The Elevator

I’m getting too old for this, I say as I make my way up the stairs to the thirteenth floor of this hotel. The elevator of this place was closed permanently due to the obscene amount of people who ended up dead inside of it. Every year at this hotel seven people lose their lives in the elevator. The latest victim is my son, Ben. Twenty years prior I was here at this same hotel after my wife, Louise, was found deceased in the elevator.

“Are you Mr. George Harrison sir?” A plucky young police officer asks while quivering in his boots. He was waiting just outside of the room my son was staying at, number five hundred twenty-three, the same as my wife.

“First time at this hotel I reckon?” I asked the boy.

“Yes sir, I’ve heard all the rumors of this place and I can't believe I’m actually here working a case.”

“What’s your name son?”

“Chris Bell, sir.”

“So Chris can I enter the room now?”

He moved from the door almost tripping over his own feet. The room was very tidy, nothing had changed in twenty years. There was the same peeling blue wallpaper and fake accent golds on all the lamps. I was here to pick up the things that Ben had left, there wasn't much besides some clothes. I reached into a pair of his twill trousers and found a picture of Louise. She was everything to me, I don’t know how I’ve been able to function so long without her.

I took some time looking at the picture. Memories flooded from when I was young. I was an art major in the early eighties without a care in the world. I thought I was going to move to New York and be surrounded by people like Basquiat and Warhol, but there was one woman who changed everything. A girl so in love with math, history, science, and everything I wasn’t good at. Louise came into my life and helped get me out of college. We later settled down and had Benjamin, I let her name him of course. We had a quiet life, however it was all I could ever want. I remember how in love with her studies she was and how Ben took after her. Now they are both gone.

“Everything going okay there sir?” Officer Bell asked cutting into my train of thought.

“Everything is fine, just an old man reminiscing.”

“You know Mr. Harrison your son was the sixth. Every year there've been seven and todays the thirty-first of December.”

“Your point officer?” I asked sharply.

“There will be another.” He replied.

The mood got grim and I went back to searching the room. I got down on my old sixty year old knees to search underneath the bed. There was a black suitcase with a three digit code lock. I entered one-one-three, which was his birthday, and it popped open. My eyes almost left the socket.

There was a large sum of money surrounding a black notebook with a note on top that read.

Dad,

If you're reading this I’m no longer with you all anymore. After years and years of mother being gone, I’ve decided to join her. I have left you twenty-thousand dollars in order to start your life over to protect this black notebook. This was mother’s life's work and I was able to decipher it and add on to it. You can’t allow this to get into the wrong hands. Take the money and run for your life.

I love you. - Ben

I crumbled the letter into my fist, furious that he chased his mother’s dreams. The same dream that had taken her from me. A tear started to run down my cheek and more followed it. I tried my hardest to stop it, but it was uncontrollable.

“Mr. Harrison what’s the matter?” Chris had bent down to help me up.

“I’m fine now just let go of me will you.” I snapped.

He looked at me with a concerned look on his face.

“Sorry,” I said. “It’s been a hard life for me, officer.”

He helped me out of the room and we were properly greeted by three men in suits.

“Hello Mr. Harrison, we are terribly sorry for your recent loss,” said a man wearing black shades with neatly combed hair. “Your son was extremely brilliant, he was very close to a major scientific breakthrough.”

Another man butted in who looked nearly identical. “We are here sir to honor your son in death. We would like to ask you if we can use his studies for mankind. Name your price and we will gladly pay it.”

“Sorry,” I replied. “This is all I have left of my family. Now if you’ll excuse me while I grieve.”

The third man who was also nearly identical besides the fact he was noticeably stronger than the other men grabbed me by the arm.

“Don’t make a mistake you’ll regret Mr. Harrison, we’re willing to work with you here name your price. Would you like millions, hell we would even be willing to part with billions.

“No. I don’t need your money. It won’t bring my family back.”

He pushed me down and I fell back onto my hip, I was in excruciating pain. The young officer came to my aid.

“Alright fellas he said no, now let me get him home.” Officer Bell said as he helped me through the door.

“Not so fast.”

The larger guy kneed the boy in the stomach.

“Run Mr. Harrison, run!” He screamed out in pain.

I tried my best to run away. I left floor thirteen while Chris was trying his best to keep the men from running after me.

BANG!

