How the Hitman Stole Christmas

I drive for a while longer without offering her a solution to her problem, but when we pass the second exit, she sighs.

“Are you gonna make me beg?” she demands. “I have to pee. You need to stop somewhere, or…”

There’s urgency in her tone this time so I know she’s not just trying to get me to stop so she can cry out for help.

The next exit sign we pass is a lodging one with a single motel pictured. It’s a generic hometown motel, not a chain.

Those are hit or miss. Some are better because they tend to do things less officially than chain hotels do. By-the-hour motels are obviously the best, no one ever asks questions at those dumps, but not all generic motels are sleazy. Some are run by owners who are personally invested and care too much, and if you get one of those… well, that’s a fucking headache.

I decide to pull off at the next exit and see if I can get an idea what kind this is.

Fear flashes across Autumn’s face when I pull into the driveway of the little beige motel. “What are we doing at a motel?”

I pull closer, taking a slow roll through the driveway and eyeing the place up.

It’s a motel and campground. I don’t like that right off the bat. A campground attached means more through-traffic, more chances for Autumn to create a headache for me to deal with.

The sign is trying too hard as well, making me think the owners lean more toward the kind I don’t want to deal with.

The nail in the coffin is when I realize the rooms don’t have private entrances I can access from the outside. I can easily get Autumn from my car to our room without attracting notice, but only if it’s a short walk. If I have to drag her inside and down some long, communal corridor, there’s too much chance of running into other people.

This won’t work.

As alarmed as she was when I pulled in the driveway, she’s even more alarmed when I pull back out.

“Jasper.”

“I know, you need me to stop, but this isn’t the place.”

“I have to pee,” she complains, squeezing her thighs together to drive home the point.

If I could turn the jammer off for a minute without her realizing it’s there, I’d look online and see if there’s a better place up ahead. Since I can’t, I just have to hope there is.

“I’ll stop again as soon as I can,” I assure her.

She’s mad at me all over again as I pull back onto the highway. It’s her own fault, really. If I didn’t have to worry about her calling out for help, any place with a bed would work.

Luckily for her bladder, when I pull off a couple exits later, it’s a busier area with another no-frills budget motel. I was hoping for an exit with fewer businesses, but as soon as soon as I pull into the dumpy little roadside “inn,” I get a good feeling about it.

The road sign looks like somebody made it in Microsoft paint, and the place is located directly next to an adult store. There’s even a cock on the motel sign—albeit, a rooster, but every room has its own private door and I’d bet good money they rent out rooms by the hour when requested.

This is exactly the trashy paradise I was hoping for.

The only problem I see is that I need to go into the motel office to pay for our room, and I can’t trust Autumn to wait for me in the car.

It’s probably gonna piss her off, but I’m prepared for that too. She shrinks away from me as I lean over toward her seat, but I ignore that and reach into the glove box for an emergency restraint kit I keep in there. It’s not the type I want to use on her. Zip ties are a hell of a lot less comfortable than some alternatives I’d rather use on her delicate skin, but she won’t have to wear them for long. I just need her to stay put for a few minutes, then I’ll cut her free.

“What are you doing?” she cries, her voice rising with fear when I grab her wrists. She tries to fight me, but I’m a lot stronger than her, which she realizes immediately. “Jasper, what—”

“Making sure you don’t go anywhere,” I tell her, as I secure the zip ties and chain her little ass to my door handle.

“Who keeps zip ties in their glove compartment?” she demands.

“A man who likes to be prepared for any eventuality.” I settle back in my seat and look at her.

Her body is turned away from me since both her hands are stuck by the door now, but no matter how much she pulls and tugs, she’s not going anywhere until I let her.