The Devil To Pay (Hennessey.) (122 page)

God only knew how Lando must be feeling right now; his pain and rage must be almost unbearable, some of that rage directed below him to the woman cowering under the floorboards who had caused all this to happen.  She could hardly hear what was said next through the roaring in her ears but she could tell by the tone of Lando’s voice that he was trying desperately to control himself. Just as she thought her fear could reach no further heights she heard Rosencrantz tell Lando what would happen to him and his animals. She heard him say, “Then when he’s finished with the animals it’ll be my turn with you. I prefer the human element.”

That was enough for Adela just as Rosencrantz said, “We ain’t got all day.” Adela flung open the door to the crawl space and yelled, ‘no, no please don’t, don’t hurt them.’

The three men all swung startled face towards her as she emerged dirty and dusty and very pale from the hole in the floor like a ghost rising from a dungeon.

Rosie was the first to recover from the surprise, he smiled and said, ‘Miss. Faraday, I presume. Or should I say,
Freu
Faraday.’

CHAPTER 40.

       Adela didn’t answer but was looking at Lando’s handcuffed wrists before looking up at his face. She gasped when she saw the swollen lip and the huge bruise on his cheek and his eyes still red from the tear gas. He was glaring at her and his tone was filled with rage as he yelled, ‘can’t you just
once
do as you’re told, woman?’

As she approached the men on shaking legs her hands raised slightly to show she was not armed and said, ‘I can’t stand by and watch them hurt you, Mr. Lando, you or your animals.’

His eyes narrowed and he spoke through clenched teeth, ‘you never thought of going for help I suppose?’

‘Yes. But by the time I got back they would have killed the animals and you too, I couldn’t let that happen. I won’t let you be killed because of me.’

He looked angry enough to strike her as he said contemptuously, ‘and you think they’re just gonna let me go after they take you to Glissando.’

At the mention of that name she shuddered and he felt a momentary guilt for bringing it up like that but he shrugged it off, it was her own fault, the stupid woman, the crazy, stubborn, soft hearted, stupid woman.

Rosie butted in then, ‘sorry to interrupt this oh so moving and emotional reunion but we do have things to discuss,’ he looked pointedly at Adela, ‘don’t we, Miss.’

It wasn’t a question so she didn’t answer, instead she let out a gasp as her eyes alighted on Dante’s prone body and before Rosie could stop her she had rushed past him and was kneeling next to the dog. Guildy grabbed her arm roughly and attempted to haul her to her feet but she threw him off, when he tried again Rosie said, ‘leave her, Guildy; as long as she’s there she ain’t trying to run.’

Guildy glared at Adela’s bent head but let go of her arm. Adela was relieved that Dante was still breathing although she could feel his broken ribs through his skin and fur. She looked up at Guildy and her eyes stinging with tears but her voice filled with utter contempt and revulsion said, ‘you vicious, cold hearted, sadistic beast, to treat a defenceless animal this way. You coward.’

Guildy looked down at her his face dark and
angry as he barked, ‘watch it, lady, or I might forget you’re a woman and do the same to you.’

Instead of being intimidated Adela curled her lip and said with disdain, ‘what would it matter to a brute like you whether I’m female or male, human or animal, you treat everyone and everything the same way, with cruelty and viciousness, you’re inhuman, like your boss.’

Guildy raised his hand as if to hit her and Lando stepped forward saying, ‘don’t you dare you sonovabitch.’

Guildy looked at him and grinned as his hand began it’s descent but Rosie once again intervened saying sharply, ‘Guildenstern, leave it, that’s not our place,’ he turned to Adela, ‘but you watch your mouth or next time I won’t stop him from shutting it for you.’

Adela was wise enough not to pursue it but couldn’t help giving both men a contemptuous look. Rosie only laughed and took out his phone and began texting someone.

Lando watched the woman as she knelt by Dante stroking him. Her eyes wet with tears. But although he admired the woman’s spirit and under normal circumstances he would have laughed at the way she had berated the two men, he just hoped she knew where to draw the line with them.

