G is for The Grand - Goodnight by Natasha Duncan-Drake - Day 7 #AtoZChallenge

G is for The Grand

Good morning, sorry this wasn't posted earlier, I'm still running a little behind, but only hours now, not days :). Welcome to day 7 of the AtoZChallenge and my flash fiction ghost story for the letter G.

Today's ghost story is inspired by tales from The Grand Hotel, Folkstone. This is a grand old building and has several ghostly tales associated with it, but I chose to use a very recent one where one reviewer on TripAdvisor wrote:

"I swear on my life, someone was in the other bed in my twin room.

"The next morning, I looked over to the other bed, but it had not been slept in, but I know what I saw."

This is not one of my scary ghost stories, it just might raise a few goosebumps at the idea.

Goodnight 

by Natasha Duncan-Drake

Goodnight

Delphi climbed out of the shower and pulled the robe from the back of the door. She was exhausted. Not only had she just come back from Hong Kong on a two-week business trip, but now she was at a conference and had made a presentation earlier that day. Being a woman in a male dominated field, of course several of the men in the audience had tried to make her prove her credentials with ridiculous questions.

Sometimes she just wished she could tell them all to go screw themselves.

She dried her hair, all the while dreaming of falling into bed.

However, as she stepped out of the bathroom, she was brought up short.

The hotel was fully booked because of the conference, and because she'd arrived a little late, she'd been one of the unlucky few who ended up with a twin room rather than a double. However, that did not mean she expected to be sharing. There was an older woman in the second bed wearing a rather old-fashioned looking night gown.

"Excuse me?" she said, because the woman had definitely not been there when she went into the bathroom.

"I know," the woman replied. "I'm sorry, but this is the only bed available in the hotel I can sleep in. I promise, I don't snore, and I won't bother you."

"Seriously?"

Delphi could not believe this.

"It's most unusual circumstances," the woman said. "I really am sorry. My name's Georgina."

Delphi closed her eyes and counted to ten. Her initial instinct was to call management and throw a fit, but she took a deep breath and looked back at Georgina.

"The only bed?" she checked.

"Yes," Georgina replied.

"Okay," Delphi said and sighed.

The management should have come and asked her, at least, but what was done was done. She could only imagine what it was like from her new companion's side of the situation.

"Water leak, or something like that?" she asked.

"Something like that, yes," Georgina replied. "And thank you, it means a great deal to me."

"We all have to help each other out in emergencies," Delphi replied, deciding that she might as well make the best of the situation. "I'll just go and change."

She picked up her PJs and headed back into the bathroom to put them on. When she came back out, she headed to her bed with a small smile at Georgina, who was now laying down.

"If you don't my me saying, My Dear," Georgina said as she climbed into bed, "you look a little anxious. Has it been a bad day?"

Normally Delphi would have brushed off such an enquiry. It was not something she tended to talk about with anyone except her husband, but she hadn't seen him since she went to Hong Kong and their phone call earlier in the evening had had to be cut short.

"More like a bad couple of weeks," she replied as she made herself comfortable.

"Feel free to tell me to turn over and go to sleep," Georgina said, "but I've been known to be a good listener if you would like to talk."

Delphi sighed again. She knew she should turn the light off and sleep, but everything was churning around in her brain. It would make sleeping hard and Georgina seemed nice. Not really sure why she was doing it, she began to talk. She told the woman about the gross incompetence she had had to deal with in Hong Kong from people who were being paid way more than she was, and that was just the tip of the iceberg.

In the end Delphi fell asleep without realising exactly when, while she was still talking. Georgina was an articulate and sympathetic lady who had some wise words and helped her relax in a way she hadn't realised she'd needed to. Georgina had also been truthful, she didn't snore. When Delphi woke up the next morning, she felt more rested than she had in ages. She actually found herself smiling as she looked on the new day.

She wasn't presenting on the second day of the conference, but she was going to make sure the misogynists knew the ladies were there. She hadn't asked the previous evening, she had just assumed Georgina was also at the conference, she'd have to ask which seminars the other woman was going to.

With that in mind she sat up and turned.

The other bed was empty.

Not only that, but the other bed didn't even look as if it had been slept in. It was made up like she remembered it being when she had first come into the room.

Delphi climbed out of bed and walked to the other side of hers. Even on closer inspection there was nothing to indicate that anyone else had been in the room with her. Not even a dent in the pillow.

It didn't make any sense.

Using the bathroom, dressing  and packing up her things quickly, Delphi went down to reception.

"I'd like to speak to the manager, please," she said.

"Of course, Madam," the nice man on the desk said and picked up the phone.

A couple of minutes later a woman appeared behind the other end of the counter.

"How can I help you?" the manager asked with a smile that suggested she thought trouble was about to occur.

"Did you put another person in my room with me last night?" Delphi asked.

The woman blinked at her.

"That would be very irregular," the manager said. "Could I have your room number, please? I'll just check the overnight logs."

Delphi rattled off her room number and she saw the woman hesitate for a moment before typing it in.

"There's nothing in the logs, Madam," the manager said. "But you say there was another person with you in the room?"

"Yes," Delphi replied.

"Do you have the name of this person?" the manager asked.

"Only her first name: Georgina."

The manager almost looked at if she grimaced.

"We do not appear to have anyone with the first name of Georgina staying at the moment," the manager said. "We will of course investigate this matter fully and provide you with a full refund for last night's stay."

Delphi was taken aback by that response.

"You didn't even type in her name," she pointed out.

The poor woman gave her a startled stare.

"What aren't you telling me?" Dephi asked.

She could see the manager trying to think of something to fob her off, but eventually the woman sagged. Delphi was used to dealing with high powered businessmen with brains the size of their dicks, the manager of a hotel had no chance. As the woman drew her off to the side, she knew she had won.

"We will refund you for your stay," the manager said, "but I'm afraid you won't believe me if I tell you why."

"Try me," Delphi said.

"You room is haunted," the woman replied.

Delphi laughed, but the manager did not.

"You're serious?"

"Your room was once part of a suite always reserved for Lady Georgina Hayes," the manager said. "She used to stay here every summer for at least a month. She was a wealthy widow with a penchant for younger men. As the story goes, one of those young men, believing she had written him into her will, poisoned her in this hotel."

Delphi didn't believe it.

"Don't be ridiculous," she said. "I spent over an hour talking to this woman."

The manager just picked up a booklet from the side of the counter.

"This is the more interesting history of the hotel written by a local author," the manager said, leafing through until she found a particular page, at which point she handed the booklet to Delphi.

There was an old photograph of a grand looking woman in a fine hat, and lovely, old fashioned clothes, standing in front of the hotel's entrance. The woman looked a few years younger than the one she had seen in her room, but the resemblance was clear. The caption under the photograph read: 'Lady Georgina Hayes arriving May 1909'.

"We can only apologies," the manager said.

Delphi just nodded; she was too shocked to say anything. It wasn't until she was sitting at breakfast and had had her first cup of coffee that she told herself to stop being so stupid. So she had spent the night with a ghost in the room, but Georgina had been just what she needed. Being afraid after the fact was just ridiculous. Not that she was above asking the hotel if they could collect her bags from the room, so she didn't have to go back up there, of course.

Dramatic Reading on Patreon

For this month I am also recording dramatic readings of all the ghost stories. These are available on my Patreon. Some are public, some are patrons only (this on is public).

Goodnight - read by Natasha Duncan-Drake

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Would you stay in a haunted hotel room?