Chasing Adonis

by Gina Ardito

  Winning this match was impossible. He couldn’t best a god in a competition of strength. Whatever made him think he had that much power? Regardless of what Zeus and Nemesis said, no pure heart could withstand the pummeling he was taking. The desire to give up consumed him. It would be so easy to sink down now and forget all about this crazy scene.

  One glance upward into Adara’s whitened face, however, strengthened his resolve to not only fight, but to win. Shaking the dazed feeling from his brain, he charged Ares, ready to deliver a deathblow by any means possible.

  “Shane,” a soft voice whispered from nearby. A voice he hadn’t heard in nearly a year.

  Looking across the altar, he saw her standing before the statue of Aphrodite and halted in mid-stride. Shivers, part joy and part confusion, wrapped him in an icy grip. It couldn’t be her. He blinked and looked again. She still stood there, as real and alive as he.

  She wore the last dress he’d ever seen her in. The pale blue one he and his mother picked out to clothe her for eternity. The color almost perfectly matched the shade of her eyes, and the style took full advantage of her slender figure. Her bruises and scars had faded into nothingness, leaving her as beautiful as always.

  Stupefied, he could do little more than whisper her name. “Cassia?”

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Trussed up like Charlie the Tuna.

  Adara hovered high above the marble floor, watching the battle, yet helpless to fight beside the man she loved. When she’d first spotted Shane enter the temple, she wanted to shout, “Run. Before it’s too late. Get out of here.”

  But damn that Benjamin Cherry, or Ares, or whomever he thought he was. He’d stolen her voice somehow. Now, she could do nothing to help Shane, and that scraped her independent nature raw.

  Still, being mute didn’t stop her from attempting to scream a warning when Ares first slammed into him. Of course, nothing came out of her mouth but air. And then the battle began, while she watched, powerless, like some fairy tale damsel in distress. A mute Rapunzel, she was reduced to floating on high, waiting for her Prince Charming to rescue her.

  She nearly wept when Ares pinned Shane that first time, but her anguish turned to relief when Shane retaliated so quickly. Thus went her spirits as the match progressed: low, then high, then low and high again.

  With the battle tied at two pins apiece and the third down taking an interminable time between the two combatants, Shane’s strength sagged. She could see it in the slumping shoulders, the slower movements, the heaving of his chest as he tried to catch his breath.

  But she also noted that fierce determination she’d learned to count on. His mouth set in a grim line, his eyes narrowed to mere slits, and he charged like a snorting bull for the umpteenth time. Hope flourished anew inside her when Ares fell backwards with an oomph.

  Until the image appeared.

  At first, Adara had no idea who the woman was. But then the figure spoke to Shane, and Adara knew. It had to be his late sister, Cassia.

  “Where is my son, Shane?” she cried. “Where is Tyler while you’re here fighting a useless battle? You promised to protect him. You swore he’d always come first in your life.”

  From her vantage point above the action, she could see the tiny bits of light and matter that made the vision look more solid than it actually was.

  But Shane didn’t have that benefit. To him, the transparent figure probably appeared as real as anything else in this place. He stood transfixed by the specter, hands held out in supplication as he argued with it. “He’s safe, Cassia, I promise you.”

  Adara’s heart sank at his defeated tone. If her eyes could shoot flaming daggers at Ares, he’d be a charcoal briquette by now. What a heartless bastard! To use Shane’s love for his lost sister to win this match was the lowest form of cheating.

  And poor Shane was falling for it. Her mind screamed at him, begging him to hear her thoughts. Don’t listen to her, Shane. She’s not real. The bastard is trying to trick you. She’s a figment of your imagination.

  As if he’d heard her pleas, Shane shook himself out of his stupor. With a roar of outrage, he charged at Ares once again, head low.

  Still, the apparition called to him. “You’ve let me down, Shane. Just as you did when I was alive. How could you not know how Frank abused me? You didn’t see the bruises because you didn’t want to. He hurt me so badly. You could have stopped him. I’ll never forgive you for that.”

