Chapter 24
Katya
“Katya,” called the raspy voice.
Despite everything inside me screaming to run, I took a step toward the open door. Then another. My heart pounded against my chest, threatening to break through.
Finally, I made it inside. Carter shone a light onto a bed, where the figure of a person lay.
“Katya? Is that you?” The owner of the ragged voice didn’t budge.
“Y-yes.”
“Come closer.”
My heart beat even faster. It was actually going to burst out of my chest. Yet I managed to creep closer to the bed.
Carter took my hand in his, and together we walked toward the bed. He kept the weak beam of light aimed at the figure.
“Is that really you, Katya?”
I didn’t dare answer. Who knew what the admission would lead to?
As we neared, the faint light revealed a frail man, practically skin and bones.
“Katya?” He reached for me.
“Who are you?” Carter shone the flashlight directly on his face.
I recognized his face. I’d stared at his picture every single day of my life. As my gaze locked with his, I knew I was right.
“Who are you?” Carter repeated.
“Dad.” My knees gave out, and I crumpled to the dusty ground. “Is it really you?”
“It’s me, baby. Come here.”
I couldn’t pull myself to my feet, so I crawled toward the bed.
Carter stepped between us. “How do we know you’re really her dad? Why have you been here all this time? You’re supposed to be dead.”
I craned my neck to see around him.
“I practically am, wouldn’t you say?” Dad struggled to sit up. “I’ve missed my daughters’ entire childhoods. That’s a fate worse than death. And Jennifer, how is she? Did she live a happy life? What about Che?”
Tears welled in my eyes, blurring my vision. I sprang to my feet and leaped for the bed. Carter put out his arm to stop me, but I wouldn’t let anything get in between my dad and me.
I threw my arms around his thin frame and clung to him, tears flowing like never before. “Daddy.”
“My little Katya. You’re not so little anymore, though.”
“You’ve been here this whole time?”
He nodded his head. “I was trying to keep you girls and your mom hidden from my family when they found me. They locked me in this wing, making it so that I couldn’t get out.”
“How have you survived?” Carter asked. “Has someone been feeding you?”
“A curse was placed on me. As long as I’m in the hotel, I cannot die—no matter what happens. I’ve had nothing to eat or drink for, what, twenty years?”
I choked back a sob. “Almost. What if you leave the hotel? Will you live?”
He coughed. “I can live normally outside the hotel. But inside, no matter what is done to me, I will not die. That is my curse.”
I gasped.
“How did you find me?” he asked.
“Mom brought us here five years ago, and we’ve been running the hotel. Well, not the whole thing. Just the front wing.”
“You’ve been here for five years?” Dad’s voice cracked.
“Can you walk?” Carter asked. “We need to get you food. You probably need medical care. What about shifting?”
“I haven’t walked in years.”
My heart shattered. I buried my face into Dad’s shoulder. “I can’t believe they did this to you.”
Carter put his hand on my shoulder. “Those are the same people who are after you.”
“I know, but I’d never do this to someone in my family. Ever!”
Dad kissed my cheek. “That’s what makes us different from them, my baby.”
I sprang to my feet. “I have to get Mom and Alley! They’re never going to believe this.”
“Bring me to them. I don’t want to spend another moment in here.”
“You can’t even walk.” I shook my head vigorously. “We’ll send for food. An entire banquet. Whatever it takes to get you on your feet.” I embraced him again. “Don’t move.”
“That won’t be a problem.”
I spun around and put my hand on Carter’s arm. “Don’t leave him, okay?”
“You can’t go alone.”
“My presence is hidden! He needs me, and I won’t let him be alone. I’m trusting you, Carter. Please stay with him.”
“I will.”
Tears blurred my vision again as I raced out of the secret wing and made my way to the main part of the hotel. I got turned around at one point and had to double back around. It was like the hotel had been designed to confuse people.
I ran past a large mirror before the stairs down to the lobby and caught sight of my reflection. I was a complete mess, with streaks of dust on my arms and face and my hair sticking out in several directions. That was in addition to my smeared makeup and red, puffy eyes.
Downstairs, Mom and Alley were talking on either side of the reception desk in the otherwise empty lobby.
“Kat, what’s wrong?” Mom exclaimed.
“Dad.” I gasped for air.
They both looked at me like I’d lost my mind.
“He’s here.” I pointed toward the stairs.
“Dad’s here?” Color drained from Alley’s face.
Mom shook her head. “He’s dead, Kat.”
“No, he’s not. He’s been in the hidden wing all this time.”
“Hidden wing?” Mom stared at me. “That’s only a myth.”
“It’s not. We found it, and Dad’s there. He’s asking about both of you. He needs food.”
“Kevin’s alive?” Che asked from behind.
I spun around. “Yes! He’s in the hidden wing.”
“You believe her?” Mom sputtered.
Che’s expression tightened. “There’s a lot you don’t know. For your own safety.”
Alley grabbed hold of my hand. “He’s really here? Alive?”
I nodded, tears stinging my eyes again. “It’s really him.”
“Take us to him. Where’s the hidden wing?”
I ran up the stairs. Their footsteps thundered behind me.
“How is this possible?” Mom asked. “I was there when he was buried.”
“We buried a body burned beyond recognition,” Che said.
“It was him. Remember, they proved it with his molars? The dental records proved it without a doubt.”
“The teeth were inside his mouth, but not attached to his gums, Jennifer. Think about it—they were probably planted.”
Mom cried out.
We ducked under the rope and I led them through the maze of halls and doors that looked exactly the same. In the confusion, we circled around a couple times, passing through the same corridor twice. I hoped they wouldn’t notice.
