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This letter must have been composed years ago. But the fact that I’m now holding it in my hands makes me wonder. There must be a reason I received this as the next clue. I need to follow it up, but an inner voice is whispering to me that I won’t like the answer.
Chapter 26
Kate stops halfway up the steps. The last few days have been hard on her. We kept rereading the letter and wrecking our heads over it, analyzing it line by line, trying to understand it all. But we arrived at the same conclusion every time: We need to confront her mother.
“It just can’t be true,” Kate says quietly. “All these years… I should have noticed something. If she has the same ability as me… How could she have hidden it? You know how it is when I’m gripped by a vision. There’s nothing I can do to prevent it or hide it. Do you really think she’s found a way to keep it under wraps?” She looks at me uncertainly. She’s afraid, and I get it, because it would mean that her mother has been hiding a significant part of herself from her daughter all this time. But I also see a spark of hope in Kate’s eyes. If her mom has succeeded in controlling her visions, then there’s hope for Kate too.
“I don’t know,” I admit. “But hopefully we’re about to find out.”
Kate nods and takes a deep breath, continues up the steps, takes out her key, and unlocks the door. We step into the empty hallway. We hear nothing, and at first, I wonder if her mom is actually home.
“Mom?” Kate calls out. “It’s me.”
After a moment, Mona appears with a radiant smile on her face. “Kate, it’s lovely to see you. How are you?” She hugs Kate.
“Pretty good. How are you?” Kate looks at her anxiously.
“Well,” Mona begins with a weary smile. “I knew the day would come. Your mother spoke to me yesterday. It seems my services are no longer needed.”
Kate’s eyes widen, and she claps her hand over her mouth. “Mom can’t do that! You’re part of the family.”
“My dear girl. That’s sweet of you. But your mother’s right. There’s really not a lot for me to do. As long as you were here, I wanted to stay on and take care of you. I’m glad you’re finding your own way now. And I’ll always be here for you, but it’s time I found another job. Who knows? Maybe the change will do me good. Sitting around here in this quiet house is no good for me in the long term.” She rubs Kate’s cheek. “Don’t worry about me. This changes nothing between us.”
Kate seems doubtful. But eventually she nods. “I want you to be happy, and if you can’t be happy here anymore, then…”
“That’s the way I see it too,” says Mona. She sighs and waves her hand through the air. “But enough doom and gloom. What brings you here? Are you hungry? Should I whip something up?”
“Actually, we just came to have a quick chat with Mom. She said she’d be home for lunch.”
“Yes, she’s up in her room resting.”
“Okay, we’ll go up.”
I follow Kate upstairs and down the long corridor. Will Kate’s mom speak candidly with us? Can we get her to confide in us? I have my doubts. But we have to try.
We stop in front of a door, and Kate knocks. Nobody answers, so she tries again, this time a little louder. Still nothing. I raise my eyebrows, and we exchange a surprised look. She shrugs and opens the door. I wait outside while Kate goes in. She goes over to the large bed where her mother is lying, apparently asleep.
“Mom. Mom, wake up.”
It’s not until she touches her mother’s shoulder that she wakes with a start and her eyes fly open.
“Good lord!” she cries, staring at Kate in confusion. The moment she recognizes her daughter, her expression changes to one of anger. “Kate, what is this? Why did you wake me? What are you even doing here?” She looks expectantly at her daughter, and then her expression becomes anxious. “Is it about school? Are you having problems?”
“No, Mom,” Kate replies. “I called you yesterday to say that Tess and I would stop by.”
Her mother swings her legs off the bed, stands up, and hisses angrily, “You did not, Kate. I’d remember that. We certainly didn’t discuss you visiting. If we did, I wouldn’t have taken a nap, would I? Anyway, I’d never agree to you bringing that… that person. You know what I think of her. How many times have I told you to stay away from her?”
“That’s not going to happen. And trust me, I did call you yesterday. Do you want to see my call log?”
Kate is being more assertive than usual, and I can hear the impatience in her voice.
“How dare you talk to me like that?” her mother blusters. “If you’re going to take that tone with me, then you can turn around and go.”
“No, I won’t. This is important,” says Kate. “We need to talk to you.”
Her mother finally sees me in the doorway, frowns, and says, “Is your friend in trouble?”
Kate shakes her head. “Why would you assume that? Can we go down and talk in the living room?”
