Apocalypse's Horsemen (Devil's Assistant Series - Book 3)

Apocalypse's Horsemen [3]

Chapter 3

Wine. That was the scent that greeted me as we emerged at the other end of the tunnel. The room was cool but warm enough that I could remove my coat and several of the layers. Phil clicked on the light illuminating the cramped space to reveal dozens of shelves.  All were laden with bottles of wine in varying vintages and type. I noted that there was not a speck of dust on any of the bottles. In fact, if it weren’t for the yellowing labels on some of the bottles I would have thought they had only just been put on the shelf.

Drawing in a breath, I wrinkled my nose as I dropped my gaze to the floor. It had a purplish tinge and the strong tannin smell radiated up from the ground. I had never been a big wine drinker but the scent was sticking to the back of my throat. Clamping my jaw closed, I twitched my nose and tried not to sneeze.

“Sorry about that. One of the hellions got down here and destroyed two hundred bottles of my favourite wine. It had been blessed by a white witch. It’s why the smell is so potent.” Phil offered with a smile, leaning heavily against his cane as he watched us all gather our bearings. “I’ll be taking you up into my private estate. We have much to discuss and it is probably best that the rest of the city is not fully aware of your presence. The Elves have been edgy for the last month and things have been unsettled.”

Without waiting for a response, he turned and hobbled his way towards a set of the stairs set into the far wall. I followed immediately, my eyes drawn to the glittering staircase that was carved out of pure white marble with veins of blue running through it.

We journeyed up several floors and wound through several beautifully decorated corridors before he led us into a large open room. I wasn’t sure whether he was trying to confuse us by taking the roundabout route, with so many twists and turns that I would never find my way back to the basement, or whether he was true to his word and was trying to keep our presence hidden from the general population.

The drawing room was decorated differently to every other room we had passed so far. This room appeared to actually be used and not just a pretty monument to be admired at for its beauty. The room was warm, decorated in cream and brown fabrics giving it an earthy vibe. All of the original white stone was covered by draperies or smooth brown stones giving it a welcoming vibe.  

My eyes wandered to the large windows, each of which boasted a window seat. The thick panes of glass were tinted pale green making it feel as though I was looking at the world from inside a glass bottle. If anything it made the world outside the windows all the more magical. Buildings glistened and the streets teamed with people - though the people wandering down below were far from human. Instead of street lamps to illuminate the city as night fell, the pavements and building walls themselves started to glow, ranging from pinks to blue, from greens to oranges.

“Wow,” I murmured, unwilling to drag my eyes away despite the hand tugging upon mine.

After a few moments of gaping at the scenery, I settled down onto a small sofa before the fire place. I was squished snugly between Caine and Castiel, the two angels sitting perched stiffly on the edge of their seats while I relaxed back into the plush cushions. I sighed and shuddered as the warmth of the gently flickering fire washed over me from the heath. It soothed the chill that had lingered in my bones after our trek through the blizzard and loosened my strained muscles.

For the next few minutes each of us was plied with food and drink by our gracious host while the old man himself hobbled around the room, occasionally rubbing his chin as he looked over our group with a drawn smile. He would pause open his mouth to speak before he hobbled on once more without a single word being uttered.

Lucius coughed, frowning as he watched Phil pace backwards and forwards so often that it was becoming dizzying.  

“I suppose I should begin,” the older man muttered when the muted conversations finally dropped away and every eye fell upon him and his nervous pacing. “I have lived a long life - longer than even you Lucius. I was born when the world was new and man had just discovered what fire was. I was always different from the others in my tribe. I was not content to just eat, hunt, reproduce and die like the rest. I sought knowledge and discoveries. I was just more. Different.”