Chapter Forty

Isaac’s Prison

Isaac sprinted back toward Holy Cross. The three demons pursued him at a leisurely pace as if escape were impossible. A sudden wind blew from the west, smelling of dead fish. Dark clouds blotted the sun. He closed his eyes against the onslaught of wind and reached the church grounds. He tried opening the oak doors, but they were locked. He screamed for help. No one answered his call. The demons were less than two hundred yards away.

He sprinted northwest to the rectory. The front door was unlocked, and he rushed inside. He deadbolted the door and, without releasing the brass thumbturn, fell to his knees sobbing. “Mom, where are you?” No answer. “Please God, please help me.” His cries were muffled by the red cotton sleeves as he dropped his head into his extended arms. The monsters were coming. He braced himself, waiting for them to pound their fists against the door. A moment passed, and then another. Creaking footsteps shattered the quiet stillness. He jerked his head around.

A young woman with an air of maternal warmth approached from behind the newel post of the wooden stairway. There was nothing maniacal about her. Her eyes reflected only kindness and concern.

“Isaac,” she smiled, “you are safe with me.” She drew nearer and took his hands in hers. Isaac knew implicitly he could trust the beautiful woman. “My name is Isabel.” She led him away from leaded windows, out of reach of probing eyes. They walked to the back of the T-shaped home, into a dimly lit library, lined by leather-bound tomes.

“What is happening?” Panic filled his voice and tears his eyes.

Isabel brushed the tears from Isaac’s cheeks. She lifted his chin so that their eyes met. “There is much to tell you but little time. You were injured and lay in a deep sleep. The world around you is a dream.”

The boy’s confusion was written upon his wrinkled brow. “Why can’t I wake up?”

“There are forces in this world that lead us home, Isaac, but there are forces that block our way. Your way has been blocked. You are locked in a dream from which you cannot awaken.” Isaac fell to his knees, as his mind filled with desperate thoughts of hopelessness and sheer loss. Isabel knelt down and embraced the boy.

“There are two paths in all dreams, Isaac. The True and the Broken. Something has severed your connection to the True. The world around you will decompose, but hope yet remains.”

Isaac pictured the ruin taking hold of his home and neighborhood. The demons… “Who are they, Isabel?” Isaac shivered.

Isabel understood the root of Isaac’s fear. “They are the Binders of Souls. You must not let them take you.”

Isaac shook as he collapsed into her arms. He wrapped his arms more tightly around her, as if doing so would ward off danger. As she stroked his hair, she spoke soothingly. “There is still a way to bring you home.”

“How?” He ground his teeth and unsuccessfully willed his body to relax. The shivering only intensified.

“I have found a warrior who will defeat those who wish you harm. He will act as your guardian along the Broken Path. He is a Fire Walker. He alone can bring you out of this dream.”

“Can’t you be my guardian?”

Isabel shook her head. “To do so would require that I walk the Broken Path. That requires a sacrifice I cannot make.”

Isaac took a moment to let the information sink in. Guardian. Broken Path. Binders of Souls. He didn’t understand any of it but he knew one thing. Isabel was on his side. He was not alone.

He loosened his hold on Isabel without losing the embrace. His body quieted and his sobbing dissipated. He wiped his nose with his cotton sleeve, released Isabel, and got up from the floor. He took hold of her hand and helped her up.

“Can we find him now?” Isaac asked hopefully.

“Not yet, I’m afraid.” He saw something in her eyes. His body tensed.

“You are in a dream world where Paul, your guardian, has not the power to reach you. You must travel to the farthest reaches of your dream. Only there can he find you to lead you home.”

Isaac inhaled deeply and readied himself for whatever was to come. “Where must I go?”

Isabel took his hands in hers. “There is another nodal point, a stronger one, a lighthouse, in fact. It is a thing of beauty, standing majestically at the water’s edge in Gill’s Rock.”

“Isn’t that all the way at the tip of Door County?” Isaac’s voice was tinged with hopelessness. He thought about making the seventy-five mile journey with no assistance. He had never traveled more than a few miles on his own.

“You are a remarkable soul,” Isabel said. “You are a dream walker. The Binders may destroy everything in their path, but this world is still your dream, your creation. You have just as much power here as they do. More so, in fact.”

A massive oak door with hinges of black iron appeared at the library’s west wall. Isabel released Isaac’s hand and then walked across the uneven hardwood toward it. Isabel opened the heavy door. Light from outside reached across the threshold, and she took Isaac by the hand and led him into the afternoon. Isaac looked worriedly around the church grounds and was relieved to see no sign of their hunters.

Together they followed a trail into the forest until they came upon the stone angel. “The forces of evil have a long reach,” Isabel said, “but perhaps some magic of the True Path remains. Keep moving north. You’ll find Paul at Gill’s Rock before the setting of the new moon.” Then she was gone, like a shimmering star swallowed by a sudden cloud cover.