The Business Trip

It had been a long flight, and Sam was shattered. He shook the rain from his jacket.
Business travel sounded glamorous, but right now, stood in the lobby of a grim Communist era hotel, grey light filtering through the grimy windows from the rain soaked day outside, it wasnt.
“Room 524 sir” said the stern looking receptionist as she passed him his passport and a key attached to a large block of wood. “Elevators there. Left one broken”
She pointed at a queue of similar tired looking business men.
“Thanks”
Eventually he rode with another man, the two of them entering side by side, staring resolutely straight ahead. Sam dared one glance, noting a bright blue, broad lapelled wide striped suit, before the man turned to him. His large black eyes bore into Sam, his mouth fixed into a grin. Sam could see broken teeth behind his lips.
“5th floor please” asked his companion,  as the doors slid closed.
With a jolt, the lift ascended, jerkily stopping at each floor up to 5. The wooden floor shook as the door hissed open again, a slight step as the lift and floor didn't quite align. A rush of damp thick air hit the two men.
“What the” thought Sam, letting the other man out first. He found it hard to breath in the cloying atmosphere.
A red patterned threadbare carpet thankfully masking some unsightly looking stains.
The lower half of the walls were wood paneled, while gold and black wallpaper peeled on the top half. Heavy oil paintings hung at intervals, portraits of stern faced old men. Sam felt the black eyes of each one staring at him.
The two men trudged along, door numbers rising. Sam's lift companion stopped at 513, his key taking a second to work, and Sam headed onwards with a nod.
“See you later Sam” the man called to his back. Sam stopped and turned with a jolt, but the man had closed his room door. 
“Must have stood by the check in desk” Sam thought, “Read my passport”
His suitcase was catching on the carpet as he found 524, the small wheels buried in the now thick shag pile. Sam pulled it free, and over the threshold to his room.
Which was occupied.
There was no sign of the occupant, but their bags were by the door, and a coat was hung on the hook.
Sam checked the bathroom.
Bright green tiles, and an avocado coloured bath tub greeted him, but no hotel guest.
He found the phone, and pressed the number for reception.
A gutteral “Hallo?” answered after five rings.
“How may I help” asked the disembodied voice.
“Erm, there is someone in my room. I mean their bags are in my room, the room” Sam replied
“You have an intruder? Are you safe?”
Sam shook his head, the tiredness now really hitting.
“No, someone is already occupying my room”
“OK sir. Please come and we will help”
Sam replaced the receiver, just as a key turned in the lock. He looked up.
A man in a bright blue, broad lapelled, wide striped suit opened the door. His large black eyes bore into Sam, broken teeth showing through his fixed grin.
“Oh, hi, its you?” said Sam, confused.
The man looked at him, then started shouting incomprehensibly.
Sam was forced out of the room, and the door slammed shut, before quickly reopening. Sams suitcase was roughly thrown into his arms.
Sam picked himself up, and headed along to the lift, his suitcase catching in the thick carpet again.
As he passed, the door to 513 opened.
“Hallo” said his former lift companion, now changed from his bright blue suit into a tan safari suit and Hawaiian shirt. His black eyes still bore into Sam.
Sam caught a glimpse of the room before the door was quickly closed. Bright red, with a diagonal cross against the wall, what looked like restraints on each corner. Sam did a slight double take.
The lift arrived with a wheeze, the doors opening to show the floor still not quite lined up. Sam headed to reception.
The stern looking lady looked at him while Sam explained the issue. Eventually he was given a different key, this time with an ever longer block of wood attached. 536.
Back up in the lift, and along the corridor. By now Sam was really tired, and in need of a drink and sleep.
The door to 536 was stiff, but opened to a darkened room. This time there were thankfully no bags laid out, and upon checking the bathroom, no men.
Sam collapsed on the bed, sinking slightly into the lumpy mattress. Despite the horrendous smell lingering in the room, he fell asleep.
The clock on his phone told Sam it was 4 am when the hammering started on his door.
Thud, thud, thud.
It was the sound of knuckles on the wood, rapping louder and louder each time.
Sam was unsure what to do.
There were no words spoken.
Just the thud, thud, thud.
Then they stopped.
Sam got up quietly, and in the dark headed over to the door.
There was a small peephole at chest level, and Sam bent down to look into it. A black eye stared back at him.
Sam recoiled backwards and tripped over his shoes.
Thud, thud, thud started again.
He rubbed his elbow where it had hit the wall, as the banging stopped.
“Sam” called a quiet high pitched voice. “Sam”
Again Sam tried the peephole.
This time all he could see was the black and gold wallpaper of the opposite wall.
Slowly he unhooked the chain, and turned the handle, pulling the door just a crack.
He poked his head out. Ceiling lights flickered.
Sam just caught a glimpse of a bare foot entering a room down the corridor. He couldnt be sure, but the foot looked dirty and hairy, with the ragged ends of bright blue, striped trousers ripped and torn. The door the foot had entered slammed shut, and Sam heard the chain be drawn.
He did the same, shutting and locking the door, while also pulling a chair across.
There was no way Sam was sleeping for the rest of the night. He sat quivering on the edge of the bed.
The morning sun struggled to enter the room through the dirty window. Small patches hit the carpet as Sam dressed, enduring the instant coffee and nibbling a cereal bar. He threw his stuff in his suitcase.
He pulled the door shut as he headed out, laptop bag swinging, and didnt notice the scratches around the key hole.
