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Solomon wanted to shake Nathaniel awake, but he knew that there was no point.
It was a bitter irony that only hours ago, Solomon had wanted to see this man dead if only to guarantee his salvation.
But it wasn’t just Nathaniel that was dying. Any chance Solomon had of getting Sarah back had died with him. If anything, if what he had learned about the Moirae was true, Sarah was lost to him forever.
Solomon wanted to weep. Weep for the loss of Sarah, and for the child that had once again been stolen from him.
He didn’t know what to do. He couldn’t fight for there was no one else in the area. He couldn’t plea Sarah’s case, for there was no way he could bargain with the Moirae. In that moment, he felt no different than Nathaniel.
He just slumped on the ground, completely paralysed.
***
SARAH HAD ONLY JUST noticed the cool breeze of the increasing wind blowing through the night air. It briefly occurred to her, that perhaps Kate – or Catherine as she seemed to refer to herself – was mustering some control over the elements. But then reason started to settle in, and Sarah dismissed the notion.
The sun had disappeared from view, shrouding Sarah and Catherine in darkness. Sarah wished the light hadn’t deserted her so. There was something hidden about Catherine, something incomprehensible to the human eye. But Catherine’s own eyes glistened like those of a predator finally cornering their conquest.
Catherine inhaled deeply, as though tasting the essence in the air. “Well, it looks as though the fates have spoken. Nathaniel has met his end.”
“What?” asked Sarah. “Nathaniel can’t be dead. He-”
“I’m sure there are many things in your life you’re unsure of” said Sarah, almost sympathetically. “But be assured, your lover’s fate has been set in stone.”
“No” said Sarah, shaking her head, refusing to believe her. “Nathaniel wouldn’t leave me, wouldn’t leave us-”
“Oh, he didn’t,” said Catherine. “If it makes you feel any better, Nathaniel died fighting for you. Not that it would have made any difference.”
Sarah collapsed to the ground, clutching her belly, the only reminder of Nathaniel left to her.
Catherine was moved to feel some pity for Sarah; a pawn in a game she could not possibly understand. She considered letting the woman go free. After all, Nathaniel was dead, Kal was dead. Honour had been satisfied...
...but then she thought of Carmelita, dying from wounds inflicted on her by Kal. How she and her sister had fought to keep her with them. But there was nothing they could have done. All those powers, the might of the Moirae had allowed them to transcend to become the apex predator... and they were powerless to save their own sister.
And then she thought of Nathaniel. All this because he had absconded, because he had rejected his birthright. Which meant that the Moirae had been short of a Nephilem.
Now Catherine was looking at Sarah’s belly. She could feel the child inside her, radiating power. The sensation was delicious.
Vengeance now at the forefront of her mind, Catherine said, “Of course, I cannot let you go, Sarah.”
“Why?” asked Sarah through tears.
“Your baby is a potential Nephilem. Nathaniel was a rarity, hard to come by. And you may be the key to restoring power.”
“What are you talking about?” asked Sarah, the emotion having overwhelmed her and leaving her fast approaching a daze.
“Nathaniel was my property. He may have turned away from his birthright, but he was still my property. And that means that your child is my property as well.”
“Go to hell” managed Sarah. “I’ll be damned if I let you anywhere my child.” She looked around the wreckage, trying to find anything that could be used as a weapon.
“What are you going to do?” asked Catherine. “Kill me? The last time the Moirae fell prey to mortal hands, we were foolish enough to let our guards down. We were so convinced of our invincibility that we left ourselves wide open. Well, I won’t make that mistake twice.”
Sarah laid eyes on a piece of broken glass from the windshield, brandishing against Catherine. When she saw that Catherine was unfazed, Sarah held the glass to her own throat. “What if I kill myself? Stop you from having me or my baby?”
Catherine smiled humourlessly. “Sarah, my dear, I just saved you from a car crash. Do you really think it’s beyond the realm of possibility for me to save you from yourself? I know, the glass is at your throat, all it will take is one swipe. But do you honestly believe that you can do your little trick before I do mine?”
