The Devil To Pay (Hennessey.) (115 page)

He raised his eyebrows as if he wasn’t used to be argued with, which of course he wasn’t living only with animals for the past four years and they weren’t known for their debating skills. He said, ‘so you’re a connoisseur of art are you? An expert?’

‘No, not at all, I know next to nothing about art.’

‘Well then.’

‘Just because I know nothing about it doesn’t mean I can’t have an opinion.’

‘Unless that opinion is inane of course.’

She frowned knowing he was deliberately trying to put her down. She was getting annoyed herself now and turning back to the picture said, ‘although I can see why
some
would think it depressing, but it would depend on your point of view. Someone who always looks on the black side of things might see the trees as kind of menacing, as if they’re threatening the house somehow, ‘she turned her head slightly towards him but did not see the scowl on his face at the obvious dig at him, ‘but someone with a more positive, a more optimistic outlook, would see the trees as not malevolent but
ben
evolent. Such as person might see them as protecting rather than threatening the abode and the occupier.’

'Occupier?’ The word was low and full of amazement.

She turned her eyes to his at the same time pointing at the upstairs window in the cottage, ‘yes, there, in the window.’

He did not move to join her but remained seated still and silent. She turned all the way round to face him surprised he had not come to see what she was talking about, but felt a sudden rush of embarrassment as she found him staring at her, a st
range look on his face. She asked with concern, ‘is something wrong, Mr Lando?’

H
e continued to stare at her his Adam’s apple moving forcibly up and down as he swallowed deeply. His voice was very low as he said, ‘no one has ever noticed that before.’

She frowned, ‘no? He seems perfectly clear to me.’

His head shot up and his eyes narrowed as he snapped, ‘he? Why would you think it’s a he? The figure is hardly discernible; your eyesight can’t be that good.’

She was taken aback by his vehemence, ‘I…I don’t know, I just assumed…I don’t really know.’

Lando stared at her for a long time as if searching for something in her eyes. Feeling very awkward she turned back to the picture, ‘but as I say it seems to me as though the trees are watching out for the,’ she hesitated, ‘occupant. And that they’re waiting just as he…
they
are, for something to happen’ her tone was very soft and rather wistful now, ‘something they have been waiting a long time for, something good. Or maybe it’s a someone, yes, a someone. And when they finally arrive it will all be over, all that waiting and hoping and…’

She broke off as Lando suddenly stood up and began gathering the plates roughly together then took them into the kitchen where he banged them down into the sink with a crash making both Adela and Dante jump.

What the hell was wrong with him? We’re discussing a painting and he gets all agitated and angry. And he thought
she
was strange.

As for Lando he was furious, not with her so much as with himself, he shouldn’t have acted like that, like a loony. No one had e
ver said the things she had about the painting, everyone else who had ever seen it saw only the dreariness and melancholy of the picture; they had said it was miserable and gloomy, a bit like he was really. It was one of the very few things he had brought with him from his and Adrianne’s apartment in Montgomery. Maybe that’s why he kept it, to remind himself that he had always been this way and his time in prison had not been the cause of his particular misery and gloominess.

Of course until now no one had seen the painting since he had been here.

He picked up the first aid kit and walked back to the living room, she was still standing staring at the picture. He snapped, ‘when you’re finished admiring and critiquing that picture we have things to discuss, but first your feet need bandaging again.’

She turned to him, ‘oh yes, all right.’ She sat down and he knelt in front of her and opened the first aid kit.

She said, ‘thank you, but I can do that myself.’ He ignored her as though she hadn’t spoken and began taking off the sneakers. She bent down and put her hand on the sneaker he was removing, ‘Mr. Lando, I’m not helpless.’

His head came up and the eyes that met hers spoke volumes. She said hurriedly, ‘I mean I’m not helpless
now
, I’m quite recovered and more than capable of seeing to the bandaging myself.’ She gave a shy smile, ‘I’m just not used to being cosseted.’

A look of surprise flickered in his eyes at the word “cosseted,” then his expression altered to one of scepticism then to di
sbelief. Despite what
you
might think,’ she added spiritedly.

He stared at her a moment longer then carried on with seeing to her feet. She said, ‘Mr. Lando, did you hear what I said I can...

He cut her off, ‘I heard ya, I ain’t deaf. And rendering first aid to someone’s injuries ain’t the same as cosseting. And the sooner you shut up and let me finish the sooner we can have that chat.’

She was rendered silent and leaned back in her chair. She really didn’t want to argue with him, after all he had taken care of her and he had let her stay here. He had held and comforted her when she had broken down. This reminded her of
an oversight on her part so said softly, ‘Mr. Lando? I should have said this before, I’m not usually so lacking in manners. Firstly, I want to say I’m sorry for the things I said to you in the barn.’

Without looking up he said, ‘you’ll be happy to know your manners are still intact
'cos you already said that.’

She gave a small smile, ‘I know I apologised earlier, I just thought it needed reiterating. But I also wanted to say, thank you. Thank you for…for taking care of me when I…when I was upset earlier.’ She gave a long heartfelt sigh, ‘you must rue the day you ever set eyes on me.’

He stopped what he was doing and looked up at her. She lowered her gaze and he was left looking at her bent head. After a few seconds he carried on with his task.

Eventually he was finished and stood up. She raised her eyes but did not look at him as she said
quietly, 'thank you, Mr. Lando.’