Sam stopped at 527, the room he thought he saw the person enter in the night, but was now unsure if it really happened. Had he imagined his name being called?
He listened closely, leaning in to the door, not hearing anything.
However, suddenly, the handle moved, and the door opened. 
Sam guiltily looked up, not able to get away before being spotted.
He first saw the bright blue suit, the trousers slightly too short and a little dirty, before eventually stepping back.
Black eyes stared at him, a fixed grin showing a few broken teeth. 
“Hallo” said the figure cheerily.
“Sorry, I was just, I was, shoelace” stumbled Sam, hastily standing up fully. “Sorry”
He half ran, half walked away towards the lift, the occupant watching him the whole way.
When he passed by, the door to room 513 opened.
“Hallo” he said to Sam, not leaving the room, but watching as Sam headed down the corridor.
Both men just stood in their doorways as Sam hurriedly pressed the button for the lift, eventually getting in and turning to see them.
Neither man moved, but Sam could feel their black eyes boring into him. He shuddered.
The same stern receptionist was at the desk, and she barely looked up when Sam rang the little bell.
“I need to change rooms. Someone was banging on the door last night”
He couldn't mention the strange occupants of the other rooms, Sam wasn't even sure how to explain his concern. He couldn't really say he found their eyes a bit creepy.
She looked at him, and took his key, passing over another one. 736. The third key Sam had been given so far this trip, a new record.
That evening, after a day of meetings, Sam was tired again. He headed back to the hotel, suitcase in tow, and waited for the one working lift. There were a few people hovering around, and he saw the man he had shared a lift with the day before, today wearing his Hawaiian shirt.
Sam hid his face, and hurriedly boarded the lift to the 7th floor.
The door slid open to dark corridor. Every second light bulb was out, leaving long shadows playing across the dark green carpet. The walls were still half wood, some boards having long fallen away leaving bare brick. The wallpaper was a green stripe to match the carpet, pictures of old men replaced with hunting scenes.
Cautiously Sam pulled his suitcase along, counting up to 736.
Some doors he passed were padlocked closed.
Some did not have a number on them.
The door to 713 opened as Sam passed, causing him to glance.
A familiar looking face stared back at Sam, dark black eyes and a fixed grin, broken teeth showing.
“Hallo”
Sam kept going, feeling the black eyes watching him the whole way.
The door to 727 also opened, moans coming from behind the figure that looked at Sam.
“Hallo”
Sam almost tripped over his suitcase in his haste to move.
His room took a while to open, especially under the stare of the two figures.
He was hit by the same strange smell, but quickly locked the door and sat on the bed.
Footsteps could be heard along the corridor.
Sam moved the chair in front of the door, taking a quick glance through the peephole.
Nothing.
Collapsing on the chair, Sam considered what to do. His flight was tomorrow morning, and he knew there were no other hotels in the small town he was visiting.
“Its just my imagination” he thought, and slapped his cheeks. “They are just friendly. And last night was just kids messing. Shower then bed”
More footsteps ran down the corridor.
Sam took one further glance through the peephole.
Still nothing.
Stood in the showeer, Sam let the hot water run down his face. The smell had been worse in here, damp and thick, but was now clearing with the fan on. The water was helping calm him down.
The hotel towels were thin and scratchy, and not very good at drying. Sam brushed his teeth, staring in the shower at the haggard face staring back at him. 
“Ow” he exclaimed, his front tooth hurting at the brushing. He pulled his lip back, and spat out blood, gingerly touching the tooth.
It wobbled, and then came out in his hand.
Sam spat more blood into the sink.
“What the?” he said, looking at the gap where his tooth had been.
The gap stopped bleeding after a while, and no other teeth wobbled at his touch. 
 He opened his mouth wide, a fixed grin to check the front view. 
“Great, that’ll scare the kids when I get home” 
At least the bleeding had stopped, and Sam put on a shirt and trousers.
The smell Sam had noticed before was back, a dampness that was making it hard to breathe again. It seemed to come from the back of the shower, and Sam stood on the edge of the tub to get a better look. 
The tiles at the top of the bathroom were broken, and he was sure a greenish vapour was seeping through. He couldnt fully see, and reached up to try and block the hole with a towel, but where the vapour condensed on his hand it started to burn. The skin bubbled rapidly, causing Sam to lose his footing and crash down onto the floor, catching the leg of his trousers and ripping them.
He banged his head as well, and rubbed his eyes to try and clear his brain. The bubbling on his hand didnt hurt luckily, and he wrapped it in a facecloth.
“Thats the last straw” he said to himself, surprised at how deep his voice had become, a catch in his throat. “What is that stuff?”
The green smoke seemed to pump through quicker at his reaction, billowing across the bathroom to the stricken man. Sam was soon engulfed in the cloud, coughing and retching, before passing out.
Sam awoke to the room in darkness. His hand throbbed a little, as did his ankle where he had fallen. The smoke had gone, and he gingerly pulled himself up, looking in the mirror at the broken teeth, and fixed grin, his eyes black where he had rubbed them earlier.
A noise from the corridor disturbed him, and Sam lurched across the room, yanking open the door.
A man pulling a suitcase was outside his door, and he looked at Sam in shock, taking in his ragged trousers and barefeet, fixed grin and broken tooth. He hurriedly pulled his suitcase away from Sam.
Sam stared back.
“Hallo” he said.
The other man quickly entered his room, and Sam could hear the chain being pulled.