The Seventeenth Post

I didn't sleep at all last night. I couldn't. I was already a bit paranoid after my room at the other hotel was ransacked, but even after moving, I couldn't settle my head. It's just as well. Before long, I heard faint voices outside my room door. I check the time and it was 2am, so they probably assumed I was asleep.

I quietly moved to the door and wedged a chair under the knob. I figured the hotel owner was part of The Mist's network and ratted me out. That's why it's so hard to get away from these people. You never know who's in and who's not. This also means I'm marked if my picture has been put out to the network.

I grabbed my things and looked through the crack in the curtain. The parking lot was quiet. Of course, they weren't going to make a big dramatic scene just for me. The Mist doesn't work that way. No "sting" operations or anything. Just do it quietly when no one is looking. I glanced back at the door. A key was inserted in the lock. In moments, they would figure out I'd wedged the door, and the fuss might begin.

I opened the window and climbed out. There was some advantage to being on the first floor after all, since there was no drop. I didn't stick around to see what happened with the door. I'm not stupid. I ran straight to my car and took off. I parked in the far end of the Wal-Mart parking lot and tried to rest. I knew all alone in a 24 hour lot, I would at least not be recognized or noticed.

Needless to say, I didn't sleep well.

When I woke up, I came right into the McDonald's here in the Wal-Mart, and that's where I am now, trying to choke down breakfast. I'm in the back corner at this point, with my back to the entrance. Anyone could be part of their network. At any moment, someone could walk up behind me, and that would be it.

It may be high time to head over to Tulsa or Jenks or something to get away from their network entirely. I don't know whether they have a Mist in place in those cities, but Tara said they were primarily local and secret, so it's hard to say whether they communicate with each other or not.

Nevertheless, I think it's getting too