I'm glad you're interested so far. I hope you enjoy this installment. Please R&R!

Chapter Two: A Day on the Town

It was a new day. Well it was the same day, but it felt very new. After a few hours of sleep and a nice shower, Violet felt completely invigorated, her world looking completely different than it had twenty-four hours prior, when she woke to the sound of her parents fighting.

No, this place was new and wonderful. Violet looked in the mirror, noting her fresh and happy appearance. She pulled the sleeves of her dress down to shield the red marks that marred her pale arms, and she placed her favorite black hat on her head. She stepped out into the hallway, noticing a man pushing a key into the lock of the door next to her. It was the man who had walked her to her room just hours before. He had on a new suit, this one a deep blue with a clean, white shirt underneath, and a red ascot. His hair was nicely combed and the flower on his lapel was beautiful.

He felt her eyes on him and said, "Good morning, Miss Harmon. How did you sleep?"

"Quite well," she said.

"Now what is a girl as beautiful and young as you to do on such a fine day?" he asked, giving her his full attention.

"I have not decided yet. It was fairly recent that I made my move to Los Angeles, so I figured I would explore the city today."

A smirk crept onto the man's face, "Well, now. We cannot have you running around the city alone. How about I join you? I can make an excellent guide."

Violet regarded the man, noting his style which was definitely more in league with the hotel than the rest of the outside world, and paying close attention to his dark eyes, which were presently filled with amusement and interest. But our Violet loved adventure, so of course she said, "I would very much enjoy that if you tell me who you are."

The man smiled, something that should have been relieving but only caused Violet to sense something even more sinister about him. He walked towards the young girl, grabbed her hand, laid a kiss upon her knuckle and said, "My dear, I am James Patrick March. I am the owner of this hotel."

Violet was surprised for only a moment, attributing his large wealth at such a young age to a death in his family. She wondered just how old he was, she had a hard time guessing because of the way he dressed and acted. She watched as he turned back towards the sixty-fourth room, opened it, and held his hand towards the inside, gesturing for Violet to enter.

Very weary of this interesting man, Violet said, "Why?"

Shocked by her sass, James answered, "Well I wanted to freshen up before we left, I cannot be seen walking through down looking like this." He gestured to the pinstriped suit he adorned. "I don't go out much, but when I do, people take notice."

"I wonder why," Violet muttered under her breath.

"Watch your tongue, girl." the man said, his eyes widening in a way that was meant to bring fear, but only put forth curiosity in Violet's mind. "Now, why don't you put on something nice, hm?" Seeing the look that Violet shot him, he said, "You cannot possibly want to go out looking like this." He turned down the long, empty hallway and shouted, "Miss Evers," prompting a busty, redheaded woman to come flying down the hall. When she reached the pair she made for a slight curtsy before James said, "Fetch the lady a nice outfit for our time out today. And please do get her a pair of fresh linens for her room." The woman went down the hall as quickly as she came, and was gone within a matter of seconds.

Skeptically, Violet gave James a once-over. He was weird. Beyond weird, actually, he was bizarre. I mean, who in the 21st century believes he needs to "freshen up" as he is wearing a perfectly tailored pinstriped suit and his black hair is perfectly combed? It was probably the strangest thing Violet had encountered in a long time. And she loved it.

She wanted to know more about this man, and he clearly wanted something from her, but she didn't know what yet. 'It cannot be sex, he's rich and young and attractive, he can have whomever he wants,' she rationalized. 'But then what is it? It cannot possibly be simply a companion, he can travel the town with anyone. So why does he want to know me?'

As if reading her mind, James answered, "I think you will come to find that many things here are not as they seem. And that the appetites of the rich are difficult to satisfy." He entered the room, and knowing that Violet wouldn't follow him, he closed the door behind him.

Shaking her head, Violet tried to recap what had just happened, what he had just said, and what it meant, but she came up flat. It made no sense. She made to turn back towards her room when she turned directly into Miss Evers, who was holding out a pile of clothes for her.

