Plus it helps that I’m acutely aware Blake and I are their final hope of ever getting away from these monsters.
So far, nothing has changed for them, but I’m not sure if it’s the truth of the matter—or if being in close proximity to Blake is disrupting my vision in a different way. A strange energy about the whole thing pulses around me—something I can’t put my finger on. There are blind spots—and I’m not sure what it means.
Only time will tell.
The second the plane lands, Blake stands up, reaching for his bag.
I take a deep breath and ground myself.
“We’re gonna need to catch a taxi or grab a rental,” I say, finally breaking the silence.
Each of us were deep in thought through the whole flight—but now it’s time to get down to the nitty gritty.
Blake nods. “I don’t know the area. What do you suggest?”
“If we—no, scratch that—when we get the girls, we’re probably gonna need to get the hell outta there and fast. Don’t you think? Best to get a rental, I suppose. I can drive,” I say, grabbing my bag and heading down the aisle once the seatbelt light turns off and the flight attendant flashes her signal.
“I don’t wanna just get the girls. I want the men apprehended,” Blake says, his tone heavy. “I don’t wanna come all this way only to have them do it all over again.”
“Okay, you do the apprehending, I’ll focus on the girls. Deal?”
“Deal,” he says. “Damn, I wish my case woulda made it with us.”
“See—pack light, man,” I say, shaking my head. “When you have less to rely on, there’s less that can go wrong.”
“You’re not kidding. I’ll make a call to Interpol once I know for sure what we’re dealing with,” he says, shifting to his other foot.
Reading between the lines—he means once he verifies my story.
I roll my eye and continue to the front of the plane.
Blake follows behind, giving me the space to take the lead. I can tell it’s not his strong suit, but he acquiesces, just the same. I only wish he’d give in that easily with my abilities. Or at least give it a try.
Minutes tick away as we hurry to pay for our rental car and get the hell out of Athens. The drive to Delphi could take us another couple of hours, but I know I can shave time off with a few tricks up my sleeves. It all depends on how much the terrain and roads have changed over the years.
As soon as we get in our rental Jeep, I step on the gas and instinctively head toward Delphi. Blake pulls up the sat nav, trying to help us find the best route. Everything is a strange juxtaposition of the same energy and vibe from years ago, all overlapping with new buildings, roads, and landscape changes. Large trees and old sites that once stood are nothing more than ghosts in my memory as we speed toward our destination.
“You know, for someone who doesn’t overly seem like they like to drive—you sure do know how to handle this vehicle,” Blake says, breaking the silence.
“When needs must,” I mutter, refusing to remove my eyes from the winding road. The mountainous landscape is far different from the relatively flat one back home. One glance away could be disastrous. Especially at my speed.
“I’m gonna check in with Aiden to see what he knows,” Blake says, doing something on his cellphone. “Dammit. No signal out here.”
“Can’t say I’m surprised,” I say, shaking my head.
“What about you? You picking up on anything?” he says, trying to sound like he means it.
“Only bits and pieces,” I say, shaking my head.
“I hope you’re right about all of this Diana. I really do.”
“Me, too,” I say. Now would not be the time to be wrong, that’s for sure. “How are you planning on apprehending the guys once we’re there? Have you managed to work out a plan yet?”
“I’ve got a few things in the works, but it will depend on the situation once we’re in it. Those guys likely know the area a helluva lot better than we do—and that’s definitely to our disadvantage. Without my gear—I’m gonna need to be extra cautious,” he says, then adds, “you will too.”
I risk a quick flick of my eyes over to him. His gaze is dark and serious.
“You don’t need to worry about me. I can handle myself.”
“Yeah, well, as true as that may be—you’re still a part of my team and I have to worry about you, too. Like it or not, you’ll need to be a little more cautious than you were back at the creepy old man’s place by the river.”
I tip my head in acknowledgement. Once a military man, always a military man.
“I think our best bet will be to get to Delphi, then hike to the caverns to see what we can find. I’ll get us as close to Parnassus as I can though. If we’re lucky, there might be a place to get wifi or at least better signal before we pack up—you could check in with Aiden then. I’ll do my thing while you do yours,” I say.
Blake nods, “Sounds good to me. I just hope we’re not too late.”
“So do I. I can’t imagine how those girls must be feeling right now.”
Blake groans, “How anyone could be this way—do this to innocent little—they’ve gotta have something evil inside them.”
A shudder rolls down my spine.
He has no idea just how right he is…
15
BLAKE STOPS FOR A MOMENT, casting a hand over his eyes to shield them from the blaring sun. Red and gold glint from within the strands of his dark hair.
“I thought you said it was close,” he says, eyeing how much further we have to go to the cave’s entrance.
“Pretty sure I said it was within walking distance,” I correct.
Sweat pools at the small of my back and I know Blake’s feeling the same as
