The Calling: Book Two of the Sons of Cain Series

By L.E. Bounds

Prom week should have been a time to remember, but for Lucy Burns, it was the beginning of a nightmare.

 

Set in 1970, Tolivers Pond is a sleepy town about to be rocked by the murder of the cou

• Language: English
• Publisher: Felicity Fox Books Publishing House
• Release date: Aug 21, 2023
• ISBN: 9798987633793

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What Readers Are Saying about the

Sons of Cain Series

A Well Written, Intriguing Story!

This fun story with a fresh perspective on one of the earliest biblical accounts found in Genesis will have the reader challenged to think differently of life as we know it and entertained with intrigue in the process. A smooth, well-written read that confirms things aren’t always what they appear to be and one that will have the reader looking forward to the next book in the series!

Excellent book, what a storyteller!

The author draws you into the story and you don’t want it to end. Can’t wait for the next one.

Enjoyable read!

This historical fiction takes place around the turn of the century in the Ozarks of Missouri. The setting, characters, and dialogue feel authentic, and the author has a way of depicting the characters that makes them seem as familiar to you as if they are your friends and neighbors. Her sense of humor made chuckle right from the start. It didn’t take long until I felt like I was right there in the midst of the story, which centers around two teenage brothers who are carrying a life and death secret that could change their world. The book flows nicely and held my interest. It’s the kind of easy, enjoyable book that you like to curl up with on a lazy afternoon. Good for all ages.

Fantastic!

This is a fresh, modern take on an age-old story. I love the Ozark setting and characters! Can’t wait to read the rest of the series!

The Calling © 2023 by L.E. Bounds.

All rights reserved. Published by Felicity Fox Books Publishing House.

www.thefelicityfoxhouse.com

This book contains material protected under international and federal copyright laws and treaties. Any unauthorized reprint or use of this material is prohibited. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without express written permission from the author. The only exception to this is in the use of brief quotations in a book review.

Identifiers:

LCCN: 2023910659

ISBN: 979-8-9876337-7-9 (paperback)

ISBN: 979-8-9876337-8-6 (hardcover)

ISBN: 979-8-9876337-9-3 (ebook)

Available in paperback, hardback, and e-book

Available in paperback, hardback, e-book, and audiobook

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy bible: King James Version bible. Christian Art Publishers,2016.

Any Internet addresses (websites, blogs, etc.) and telephone numbers printed in this book are offered as a resource. They are not intended in any way to be or imply an endorsement by FFBPH, nor does FFBPH vouch for the content of these sites and numbers for the life of this book.

Layout by Felicity Fox Books Publishing House

Published by Felicity Fox Books Publishing House. Kissimmee, FL 34747 www.thefelicityfoxhouse.com

Dedication

James L. and Georgia I. Bounds; Mom and Dad. The lessons you taught me, and the environment that you raised me in have made me the person I am today. I hope you are proud of that, and the stories I have chosen to tell about it.

Acknowledgments

To my students at East Carter, thank you for showing your support and making some really good suggestions for my stories. Jackson Burkhart was created just for you.

I would also like to thank all the readers of my first book that kept asking me, When is the next one coming out? Here it is! I hope it doesn’t disappoint.

As always, I would like to say I wouldn’t be successful in writing this series if it hadn’t been for the following people. They listened, made suggestions, and were my cheerleaders throughout this process. Thank you to my inner circle and editor, Donna R., Kathy M., Lorna K., Ginger B., Rachel T., and Felicity F. I owe you all more than you will ever know! I would also like to thank my writer friends from Writers Ink for critiquing certain sections for me and giving me really good feedback on my writing.

Lastly, I would like to thank my husband, Mark, for always being my support both in writing and in life.

For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many noble, are called:

But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;

And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are:

1 Corinthians 1: 26-28 KJV

Table of Contents

Dedication

Acknowledgments

May 1970

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

Sunday

Epilogue

About the Author

Author’s Notes

The Sons of Cain Series

Sept 11, 2001

My time with you is short. I have felt my brother’s true spirit move closer to his eternal home. If anything is to be accomplished for the future, it is up to you. Remember the lessons we have taught you. The strength of the clan runs through your veins.

It would be easy for you to walk away, but don’t do it. The heavens do not measure greatness in the number of accomplishments you have or in the name you make for yourself. They measure it in how you prepare the next generation.

Eventually, your abilities will grow, and the future will handle itself.

Okla, the Lesser

May 1970

I heard my heart pounding harder and harder as the image filled my mind. It created such a fear in me that I had to push back against the tree, hoping to disappear inside of it.

The vision could have been a scene out of the horror movie I had watched last night on television, but it wasn’t. She really was dead. I was sure of it. Her dark black hair spread across the satin pillow, as if she was taking a nap. Screams from somewhere pierced my ears, and a feeling of disbelief swallowed me as two more loud booms echoed through the fields below me.

Then, silence.

