Guardian Angel - Garwood Julie - Страница 54

A loud commotion drew everyone's attention then. Caine looked up just in time to see a large flower pot fly past the windows to the terrace. The pot crashed against the stone wall. A sharp blasphemy followed the splintering noise.

"Harry's here," Colin drawled out.

Caine continued to stare at the entrance, thinking to himself that he was prepared for just about anything now. Nothing more could ever surprise him again.

He was, unfortunately, mistaken. The man who finally strutted across the threshold was so outrageous looking, Caine almost laughed.

Harry paused, put his big hands on his hips, and glared at his audience. He was dressed all in white, with a wide red sash tied around his pot-bellied waist. His skin was bronzed by the sun, his hair was silver as clouds. Caine judged his age to be near fifty, perhaps a bit more.

This one could give children nightmares for months. He was amazingly ugly, with a bulbous nose that covered most of his face. His eyes were bare slits, due to the fact that he was squinting fiercely.

The man had flair, he'd give him that much. He literally swaggered into the drawing room. Two men rushed ahead of him, moving objects out of his way. Two more filed in behind. Caine recognized the

last two. They were Matthew and Jimbo. Both of their faces were covered with fresh bruises Caine had inflicted when he'd had his little talk with them.

"It's getting damned crowded in here," Caine stated.

Jade jerked her hand away from his hold and rushed over to Black Harry. She threw herself into his

arms and hugged him tightly. Caine noticed Harry's gold tooth then. When he smiled down at Jade,

one of the front teeth gleamed in the light.

"Oh, Uncle Harry, I've missed you," she whispered.

"Of course you missed me," the elderly man grumbled. "I'm going to beat you good though," he added after he'd given her another hug of affection. "Have you gone completely daft, girl? I'll be hearing every spoiled morsel of this tale, and then I'm going to beat the daylights out of you."

"Now, Harry," Jade said in a voice meant to soothe. "I didn't mean to upset you."

Harry let out a loud snort. "You didn't mean for me to find out, that's what you didn't mean to do," he countered. He leaned down and kissed her loudly on the top of her head.

"That one be Caine?" he asked, squinting at the man in question.

"He is," Jade answered.

"He ain't dead."

"No."

"You done your task well then," Harry praised.

"He will be dead soon enough if 1 get my way," Nathan drawled out.

"What's this mutiny I'm hearing?"

"Harry?" Jade asked, tugging his attention back to her.

"Yes?"

She leaned up on tiptoe and whispered into his ear. Harry frowned during the telling.

When she was finished, he nodded. "I might be telling, and then again, I might not. You trust this man?"

She couldn't lie. "I do."

"What does he mean to you, girl?"

"Nothing," she blurted out.

"Then look at me eyes," he ordered. "You're talking to the floor and that tells me something tricky's

going on."

"There's nothing tricky," she whispered. "I'm just glad this deception is over."

Harry didn't look convinced. "Then why'd you bother watching out for him if he meant nothing to you?" he prodded, sensing she wasn't telling him the full truth.

"He's Colin's brother," she reminded her uncle. "That is the only reason I bothered."

Harry decided to wait until they were alone before he forced the truth out of her. "I'm still not understanding," he bellowed. He was squinting in Caine's direction now. "You should be kissing Pagan's feet to my way of thinking," he added. "Your sorry brother's alive, ain't he?"

"Now that you're here, we can sort all this out, Harry," Colin called out.

Harry grunted. He looked back down at Jade. "I'm still going to beat you bloody, girl. Do you doubt me?"

"No, Harry, I don't doubt you," she answered. With an effort, she hid her smile. In all their time together, Harry had never, ever harmed her. He was a kind, gentle man with a soul so pure, so white, God was surely smiling down at him with pride. Harry liked to threaten all sorts of horrid punishments when there was an audience listening. He was a pirate, he would often remind her, and appearances had to be kept up.

Caine had started out of his chair when Harry made his first threat, but Colin motioned to him to sit

down again. "Bluster," he'd whispered to his brother.

"Get me a chair, men," Harry shouted. He continued to squint at Caine as he walked over to the hearth. Both Colin and Nathan got their feet and the stool out of his way just in the nick of time. While Jade helped resettle Colin, Harry stood in front of the hearth, his hands clasped behind his back.

"You don't look anything like Dolphin," he remarked. He grinned, displaying his lovely tooth again, then added, "You and your puny-arsed brother are both homely as sin. Only family resemblance I can see."

Caine didn't think the man could see much of anything, but he kept that opinion to himself. He looked over at Colin to see how he was responding to that insult. Though Colin's eyes were once again closed,

he was smiling. Caine concluded Harry's thunder was all for his benefit.

One of his men carried a big chair over to the hearth, and when Harry was settled, Jade walked over to stand behind him. She put her hand on Harry's shoulder.

"You wear spectacles, me boy?" Harry asked Caine.

Caine shook his head. "Anyone here wear them? One of your servants perchance?"

"No," Caine answered.

"Uncle, do you know where you lost your last pair?" she asked:

"Now, lovely, you know I don't remember," he answered. "If I did, I wouldn't have lost them, now

would I?"

Harry turned back to Caine then. "There be a village close by?"

Colin started laughing. Even Nathan broke into a grin. Caine didn't have the faintest idea why they were so amused.

"There is a village close by," Colin said.

"No one was asking you, you twit. Go back to sleep, Dolphin. It's all you're good for," he added with a wink.

Harry turned to his cohorts and bellowed, "Men, you know what to do."