Chapter 26 Theo
THEO
Stassi's limp body shakes in my arms as I carry her back inside. Her skin is pale. Her breathing, shallow.
I lay her gently on the couch, brushing the hair from her face. My hands flex at my sides. Rage is a living thing just beneath my skin, but I control it. I take out my phone and quickly dial.
I cover her with the throw blanket and stand. I can't sit. I can't fucking breathe until I know what the hell is going on.
He picks up on the first ring. "Theo?"
"There's been an attack. Guards are dead." I can't mention Xander or Marlena, not yet.
"What the fuck—?"
"I need you alert. Call Ares. Loop in Callie. Lock down everything. No questions. Just do it."
Dimitri swears under his breath. "What about you?"
"I've got men en route. They were scheduled to arrive this morning to escort us back to Greece," I say, walking to the window that overlooks the garden, just to check.
I hear Stassi shift and spring up.
"I'll contact you again in thirty minutes," I say to him and hang up before he can ask more. I'm not ready to tell him about my son. Not over the phone. Not like this.
She's sitting upright, wild-eyed. "Xander? Theo. Where is he? Where—?"
I drop to my knees beside her and take her face in both hands. "Breathe. In through your nose."
"I can't," she shakes her head. "I can't breathe—"
"Yes, you can." My voice is low.
"But Theo. Our baby," she says, looking around. "Where—"
"Hey. Look at me."
She does.
"I'm going to get him back. Do you understand me?"
Tears fall down her cheeks.
"Stassi, baby. Do you understand me?"
"Yes," she says, wiping away tears.
And there's nothing I've ever said that was more true. I will find my son. I will bring him back.
I may have failed my father, but I won't fail him.
"Okay, just keep breathing. Good," I say, rubbing her cheek. "You need to help me. I need your mind sharp. Did you see anything? Hear anything? In the last few days. Anything at all. The zoo. The airport. Anywhere. Strangers, odd behavior, anything?"
She shakes her head violently. "No. No, I didn't—Theo, I didn't. Oh God, Marlena."
"I know. I know. But we have to focus on our son. One thing at a time," I say and stand.
"Okay?" I ask as I take her hand and help her up. "Come with me."
"Where, where are we going?"
"To check the surveillance feed."
We head back into our bedroom and I yank my laptop from the drawer and set it on the small writing desk.
I fire it up and connect to our local security server. Whenever we travel, the first thing our men do is secure the perimeter. The villa's cameras were supposed to be foolproof. Infrared, computer sensors, encrypted uploads every hour.
I log in to the backups.
The feed loads. I click into the motion-triggered archive, rewinding to a few hours earlier.
"Look away," I say as the footage loads. "I don't know what we're going to see."
"I'm not looking away," she says. "That's our son."
I press play.
The video flickers to life. Nighttime darkness bathed in grainy infrared. One of my guards paces the perimeter. Then another. All normal.
Camera change to show the front driveway, still, quiet. The car parked in front. Two men inside.
Then, out of the edge of a camera, there's movement.
One of my men. He walks straight to the camera, lifts a hand, and slices the wire with a blade.
I rewind and pause it right before it goes black, where the edge of the man's face is visible.
I recognize him.
Milo.
"Motherfucker," I hiss, slamming my fist down on the desk. "That son of a bitch sold us out."
He's one of mine.
The next feed shows what should be the side entrance, but it's just black. Except. Wait, is that—
I turn up the volume. Yes, there's at least audio.
It's a low humming static. Then—
Pop. Pop. Pop.
Three shots. Muffled screams or sounds. Then silence.
Stassi breaks. Her knees hit the floor and she lets out a sob so raw it guts me. I crouch beside her and wrap my arms around her.
"They won't kill him," I say. "They want leverage. Alive leverage. They'll want something, or me. Either way, I'm coming for them."
She nods, tears trailing silently down her cheeks. She clutches the front of my shirt. "What are we going to do?" "What are we going to do, Theo?"
"My team from Greece is already on their way to us. They'll be here soon. Men I trust. One in particular," I say, shaking my head. "I should've brought him from the beginning. Dammit."
I should have seen the cracks in Milo months ago. But I was too focused on the dead. Too wrapped up in my father's death. Not anymore.
