Free Aphrodite's Secret by Julie Kenner Page B

slapping binder cuffs on Jason so that his hands were captured in front of him, then tossing the lariat looped at his hip over him. The golden rope draped from Jason’s shoulder on one side to his hip on the other.
    For good measure, Jason jerked against the binding, testing the power of the restraint. Despite the physical looseness, the immobility rope did its job. The lariat temporarily drained the power of any Protector wearing binder cuffs. A handy tool to prevent an arrested Protector from hightailing it away from the scene, bound wrists and all.
    “Tell me what you did with the boy,” Zoë demanded again.
    “Dammit,” Jason said. “I didn’t do it! Detain me all you want, but
start looking for Davy
!”
    “Where?”
Zoë yelled back, her composure gone. Her eyes narrowed, and she got right in his face. Jason saw her fear, and that eased his anger. She wanted Davy back, too, and she was only doing his job. He reminded himself of that.
    “You took Davy,” she continued. “You’re here, and that means that Davy is, too. We’ll find him eventually, so just tell us. Where ... is ... he?”
    Jason took a deep breath and silently prayed Zoë would believe him. “That wasn’t me. That was a shape shifter.” He gestured with his chin toward her Council-issued glasses, knowing she had X-ray vision. “You can see past a shifter’s disguise, right? Didn’t you see who it really was?”
    For the briefest instant, hesitation flashed in her eyes.
    “Zoë?” Deena asked.
    “I saw
you
,” Zoë whispered. “That’s all I saw.” But doubt laced her voice, and she turned to Boreas. “Call Olympus. I want every intelligence officer we’ve got analyzing possible locations for Hieronymous, and I want every possible theory about who might have taken the boy or why.”
    Jason exhaled in relief and held up his wrists. “Tell Officer Boreas to unlock me. We can search while the Council checks up on Hieronymous.”
    Zoë looked back at him, and her eyes flashed again. Yet she didn’t say anything, and she didn’t move to loosen the cuffs or remove the rope. Jason’s hope that she believed him disintegrated.
    “Ma’am?” Officer Boreas prompted.
    Zoë ignored his implied question, instead glancing at his pager. “Don’t you have some calls to make?” she asked. He nodded, then scurried to the far side of the pool to do so, apparently afraid Jason might overhear some top-secret information or something.
    At the moment, Jason didn’t care where Boreas made his calls, just so long as they got made. He wanted every active-duty Protector on this case. If anything happened to Davy, he’d never forgive himself. And Lane sure as Hades wouldn’t either.
    Lane.
    He squinted, an idea forming. After a second, he realized Zoë and Deena were both staring at him, suspicion in their eyes. He kept his mouth shut. They thought he was the bad guy, so maybe playing up that role would prove useful.
    “What?” Zoë asked.
    He shrugged, spreading his hands as much as his binder cuffs would allow. “Not a thing. I’m just sitting here watching you and Officer Boring there chase your tails.” He leaned back against the railing, hoping he looked smug.
    Zoë and Deena exchanged looks.
    “He’s bluffing,” Deena guessed.
    “Maybe,” Zoë said. She cast Jason another quick glance, then focused on her friend and changed the subject. “I don’t want to worry Lane, but we’ve got to tell her.”
    Deena nodded, her lips pressed tight together. “She’ll want to know. And she won’t want to just sit and wait to hear from the Council about finding Davy. That’s not her style.”
    “I know,” Zoë agreed.
    Annoyed, Jason conjured a fake snort, then concentrated on twitching the corner of his mouth.
    Zoë squinted at him. “You have something you want to share with the class?”
    He shrugged. “I just hope you can get in touch with her. She might have things to do today. People to see.” He gave a thin smile, knowing he