Burke smiled bleakly. "I'm sorry, princess. I wish it were that simple."
"But it is!" Now Ariadne's lithe young body once more was tight against his. "I want you to come, my lord Dion! I welcome you--"
"I know. And ... I love you too." For the fraction of a second Burke let his arms tighten around her.
Then, abruptly, he pushed back; gripped her shoulders. "You see, I can't just come and go at will, the way you seem to think I can. And even if I could, it wouldn't help."
"It would not--?" Blank bafflement spread across Ariadne's lovely face.
Burke said tightly, "By tomorrow there won't be any Knossos. The Great Palace here, the shrines, the other buildings--as of midnight tonight, less than an hour-and-a-half from now, they'll all be destroyed."
Tension, spiraling higher with each passing second.
Burke said, "Now you know why I came tonight, Ariadne: because this is the last chance I'll ever have. I've got to get you out of here, now or never. That's why I have to see Daedalus, and go into the Labyrinth, and meet the Minotaur and kill it."
A numb despair seeped through Burke. Bleakly, he wondered how he ever had been fool enough to think his words might spark response in a Bronze Age mind, or that any such mad enterprise as this could possibly end otherwise than in disaster.
Only then, while he watched, once more Ariadne bowed her head and crossed her hands upon her breasts. Her words came low, submissive: "The quarters of Daedalus the Smith lie close at hand, my lord."
Heart pounding, Burke walked with her towards the doorway....
There was a guard in the corridor beyond the Queen's Megaron.
Wordless, Burke flicked a glance at Ariadne.
Her dark eyes flashed a daredevil acceptance of the challenge. Sliding past him, she swung the heavy door back so it hid him, then leaned against it, body arched in practiced coquetry.
The spearman outside straightened just a fraction. His chest swelled and his belly drew in.
Slowly, Ariadne's full lips curved in a smile that was all invitation. Her hand came up to smooth her hair as she turned, twisting and preening. Then, still unspeaking, and with one last lingering glance over her shoulder, she drew back into her own apartment.
The guard's head swiveled as his eyes followed her.