You’re the one thing I can always count on, he’d told her over a couple of micheladas and fries in their midtwenties, which had started somewhat of a tradition. Even though he wasn’t always there physically, she felt the same.
Like how he always left her a book when he visited. It was subtle at first, going back all the way to when they were kids. Dani used to think he was simply forgetful, often leaving behind a book when he came over. Then in high school, he’d talk about books he was reading, and whenever she said it sounded interesting or asked the name, he’d give her his copy to borrow. By the time they were in their twenties, it became unspoken again. Sometimes he’d show up at a party and hand her a book when saying hello to someone else. Or he’d leave a book inside the garage door, so it would be waiting for her when she got home.
Like the last time he’d been home before he left on that final fateful trip to Greece. She hadn’t even seen him that time despite the fact he’d texted a few days before saying there was something he wanted to talk to her about and that he’d be coming to town soon. That talk never happened. Instead, after a late night at karaoke with Beau, waiting for her in the garage was a first edition ofThe Wonderful Wizard of Oz, her favorite book of all time.
She’d never even gotten the chance to thank him. By thetime she found the book and realized he’d stopped by, he was apparently long gone. He wouldn’t even answer her texts.
“So what were those men doing under the palace?” Harold asked, tearing her thoughts from Theo.
Dani grabbed a stuffed grape leaf and popped it in her mouth. “I have no idea, but it didn’t look legit.”
Right then, Cosmo walked up to them, and Dani sat straighter in her chair. She’d been waiting to hear back since he helped her call the police about the men sneaking around Knossos (though she omitted the part about her climbing over the railing and instead said she’d only seenthememerging from the stairway beneath the palace).
“Have you heard anything?” she asked.
“I just got off the phone with the police. There was no one back at Knossos. The gates are locked for the evening and the attendant checked the area beneath the palace himself,” Cosmo explained, seeming perturbed to have to explain this to her.
“They didn’t find the secret passageway?”
“What secret passageway?” he asked, his gaze narrowing in on her.
Shit.She hadn’t told him about the secret room.
She stabbed another stuffed grape leaf with her fork and waved it around, nonchalantly. “Oh…I…I mean, I assumed there must be something under the palace…lair of the Minotaur and all…otherwise what were they even doing there?” she asked.
Cosmo eyed her skeptically, like he didn’t believe her. Dani stared at him, willing her face to maintain composure while her mind screamed at her for trying to blow her cover. Once he finally deemed her innocent, he answered. “No. They didn’t find anything. Nor did they find any men dressed like burglars.”
Phew.
“What about the man in the baseball hat?” she asked. “Did they say anything about him?”
“Again, they didn’t see anyone.”
“But you saw him, didn’t you?” She set down her fork and turned in her seat to face Cosmo head on. “The men who were chasing me when I hopped on the bus?” Dani’s voice pleaded.
“I don’t know what you are talking about.”
Dani’s mouth gaped open. How? How could he have missed them? “You saw them, Harold, right?” she asked, turning to him.
He shrugged. “I’m sorry. I was looking at you, remember?”
She couldn’t believe it. No, she wasn’t making things up in her head. He was there. Theo was there.
“Maybe you can ask the rest of the group if they noticed them. Maybe they—” she started, but Cosmo cut her off.
“I’m sorry, miss, but I think you should probably let this go. These people came here for vacation—to getawayfrom their troubles, not to get into some. Besides, it looked like you had fallen, perhaps? You were covered in dirt when you arrived back at the bus. Maybe you hit your head?”
Dani blinked several times before answering. “You think I’m making this up? Did you explain again that it was Theo Galanis?”
Cosmo nodded, his face turning morose. “Yes, they confirmed he’s dead—”
“He’s not dead!” Dani said, slamming her fists on the table and raising her voice loud enough to garner a few stares from guests at other tables.
But, God, she really wished everyone would stop saying that.
“Listen, I understand that you knew him. A lover, perhaps?”Cosmo said, almost sympathetically but with a slight air of disbelief. “Maybe that’s why you came on this trip, no? To say goodbye? It’s only natural that your eyes might play tricks on you. Greece is a mystical place, full of ancient tales and mythologies.”
“I wasn’t seeing things,” she said, leaning back in her seat and folding her arms.
