Thief: X (19 page)

“I think that changed the first time he saw you. Just ask him you idiot.”

“Right, of course.” I said and Adram rolled his eyes at my sarcasm,

“So, why exactly are we sitting here?”

“Remember when you used to find me here and take me home?” I laughed. I always ran to this very bench when things got too much,

“Of course I do, but why here? I never understood that.”

“I think I need to speak to Father Thomas. I’ve always been drawn here. Always.”

“What you waiting for?”

“I’m not sure.”

“I think the great Xan is scared?”

“Leave me alone Adram.” I punched him in the arm,

“Not until you go and talk to the man. I think it’s time you asked him why he didn’t stick up for you.”

“I think you’re right.” I sighed. It was time I asked,

“I’ll wait here for you.”

I wiped my sweaty hands on my thighs and walked towards the heavy oak door. It’s amazing how something so beautiful could feel so unnerving in that instant. I’d put myself in my own protective bubble so I wouldn’t feel as vulnerable as I’d done the night I made the scars on my wrist and now my bubble had popped. I climbed the steps and half expected my feet to burst into flames but nothing. Over the years I’d convinced myself that nothing good would come from me going back into this church. The front door opened and Father Thomas smiled, pushing up his glasses on his nose,

“I’ve been waiting for you Alex, for a very long time.”

I walked into the church for the first time in nearly twenty years and nothing had changed. A stained glass window looked down on me from the other side. Wind had blown the original window out last year and it had been replaced with a non-descript mural of coloured glass. My dad had offered to pay for more elaborate lead work but Father Thomas refused, saying simple was better. I could look in the eyes of an Hell beast and not bat an eyelid but I was scared to be here,

“You’re not going to burst into flames.” Father Thomas said,

“I might,” I snorted,

“Not all things are black and white Alex. You know this better than anyone. Demons can rise and Angels can fall.”

“I’ve not come for a sermon.”

“I know. Follow me.” He headed for the confessional, opened his side and got in,

“You have to be kidding me?” I muttered to myself,

“Get in Alex!” Came a muffled shout and I winced.

For once I did what I was told. I’d always felt claustrophobic in these things, not that I’d sat in any recently. We sat in silence until I couldn’t take anymore,

“So what now?” There was still silence, “I’m not saying it.” Silence, “Why are you doing this?” Silence, “Urgh…” I swore I’d never set foot in this church again and yet here I was. I knew what I had to do but didn’t want to admit it to myself. I took a deep breath,

“Forgive me Father for I have sinned. It has been nineteen years since my last confession. My sin is that I don’t give a damn.”

“And yet you were sat on my doorstep?”

“Oh my God he speaks!”

“I see you’re still the same blasphemous self.” Father Thomas laughed,

“If you cared that much you wouldn’t have allowed them to excommunicate me.” It grated on me more every day,

“Come.” I heard a click and then the side of the wall slid sideways exposing a set of stairs, “It’s time I told you the real reason you were excommunicated.”

It seemed everyone had a secret and Father Thomas’ was under the church. I half expected him to light a torch but he flicked a switch and strip lights crackled into life.

“I swear if you’ve got some sort of sex playroom down here, I’m turning back around.” I laughed but apparently Father Thomas wasn’t amused.

The staircase turned spiral and still we went down. I was starting to think we were walking to Hell and then I was stopped by a wooden door. The thing that unnerved me was the carving of an eye inside a sun in flames. I’d seen a lot of occult symbols in my time but this was something different.

“Are you ready for the truth sin eater?”

“Prffft.”

He pushed the door open and I was surprised to see an actual cave. I didn’t know Havensbrook had anything like this. Of course it had been modified so there was electricity but it felt weird. Book shelves had been carved from the stone walls and filled with books. A long table running down the middle dominated the cave. The more I looked around, the more I realised every surface was covered in something.

“Is that my house?” One wall was covered in TV screens,

“Of course and there’s the Wheel Inn.” He pointed at another screen, “Your parent’s house…”

“Are you stalking me?” I joked,

“Yes.” I grabbed an antique knife from another table and pointed it at him, “It’s ok Alex, it’s my job to watch you.” Why did that not surprise me,

“Talk!”

