The Nymph's Curse: The Collection

by Danica Winters

  Kaden’s face turned a vibrant red.

  Ariadne frowned. “We’ve met.”

  “What did the tablet say, Beau?” Kaden asked, oblivious to the mysterious strain between the two women.

  Beau stepped next to Ariadne. “Just a myth about the Labyrinth. I sent a picture off to Professor Ryan. Maybe he’ll see some value in it. But it looks like it’s probably not what we were hoping for.”

  Kaden shoved the tip of the trowel into the ground. “Sorry.” He pulled the trowel and where the tip had been, a white surface lay exposed.

  “What’s that?” Beau said. He jumped down and took the trowel from Kaden.

  He gingerly scraped away the soil. Lying exposed was a tiny bone. He cleared the soil around it, careful not to disturb the infant-sized femur. He looked up at Ariadne. “Oh, shit.”

  Chapter Seven

  The tent was filled with a flood of voices and the musky scents of the news broadcaster’s colognes as everyone waited for Stavros to make a statement. Stavros milled around the crowd and warmed palms as the assortment of reporters pushed business cards into his pocket.

  Beau stepped beside her and put his hand on her elbow. Ariadne looked down at his surprisingly familiar touch and smiled. The sweet touch felt so strange, but so wonderful at the same time. With Stavros there had never been touches, only nudges when he wanted sex or the formal handholding at political functions.

  “Thanks for coming. It’s nice to see someone I like,” Beau said with a grin.

  “I couldn’t miss this,” she said with a forced smile. Kat had made sure of it.

  Beau dropped his hand as Vickie entered the tent and threw her hair behind her shoulder and extended her chest, making her breasts look like two smashed grapefruit under her V-neck top. Ariadne couldn’t hold back her snicker. The girl was mistaken if she thought that Ariadne would stand in her way with Beau. Beau was sweet, good-looking, and ambitious, but there wasn’t a possibility that they would be anything more than secret enemies.

  Vickie walked up to them. “Hello again, Ariadne.”

  She nodded a welcome. “Vickie.”

  Beau shoved his hands in his pockets. “I hope the governor gets started soon, it’s getting hot in here.”

  Stavros stepped next to her. “Hello, everyone. This is sure to gain headlines, don’t you think?” He leaned in and gave Ariadne a kiss on her cheek. “It’s a good day to be Greek.”

  Her gaze snapped to Stavros and she glared and silently reprimanded him for touching her. The bastard had no business with her anymore. They were through, but maybe that hadn’t penetrated the man’s ego.

  Beau extended his hand to Stavros, but his eyes bore into her. “Governor.”

  The crowd seemed to tighten and a man bumped into her and smiled. “Sorry, Miss.”

  She nodded, but she couldn’t stand being this close to so many people; especially not when the crowd included Stavros. Ariadne smiled at Beau. “I’m going to step out.”

  “I’ll follow you out,” Vickie said, motioning her to lead the way.

  Ariadne smiled, but looked quizzically at Beau, who shrugged. “Uh, sure.”

  Beau reached out like he wanted to hold her back, but he stopped and looked at Stavros. His cheeks flushed. “Okay. See you in a bit.”

  The tent flap closed behind them and deadened some of the drone of the chatter. Kat and Tammy were perched on the wall at the far end of the site. Tammy’s hands were flying as if she tried to desperately express a point she had made.

  Vickie followed her away from the tent and out of hearing distance of the reporters. “What do you think is going to happen today?”

  “I don’t really know. Why?” She looked over her shoulder at Kat.

  “I heard someone saying they thought the governor’s going to shut us down. That can’t happen. Beau will be devastated,” the girl gushed.

  Ariadne held back a smile. “Well, it’s possible. They will need to do an investigation to make sure the body isn’t a murder. Then there will need to be repatriation. And you know the Greeks like their ceremonies … They’ll need to bury the body.”

  “Are you sure that the governor will close us down?” The lusty college student squirmed.

  Ariadne shrugged. She could only hope that Stavros had finally realized what the dig could cost them.

