Chapter Forty-Six

Visitor in Egg Harbor

She was less than a hundred yards from Isaac, standing with hands upon hips. She walked toward him with a self-assurance that told him she knew he would be there. The wind blew the snow in ghostly swirls. She wore a full-length brown leather coat lined with shearling, but her hood was pulled back as if she was impervious to cold. She smiled with chestnut eyes, beautiful, clear, and impenetrable. “Hello, Isaac,” she greeted him with an eerie combination of maternal warmth and exotic sensuality.

The disquieting beauty had high cheekbones and long raven hair. She sauntered up to Isaac, stopping just in front of him. She gently touched his face and brushed the hair away from his eyes. “I’m here to help you,” she said. He didn’t flinch from her caress, nor did he lower his guard. She stroked his cheek and then took his hand in hers to lead him away.

“They will not harm you while you are with me,” she said.

Isaac continued to glance backward as they walked, nearly tripping over himself on several occasions. At least two of the children, both blonde-haired little girls, escaped the confines of the harbor side shops. Each wore a simple red cotton dress with a satin bow tied at the back. They stood in the middle of the road watching both him and the stranger with wariness. There was something else...Anger? Hatred?

“Who are they?” he asked.

“They were children of the bay.”

Isaac scrunched his eyes as if trying to solve a puzzle.

“They were imprisoned long ago and are evolving,” she said. “Even children will not stay trapped forever. They, themselves, can grow into little Binders of Souls.” The enigmatic woman then laughed quietly to herself. He continued to walk with her nonetheless.

“Are you sure they won’t follow us?” Isaac was ill at ease with the leisurely pace she set. She put her arm around his shoulder and led him further along the street toward a bend in the road. Just beyond the curve were the blood-red flames of a Harley Fat Boy parked defiantly in the middle of the road. The swirling red fire was painted so that the silver Harley eagle looked endangered by the inferno.

“I’m certain they can’t,” she replied.

When they neared the bike Isaac looked back at the virulent town. They were not being followed. Not yet.

Visible northward was an occasional stone bungalow that reminded Isaac of a land that had once been full of life. The road was lined on both sides by frosted stands of hemlock and birch. The snow fell harder, and the smell of wood smoke filled the air. He had not forgotten the pursuing inferno. He needed to get the hell away from here.

“Tell me what you want,” he demanded of the captivating woman. She seemed shocked by his directness.

She caressed his cheek again, maternally and with great affection. Isaac looked into the earthen depths of her eyes and inhaled her exotic aroma. She smelled of jasmine but also of cinnamon and baking spice. He closed his eyes to recall things long forgotten. He inhaled her longingly.

“I want to help you,” she told him. He allowed her to fuss with his hair and felt his face flush every time she touched his cheek with her warm hands.

“I can lead you away from here,” she said with tenderness. “If you ride with me I will lead you to Gill’s Rock. I will be your protector.” Isaac’s heart began to race.

“Of course,” he whispered excitedly. “Isabel sent you.” It all seemed too good to be true. He looked into her almond eyes. Heroine eyes. They revealed no kindness.

“What are you not telling me?” he asked the stranger warily.

“I have hidden nothing from you.” Her tone was neither defensive nor arrogant. “I will take you as far as the Door of Death.”

Isaac found the missing piece in her words. “As far as but not across?” Her scent shifted suddenly. It became more blood orange and less baking spice.

“I will take anywhere you want to go. You are safe with me.”

Isaac grew more suspicious. “What will happen to the children?”

“They will stay as they are now,” she answered with seeming indifference. “What concern of yours are they, Isaac?” She pressed her lips fully against his and kissed him with a scarlet fervor that bordered on possessiveness. Gone completely were any traces of maternal warmth. Isaac had no choice but to breathe in her twilight allure. He nearly swooned.

She ran her hands through his hair and then lowered them to his torso. She searched lower still to confirm her effect upon him. His breathing was rapid and shallow. The stranger removed her lips from his, leaving him breathless, longing and slightly empty.

“I won’t go with you,” he announced at last.

No warmth filled the hard gaze she fixed upon him. He would not be able to resist her a second time. As she leaned closer he dodged to the left and ran. It was cowardly and childish, but he could think of nothing else to do.

The stranger watched him run from her. He sped northward, away from the cursed town of Egg Harbor. She laughed at him mockingly as she shouted. “You’re going to die here you fucking coward! There is no one left to save you.”

She walked back to her Harley and kicked it hard, until it toppled onto the pavement. Isaac would have led her to Paul Prophet, the one she needed. She would never gain Paul’s trust if she followed Isaac through his dream world. The little brat would tip him off. She would have to wait until Prophet returned. If he returned.