THE SUSPICIOUS PACKAGE

THE SUSPICIOUS PACKAGE

Trust me, you need to hear this story because you will find it to be very interesting; needless to say, very hard to believe. Let me introduce myself. My name is Joseph Helms a writer and freelance graphic designer. My financial situation was okay; nevertheless, I knew I could be making more money if I could just find another lucrative gig.

It was a nice Saturday afternoon and I decided to visit Starbucks to surround myself with people who were full of ideas. Being a writer and graphic designer, I spend lots of time alone. I wanted an idea to make more money. There was no doubt in my mind I would meet someone who would spark an idea. This was the perfect day and time with the restrictions being lifted from the covid 19 pandemic.

When I arrived at Starbucks, I quickly found out there were many people wanting to exercise their freedom from the shackles of covid 19. All of the tables were fully occupied, except for a small table with two chairs tucked in the corner. I rushed to the table and sat down. I must say, the table did have a great panoramic view.

Shortly after arriving, I saw a middle-aged man enter. He scanned the location looking for an open table. Our eyes met after he noticed the one open chair at my table. I gave him a slight affirmative nod to let him know it would be okay to sit at my table. He understood and made a beeline to the table. When he approached the table, he extended his hand, we shook hands and he sat down. He had a firm grip which signifies confidence.

“My name is Darius, he said.”

“My name is Joseph.”

“Why Starbucks today Joseph?”

“I wanted to get out of the house and be among people again. Covid has really isolated us from sharing moments without our fellow man.”

“Some of us has continued to be around people during the pandemic.”

“How is that possible?’

“I own an Airbnb and people are my business.”

“I’m searching for another method of making money and maybe I have just found it.”

“Hold your horses. You may want to know the pros and cons of owning an Airbnb.”

“You’re right.”

“First of all, whether you’ve stayed in an Airbnb or have just heard about the lucrative possibilities of owning an Airbnb to boost your income. An Airbnb can be very lucrative, especially if you are patient and willing to do the work to attract renters and keep them happy. However, your operating costs can be higher than a traditional rental property, and regulations have made investing in an Airbnb hard or illegal in many places. So, owning an Airbnb has its benefits and a fair share of challenges.”

“I thought all Airbnbs were profitable.”

“No, that is not true. There are many factors to consider such as location, renting to long-term renters, short-term renters, or both. You must consider the type of furnishings you would like to provide, the cleaning service, and of course the expenses.”

“What are some of the expenses”

“You will have, refunds, repairs, replacing damaged items, have to pay a cleaner, lawn care, and then there are the utilities - water, electricity, gas, and trash removal.”

“The utilities should not fluctuate that much?”

“You would hope so. It all depends on keeping your occupancy close to 100% to cover the cost to earn a profit. I will say the booking depends heavily on the location and the reputation of the owner.”

“There no doubt, having lots of people around has to be the highlight of the business, based on the potential profit and the sharing of knowledge with the various people of all races and cultures.”

“I must tell you that you are wrong.”

“Why?”

“Granted, you will meet a variety of people, but keep in mind some of these people are good and some are bad. Believe it or not, people are what makes the business a questionable endeavor to pursue.”

“Could you give me some examples of why?”

“I can give you plenty. Sit back and relax as I reveal these horrific tales of things going bad. Like I stated, the primary challenge of owning an Airbnb is dealing with the people.”

“The way you are setting up these stories makes me think they are beyond belief.”

“Of course, some of the weird stuff I will mention defies imagination—like the time I had a guest checking out at 11:00 but asked for more time to make some arrangements with family. This was a guest who frequently thanked me for my hospitality and told me how much he enjoyed his stay. For that reason, I said, I didn’t mind; however, I do need to make a run to Sams to replenish supplies. Sams was eight miles from the house; thus, a 16-mile round trip. It was an hour thirty before I returned to the house. When I returned, I found the place vandalized and valuables, including cash and heirloom jewelry, missing.”

“Did you call the police?”

“Yes. One Policeman said he’d never seen a house that had been trashed so badly – food everywhere, urination everywhere; the sofa and tables were completely broken. All of this in less than an hour thirty. To top it off, the guest used a fake profile.”

“Wow.”

“I am just getting started. I was invited to a New Year’s Eve Party so; I told my guest I would be gone for a few hours to attend a party. When I left, they decided to have a party, although it states in the house rules specifically no parties, the guest hosted a doozy. They charged $5 per person for this New Year’s Eve extravaganza. There were neighboring homes and cars, extensively damaged when the party raged out of control. A neighbor called me and I called the police. I told the police the party was not authorized and they could arrest everyone. Police officers trying to break up the party were pelted with rocks with the public order response and critical incident response teams called. The police did shut down the party and cleared the house. The guest left behind a stench of cannabis, rip floorboards, destroyed furniture, smashed glassed, used condoms and underwear were on the floor, mayonnaise and sauce smeared across the walls and the TV was pulled off the wall. The Police also found bodily fluids including urine, semen, and vomit throughout the house. There was a minimum of eight arrests. The incident was reported as a drug-induced orgy.