***

I’d had visions before, but not like this. Most of them had left me feeling sad, which is why I tried my best to ignore them. I had a feeling that this time would be different. If there really was someone out there suffering at the hand of such evil, I might have to tell someone what I saw. But would they believe me?

People rarely put much stock in other worldly experiences. If they couldn’t see it or touch it, then it didn’t exist. I wasn’t sure if I wanted it to exist. But then my family was not exactly a haven of normal.

Right now, I needed to move. Okla would be at the spot waiting for me, and I didn’t have great news to share with him. I would have to tell him that his twin brother was looming near death. So, I raised up with shaky legs and started on my way to the other side of the farm where we always met.

I was sad, but Gpa Newton was old and had been sick for a while. He had lived a long, full life.

You determine you, he always told me. No matter how others try to describe you, be true to who you know you are. Don’t let other people limit you. Decide and then go toward it.

Sound advice for a seventeen-year-old. My life was just beginning, and there were days I wasn’t sure if I was strong enough. I had grand ideals of how I thought things should be, but did I have the courage to step out and pursue them? What was I meant to do with my life? Gpa Newton seemed to be so confident about where I was going.

I would miss that. I would miss him.

***

I knew the moment he came into the small clearing where I was. He had been with me my whole life, watching over me from his hiding places, being careful not to show his presence to anyone else. If someone would have been able to creep up on me, they might have thought me disturbed. They may have thought I was just talking to myself, but he was there, listening to my excitement, my troubles, and my anger when I needed to let it out. I would swing in my tree swing and talk to him for what seemed like hours, or I would take long walks in the woods to perch myself on my favorite rock. He followed me everywhere on our place, only staying behind when I had to go to school or take a trip.

But that would have to change. I was almost finished with school and would leave for college this fall. He couldn’t go that far; he would have to stay here. Besides, there would be nowhere to hide. I hated leaving him because I was the only one left for him. All the other clan members he had known all his life had crossed over already.

Gpa Newton would be gone soon, too, and Grandpa Lester didn’t seem to notice him. How would he go on with no one to help him?

Okla stepped out to come toward me then. I hadn’t noticed how stooped his shoulders were and his slight limp. Suddenly, he had become old. He had always had a white sheen to his hair, and he was still a very large Shampe, but it was like he aged overnight. This was going to make it hard to break the bad news to him, considering that he already looked so tired.

He found a tree across from me and eased to the ground. His eyes seemed to bore into mine, as if he was trying to read any indication of what I was thinking or feeling. I tried to guard my thoughts, because if he knew I had experienced a vision, he would not leave me alone until I confessed it. Why couldn’t he let it pass like everyone else? I didn’t want the gift of seeing into future events. At the moment, I just wanted to imagine myself in a blue dress ready for prom.

He huffed a breath out quickly and said, You have had another vision, haven’t you?

Maybe, I said.

When are you going to realize that you can’t run from the gifts that make you who you are? he said, sounding disappointed. It doesn’t go away. I have been trying much longer than you, and I still see them.

Well, maybe I am different, I said, tired of having the same argument.

You are different because they are stronger. There is a greater purpose for you.

You say that, but you really do not know. I have already told you I am furthering my education to be an English professor, not some spiritualist clairvoyant.

Don’t use words to avoid. That will only work so long. The things you will see will pull at you and disturb your rest until you let them go. I know what you are seeing now is very strong because you are more fearful. Overcome your fear and listen. You can speak when the time is right.

That’s not what I needed to talk to you about, anyway. Newton is dying.

I know. Newton’s body will be at rest soon. I feel the fading of his voice. That means my time is limited. I only have a short while left with you. You will be on your own soon. Let’s take a walk. There are many things to share with the time we have left.

I walked alongside of Okla now, hearing him, but not really listening. My mind was still reeling from the vision I had seen. I had to put it out of my head. There was nothing I could do, and I was determined not to hang on to things I could not change.

I have tried to record for you as much as I can about your ancestors. In this journal, I have added to the story that was started by the original elder, Enoch. You don’t understand everything about him yet, but he was the beginning of our line of Cain’s descendants that were cursed. His writings tell why the curse was renewed with him.

The important thing, Lucy, is that even though I and Aric broke the curse for our clan, it still exists for others like us. We have an obligation to protect them and hide them if we can until all humanitѐ has come to judgment.

I know you want to reject the gift you have. Don’t. It is too important. You have a spirit that wants to do more than just exist in this generation. You have the future to look after.

There is coming a day of reckoning and completion. Do not lose sight of that.

Monday

My Great-Great Grandfather, Solomon Burns, kept Newton and Okla apart when they were young until it was time for them to meet. Gpa Newton would take over for his father and protect the clan from the outside world. This became increasingly difficult once the Ozark Lumber and Mining Company started removing all the pine forests in this area. The clan needed to find another area to move to.

Before this could happen, one of Gpa Newton’s friends discovered the secret of the clan’s existence and threatened their lives. The friend also set fire to the small company mill to get revenge