The Mark of Cain (21 page)

Inac let his most vicious smile make an appearance.
Most people didn’t have the honor of seeing this particular smile and live to
tell about it. “Let’s just say that they got what was coming to them,” he said,
still grinning like a mad man.

“Meaning
what
, exactly?” the professor asked.

“Meaning that they are being tortured in the Old
Manner.”

The professor’s face paled even further, taking on a
sallow tint just before he turned and vomited into the garbage can.

“The Old Manner?” Tracker asked in a surprisingly
steady voice, looking between the two men. “What’s the Old Manner?”

“He means that they’ve been impaled alive,” the
professor answered once he’d gotten his bearings. “He’ll keep them alive for
days that way.”

“But…but
how
?”

Inac looked Tracker straight in the eye, narrowing
his for a moment as he read the kid. Just as he’d thought, the insignificant
child didn’t have much of a brain. With another slow smile, Inac said, “You go
through the anus and straight up. The stake then goes between the organs and
comes out the mouth. It’s quite an art, really.”

His eyes wide, the kid asked, “Wouldn’t they
suffocate?”

“Oh no,” Inac said, slowly circling the two men.
“I’ve perfected it by tapering the point to the extreme. It can take days to
die so long as it’s inserted correctly and doesn’t accidentally nick anything.
And that’s when we don’t keep them alive by giving them fluids. If we do, we
can keep them alive indefinitely,” he said, flashing another feral grin.

“But why?! Nobody deserves that!”

He had to admit, the kid had spunk.

“Because they were going to hurt Hara. Don’t you
think someone wanting to do the despicable things they were going to do to her
deserve despicable things done to them?”

Tracker didn’t answer that, instead asking in a
voice almost edging on threatening—which, of course, was as scary as a kitten
baring its fangs, “Why would
you
punish someone who was gonna hurt her?
You don’t care about her.”

Inac shrugged, taking the gravity out of his voice
and making it light and cheerful for a moment. “That doesn’t mean that I don’t
enjoy her. Besides, she’s
mine
.” Now was the time to gloat. “Don’t you
see that? She heard you two talking about saving her from me, who planned to
kill
her, and who did she run to?
Me
. She trusts me, loves me even. I’ve
known her for a month and she’s picked me over you, Tracker, someone who has
been in her life for ten years, as well as you, Professor, who has been in it
for three. Don’t you see? She
likes
the lustful and rebellious way I
make her feel. She
likes
the taste of my skin and the feel of my body,
and I like the taste and feel of hers. You really should taste her sometime,
Tracker. She’s like a juicy peach ripe for the picking.”

Tracker’s face flushed a deep red and he began
running at Inac again, but the professor held him back by grabbing his arms.

“He’s manipulating you, Tracker!” the professor
yelled.

Inac threw back his head and let his laughter roll
uninhibited; he was thoroughly enjoying himself now. “I always knew you were in
love with her. I think she’s the only one who hasn’t noticed.”

“What she sees in
you
, I’ll never know!”
Tracker spat.

“She sees a man, Tracker. With you, you’re just a
boy,” he said, letting his disdain slice the boy as much as his words most assuredly
would.

“You might be a man,” Tracker said, lifting his chin
like a child pretending to be a brave little soldier while peeing their pants,
“but I’m better than you any day of the week!”

“Apparently, Hara doesn’t think so.”

Before Tracker could retort, the professor waved him
off saying, “Tracker, hold on!” He then turned his boyish eyes on Inac. “Why
haven’t
you killed her yet? I thought that’s been your plan all along?”

Looking at his nails as though wanting to make sure
they were clean, he said, “I want all of her first.”

“So what are you doing here? If she’s vulnerable
right now then you could take advantage of her. If it’s sex you want, right now
is prime timing to try.”

“Now where’s the fun in that?” Inac stopped
pretending indifference and moved to sit on the desk to rustle through the
papers they’d tried to hide from him. Neither boy had the guts to stop him. “I
came to make a deal,” he finally declared, setting their childish plans aside.

“What kind of deal?” the professor asked, suspicion
in his hooded eyes.

“I’ll make Hara forget everything she heard tonight.
She’ll trust you again.”

“How?” The professor seemed intrigued with the idea.

“You think a guy like me, with the secrets I have,
wouldn’t have access to drugs to make people forget? Sometimes I have someone I
need for something who finds out a little too much. A small dose, and they no
longer remember what I don’t want them to know and they’re useful again.”

“So, you make her forget…and then what?”

He leaned forward, a bestial grin on his face. “And
then we play a game. The winner gets Hara. I win; she dies. You win; she
fulfills the prophecy. What do you say?”

“We’ll
never
make a deal with you!” Tracker
yelled.

“And why not? Really, this is a question of faith.
And I thought The Order’s faith is not in short supply. Isn’t that what it’s
based on? Your faith in Hara fulfilling her mission?” Inac knew this approach
would work. It had definitely worked before.

“And how is this a question of faith?” the professor
asked.

Inac felt like he was explaining this to a
small-minded child. “Think of it this way. Do you really know Hara?”

“Yes. And she’ll
never
give in to you!”
Tracker vociferated.

Tracker was annoying him, but he went on as though
he didn’t want to break his scrawny little neck. “And does God know Hara? You
don’t need to answer that. As a person of faith, you should trust that He would
know that I would come into her life to tempt her. Going along the same
direction of thought, He would know the outcome, so nothing I could do or say would
make a difference.”

“If you believe that, then why don’t you give up?”
Little, naïve Tracker. He really wasn’t all that bright.

“Because
I
don’t have faith in
Him
.”

