personal nature of this case, she knew she’d do whatever it took to get the information Delphi requested of her.
That included doing something she did not particularly look forward to. Making a trip to Boston.
Though a beautiful and historic city, and no doubt the best place to start off her investigation, seeing that both Giambi and this Queen of Hearts character hailed from there, the city was also home to a few other unscrupulous individuals.
The Thorne family.
Though it made her stomach cry out in knots when thinking of going back to her own hometown—something she hadn’t done in some time, thankfully—Chesca knew she had to do whatever she was called to do. That included accepting that uncomfortable feeling of treading on home turf.
With her simple style and no-nonsense knack for packing, Chesca did a once-over to make sure she had everything she would need for the next few days. A basic wardrobe, the Oracle case files, and the reservation number for the car rental she had arranged just hours ago.
Looking at the concise travel ensemble, it all seemed straightforward enough. But Chesca knew there was nothing simple about returning to the blueblood neighborhoods in which she’d been raised prior to Athena Academy. Not when it was that very hometown she was so pleased to outrun in her youth. Thankfully, since this was an investigation into the criminal underbelly, Chesca would likely be trekking around a few locales less than familiar to her family’s grassy estate.
Not that the Thorne family was innocent when it came to committing social crimes of their own. Infidelities, stock-trading tricks and business activities that sometimes seemed less than level in the eyes of their daughter, Chesca knew her father Dorian and mother Abigail were less than perfect.
Yet despite their various affairs, sexual and otherwise, the Thorne family had a stellar reputation amongst the silver-platter crowd, one that irked the very soul of Francesca. How is it, she often wondered, that people with such power choose to abuse it and use it for their own personal gain?
That was often the case, though, she knew. For blueblood parents or high-stakes criminals, the game was always the same. Those who sought out personal power and couldn’t care less about who got in their way. This was the world she was going back to, the one she’d so gratefully left years ago.
The only thing that triumphed over the sick feeling in her gut was knowing that when it came to solving cases, sometimes the best place to start was the beginning. And, as far as she could tell, for Giambi and the Queen of Hearts, their history began in Boston.
As she locked her apartment door behind her, Chesca breathed a sigh of anxiety and trepidation. “Then Boston, here I come. Oh, there’s no place like home.”
Chapter 3
Despite the ease of travel an air ticket would afford her, Francesca had elected to rent a car for the nine-or ten-hour drive to Boston from Richmond.
She wanted the maximum freedom and convenience of swift maneuverability, knowing wherever the case led her, she would be able to get moving from one destination to the next in no time, without the hassle created by waiting to board planes.
She loved driving. The open road, complemented by the ability to process thoughts along the way, offered an opportunity to digest some of the case file information Delphi had sent over, and provided Chesca the chance to think through some of the history of this situation.
Sitting between strangers on an overly crowded popular flight was no place for her to analyze sensitive information. But the opportunity to travel through a few landmark destinations like Washington, Jersey, and Connecticut in the sporty, bright-red Ford Edge she’d rented, was perfect for letting her mind wrap around the beginnings of this puzzle.
Or at least of this particular piece of the puzzle.
Sadly, the Athena Academy and those who supported its existence and purpose were the target of many unfortunate events. For decades, attempts had been made to bring down the Academy, and some of those activities had left bitter results, such as the murder of founder Marion Gracelyn, and that of Rainy Miller Carrington.
But little could be done to dent the conviction of the Athena Force. Nearly two years ago, three graduates had successfully foiled a plot to assassinate Gabriel Monihan, the current president and also, Chesca mused, the significant other of Athenian Diana Lockworth. Though they kept their relationship out of the limelight, they were an incredible match for one another. Chesca and her fellow Athena sisters were truly pleased for Diana and Gabe.
Love like that was hard to find, Chesca knew, never having quite found that perfect someone for herself, but still believing it was possible. Against her parents’ wishes, though, she knew whoever sparked her inner romantic would definitely not be someone whose sole purpose was carrying on socialite affairs and uniting for the basic premise of carrying forward historic family names.
Chesca wanted a relationship like Gabe and Diana’s. She was envious of what they had, but that didn’t equate with jealousy. She was happy for them, and the genuine item they had become. Their relationship was real, something they could count on.
Thankfully the assassination plot on Gabe was shut down so his political career was secured, and his romantic affair with Diana was able to blossom.
It was those moments of happiness for her fellow graduates that Chesca loved to hear about. Between cherished memories of her youthful days at the Academy, and the inspiring careers and personal successes of her friends, there were some truly great moments to celebrate.
The darker moments, like this ongoing struggle with Arachne, were the moments that fueled the drive and passion of Athena’s graduates, the moments where their skills and expertise were best put to use.
As was the case last year, with Alex and Allison solving Marion Gracelyn’s murder and discovering that she had been blackmailed. The truth about Arachne would be found out, with both the Oracle network and Athena women not willing to let anything further happen to bring down what they all held so dear to their hearts.
Throughout the drive, Francesca was able to piece together some of the basic background information on the affairs conducted between Arachne and Giambi.
Between the case file she received from Oracle and the conversation she’d had with Allison, Chesca knew they were each much bigger players in this game than any of them would have originally anticipated.
The ongoing hunt for justice regarding this matter was fortunately being handled by those Chesca could trust. Beth James, gambler extraordinaire, had recently uncovered the connection between Arachne and Giambi, and as Chesca reached her halfway point, she decided to take Allison’s suggestion and dialed a distant friend to exchange information.
“Going back to your roots, are you?” Beth joked after the initial pleasantries of connecting with her former classmate.
“I wouldn’t exactly say that. But, Boston seems to be where the action is, and thus that’s where I’m headed.”
Beth laughed with a familiar chuckle. “So no family dinners, I take it?”
“You know who I consider my real family,” Chesca said.
“Hear, hear. So, what do you want to run by me?”
Chesca was pleased to be able to connect with Bethany. Though she was a skilled blackjack player
