Chasing Adonis

by Gina Ardito

  Not quite what she expected. The detective showed no reaction at all. He merely wrote her answer down on his little notepad, and then looked up at her, his face a good-looking void. “Is that possible? Would your aunt send someone to marry you?”

  She could probably tell him pigs bay at the moon on Tuesday nights, and he’d accept the statement as fact. Not that he was gullible. A cool determination lit his eyes, belying naïveté. No, he wanted to believe her for some reason. He accepted her explanations at face value, and for that, he’d have her eternal gratitude.

  “You see, that’s the thing.” She pushed the button to elevate the head of the bed a little more. Now her eyes directly lined up with his. She liked this position. It presented him as more her equal and gave her some dignity. Dignity she’d been sorely lacking in the last few hours.

  “I only met Aunt Persephone once. I was about six years old at the time. I barely remember her. I have no idea what she might do now. According to Ted, my mother’s death left Aunt Persephone as my guardian until I marry. Knowing I would balk, she sent him to marry me.” She shrugged. “Kill two birds with one stone, I suppose.”

  “Do you know for certain your Aunt Persephone sent him?”

  “Well, no, but…he knows things about me.”

  One dark eyebrow arched. “What sort of things?”

  “A lot of things. Personal things. Things even my best girlfriends don’t know.”

  “And you think your Aunt Persephone told him these things?”

  Her throat dried to dust. “I’m not sure. Like I said, I only met her once. And that was over twenty years ago. So if she told him these things, how did she know about them?”

  “You tell me.”

  “I wish I could.”

  She tried to remember her mother mentioning her father’s sister at any other time besides the week Aunt Persephone visited, but no. Mom never talked about Dad, much less anyone related to him. Once he walked out the door, in Mom’s mind, he never existed. A tiny hammer pounded in Adara’s brain, and she closed her eyes to ward off the pain.

  After a moment, she opened them again and offered him an apologetic grimace. “I think my painkillers are wearing off.”

  “Should I get the nurse?” He turned toward the door, but she raised her unencumbered hand to stop him.

  “No, please. If you go out there, Ted will come back in here. I need a little more time to compose myself before that happens. There’s only so much simpering adoration a girl can take.”

  He smiled as if to say he understood perfectly, and she believed he did. Closing her eyes again, she settled against the pillow. In the hopes of easing some of her pain, she allowed her mind to drift, and behind her closed eyelids, she saw a nametag. Using every last ounce of strength, she focused her throbbing brain cells on the letters engraved on that square black and white pin. Too small to make out clearly, but she kept pushing until flashes of details, like snapshots, came back to her.

  Protectors of treasure, an eagle’s head and wings attached to a lion’s body…

  “What did you say your name was, Detective?” she asked slowly.

  “Griffin,” he replied, just as she knew he would. “Shane Griffin.”

  “You caught me when I collapsed.”

  ~~~~

  Almost immediately after her announcement, Ms. Berros fell silent. Soon, her breathing pattern became even. Her painkillers pulled her under yet again.

  Shane left her room a few minutes later and ran smack-dab into Pha lingering outside the door. “She’s asleep.”

  “Yes, I know.”

  Did he? Shane had to quash the urge to soothe the prickly hairs on the back of his neck. Damn, this guy’s attitude really rankled. “So then, why don’t you come down to the precinct and answer a few questions for me?”

  Pha’s eyes remained steady, never looking away from Shane’s concentrated gaze. “I truly hate to leave Adara’s side right now. Could you not ask me your questions here?”

  Yeah, he could, but if Adara wanted this clown out of her hair for a while, the least Shane could do was oblige her. “It’s easier in the precinct. This way, I’ll have a record of your cooperation.”

  The stress he put on the word, “cooperation” didn’t escape Pha’s notice, and the man bowed, his glistening smile nearly blinding in the dim hallway. “Then, by all means, Detective. Lead on.”

  Like everything else about Pha, his speech pattern grated on Shane’s nerves. The lack of contractions coupled with that formal manner reminded him of eleventh grade, Mrs. Curry’s English Lit class, and Hamlet.

  “I don’t suppose you come with Cliff’s Notes,” he tossed back over his shoulder as he stalked down the hall toward the elevator.

  “Far too much of life is already abbreviated, Detective.” In two strides, Pha caught up to him. “You…Americans…are all alike. Speeding through the moments meant to give joy, always wishing for time to move faster. And then one day, you are an old man, regretting the hours you spent away from your loved ones, wishing you had a little more time to share with them. Fools, the lot of you.”

  Shane pushed the down button. “And I suppose it’s different in Cyprus?”

  “Where I come from, we do not measure time in hours or minutes. We measure in every breath and in every heartbeat. My compatriots and I know how quickly someone can be taken from us, and how interminable the wait is until we might be reunited. Therefore, we live our lives to the fullest, relishing the joys, nursing the sorrows, and savoring every moment in between.”

  “I’m happy for you,” Shane remarked as the elevator doors slid open, and they both stepped inside.

