Warning Unheeded

Dion couldn't resist. 300 words

Warning Unheeded

“Good day, my name is Inez,” a tall woman said as she opened the door.

“My name is Dion, I believe I have a reservation,” the man who had knocked, said as he held out his hand.

“Yes, I have it right here,” the woman said, indicating a clipboard in her other hand.

“Right this way,” she continued as she gestured with the board to a set of stairs. Dion eyed the spiral staircase with interest.

“Do you have any luggage?” asked Inez as they reached the top and stopped to recover their breathing.

“Just a backpack. I’m on a walking tour.”

She nodded as she opened the door and handed him the key. She walked into the room with him, showing him all the appointments of the large, cozy space. Stopping in front of a door, she turned to look at him intently.

“This is important.”

“The door? Isn’t it a closet?”

“Never ever open this door while you are staying here,” she explained.

“Why ever not? I might want to hang things up!”

Inez gave him an inscrutably blank look. Dion gave up trying to find out the whys and wherefores of her strange request. She bade him a brief farewell after telling him that supper is at six.

Dion was exhausted and decided to take a nap. As soon as he was comfortable on the bed, he fell fast asleep. Waking up at 5 pm, he got up to freshen up before supper.

The closet seemed to draw him towards it. He resisted for a short while, but finally, he couldn’t any longer.

“What could it hurt?” he asked himself. He went over to it, backpack in hand to store it in the closet. He turned the key in the door and opened it slowly.