  “I need to go.” Ariadne pointed at Tammy. “My friends are waiting.”

  “Sure.” Vickie crossed her arms and bit nervously at her nails.

  Kat’s voices grew louder as she approached. “You can’t stop it … ” Kat turned away from Tammy. “Ariadne, have you talked to Stavros yet?”

  “He’ll come through.”

  “I hope you’re right. I heard about the tablet. And the bones,” Kat said.

  “The dig is shut down.”

  “For now … but how long do you think Stavros is going to keep his cash flow stemmed? He’s going to push the documents — for the body — through as fast as he can. Time is money.”

  “Hi, Tammy, it’s nice to see you again.” Ariadne ignored Kat’s provocation.

  “Howdy,” Tammy answered with a wave. Her eyes were tired, and she looked relieved to have someone else besides Kat for company.

  “Where’s your assistant Ivan?” Ariadne asked as she looked around for the little gray-skinned elf.

  “Oh, he had some business calling him. He’ll be along sometime, I’m sure,” Tammy said, her gaze flashed to Kat, then down at the ground.

  It seemed out of character for the woman to be subordinate to Kat. What was going on?

  “You okay, Tammy?” She looked over at Kat, who had a wicked smile on her face.

  “She’s fine.” Kat answered for the witch. “Aren’t you?”

  “Yeah, I’m fine. Really.” Tammy looked over at the tent. “I’m just getting nervous ’bout the ceremony. That’s all.”

  Ariadne didn’t believe her, but there was no point in pressing the issue. “Are you guys ready for the ceremony? Did you get everything you needed?”

  “We still need a goat, then we’ll be all set,” Tammy said with a sigh. “Are you thinking you’ll be bringing Stavros?”

  Kat glared at Tammy.

  Ariadne sighed. “I don’t think so.”

  “Do you care for Stavros?” Tammy asked as Kat continued to stare daggers at her.

  Ariadne thought for a moment. “To be honest … I think he’s a bastard. I wish I would’ve left him years ago.”

  “I glad to hear ya say that,” Tammy said with a wide smile. “I like you. To see you with a man like Stavros … it’s a shame. You gotta spark the rest of us drool after.”

  Kat snickered. “You don’t know her very well. She’s lived more than a thousand years. If she was great don’t you think she would’ve done something great by now?”

  Ariadne gritted her teeth. She has no idea what I’m capable of, one of these days she’ll be shocked … but then again, I’ve been saying that for so long. She sighed. Nothing’s ever going to change.

  Tammy glared at Kat. “It’s a cruel joke that the gods made you such a power-hungry harlot and her such a meek soul. But the gods always have a way of making things right.”

  “Ariadne already wasted her chance at becoming great when she ostracized herself from the god Dionysus. He pitied her and offered her his hand, but she couldn’t handle his infidelities — I think she couldn’t please him.” Kat smirked. “Hadn’t you heard about her fall from grace?”

  Ariadne’s cheeks flushed, and a thin veil of sweat covered her forehead. “Stop it.”

  “What did you say?” Kat snarled. “Don’t think that because you finally have someone who feels sorry for you, that you can stand up to me. That’s a battle you will lose … Or are you trying to hide the truth of your past from
your little ally?”

  A squeal of a microphone came from the tent. “Ladies and gentlemen, we would like to present to you our beloved, honorable Governor Kakos!” A round of applause followed.

  “Let’s go,” Kat ordered. Standing up, she sauntered off ahead of them.

  “I’m sorry,” Tammy said. “Ya need to find your tongue and use it to lash that woman down.”

  “Katarina saved our most sacred relic from being destroyed. She holds a high esteem within our sisterhood. If I go against her, it would be like going against everything we hold sacred. I would be going against all my sisters.”

  “She ain’t without flaw.” Tammy smirked. “And just because she did one great thing, doesn’t mean that ya don’t get to stand up for yourself or what ya believe in.”

