The Tied Man

‘I’m certain.’

She stared at me for the longest time.  The only noise came from Ruby, softly cropping at the frost-covered grass, as Blaine pretended to consider my deal.  In truth, there was nothing to consider – the very thought of me, finally defeated and reduced to whoring in return for my one weakness, was more than the woman would be able to resist.

Finally she gave a single nod of her head. ‘You can make the call to Gabriel this afternoon, as you suggested.  And I’ll contact my staff at Marley’s and let them know the usual arrangements won’t be necessary.’  Business done, she kicked Bruno into a breakneck gallop downhill to the village.

I let Ruby have her head and she chose to follow in a steady canter.  This time, I was content to let Blaine win.

Chapter Thirty

Finn

On the morning of Blaine’s accursed birthday celebrations, fat flakes of snow began to curl lazily down from a loaded sky so that by the start of the festivities, the whole island would be covered in a fairytale layer of pure white.  The irony was almost hilarious.

I held the legs of a stepladder as Lilith perched precariously on the top rung and draped a final garland of fresh ivy and fir branches into place over the mirror in the great hall.  It was about all I was good for; thanks to Chester and Ellis’ peculiar brand of affection, I hadn’t worked since that night with them.  In fact, I would still need a stick of concealer and some pretty impressive mood lighting before Blaine regarded me as bargain-basement saleable later that evening.

‘Right, all done.’  Lilith nimbly leapt from the last rung of the ladder. ‘God, I’m bloody freezing. I miss central heating.’

‘Looks nice.’

‘It looks horrific, Finn.  It’s like something Dickens might have conjured up if he’d dropped acid before picking up his pen.  And it makes the whole bloody place stink of pine-fresh toilet cleaner.’

‘Very apt,’ I grinned.  ‘Anyway, I think it was very generous of Blaine to keep you occupied now the picture’s all done and dusted.  You know you’d hate to be bored.’

‘Where is my illustrious patron, anyway?  I think this is the longest she’s left me alone in days.’  She pushed her icy hands up the sleeves of my sweater.

‘New victim’s due to arrive at any minute, isn’t he?  She’ll be up in her room, painting on her mask of respectability.’  As if on cue, a distant clatter shattered the snow-muffled silence. ‘Jesus fuck, is that a fuckin’ helicopter he’s got?’

‘That would be Gabriel, yes.’

‘The flash little get.’

‘Absolutely.  Right, I’m off to see if Henry will put a shot of medicinal whisky in a coffee for me.  You want one?’

‘Nah, I’m good.  I’ll get tidied around here, ready for the welcoming committee.’

She gripped my hands in hers.  ‘Here we go, then.’

‘Yup, here we go.’

Lilith stood on tiptoe and kissed me softly on the cheek. ‘For luck,’ she whispered, before leaving in search of sustenance. At that moment I could have murdered a newborn baby for half-a-dozen temazepam, but settled for a quick smoke out of the window instead.

*****

‘Just through here, Mr James, sir.  Welcome to Albermarle Hall.  And may I just say, it’s an absolute pleasure to have you here.’  Coyle was in full-on arselicker mode, which was a little surprising.  I’d never had him pinned as a Gabriel James fan.

I observed this part of the ceremony from a safe distance – I was, after all, still invisible at this stage of the game.  Gabriel walked into the hall like he owned the fucking place, with a strut that suggested a lifetime of doors simply swinging open before him.  Behind him came a tanned, shaven-headed young man, carrying two small suitcases.  I could just imagine the range of possibilities running through Blaine’s head at this moment.

Like a moth to a particularly tempting flame, Blaine appeared from her quarters and made her graceful entrance down the stairs.  ‘Gabriel!  How lovely to meet you at last.  I trust you had a good journey up here?’

‘Cool.  Thought the snow might cause a few problems, but we kept ahead of it.  Thanks for the invite, yeah?’ Gabriel kissed Blaine on both cheeks.  ‘Like some fairytale castle you’ve got here, ain’t it?  Oh, this is Noah Barker, my PA.’

Noah, by far the quieter of the two new arrivals, merely settled for a polite handshake and shy smile.

Blaine frowned.  ‘Finn, where’s our artist?  I’m sure she wouldn’t want to miss the welcome party.’