Page 105 of A Fearless Heart
Silence. Gabe peered around, trying to get some clue of where he was. The air was cool and clammy. Was he underground? The idea of being entombed came to him, and he couldn’t stop a shudder. How big was this space he was trapped in? It felt very narrow. Was he going to suffocate before someone came back to deal with him?
“Hello? Who’s here? Answer me, damn it!”
“Such language, Mr Courtenay,” a soft voice chided.
Gabe went still. Someone was here. But he could see nothing in the darkness. “Where are you? Where are we?”
“We’re in a very safe place. So safe you’ll never be found.”
“Why?” he asked.
“You know why. You were getting too close to the truth, and toying with things you had no business being near. I find that inconvenient.”
“Who are you?” he demanded, his voice cracking as he spoke.
“You know who I am.Et in Arcadia ego.”
“You’re Death?”
“Sometimes.” The shadowed figure stepped forward, but even so Gabe couldn’t discern anything about the face or form. The figure reached out and placed a glass bottle on the floor, several feet away.
“I can’t reach that,” Gabe said, hating the pleading tone in his voice.
“Want me to move it closer? Then answer a few simple questions. Every correct answer brings the water nearer.”
“Fine. Anything. What do you want to know?”
“Why are you looking for the person using the clephobine?”
“Because they’re a murderer.”
The bottle was dragged few inches further away. “No, no, Mr Courtenay. That’s not the right answer. But perhaps you didn’t understand the question. Why areyoulooking? Something started you on the trail. Tell me who or what it was.”
Gabe took a few breaths, trying not to the think about the water when it was the only thing he could think about. “A friend died. Killed. I wanted to know why.”
The bottle was replaced in the original position. “Which friend?”
“Lewelleyn Parrish.”
“Ah. Yes.”
“Did you kill him?” Gabe asked.
“I’m asking the questions. You’re answering them. Now, you learned about Calderwood and Arcadia Osbourne. What did you tell her about your search?”
“At first, nothing. I didn’t want to risk her knowing that I knew.”
The bottle moved closer. “Go on.”
“She must have got suspicious. One day she tricked me, gave me some tea that was drugged with something that made me tell the truth. I couldn’t lie, I didn’t even want to lie. That was the worst part.”
“Indeed?” The voice sounded intrigued, alert. “What did she call it?”
Gabe shook his head. “I don’t remember. I wasn’t myself that night. Don’t punish me for that one, I truly don’t remember.”
The bottle was moved a few inches toward him, and the voice said sympathetically, “I understand, Mr Courtenay. Lady Arcadia is a very determined woman at times.”
“How did you get me here?” Gabe asked. “Drugged me?”
