The Mark of Cain

by A D Seeley

  Inac looked at her, saying, “Hey, wait…. What? What’s that supposed to mean?”

  Tracker shot Inac a brilliant smile—he seemed to be gloating.

  “That means that you two can’t cuddle, or kiss, or be overly flirtatious…” Tracker was saying.

  “What’s the fun in that?” Inac grumbled, turning to her. “You can’t agree to that, Hara. That’s giving in way too much. You can’t punish us for him not having a girl.”

  She looked between the two men in her life. Inac looked angry; Tracker victorious. She had to find a way to make a compromise they could both live with.

  “How about this…?” she asked, still not sure where she was going with this. “We can act like a couple….”—she loved being able to say that now—“…just not to a degree that’s too much. If you feel like we’re getting that way, tell us and we’ll stop.” Inac was obviously about to protest so she held up a finger to stop him and added, “But…Inac and I can have two hours to ourselves each day where we can go and do whatever we want to do as a couple.”

  “Sounds doable to me,” Inac said. “I just have one thing to add.”

  “And what’s that?” Tracker asked, his smugness replaced with scorn.

  “Hara and I share a sleeping bag.” The words made her heart quicken and she felt her face flush with anticipation.

  “Absolutely not!” Track yelled.

  Inac rolled his eyes. “Relax, kid. It’s not like we would do anything ‘inappropriate’ with everyone else near.”

  “Then why even share?”

  “To give us some time to be together. I just want to hold her in my arms…” he answered, giving Hara a loving smile that made her want to be in Yellowstone, experiencing just that, right this instant.

  “Then I’m in the same tent as you,” Track said.

  Hara smiled at him and squeezed her hands still on his arm to tell him that she was grateful that he was on board with helping her to keep her chastity. She knew that it would be difficult to keep if it was just her and Inac. Also, now that her brain was working again, she realized something else….

  “Inac, I really should get to class.”

  “Do you have to?” he pouted.

  If she wanted to keep her head and virginity, then yes. She didn’t say that, though.

  “Yeah. I’ll see you later?” she asked as she got up and walked toward the elevator in what she was wearing—Inac’s oversize shirt and her skirt.

  “Promise,” he answered with a smile.

  Chapter Fourteen

  ***

  “So everybody’s sure that they have everything?” Inac asked a few weeks later, his serious expression mostly masked by the dark night.

  Hara looked around the sleepy group all still in their pajamas for the fifteen hour drive. Too tired to say anything, everybody just nodded. Crystal was leaning against her boyfriend, Shinji—although he went by Ji because he thought Shinji was too formal—while he attempted to rub sleep from his tilted eyes with a fist. Tracker just looked grumpy—he never had been a morning person unless he happened to still be awake from the night before.

  “Then let’s get going. We have a long drive ahead of us,” he said as he opened the front passenger door of the black SUV for Hara. He was the only one dressed for the day in his usual T-shirt and jeans.

  It was so early in the morning—two A.M., to be exact—that everyone but Inac and Hara basically shuffled to their places in the car. Hara wasn’t tired; she was too excited to be going on a trip. She had almost a month off school so they were going to Yellowstone for two whole weeks—Inac had said that if they were going to drive that far, they may as well make the most of it.

  They had barely all met here at Crystal and Hara’s twenty minutes ago, but she was already getting antsy. Lucky for her, when Inac had arrived, he’d already had everything they would need—other than their personal items—packed and ready to go, so they didn’t have to wait too long. He had even purchased a black shell storage thingy that he’d attached to the roof.

  Once they were belted into the comfortable, dark leather seats—Tracker was in one of the center bucket seats, Crystal and Ji were cuddling on the back bench, and Hara in front next to Inac—Inac started the car.

  Hara waited until they were on the freeway and she could hear Tracker’s light snores before saying, “I’m so excited for this trip! We really need some time together.” They hadn’t had a moment alone together since the morning after she’d almost been raped and had fallen asleep at his house forever ago. Their relationship had just begun at an inconvenient time with finals coming up.