  Adara’s hand immediately sought the comfort of her fludee, only to come away empty. Tyler. She’d turned over her talisman to Tyler, who needed the protection it promised. Adara would have to settle for nibbling on a fingernail and hope Shane wouldn’t release his hold on Ares, in favor of a heated debate with a ghost. But, thankfully, he didn’t give up his headlock on Ares. As the two wrestled in the temple’s center, Cassia’s shadowy voice filled the room with bitter memories.

  “Look at my throat, Shane. Do you see the bruises from his fingers? He threatened to hurt Tyler, too. Why didn’t you protect us from the monster? How could you let Frank kill me?”

  The painful questions evoked tears that Adara couldn’t hold back, no matter how she sniffed. But these were not tears of sadness. No, they were tears of rage. Rage at Ares for conjuring this model of Shane’s deepest shame, rage at herself for getting into this mess, rage at Aphrodite for refusing to give her up five thousand years ago, rage at the witnesses clustered around this debacle who did nothing to stop it.

  “And now you’ve abandoned my son,” the phantom moaned. “My little boy lies alone, sick, and in need of comfort. Why aren’t you there with him where you belong? Should he have to lose another parent when he’s only begun to feel secure again?”

  The accusations were obviously taking their toll on Shane. He faltered, falling to his knees, and Adara realized it wouldn’t be long before his strength finally gave out.

  Well, she wouldn’t allow the death match to continue to some gruesome finale.

  Reaching for the hilt of the dagger Ares had slipped into her mesh prison, she made a decision. No doubt the plunge would kill her. But in her monologue of grief, the phantom that was Cassia spoke one truth. A little boy named Tyler lay in a hospital bed in Florida, waiting for the return of the only parent he now had left.

