John took out a small pad he'd brought with him and wrote: Since the moment I first met her.
After Rehv read the scribble, he frowned. "She feel the same way?"
John did not drop his eyes as he shook his head. No sense hiding shit. Not with a symphath.
Rehv nodded once. "That's so like her. Goddamn it. . . okay, let's do this. "
With a roar, they were off into the night.
Chapter Twenty
Hope was a treacherous emotion.
It was two evenings hence when Darius finally walked into the home of the abducted female's family, and as the grand door opened to both himself and Tohrment, they were met by a doggen whose eyes were filled with the tragedy of hope. Verily, the butler's expression was of such high regard, it was clear he felt he was ushering into his master's house saviors, rather than mortals.
Only time and the vagaries of fortune would bear out whether his faith was well- or misplaced.
With alacrity, Darius and Tohrment were led into a formal study and the gentlemale who rose from a silk-covered sitting chair had to steady his weight.
"Welcome, sires, thank you for coming," Sampsone said as he reached out with both palms to shake Darius's hands. "I'm sorry that I have not been receiving these last two evenings. My beloved shellan. . . "
The male's voice cracked and in the silence, Darius stepped aside. "May I present my colleague, Tohrment, son of Hharm. "
As Tohrment bowed low with his hand over his heart, it was clear that the son had all the manners his sire did not.
The master of the house returned the deference. "Would you care for libations or gastronomic provision?"
Darius shook his head and took a seat. As Tohrment came to stand behind him, he said, " Thank you. But mayhap we could speak of what has happened within this manse. "
"Yes, yes, of course. What may I tell you?"
"All things. Tell us. . . all things. "
"My daughter. . . my light in the darkness. . . " The male took out a handkerchief. "She was of worth and virtue. A more caring female you should never come across. . . . "
Darius, aware that they'd already lost two evenings, allowed the father a certain time of remembrance before refocusing him. "And that night, sir, that terrible night," he cut in when there was a pause. "What happened here within this house?"
The male nodded and dabbed at his eyes. "She awoke from her slumbers feeling a certain disquiet and was advised to attend to her private quarters for her health. She was brought a meal at midnight and then another well before the dawn's arrival. That was the last she was seen. Her evening quarters are upstairs, but she also has, along with the rest of the family, rooms underground. She often elected not to move down below with us for the day, however, and as we have access to her through inner hallways, we assumed she would be safe enough--"
The male choked up at this point. "How I wish I had insisted. "
Darius could very much understand the regret. "We shall find your daughter. One way or the other, we shall find her. Would you permit us to go now unto her bedroom?"
"Please do. " As the male nodded at his doggen , the butler came forward. "Silas will be pleased to escort you. I shall. . . prefer to wait here. "
"But of course. "
When Darius stood up, the father reached forward and snagged his hand. "A word, if I may? Between you and me. "
Darius acquiesced, and after Tohrment and the doggen left, the master of the house collapsed back into his formal chair.
"Verily. . . my daughter was of worth. Of virtue. Untouched by. . . "
In the pause that stretched out, Darius knew what the male was concerned with: If they didn't get her back in that virginal condition, her honor, as well as the family's, was in jeopardy.
"I cannot say this in front of my beloved shellan ," the male continued. "But our daughter. . . If she has been defiled. . . perhaps it would be better to leave. . . "
Darius's eyes narrowed. "You would prefer her not be found. "