why Kevin looked the way he did.
"Three years," I said, leaning against the desk. "We have been here three years. No issues. When did that bar open?"
"A year ago." His jaw tightened. "But listen. When they first opened, they called themselves a quiet lounge. Soundproofing was fine. No complaints. Then about two weeks ago, everything changed. They turned into a full nightclub. New speakers. Professional DJ booth. The works. But they never fixed the soundproofing."
I tapped my finger against the desk. It was a habit when I was thinking. "Two weeks ago."
"Exactly."
Something about that timing did not sit right with me. I filed it away for later.
"Alright." I pushed off the desk. "Get me a few people. We are going to pay our neighbors a visit tonight."
I paused. "Make sure they are faces the bar staff will not recognize. No one who has been there before."
Kevin nodded. "I know exactly who to bring."
--
My assistant fell into step beside me as we walked down the hallway.
"Elara, something is off." She kept her voice low. "How did they even get approval for a nightclub here? Zoning should have blocked this."
"I know." I did not slow down. "Someone with pull is backing them."
That was the only explanation. Someone in the city government had signed off on this. Someone who could make permits appear. Someone who made the bar owners feel like they could do whatever they wanted.
I did not know who that someone was yet.
But I was going to find out.
"Let’s go see it for ourselves," I said.
My assistant looked at me. "Now?"
"Now. Change into something casual. We are just two girls going out for a drink."
Twenty minutes later, we walked through the front door of the bar. The bass hit me first.
Then the smell. Spilled beer and cheap perfume. The place was packed. People were pressed together on a dance floor that was way too small for the crowd.
We found a spot near the edge and ordered drinks we did not plan to drink. My assistant kept her head down. I kept my eyes open.
--
On the way back to the hotel, I kept replaying what I had seen.
Blocked exits. Missing extinguishers. No food permit. No tobacco license. This place was a disaster waiting to happen. And the fact that they had been allowed to operate like this meant someone in the city was looking the other way.
I called the hotel’s lawyer from the car.
"Send a formal complaint to the city’s code enforcement office first thing tomorrow," I said. "Attach everything. The blocked exits. The missing extinguishers. The expired permits. Name the bar and name the owner."
"You want to go that route?" the lawyer asked.
"I want them to know we are watching."
The lawyer hesitated. "They will know it came from us."
"I know."
--
When we walked into the hotel lobby, Kevin was waiting for me. His face was tight. I could tell something had happened while we were gone.
"They called," he said.
"Who?"
"The bar. Some guy named Arnold. He said he wanted to talk."
I stopped walking. "What did he say?"
Kevin’s jaw tightened. "He said if we know what is good for us, we will drop this. He said he has friends in the city. And he said..." He trailed off.
"He said what?"
"He said you should go home before something happens to you."
I felt a cold calm settle over me. Not fear. Not anger. Just clarity.
"His name. The guy who called. What did he say his name was?"
"Arnold. Just Arnold. He didn’t give a last name."
I nodded, then turned to my assistant, who was standing a few feet away. "See what you can find out about him. Quietly. Ask around the other shops on that block. Someone has to know who he really is."
She nodded and slipped away without a word.
I walked back to my room.
In my room, the bass was still pounding through the walls. I could feel it in my chest. In the floor. In the glass of water on the nightstand.
I sat down on the edge of the bed and pulled out my phone.
I called Dominic.
He picked up on the second ring.
"How is Oakcrest?" he asked.
I paused. I thought about telling him everything. The blocked exits. The threat. The name Arnold. But I knew what he would do. He would be on the road in five minutes.
"Fine," I said. "Just noise. The bar next door is loud."
There was a pause on his end.
"Elara."
"Yeah?"
"Do not lie to me."
I closed my eyes.
"I will handle it," I said. "I just wanted to hear your voice."
A long silence. Then his voice came back, quieter.
"Call me if you need me. No matter what time."
"I will."
I hung up and stared at the ceiling. The bass was still there. Still thumping.
But it felt a little further away now.