“But…?”

“But if you two do, then you have nothing to worry
about. You’ll win, and I’ll lose.” As they thought about that, Inac hopped up
and walked over to the raised desks to collect Hara’s phone—it was just like
her to sit in one of the first two rows—before sitting himself on one of the
student’s long, lecture-hall desks that could seat approximately three of the
young, inquiring minds.

“What’s to keep us from just hiding her from you?”
Tracker asked. He sure was vocal, but it was probably due to the fact that the
professor seemed deep in thought.

“
Me
. If that’s how you want to play it, I’ll
convince her to run away with me tonight to protect her from you. How long do
you think she would remain chaste and pure in that situation? I would brainwash
her within hours….”

“Okay,” the professor said, finally speaking up.
“You have a deal.”

“What?!” Tracker was so angry that his eyes were
bugging out of his head.

Sad, the professor turned to the kid. “It’s the only
way, Tracker. Besides, he’s right. God will have planned for this.”

“You’ve
got
to be kidding!”

“And
you
need to learn to have faith.” The
professor turned back to Inac. “What are the rules?”

“No belittling the other team.”

“Like you’d stick to that!” Tracker accused.

Inac turned his eyes to the kid, narrowing them in
anger. “I’ve never spoken down on you to make Hara not trust you. You’ve turned
her against you without my help by your attitude,” Inac hissed.

“Okay. Tracker, enough,” the professor said like a
referee at a hockey match. “No belittling. What else?”

The menace was all gone, as though it had never been
present, when Inac spoke again. “No taking her out of town without someone from
the other team present. Unless, of course, the other team gives their
unsolicited permission otherwise,” he said with another smile.

“Okay,” the professor said, nodding his sandy brown
head. “Anything else?”

“No sabotage. We play this fair.”

Tracker scoffed, but silenced it with one gesture
from the professor.

“How about, we can inform her of what the other team
is involved in?” the professor suggested.

Inac looked him over, determining whether the professor
had a loophole in mind. “Meaning
what
, exactly?”

“I can teach her about people you’ve been, but not
tell her that they were you.”

He sat up straight, saying, “Fine by me.”

“And can Tracker go on double dates with you two?”

“Tracker can tag along as long as he plays by the
rules. But, if one team doesn’t play along, there will be repercussions.”

“Such as?”

“You can tell her everything if
I
don’t play
nice.”

“And what will you do if
we
don’t?”

“Easy,” he said with a carefree smile to show them
that he put no importance on his next words; that he wouldn’t even bat an
eyelash. “I’ll burn down the Vatican with the pope inside. I daresay he’s more
important than Hara.” And, since the Vatican was the head of The Order, he was
pretty sure that was pretty much the worst he could do to Them.

“So what do you plan to do if you lose?” The
professor seemed wary of Inac’s games.

“I don’t plan to lose,” Inac answered as he stood up
and walked out the door, leaving them to think about what they’d gotten
themselves into.

As soon as he got home, he gave Hara a small
injection, just enough that she wouldn’t remember a couple of hours.

At first he’d been angry that those morons had
ruined his game but, now that he had a direct opposition, it only became more
enticing. Tomorrow, the game would begin…and Inac couldn’t wait.

***

“Are you crazy?!” Tracker yelled once he knew Inac
was gone. “How can you make a deal with him? He’s the
enemy
!”

“I don’t think he is,” Sampson answered.

“How can you say that? You know his life story
better than I do. You know what he’s done and what he’s capable of. And still
you basically just gave him permission to kill Hara!”

“I have faith in Hara, Tracker. God put her on this
planet for a purpose. And to achieve this purpose, He gave her whatever tools
were necessary.”

“Hara’s a good girl at heart, but she’s too
trusting. She trusts Inac
completely
.”

“And maybe that’s part of God’s plan for her.”

“To willingly walk herself into the arms of her
executioner?”

Shaking his head, Sampson said, “I don’t think he’ll
do it.”

Tracker thought that was the most absurd thing he’d
ever heard. Of course Inac would kill Hara! He wouldn’t even hesitate.

“Um, I think he’s shown us that he’s willing to do
much worse than just kill one woman,” Tracker finally said.

“No, he won’t.”

“And what makes you so sure? Because of your faith
that ‘God’ will make sure Hara fulfills the prophecy?” he said, sarcasm
dripping in his words. Tracker didn’t have the same faith. He knew that Hara
was a good person, but to have a
prophecy
about her? He may have lived six
years in an orphanage surrounded by priests and nuns—he’d stayed after becoming
an adult working as a groundskeeper so he could stay with Hara—but he wasn’t
sure he even believed in God. At least he hadn’t until he’d met Cain. You
couldn’t meet somebody cursed by God and not believe in God Himself.

“No,” the professor said. “Because he’s in love with
her.”

Tracker snorted. “You’ve
got
to be kidding
me. He doesn’t love anybody. I don’t even think he loves himself.”

“Did you not notice how protective he is of her?
Those two guys didn’t even hurt her and he’s having them tortured.” The
professor was off his rocker.

“You heard him bragging about her. Talking crudely
about her. He doesn’t love her.”

“I think he does. I also think that he doesn’t
realize it himself.”

“And I
know
he’s just playing another game.
You need to call and let Them know. You’re right in that I should’ve told you.
And you should tell Them.” By “Them,” he meant those actually important in The
Order. Those who called the shots.

Shaking his head, Sampson picked up their plans to
kidnap Hara and locked them in the bottom drawer of his desk. Once the lock
clicked tight, he said, “Not yet. They’ll just take her away, and I think this
is an integral part of her journey.”