CHAPTER ONE
I had five bucks and a bottle of brandy, which meant that my baby would be with me for two whole days. Hey, just look at this beauty walking down the street! I bet you a beer that I know her name.
Sheriff Tate McIntyre and his deputy Jeet Hammond were sitting in a small cafe where fried donuts were a specialty. Leaning on the bar, Jeet Hammond casually pointed a cup of coffee towards a long-legged brunette who was walking down the street with a smooth, gliding gait. The sheriff grinned good-naturedly and reminded his deputy of what everyone in the area knew.
I'm not betting on beer, Jeet. You know I don't drink.
Yes, I know, I know. And you don't play cards. - Mischievous lights flashed in Jit’s eyes. - And I must admit, I like to take risks once or twice.
Tate laughed and... almost choked on a piece of delicious pecan pie. At that very moment when the breeze outside the window, as if flirting with a lovely stranger, slightly lifted the edge of her skirt and exposed her slender legs, Tate suddenly realized who this woman was. He felt feverish and his heart began to pound. He didn't know she was back.
It was funny to watch how Jit, craning his neck, looked with lust at the woman’s legs outside the window.
Well, higher, higher! - he whispered. - Damn it, she has the coolest legs I've ever seen. No wonder everyone likes them so much.
If your wife heard you talk about beer and someone's legs, you'd have to spend the night with me again.
For the sake of decency, Jit made a guilty face, which did not stop him from following the brunette with his eyes until she disappeared from sight.
Yes, it’s a pleasure to have fun with someone like that,” he remarked blissfully. - Tate, buddy, you're a tough cookie! Did the unexpected appearance of Julian Reynolds in our town after all this time not excite you at all?
Tate shivered and tried to focus on the hot, sweet coffee. Well, of course, he was seriously excited. But not at all as Jeet imagined. Ten years ago, when Julian left Tate, she stole his love and heart. And Tate decided that no woman would ever again become the cause of his mental suffering.
It's strange why we've never seen photos of her? - Jit asked, still peering out the window.
Jeet, they take pictures of her legs, not her face. But it is difficult to recognize a person by his legs.
Tate did not talk about the fact that he had seen these divine legs many times in various magazines and on advertising posters. It was impossible not to recognize them, they were so perfect. Until now, every time he remembered Julian, Tate seemed to feel the touch of her silky smooth skin, the warmth of her body and smell her hair.
Damn it, he's thinking about her again! Now is not the time. It's better to never think about her. Never!
Remember that film about a ballerina that was shown last year. They say that in it close up her legs are removed.
Well, yes. I heard something like that.
Yes, Jeet was absolutely right. One day Tate got there, turned off the engine and sat in the car until almost dawn. Staring motionlessly at the illuminated picture before him, he recalled again and again the scene that always haunted him and which he usually drove away.
Tate washed down the bitterness of memories of Julian with a sip of cold coffee. He was ready to die for her, he loved her so much. But they were never a couple. Tate knew it then, and he knew it now. Julian is worthy better life. What could an illegitimate half-breed give such a beauty? Out of frustration, he loudly slammed the white mug on the saucer.
Throwing the money on the table, Tate stood up.
Let's go, Jeet. Stop sitting around, we have a lot to do.
The corpulent Jit pushed back his chair with a roar, pulled up his baggy pants and followed the boss, finally saying:
I wonder what she's doing here after all this time?
It was this question that Tate was now trying to find an answer to.
Julian Reynolds came to Blackwood on very important business.
Deliberately swaying her magnificent hips, she walked along the sun-drenched main street of the city towards the municipal building. With every step she was closer to the man in whose hands her whole life was now. Julian was worried. This man was married, happy, and successful. Julian was not going to stand in the way of the one Tate had chosen, but a hopeless situation required desperate actions. She had not yet decided how she would ask him for help. She didn't want to reveal the real reason her so unexpected return to Blackwood, the huge clock in the park at the funeral home showed the beginning of twelve. Looking at them, Julian turned white with fear. The clock seemed to her an inexorable reminder of death. Like an ominous kite that hovers over its prey, bringing death to it, the clock mercilessly ticked the time, taking away her days and nights. With every moment death crept closer. And only the grace of God and modern medicine helped Julian.
The warm spring wind carried the delicate aroma of tulips that grew on both sides of the high staircase to the town hall building. Julian walked up the stairs and into the cool, dark hall.
Her only child, the sun that warmed and made Julian live, poor Megan was dying. And only a bone marrow transplant could save her. Even after several weeks of persistent searches and research, a donor for her baby could not be found. Circumstances forced Julian to break her vow never to interfere in Tate's life. She packed her suitcase and went to Blackwood to look for Megan's father. Julian returned to hometown to find Tate McIntyre.
The sheriff's office was empty. Julian paused, mustering all her courage to open the door. My throat is dry. Confidence melted quickly, like a snowflake in a warm palm. What if he refuses? Taking a deep breath helped calm the trembling. Julian turned the round knob of the door to Tate's office.