“Haven’t we been here before?” Mom asked.
“These stupid hallways all look the same,” I grumbled. “We need to paint them different colors, or do something to make it easier to tell them apart. Oh, wait. We turn here.”
A few more minutes later, we turned down the hallway that led to the secret wing.
Only there was no open wall.
I stared at the spot where we should’ve been able to go inside.
“What?” Mom demanded.
“It should be right here.” I pressed myself against the wall and tapped. It just sounded like a normal wall. No emptiness. No echoing.
I tapped harder, then pounded with all my might.
“It has to be right here. Right here!”
Mom leaned against another wall and slid to the ground. “Why are you doing this to me, Katya? Playing with my emotions like this? You know how much I loved your father. So much that I’ve never been able to look at another man romantically.” She brought her hands to her face and sobbed.
Alley looked at me like I was some kind of monster.
“He’s here! I’m not making this up.” I pounded on the door, desperation building.
Che pulled me away from the door. “Katya.”
I yanked my arm away from him. “Dad’s here! I wouldn’t lie about this. How can you guys think I would?”
Mom glanced up at me and wiped her eyes, smearing mascara across her face. “Dad’s dead, Katya. Maybe you saw someone else, but he’s gone.”
“You’re just cruel.” Alley sniffled.
I glared at Che. He had to believe me. The one person who knew about the supernatural world.
His expression was filled with disappointment.
I crumpled to the ground. “Dad! Carter!”
“Don’t do this.” Alley helped Mom up. “After everything we’ve all been through, how dare you?”
“I’m telling you the truth.”
Alley narrowed her eyes. They shone with tears. “This is low. You need to stop, sis. Now.”
“He’s in the secret wing!”
“There’s no hidden wing. It doesn’t exist. Just go. Leave us all alone. I don’t know why you’re doing this.” She and Mom turned their backs on me and wandered down the hall.
“He’s really here. I swear.” Why didn’t they believe me? It was like they were under a spell.
A spell. That had to be it.
I rose and pounded on the wall again. “Dad!”
Once they saw him, they would have to believe me.
Alley stormed over to me, grabbed my shirt and yanked me back. “Stop this now, Katya. I can’t believe you’d keep up this charade.”
Mom pulled her away from me. “She might not be able to help herself.”
“What?” Alley stared at her.
Mom took a deep breath. “Shortly after Dad’s funeral, his dad—your grandpa—came to me.”
“What?” Che exclaimed. “You never told me.”
“I don’t have to tell you everything. You came to help me with the girls, and I appreciate it, but you’re not actually part of this family.”
Che looked like she’d slapped him with her words. “Are you feeling yourself, Jennifer?”
“I’ve been in contact with Kevin’s family every so often over the years. They told me the truth, Che. The truth you never did.” Her nostrils flared.
His mouth gaped. So did mine.
Mom knew about us being shifters?
“What secret is that?” Che demanded.
I took a step back, keeping my gaze on Alley who was about to learn a truly shocking secret.
Mom glared at Che, then turned to me with a sad expression. “Mental illness runs in your father’s side of the family. It’s from your grandmother’s side, Katya. None of you can do anything about it, but you’ve inherited it from him.”
I couldn’t even blink. Mental illness? She thought we had a mental disorder?
“Your grandpa told me the signs to look for in you girls, and you have every single one, Kat. I was hoping he was wrong, but I can’t keep burying my head in the sand any longer. It’s time to get you the help you need.”
“What?” I exclaimed. “I don’t need help!”
She frowned. “Honey, you’re banging on a wall, screaming for your long-dead dad. I know you girls wish you got a chance to know him—believe me, there’s nothing more I want for you two. But there’s nothing any of us can do.”
I pulled out my phone and found the picture of the secret wing’s hidden door and compared it to the wall in front of me. “Wait. This is the wrong wall. It’s the wrong wall!”
Mom put her hand on my arm and squeezed. “We need to get you help before this progresses any further. Your grandpa knows a doctor who is familiar with your family’s illness. He can help us get you what you need. He already gave me one thing.”
I stared at her in disbelief. “What I need is to show you where the hidden wing really is!”
“Why do you believe them when you know Dad didn’t trust them?”
“He had the mental illness too. It turns people against their families.”
My mouth dropped. “That’s crazy! Listen to yourself.”
Alley stepped closer to me. “You’re the one who thinks our dead dad is alive.”
“He is alive! I’ll show you.”
“Stop this.” Alley grabbed my other arm.
I looked to Che for help. He surely couldn’t go along with this. Not when he knew how dangerous my grandfather was. In fact, my grandfather had probably done something to turn my mom against me—maybe a potion similar to the one Tap had given me.
Mom turned to him. “I need you to go downstairs to the lobby. A huge group is due right about now, and I’m in no state to greet guests.”
“I really shouldn’t leave right now.”
“I’m your boss, and I said to go!” She glared at him.
Che nodded. “I’m going to find someone who can take care of the guests and be right back.”
I stared at him in stark disbelief. How could he abandon me now?
He threw me an apologetic glance and left.
“Mom, you’ve got to listen to me.” Anger and fear ran through me. I pulled away and bones popped.
Mom’s face paled. “I’ve been trying to pass that popping off as normal for an athlete. That’s what I wanted to believe. But according to your grandpa, it’s one of the main signs of this particular illness.”
“No, you don’t understand. He’s lying.”
“I’m sorry to have to do this.” She reached into her purse.
I should have run, but again my feet failed me.
My mom pulled out a syringe and stuck it into my arm. “This is for your own good, honey. Your grandpa promises it will help.”
Everything went blurry. And cold.
Then black.