He said nothing but went into the kitchen. He put away the first aid kit and switched on the kettle then stood looking at her staring at the grandfather clock. He knew what she was thinking, time was running out. They had lingered too long here; they should have left and gone for help. But how could she have gone with him
? It was almost a mile to town, too far for her to have travelled in her condition, and now she was a little better it was too late. Well that was the least of his worries. She was right, if she couldn’t convince the police of her innocence they would take her to jail, and if she did convince them they would release her and Glissando would get to her either way. She would not be safe whatever happened.

But no matter if they believed her nor not,
he
had still lied to the police and would still be in trouble, Sullivan would see to that. Then who would care for Dante and Josie and the foal and all the others? And who would protect the woman if he was in jail? But amidst all this worry was the way she had thanked him for taking care of her, so softly, so sincerely. When was the last time someone had thanked him for anything? So long he couldn’t recall.

Lando was right; Adela was looking at the clock which said 3.15 a.m. Just twenty seven hours since she had arrived here, forty one since she had run from the shack and Hennessey. Plenty of time for him to hunt her down. She wondered what was taking him so long to get here. Because she knew he would come, he would never give up until he had explored every avenue, turned over every sto
ne. And one of those avenues or one of those stones might lead him here, to Jonas Lando. She shivered at the thought.

Suddenly Lando was beside her handing her a mug of coffee, then he took a blanket, the same one he had given to her earlier when she had sat and told him of her adventures, and put it over her shoulders. She gave him a watery smile but didn’t speak, she was recalling the way he had said “chat” and it did not conjure up images of two people talking cosily in front of the fire.

He sat down on the armchair and sighed heavily, ‘what you said earlier, you’re right, I might “rue” the day I laid eyes on you because I can do without the trouble you’ve brought me. But no matter what you or anyone else might think of me, I wouldn’t turn away someone in trouble, and, lady, rarely have I seen anyone in more trouble than you.’

It was a poor attempt at a joke he realised and she looked shocked then frightened, then as the realisation that he was making a joke dawned said ‘you say you don’t want trouble, yet despite my warning you persist in calling me lady’

It was his turn to look surprised then his expression turned to exasperation as the beginnings of a smile lifted the corners of her mouth before it became a fully fledged grin. He felt his own lips began to twitch but he managed to control his features before it turned into a real smile.

When he looked back up his face was set and serious and the smile slid from her own lips. He said, ‘I saw you looking at the clock and I know what you were thinking, but we have to put this into perspective. The odds of your friend Hennessey coming here are pretty low, as are the odds that he thinks you would come here at all. As I’ve already said, if he were coming he would have been here by now, he would have been waiting for
you
, the same goes for Glissando’s men.’

She said nothing but he knew what she was thinking, that Hennessey would come and so would Glissando’s men.

He said, ‘I believe that Hennessey kidnapped you that night because he was running out of time. He had beaten up your friend Maxwell, why, we may never know and it isn’t important right now, but that incident altered his plans. Maybe Glissando heard about it. You said that Hennessey told you Glissando had spies in Eden reporting to him everything you did there. It stands to reason he would hear about that and threatened to send his two enforcers to take over, so Hennessey had to act immediately.’

She
listened intently as Lando went on, ‘but that’s all by- the -by now, the important thing is to discuss our options, the first of which you’re not going to like.’

She knew what he meant and recoiled, she was about to speak when he held up his hand, ‘hear me out, okay.’
She nodded and continued, ‘I know how you distrust the law right now, as I do,’ she raised her eyebrows at the incongruity of that but he ignored her, ‘but Sheriff Lomax is a good guy, trustworthy and honest, plus he won’t be browbeaten by those two Mississippi detectives. Besides, they have no jurisdiction here.’

He paused and looked at her from under his eyelashes, ‘but the feds are a different story and they’ll probably be involved, if not for your kidnapping then because they’re probably aware by now that Hennessey is connected to Blakemore’s murder. Lomax won’t be cowed, but he’ll have no choice but to hand you over.’

She shivered again and pulled the blanket tighter around her as though it would protect her from federal agents.

If Lando notice
d he chose to ignore it, ‘of course, Hennessey is smart and as you said the consummate liar, he might have lied about the feds or even the cops being in Glissando’s pay.’ Lando knew Hennessey hadn’t lied but he tried to believe that right now she was better off in their custody then here, isolated and alone with only him to protect her. He just wished he could make himself believe it entirely.

He could tell by her expression that she was very sceptical of his being right or that he himself believed what he had said. He didn’t blame her. He said, ‘yeah right, but I did say we have a few options. Another being that we could leave
Alabama. Glissando’s influence only stretches so far and is mostly contained here in the south. We could go further north; I’m thinking, New York, or even east to Washington D.C. Once there we could go to the nearest FBI offices, you could tell your story and solicit their help.’

Adela was dumbfounded not at the idea, which was a good one, but that he had said the magic word
. “We.”

He was still speaking, ‘I’ll back you up, I’ll tell them how you came to me, bruised and battered and almost dead on your feet. You still have the taser burns on your neck and marks around your wrists from the tape. They may even find the shack you were taken too.’

He paused again and looked down at his elbows resting on his thighs his hands joined together as if in prayer before saying, ‘there is one problem with that, they might hand you over to the FBI, then you’ll just wind up exactly where you didn’t want to be and what we’re trying to avoid.’

Adela realised that this was the most Lando had spoken since she had met him, probably the most he had spoken in four years, if not longer.

Her voice sounded hoarse as she said, ‘that’s not the only thing we have to worry about though is it?’

‘Me?’

‘Yes. They won’t overlook your lying to the police, nor failing to report a crime; they might even add obstructing justice too.’

He scowled and said sharply, ‘I think I told you before, I can take care of myself.’