He’d hidden from me using the shadows and had hugged the ground. I believed that he would have killed me, except he decided that I might be useful a... a hostage to help him escape.”“He would have killed you,” the Major said. “He didn’t normally take hostages. I could see why keeping you would have been an advantage. Did he know who you were?”“Yes,” I replied without hesitation.My dad sat forward with a start, “How the hell do you know that?”“He asked me where my partner was and why I was there. ’ Maria Elena said nothing for a long time, as she walked in horrified silence with her translator. What else could she say? She had just become accustomed to her routine as a criminal and was looking forward to living a fairly normal life, but it turned out that the productive life she had expected wasn’t going to happen after-all. Instead she was destined to become the personal slave of that maniacal young queen. Cecilia didn’t know what to say either, because she felt horrible for her. Those images had stayed with me, figuring in many of my thoughts whilst I was alone enjoying myself ‘solo-style’, but I hadn’t found the opportunity to reveal to you what I had seen that day. Yet now seemed the perfect time! ‘Do you remember that italian restaurant we went to 3 months ago?’, I asked somewhat seductively. ‘...yes...’, you replied hesitatingly, blushing a little. Taking a brief pause I went on, ‘...well...I saw you and that waitress in the back room...’, leaving the end of. I will go with you for a while, and make your purpose my own. Please, I beg of you, do not ask my reasons."Esfalan shrugged. "Very well, then Debra. I shall not ask."It had been a whirlwind of shafts and stairs, passages and natural stone walls passing by the lantern's light. Esfalan had picked up some shards of granite, and concentrated, frowning, on four of them as he walked. Debra watched as they grew a grey-brown crust, then he wiped each on his breeches as he walked.Looking up, he noticed.