  Shane had a reason to go on with his life. A five-year-old child with a crooked, gap-toothed smile and a passion for an animated stegosaurus named Prufrock. Resolve firm, Adara began sawing at squares of the net with the dagger.

  ~~~~

  Bile rose in Shane’s throat as he tried to ignore the agonies his sister had suffered at her husband’s hands. The warnings Nemesis had given didn’t prepare him fully for Cassia’s arrival. Yet it made sense. Ares had summoned up his greatest weakness, just as she’d advised he would.

  Of course, knowing that Ares conjured Cassia’s image to distract him during their battle did nothing to appease his ever-present guilt. Her laundry list of wounds and allegations weakened him as if personally inflicted with the sting of a plied lash. Every word sliced into his skin and sapped another ounce of the small reserve of courage flowing through his bloodstream.

  Still, he strained to overcome Ares’s merciless onslaught, closing his ears to Cassia’s accusations, focusing on his need to save Adara. While the match continued endlessly, arm and leg muscles screamed in agony, fighting to keep his body upright. At last, a strong fist connected with his jaw, sending a frisson of pain into his teeth. Bottle rockets seared his field of vision, and a tremendous pressure knocked him to his knees.

  I’m sorry, Adara. I did the best I could…

  He dared one last look upward before he surrendered to Ares’s might. A glint of light caught his eye, and he spotted the dagger in her hand, rubbing against the ropes that held her captive above him. Sweet Mother of God, from that height the fall would kill her. “Adara, don’t!”

  His cry came too late. The last of the rope frayed, and with a coarse-sounding tear, the net yawned open,
spilling its precious contents. Dread gave birth to one last spurt of adrenaline, jerking him to his feet, arms outstretched in a futile attempt to catch her.

  Undaunted, Ares followed in an apparent effort to pin Shane one last time. The three bodies collided in a bone-crushing heap with Ares on the bottom, pinned beneath Shane and Adara.

  The moment Ares hit the ground, the imagined form of Cassia disappeared in a wisp of smoke. Shane barely noticed. Closing his eyes, he cradled Adara’s still body against his chest and waited for Death to come for him, too.

  The sudden burst of applause shocked him into pushing his eyelids up one final time. Zeus stood over the tangle of arms and legs, a wide smile on his face as he clapped in a slow and steady rhythm.

  “Daddy?”

  Adara’s surprised question filled Shane with elation. She was alive!

  “Yes, my daughter. It is I. You have made me very proud today. Can you move, my child? I believe your hero would like to be certain you have sustained no injuries from your dramatic entry into the fray. Is that not so, Shane Griffin?”

  Stunned, Shane could only nod. He released his grip on Adara’s waist. His heart nearly flew out of his chest when she stood easily and offered him a smile and a hand-up. “You’re not hurt?”

  She shook her head while pulling him to his feet. “I suppose you and Ares cushioned my fall.”

  Even after he stood upright and steady, he didn’t release her hand. He gripped her tighter and pulled her close until the top of her head sat tucked beneath his chin. Only then did he know for certain that she was safe. “You scared the hell outta me. You know that, don’t you?”

  She giggled against his chest, making the hair that lay beneath his shirt crackle and dance at the sound and heat of her breath. Three words lingered on his tongue, ready to explode from his mouth with just the slightest hint of acceptance from her. But stubborn pride bit them back. Not yet, his conscience told him. Not in front of all these strangers. When he finally told Adara he loved her, it had to be in the perfect setting. She deserved nothing less.

  “Damn you, Zeus,” Ares grumbled, rising to shake the dust off his clothing. “You interfered.”

  “No one interfered, you fool,” Nemesis replied. “You miscalculated. You thought Adara’s love for Shane to be her greatest weakness and hoped to use that heartfelt power for your own cross purposes.”

  Tedior Pha floated forward, hands on hips as he glared at Ares. “You should know by now that love is never a weakness, Ares. Love is the mortal world’s greatest strength.”

  “Nemesis,” Zeus said. “As I decreed, you will devise Ares a punishment suitable for his misdeeds.”

  “What misdeeds? I vowed I would not harm Adara, and I did not.”

  “But in your zealousness to recapture Aphrodite,” Nemesis reminded him, “you mistreated an innocent child—a child who has already known too much tragedy in his young life. And as such, Zeus has entrusted me to set retribution for your arrogance.”

  Ares stood tall and straight then spat on the ground at Nemesis’s feet. “Do your worst.”

  “Very well.” Her arms rose into the air, forming a “Y” with her body. “Ares, god of war, you are hereby sentenced to…”

  “Come, my children,” Zeus interjected, leading Shane and Adara away. “Ares’s punishment does not concern you.”

  “The hell it doesn’t,” Shane snapped. “He purposely gave my nephew a life-threatening illness then conjured up the ghost of my dead sister to torment me. I think I have a right to have some say in what happens to the bastard.”

  “No, you do not. You have other business which you and Adara must attend to before more time elapses. Satisfy yourself with the thought that Nemesis will punish Ares well.”

  As if to confirm Zeus’s statement, an anguished wail of “No!” echoed throughout the chamber. Shane turned to see the mighty war god kneeling on the cold floor, his head bowed in penitence. Nemesis placed her hands upon Ares’s shoulders, and with a flash of lightning, both deities disappeared from the temple.

