While getting dressed, Nancy again fell to thinking about Ned, her mood darkening in the absence of her friends. She went over the unpleasant incident at Lookout Point once again, comparing it against her shameful enjoyment of what had happened with the Colonel. It certainly wasn't as though she saw the Colonel as a better prospect than Ned. It mystified her.
She paused in her wardrobe choice for the day, an odd smile at the corners of her mouth when she removed the button up red dress from her suitcase. It was the raciest garment she owned and she felt a vague shame for picking it out, for the excitement that was already growing over the thought of wearing it for the Colonel.
Along with her usual garters, Nancy pulled on a pair of white cotton bikini panties and a little bra of the same soft fabric that felt comfortable and looked nice. After following the example of Bess and George in the application of her makeup and the extra time she took with her hair, she finally donned her red dress. In the mirror, her smile was wider as she inspected its belted waist and the hemline that ended just above her knees, more than properly covering the tops of her white stockings. The low neck, she'd noted, could be lower if she were to carelessly forget a few buttons... She decided against this, but then pondered the idea of removing her bra. The rayon garment would surely showcase her nipples like Bess's had been in the white top she'd worn for the disgusting bellhop, and she debated this for twice as long as she'd debated how far to button the bodice of her dress before deciding to leave her bra on. She slipped on a pair of three inch black heels, again wondering if she should show just a little cleavage, again deciding against it.
By the time she opened the door at almost half past two, Nancy felt marginally better for her appearance and the excitement it wrought within her. The question of Ned still resided in her mind, but was overshadowed by the vague shame she felt at her excitement. It wasn't as though this particular dress was indecent in any way, rather the reasons she'd chosen it that made her feel the way she did. As she did the day before, she found herself at odds with these opposing feelings, not to mention her undeniable excitement at being in the company of the dirty old Colonel again, but couldn't make sense of them beyond the fact that she enjoyed how they subtly played with her psyche.
Mr. Carmody was at his desk, giving her a warm smile and a morning greeting which Nancy returned. The Colonel, however, wasn't in the parlour so she headed down the hall that led to the rear veranda.
It was a beautiful morning that promised an even more beautiful day as Nancy breathed deeply the salty sea air at the railing. Looking down to the water's edge, she had to resist an urge to go wading again, the memory of how the cold water felt around her legs drawing her until she forced herself to turn from the railing and move towards the wooden screen door that led to the kitchen. Behind it, a heavier inside door with a narrow wood grained plack which warned that only employees were permitted past that point stood wide open. Nancy tried the handle to the screen door, found it unlocked and, with a last look around, she slipped inside.
The kitchen was sufficiently large and the length of its oblong shape ran away from her towards the front of the hotel. A long stainless steel island with various pots and pans hanging above it ran down the center. It separated another long stainless steel counter to the left, occupied by professional grade appliances and two ranges with ovens from a blue tiled wall on the right.
Aside from the one through which she'd entered, there were five more doors leading from the kitchen. One was at the end wall, opposite the veranda entrance, and had a round window, obviously the door to the dining room. Another was to her immediate right and, quickly moving to it, she found a broom closet. Softly closing this door, she moved on, down the right hand side of the long island, opening another which turned out to be a fair sized pantry. She hoped the next door would yield results, as the one after that was obviously the entry to a walk in freezer. The last option opened to a short hallway with a door at the end and one to either side.
The door on the left turned out to be the one Nancy wanted, opening to a small landing with a set of service stairs going up, but also a set going down. The sound of shoes descending this stairwell from above necessitated quick movement on Nancy's part so, after quietly closing the door behind her, she crept down the first flight of basement stairs to the mid-level landing and rounded the corner. Thankfully, whoever it was coming down the service stairs exited to the short hallway through which she'd come rather than continuing to the basement, and Nancy allowed herself a breath of relief before making her way down the second flight of stairs to a heavy wooden door at the bottom.
The attractive, teenage sleuth smiled at the sight of the old fashioned latch handle without an accompanying lock and, moments later, she found herself in a short hallway, barely lit by a dim, naked bulb hanging from the ceiling. The walls were made of narrow, horizontal slats that certainly offered splinters for anyone careless enough to rub against them on their way through the hall, and each one featured a door of rough planks with another at the end of the passage.
Nancy's smile was all about the mystery as she started down the short hallway, her shoes falling on the rough cement floor being the only sound. This, for her, was what it was all about, what she lived for and any post grad vocation she may end up following would only support this passion, or actually be comprised of it.
The door on the left opened to a fair sized storage room lit in the same fashion as the hallway. A quick survey of its contents revealed the expected items, including old washing machines, tables and chairs, a rolled up carpet, wash basins, boxes piled in a corner and other assorted junk that she hadn't the time or interest to go through.
The door on the right opened to a workshop. Nancy breathed a small sigh of relief that there wasn't anybody actually in there before walking in for a short inspection. This room was lit with a long fluorescent ceiling fixture. There was a workbench spanning the length of one wall with a heavy vice bolted to one end, a key maker on the other with a large metal key box affixed to the wall behind it. On the bench were different gadgets and gizmos, a few of them with colourful wires sprouting from them, and assorted tools. Spanning most of the wall above the workbench was a large sheet of brown pegboard with various specialty tools hanging there, such as pipe cutters, gear pullers, a paint gun, heavy chain cutters, and several power tools. All of these items were clean and shiny, as was the air compressor against the left wall, the tall, shiny red toolbox beside it, and every tool in it.
Above that toolbox was a large poster of a young brunette woman in a white, one piece swimsuit with tattered edges. She held a pipe wrench and the suit, smeared with dirt here and there, was soaked and showed very clearly her nipples, full vaginal lips and the patch of dark pubic hair above them. Her expression was one of defiance and lust, her green eyes seeming to lock on Nancy as though challenging her presence there.
The right wall held a bunk close to the door, its clothes made up of a soft looking red blanket with a large, brown quilted moving blanket and two pillows in red corduroy covers. Its unmade condition suggested that somebody was using it at least somewhat regularly. Beside this and separated by a tall headboard of vertical planks was a large rack of two-by-fours, copper pipe, long pieces of angle iron, flat bar and other such stock while the wall opposite the workbench was comprised of deep shelves that held all manner of things, most notably a motorcycle engine, a collection of electric motors, some disassembled power tools and parts of exercise machines.
Back in the outer hallway, Nancy's mind returned to the poster. To her mind came the exciting thought that if the bra and panties she was wearing should somehow become soaked, they would be almost as revealing as that young woman's swimsuit. Banishing this with a shake of her head and the smallest, guilty grin, she moved on. The final door, the one at the end of the hall, was also secured by only an old fashioned latch. She lifted it and slowly pushed the door open to stand in awe of what she found within.
As she'd suspected, the four large crystal columns of the main lobby extended down through its floor to the cement floor of the basement. In this large basement chamber, the milky light from the columns was much brighter than it was in the lobby but, as with the level above, there was no clue as to how this could be. Nancy could find no light shining on them and could only conclude that, somehow, the columns themselves were emitting the light that lit the rest of the room, bathing the unpainted plywood walls.