Sarah saw the conviction in her eyes and knew that Catherine wasn’t bluffing. Determined not to let this be the end, she said, “I’ll run and get help” she said. “Hyienna and Solomon-”
“Don’t you think they’ve been dragged through this enough?” asked Catherine. “I have an associate in waiting who will gladly come for those two, and anybody else who tries to come between us. We will raze the entire island if we must. You won’t have any tears left to shed before I settle your debt.”
“People will come looking for me, you know” protested Sarah. “I have friends who will turn this whole island upside down to find me.”
“For their sake, I hope they don’t,” said Catherine. “And even if they did, I could just as easily tell them that you were killed.” She took on the appearance of a limping, wounded survivor, struggling to say, “Sarah... killed... by somebody... almost killed... me.” She straightened up again, performance over.
“They won’t believe you,” Sarah insisted.
“’Won’t believe me?’” repeated Catherine. “Sarah, I have been by your side for a long time now, and you were none the wiser as to the trap around you. Maybe because you spent so much time in the company of fraudulent men, you failed to notice the bird of prey.”
Even though they were on an open road, when Sarah looked around for possible escape, she saw nothing, but barriers.
“You come with me now, Sarah, nobody else needs to die, nobody else needs to get hurt. I don’t want to have to destroy your every single human connection in the world. But I will. You would not be the first mortal to defy the Moirae. And you won’t be the last. Our plans are measured in centuries.”
“What do you want to do with my child?” asked Sarah, daring to ask the question, terrified of the possible answer.
Catherine could see exactly what she was trying to say and switched her tone to a more reassuring one. “Oh, I don’t intend to hurt your child. That baby is a rare commodity. We will ensure he gets the finest treatment.”
“And what will happen to me?” asked Sarah, breathlessly, as though the oxygen had left the atmosphere.
“You will be settled into your new home... under the lighthouse.”
Sarah gulped as her fate was spelt out for her.
“You will have everything you need down there. But you can never leave. You will be there until you die.”
Sarah tried to picture the image of her living beneath a lighthouse, never able to leave, never feeling the sun on her skin, or the touch of a lover, the rest of her life, defined by isolation. The image made her fall to the ground, at which point Catherine shot forward to catch her. Sarah was surprised by how gentle the woman’s touch was.
“I know it’s a lot to take in” said Catherine soothingly.
Sarah looked up at Catherine with pleading eyes. “Is there anything I can say or do that will-”
Now Catherine’s tone was harsh again. “Don’t waste my time bargaining with alternatives because there are none. This is your best and only option. Think of it like this. If I didn’t get what I want, I would have to torch this entire island. Every single soul wiped, like a bug underneath my foot. And since my potential killing of the population or by leaving them be, depends solely on whether you are willing to come with me, it’s almost as if you’re more responsible for their fates than me, wouldn’t you agree?”
Sarah forced herself to nod her head.
“Good girl” said Catherine, seeing that she had worn the young woman down. “Deep down, you know in your heart that this is the right thing to do. Say goodnight to tomorrow.”
She placed a hand on Sarah’s trembling shoulders and said, “I am the wolf dire and transforming, god killing, Scythe, and all-knowing. I am the glory, sun-taking, beauty in blackness, all hope, and nothing in forgiveness. And you, you are more precious than rubies to me.”
And Sarah felt an invisible force taking hold of her, and in her mind, she knew that no matter what she did, she could never leave, she would never know free will ever again. Every action she took from this point on would be under the direction of the Moirae.
She had become a puppet on strings.
***
SOLOMON STUMBLED BACK to the car in a slow daze, just as Yasmina was starting to come out of her drug-induced stupor.
“Everything OK?” she asked in a daze.
Solomon didn’t say anything. He simply climbed into the car and started the engine. Part of him felt as though he shouldn’t have left Nathaniel like that. That whatever he thought of the man, he at least deserved a proper burial. But he had to get out of there. He couldn’t stay a moment longer.
Yasmina sensed the tension on him and had enough of her wits about her not to say anything.