I made it to the tenth floor before hearing a loud gunshot, the young officer’s fight was futile as his screams went quiet. Loud footsteps were now getting louder and closer. I ran as fast as an old man could run. For a split second I looked up on the staircase and saw the three men with their guns locked and loaded. They were getting closer and closer, I had to try my best to break away from them so I went into the sixth floor.

There was a public bathroom that I had decided to run into. Tired and out of breath I took out the notebook. Each page was numbered and was filled with equations. I wasn’t the smartest in the family, so figuring out what was written on these pages was troublesome. I kept flipping and flipping until landing on the page numbered one thousand six hundred nineteen. This journal only had roughly three hundred pages in it, but halfway in there was a key shape carved into the rest of the book. However there was no key to be found.

“Where are you Mr. Harrison? I know you’re here!”

They finally made it to me. They were banging on each door trying to find me. The time was ticking before they would finally notice where I was so I had to make a break for it. I kicked out the bathroom door and tried to flee, they noticed me immediately and quickly followed.

“Mr. Harrison put down the briefcase and stepped away. Don’t make us bring our backup.” One of the men demanded.

“No!’ I shouted.

BANG!

I sat on the floor clutching the briefcase. It had stopped the bullet from reaching my chest. The men were about to unleash more shots so I took the black notebook out from the briefcase and threw it at them, scattering the money everywhere in the process. I ran to the stairwell right next to me to make my way down, however the stairs only went up to the next floor.

On the seventh floor was a narrow hallway. I ran to the other side until footsteps started coming down. I stopped, fearing that it was more men coming to get me. The other men I could hear making their way up to me.

“There’s nowhere left to run, our backup will be here shortly, give up.”

I fell down to my knees rummaging through the notebook for anything that could help me. They slowly approached, I gave up, nothing in this book could help me out of this situation.

“Please Louise, please Ben, I need you. I’m sorry I failed you both.” I cried out loud.

BANG!

One of the men fell down and blood went all over. It was the young officer, Chris Bell. He was back with a limp and tightly wielding his gun.

“Mr. Harrison stand aside I’ll protect you!” He shouted, sending more shots at the two men.

I laid back by the elevator in the middle holding my ears. He was able to shoot down one more man until he was caught in the chest with a bullet.

Click!

He ran out of bullets and so did the bigger gentleman in the suit. His glasses were off and his suit was disheveled. Out of anger the man approached the boy with his fist balled up completely ignoring me. I grabbed a gun out of one of the men’s cold hands.

BANG!

The large man fell onto officer Bell, I dropped the gun immediately out of shock of what just happened. I just killed a man.

“Are you okay Chris?” I asked while trying to stop his bleeding.

“Don’t worry,” He gulped. “I’m going to get you home.”

The color was leaving his face while more footsteps were quickly approaching.

“Give me the gun Mr. Harrison I’ll protect you, make a run for it.”

I refused, but he snatched the gun from me. I made a run for the staircase, however it was locked.

“Damn it!” I yelled in frustration.

“The elevator, go up the elevator” Chris said coldly.

“But It’s loc—”

“The key.” He cut me off.

I reached into the notebook to the page with the key and sure enough it was there. There was no time for me to try and understand it. Chris opened the door and started to fire his gun, slowing down the men coming for me. I fumbled around trying to unlock the elevator.

BANG!

“See you later Mr. Harrison” The young officer said as he was shot dead.

I lunged into the elevator and quickly pressed down, the damn button did absolutely nothing. I kept pressing it and pressing it until the men got closer. They started banging on the elevator doors. Without hesitating I pressed the up button and then fell down from all the stress. I was completely exhausted.

Eight. Nine. Ten. Eleven. Twelve. Thirteen.

The elevator stopped. This was the last floor, I waited for the doors to open. Seconds went by and nothing happened. I started to spam the open button, still nothing happened. I started banging on the doors to make it open.

Crash!

The elevator started shaking violently, I was thrown all over. My body became so heavy, I started to break out in sweat. It was so hot from all the pressure pressed onto my body. The feeling went away just as fast as it came about. I felt relieved until I noticed that I was floating above myself looking at my body. I was in the same position that my wife and my son were found in the same elevator and the same hotel. The elevator continued to go up.

It kept going until the number seven hundred seventy-seven. The doors opened and I was greeted with the feeling of everything and nothing. The space was infinite, it stretched for miles. I turned around and the elevator was gone. All I could see was Louise, Ben, and the plucky young officer Chris Bell.

“Welcome my love.” Louise greeted me with a smile and I melted into her arms.