But he knew he had worried unduly when she further surprised him by turning to Rosie and her voice pleading said, ‘Mr. Rosencrantz, before you take me away can I tend to Dante’s wounds please?’ She had lost her hostile and contemptuous tone and was now appealing to the less antagonistic and sadistic one. His admiration increased.

Rosie looked momentarily taken aback and before he could answer Guildy snorted with derision but it was his turn to be surprised when his partner said, ‘his ribs are broken you know how to fix that?’

‘Yes.’

Rosie said nothing deliberately keeping her hanging she knew before saying, ‘yeah sure.’

Guildy said, ‘what? You gone soft or something, Rosencrantz?’

Rosie just grinned, ‘it’ll give her something to do keep her out of trouble till the boat gets here.’

Adela gulped, ‘boat?’

It was Guildy who answered his expression cold and calculating, ‘yeah, we going for a little boat ride, gonna see a man wants to see
you
real,
real
bad.’ He made a sound like a witch cackling as he leered at her, his eyes going to her breasts. Adela wanted to hit him right in his smug, nasty mouth.

‘W
hy a boat.’ This from Lando.

‘Why you think? You live here don’t ya; we could hardly walk her through the town to the car now could we? Your sheriff is kinda long in the tooth but I think even
he’d
notice something was amiss if we tried to put a struggling,’ he turned to Adela and grinned, ‘or
unconscious
woman in the trunk. So we used our heads and opted for the boat to take us someplace nice and quiet for the transfer to the car.'

Lando looked at Adela who looked back her face ashen before lowering her eyes back to Dante and with an effort became all business again as she said, ‘Mr. Lando, do you have any bandages or sheets I could use to set Dante’s ribs?’

He stared at her for a moment in surprise then turned to Rosie, ‘there’s some in the bathroom cupboard, but I don’t want her going in there.’

Rosie said, ‘she gonna see a lot worse than three dead guys afore she’s through pal.’

Lando tried not to let his feelings for the cold hearted bastard show as he said, ‘at least cover them up.’

Rosie regarded him then shrugged and turning to Guildy said, ‘go and cover up our friends with something.’

Guildy looked ready to argue but thought better of it and stalked off to do his partners biding.

Lando said, ‘thanks.’

Rosie looked at him and smirked, ‘well I don’t want the lady to faint now do I.’

Guildy came back in and nodded at his partner and said, ‘I put Mr. Glissando’s ex employees in a closet out of the lady’s sight.
Sides, someone might come by who shouldn’t.’

Rosie laughed, ‘very good partner, now that’s thinking that is.’

Guildy shot him a hostile look but Rosie only laughed. He turned to Adela, ‘just think of them as being in a better place.’

Adela cast him a caustic look and moved towards the bedroom door.

Guildy grabbed her arm and turned her round to face him, he leered at her as he said, ‘I’ll go with you, make sure you don’t try nothing funny.’

She wanted to say “
anything
funny you ignoramus,” but wisely refrained and still holding onto her he led her into the bedroom.

Lando tensed as they disappeared praying that Guildy wouldn’t try anything with her in there. Rosie noticed his grim expression and said, ‘don’t worry; he won’t dare touch her, not in that way anyway.’

Lando gave him a look of loathing and Rosie laughed saying, ‘ya know, you’re good, Lando, I almost fell for your lies, good thing for you though that the lady has a soft heart. But that’s the trouble with broads, that’s why they never make good cops, or even good criminals, they too emotional. But let’s see how loyal and soft hearted she remains when she’s been in Mr Glissando’s company for a few days.’

Lando looked back at him and if a look could cause a man to drop dead Rosie would be lying on the floor breathing his last. Rosie laughed again.

A few seconds later Adela and Guildy reappeared in the living room Adela looking pale and shaken. She cast a quick glance at Lando before once more squatting next to Dante, and whispering soft words of comfort, she very efficiently and deftly dealt with his ribs and the cut to his back, which to Adela’s relief was not too deep.

When she’d finished she turned to Rosie again, ‘can I put him on Mr. Lando’s bed please?’

