The Mark of Cain

by A D Seeley

  “Look, Hara doesn’t remember, so it’s no foul this time,” he said as he let the kid in. When they were in the surprisingly large, but still dumpy kitchen, and he was once again working on the lasagna, he went on. “But, like I told you last night, I won’t help you again. Next time, you and Hara are both gone.”

  Tracker jumped up on the counter, nodding. “So what did her MRI show?”

  Shrugging, he said, “That she’s fine. The doctor diagnosed her blackouts as stress related.”

  “How’d you get her in so quick?”

  “One of my sons grew up to become a neurosurgeon.”

  Tracker’s eyes opened wide. “You still talk to your kids?”

  “No. Out of the kids I know about, he’s the only one still alive. And it was an accident we even met.”

  Dipping his finger in the marinara sauce and licking it off as though they were actually friends, Tracker asked, “How’d you meet?”

  Inac pulled the bowl of his homemade sauce away before Tracker could stick his germy fingers in it again as he said, “He was an undergrad at Yale. We were in the same class. I looked just like his father who had ‘died’ in the war, so he thought I was a long lost brother. Soon he learned the truth. He’s kept it quiet, though, and we talk about once a year. I never was that good of a father to him.” Which wasn’t quite true. When he was still with a family, Inac always lavished his children with attention. He was only a bad one because of abandoning them.

  “Why not?”

  “I get bored easily and have to move on. I’ve ‘died’ numerous ways because I don’t want my families knowing that I abandoned them.”

  “So you do have a heart,” Tracker said with a smile.

  Inac laughed. “Maybe a tiny one; practically microscopic.”

  They were still laughing when they heard a voice behind them. “And what’s got you two laughing so hard?” Hara asked with a smile. Her hair was up in a plum-colored towel and she was wearing a tank top and shorts that were really pajama bottoms. They were sweet. White with pink and red hearts, some of which were only outlines and some shaded in.

  “You look cute,” Inac said as she walked into his open arms.

  After a small kiss, she said, “Thanks. I bought so many pajamas for the camping trip that I didn’t end up wearing these.”

  “Why did you buy all new pajamas?”

  “’Cause I usually wear nightgowns. I didn’t think those were appropriate, though, with us sharing a sleeping bag.”

  “Why not?” he asked with a chuckle, pulling the towel off her head so he could play with her long hair. He loved how the wavy tendrils left dark swirling lines on the white fabric over her breasts, bringing focus to them.

  “Because what if it rode up? You aren’t allowed to see my underwear until after the wedding.”

  “Mmm. I’ll keep that in mind,” he said before kissing her again. He didn’t need to remind her that he’d already seen her bra on their first date and her breasts their first morning in Yellowstone. Unfortunately, she hadn’t let them go that far again since….

  This time, when pulling away, she asked, “So? What was so funny?”

  Tracker said, “We were just joking about how tough he tries to act.”

  “Were you?” she asked with amused eyes.

  “What?” Inac asked in mock offense. “I don’t try to act tough. I am tough. I’m the toughest mo-fo on the planet.”

  “And now he’s all gangsta,” Tracker said, getting them all laughing again.

  “So did you two spend some quality time together while I was in Israel?” Inac asked once the laughter had settled, as though he had no clue they’d been fighting the whole time.

  Hara pouted. “Tracker wouldn’t talk to me.”

  “Why not?” Inac asked Tracker.

  “I guess I was just upset about you two getting married. I don’t want to lose Hara.”

  “Track, just because I’m marrying Inac doesn’t mean that you’re going to lose me. You’re my family,” she said from her place in Inac’s arms—he was talented enough to make the lasagna with one hand, which he could tell was a turn-on for Hara. He liked reminding her of how easily he could take care of her. It turned her into moldable butter….

  “And,” Inac said, “I don’t intend on taking her away. In fact, I think you two should have one night a week for just the two of you. And then Hara and I can have one for just us. What do you say to that?”

