The Ace of Queens ( Ace of Queens #7)

Ch.19 Olympian

Chapter 19

For the rest of the day Clare did not bother coming out of the spare bedroom. She could hear Ares moving around the apartment and mumble under his breath but she couldn't stand to be around him or any of his kind.

Filling up the bathtub, Clare soaked in it for as long as the water stayed warm. It was a thick heavy blanket over her and she never wanted to leave. When the water was just cool enough to emerge her face in, she slid into the deep tub and held herself underwater. The ceiling of the bathroom wavered above the water as little bubbles escaped her nose. Clare kept her eyes wide open as she slowly ran out of oxygen and her lungs began to burn.

By evening, the little confinement of the room had started to suffocate her. Clare walked over to where she had stripped her clothes and picked up her pants to retrieve the riddle from the back pocket. With a sigh, she grabbed a sweater from her bag and pulled it over her shorts.

As soon as Clare opened the door to her bedroom, she was hit with the scent of sizzling meat and wine. Her empty stomach recoiled in disgust and wanted to retrieve back into their room.

"There's some avocado here," Ares' voice called out over the music playing on the loudspeaker. The apartment was so huge and spacious that the notes bounced off the walls in echo. When Ares didn't hear Clare respond, he spoke up again.

"Little rabbit!" he leaned over the counter to peak into the hall. "Come out, I'm not going to hurt you."

Aggravated by the humor in his voice, Clare pulled the door to the bedroom shut with a bang. She bit down on her jaw and almost stomped over to the kitchen.

"That was quite a show you put on," Ares chuckled as he chopped some herbs. The silver knife in his hands glistened under the bright light of the kitchen.

"Don't ever put me in that position again," Clare glared.

"What position do you like then?" Ares laughed.

Ignoring his comment, Clare walked over to the island and pulled out a stool, "Deal with your own mess."

"Like you're dealing with yours?"

"This isn't my mess," Clare said in her defense. "I'm trying to fix your sister's mess. And help your brother."

"How will we ever thank you?"

"My uncle was able to give some insides to the riddle," Clare reached for the avacado and the small knife. Her hand knocked over a spice jar and the knife in Ares' hand paused.

"Relax," Clare said. "Nothing spilled."

He watched her pick up the small glass jar and put it back when it had been. Her eyes scanned all the ingredients laid out in such a strange and detailed manner. Owen would have been impressed.

"What did the thief say?" Ares resumed his chopping.

"My uncle thinks the names are referring to towns in America."

"Why did he think that?"

"New skies," Clare cut into the avocado. "The new world."

"Adonis, Missouri," Ares paused once more and set the knife down. "Athena has a temple there."

"Then that's where we have to go."

"But there's also Adonis, West Virginia," Ares shook his head. He pushed away from the island and walked over to the fridge. His brows were knit together in concentration as he pulled out a salad bowl and slid it over to Clare. "West Virginia had no temple."