  Zeus sighed. “Thus ends the matter to my satisfaction. Now, as to you two, Shane Griffin, do you have something you wish to say to my daughter?”

  Shane folded his arms over his chest and grumbled, “I’d prefer to say it privately, if you don’t mind.”

  “Too bad,” Zeus replied, chuckling. With a gentle prod, he moved Shane to stand before Adara. “You do not have the time to wait for the ideal situation. Adara, my child, do you have something you wish to say to Shane Griffin? Satisfy a doting father’s curiosity and speak now so that my heart can be at ease and revel in your happiness.”

  Realizing he had no choice in the matter, Shane took Adara’s hand in his and brought it to his lips. “I love you, Adara.”

  She made the same statement at the same time. “I love you, Shane.”

  Shane sensed a presence behind him and released Adara to turn around and face Tedior Pha. “Will I have to fight you, too, now?”

  “That will not be necessary, Detective,” Pha gushed in a highly feminine voice. “It is as you said. Your Adara is not my Adonis. I should have realized it sooner. ‘Tis sorry I am that my foolishness endangered you and your family.

  “Listen well, for this is my gift to you. A police detective’s life is often fraught with peril. Yet I give you my word, Shane Griffin, you and Adara will live a long and happy life together, seeing your children and your grandchildren grow up before Arachne’s thread of life runs out on you. This, I, Aphrodite, promise you, not just in this lifetime, but in all your lifetimes to come. And so it will be.”

  Adara threw her arms around Tedior Pha’s neck and hugged him. “Thank you. For everything.” She pulled back, cocking her head to look at Pha with concern. “Will you be all right?”

  Pha laughed, a light tinkling sound, much like sleigh bells on a crisp winter night. “Thank you, my dearest one. I shall be fine. As a matter of fact, I’ve decided I enjoy living as a mortal male. I believe I shall try my luck in Hollywood. What do you think of that idea? Could I be the next big sex symbol?”

  Recalling Heather’s movie star description of him and the way the females all went gaga at his mere presence, Shane couldn’t help but laugh. “Definitely.”

  “What is that song? ‘California, Here I Come,’” Pha said and disappeared in the same manner as Nemesis and Ares.

  Now, Shane and Adara stood alone with Zeus.

  “Come, my children. It is time to bring you home to your future.”

  Tears glistened in her eyes as Adara embraced her father. “Thank you, Daddy. Will you come and visit us again soon?”

  Zeus shook his head. “No, my daughter, I shall not. Unfortunately, this adventure shall be erased from your memories. Thus, you will have no knowledge of Tedior Pha, Adonis, Ares, or myself. Time has stood still while we played our hands here. Tyler and Pauline are already safely at home, unaware of anything that has transpired. When we arrive on Long Island, it will be the morning of Adara’s thirtieth birthday. Learning of Benjamin Cherry’s release, well-respected Suffolk County Police Detective Shane Griffin will request the assignment of protecting Ms. Berros until she testifies at Cherry’s second trial. It shall come as no surprise to anyone when she announces she has fallen in love with her protector and he with her.

  “That is the story that all will know of Adara Berros and Shane Griffin. Come now. Your future awaits.”

  Chapter Thirty

  “Sentencing will be imposed thirty days from today. This court is now adjourned.”

  The judge smacked his gavel with a loud clap, and the spectators stood to file out. Legs shaking, Adara rose from her chair and managed to walk away, despite Benjamin Cherry sneering at her from the defense table. Let him sneer. He couldn’t hurt her anymore. The long arm of the law had finally caught up to the gangbanger, and all his father’s wealth couldn’t change today’s guilty verdict.

  While her posture remained straight and sure, she kept her gaze focused on the exit.
Vibrations hummed in the air around her. They came from the man standing on the other side of that barrier, the man who’d come into her life when she needed him most. As her heels click-clacked over the tile floor, her heart echoed his name: Shane, Shane, Shane, Shane…

  Maintaining a sedate walk wasn’t easy, but soon, she’d reached the door and pushed her way through. Instantly she found herself enveloped in his reassuring embrace. Tension flowed from her in a deluge.

  “You okay?” he murmured against her hair.

  After the verbal battle she’d waged over the last week with Cherry’s defense attorney, words exhausted her. She settled for nodding in reply.

  “Come on,” he said, taking her hand. “Let’s get out of here.”

  He led her out of the courtroom where noisy reporters clamored for an interview with the star witness to open their evening news shows.

  “Ms. Berros, what are your plans now?”

  “Is it true you refused to enter the Federal Witness Protection Program?”

  “Ms. Berros, do you think you’ll be able to go back to a normal life now?”

  “What’s next for you, Adara?”

  With one arm around her shoulder and the other extended toward the gaggle of reporters, Shane shielded Adara from the bright lights and thrusting microphones.

  “No comment,” he muttered again and again as he huddled her close and helped her descend the stone steps through the throng.

  “What about you, Detective Griffin?”

  “Any truth to the rumor that the relationship between you and Ms. Berros is more than professional?”

  At that moment, District Attorney Henry Silver exited the building, and the vultures swarming Shane and Adara switched targets.

  “Mr. Silver, how do you feel about the outcome of the trial?”

  “Will you be seeking the death penalty in the sentencing phase?”