Chapter 8

Chapter Eight

At each hour,

We begin,

The clock resets,

We begin again.

T he last three days had been the same. Each day I resolved to go to sleep shortly after dusk. Each night, I remained wide awake until the crack of dawn when I fell into deep slumber until just before dusk.

My attempts to avoid monsterdom weren't off to a great start.

I wrote on my stock list. "Queen Sheets: Thirty-one sets. Single Sheets: Fifty-seven sets." The queen sheets weren't as valuable. Most people slept on single beds, and companions tended to push single mattresses together. Fifty-seven single sheet sets could get me through several years. My mind boggled in a relatively comfortable way—no shimmering or squeezing. I couldn't believe the surrounding wealth. All mine? These riches didn't feel real nor safe when I'd lived week to week and barely that for so long.

I replaced the last stack of counted sheets and ran my gaze over the stock list. I'd counted the food first. Enough, as expected, for several months. Some would serve for longer if I pawned a few bits and bobs to purchase preserving equipment for the perishables.

I'd need to pawn select items with care even if I expected that King See—an immortal king that ruled one-fifth of Vitale—was not someone others would cross. If he'd closed this hotel, the hotel would likely remain closed and untouched. The rest of me didn't wish to test this theory by alerting others to the unguarded riches here.

I was one person who couldn't hope to protect such a hoard without forethought and some luck. First, I should lock away the most valuable items and hide the key. Only then should I venture to pawn a variation of items. I wanted to sell all the mirrors in the complex, almost desperate to be rid of them, but if I tried to pawn multiples of the same item, then inevitably, a curious soul might connect the place of origin.

I'd just sell the two mirrors that I'd levered off the walls in my bedroom for fear the pillowcases would slip off and reveal the sight of me.

King See had appeared calm and accepting upon viewing my monster form, and he'd even called me beautiful. I'd gone to the immortal king with a screaming mind, and he'd smoothed out the nasty wrinkles. How was I meant to be human one day, and a monster the next, though? I couldn't bear to see the horror I'd become. I couldn't do it now. Maybe never. That decision was as much an act of self-preservation as locking up the necessities.

I counted the tea towels next, then the dish cloths and teapots. Three nights of restlessness had achieved one thing. I'd tallied most of what was here. The issue—my situational instability—was that I didn't officially own these things. The princes dropped me here, but hadn't clarified what I could and couldn't do. I could greatly anger King See by overstepping and selling his possessions. Theft was not looked upon kindly in Vitale.

Sighing as I did so, I tucked the clipboard under my arm and left the laundry room. The last place to assess was reception.

I crossed the courtyard, ignoring the lush, black hellebores that had sprung out of nowhere to cover my mother's grave three nights ago. The flowers gifted otherworldly elegance to my mother's resting place. I could appreciate that without squeezing my mind too much about the how.

"Good evening, mistress," someone called from beyond Reception.

I looked to where a large man lurked on the other side of the rope barrier strung up by King See's princes. "Good evening, sir."

What time was it? I'd hate to scare him with the sight of me once dusk arrived.

"Tell me, what's happening to Hotel Vitale? I had heard it shut down, and now I see a fair lady tending it."

He wouldn't think me fair soon. "Hotel Vitale is under new ownership," I answered, unsure of what better to say.

"Does the new owner have any intentions?"

"That's his business, but he would not like anyone else here. His skeleton crew have closed it to all."

I'd intended the mention of a skeleton crew to worry him away, but the man tilted his head. "All except you."

"Why, yes."

"And who are you, if I might ask?"

Head tilting was quite a monstrous affair, it occurred to me, and a human would've heeded my warning about skeleton crews. I could conclude that this man wasn't human, and I had a suspicion he wasn't alone. "You may not."

His brows shot up. "You have rather a delightful way of speaking. I might unhook this stanchion."

The man unhooked the barrier and dropped the rope on the ground.

I backed up a step as he walked closer. "I warn you, sir. Return to the road. You shouldn't trifle with the new owner."

"I'm aware of who bears trifling and not. I will decide what side of this stanchion to occupy."

I clenched my fists as he closed the distance to stand before me. Dusk was nearly here. I should get inside. I couldn't risk anyone, human or otherwise, spreading word about the new stitched-up horror at Hotel Vitale. Yet I couldn't allow this man to poke around and take what he would.

"Toil, who have you met?" A second man appeared and walked over the rope on the ground.

There was another.

Toil glanced at me. "A lady who does not give her name. Sigil, do you know her?"

Sigil stood beside his friend. "I've never seen her. Why is she here when the hotel is closed?"

"That is what I wondered. I came along as bid and simply found her here. She does not care to divulge what the new owner plans with the space."

Sigil frowned. "The new owner. You mean?—"

Toil elbowed him in the stomach, and Sigil coughed.

I took a breath. This was looking decidedly monstrous in nature. These two men behaved a lot like other men I'd met in this exact spot. "Is there another of you?"