  Not that she hadn’t seen Inac—she’d seen him plenty—it was just that he was always quizzing their study group. They had barely kissed or cuddled at all recently, and she really missed it.

  “I hear that,” he answered as he smiled sideways at her, the lights of the freeway brightening his features every few moments. “I just want to hold you in my arms. I can’t wait for bed tonight. This will be a trip of firsts for us.”

  Her heart stopped…well, it felt like it did. When it began beating again, it was doing so faster than any rock and roll song Inac had introduced her to in the past few weeks.

  “Inac…you know we won’t be going there, right?” she asked, her face hot and full of pressure.

  He laughed, making her feel slightly foolish. “That’s not what I meant.”

  “Then what did you mean?”

  “I meant that it will be our first vacation together. Our first time sleeping in the same sleeping bag. Your first time camping. Your first time wearing jeans and a bathing suit….”

  Inac had shown up two days ago with a stack of tees, tank tops, swimming suits, shorts, and jeans for the trip, as well as hiking shoes he’d forced her to wear ever since so she could break them in. It was just another way he kept proving how thoughtful he was.

  “I guess that does make it a trip of firsts,” she responded with a smile of her own.

  He moved a hand across the space between them and took hers, smiling sideways at her. Now content as the excitement waned enough for her to relax, she held on to it until the steady rhythm of the highway lulled her to sleep.

  ***

  Inac had been driving for ten hours straight. He didn’t mind doing so—when you’ll live forever, you learn to have patience—but his passengers all seemed to be getting crabby. At least everyone but Hara. She was sitting next to him, happily munching away on peanut butter cookies she’d baked for them last night.

  “Let’s play a game,” she said, tossing her hair back.

  “Like what? We’ve found the alphabet at least ten times already on everyone’s license plates,” Tracker grumbled. Inac knew he hadn’t wanted to come but, since making their deal, he hadn’t let Inac have a moment alone with Hara. It was getting quite irksome.

  “Let’s play ‘I never,’” Hara suggested.

  “What’s that?” Inac asked.

  “Well,” she said, biting her lip in a way that made him want to do the same to that very same inch of her. “Each person says something they’ve never done. If you’ve done it, then you have to fess up. It’s a fun way to get to know each other.”

  “Okay,” everyone reluctantly agreed; it was difficult to say no to Hara. Besides, at least it would keep them occupied.

  “I’ll start,” Hara chirped. “I’ve never…hmm…I’ve never said a curse word.”

  Everyone fessed up. Not a one of them hadn’t. And Inac, well, he usually had quite the mouth. It was difficult not swearing around Hara, but it had to be a part of the character he played if he was to get her.

  “Okay Crystal, your turn,” Hara said.

  “I’ve never been married.”

  Inac chuckled. “Guess you’ve got me there.”

  “That means you’re it,” Hara explained.

  “Okay. I’ve never dyed my hair.”

  “You mean you’ve had hair?” Ji joked. Inac hadn’t known him long, but he already li
ked the skinny little Asian kid.

  “My hair’s actually quite thick. I’ve even had dreadlocks that went midway down my back.”

  Everyone but Tracker got a good laugh at the picture that surfaced before Ji and Crystal both fessed. Since Crystal had already had a turn, it was Ji who went next.

  “I’ve never been in love with somebody I could never have,” he said.

  Nobody owned up to that, though Inac expected Tracker to. Apparently, so did Ji. Inac could hear him kick the back of Tracker’s seat as he said, “Fess up, Track!”

  Hara turned in her chair, her brow furrowed. “What? Who? And how come I don’t know this?”

  Inac glanced at Tracker in the rearview mirror. His face was a deep crimson. Everybody but Hara knew how in love Tracker was with her.

  “It’s nobody,” he whispered.

  “Oh my goodness! Who?!” Hara was obviously delighted with the new information.

  “It doesn’t matter because I don’t have a chance.” Probably to save himself from more humiliation, he said, “I’ve never killed a man.”

