There'll be Hell to Pay by Sharon Hannaford

Author:Sharon Hannaford [Hannaford, Sharon]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: BA
Publisher: Sharon Hannaford
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 11

The inside of the large cave was unexpected, to say the least. Gabi couldn’t stop her eyebrows shooting skyward as she followed Julius and the Decurian Number One inside. The entrance was more than large enough to accommodate a horse or pack mule. The floor was smooth and flat, the ground so hard-packed that it felt like concrete beneath her hiking boots. Nearly a dozen bronze wall sconces hugged the rock walls surrounding them, each supporting a lit candle, illuminating most of the cave and creating a warm, comforting glow. Another fire crackled near the back of the cave, the smoke drawn upward by an unseen chimney. A cave-in marred the rear of the otherwise smoothly excavated cavern, leaving large rocks and boulders strewn for several metres, but the rest of the cave was clean and clear of vermin, cobwebs, animal droppings and anything else you’d expect to find in a long disused cave in the middle of undisturbed jungle. To add to the surreal scene, three wingback chairs, opulently upholstered in red and gold, sat in the centre of the room, facing each other, a large hand-woven rug spread out beneath them, and in their midst was a low table with crystal glasses and several carafes of what Gabi could only assume was wine.

“Please come, sit and relax.” Eka strode to the chairs. “I hear that you both indulge in some fruit of the vine. Can I pour for you?”

Julius walked forward as Gabi threw a quick glance behind them to check that Fergus was in position. He gave her a small nod from just outside and flicked his wrist so that the firelight from the cave danced off the blade of his broadsword. They were protected from the outside; now they just needed protection against whatever the Decurian threw at them inside. Gabi was curiously dismayed that the alarm bell in the back of her mind was utterly quiet. She prayed it wasn’t on the fritz.

“My dearest Consort,” Eka called to her, “you have nothing to fear. There is no ill will here. I would not expose my dearest Flora to violence unless I have absolutely no other choice.”

Gabi turned away from the door and mentally steadied herself before going to join the two men.

“I have kept her terribly protected from the brutal reality of my life, and I will keep it that way for as long as I possibly can. Being a parent is such a joy and such a burden at the same time, but what can we do?” He turned a dazzling smile on Gabi, the edge of madness doused. Now he was pure, unadulterated charm. “What can I pour you? I have a wonderful Domaine Jean-Louis Chave Ermitage Cuvee Cathelin.” He rattled off the name of the wine in a near perfect French accent and, though Gabi was no sommelier, even she recognised it. “It’s a wonderful wine from the Syrah grape,” he continued, unaffected by Julius’s twitch and Gabi’s audible swallow. “This is my last bottle.

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