Jake woke up at the motel, sitting up slowly as he looked once more at his plans. He picked up the pen and circled the word Capital.
"Time is running out and I haven't gotten anywhere yet."
He dragged his hand through his hair in frustration as he grabbed his phone and checked for news on Cronetech.
Cronetech to unveil new revolutionary product in a week
His jaw tightened. 'Time's running out. I need to find a way to get capital fast.'
He headed to the shower, stripping off his shirt. As the water hit him, he paused. He turned the faucet to cold and held his hand under the stream.
'Huh, nothing.'
Turning his hands, he felt no discomfort, just feeling the water on his palm.
"That's not right." Jake looked at his palm in confusion.
He pressed his palm against the shower wall, feeling the temperature. The water should be chilly, his brain knew. But his body wasn't registering it the same way anymore.
Jake wiped himself down and stared at his reflection in the mirror.
"More mysteries," he muttered. "First going back in time, Jules's connection to Nexus Corp, now this."
He dressed in a white windbreaker over black pants and left the room, stepping gently on the stairs as he walked down. Tracy was at the front desk with a cup of milk and a plate of cookies.
"Good morning, Jake. Hope you had a nice night." She waved, her smile bright.
"Morning Tracy. Yeah." Jake answered as he walked up to her.
Tracy pushed a plate toward him. "Here, have some cookies. I baked them myself."
Jake looked at the plate, then took one, not wanting to reject her kindness. "Thanks, Tracy."
He sat in the chair nearby, eating the cookie and drinking milk in silence while the TV played softly in the background. Tracy fidgeted with her cup, trying to break the awkward silence.
"The water heater should be fixed this evening. Sorry about the inconvenience."
"No worries, it didn't affect me much." Jake answered as he watched news on his phone.
She nodded, then tried again. "So are you going anywhere today?"
Jake looked up briefly. "Yeah, still got some business to finish."
"Business," Tracy repeated softly, her smile fading. "Right."
Jake stood up, feeling the weight of her disappointment but pushing past it. "Thanks again Tracy for the cookies. I have to go now."
"Okay, have a nice day," she said absently, her voice quiet as she watched him go.
As Jake stepped out of the motel, he walked slowly, taking time to stroll around the block. The morning was quiet as people moved past him in their usual routines. He suddenly sighed, looking around.
"If only it would last."
Ping. Ping.
His phone buzzed. Jake pulled it out of his pocket, smiling at the caller's name.
Jules
"Hey, Jules." Jake stopped walking as he answered.
"Hi, Jake. I am so sorry for suddenly leaving yesterday. Something came up at work and it was an emergency."
"No problem, Jules. I understand."
"No, it's not okay. Lunch is on me today. I'll text you the location so meet me there. Bye!" She said with a tone of finality.
She hung up before he could respond.
Jake shook his head, smiling slightly. "Same Jules. Always in a hurry."
He waved down a cab and climbed in. "Lux Hotel."
As the car moved through traffic, Jake pulled up information about the hotel on his phone. The photos looked professional grand lobby, elegant rooms. But the reviews were a different thing entirely.
Used to be amazing but management has really let it slide. — 2 stars
Needs serious renovation, what happened to this place? — 3 stars
He scrolled further and found a local business article from 2023: "Lux Hotel falls from Grace: Once Top-3 Destination Now Struggling."
As Jake scrolled through the reviews, he noticed that the decline in good reviews started in 2022. Jake's chest tightened. "Right after Dad died."
Closing his eyes and exhaling slowly, "I better go see things for myself. At least if I can secure Lux, I'll have a foothold before the apocalypse."
The cab stopped in front of a tall building with a silver sign: LUX HOTEL
Jake paid the driver and stepped out, staring up at the entrance. Memories flickered, a little vague. He remembered being here once before, years ago, with his father.
He walked inside, looking around. The lobby was large and magnificent high ceilings with a crystal chandelier, marble floors stretching toward the elevators. But Jake could still see the problems in the glamour. He spotted cracks in the walls, faded tiles, also three dead bulbs in the chandelier above. Even the front desk needed refinishing.
As Jake surveyed the lobby, a young man in a wine-colored uniform approached him, bowing slightly.
"Hello, can I help you, sir?" he asked in a polite tone.
Jake turned to face him. "Yes. I'd like to meet your manager."
The concierge hesitated, looking Jake over. "Of course sir. If I may ask, who am I speaking with?"
"Just tell him Jake Carlson."
The concierge's expression shifted, recognition settling in his eyes. "Of course, sir. Please follow me."
He led Jake to an elevator which they rode to the third floor in silence, then he led Jake as they walked down a quiet hallway. Jake surveyed everything the worn carpet, the faint smell of cleaning solution masking something stale.
The concierge suddenly stopped at a door and gestured to a chair nearby. "Please wait here while I inform the manager."
