Kate Ekan was a young woman who was married to the late Nick Ekan.  She was unhappy with most of her life, even though she had a beautiful baby girl named Amy.

History

Kate Rostel was born in 1979.  She grew up on a farm in a close-knit family and was especially close with her father, who frequently took her fishing and loved to spend time with her. Kate was an only child, however, and suffered greatly at the death of both of her parents at the young age of twelve.  Out of necessity, Kate was forced to mature quickly to support herself.

Not able to afford a college education, Kate worked as a waitress for most of her early adult life.  She suffered clinical depression and felt extremely lonely.  This was aided by the fact that she is introvert and had no real friends of her own.

One particular night after work, Kate suffered a horrible sexual assault in the parking lot of the diner she worked at and was left for dead after getting beaten during and after the act.  She was found by her boss a couple of hours later and was rushed to the hospital, where doctors found that she suffered broken ribs, a broken nose, and minor internal bleeding.

After recovery, Kate became a recluse, only going to work and then returning home immediately after.  She saw a psychiatrist and was formally diagnosed with clinical PTSD and clinical depression.  Over the following years, Kate pondered suicide much of the time but could never bring herself to complete it, due to fears of what would happen to her after she died.

One of Kate's coworkers at the restaurant, noticing that Kate was depressed most of the time and never wanted to spend time with the other coworkers after work, encouraged Kate to attend a women's assault survivors conference in Trenton, Oklahoma, where she could find others who had been through similar traumas.  At first, Kate fought the urge to go, but she eventually mustered up the courage to make the long drive in the hopes of finding a support group to help her through this difficult time.

Kate passed through the town of Shady Brook on her drive and decided to stay the night, as it was quite late and the weather was poor.  The residents of Shady Brook seemed very nice and Kate liked them very much, especially since she was in desperate need of good company.  But, that night, Tim Richardson forced his way into her motel room and kidnapped Kate.  He, along with the other residents of Shady Brook, exposed Kate to the pagan origins of town and forced her to marry resident Nick Ekan, threatening to kill her if she did not comply.  Terrified and broken, Kate saw no other choice but to obey their threats.

She was forced to take part in a ritual involving sexual relations with Nick shortly after, while the town watched, and eventually got pregnant with Amy, who would become Kate's pride and joy.

Throughout her time in Shady Brook, Kate was forced to put on a happy face and smile, even though her depression grew stronger with each passing day.  She worked the general store throughout the day, during which time she read books to try and escape from her miserable life.

After she gave birth to Amy, Kate finally experienced joy, but the depression hit even worse when she realized that Amy would have to be sacrificed to The Old Ones on her first birthday.  Kate only had a year with the one person who provided her joy, and for that, Kate despised Nick and the residents of Shady Brook. She longed to find her voice and fight back, but could never find the courage to do so.  The town physician, Gary Mann, prescribed Kate pills for depression to help her cope with her present situation.

Shady Brook

In 2005, when author Jake Torrent moved to Shady Brook, Kate instantly took an interest, since he seemed different from the rest of the people she had encountered in her life.  He seemed deep, caring, and quiet, and Kate judged him to be a truly "good" person.  Instantly, Kate devised a plan to save Amy from the town's sacrifice:  she would woo Jake and let him learn just enough about the town's activities to convince him to protect both her baby and herself.  She knew her intentions  were horrible, but she was a mother desperate to do anything for her daughter.

Over his few days in Shady Brook, Jake took an immediate liking to Kate.  While Kate did grow to care about Jake in return, she still carried out her plan.  The first chance she got, she stole Jake's car keys.  When the night of Amy's birthday came, Jake managed to provide a useful distraction killing Kate's husband Nick in a fight, which enabled Kate to sneak out with Amy and drive away from town before anyone noticed their absence.

With Amy in the backseat, Kate drove south toward an unknown location, far from Shady Brook, where she hoped to rebuild her life and expose the town's true nature to the outside world.

Summit of the Wolf

In 2005, following her escape from the town of Shady Brook, Kate moved into an apartment with her daughter Amy in Michigan.  There, she wrote an autobiography titled, My Escape from Horror, in an effort to expose the town for what it truly was.  Unfortunately, while her publisher was interested in the book, they published it in early 2011 as fiction.  Police, after investigating the town, found nothing abnormal, and Kate was told she made everything up.  Because she believed everything that happened, she was diagnosed with PTSD, and her daughter was taken away from her by child protective services.

At a low point, Kate admitted herself into the nearest psychiatric facility.  In July 2012, she attempted suicide and was rushed to Tristan General Hospital.  After doctors stabilized her, Kate was admitted to the ICU, where she met and befriended nurse Brianna Auberon.  Though Kate showcased interest in fixing herself up in order to reunite with her daughter, Amy, she apparently took her life in the ICU after meeting with Shady Brook resident Tim Richardson.  Though her death was officially labeled a suicide, Brianna does not believe it and is intent upon finding the truth.

Kate Ekan