The two men focused on me, and I made sure not to lock with their eyes and give myself away.

"There is another," said a man from behind. "How did you guess? I'm Hex."

Toil, Sigil, and Hex. Men in threes, I steer clear of thee. But I hadn't then, and I wouldn't be allowed to now. Another skeleton crew was before me, and they possessed that special eerie quality that I'd noticed in See's princes—the quality I'd never noticed in a normal, human skeleton crew in my entire life. These weren't the run-of-the-mill thugs in Vitale that engaged in petty crime per the orders of their skull.

This crew was of the monstrous kind.

"Good evening, Hex," I said, glancing back. "Like I said, the new owner doesn't know his plans. Would you like me to pass on your names when I next see his crew?"

Three identical smirks widened their mouths.

"That would be lovely, fair maiden." Toil swept a bow.

My skin began to itch as dawn sank down into its darker cousin. "Then I will bid you a good night for now." I stole a peek at the dying sun.

The three exchanged a look, and then each executed a graceful bow made eerie by their extreme likeness to one another. Unlike See's princes who each appeared different aside from their shared owlish demeanor, I could believe these new monsters to be triplets.

"We bid you good night. Until another time," said Sigil.

The three men walked away, whispering. Toil stopped to hook the rope barrier up again.

My skin itched a second time.

I turned from the skeleton crew and strode to the stairwell. I'd chosen the most concealing outfit from the guest's suitcase this morning. The dress had sleeves that hugged tight and widened into trailing cuffs that could hide my entire hand. Though full-length in style, a long slit traveled to the middle of my right thigh. The cut of the neckline was square and lower than I'd ever worn, but in the suitcase, I'd also found a wide lace choker adorned on the bottom edge with jewels and thin, black chains. This managed to cover a terrible row of stitches across the base of my neck. All of this to say that while most of my body was covered, my face was not, and when I walked, some of my right leg was revealed with each step. If this skeleton crew looked hard enough, they could see what I was.

I'd go inside my room and watch to ensure they left.

I bowed my face and turned it to the wall while walking to my room. Once inside, I leaned against the door and blew out a breath.

"Fortifications," I said. That's what I had to work on. I'd make a rudimentary version of King See's portcullis and gateway, and then wandering people wouldn't see me beyond dusk. I had an inkling the citizens of Vitale would react to monsters much as they did to invalids. I didn't wish to be thrown over the wall. That would be a sore change in fate after the sudden hotel riches that had fallen onto my unskilled lap.

I sat in the armchair by the window and toyed with a tear in the leather under my hand. Was the crew still here?

I pulled aside the yellowed drape covering the barred window. A shriek leaped into my head at the eye outside the window visible through the thick dust. I locked gazes with the eye with no option to do otherwise at such a shock.

The eye had no discernible color, but as the man pulled back a tiny bit, I saw through the clear patch in the dust that Toil had returned. The small square of his face appeared gray in the settling dusk. From that small glimpse, I could tell that Toil stared back in almost equal shock.

I flushed, realizing what he saw.

A monster.

What would he do now?

Toil lifted a finger, never blinking to break our locked stare, and drew a heart in the dust.

A heart. Whatever did he mean by that?

"My lady." His voice was muffled through the glass. "You amaze, you inspire, you compel."

My flush deepened, and I released the yellowed drape to block him from sight, but mostly to block his sight of me .

I called through the glass. "Kindly do not tell anyone what you've seen, Toil."

"Will you not come out so that Hex and Sigil might see you?" he replied.

"Not tonight," I warbled. Not any night. "Please do not tell anyone, and please do not return."

I heard a thud on the door.

Whispers erupted outside.

"He'll want to see her," someone hushed. Hex, I thought.

More whispers. Who would want to see me?

Sigil said louder, "He'll take his share."

I pressed my ear against the door. Take his share of what?

"She doesn't wish to come out tonight," Toil told them.

"Make her. You act like one of King See's weaklings."

I pulled a face, then wondered that I considered Is, Has Been, and Will Be somewhat as friends after so short a time. Becoming a monster could do that to a person.

Toil shot back, "She asked nice enough."

Sigil groaned.

There was silence after. Mid-discussion, they went quiet. I pressed my ear against the door for what felt like an hour or more. Nothing.

Quiet as a mouse, I crept to the window and braced myself to encounter another eye. I snuck a look through the tiniest gap in the drape. They weren't there.

Not outside the door. Not anywhere in the expanse of courtyard visible to me. I couldn't hear them.

My heart continued to hammer. They'd tricked me once, and they'd mentioned King See. Then there was Hex's comment about the man who'd want to see me and take his share. That worried me enough that I nibbled at my bottom lip, stitch and all. I'd heard another skeleton crew say something similar, and they'd turned out princes to a monster king.

King See only ruled one-fifth of Vitale.

I walked backward until my legs hit the mattress. I sat and stared at the door, trying to figure out the ways of monsters, but I didn't have enough of any information to make such connections.

