But when Gerald, who was 53 at the time, was told he had a crippling autoimmune illness that left him in a wheelchair, his life changed.
Tina became his only source of income and primary caregiver. She would get Gerald out of bed each morning, make breakfast, have his prescription ready, and then go to work cleaning motel rooms.
Tina and Gerald had a straightforward procedure in place to keep each other safe when working alone: she would text him when she entered a room and again when she left.
She texted that she had gone into room 205 at 8:49 AM. However, Gerald would never hear from her again after that.
As the minutes ticked by with no follow-up message, Gerald grew anxious. Normally, Tina would update him if a room required extra cleaning or even ask for help.
When she didn’t respond to his next two messages, he started asking staff if they’d seen her. Around 10:10AM, Gerald returned to room 205.
The door was shut — unusual if Tina was still working inside. When he opened it, he found blood on the mattress. Then he saw Tina.
