Chapter 26

Another day of driving and they finally saw what looked like a large lake on the horizon surrounded by a thick mist. As they approached the water’s edge, they could not see how far the lake extended – they knew it was no ocean; there were no waves crashing against them as they stood on the lifeless beach.

Vince stared out into the water and shoved his hands into his pockets. I’ve been let down, he thought when he realized there was no boat or even a boatman waiting for them. He sighed as disappointment engulfed his soul. Mykella, I hope you’re having better luck than we are.

Chris approached Vince and looked out into the horizon. She knew how he must be feeling; it was, after all, his own mother who had lured them here to this desolate location. But for what purpose?

“Hey, what’s that?”

Vince glanced behind him and saw Karl standing behind him looking out into the mist. They turned in the direction Karl was looking and then they saw it too – and how could they have missed such a massive structure?

The two towers seemed to be beckoning them to come but it was the odd sound that won their attention. It was a sound none of them had heard in nearly two decades. They looked up and saw a dove flying overhead, directly above them.

They followed the bird as it flew to the east and their first sight shocked them. Almost behind the castle lay enormous woods as alive as if it had never died.

“What the hell,” replied Vince and then Chris nudged his arm. He turned and saw what she was looking at. “Is that –?”

Chris worriedly nodded her head. “You can’t expect us to ride on that, can you?”

They were approached by other people in their army and all eyes fell upon the thing that floated on the water with the human form standing at the helm wheel. The black boat seemed large enough to take the entire lot across in one trip, but at what price?

“His name is Cain.”

Vince jumped and turned around, only to be looking into the face of his mother once again. “I told you not to do that.”

Tracy tried hard not to laugh. “I am sorry,” she said and then looked back to the boat. “He will guide you across the water.”

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“You said his name was Cain?” Karl looked at Tracy and she nodded. “Like, Cain and Abel? The one who murdered his brother?”

“And now you know what his eternal employment is.”

“I don’t like this one bit,” Vince replied as he shook his head and looked out at the motionless boat, waiting for its arrival.

“What would you like? Cain has been taking souls to the underground for ages, he was the only one Ilias could find for the job.”

“How much do we have to pay him?”

Tracy lowered her eyebrows in confusion. “Pay him,” she repeated. “Vincent, Cain has been dead for a very long time. He doesn’t need payment.”

Chris stepped closer to Tracy. “What will happen to him once we reach the other side? Does he leave us stranded?”

“Yes,” she answered. “Once you’re on the other side of the lake, you will have to find your own way back when the war is over.”

Vince found himself chuckling. “You mean, if there are any of us left alive to need to get back.”

“I’m still arguing with Ilias for control of myself,” she told Vince as they looked out at the boat. “I’ve told him that I’m joining you in the battle, but he didn’t seem too happy about that.”

Vince closed his eyes and tried to force the thought from his mind, but the words found sound nonetheless. “So you’re a slave,” he said and lowered his head.

A strange feeling of anger exploded inside Tracy’s ethereal being (she had not felt this hatred since she understood what Queen Nanaac was really using her body for – to continue her own war) and she reached up and brought her hand across his face.

Tracy was surprised by this sensation just as much as Vince and his friends were. Not only was Tracy irate with her son for the first time, but she was able to make physical contact with Vince. “Oh my God, Vince, I am so sorry. I didn’t mean to,”

Vince couldn’t just shrug off the fact that his mother was angry with him or that she had actually been angry enough to lash out at him. He turned his head from her and instead looked out at the boat. “Come on, let’s get this war over with,” he said to his friends, not his mother.

Chris’ heart sank as she watched Vince walk past his mother without even acknowledging her space. He was ignoring her and it was Chris who saw Tracy’s tears falling from her eyes.

Everything was silent as he made his way to the boat that seemed to grow in size the closer he got to it.

And as it came closer, Captain Cain pushed his boat to the shore and waited without words for his passengers to board.

One by one the army filed onto the boat and they were amazed at how much space it had – they all had plenty of elbow room. Although everyone seemed content, Vince couldn’t keep his suspicious eyes off Cain and an uneasy feeling crept into the pit of his soul. He was remembering that horrible night when he and Samantha and Mykella were forced onto the boat by Dreamkillers and taken to the same castle they were heading to right now.

Was Cain a Dreamkiller?