The Murder at the Motel is a short story written by Brian M. Sammons. It was first published in the 2014 anthology The Dark Rites of Cthulhu, also edited by Sammons.
Description[]
Grigory the sorcerer, who has cheated death for many years, is pursued by creatures who wish to restore the balance of life. In order to buy himself a few more years of existence, he tricks stage magician Dennis into becoming a sacrifice in his stead. Dennis, however, proves to be surprisingly resourceful: he succeeds in breaking the enchantment protecting Grigory, and the wizard is dragged off by the beings.