It felt as though there had been a shift in the earth. Nothing seemed to have changed outwardly. But the wind brought with it a colder chill.
***
MEANWHILE, BACK AT the inn, Hyienna was pacing up and down, trying not to make eye contact with Seth who just sat there, handcuffed to the pole, locking eyes with him.
“There’s nothing you can do,” said Seth. “Events have been set in motion by forces greater than you or me.”
“Shut up” muttered Hyienna.
Seth shifted where he sat into a more comfortable position. “Just out of curiosity; how did you think this whole scenario was going to pan out, hmm? You’d find the Moirae, take them out, get the girl, walk off into the Barcelona sun?”
Hyienna didn’t say anything out of sheer embarrassment, but Seth was completely accurate.
“You know, I was a lot like you once,” said Seth. “I used to have romantic ideals. But once you cross paths with the Moirae, you see the fairy tale for what it is.”
“And you’re OK with that?” asked Hyienna. “You’re content to be a puppet on strings?”
Seth’s face did not shift at all. “I made my peace with my place in life a long time ago. You should too.”
“No, I refuse to accept that” said Hyienna, shaking his head.
“But you must” said Seth softly. “There are things going on that are beyond your comprehension. You have only dipped your toe into that other world, and despite your best efforts, you’re lucky you haven’t been dragged under. Hyienna, listen to me. This is the life I chose, the life I lead. The same for Nathaniel. I know Nathaniel fought like hell to avoid his fate. But he was a smart man, smarter than any of us gave him credit for. And he must have known he was going to his death. In all honesty, it’s a shame he dragged you into it. I mean, when you think about it, what was he to you?”
“He was my friend” said Hyienna, suddenly unsure.
“I don’t doubt you felt a kinship with him, but do you honestly think he would not drag you down with him?” When Hyienna didn’t answer, Seth continued. “A drowning man will always drag down those closest to him, if only so that they can have a few more seconds of life, anything to avoid being swallowed up. Nathaniel’s fate was decided long before you entered the game.”
“This isn’t a fucking game!” shouted Hyienna. “You’re talking about people’s lives-”
“That’s exactly what it is!” said Seth, raising his voice. “It’s a big elaborate game. This whole island is a chessboard, and we are the pieces that are moved thusly.”
“I am not a pawn in your fucking game” protested Hyienna.
“You’re right. You’re just a guy who happened to settle in the wrong location with the wrong people at the wrong time.
“But it doesn’t have to be your life. You came here a year ago because you wanted a fresh start. You wanted to know that there were pleasures in life that weren’t closed off to you. That can still happen for you, Hyienna. Just pack up your bags, get a boat off the island and leave, never looking back, never coming back. Your life is a blank slate, and it will be down to you to fill in those blanks. Or you can stay in this rudderless world and get sucked up into a cause you don’t understand. And please believe me when I tell you this, you will not want to pay the price.”
“So, what exactly are you asking?” asked Hyienna.
“Just undo these cuffs and let me go. Let yourself go blind, Hyienna. I give my word, I’ll hold no grudges against you, and I’ll make no plans to call on you. You and Solomon will be exempt from any retribution. You have my word. And my word counts.”
“What about Sarah?” asked Hyienna. “Does she get to walk away from all this?”
Seth’s face crumpled. “There is nothing I can do on that front.”
“Fuck that, I want Sarah’s guaranteed safety.”
“Even if I was in a position to guarantee that, I couldn’t. Sarah’s fate has already been decided-”
“ENOUGH WITH YOUR FANCY HIJINCKS BULLSHIT!” shouted Hyienna. “If I don’t see Sarah or Nathaniel anytime soon, I swear to God-”
“Sarah’s gone.”
Both Seth and Hyienna turned in the direction of the door. Solomon strode in, taking Yasmina with him, who focused her eyes on the floor. “And so is Nathaniel and Kal. I watched them die. They both took out each other.”
The shock of Nathaniel’s death hadn’t registered with Hyienna. Before it could set in, he asked, “Well, what about Sarah, can’t we-”
“I overheard Kal talking to Nathaniel,” said Solomon. “They took her.”
