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Continued…

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Back at the hotel, I found the manager. There was something different about him. He seemed more stern. When I offered him the shopping I got from the market, he made a quick smile. But that smile faded as soon as it shined. He didn’t even give me a dismissal. He just turned aside to go, quickly asking a worker to get the bags off of me. 

That evening I thought about heading out to get my dinner. But before I left my room, a hotel worker came by and told me that I was booked for a meal downstairs. They didn’t tell me with who. Sudden messages like these usually came with a regard from the manager. 

At the dining hall, I was ushered to a table where Sir Barber and Lady Hannah were seated. 

“Where is Jean?” Lady Hannah peered behind and around me. 

“I thought he was with you two.” I sat at the only other chair at the table. 

“The old guard is probably busy” Sir Barber added. “Jean is not the tardy sort.” 

“No. He is not.” Lady Hannah then turned to me. “No Julietta?” 

I shook my head. 

“What about in your thoughts?” the lady questioned. “Are you having dreams of her?” 

“Not really.” I rubbed my chin. “I did have thoughts about seeing her while I was at the market. But I’m not seeing her face in my mind. I think I’m forgetting what she looks like. I think that my thoughts of Belle are helping to keep me grounded.” 

“Thoughts of Belle?” Barber wondered. 

“Oh.” It was embarrassing to explain. “Belle was my ex-wife. She is who I actually proposed to with this ring. The thought of her and the ring is what keeps me anchored to reality under all of Julie’s tricks.” 

The two of them nodded quietly. 

“Your daughter?” It felt better to shift the focus. 

“Things have gone cold” the old lady sighed. We don’t have any exact leads of where she is, or where she could be heading to. All we can do is wait for any news, or hope that we somehow bump into her.” 

“Why exactly are you looking for her?” I was curious. 

The two were shook by my question. They gave each other quiet glances. 

“You don’t have to answer that. I’m sorry” I assured them. 

“Our daughter is a wanted fugitive” Sir Barber finally spoke. “A wanted criminal in the Orders of the Hidden Arts. She had betrayed her order and jeopardized the lives of many who trusted her. And it seems that now, she is affiliating herself with those involved in shadow works.” 

Maybe because I was a military man, what Barber explained about his daughter didn’t feel as dramatic as he made it sound. Or maybe because I didn’t understand the extent of what he explained. Was she a serious threat? 

“What is it that your daughter did that makes her a wanted criminal?” I asked them. 

Barber was busy trying to find the words when Hannah finally spoke. 

“Lily murdered comrades in her order. Not only that, her betrayal disrupted the execution of a dangerous fugitive. She helped this man escape. And because of that, he and his organization are still strong.” 

This sounded much more grave than I originally thought. Their daughter was a traitor. A murderer of her own. That sort of betrayal was a universal sin, I was sure. The weight of that was unforgivable in the Pallion Forces, and I’m sure it was too for every other military. In Barber and Hanna’s particular realm, I’m sure judgement was much the same. But was their daughter part of their supernatural world? 

“You don’t have to answer this if you don’t want to, but,” I asked politely. “Is your daughter part of the whole… you know…” I couldn’t find the right words. 

Lady Hannah raised an eyebrow. 

“Is she part of the whole… ‘ghost hunter’ thing? Sorry. I don’t know what to call it.” I meant no offence. 

“She is involved in the Hidden Arts if that’s what you’re asking” Barber explained. “Our daughter was part of Beckham’s Unspoken Court. A respected figure for her work. But it seems now that she seeks terrible things.” 

“What kind of terrible things?” 

“The person she helped escape is a powerful soul binder. He was responsible for keeping our world safe from many wicked entities. But he began to seek more power. Being such a powerful figure in the front lines of the other realms, the limitations of our mortality became a mere inconvenience to him. He began to delve in arts we do not dare tamper with. Dangerous things. Our daughter has joined this dangerous man.” 

“So, you two have been assigned to stop your daughter?” I observed the elderly couple. 

“No. We haven’t been assigned to anything” Sir Barber told. “We are retired.” 

“There are others of the Unspoken Court who have been assigned the task of finding our daughter.” Lady Hannah spoke firmly. “But we don’t believe they are competent in dealing with Lily or Ronald.” 

“Hannah!” Sir Barber didn’t seem to want to share such details. But Lady Hannah raised a hand to him. 