  While Ariadne had been talking, someone had rolled up the sides of the tent, allowing the ocean breeze to clear the scents of the mass of people. Beau’s equipment had been removed and in its place were white folding chairs and a water cooler for the reporters who filled the seats. Kat led the way into the tent and forced her way into the farthest corner from Stavros, who stood behind the makeshift podium at the front of the tent.

  Bunny sat in a seat in the back, far removed from the man who Ariadne had seen standing between the woman’s thighs. Stavros tilted his head in greeting, but she pretended to ignore the gesture and instead took a seat next to a handsome young reporter, right behind Kat.

  “Thank you all for coming,” Stavros started. “As you all know, Crete is the greatest place on earth. We are blessed with agricultural richness, bountiful marine life, and the most beautiful women.” The crowd laughed.

  His charm was magnetic and his charisma undeniable. Watching him in action as he worked the crowd reminded her why she had dated the man for so many years. He had many public qualities that made him a fine catch, but she could never forgive him for all the wrongs he had inflicted. He was no different from any of the men of her past.

  A warm hand touched her shoulder and she jerked.

  “Is he always like this when he speaks?” Beau whispered into her ear.

  She smiled when she looked up and saw her rescuer. “Yes. He’s a politician.”

  “Well, he’s good.” Beau growled. “Did he tell you what he’s planning?”

  Her guilt gnawed at her when she looked at Beau’s handsome face. He didn’t deserve what they were doing to him … no, what she was doing to him. If only he’d chosen a different location … she would not have been forced to stop him.

  “I’m so sorry — ”

  “It sounds like he wants to bring in tourists who will pay to take part in the dig,” he interrupted. “He’s gonna try to get a bunch of slobbering yuppies to shovel in my site.”

  “What?” Ariadne whispered, her gaze flashed toward the blabbering politician.

  “I was afraid they’d shut down the site for repatriation and burial of the body, but it sounds like he wants to just keep going. He said he found a private group of citizens who want to bury the remains.”

  He looked relieved, but Ariadne’s heart sank. What was Kat going to say?

  “This’s going to save me thousands, but cost me my reputation, and probably destroy the site.” He dropped his hand as he stood up. Where Beau’s moist breath had warmed her ear, suddenly turned cold.

  Ariadne stared at the man, as she tried to keep the fears that fluttered in her chest from leaking out onto her face. Stavros wouldn’t compromise everything to make money, would he?

  Stavros’ voice broke through the fog in her mind. “ … after much deliberation we, Beau Morris and I, have decided to open this dig up for the public to participate … ”

  Her heart fell to the ground. There would be no stopping it now.

  Kat turned around. “I thought you said you had this handled,” she hissed.

  “I … he … promised me … ” Ariadne stammered.

  Kat glared at her. “You’ll never change. I knew I couldn’t depend on you.”

  An explosive roar tore through the tent.

  At the sound of the gunshot, Ariadne threw her body to the ground. People screamed, chairs banged against each other, and the microphone popped and emitted an ear-piercing squeal. Beau reached out and took her hand. Grabbing her other arm, he pulled her toward him and took her in his embrace.

  “Are you okay?” he yelled above the jumble of noise.

  People frantically scurried around them. She looked into his brown eyes. There was strength in them she had never noticed before. For a moment, she could say nothing. She could only look at the man whose arms were wrapped around her.

  “Where’s Kaden?” Ariadne looked behind him, but she couldn’t see the young man anywhere.

  Beau’s heavy breath poured onto her face. “He’s with Trina.”

  Relief filled her. Beau and Kaden were okay.

  A woman screamed. “The governor! He’s been shot!”

  Stavros stood up on a chair at the front of the tent. He held his neck as blood ran through his fingers and down the front of his suit jacket. “Don’t worry. I’m fine. Just a little flesh wound.”

  “Get down!” Beau yelled at Stavros.

  Stavros clamored down from the chair. At least he had the sense to listen for once in his life.

  Beau looked at her. “Are you going to be okay?”

  She nodded.