Violet grabbed them from the woman's hands and pushed her way back into room 63, making to change into the black, pearl-studded dress that the maid had handed her. But then she shook her head, realizing it would be ridiculous to succumb to this man's bizarre 1920s fetish, and stepped back into the hallway, wearing the same dark outfit that she had worn when she originally left the room that day.

James emerged from his room moments later, his suit dark and his hair combed slightly different. He breathed in a breath of musty hotel air before turning to his new companion, causing his face to fall instantly. It then morphed to one of borderline anger as he called out again, "Miss Evers!" The woman came quickly down the hallway, again shocking Violet with her ability to move at such speeds towards her boss. James looked at the woman, pointedly asking, "Did you not bring the lady a fresh set of clothing?"

"I, I did, yes."

"It wasn't her fault," Violet said. "I just didn't feel like wearing it. We're just walking around, and I want to wear this."

"Leave us," James said to Miss Evers, his eyes never leaving the thin and stubborn creature in front of him. He held out his arm to her as he had the night before, but this time, Violet didn't take it. She walked straight past James and down the hallway.

The pair walked past the bar, causing the bartender to put down her book and take her reading glasses off. They went down the stairs, causing the grey haired woman to nod. She looked slightly shocked as well, yet she had the ghost of a smile on her face. It was clear that James was telling the truth—he didn't go out that often. And it was also clear to Violet that the staff of the hotel were happy about it. Was it that they were happy to have time with him away? Or were they happy for him?

At any rate, Violet was excited. It was her first day as a free woman. She was finally 18, finally an adult. She no longer had to listen to her parents fight, and she no longer had to suffer through their toxic relationship. Did that mean she would stop cutting? She wasn't sure yet, but she had a good feeling about her new life in the wildly creepy Hotel Cortez.

She led the way as James walked a step behind her, his steps smooth, and his face poised. He had this suave attitude, as if he knew who he was and he knew no one could bring him down, except maybe God himself.

James didn't say much, it was almost as he got enjoyment by seeing Violet run around the city. She thought it was an interesting place, a wonderful new place to explore. But after awhile, it was annoying that James was saying nothing, so Violet asked, "How did you make your money?"

The rich man sighed, thinking back to his youth. "Well as a young boy, I was quite poor. My family was struggling for money, and my parents were farmers, making not much more than what could keep us alive. So I decided that enough was enough and that I wanted to be a god. So I did what I could to work in real estate, and I made my fortune at a young age. So I built the Hotel Cortez, and I designed it to be the best hotel in business."

"Wait…you built the hotel? It's like…a hundred years old."

"Not all things are the age that they seem, Miss Harmon."

"You can call me Violet, I'm no maid."

"Oh, I did not mean that disrespectfully, my dear. I call you Miss out of respect. Your first name is for your husband only."

"How long have you been stuck in that hotel?" Violet laughed.

"Long enough. Maybe it is time to come out a bit more." Violet pulled out a cigarette and grabbed for the lighter that was in one of her many pockets when James asked, "You enjoy menthols? You do not seem the type."

"You want a smoke?" Violet offered one to the hotel owner.

He plucked the rolled tobacco from the cardboard box in her hand and said, "These are very small."

She gave him a look, "They're 100s. They're a pretty normal size." He didn't say anything, instead allowing her to light the end as he took a drag. "I think I'm going to buy more, my first legal purchase—pretty exciting, don't you think?" she said sarcastically.

"How do you mean, your first legal purchase?"

"Well I'm eighteen now."

"Now, as opposed to…"

"Yesterday, when I was seventeen."

His eyes widened, "Today is your birthday?" She nodded but brushed it off, as she never liked birthdays. "Well then, we must throw a party."

I hope you all noticed that James can go outside of the hotel... try to guess what this means

~GE7