Chapter Twenty-Five
Behind the Eight Ball
Just be patient. Let the game come to you. Don't rush. Be quick, but don't hurry.
—Earl Monroe
Day 3—7:51PM
Clearwater Beach Hilton
ELENA
Less than five minutes later, we park outside of the Hilton.
It’s a low-rise, squat, white building on Clearwater Beach. Located next to the Marina, it’s got all the feel of a beachside resort—the implanted palm trees, the little tiki huts.
The lobby is well-lit—bathed in a yellowish-gold glow—and even as Lukas and I are parked across the street, the smell of the ocean overwhelms me, the scent of briny water and white sand flooding my senses, further reminding me of how we are nearly surrounded by a captivating sea. Not too many places to run to in a remote location like this.
It’s almost a bottle-neck,