  ~~~~

  “How do you know Adara Berros?”

  Shane had set Pha up in Interrogation Room One, a cell about the size of a walk-in closet with a battered metal desk and two folding chairs in the center. A two-way mirror monopolized the wall facing “the accused.”

  “She and I are betrothed.”

  While Shane jotted notes, Pha’s eyes briefly flicked to the mirror. Did he know that someone stood on the other side, watching them?

  If he did, his expression never changed. He looked almost bored with the proceedings as he flicked a piece of imaginary lint off his pristine linen lapel. How the man could wear such an outfit in this heat escaped Shane’s masculine logic. Not only did it look too formal for an eighty-five-degree day in September, the sandy white jacket and dark pink shirt resembled an outfit in his mother’s closet.

  If any officer in the precinct had dared to show up in something like that, he’d have to be tough enough to bear some old-fashioned ribbing. Statements like, “Nice suit. Does it come in a men’s?” would echo in his ears all day long.

  Pha, however, seemed completely at ease with himself and his wardrobe choice. He was either supremely confident or supremely color-blind. Shane hadn’t quite figured out which yet.

  He leaned forward, intent on catching the look of surprise on his suspect’s face with the next set of questions. “Suppose I were to tell you that Adara claims to have never met you before she awakened in the hospital this afternoon and found you seated at her bedside.”

  Damn. No change in facial expression at all. He had to admit, this guy was good. “I would say that she is telling the truth, Detective.”

  “Well, now, correct me if I’m wrong, Mr. Pha, but wouldn’t Adara have to know you and agree to marry you before you could claim to be betrothed?”

  “In my homeland, it is quite customary for a woman to find herself betrothed without her knowledge or consent.” Pha pushed the broken down chair away from the desk and crossed his legs—at the ankles.

  Shane made a quick note of the ultra-feminine posture, but didn’t draw attention to it. “And do you approve of such things?”

  “It is not necessary for me to approve or disapprove, Detective. These traditions go back thousands of years, to the early days of earth’s civilizations. It has been my experience that many beautiful women are seduced int
o love by nefarious means, by men who are not what they seem to be. Even here in your ‘civilized’ country, there are women who fall prey to a man’s lies and deceit.

  “That sort of trickery will never befall Adara. She knows my feelings are genuine. From the moment of our first meeting, I gave her nothing but my sincere adoration and honesty.”

  “Yeah, right. And I’m the Pope.”

  “You may not believe me, but I have loved Adara since her birth, and I will love her until Apollo’s chariot halts its revolutions around the earth. When you are nothing but a memory, I shall still reside in my true love’s heart.”

  For some odd reason, the very thought left a bitter taste in Shane’s mouth. Still he kept his disgust masked behind a veneer of nonchalance. “Uh-huh. Do you drink to excess often, Mr. Pha?”

  “Drink? Do you mean the juice of the vine?” He waved a hand before his face, another feminine action. It only added to the willies parading down Shane’s spine. “No. I have no need for such libations.”

  Now for the Double Jeopardy round. Shane looked up from his pad in time to see the man blow a kiss to the mirror, a sly grin on his face. “What do you think you’re doing?”