The door was locked. In frustration, Julian leaned her forehead against the cool brass sign that read "Sheriff Tate McIntyre" and began to cry. The tension was telling. The tears that Julian cried for lately, would be enough to fill the ocean. But they brought relief and gave strength to continue to fight the misfortune.
Are you looking for someone?
Behind seven castles hold
In deep secret.
What is meant is that face ( X) carefully protects its innermost, does not allow another person or group of persons ( Y) to your inner world (R). ✦ X holds P behind seven castles [from Y] R X hidden behind seven castles >.Everything that was bitter and heavy in her soul, she kept from everyone behind seven castles so that no one would guess about her experiences and suffering. T. Panina, Summer holidays.
[Anneta Petrovna] suddenly thought that she didn’t know her Korostylev at all, that all of him real life is hiding from her behind seven castles. P. Khalov, The Last Cyclone.
[Nastya] remained silent as before: soul behind seven castles. But Taras saw: she had already chosen her path. Only he didn’t know which one. B. Gorbatov, Unconquered.
cultural commentary: Image phraseol. goes back to the most ancient forms of awareness of the world and is correlated through the component lock with an artifactual material code of culture, i.e. with a set of names denoting objects of the material world created by man, their properties, characteristics and acting as signs of the “language” of culture. According to the most ancient folk beliefs, lock used for symbolic closure and unlocking in magic and rituals. In some cases, in protective magic, closed lock used to protect a protected object from danger (for example, to prevent disease from entering the village). In other cases lock they “locked up” the carrier of the danger in order to neutralize him. So, for example, on the day of the first cattle pasture, an open lock was placed at the gate and closed after the cattle passed through it, in order to “close” the teeth of the wolves. In folk medical practice, closure castle symbolically associated with the “closure” of the disease and was used, in particular, to stop bleeding. In love magic lock closed in order to bind a loved one or husband and wife to each other more tightly. Besides, lock was perceived as a symbol of magical consolidation of the desired result: just as a castle is strong, strong and reliable, the work being done should be just as strong and durable. Wed For example, during a wedding agreement, it is a Russian custom to place an unlocked lock with a key under the threshold of the bride’s house - as soon as the groom crossed the threshold, the matchmaker locked the lock and threw the key into the river so that the wedding would not be upset. ( Slavic mythology. Encyclopedic Dictionary. M., 2002. P. 169, 170.) Image phraseol. also correlates with the metric-numerical code of culture, i.e. with a set of names denoting numbers, operations and measurements performed with their help, specific qualitative, temporary s/ e characteristics that act as a source of human understanding of the world, and contains a mythologeme seven (cm. 0
Today life has come such that you have to hide everything and hide it from bad people. After all, it's only worth it to anyone" sniff out"that you have honestly earned money, then expect trouble right away. Moreover, there are a lot of honest and not so honest ways of taking money from the population that are practiced by scammers. Okay, this is all empty, today we will talk about a method that will allow you save your capital. As you may have guessed, we will talk about the phrase. Behind seven castles, which means you can read a little lower. On this site you can find out transcripts not only winged words, but also the interpretation of phrases from street slang and criminal argot. Add our popular website to your bookmarks so that you always have access to the necessary, and sometimes even necessary, information.
However, before I continue, I would like to point you to a couple of our other publications on the topic of expressions and phraseological units. For example, what does Stigma in a cannon mean? how to understand the phrase Take the tenth road; meaning of the expression Greeted by clothes; what does it mean that the mind has gone beyond the mind, etc.
So let's continue Behind seven seals, meaning?
Behind seven seals- this phrase shows that something or someone is under reliable protection or strict supervision; in a safe shelter.
The point is that a certain person has hidden something valuable from everyone, and does not allow it into his " charms“not only strangers, but also well-known or close people. They often say this about their inner world, that is, about aspirations, hopes, dreams and desires.
Imagine that you need to hide something that belongs to several people at once. If you hung only one lock, then only one person can open it, and to prevent this from happening, citizens closed this treasure with several latches. After all, since ancient times people have sealed the most valuable and important documents with several seals. Therefore, the treasure will be confiscated only if all owners agree among themselves and come to the chest with their keys. Why then about the most terrible secrets They say - " hidden behind seven locks", and for example, not four or eight? In fact, our ancestors believed that the number " seven"is a kind of sacred and magical, and they attached great importance to it. Therefore, it was with this number that many proverbs arose, for example: " in seventh heaven"; "cut seven times - measure once"; "under seven seals" "seven troubles - one answer", etc.
It was believed that if there were seven locks on a certain container, then higher powers would take care of the safety of their property. Nowadays, when you want to speak allegorically about something mysterious and inaccessible to understanding, you can say; " hidden behind seven locks".
After reading this informative article, you found out What does "Behind seven locks" mean?, and now you won’t get into trouble if you read on the Internet or hear this meaningful statement in everyday speech.
