Room 1408
By: WriterofAwe and Others
French billboards flew on by the speeding car . Showing pictures of croissants,
bakeries, and fancy hotels. Inside that car sat a woman with a small frame, black hair,
In her late 40s, and her hands were so wrinkly that they looked diseased.
"I can't wait to start my job, I really need the money," Maggie thought out loud.
Maggie had picked a job in Paris, France at Hotel Paris as a maid . She drove into the
parking lot full of confidence. Then a young man came to her car. Looking at him, the
first word that came to mind was handsome. She felt ashamed just looking a him.
"How are you today madam?" he said with perfect accent.
Blushing , she opened her mouth to talk but nothing came out.
"Shh, no need for words," said the man who is in the story made out of words, "I'm Jose and you are?"
"I'm maggots I mean Maggie… I am going to be the new maid." replied Maggie curing the common disease of word loss.
"Okay then, come on then my little Happy Meal I mean Maggie." Jose said gladly but
Maggie was blinded he wasn't glad for her. He was happy that he got a new Happy Meal,
a tasty one.
Jose showed Maggie everywhere he even showed her: " These are the byways, and these are
the hallways and this everything in-between." Jose stated pointing to various rooms. He
then lead Maggie to the kitchen.
"Where are the sliver?" Maggie asked marveling at all the gold.
"Too expensive."
"What about onions?" She queried.
"A lot of people are allergic." replied Jose in a sharp tone.
"Even Garlic?" Maggie inquired while simultaneously checking drawers and reading her
boy magazine 'Whether your Boyfriend is a Psycho!'
"Smelly," he spoke with anxiety looking at the window and beaming fearfully.
"Out of all things," Maggie hollered (on the scale of 1-5 he had a low four), "Beef!?"
"I'm allergic." Jose said keeping his cool.
Maggie was very suspicious and gave Jose a suspicious glance but all suspicions were
lost from one look of his warm black eyes. Jose's Italian features like a big nose and
small eyes seemed invisible under his stare.
"Rest up you got a big day ahead of you." he uttered.
He was changing into something Maggie could feel it but she didn't want to stay to find
out what he'll change into.
Awoken in the middle of the night by moans and screams Maggie left the bed
grumbling, "Can't anyone sleep?"
Maggie decided since she is awake she might just get a snack. While Jose was having a
treat of is own. Maggie came in front of the kitchen half asleep but then a ear splitting
scream loud enough to reincarnate a dead mummy all the way in Egypt erupted through
the closed doors and shook the hotel. Frightened she burst open the doors to see two
rotting corpses on the floor. They were pale and completely drained of life. Worms went
in and out through various holes, fang marks covered the body like a rug pattern each one
burning deeper into body releasing numerous fluids. Disgusted , Maggie shut the door
two eyes they were on the body Jose but they weren't his.
"What are you doing here?" a cold chilling voice demanded it whispered out of Jose's
unmoving lips.
The voice took every emotion and ripped it to shreds leaving a hollow feeling and the
motion to reply the same way.
" I was… having a snack" Maggie stuttered.
"No midnight snacks," the chilling voice declared with increasing urgency, "now go,
Now!"
Maggie ran blindly heeding Jose warning. Then soft thuds of feet sped after her. Maggie
finally made it to her room soon after someone came beating at her door. Out of fear she
fainted just in time for her torn emotions to seep back into her.
Reawaken with a startle Maggie got ready. Oddly, she had no recollection of what
happened last night. Being a maid is very hard especially at Hotel Paris people ask for the
most ridiculous things. For instance toes being cleanse by tongue, Regurgitating that was
already licked, and worse a sponge bath with ammonia which is only found in pee.
Maggie did them all diligently and with no complaints even Jose helped fix windows.
Then a full moon came.
"Oh look how lovely that is." Maggie stated.
Jose didn't reply he just got up and left in a trance. Just then Maggie was ordered to
pick up a platter it was silver. Maggie came and picked up the platter just then Jose
bounded into the room with a full grown woman in his jaw. Maggie gasped fearfully.
"You know too much, time for you to die!" said his cold chilling voice.
It clear that he was a vampire but Maggie never believed in vampires because she never
gave it much thought. Jose lunged at her with a slash chopping a chunk of her hair that was in a bun it unfurling so it would hang loosely on her head. Another he then cut her
apron right off. Taking a second to think, Maggie took the sliver dish's cover and
smashed it on his head making beautiful note go across the room. Jose lost all handsome
feature the dish distorted his face and made it resemble the face of a twisted broken
garden gnome. Fueled by pure rage he picked up Maggie and shook her and choked her.
Jose screamed, "You die!"
"I always… wanted to… let you try… this!" gasped Maggie as she kicked the dish
sending a juicy, sweet, medium rare steak smothered in garlic and onions topped a sliver
fork into the air.
It fell into Jose mouth he swallowed it instantly sliver fork and all. He then dropped
Maggie and started oozing blood and spewing organs. Maggie got up to run but war
stopped by Jose's mumbles.
"You will die!" he mumbled with his kidney in his mouth.
Taking the nearby sliver lamp she yelled, "I bet those kidney beans go good with your steak!"
Giving his final lunge Maggie smacked him out of the window into the street and out of
spontaneous combustion and Jose was gone forever.
Out on the road again she started work at a bed and breakfast she saw a young man on
the front porch. This time the first word that came to mind was vampire.