by Paul Cave
“A good plan,” Ezekiel agreed.
They started to move away, when Brother Tobias said, “Wait! What is that?”
The shadows shifted slightly and the woodlands jumped alive with movement. Tobias and Ebon quickly dropped to the ground, retrieving discarded weapons that lay at their feet.
The tension grew.
Suddenly, the darkness revealed itself.
Crystalline eyes blinked from deep within the woods. A shiver ran up Jacob’s spine. The wolf pack lurked just within the safety of the darkened woodlands. Either Tobias or Ebon fired a shot into their midst. “NO!” Jacob said, stepping forwards. “They mean us no harm.” He hoped they didn’t. With his hands open in a show of submission, he took the first steps into the gloom of the forest. He sensed movement from behind.
“Wait,” Alice said, drawing near.
A guttural noise came from the nearest wolf.
“I think you’d better stay here,” Jacob advised, understanding that what lay within was for him – and him alone.
“Fear not, I’ll take care of you,” Ezekiel said from the line of trees.
“Great… ” Alice whispered under her breath.
“It’s okay, he can be trusted,” Jacob told her.
“He’d better be,” Alice muttered, retreating from the murky woods.
Now alone, Jacob made his way deeper into the trees. As he lost himself in the wooden labyrinth, he felt neither fear nor panic, just a strange calm. The first wolf, large and coated in peppered fur, padded alongside him and the rest followed; liquid silk flowing between the trees in one solid black sheet. What drove them on? Jacob wondered, their strange behaviour a mystery to him. Perhaps, he thought, the dark world had become too much, even for those who had been born with savagery in their hearts.
With the arrival of the sun the world had been tipped upside down. A new dawn was breaking, one which carried hope and understanding. Jacob chanced a look at his four-legged companion and found its jaws smeared with blood. Jacob’s own blood pumped quicker, fear finally finding its way. The wolf released a short, reassuring woof. Jacob’s heart steadied, but his feet began to pick up pace. Eventually, when he’d almost broken into a run, they entered a small clearing.
He stopped.
Standing in the shadows were Pet, Elliot and his son! The skinny vampire held the boy in the crook of one arm, his other wrapped around Elliot in a firm embrace, holding the injured tracker upright.
“Saved,” Pet said, his face crooked and pleased.
The boy in his arms grinned – a small, innocent face bright with spirit. “Saved,” the boy said, and he clapped his hands with excitement.
Jacob became puzzled. Then he noticed the large patch of blood on Elliot’s chest. The crimson patch glistened, the sun’s rays poking through the tangle of branches above.
“Are you okay?” he asked, worried for his nephew’s safety.
“A little tired, that’s all,” Elliot replied, although he looked pale and weak.
“It’s gonna be okay,” Jacob reassured, moving closer, ready to take his boy and help Elliot out of the shadows.
Before he could do so, however, Pet stepped unexpectedly forward, pulling all three into the glare of sunshine.
“No – wait!” Jacob warned.
Pet kept coming, sunlight playing across the craggy surface of his face. And, as if finally revealing the solution to an obscure puzzle, the shadows that formed made Pet’s face seem soft, serene and almost beautiful. The vampire kept coming and the revelation passed, leaving the vampire’s face blotched and puffy.
“Go back,” Jacob told him.
Pet smiled. It was a look mixed with intelligence and reasoning. “It’s okay,” he said. “Saved.” He reached out, offering the young boy to Jacob. The tracker took him and then wrapped his arms around him, vowing silently never to let go. The vampire released Elliot, and the younger tracker stepped awkwardly over to Jacob.
Pet took his final breath, whispered “Saved” one last time, and then the patchwork of rags that he wore crumpled to the floor, the motor-cycle helmet landing on top, reflecting bright white light from its polished surface. Jacob squinted against the glare. He pulled his eyes away from the helmet to find something spectacular before him.
A ball of light hovered directly in front of him. The sphere spun, slowly, and a quiet humming noise seemed to reverberate from its core. Jacob took a step back, expecting the sphere of light to reach for the skies. It hovered there, slowly revolving, the quiet hum resolute. Unexpectedly then, the young boy reached out and his small hand disappeared into the centre of the sphere. Without thought Jacob grasped the boy’s hand, intent on pulling it free.