  Hara was beaming, every feature on her pretty face bright with her excitement. “That’s a wonderful idea! Let’s see, I work Friday through Sunday. This semester study group is on Tuesdays, and I usually volunteer at the soup kitchen on Wednesdays. So, unless you want to volunteer with me—which would be great because we could always use more people—that leaves Mondays and Thursdays: one for each of you.”

  “I’ll let Tracker pick first.”

  Tracker smiled at getting her first for once. “How about Thursdays?”

  “Okay,” Hara said, lightly brushing a hand down Tracker’s arm.

  “So I guess I’ll take Mondays. If you ever need to switch, Tracker….”

  “Yeah, yeah. I’ll call ya,” he said as he jumped off the counter and started going through the fridge, presumably looking for something to eat since Inac was guarding his ingredients.

  Inac didn’t know what was up with the kid today. He really seemed to like Inac all of a sudden. Maybe he should have drugged the kid up months ago….

  Inac said to Hara, “I have to finish this lasagna, so why don’t you two go sit down and talk. Make up from your fight.”

  “That sounds like a lovely idea.” After kissing Inac again, she turned to Tracker, taking his hand like children getting ready to play Ring Around the Rosies. “Come on Track. Come sit with me.”

  Tracker seemed eager to go. Once they were in the living room giggling over who knows what, Inac set himself to finishing the dinner—which Tracker stayed for. Inac was glad he’d listened to the brilliant idea his mind had concocted. Now that he’d made sure that Tracker had his own time with Hara, the kid would again allow Inac some alone time with her. He couldn’t exactly get her in bed with Tracker right there, now could he? For some reason, the kid seemed to trust Inac after last night. Too bad he was dead wrong in that. He may enjoy Hara, but the moment she was corrupted, Inac wouldn’t hesitate to kill her.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  ***

  “So what are we doing tonight?” Hara asked as she let Inac into her house.

  “Well, I figured we could go out and do something. We really haven’t been on an official ‘date’ yet.”

  She giggled at him, tossing her long, thick waves as she did. He was pretty sure she didn’t know she did that.

  “What do you mean? We’ve been on dates.”

  “I guess dinner on the yacht could be considered a date. But, other than that, we’ve just studied at your house.”

  “Or went camping, had a picnic at school, made meals together….”

  “Those weren’t ‘dates,’ though. I’m not saying that we haven’t spent tons of time together, just that we haven’t gone out.”

  She pursed her lips in thought. “Okay. I guess those don’t count. So what are we doing for our ‘date’ then?”

  “What’s something you’ve always wanted to do?” For some reason, he wanted to give her everything she wanted before she died.

  “Ice skating.”

  “You’ve never gone ice skating?” he asked, unbelieving.

  She shook her head, her waves flouncing as they spilled over her shoulders and down her back like Niagara Falls.

  “Nope.”

  “But you grew up in the country. Surely there was a pond or something?”

  “Nope. Just the creek. I hadn’t even been to town until I was sixteen. And then, it was only because I’d already received my GED and was working for the orphanage and went to help get supplies. And even then we didn’t do anything except what was on our to-do list. T
hat’s the only reason why I got my license, too. None of the other kids who grew up there got theirs. Well, except for Tracker, but that was only ’cause he stayed on to work at the orphanage, too.”

  No wonder she was so innocent and marveled at everything. She was literally experiencing things for the first time.

  With a peck on her nose, he said, “Well let’s go ice skating then. Go change into jeans and grab a sweater. We’ll buy other things to keep us warm at the rink.”

  It didn’t take long once they got to the rink to pick out a scarf, a pair of knit lavender mittens, and a snow cap for Hara. The mittens were the kind where the mitten part could button on the back of the hand, leaving fingerless gloves. Her scarf was a plaid of dark colors: purples, greens, yellows, and blues. It went well with her plum cardigan set over a white tank top and dark skinny jeans that showed off her long, shapely legs.

