Under_The_Whispering_Door_by_TJ_Klune

“But he’s here.”
“He is,” Hugo agreed.
“Trapped here,” Wallace said, his hands curling into fists.
Hugo shook his head. “No. He has a choice. I tried to lead him to the door
at the top of the stairs time and time again. I told him it was okay to go to
whatever’s next. That I would never forget him and would always be thankful
for the time we had together. But he made his choice. Grandad made his
choice.” He glanced back at Wallace. “You have a choice too, Wallace.”
“Choice?” Wallace spat. “If I leave, I turn into one of those … those
things. If I step foot outside this place, I turn into dust. And don’t even get me
started on this ridiculous thing in my chest.” He looked down at the cable
stretching between them. It flashed once. “What is this?”
“Mei calls it the red thread of fate.”
Wallace blinked. “It’s not red. Or a thread.”
“I know,” Hugo said. “But it’s apt, I think. Mei said … how did she put it?
Ah, right. In Chinese myth, the old gods tie a red thread around the ankles of
those who are destined to meet, who are meant to help one another. It’s a
pretty thought, isn’t it?”
“No,” Wallace said bluntly. “It’s a shackle. A chain.”
“Or it’s a tether,” Hugo said, not unkindly. “Though I know it doesn’t seem
like that to you now. It keeps you grounded while you’re here. It helps me to
find you if you’re ever lost.”
That certainly didn’t make him feel any better. “What happens if I remove
it?”
Hugo looked grim. “You’ll float away.”
Wallace was gobsmacked. “What?”
“If you try to remove it while you’re on the grounds of the tea shop,
you’ll … rise. And I don’t know if you’ll ever stop. But if you remove it off
grounds, you begin to lose your humanity, flaking away until all that’s left is a
shell.”
Wallace spluttered. “That … that doesn’t make any sense! Who the hell
makes up these rules?”
Hugo shrugged. “The universe, I expect. It’s not a bad thing, Wallace. It
helps me help you. And while you’re here, all I can do is show you your
options, the choices laid out in front of you. To make sure you understand
there’s nothing left for you to fear.”