“You have got to be pulling my leg.”

“Listen to this. I had two beautiful girls check-in at the same time. The two rented long-term private rooms. The girls asked me if it would be okay to pay using cash. In a time-old tale of trusting your gut instincts, I found out the hard way that an Airbnb guest who wanted to pay cash (rather than through the website’s secure system) should’ve been a red flag. I further enable the situation, because I wanted to make some extra money. I began driving for a food delivery service. I would choose to periodically drive for six hours a day. The girls said they would look out for the place in my absence. One night I returned and found a note in my mailbox informing me the two women were prostitutes, that use to work downtown Dallas turning tricks until the police began cracking down on prostitution. I Googled their names and discovered they were in fact high-profile escorts who had been using my house with their clients as a brothel. I told them to leave immediately or I will call the police. When I entered their rooms, it looked like a scene from a porn film gone horribly wrong. They kept similar items in their rooms. I discovered vibrators, pubic hair, plastic bags of used condoms, large boxes of new condoms, a few pairs of high heels, bags full of used tissues, and hand-written lists of "pics. One had a pic " labeled as "bent over green Abercrombie". A few weeks later, I discovered one of the girls made porn. I found out when I was cruising a Reddit thread r/unexpectedsex (NSFW). I noticed my living room and kitchen.”

“I would never guess that people could be so bold.”

“There is more. I had a guy staying in a private room that said he would exercise his squatter’s rights, after watching a movie titled “Pacific Heights” starring Michael Keaton. He locked himself in the room and wouldn’t come out for days. I eventually called the cops to have the guy removed because he’d overstayed his visit and wasn’t opening the door. When he was removed, I found feathers everywhere. I couldn’t figure out where they were coming from until I opened the closet door and saw blood and more feathers smeared all over the wall. The guy had been practicing voodoo or santeria or something in the closet, sacrificing chickens.”

“Renting those private rooms seems to become a problem.”

“Private rooms can make you lots of money, but you are right they can fester nightmares to an Airbnb owner. I entered one of my private rooms and found drug paraphernalia, drugs, and other unidentifiable substances strewed across the room. The room had been completely ransacked with valuable items stolen, expensive rugs used as ashtrays and the only towels left behind were blood-soaked.

“Yikes! I am glad I met you. You have definitely educated me on the challenges of owning an Airbnb. If it's okay I would like to share an Airbnb story that is currently trending."

"Please do."

"On the Fourth of July, part of a terminal at DFW Airport was evacuated for an hour and departure-level traffic halted after a suspicious package was found in a ticketing area. The DPD bomb squad arrived and determined the package was a bomb scheduled to explode in four hours. The bomb was disarmed and the airport was declared safe.

“What does that have to do with an Airbnb?”

“Hold on. The bomber was arrested today. After an intense interrogation, he confessed everything, especially after hearing the charges. He was charged with interstate transportation of an explosive, illegal mailing of explosives, threats against former presidents and other persons, threatening interstate communications and assaulting current and former federal officers, and finally attempting to bomb DFW Airport. He faces up to 48 years in prison. The explosive device consisted of a six-inch PVC pipe, a small clock, battery, wiring, and energetic material. The bomb was made to look like a suspicious package wrapped in brown paper.”

“I still don’t make the connection to an Airbnb.”

“I’m getting there. There was a strange symbol found stamped on the package. It was a pattern of intricate circles with a large A in the center.”

“I think I’ve seen that symbol. I was told it is Air Operations Order?”

“The bomber said it symbolizes Agents of Oblivion (AOO). Apparently, the symbol was created for a group of airport mechanics who formed an organization to resist oppression against airline mechanics from the government, airport executives, and or airline executives. He was asked where he lived and he said he was staying at an Airbnb where he built the bomb in one of the bathrooms.”

“Did the bomber give his name?”

“Yes”

“What is his name?”

“He said, Hector Sanchez.”

Joseph couldn’t see the strange look on Darius’s face. Joseph’s attention was diverted to the story on a laptop because one of the patrons turned up the volume. Joseph pointed to the laptop and said, “the story is streaming right now. The police are en route to the Airbnb.”

Darius stared at the laptop then jumped up out of his seat.

“What’s going on Darius?

“As I said, people. I’ve got to leave. I know him. He was staying at my Airbnb!”