  Without warning, he leaned in and took her mouth with his. She closed her eyes and let the warmth of his lips spread into her soul. His strong hand rubbed the space between her shoulders; the simple motion comforted her like nothing she had ever felt.

  As quickly as he had taken her, he pulled back. “I … I’m sorry … ,” he stuttered. “I just … You’re — ”

  She pressed her finger to his lip and silenced him. “Don’t worry, Beau. I understand this — you needed to know you’re alive.”

  “No — ” he began, but again she stopped him.

  “Don’t apologize.” She pressed her hands against his chest. His eyes were wide and his mouth agape as she moved out of his arms.

  A part of her wanted to stay there and be surrounded by his wanting touch, but it wasn’t right. Her loyalty was with her sisterhood, and she couldn’t be seen with their enemy.

  A thought struck her, he was their enemy, but could he be a lover? If they never went public. If they kept their affair in the shadows, maybe …

  No … When his lips had pressed against hers, the feelings that ran between them were not that of simple lust. And more than lust was an emotional risk she wasn’t willing to take. She could have sex with anyone, but not a man with whom there was a possibility of something more than a physical connection.

  She tried to push the thoughts of more from her mind. There were too many reasons they couldn’t be together.

  Beau stood up and looked around. The people that were still left in the tent were sprawled on the ground at his feet. He looked god-like the way he scanned the horizon for danger. Reaching down, he pulled a phone from his back pocket and flipped it open. “We’re going to need an ambulance.”

  • • •

  The pungent scent of antiseptic mixed with the stale scent of the sick as Ariadne walked down the hospital’s long white corridor. Some of the people’s doors were open as if they awaited people who would hopefully come. Other doors were shut, but the sounds of moaning escaped beneath the thin cracks and invaded the still hall.

  Stavros’ room was easy to find by the crowd who stood outside the door. The group talked in hushed voices as she approached. Bunny stood at the group’s center, her face pale and mascara ran down her cheeks. The woman looked up at her and smiled weakly. “Ariadne, I’m glad you’re here … ”

  If Bunny had said she married the prime minister of Britain, Ariadne couldn’t have be
en more shocked. The woman, who she had only seen days before naked beneath Stavros, now wanted to be kind and welcoming to her?

  Ariadne looked around the crowd of faces surrounding the governor’s mistress. A dark-haired man with stubble and pockmarked face stood at Bunny’s left, and Ariadne recognized him as Christos, the head of Crete’s Hellenic Police from the dinners she had spent with the governor. Behind him, stood a man with a camera slung around his neck. Bunny’s gaze flickered to the man with the camera. Bunny must have noticed and she stepped toward Ariadne and opened her arms and motioned for a hug.

  The photographer picked up his camera, but Ariadne couldn’t bring herself to play the game. The thought of playing the former lover was too much. She couldn’t choke down the thought of people outwardly pitying her while inwardly they likely wondered if she had something to do with the assassination attempt.

  She should’ve never come here. Then again, if she hadn’t, the rumors would’ve been even more virulent. Crete was a small island filled with big mouths and even stronger opinions.

  Ariadne smiled at Christos and offered her hand, ignoring Bunny’s outstretched arms. “Nice to see you, Christos. Any leads yet?”

  Bunny’s arms dropped.

  Christos shook her hand. “I can’t believe what has happened. There’s been talk about some conflicting feelings from underground groups about Stavros’ politics, but none of the rebels or protestors has the funds to pull off this type of thing.”

  Rebels … it was possible that civil unrest could have been the reasoning behind the shooting, but it didn’t seem to fit. Why would rebels wait until he was at the archeological dig to shoot him? Stavros made many public appearances with much larger crowds. If they wanted to send a message, one of his larger addresses would have seemed like the more logical location. But then again, rebels could’ve seen this as an opportunity to get closer to him; he didn’t have as large of an entourage, or as many security officers.

  Christos stared at her, as if he was looking for clues. “I heard you and Stavros recently ended your affair. Yes?”

  Looking over at Bunny’s smeared mascara, Ariadne nodded. “It was time.”