“It is better if we at least stop her before more casualties occur. Lily is our daughter. And so, she is our responsibility.” 

“Will you stop that other man as well?” I wondered. 

“He is beyond anything we could ever handle” Barber told. “It would be too much of a risk…” 

“Ronald was our teacher” Lady Hannah interrupted. “When we were young he taught us much of the hidden arts. When many of us of the Unspoken Courts were young, he was a teacher to us all. That man is one of the pioneers of the Hidden Arts. Even Jean is one of his contemporaries.” 

“Jean?” 

So, the hotel manager knew of this man as well. 

A hotel worker came to our table. 

“Madam and Sirs” the worker greeted us. “Please follow me to where you will be dining.” 

We didn’t say a word. We knew it was probably best to follow. 

The worker escorted us to the lifts. We went up to the thirteenth floor. From there we followed the worker all the way down the hallway. There was something cold and empty I could feel about this floor. I didn’t know how to explain it. But it didn’t feel cozy like the hallway of the floor I was staying on. 

At the end of the hallway was two big double doors. Doormen were stationed at the front. They opened the way for us. And through the doors was a large ballroom with a few tables set in the middle. 

The worker led us to one of the tables; other workers drawing out chairs for us to take a seat. 

This place appeared to be a more private dining hall. Candles and grand chandeliers illuminated this place. A small bar to the side had several staff preparing cups and bottles. A quartet of strings played music at the other side. And all the walls were lined with tall curtains, except for this enormous window revealing the moon in the night sky. 

I didn’t feel appropriately dress in my simple polo shirt and jeans. Barber and Hannah were in their olden day dress and seemed more than fitting for such a place. I almost wanted to ask if I could get changed, but the confusion of our arrival here was our main concern. 

Sir Barber pointed to one of the men playing a cello at the side, and Lady Hannah nodded with a smile. It seemed they were familiar with the quartet. 

Then came out the manager. His mood seemed much better now that he wore his usual welcoming smile. He then sat with us. 

“This is where we shall hold the ceremony” the manager gestured his hand to the side. I didn’t notice before but there was even a water fountain placed in the middle of all the tables at the centre of this hall. 

“You seem live and ready to perform the ceremony” Lady Hannah commented. “We don’t even know if the Julietta will even appear any time soon.” 

“She is here in Peetsurg” the manager said firmly. “Ginsoon has confirmed it for me.” 

Barber and Hannah’s eyes firmed at that. 

“And if it is not the Julietta” the manager continued. “Then it is something formidable that shouldn’t be lurking in my city.” 

“Is that why you have Fredrich and the Fiddles all here?” Lady Hannah peered over to the men playing the music. 

“There are a lot of personalities that will be here by the end of the night. More by tomorrow.” The manager then lost the welcome in his expression. “I had a word with our Unspoken Authority. If the Julietta is in Peetsurg, they want to make sure she is eliminated. Everybody coming knows the nature of how this may not go as planned. We’ve all let her slip out of our hands before. But worry not, you two. It will no longer just be the two of you dealing with the Julietta alone.” 

“And we’re still to perform that very ceremony?” Hannah turned back to the manager. 

“There is no other sure method that can be thought of to deal with the Julietta. Unfortunately.” The manager frowned. “Nobody is happy about it. When I mentioned the plan to the Authority, they themselves couldn’t think of a more effective means to put her chaos to an end.” 

“So, Bzalnia knows we are here.” Sir Barber sounded worried. 

“The Authority knows” the manager nodded. “And they know of your plans to pass away the Julietta. That is why they called for more hands to assist you. And to make sure I prepare everything properly.” 

“Does your Unspoken Authority know of…” 

“No.” The manager answered. “I did not mention anything. Nor did they ask me about it when we were discussing you two.” 

“Okay.” Barber said quietly. The elderly couple gave each other a quick glance. Then Lady Hannah looked at me and put a hushing finger to her lips. They must have been talking about their daughter. I got the sense earlier that it was hush business, what they were doing about their daughter. 

“More familiar faces will come to dine soon. So, you will have a good idea of who else is here to help.” The manager eased his words. “And you will find a lot of my very own acting as the staff here in this ballroom.” The man gave a nod towards the bar. 

An old looking fellow, well dressed in Hotel Mysteria uniform, was standing awkwardly behind the bar. Barber and Hannah quickly recognized him and smiled, Hannah giving the man a big wave. The old man behind the bar smiled and gave a simple nod. 

