So preoccupied it caught me by surprise that the sun was now at my back and sinking fast. And, as luck would have it, coming up on my left was the run down motel that Lilith and I had stayed at to escape the dust storm. I pulled over and threw my credit card at the same motel manager that had told me not to bother chasing after Lilith. If his bloodshot eyes recognized me he didn’t say anything. He ran the card, threw the old fashioned metal key on the counter, then turned back to stare at his small, beat up flatscreen. Some inane game show was on, but the way he stared told me he wasn’t really taking it in. I wondered how many years he had sat there, and what led him to this hopeless place. Was it a woman? One that he loved and he thought loved him back, only to find out that she didn’t?
