The Mercedes pulled in gently into the hotel parking lot. Light raindrops pattered on its ceiling. There was strong resonance as they struck the windshield.
Cody Martin turned off the car's engine and stared blankly at a single droplet. His eyes trailed downwards as they followed a single droplet on the screen. Another droplet made contact, and the water proceeded on its path, dragged down by the irresistible lure of gravity. Hundreds of miles away, a single bolt of electricity sliced through the troposphere. Cody let out a loud sigh.
What the hell am I doing here.
It wasn't a question, it was a statement. A statement that read itself out loud in Cody mind. Even after the long hour drive all the way back into Boston, Cody still struggled to comprehend the reasoning behind it.
Just thinking about Boston pained him.
Staring out the window, Cody's brain made an instant recall. A recall of his younger days. His mother breaking up with his father, the days spent on the road in a minivan, the beautiful times he spent at the Tipton hotel, and the schooling experience he had aboard the luxury cruise liner, the S.S Tipton. Cody still cherished those moments. His father Kurt, and the gradually decreasing distance between him and the rest of the family as the days passed in the Tipton. Mr Marion Moseby, a supposedly antagonizing figure during the first year the Martin family spent at the Tipton, but who eventually turned out to be a fine, caring man who just loved his job. Madeline Fitzpatrick, Arwin Hawkhauser, and Estabon (whose name was too long for Cody to process) were fantastic friends who had helped him along through his few years at the Tipton. And of course, not forgetting London Tipton, the girl he had almost loved.
To piece all the broken memories together, however, he required something vile. Something painful. Something disgusting. Something that Cody had struggled to ignore for 10 years in the making. What pained Cody most, was that this vicious monster that lay within his mind, looked exactly like him.
Zack Martin.
The evil twin.
Cody felt rising disgust. The filth rose like bubbling vomit within him. The fateful night of a past decade flashed before his eyes, consuming him in heavy thought.
10 years ago, Zack and Cody were due to arrive back in Boston after a year in Seven Seas High. All had been going well, although Cody as noticed a disturbing change in Zack's attitude. A constraint that Cody had never felt within the strong twin telepathy he and Zack had shared for 15 years. Zack had become disturbingly restrained. He hardly ever talked to Cody or any of his friends, and when he was not attending classes, he kept himself locked up in his single cabin. Cody once overheard him talking supposedly into a phone.
"Have you got the cash ready? What? Well, make sure you've got it within a week's time, cause that's when I'll return to Boston, and I don't want to hear anymore of your sh!t."
It frightened the then sensitive Cody. How was it possible that Zack could be involved in illegal activities as serious as this? Cody tried to shrug the thought off, hoping that he had somehow heard wrongly, or mistaken the meaning behind Zack's words.
The series of events that followed when they returned to Boston crushed him. Over the past year when they had been absent from Boston, the crime rate had risen significantly. People were now in greater danger of being mugged on the streets, and criminals charged for robbery, sexual abuse and homicide appeared on the news frequently. It was a frightening time for Boston. Cody expressed shock and outrage over the occurrences, but Zack seemed to be indifferent towards them.
A major tragedy in the twins lives was due to happen. Their father Kurt and his band had decided to drop by at Boston to pay a visit to the rest of the Martin family. They never made the trip. The mini-van by which the band traveled was brought to a violent stop by a group of violent gang members. All the men in the van were robbed and beaten. None of them survived. Cody and Carey cried during Kurt's funeral, but once again, Zack seemed indifferent to his father's death. His lack of emotion surprised the funeral's attendees.
Cody could then feel the growing distance between himself and his brother. Zack spent most of his time out of the Tipton. He started wearing black more often, and shocked Cody and Carey by dyeing part of his hair purple and getting an earring. Whenever Cody or Carey tried to talk to him, they were ignored. Cody had once came across a pack or cigarettes hidden under Zack's pillows. Another year passed.
Finally, an event occurred that broke Cody off from Zack forever.
"Where's the money?"
"Zack, please…"
"Where's the %#* money?!"
"Zack, I'm telling you, I don't…"
"I'm going to count to 3…"
"Zack! I don't know what you are talking about!"
"1…"
"No! Please! I'm your mother!"
"2…"
"…"
"3."
There was a resounding explosion within the suite, followed by a dull thud. Cody's eyes were wide with horror as he listened from outside the suite. The cold shudder ran through his entire body, as a stream of hot tears rolled down his cheeks.
"Alright guys, lets get the body out."
Cody fled. He was frightened and lost. In his desperation, he turned to the one person he knew would be responsible enough to handle such a situation.
From that day onwards, Cody had lived with Marion Moseby, his new godfather. When the Tipton Organization reorganized Marion Moseby to the New Jersey Tipton Hotel, Cody had followed him, desperate to get away from Boston, where many terrible memories lay. The memory of the brutal murder that occurred in the Martin Suite frequently haunted Cody, and Cody eventually learned how to block it out. He became more rugged after an intense self-defense class, which Mr Moseby had persuaded Cody to attend. As he matured, his features became more defined and handsome, and he started his own lawyer firm, becoming quite wealthy in the process. Zack didn't contact him at all in those 10 years of life with Mr Moseby. Cody's life had changed for the better. He vowed never to return to Boston.
Until today.
Just 24 hours earlier, Cody had received a phone call from whom he dreaded the most, asking to meet him at a hotel restaurant. Cody could have declined, but felt compelled to find out what had happened during his 10 years of absence from Boston. After much consideration, he returned the phone call and agreed. Now, here he was.
Cody stepped out of the car. The heavy rain had declined to a light drizzle. Buttoning up his Harrison tweed jacket, he stepped into the hotel.
He was ready to meet his brother.