  “The ladies behind the glass there keep using this gesture.” He pressed his fingertips to his lips again. “I felt it only polite to respond in kind.”

  What the hell? “Excuse me.”

  Shane kept his temper in check, resisting the strong temptation to send his chair clattering to the floor in the hope of gaining some kind of reaction out of this character. With quiet dignity, he left the room, and strode to the entrance next door. A quick knob twist and urgent push later, he found himself in a room swarming with swooning females.

  “Oh my God, isn’t he the most gorgeous thing you’ve ever seen?” Andrea Parkins blew a kiss to the man on the other side of the two-way mirror, and damned if Pha didn’t imitate the action.

  “Makes me wish I hadn’t married Angelo,” an older heavy-set woman agreed with a giggle. “If I’d known someone like this would come along, I might have postponed the wedding for forty years.”

  “Do you think there are more like him in Cyprus?” another chimed in.

  “I don’t know,” Andrea replied. “But I’m gonna find out. I’m Googling travel sites on my lunch hour and booking a flight.”

  Shane’s temper exploded. “What the hell are you all doing in here? Out! Get out!” He grabbed Andrea’s arm as she shuffled past. “Where’s Lou?”

  “Who?”

  “Lou Gennaro. I asked Lou to be in here while I interrogated that guy.”

  She giggled. “For all I know, he’s somewhere in the crowd. But if it’s witnesses you’re worried about, you’ve got more than enough. We’ll all testify he’s innocent as a newborn babe, won’t we, ladies?”

  A chorus of “Mmm-hmm,” erupted from the gaggle of females leaving the room.

  Good Lord, there had to be two dozen women in here.

  “Oh, he’s a babe, all right,” a husky voice called out from the crowd.

  No, it couldn’t be. But as her face came into view, he knew it could be, and it was. Rachel Stewart!

  “Don’t tell Jake I was here,” she whispered in Shane’s ear as she floated out into the hallway. “I was supposed to meet him for lunch.”

  In utter defeat, Shane returned to Interrogation Room One. “You’re free to go for now, Mr. Pha. But you may need to make yourself available to other detectives in the future.”

  “Ah, yes.” Pha rose to his feet and brushed imaginary dust off his slacks. “How do you say it in your American movies? ‘Don’t leave the country.’ Never fear, Detective. Since I am beholden to Adara, you will always know where to find me.”

  Shane shook his head as he followed. That was exactly what worried him.

  Chapter Seven

  Shane caught up to Pha in the hallway and took his arm. “Come on. I’ll take you home.”

  “Really, Detective.” Pha shook himself free and glared at Shane as if he were a buzzing mosquito. “That won’t be necessary, I assure you.”

  “It’s procedure. I brought you here; I have to bring you home.”

  “I’m not going home. I am returning to the hospital.”

  Adara. The bastard intended to continue hovering over her, maybe even threatening her. “Great. I need to question Adara again anyway.”

  Pha stared at him with fathomless eyes. “Do you normally investigate automobile accidents so thoroughly, Detective Griffin?”

  Shane gave back glare for glare. “I put the same amount of diligence into all my cases, Mr. Pha. After fifteen years on the force, I’ve learned that what’s on the surface often belies the truth hidden below.”

  Jeez, now he’s got me talking in his stilted way.

  “Mr. Pha!” a feminine voice called out from behind them. “Yoo-hoo, Mr. Pha?”

  Becky. Running down the front steps as quickly as the ridiculous heels she’d strapped on her feet allowed. And was that makeup on her face? What the hell?

  “Mr. Pha, I just wanted to say hello. I’m Becky Forrester. I was the 911 operator who took your call this morning.”

  “Miss Forrester,” Pha intoned as he lifted her outstretched hand to his lips. “I cannot thank you enough for your invaluable assistance at a time when I needed it most.”

  She actually batted her lashes and emitted a high-pitched giggle. Shane’s jaw dropped. Unflappable Becky, who had once talked a jumper down off an overpass with nothing but her calm, sedate voice on a cell phone, now simpered and flirted like a mindless teenager.

