The Sun Down Motel

by Simone St. James

Viv turned in a circle, the thoughts going inescapably through her mind: What would I have done? Because this could have been her, storming out of the house at eighteen after a fight with her mother. Or leaving work. Doing what women did every day. It could still be her now. It could be her tomorrow, or the next day, or the next. It could be Marnie, it could be Helen. It could be Viv’s sister back home in Illinois. This was the reality: It wasn’t just these girls. It could always, always be her or someone she knew.

I wanted to make a commentary here about how murder victims are portrayed, especially women. They are always described as bright, happy, kind, generous paragons. It bugs me. Flawed women don’t deserve to get murdered, either. So I made Victoria Lee someone who was more difficult to like, who was fighting with people in her life. She had a fight with her mother and never had a chance to make things right, which ties into the idea that it can be any of us, on any bad day we might be having.