Jake nodded, sitting down while the concierge knocked, entered, then emerged a minute later.
"You may enter, sir." He gestured to the door.
"Thanks." Jake nodded to him as he stepped inside.
The office was dimmer than the hallway, curtains half-drawn. Behind a heavy oak desk sat a man in his fifties, with gray threading through his thinning hair, deep lines carved around his eyes. He was writing something and didn't look up immediately.
When he did, his tired face softened with something Jake couldn't quite place.
"Mr. Carlson." He stood, extending a hand. "Edward Webb. It's good to see you here."
Jake shook his hand, frowning slightly. "Have we met before?"
Edward laughed quietly and sat back down. "You might not remember, but you came here once with your father, Jacob. You were probably too young back then."
Jake's expression faltered. "My father. Sorry, I don't remember."
Edward waved his hand. "That's all in the past. But what matters now is that you're here and just maybe Lux can be saved now."
"Saved?" Jake leaned forward. "What do you mean by that?"
Edward sighed, the exhaustion clear in his posture. "Lux is not as glorious as it was. With your father's death, Angela and Markus have been frequently withdrawing money from the hotel. And if it continues, it's only a matter of time before it closes down."
Jake's jaw clenched. "And my father left this to me."
Edward opened a drawer and pulled out a thick ledger. "He did. Full ownership, transferred two years before he passed." He slid the ledger across the desk. "But Angela Carlson has been withdrawing funds monthly. 'Management fees,' she calls them. And Markus too. Between them, they've bled this place for nearly eight hundred thousand dollars in two years."
Jake stared at the ledger, flipping through pages of transactions. He noticed every month, tens of thousands of dollars were taken from the hotel.
"I kept records," Edward said as he watched Jake. "Everything for a day like today. I knew someone would come eventually for it. I hoped it would be you."
Jake closed the ledger slowly. "Why didn't you stop them?"
"I tried." Edward's voice was bitter. "But legally, they had authority as your guardians and they made sure I knew what would happen if I pushed back."
Jake stood, pacing to the window, deep in his thoughts. Outside, Palm City stretched in every direction. Somewhere out there, Markus was planning his next move. Angela was probably sitting comfortably in the Carlson house. And they had no idea what was coming.
"I want to inspect the hotel," Jake said, turning back. "Every floor, every room. I need to know exactly what we're working with."
Edward nodded and stood up. "I'll take you around myself."
For the next two hours, Edward walked Jake through the Lux. The basement had solid foundation, large storage areas, backup generators that still worked. The rooms needed updating but weren't unsalvageable. The roof had structural integrity.
Jake made mental notes. 'The location was near higher ground, which would matter when the flooding started. The building itself could be fortified. If he could secure this place, refurbish it, maybe even expand...'
"It could work," Jake muttered.
Edward glanced at him. "What could work?"
"Nothing, just thinking." Jake pulled out his phone and took pictures—the generators, the layout, the exits.
They returned to Edward's office as Jake sat down, his mind already calculating.
"I'm going to save this place," he said, making his decision. "But I need your help."
Edward studied him carefully. "What do you need?"
"Time and discretion. Angela and Markus can't know I'm moving on this until I'm ready."
"They already know you're here," Edward said as he pointed. "Sorry to say this, but they probably have their spies here."
"Then we control the narrative." Jake leaned forward. "Tell them I came to look around, that I didn't seem interested. Whatever to throw them off my real purpose."
Edward's tired face cracked into a faint smile. "Okay, I can do that."
"Good, thanks Edward." Jake stood and shook his hand again. "I'll be in touch. Just keep those records safe."
"No problem Jake."
Jake left the hotel, stepping into the midday sun. His phone buzzed with a message.
Jules: Blue bell Café. 1 PM. Don't you dare be late!
He checked the time. 12:30. He had thirty minutes to get there, so Jake flagged another cab. "Blue bell Café."
As the car moved through traffic, Jake's thoughts churned. The hotel was an asset, might even be a lifeline. But it wasn't enough, not enough for what was coming. He still needed capital and fast.
Suddenly a thought hit him. Cursing, Jake sat up. "Damn, can't believe I forgot this."
Pulling up his phone, he searched: Vertex Solutions stock.
Looking at the various hype around Vertex Solutions, the company was riding high on hype for an experimental medical treatment. But Jake remembered what happened next. In exactly seven days, they'd announce failed clinical trials and the stock would tank by sixty percent overnight.
'If he could short it with even the small loan the bank offered...'
Jake opened his calculator. If he put in five thousand and the stock dropped from $47 to $18... looking at the numbers, Jake's breath quickened in excitement. Roughly eight thousand in profit. Not enough for Cronetech, but enough to build momentum.
"First step," he muttered.