  Inac tightened his grip on the steering wheel. Technically, Tracker had just broken the deal. He probably didn’t realize it, though. If he did, then Inac would have to burn down the Vatican—something he really didn’t feel like doing. He had seen too much death and destruction in his years. However, he couldn’t go back on his word or he’d lose the control he had over The Order. As it was, They were too scared of him to rally up an army to defeat him.

  Hara’s trilling laughter brought him out of his reverie. “Nobody here has killed anyone. Do another. And this time, make it something one of us probably has done.”

  “Are you sure none of us have killed a person?” Tracker asked.

  “Of course! Who would have?”

  Inac watched Tracker in the mirror—who was nodding toward him with his head—leaving Inac to contemplate how he could kill him. Out of the corner of his eye, Inac saw the moment that Hara understood where Tracker was going with this.

  She chuckled again. “Nuh-uh. Inac’s never killed anyone. Have you?” she asked, turning to him. “Just because he looks kinda scary doesn’t mean that he is.”

  He just glanced sideways at her, unable to keep how annoyed he was off his face. As he did, her already alabaster skin lost its color until her usually pink cheeks were as pale as the rest of her.

  “Inac?” she asked, a touch of horror in her tone. “Please tell me it isn’t true?”

  “Do you want me to lie?”

  “But…but why?” she said, her unusual eyes filling up with tears.

  “War makes you do things you don’t want to do. When it’s kill or be killed…” he said, swallowing. For some reason, it was really bothering him just now. He could see each and every face of anyone he’d ever killed. There was a sea of them pounding against the rocks in his head. Crashing farther and farther up into his psyche. This character he was playing was really beginning to get to him.

  He felt a light touch on his knee. It was nice. It helped the waves recede back into the black abyss he stored them in.

  When he felt only the light ripple of them in his mind, he glanced at Hara, who was now crying for him. He didn’t need or want her pity but, the fact that she was crying for him was like sunshine lighting up all his deep crevices.

  “Inac…I’m sorry. I didn’t know,” Hara said quietly enough that he doubted anyone else could hear.

  “It’s okay. It just gets to me sometimes.” Which was true…since he’d met her, anyway. He actually felt guilty right now. Maybe that was just because he was finally sane…for the most part, anyway.

  The light mood was now gone as everyone sat silent in their thoughts. He just hoped that they could all snap out of their somber moods before they made it to their destination.

  At least he wouldn’t have to murder the pope today. Again, Tracker’s plan to undermine him had only brought Hara closer to the moment when she would give herself wholly to Inac.

  The idea brought a smile to his face and he felt much more like himself. This trip was going to be exactly what he needed. Who knew, maybe Hara would be dead by next week and he would be able to move on with his life. And then, the moment her perfect presence was out of his life, his guilt would evaporate like the water inside a burning heretic.

  Chapter Fifteen

  ***

  Hara sat down on the thick log perched by the fire pit, setting herself next to Inac. Closing her eyes against the bright setting sun, she took a deep whiff of the massive pine trees mixed with burning wood. The fire he had built was now, according to him, perfect for them to cook their dinners in. To her, it just looked like coals. But if he called that a fire, then she wasn’t going to question it.

  “Are you sure this will cook the food?” she asked as she handed him the pile of tinfoil-covered mounds of food. Inside each one, Inac had instructed her and the others to put baby carrots, onions, cut up potatoes, and ground beef, as well as a bunch of seasonings she didn’t recognize, mainly because they were fresh instead of coming from a spice rack. After all, those were dried and had neat little labels on them. Still, even with fresh spices, the food really didn’t sound that appetizing.

  “I’m sure. I’ve made these a million times,” he said as he set each one in a different part of the “fire.” He’d been like this—distant—ever since Tracker had brought up that Inac had taken a life. He didn’t seem angry, though, just thoughtful.

