After a quick bath, Ryder headed to the motel's office to confirm that Audrey had settled the bill. She had. It was only when he noticed the rundown surroundings that he realized he was in Burwell. He must have been really drunk last night not to realize they had traveled from downtown Portdale all the way to Burwell. He was about to call a cab when he remembered something Audrey said at the nightclub. Something about a new place in Burwell that was hiring staff.
Thankfully Kaleb, the motel's cashier, had heard about the place and gave him very precise directions. "But there's no point in going there now. You'll have to wait for it to open, at 5 pm, I believe."
Ryder thanked the clerk and called a cab to take him home.
Once he was home Ryder picked up his birthday present. He'd begged and pleaded with his parents and they had finally relented. Ryder was now the proud owner of a chopper.
For once he would have liked to skip his karate lesson and just drive around town, feeling the wind on his face and enjoying the freedom riding the chopper gave him.
But Sensei Dan was known for his perverse punishments to anyone skipping class without a very good reason and the last thing Ryder wanted was his body covered in bruises for the next month. So he went to the dojo and dutifully practiced breaking boards.
After the argument with Audrey, it was strangely satisfying venting his hot temper on the wooden boards.
An hour later he was back on his bike, just driving around with no set destination in mind.
Then something caught his attention.
The realtor sensed a potential sale and came out to greet Ryder. "Hi, welcome to Fletcher's Real Estate Agency. I'm Meghan Fletcher and I'd be happy to show you more options than we have on display outside, if you're interested."
Ryder followed Meghan inside and let her know he was interested in renting a cheap apartment.
"Just how cheap are we talking about?" Meghan asked.
Ryder told her his budget and watched as Meghan frowned.
"It'll be next to impossible to find something this side of the river for that kind of price. Are you okay with possibly moving to Burwell?"
It wasn't a problem, he told her, since he was hoping to get a job at a nightclub in that neighborhood.
"Perfect!" she said, clapping her hands together. "I have one place in mind for you. Just let me make a quick phone call to see if the person holding the keys is available today."