The cab pulled up to Bluebell Café, a cozy spot with outdoor seating and hanging plants. Jake paid and stepped inside, scanning the room for Jules.
Jules was already there, waving from a corner table. Her blonde hair was pulled back this time, her energy infectious even from across the room.
Jake smiled and walked over. "Hey."
"Jake!" She stood and hugged him quickly before sitting back down. "I already ordered for us. Hope you still like turkey sandwiches?"
"Yeah, that's fine." Jake answered as he sat down.
Suddenly Jules leaned forward, eyes bright. "Okay, so I have to tell you about my new job. It's insane."
"Yeah?" Jake sipped the water on the table. "Where are you working?"
"Nexus Corp." Jules said in excitement.
Jake's hand tightened slightly on the glass, but Jules didn't notice, continuing excitedly. "I'm in their special projects division. We're working on climate adaptation infrastructure. Like, seriously revolutionary stuff. The pay is ridiculous, and my boss keeps saying we're 'building the future.'"
Jake forced his voice to stay casual. "Sounds intense. What kind of projects?"
"I can't say too much with the Non-disclosure and all that. But I can tell you it's big. Like, shelters, resource management systems, sustainable energy grids." She grinned. "Honestly, it feels like we're preparing for the end of the world or something."
Jake's blood ran cold, but he kept his expression neutral. "That's ambitious."
"Right?" Jules pulled out her phone, scrolling. "Oh, and they're hiring. Like, aggressively. You should apply. They need people like you, smart people. And the benefits are insane."
She handed him her phone. The Nexus Corp careers page was open, listing dozens of positions.
"I don't know, Jules," Jake said slowly. "I've got a lot going on right now."
"C'mon, you gonna need to do something now that you left the Carlsons," she pointed out.
"Just think about it." Jules took her phone back. "Cause it's probably closing by July from what I heard."
Jake's chest tightened. July. 'That's when the apocalypse begins.'
"July," he repeated carefully. "What will happen then?"
"Not really sure. Just that it's the 'activation phase' or something." She shrugged. "Corporate jargon, you know?"
Their food arrived. Jules dug in immediately, talking between bites about her coworkers, her new apartment, how busy she'd been. But Jake barely tasted his sandwich. His mind was racing about the information Jules dropped now.
Jules was already inside Nexus Corp. She had access, information, resources. And she had no idea what was coming.
"Jules," he said suddenly.
She looked up. "Yeah?"
He wanted to tell her, to warn her. But how could he? She'd think he was crazy. And even if she believed him, what could she do? It might put her in danger.
"Nothing," he said finally. "Just... be careful, okay? With the new job." Sounding worried.
She laughed. "Why? You think corporate espionage is a thing?"
"Something like that."
Jules reached across the table and squeezed his hand. "I'll be fine, Jake. But thanks for worrying."
She pulled back and checked her watch. "Crap. I have to get back to the office. Lunch meeting at two." She stood, grabbing her bag. "It was so good seeing you Jake. Let's not wait so long next time, okay?"
"Yeah. Definitely."
She hugged him again, then hurried out. Jake sat alone at the table, staring at his half-eaten sandwich.
Jules was at Nexus Corp. She'd be there when everything collapsed. And in his previous life, she'd died two weeks into the apocalypse.
"Not this time," he whispered. "Not this time, Jules."
He pulled out his phone and opened a new note.
Priority: Get into Nexus Corp, find out about Phase One and save Jules.
Jake returned to the motel as the sun dipped lower. Tracy wasn't at the desk, probably on break.
He climbed the stairs to his room, fishing out his key. But as he reached the door, something felt off.
Jake paused, studying the doorframe. No scratches or visible damage. But the handle was slightly warm, like someone had been gripping it recently. Skills he had honed during the apocalypse.
He unlocked the door slowly and stepped inside.
Everything looked normal his bed the same way he left it, his bag in the corner. Laptop on the table. But his papers were moved.
Just slightly. But Jake noticed the corner of his notes on Cronetech was folded differently. Also the pen was on the left side of the notebook instead of the right.
Jake's breath quickened as he walked to his bag and checked the zipper. It had been opened and closed, but the teeth slightly misaligned.
Someone had searched his room. Professional but careful. Just not careful enough.
Jake pulled out his phone as he opened his messages and texted Richard.
Jake: We need to accelerate the timeline. They're already moving.
The reply came within seconds.
Richard: Understood. I'll file emergency motions tomorrow. Be careful.
Jake sat on the bed, staring at his phone screen. Outside, the motel hummed with evening life. Cars passed as voices drifted from other rooms.
Inside Room 14, Jake sat in the dark, his jaw set and his mind already three steps ahead as he made different plans.
"I have no enemies so it's definitely the Carlsons. But I will be ready for whatever they bring."
Staring at the window, he looked at the night sky. "I hope you are ready too."