“I was trying to. It’s probably easier if you sit.”

“Like hell I will.”

“Fair enough, but I am.” He pulled a chair from the table and sat. He let out a sigh and shook his head, “I didn’t want you to find out like this because you should have been told years ago. I had conflicting interests and I apologise for that. I really do.”

“Oh just get on with it.”

“I was sent here by the Vatican to assess you,” he sighed, “There was a rumour that a new sin eater had been born and I came here to find out if it was true. To my utter amazement I discovered it was you.”

“I can’t see why you would be so amazed, I was only a girl at the time.”

“And that’s the point; sin eaters are male. However that wasn’t all. You see, I had conflicting interests and my visit here was supposed to be dual purposed. Within the Vatican is a shadow group called Watchers. For centuries we were given the task to watch over Cain and if he ever became unmanageable to call down the wrath of God. The second I saw the mark of Cain on you I knew it was no coincidence I was sent to find you. From another Watcher member I discovered that if you were a construct of Cain, instead of recruiting you into the Vatican’s sin eater ranks, I would have to kill you.”

“Everyone wants to kill me so that isn’t unusual. What I can’t get my head around is the fact the Vatican has sin eaters.”

“Of course they do. Sin eating is a very profitable market to them but not many are born anymore. The Vatican’s sin eater numbers have started to dwindle and they really wanted you to join them. Unfortunately they had no idea you were a girl and thanks to a paediatrician in Little Haven they knew a girl was walking around in Havensbrook with the mark of Cain on her hip. They just didn’t know who. You were so young and innocent at the time…”

“Yeah, that sounds even more pervy…”

“It’s not a joke Alex. I had to tell them something, so I only told them about you being a sin eater and that you showed no sign of the mark when they questioned me further.”

“So why wasn’t I recruited and why the hell wouldn’t you want me dead? I’m a demon after all, thanks to Cain.”

“The reason you weren’t recruited is simple; you’re female. What can I say? The Vatican are somewhat sexist and that’s why they decided on your excommunication. They wanted you as far away from the church as possible. My role as a Watcher has always been to watch Cain, and you are his. You’re not part demon because of Cain, that’s all thanks to your sin eater side.”

“I…”

“I know you’ve always thought Cain was responsible but he wasn’t. Your family has a demon bloodline somewhere because that’s the only way to produce a sin eater.”

“But Cain’s such an arsehole.” I practically whined and Father Thomas laughed,

“What exactly do you know about Cain?”

“He killed his brother Abel and became the first murderer. God was torn because he loved all of his children but Cain needed to be punished, so he made him immortal and to forever walk the earth.”

“That’s kind of true I suppose. Even then, God gave a tribe of humans the task of watching him and so we have always known the truth. Cain wasn’t really as evil as scriptures made him out to be and his history was rewritten to fit.”

“That doesn’t surprise me either,”

“When Lucifer left the garden he remained as a snake for many years. Slithering over the land to find others to corrupt. As he was about to return to his dominion he came across Abel tending his flock and whispered in his ear of great things if he became his new vessel. Lucifer knew Abel was closest to the Lord and what better way than to have vengeance. A wolf in sheep’s clothing one might say. Abel agreed and Lucifer took hold of his body. Unfortunately for Lucifer, Cain had been watching from his field and a fight broke out. Lucifer begged and pleaded but Cain knew it was just another trick. Lucifer knew that his plan had failed but wouldn’t leave Abel unless there was no life left in his body. It was then Cain made the decision to have mercy on his brother. Cain held Abel’s lifeless body for hours until the Lord spoke. How could he judge Cain for murder when he had done so to protect life itself? Cain had allowed death on the earth and had to be punished. He was cursed with immortality, to forever walk alone in the land of mortals, to watch his loved ones die, while he lived on. Years passed and Cain did good and bad things, including becoming a father. The death of his children made him become unstable and that was when the Lord tasked a small tribe of humans to watch him. We chronicled his life and nudged him in the right direction at times. Yes we made mistakes, like his unexpected meeting with Lilith and the following century long love affair with her. It was only when we learned he was trying to create a construct that we called the Lords wrath.”

“Are you trying to say I’m his daughter?”