Once more all three men were taken by surprise at her servile tone. Guildy snorted again, Lando’s look was grateful and Rosie grinned, ‘yeah, sure.’

Very gently she picked up Dante, and with Guildy once again tailing her went to put the dog on Lando’s bed.

When they returned Adela went to the kitchen and washed her hands. She then soaked a cloth in cold water and took it over to where Lando stood with Rosie by the table.

She went to press the cloth against Lando’s cut lip but her arm was jerked away by Rosie who shaking his head said, ‘nuhuh, Miss. Faraday, just the dog gets the first aid treatment.’

‘But…

Before she could get herself into trouble she was cut off by Lando saying sharply, ‘leave it.’

She turned to him but instead of annoyance she saw a rare softness in his eyes. A look she had seen only a few times, like when she had been telling her story, or when she had cried and then it had been very fleeting as though to show emotion was foreign and repulsive to him. She knew he was thanking her not for trying to ease his pain but for what she had done for Dante.

Rosie gripped her arm and said, ‘sit down over there, Miss. Faraday.’ He pointed to the chair by the kitchen table on which she had eaten her first meal in this house. She turned to him and he added sarcastically, ‘please.’

She sat down dropping the cloth on the table. Guildy walked over to the window and stood peering out. There was a short silence in which Lando was thinking, was there no end to this woman’s thoughtfulness? He was not used to anyone caring about what happened to him or whether he had been hurt or not, whether he suffered or not. But she did. He wondered what Adrianne would have done, panicked and run screaming for help if he knew anything about her. But this woman had risked herself, she could have stayed hidden, they would never have found her there. And she had tended to his dog and tried to render aid to him too. He wasn’t sure how he felt about that, about her. Apart from Sheriff Lomax it had been a long time since anyone had so much as given him the time of day, and a decent act was alien to him,
she
was alien to him.

Adela asked, ‘how long do we have to wait for the boat to arrive?’

Rosie turned to her amazed at her tone which was very quiet and very calm as though asking him what time the boat left for a fun day on the water. He looked at his watch, ‘not long now, maybe fifteen minutes or so. Why? You in a hurry to meet my boss, the “inhuman,” Mr Glissando?’

‘No, I’m not in hurry to meet him, but you’re right about him being inhuman. He’s also sadistic and evil and one day he’ll get what’s coming to him, people like him always do.’

Rosie walked towards her his expression cold and menacing. Lando also stepped forward although what he would have done if Rosie hurt her he didn’t know, it was just instinctive. He said, ‘look, man, she’s scared all right, that’s all, she speaks afore she thinks, she’s a woman ain’t she?’

Rosie turned his head towards Lando then back at Adela who hadn’t taken offence at Lando’s sexist remark, she knew he was trying to protect her. Rosie bent over her and said
menacingly; ‘I warned you once, lady and I won’t warn you again,’ his face was now only an inch from hers as he finished, ‘So. Watch. Your. Mouth.’ He spaced out the words to emphasis his warning.

She drew back and blinked; he continued to stare into her eyes for a moment before standing upright and moving away but turned back as she said quietly, ‘why do you do this?’

Lando was thinking, woman, don’t you know when to keep your mouth shut? No wonder you got yourself into a world of trouble. But Rosie frowned and said, ‘do what?’

‘This,’ she spread her hands, ‘what you do for Mr. Glissando. Why do you hurt people, people like Desdemona and Mr. Lando? Why are you taking me to him knowing what he will do to me? Why do you kill for him?’

Over by the window Guildy made his favourite sound again and Rosie smiled, a smile that said, you couldn’t possibly understand. He said, ‘why do you think?’

‘Fear?’ Rosie gave her a warning look and Lando shook his head in disbelief at her stupidity. She went on, ‘loyalty? Job satisfaction?’

Rosie said, ‘take out the fear and you may have something.’

She looked down at her hands joined in her lap and shook her head as if perplexed before looking first at Guildy then at Rosie, ‘but you were both federal agents, sworn to protect and to serve, you must have wanted to serve your country and the people in it, to protect them and bring evil doers to justice. It must have meant something to you once.’