  Inac didn’t get gloves or a scarf for himself. Instead, he wore an ash-hued T-shirt over fashionably distressed jeans—with all the training he’d put his body through, he was impervious to the cold.

  Wearing black hockey skates with white laces, Inac got onto the slick, pale blue ice first, taking a deep whiff of the delicious frigid smell. He then turned around and put out his hands for Hara, who took them before gingerly stepping onto the ice herself. She moved forward a fraction of an inch, so unsure on her legs that he was reminded of a newborn fawn taking its first steps. To help her, he skated backwards, holding her up with his upper arm strength. Despite this, she soon teetered and fell, bringing him crashing down along with her, both laughing as young children sped by like pros.

  He easily got back up, but it took a few tries to get Hara to a firm standing position—with his help. After about another twenty minutes full of falls and laughter, Hara finally found her balance and they were able to skate around a little more quickly. However, if he wasn’t loaning her one of his hands, then she would immediately fall, so he left it in hers.

  She finally found her footing. He could tell she had by the fact that he no longer felt like he was holding her up. He let go and skated backwards for a lap or two, hovering near as she became sure of herself.

  “Inac! I’m doing it!” she called, obviously proud of herself by the huge grin on her face.

  He smiled before moving and wrapping his arms around her tiny waist. “Don’t lift your feet,” he commanded before beginning to speed backwards.

  She put her arms around his neck, letting him enfold her as he picked up more and more speed, gleefully laughing as he pulled her along.

  Still moving as quickly as he was through the people in the crowded rink, he bent down to kiss her—adding to the rush—as he relied on his hunter’s senses so they wouldn’t crash. When he pulled away, Hara didn’t seem to know where or who she was as she slowly blinked over and over again.

  Inac slowed down until they stopped.

  “You okay?” he whispered when she still seemed to be disoriented.

  “Yeah…just….” She looked up at him, her luminous eyes the color of globe thistle full of amazement. “Just when I think things can’t get any better….”

  He took the cue and kissed her again, rubbing his tongue piercing along her bottom lip in the way that she liked. She shivered…and he was pretty sure it wasn’t from the cold rink.

  “Do you want to get out of here?” he asked, his voice coming out huskier than he’d thought it would.

  She nodded.

  Once they were in his black Lamborghini Diablo, he asked, “You hungry? Should we go out to dinner?” He really didn’t want to be in public anymore. He just wanted to hold and kiss her in private, and he was sure that she wanted the same.

  “Let’s just go to your house and make something,” she suggested. At that, he knew that he was right.

  He got through traffic quickly and, before long, they were in his kitchen, readying the ingredients for homemade butternut squash ravioli.

  Hara looked so beautiful as she cut the squash into cubes that he walked over to set his arms around her waist and press his chest against her back. When he couldn’t take it anymore, he nudged her hair from her neck with his chin and moved his mouth to her throat, tasting the delectable skin there. She tasted better than any food known to man….

  Soon her arms wrapped around his at her waist and he knew that she had ceased her chopping. She then cocked her head away from his mouth, giving him access to the length of her elegant neck.

  After moving his mouth around her throat and ear for a while, he turned her around and kissed her mouth. She was so into this that she kissed him back hard, her insistent mouth telling him that she wanted more.

  His hands were just beginning to wander from her waistline—one moving up as the other moved down to rub her upper thigh—when she grabbed them and put them both back in a chaste place in the middle. That just meant that he would have to push her other buttons a little more first. He was planning on getting her tonight. He wanted her tonight so badly that he was willing to do anything….

  Pushing her buttons seemed to be working…at least until he started moving a hand toward her breasts—he’d have to accomplish that before he thought he could lower them to her thigh again….

  “Inac…” she said, moving it away from its destination yet again.

  “What?” he asked, pulling far enough away to flash her a grin, hoping to charm his way into her bra with it—or at least on top of her bra. Right now he was so desperate to touch and corrupt her that he’d even settle for that….

