A Noble Captive Read Online Free

tribute.’ Tullio stepped forward, his metalled sandals ringing out on the mosaic floor.
    Helena ignored him. Romans were less a danger than the pirate. He had to leave.
    ‘Your job has finished. The guests have been deliveredsafely. Go.’ Helena used the same intonations her aunt used when she was declaring what the goddess wanted. Forceful, but with no hint of the desperation she was beginning to feel.
    Gold Earring took a step towards the gateway, then hesitated. ‘Captain Androceles ordered—’
    ‘This is not the captain’s ship.’ She moved towards the main altar. In her mind, she recalled the number of times Aunt Flavia impressed on her the need to glide and not run. This man must have no hint of what was to come. If it taught the Roman with his knowing smile a lesson as well, so much the better. ‘Perhaps you will believe after a small demonstration, but I warn you, Kybele protects her own.’
    She gave a small clap of her hands and then pulled the curtain cord and allowed the mirrors to show. Instantly temple guards swarmed into the vestibule and stood in line behind Helena, each brandishing a long curved sword. She bit her lip. Hopefully the concealed mirrors and dim light would make Gold Earring think there was twice the number of guards.
    ‘You called, my lady,’ the lead guard boomed.
    ‘The seafarer expressed a concern about our ability to look after the temple properly.’
    ‘We have never had any trouble before, Helena.’
    Tullio took pleasure in watching the pirates shift uncomfortably as Helena stood, head held high in front of her troop of guards.
    Helena was unexpected. She managed to confront the pirate without flinching. He doubted many women of his acquaintance in Rome would have the courage to do such a thing. Most, like his elder sister and his ex-wife, would have run screaming before they dared speak back to a man like that.
    From where he was standing, he could see the trick she had played with the bronze mirrors. It had been the vogue when hehad been a boy and his mother had gone from temple to temple searching in vain for a cure for his younger sister’s illness.
    The question was whether or not the pirate would know about the trick or would he simply see the images without questioning and leave?
    ‘I had no idea the temple had that many guards,’ the pirate said before he brought his sandals together and gave an elaborate bow. ‘Captain Androceles thinks only of your welfare.’
    ‘Should the temple be in mortal danger, someone who is of pure heart would blow Neptune’s horn and aid would appear.’ She indicated a large bronze trumpet etched with shells and inlaid with precious stones. ‘No doubt the good captain has forgotten the legend.’
    ‘No doubt.’ Droplets of sweat shone on the pirate’s face.
    Tullio allowed a breath to escape from his lips. The pirates would go. His men would be given a bit of dignity back and he could begin to discover why the sibyl had agreed to have him and his men housed here. Given the mirror trick, he doubted the sibyl left anything to chance.
    Helena clapped her hands again. The curtains shut, concealing the mirrors once again. All the guards except the two directly behind the woman left.
    ‘The temple has sufficient protection.’ She waved her hand. ‘I trust Captain Androceles will refrain from making that mistake in the future.’
    ‘We have no quarrel with the sibyl. Her closeness to Kybele is well known.’ The pirate put his hands together and bowed low.
    ‘See that it stays that way. Kybele would not look kindly on her sanctuary being violated—by anyone.’ Her eyes blazed green. A force to be reckoned with, truly, but her mouth held a pinched look as if she was not accustomed to defying pirates.
    The pirates backed out of the temple, the swagger of earliergone. The interview seemed not to have gone as planned. Maybe there was a breach between pirates and temple. Something he could use. Maybe the gods had favoured him after