King See had said the other monsters in Vitale weren't those I should know better.

I hadn't enjoyed meeting one king, really, though he'd been courteous enough to give me some answers despite also breaking my collarbone at an earlier visit.

I wanted to heed his advice, but he was just the monster I knew. Who was to say that dishonesty wasn't his vice?

One thing was in my control.

Securing valuables. They'd mentioned something about his share . If they meant the possessions in Hotel Vitale, then I had to act now.

I crept to the window and peered out again. Clear. I slipped out and closed the door behind me. The most valuable items were the linens, cleaning supplies, and food. Mirrors were very valuable, especially uncracked ones, but there wasn't much of a market for them in Vitale. Not many had the money to throw around on such luxuries. I'd store the best mirrors and leave the cracked ones.

I locked the laundry door after entering. "They must be gone."

A good thing. I had work to do.

Upon turning, though, I noticed something very strange. Where there had been five cleaning carts, now only four remained. I shifted my focus to the open shelving. I'd counted these items hours prior. I could tell at a glance there were fewer than before. Picking up a stack of tea towels, I proceeded to count, and then the remaining stacks too.

Exactly one-fifth was missing.

I counted the single sheets and the queens. I counted the cleaning supplies and even the soap holders, spare plugs, and cutlery.

One-fifth, gone. One-fifth of everything.

My mouth dried, and I abandoned care to burst from the laundry and dash to the kitchen. Trembling, stitched-up hands fumbled for the right key. I shoved inside and crossed into the cool room.

Like the laundry, I could tell at a glance not all was how I'd left it.

"No." I mourned. "Not the canned goods."

One-fifth of my future was gone. How had they moved everything, just the three of them, in such a short time? Why did they take one-fifth, no more and no less? There was a veritable bounty here. Locking the kitchen again, I wandered from room to room to confirm that one-fifth of the furniture was taken, the mirrors, rugs, artwork, and shower curtains too.

Toil, Hex, and Sigil had done a number on me, even after Toil drew that heart in the dust. I wish he hadn't done that, then stolen from me after.

I stopped before my mother's grave. "King See might think I'm to blame, Mother."

I lay on my back next to the black hellebores covering her grave. The pavers were warm from the day's heat, but that heat didn't permeate much further than the concealing dress I wore. "It's a strange business."

"You're outside again, fair maiden."

Toil was back. I didn't move. "You took things."

"Only that which belongs to our king."

I closed my eyes. Bother. "And who is your king?"

"How is it that a monster wouldn't know?" Sigil mused from my left.

"I am only recently this way."

"You are something to behold," he replied.

My cheeks warmed, and I didn't answer. I wasn't sure that was a compliment—how could it be?

Hex's voice was very close. "Look here. She blushes black. Wondrous."

I covered my face.

"Lady, do you not wish for us to look upon you?"

"I don't." I felt like a creature in a cage, and King See's mention of exquisite was hard to remember in the face of so much gaping and gawking.

Hex, Sigil, and Toil whispered for a time, then fell quiet.

I peered through my fingers at the nearly dark night. "Who is your king then?"

"King Bring, lady. Will you not tell us your name?"

They'd given me a name. This time, I knew well enough not to mistake their sire's name for Kingbring, and I did like that the name rhymed. Maybe I'd return the favor. "My name is Patch."

"Patch, a fitting name."

Sadness flooded me at the reminder, and I rolled toward my mother's grave, toying with a hellebore.

Hex asked, "Are these your stunning blooms, Lady Patch?"

"I think so, but I don't know."

"She needs help," Toil announced. "She does not know about herself."

"How could that be?" Sigil asked.

No one had an answer, including me.

I pushed to sitting. "I wouldn't mind some help to know myself, but I fear knowing too much at once." On a whim, I said, "I only had a three-week slumber."

"Only three weeks," Toil and Sigil gasped together.

"Did you sleep too?" I asked.

"But of course, lady," Hex said seriously. "We entered the womb one hundred years before the dawn of the new age."

"Goodness," I replied. Compared to that, three weeks wasn't a long time at all. Plucking a hellebore, I rose to standing, facing my mother's grave. The three men, who I could guess were princes by now, lurked behind me. "Do you think King Bring would help me to know myself then?" I asked.

Perhaps I would go to see this King Bring. Was it wise after See's warning?

I turned and opened my mouth to speak, but every part of me froze as I looked upon the three princes. Their forms bulged. Their stature was half of what it had been in daylight. Eyes wide and streaked with blood drew all focus and held it in prolonged terror. I could barely discern that while some wisps of hair stuck out here and there all over their bodies, in other places, a viscous slime slickened it flat.

My mind squeezed and shimmered, and as the shimmer encroached past the edges, I recognized that this was the point where the impossible overwhelmed me at last. Stopping this shimmer was a futile endeavor.

"Not this time," I told them.

And that was that.