  She was breathless when she said, “We can’t.”

  “You don’t want to?” he asked, lacing his words with hurt. He wanted it to seem like she was saying with her refusal that she didn’t love him anymore. It was a total jerk move—very manipulative—but she was so trusting and sincere that it would make her feel guilty for hurting his feelings.

  It worked. Her eyes were as guilty as they would be if God Himself had walked in on them with Inac’s mouth where his hands were longing to go.

  “Of course I want to,” she said, taking both his hands in hers. “I just can’t.”

  “Why not? If you want to, then do.”

  “It’s not that simple.”

  “And why not?”

  “Because I was taught that it’s wrong before marriage. You have to remember that I was raised by priests and nuns. The things they’ve ingrained in me don’t just go away.”

  “I know that, Hara. And I don’t want to pressure you into doing something that you don’t want to do. But you do want this. Maybe you should listen to your heart instead of your mind. I mean, what else did they teach you that, by seeing some of the real world, you’ve since realized wasn’t the way they said it was?”

  She bit her lip. “A lot of things. But….”

  With what he felt was a lopsided grin, he said, “It’s not one of the ten commandments, Hara. Nowhere does it say, ‘Thou shalt not be intimate with thy fiancé.’”

  She gave him a small smile in return. “I know that.”

  “Then just think about it. I mean, obviously the mood’s been killed tonight, but….”

  She gave him a small peck on the lips, in essence, shutting him up.

  “Okay. I’ll think about it.”

  That was all he needed. He was getting into her head. Soon, she’d listen to his manipulations and he’d be able to get into much more than that. Maybe now was the time to start putting pressure on her with other things. She was drinking outside of communion, had a newfound violent streak, and was contemplating sex. He knew she’d never kill for him, but every day she was moving further and further from her pre-ordained destiny. God would surely lose this time.

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  ***

  Inac had barely put his car keys in the silver dish by the elevator door when his phone rang.

  “What?!” he growled. It had been two days since he’d talked Hara into thinking about sleeping with him and now, having just come from visiting her, he
was no closer to getting what he wanted than he’d been before. It was really starting to piss him off.

  “Sir? It’s Santoni.”

  Inac rolled his eyes. “I saw the caller-ID. Now what do you want? Or is it only to waste my time with obvious statements?”

  “No, sir. Sorry, sir.” Then, before Inac could get angry over how much time the apology had wasted, Santoni said, “There was a coordinated attack, sir. Six European cities. All attacked by suicide bombers.”

  Inac froze mid-stride. “Where? How many dead?”

  “London, Paris, Berlin, Venice, Stockholm, and Dublin. They don’t know how many dead yet. This only happened about ten minutes ago now, sir. During the morning commute.”

  “I’ll meet you at headquarters in ten minutes,” he said as he turned and grabbed his keys, their teeth scraping along the metal dish with a sound like a sword being unsheathed. It was apt seeing as how he was about to unsheathe his own sword of retribution on those responsible. Right now they were celebrating, but soon they’d be wishing that they’d never crossed Cain.

  ***

  After a few days of bombings, they finally knew who was behind the attacks. And who it was had surprised them all. He’d thought it would be one of the extremist groups, but it was actually all of the Middle Eastern countries outside of the Mokolios’ control going against him in one large series of attacks. It almost made him laugh that they thought they could win. Because he knew their weaknesses, he would drive his sword straight into the heart of them. He only had to do one thing first….

  He knocked on the flimsy door of Hara’s apartment. He hadn’t seen her or talked to her since the attacks had begun, but he needed to see her now. When it opened, Hara flung into his arms without hesitation.

  “I’ve been so worried about you! With everything going on. Inac, I’m so scared….” After a few moments she pulled away, her eyes wet. Which really wasn’t surprising considering this was Hara. “What’s going on? Are they going to come to America next?”