  “Please, call me Becky. And if there’s anything I can do to assist you while you’re here, you be sure to let me know,” she told him in a breathy tone.

  Pha’s smile could force George Hamilton into a dentist’s chair for another bleaching. “Why, thank you again, Becky. As a matter of fact, I do have a problem with which you may be able to assist me. I will need to find a place to live while Adara is recuperating. Do you know of any respectable domiciles near the hospital?”

  “There’s an apartment available in my building. It’s about four blocks from the hospital. Normally, the landlady leases the apartments on a yearly basis, but I could talk to her, if you’d like. See if she’ll consider bending the rules for you. I’m sure she’d be happy to, as a favor to me.”

  Shane rolled his eyes and considered having his hearing checked. This was not the same Becky he’d known for ten years. He could only watch in slack-jawed amazement as the farce played out.

  “That would be splendid!” Pha exclaimed. “Do you suppose you might take me there now?”

  Becky’s eyes widened to the diameter of serving platters. “Take you there? Oh, I’d consider it an honor, Mr. Pha.”

  “Please, Becky. You must call me Ted.”

  “Ted.” She giggled again. “My car is in the back lot. Come on.”

  Pha turned his amused face to Shane. “As you can see, Detective, your services are no longer necessary. I thank you for your consideration, but I am placing myself in Becky’s very capable hands.”

  “Goodbye, Shane,” Becky cooed as she took Pha’s hand and led him away.

  Shane could only watch in impotent frustration then head inside to Lou Gennaro’s desk. At least Becky would take the heat off Adara for a while, so he wouldn’t put up a stink.

  “You wanna tell me why you weren’t in Observation Room One a little while ago?”

  Lou looked up, corned beef on rye dripping from between his lips. He sucked in the smoky meat and swallowed. “It’s only one o’clock. You said you wanted me there at two-thirty.”

  “I never said two-thirty—”

  Lou waved a pink memo in front of Shane’s face. Shane grabbed it and read the words, supposedly in his handwriting: “Change in plans. Be there at two-thirty.” Even the scrawled initials at the bottom matched his usual signature. Only one problem. He didn’t write it. So, who the hell did?

  “You okay, Shane? You look like shit.”


  “Yeah, thanks. Do me a favor, will you? I need you to check out two individuals for me. The first one is Tedior Pha. That’s P-H-A, from someplace in Cyprus.”

  Lou looked up from his notes. “Anything in particular you want on this guy?”

  “Everything you can get—fingerprints, arrest records, outstanding warrants, high school grade point average. If he once undertipped a waiter, I want to know about it. Supposedly, he arrived here in America only recently. Find out how long he plans to stay, what reason he gave for his trip, and what type of business he’s in back in Cyprus. You got it?”

  “Yup.”

  “The second suspect is Adara Berros, two R’s, from here in Westlake. Same info except she’s a citizen. Still, I want to know if she’s left the country in the last six months and if she did, where she went, who she saw, and how long she was gone. You got all that?”

  “Yeah, sure, but what the hell am I supposed to find?”

  “When I know, I’ll tell you.” Shane walked away, the pink memo with his forged signature still clutched in his hand.

  ~~~~

  Acting on a split-second decision, Shane made a phone call to his mother. “Hi, Mom. I need a favor.”

  “Yes?”

  “Do you feel like keeping Tyler overnight for me?”

  “Shane,” she said in that warning tone she’d used on him since he was Tyler’s age. “When you agreed to be his guardian, you promised Tyler would always come first in your life.”

  “And that still goes. But there’s something I need to work on here tonight. I know Cassia would understand. A woman’s life might hang in the balance. Besides, Tyler’s in the best hands when he’s with you. Please? It’s important.”

  Her heavy sigh precipitated her surrender. “O-kay. But just for tonight. Tyler needs structure right now.”

  “I know. And I promise I’ll make it up to him. And to you. Thanks, Mom, you’re the best.”

  “Don’t you forget it,” she said with a laugh.