Elliot watched as they both stood there, their arms outstretched and a look of bemusement on each of their faces. Then, surprisingly, both began to laugh nervously, as if in attendance to something prohibited. The strange laughter continued, until both fell quiet. Then each of them nodded, one after the other, before pulling their clasped hands free.
At once the sphere rushed upwards. It flew towards the sun and within seconds it had become a tiny white dot, caught on the shimmering orange background. Once it had disappeared completely, Jacob and the boy turned towards Elliot.
Eager to understand the strange manifestation, Elliot asked, “What did you see?”
The boy and Jacob first looked at each other, before fixing their gaze on the young man before them.
“What did you see?” Elliot asked again.
They spoke as one. “God.”
***
Joined in union, all three broke through the trees. Jacob took one final look behind him. The wolves had gone, reclaimed by the dark woods themselves – perhaps sent by an unknown force to help others who were in need. He offered them an imaginary salute, grateful for their aid. Maybe, he thought, they would return, when they were ready to give help. Or, more likely, when it was most needed.
Two memories bobbed to the surface of his mind.
I am your saviour.
And, Let it be.
He knew now whom those voices had belonged to. The first: his son, a saviour indeed. Innocence overcoming hatred and misunderstanding, as Ezekiel would agree. The second: someone or something greater than any living being. God perhaps? Maybe this higher purpose had wilfully let the world slip towards darkness, only then to see what beauty still remained. What hope and innocence could rise above. Had Man finally proven his worth? Perhaps, Jacob thought. He felt that the human race had proven something of worth. Something that would stay with them forever – forgiveness, understanding – that would hopefully be carried for generations to come.
They left the gloom behind, stepping into clear daylight. A tirade of raised voices met them.
“He’s a friend,” Alice was saying, standing between Ezekiel and a woolly colossus. The huge bear-of-a-man was having none of it.
“I should break his neck in two,” Ben growled, clenching his massive hands into fists.
Standing nearby were Tate, Squirrel and a teenager neither Jacob nor Elliot recognised. They did, however, notice how close the girl was standing to Squirrel. And as well as the sunburn on their faces, Jacob understood that Cupid’s arrow was ready to strike fire into their hearts.
“Listen, you big oaf. He’s with Jacob,” Alice said.
“That’s right, hairball,” Jacob interjected, catching Ben’s attention.
“Hey, partner, good to see ya,” Ben said, grinning, the confrontation instantly forgotten.
“Elliot!” Alice cried. She took three long strides and threw her arms around the young tracker.
The group fell into an animated narrative of explanation, each offering their own story. As they all chatted happily, Jacob caught his boy looking over at Ezekiel. The dark vampire offered the boy a slight wave, understating his real wish to hold the boy himself. Jacob’s eyes met Ezekiel’s. Ezekiel nodded once, both in gratitude and in resignation to the fact that the boy had finally been returned to his
rightful guardian. Then he turned his attention to the two vampires at his side.
“Mine,” the boy said gently.
“What?” Jacob asked, wondering what had drawn the boy away from the vampire’s attention.
“Mine,” the boy repeated.
Jacob turned, tracking the boy’s gaze. A burst of firelight filled his vision. A woman was racing towards them, her auburn hair trailing behind her in a long fiery wave. Her face was a mixture of relief and desperation. It was the face Jacob Cain had seen only in the privacy of his dreams.
Hannah flung herself into Jacob’s embrace. The bright world around him paled instantly. Outshone by the raw beauty of his wife’s face. Teardrops cascaded freely down either side of her face, turning her eyes into two deep green pools. It was only when he opened his mouth in an attempt to speak did Jacob realised that he too was crying heavily. Hannah reached out to brush his tears away. He wrapped his hand over hers and squeezed tight. Then, finally, Jacob Cain spoke words that he thought had been lost to him forever.
“I love you, Hannah,” he said.
“I love you too, Jacob,” she responded. “Both of you.”
The little boy stayed trapped between them, as they whispered urgent affections to each other. Eventually, he managed to break free, wrapping his two short arms around them both. He turned first to one and then the other. Tears of joy ran freely down his face.
“Mine… ” he said, his happiness now complete.
Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One