“It seemed important at the time.”
They both stared at the painting on the vessel. Nothing about it gave any actual indication that it was of the Acropolis and the Parthenon, but in light of Dani’s discovery, it seemed that maybe, just maybe, the thing they were searching for was somewhere on the east side of the Acropolis.
“So, let me ask again. How badly do you want to go home?” she asked.
“Ask me after we go to the Acropolis.”
* * *
Lysander had kept his promise.When they woke in the morning, they’d learned that he’d already arranged for flights to takethem back home late that evening. He’d also seemingly pulled some strings and was able to get copies of their passports expedited from the embassy.
Now all they had to do was wait until midnight. Or, as Dani put it: they had until midnight to find the eye of the Minotaur.
Lysander had offered to arrange transportation for them to the airport, but Theo and Dani declined. They didn’t need the Minotaur’s Children to know what they were up to. So instead, they simply asked for a ride back to Athens so they could “sight-see” before their flight home. Now, without Maurice and Louis looking over their shoulders and watching their every move, they were free to travel as they pleased. If anyone recognized him at this point, it wouldn’t matter. Because soon, they’d be on a plane back to the United States. So after saying their goodbyes to Andreas and Christos, and vowing to keep in touch, Dani and Theo made their way into Athens.
The Acropolis was known for having multiple cave openings dedicated for the cult worship of various gods. The odds there was an additional undiscovered cave were a bit unlikely, but excavations within the last one hundred years weren’t unheard of. After everything they’d gone through, what harm was there in at least a peek?
They had to be strategic. Poking around the Acropolis was a quick way to earn a one-way ticket to the slammer. So they decided to wait until the crowds thinned out later in the day, hopefully limiting the number of tattletales who might be watching them.
“You ready?” Theo said as they stood outside the southern entrance.
Dani nodded, and he took her hand.
They didn’t know exactly what they were looking for, giventhat the painting was the only reference they had to go on. They circled the lower eastern slopes, holding up the page Theo had torn out of Andreas’s book and searching for a perspective that matched the painting. Even though they’d gone later in the day, however, there were still a few too many people to get a proper look.
Dani and Theo stepped back as a tour group came up behind them, looking to pass.
“And here,” the tour guide announced, “is the Aglaureion, one of the largest caves at the Acropolis. This cave was to honor Aglauros, the daughter of King Cecrops. It is said she flung herself off the Acropolis to save the city from invasion.”
The group slowly moved past them as the tour guide continued to talk, his voice somewhat familiar, when Dani finally recognized the voice: it was Cosmo.
“Daniela?” another voice asked to her right.
Dani turned, and standing there was Harold, her travel companion from her first few days in Greece.
“Harold!” she said, flinging her arms around the old man.
“Well, well, well, never thought I’d see you again,” Harold said. “I gotta admit—I was a little disappointed when I’d heard that you’d left. All these old fogeys are more ancient than the ruins we’ve been touring. None of them stay up past six p.m.”
“Yeah…the last few days have been…unexpected.”
Harold took one look at Theo standing beside her, and then he said with a smile, “I’d say so.”
“Oh, Harold, this is Theo,” she said.
They shook hands and exchanged pleasantries, when Harold then turned to Dani and said, “As in your Theo?”
Dani blushed and ducked her head a bit.
“Yes, her Theo,” he answered for her, tipping up her chin and gazing at her lovingly.
If Harold wasn’t standing there, she would have kissed him. Her Theo. She liked the sound of that.
“So, you’re not dead,” Harold said. “Or am I starting to see things, too?”
Theo gave a nervous laugh.
“It’s a long story,” Dani offered, “but, no, you’re not seeing things. He’s alive.”