“What about Kate?” asked Nathaniel.
Had either Hyienna or Solomon been looking at Seth at that time, they would have seen a noticeable twitch in his face, but by the time they looked back at him, it was gone. Seth said, “They have probably killed her too” he said. “They were interested in Sarah. And I imagine they wouldn’t want any witnesses to the taking.”
Hyienna felt himself retching with the knowledge that he had lost three people. Yasmina buried herself in Solomon’s chest, who wanted to comfort her, but didn’t know how to.
This was a sombre moment for Seth. For years, he had been aware of the damage inflicted on mortals by the Moirae, but this was one of the very few occasions when he actually saw it up close, could see what this belief did to people.
But he buried these conflicted feelings deep within himself and said earnestly, “I’m sorry.”
“’Sorry’?” repeated Hyienna. “We were supposed to protect her. And you’re sorry?” He knelt and grabbed Seth by the shirt. “You’ve taken Nathaniel, Sarah, Kate from me – from us” he quickly corrected.
“Nathaniel is responsible for Sarah’s fate” explained Seth evenly. “The minute he started courting her. The minute he entered her life, she was doomed.”
Unable to hear anymore, Hyienna said, “Solomon, I say we kill this bastard right now.”
“Hyienna” said Seth, who was not panicking in the slightest over the prospect of his impending death. “You’re not a killer. Sarah is already lost to you. So don’t commit a crime of passion and condemn yourself for nothing. Even if you leave the Moirae out of the equation, I don’t think it would look well to the police if you had the body of a murdered man in the lobby of the inn.”
“So, what are you suggesting we do with you?” asked Yasmina. “You people took my baby from me, everything worth living for. What could you possibly give us that would make all of this worthwhile?”
“Absolutely nothing” said Seth bluntly. “There is nothing I can say or do that would ever rectify the wounds inflicted on you all. And for that, I’m truly sorry. But I can stop any more damage from coming your way.”
“How so?” asked Solomon.
“You release me, and I give you my word that I will not disturb any of you ever again for the rest of your natural lives. Whatever dealings the Moirae will have in the future in these areas, I can ensure that you are kept clear from them all. My voice carries a fair bit of sway. But I can’t do that unless I have been released.”
“So, what?” asked Solomon. “We’re supposed to just forget everything that’s happened and carry on as normal.”
“Of course, not,” said Seth. “I would not dare insult any of you by pretending to just forget about what has transpired here.” He looked directly at Solomon and Yasmina as he spoke. “But if you feel there is any salvation to be found amongst you, then do everything that you can to be there for one another.”
It was the longest moment of Solomon’s life. He could kill Seth right here. Maybe he would not be directly avenging Nathaniel, Sarah or Kate, but he would be doing some damage to the Moirae, but he wondered if that would even leave a dent in their dealings.
Feeling completely exhausted and just wanting to lose himself to a deep sleep, Solomon took the keys from Yasmina, walked over to Seth, and unlocked the cuffs.
Seth rose to his full height, flexing his wrists where the cuffs had dug in.
He walked past them, where they all shifted from his presence like a mountain among clouds.
When he got to the entrance, he said, “There are still pleasures to be found in the world. I hope you all manage to find them.”
And then he was gone. And Hyienna, Solomon and Yasmina were left alone with the knowledge of all they had lost, trying to come terms with this new, misshapen reality that would become their life.
Hyienna thought about Nathaniel lying dead in the cemetery, his place in the world decided before he had even entered it.
Yasmina was feeling the pain of losing her child all over again, and now with the knowledge of losing Sarah and Kate, this threatened to emotionally cripple her.
Solomon felt himself walking back from a precipice, at crossroads in his life, only hours ago resolving to be a proper husband to Sarah, and now, he had lost her forever. Once again, he had been swayed with the temptation of family life, only to have it cruelly dashed.
Once all three people found themselves wishing they could be anywhere on the planet other than Formentera, the maafa was complete.