  As soon as they’d made it to their campground situated in the middle of the large, dense forest, he’d started making camp without saying a word. After erecting three tents—one for Ji and Crystal, one for their food, and one for him, Hara, and Track—he’d then put everything in its place before finding wood and making the fire. Everyone else had offered to help so much that he’d finally given in and had let them make dinner—something that they couldn’t “mess up.”

  He touched her knee and gave her a smile. “I see you changed out of your pajamas and into jeans,” he said.

  “Yup. I changed as soon as our tent was finished. You were just too busy to notice.”

  “Well, none of you have ever been camping before….”

  “Doesn’t mean we can’t help. You don’t have to do everything yourself.”

  He pulled her into his arms until she was sitting sideways on his lap and looking into his eyes. “Sorry. My head’s just been cluttered today, and doing things by myself tends to help clear it.”

  “Are you okay?” she asked with concern, lightly putting a hand on his chest and looking up at him. The way the evening sun lit up his face while leaving other parts of it in shadow made him hauntingly beautiful.

  Marring the picture, he gave her a small peck on the lips before saying, “I am now.”

  She smiled. “Good.”

  “Where’s Tracker?” he asked, looking around their camp.

  “He went to use the restroom with Ji and Crystal.” The campground had toilets and showers down the road a ways; probably Inac’s way of slowly introducing the non-campers to the great outdoors. She was sure that, had he been alone, Inac probably would have been roughing it…whatever that meant.

  “Really?” he asked with a tone that meant that he was about to take full advantage of the situation.

  “Yes. Really.” The way he was looking at her had her heart beginning to race like a coalition of cheetahs chasing after one another.

  One of his hands began playing with the ends of her hair and his eyes and voice both deepened. “I think we may just have to take advantage. What do you think?”

  She put one hand around his waist and the other at the nape of his neck, playing with his velvety stubble.

  “I think I agree with you,” she said with a smile as she lightly pulled his head toward hers.

  It started out gentle; small kisses punctuated by smiles and giggles. But, because it had been too long since they’d been alone and they both had some pent-up passion to get out, the kisses soon dee
pened and turned ravenous. At least they were both fully clothed this time. It made it so she didn’t worry about them going too far. Besides, they would be interrupted any moment….

  Inac seemed to realize this too because he was moving much faster than he had before. It was like he wanted to get everything in that he could before they could get interrupted. He grabbed her hips and re-situated her pelvis until she was basically straddling him. Then, he grabbed her rear-end and stood, carrying her into their tent.

  “What are you doing?” she asked in a breathy whisper.

  “This way we can hear them coming before they see us,” he said as he laid her on top of their sleeping bag set on an air mattress.

  “Mmm…you’re so smart,” she said as his mouth moved around her neck. Her eyes at half-mast, she added, “I hope they don’t come back for a long, long time.”

  “Maybe they’ll get eaten by bears,” he said, moving his mouth to her stomach, where he made small kisses on the thin fabric of her shirt, the warmth of his mouth seeping through.

  “Mmm…be nice,” she replied, lifting his chin with her pointer finger so she could look him in the eye.

  He shot her a wicked grin. “I thought I was being nice.”

  She giggled. “I mean about the bears.”

  “Okay. Just a little lost then,” he amended before moving his mouth back to her stomach as he pulled her shirt up slightly so that he could leave a path of kisses on her bare flesh.

  It felt amazing, and she never wanted him to stop. It was when he was lightly making a zigzag motion with his tongue descending from her bellybutton that she heard noises outside.

  “Hara? Inac?” Crystal called. She had impeccable timing. But whether good or bad, Hara wasn’t sure. A part of her wanted to murder her for ruining where this was likely going to go, but another part was grateful that her virginity would live to see another day.

  She almost couldn’t believe that was even an issue since they had only known each other a couple of months. It was just that Inac did everything right. He said the right things. He did the right things. He was just so good to her. And all of that carried into the physical aspect of their relationship. They had such an incredible chemistry too that, added to the fact that he seemed to know exactly what to do, she just wanted more and more.