“You got Johin working the bar” Barber laughed. “Does that chap even know how to pour a drink?” 

“Ummm. I didn’t really know where else I could place him” the manager shrugged his shoulders. “I’m sure he could pour a glass of water at the least.” 

“Poor Johin” Hannah giggled. 

 “Now back to business.” The manager then spoke firmly. “We will be holding dinner here for the next few nights. Just like tonight, we’ll need you all to come in and just enjoy yourselves like you will a usual evening. The other expected guests will be doing just the same. It’s a way we can all pass the time until we can get the Julietta in here.” The manager then faced me. 

“We understand the Julietta may not even appear ever again, so you’re more than welcome to invite other guests up here to enjoy the hospitality. Let’s say you meet a new lovely lady. Don’t hesitate to invite her for dinner. You can tell her that you are friends with the owners of the hotel. I’m sure that will seem impressive enough. I mean…” the manager gestured a head out to the whole ballroom. He wasn’t wrong. This large room held quite the grandeur. 

The manager then leaned closer to me. “If, and when, you do bring the Julietta up here, make it clear that you wish to order ‘the special casks of the night’, or ‘the special wine’, or something of the sort. That will be the signal. And that will give everybody time to prepare for the ceremony. 

“After you’ve given the signal, you won’t have to worry about anything after that. Everybody else will take care of everything once the ceremony is ready. Does that sound easy enough?” the manager smiled. 

“Yes, sir.” I gave him a nod. 

“Are you saying” Lady Hannah spoke up. “That we’re all just going to be acting for the next few nights?” 

“For the next week or so.” The manager stood up. “There is no need to act. Just enjoy yourselves. And do take it easy on any familiar workers you do recognize, please.” 

Lady Hannah laughed at that. 

“Now, could I get you anything while you wait?” the manager asked us. 

“Some red, please, Jean” Lady Hannah smiled. 

“And for you?” he asked me. 

“Could you get me tonight’s special wine?” 

The manager gave me a smirk. “I’ll get something appropriate.” And then he was off. 

Several different groups of people came to the private ballroom. And each one of these groups came to our table to greet Sir Barber and Lady Hannah. Even groups of workers, or perhaps people dressed as workers, would arrive at our table and pay their respects to the old couple. There was a surprising array of different cultures who came past, from Beckish, to Naldish, to Vrasnians. Even a young troupe from Kurdashia came by to pay their respects. These young folk from across the other side of the world seemed no older than their twenties. 

Was I sitting in the company of celebrities? I felt out of place as everybody came by and gave a polite bow or esteemed gestures of honour towards the two. Where as to me, they’d offer me a simple nod. Maybe I just wasn’t giving these Hidden Arts elders the respect they deserved. 

“Do you know all of these people?” I asked the elderly couple. 

“No” Lady Hannah told. “Not half of them. But we know the courts they represent.” 

“They all seem to know you.” I looked around at the different tables of people. 

“If you couldn’t tell,” Sir Barber stroked his chin. “We’ve been around for quite a long time” the old man chuckled to himself. “We’ve helped develop many practices that they use around the world today.” 

“So, you two are famous?” 

“Not really” Sir Barber smiled. 

“We are just specialist in a specific field of the Hidden Arts. Everyone here,” Lady Hannah looked around at the other tables, “is just involved in the same field. If you’re talking about famous, those musicians there are what you’d call famous. Or even the lovely old manager of this place.” 

“The manager?” I looked towards the manager who was attending to one of the tables. “Is he famous?” 

Barber and Hannah gave me a gentle smile. 

“You are lucky to be staying at this hotel, son” Barber spoke. “He protects everybody under his care.” 

I couldn’t deny what they said about the manager. There was an air to the man that you couldn’t mistake if you know what to look for. 

The meal we ate involved all the things I got at the market. How it fed all the other tables didn’t make sense. They must have gotten more ingredients besides whatever I carried back. But what was clear was that everything I bought was in fact part of the passing ceremony – not directly, though. Why did the manager make me get all of that? 

After dinner, I left to go rest. I noticed the manager go sit with Barber and Hannah after I headed off. Maybe they had things to discuss in private. Maybe updates on their daughter. It felt best to leave them be. They were likely dealing with things I didn’t understand. 

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To be continued…

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(Part 12-20) Hotel Mysteria 016 – Forgotten