I walk her back to the living room, settle her on the couch. Then I get dressed, grab my gun, and pace until I hear the unmistakable screech of tires.
I don't wait.
I rush outside. Three matte-black SUVs pull to a halt on the driveway.
Doors swing open.
Andrew steps out. He's been with us for years, serving us both in Chicago and Kalamata. He's tall, broad, ex-military.
"Theo," he nods.
"Dimitri said—" He stops and sees the other SUV parked, covered in bullet holes. "Shit."
"Yeah. Milo flipped," I say with rage. "Murdered our men. A female staying here. And took a child."
"Wait. Child?"
"Yes, my son," I say and step closer to him. "So I want him found and put in the fucking ground."
The way Andrew looks at me is understandable. I haven't told anyone about my child, and while it's not the best way to introduce this new fact to my men, I need them to understand what's at stake here. There is no plan B. There is no 'we can't find them.'
We're burning the fucking boats, destroying this town, bringing goddamn Hades himself up from the underworld if we have to. We're not leaving without Xander. Without my son.
Andrew turns around.
I pivot to my men, barking orders. "Secure the villa. Sweep the grounds. Check every fucking inch. If I find something you don't, I'm going to start cutting fingers."
They scatter, and I start to feel it. That thing I don't allow.
Panic.
Clawing at my ribs like it wants out, but I won't let it win.
I scream so everyone can hear as they begin their tasks. "MILO IS A DEAD MAN WALKING! I WANT HIM FOUND. I WANT HIS FUCKING EYES RIPPED OUT."
I say it to let them know what happens if betrayal is in any of their minds, if Milo's gotten to any of them.
And also, I say it for myself. Because I want the universe to know that if my son being kidnapped was always part of my life's plan, then finding my son, destroying the one who took him, and returning my boy to his mother is my destiny.
Then my phone vibrates.
Ares.
I ignore it.
It rings again.
I silence it.
Then, a third time.
I finally pick up. "Now's not a good time."
"I heard what happened. Dimitri told me. You okay?"
"No."
He's quiet for a moment. Then, "Someone told me one of our men flipped on you?"
"How the fuck—?"
"I've got ears. And eyes. And your friend Gio Bonventi's paranoia."
"Yeah. Milo."
My phone dings.
"Well," Ares says, "I've got something for you. Check your texts."
A message comes through. A blinking blue dot. GPS location. Somewhere near the regional airport. A cluster of hangars and airline warehouses.
"What the hell is this?"
"You remember when we gave all our men Rolexes last year?"
"Uhh, yeah?"
"They've got an embedded tracker in them."
"You're shitting me."
"Gio Bonventi's idea. Italians have been doing it for decades. I hoped we'd never need it. But looks like we fucking do."
"Brother, you have no idea how good it is to learn this."
"Good. The dot hasn't moved in some time, so I'd assume Milo is holed up there."
"I'm going after him," I say.
"Be careful," Ares says. "And when all this is over, maybe you tell me why this is all for some kid."
"How did—"
"It doesn't matter. Handle your shit. No survivors," Ares says. "Make him hurt."
I hang up and walk straight to Andrew.
"Get everyone ready. I have a location," I say firmly. "We leave in ten minutes."
Then I find Stassi.
She's standing in the front entrance, arms crossed.
"You're not leaving me behind," she says.
"I wasn't going to," I reply. "I'll drop you somewhere safe on the way. But you're not staying here."
She nods.
I grab her waist, pull her in.
"They touched what's mine," I say against her forehead and give her a gentle kiss. "And I'm going to tear souls from every fucking person that's involved until I get him back."
Ten minutes later, I'm standing at the head of twelve armed men, all geared and waiting.
I raise my voice.
"Milo betrayed this family. He betrayed me. And he took my son."
Their faces, stoic and hard.
"We don't ask questions. We don't negotiate. I want blood. I want every inch of where we're going combed and cleared. Anyone in our way dies. And when we find Milo—"
I pause, rage crawling up my spine.
"Leave him to me."
I see them glance at one another. I know what they're thinking.
Beside Andrew, they didn't know I had a son.
Now they do.
And it changes everything.
"Let's move," I growl.
And we do.
SUV engines roar to life. Weapons click into place.
We're not just going to rescue my son.
We're going to burn down the motherfucking world to bring him home.
"DRIVE!"