“You are so much more than that. We believe he wanted to make someone like him so he could finally be happy. There had been many rumours over the years about people having the mark of Cain but none were true until you. It is said that the person who wields the mark of Cain will free him of his curse, and they will become the right hand of God on earth. A power that could destroy the church as God would speak through them instead. I admit I was shocked when a fourteen year old girl skipped into my church with the mark of Cain.”

“You know what I did to myself because of being excommunicated?”

“I’m sorry about that. It was never my intention to drive you to that. I was trying to spare you death but I made things worse.”

“After that I didn’t care anymore and now you’re telling me the demon I thought Cain put inside of me would have been there all along? Oh and you’ve been watching me for how long?”

“Since I first met you. Things have got easier over the years with technology, and I’ve always felt that you were my responsibility. I couldn’t return to my role in the Vatican so I petitioned to take over the Havensbrook parish. They had enough priests to investigate paranormal events, they didn’t need me and my petition was granted. My role became to watch over the construct of Cain and make sure you lived.”

“I never wanted you to.” I slowly lowered the knife, “What is this place?”

“This cave has always been here. At one time it was used as the church catacombs and when I first discovered it I found traces of vampire. I’ve never found one though. I simply repurposed it for my needs. Everything I have is stored here. Other Watchers use this place as a strong hold for every artefact we’ve confiscated regarding Cain over the centuries.”

I walked around looking into glass cases. They were full suits of armour, swords, daggers, shields, everything a warrior needed to go into battle. One particular case seemed to pull me towards it,

“What’s this?” I placed my hand on the glass,

“Gauntlets.”

“A little elaboration?”

“Cain was searching for them fifty years ago and we procured them before he could. They were in a castle in Romania. We had no idea why he was looking for them but your reaction to them is somewhat interesting.”

“I can hear them. Well, not exactly. They seem…calm. I can see them, inside them. They’re not normal.”

“Oh Lord, you’re just like him. How did I not see this? Oh my…” Father Thomas got up and stood next to me glaring,

“What? Personal space!” I pushed him back,

“What do you see?”

“It’s weird, for a start they don’t look like gauntlets. They’re more like jewellery, see…” I pointed at how the silver would fit over my fingers and then attach at my wrist. An elaborate pattern of silver leaves held it all together, “…The closer I get the more grounded I feel. It’s like I can see inside it and its calming.”

Father Thomas looked at me and then raised an eyebrow. I was transfixed by the gauntlets but I could hear him shuffling something behind me. A loud bang brought me to my senses and realised Father Thomas had banged a huge book on the table,

“I think I know what they are. Why hadn’t I put the pieces together before?”

“Because you were too busy excommunicating me?” Ok, that was cruel but he deserved it and he sighed at the comment,

“Here it is!” The pages of the book were so old they were falling from the binding and were written in a language I’d never seen before,

“What am I looking at?” Adram always said my curiosity would do me in one day,

“It’s a translation from the first Watcher diaries…”

“It’s not English”

“Of course it wouldn’t be but it
is
a direct translation from the original Watcher scrolls.” I thought Father Thomas was about to pee his pants if he didn’t tell me soon, “It says that one day in the early years a Watcher came upon Cain talking to a woman as they lay beneath a tree. The woman was identified as Eve, his mother. The Watcher moved closer to listen as Eve handed Cain something wrapped in blankets. She told him how she was still proud of him, even though he had committed the greatest sin man could ever lay his hands to. She could not bear to seen him struggling, so she had taken the leaves from the tree of knowledge and brought them to him to help settle his soul through wisdom.”

“Well, they don’t look like leaves.”

“But they do my child, they do!” He ran to the glass case and pulled both gauntlets out, “Look, the leaves, the intricate work that involved making them. Who says the tree of knowledge had green leaves? Why didn’t I see this before?”

“Does it say how they settled his soul?” I watched the gauntlets as Father Thomas walked around the table,

“No but shortly after he became the King of his land. Put them on…” I raised my eyebrow at his blunt request, “…er…please. Sorry, I’m getting excited. You seem to have a connection to them too.”

I glared at them and I had to admit that I could feel a connection but every time I did something for someone else it backfired,