Chapter 25 Ares
ARES
Istep into the library, following the path of light streaming through the tall windows. I've been looking for Katerina and know she sometimes likes to be in here. I hear the faint sound of pencil scratching against paper before I see her.
I walk further into the room, and there she is, hunched over the mahogany desk in the corner, her dark hair held loosely with a clip. Her eyes narrow, and she's doing that thing where she sticks out her tongue slightly as she concentrates on whatever she's drawing.
She's so absorbed in whatever she's working on, she doesn't hear me approach.
"There you are," I say, my voice breaking the silence of the room.
Katerina startles, her hand moving quickly to cover the paper in front of her. "Shit," she says and laughs. "I didn't hear you come in."
I lean down and kiss her. She's become my beacon of hope these past few days, constantly pulling me from the depths of my obsession. Through it all, I find myself wanting more of her. Needing more of her.
"What are you hiding?" I ask, nodding toward her hands still covering the paper.
Her cheeks flush slightly. "Nothing. Just sketching."
"Show me," I say, gentler than I would with anyone else.
She hesitates, then slowly moves her hands away. "It's not finished."
It's the Parthenon, drawn with remarkable detail.
"It's beautiful," I say, genuinely impressed. I trace a finger along the edge of the paper, careful not to smudge her work. "You have real talent, Katerina."
She shakes her head, that stubborn dismissal I've come to expect from her. "It's just something to pass the time."
"I'll take Calli's advice and have it framed when you're done," I tell her. "We'll hang it in the main hall."
Katerina rolls her eyes, embarrassed. "It's not that good, Ares."
"Stop saying that." I cup her face in my hand, turning her to look at me. "You need to stop diminishing your work. You've got talent, sweetheart. Gio's wife, Raven, has a gallery. Maybe I should talk to her."
"No, no, no, now you're sounding silly," she says with a smile.
I kiss her again, deeper this time, tasting her lip balm. My hand slides to the back of her neck, feeling the warmth of her skin. For a moment, I consider canceling my meeting, taking her back to our bedroom, spending the day making her cry out my name.
But being a don doesn't always give me that luxury.
I pull back, noticing how her eyes remain closed for a fraction longer before opening. "I have to get to the office," I tell her. "Meeting with Theo and Dimitri."
I kiss her forehead and rub her cheek with my finger. "Keep drawing," I tell her. "I want to see it when it's finished."
She smiles. "I will," she promises.
I leave her there, surrounded by pencils, books, and sunlight, and make my way to my office where my brothers wait.
Both Theo and Dimitri are sitting when I walk in. Dimitri has his boots up on my coffee table, scrolling through his phone. Theo's leaning back, relaxed, looking over some papers in a folder.
"If it isn't our fearless leader," Dimitri says, removing his feet from my table.
I smirk and take my seat.
"What do you got?" I ask, settling into my chair.
Theo nods to Dimitri, who stands, takes a folder, and slides it across my desk.
I open it to find surveillance photos. They're images of the men I killed in Gio's warehouse. They are speaking with someone whose face is obscured by a bush. The timestamp shows they were taken three days before the restaurant shooting.
I squint my eyes to double-check. "Wait, these are from the place Calli and Katerina were shot at?"
Dimitri nods. "Yeah, sons of bitches were there scoping things out."
I lean back in my chair, looking at the photo.
Theo stands. "There's more, brother. We've received intel that suggests these Athenian Warriors may not have acted alone."
My fingers tighten on the edge of the folder. "What does that mean exactly?"
Theo leans forward, resting his fists on my desk. "It means that Sebastian Makris might be a pawn, not the king. These meetings—" he gestures to the photos, "—show his men meeting with someone outside their usual circle. Someone who's been very careful to stay out of frame."
"And you think this mystery player is Zervas?" I ask.
"We think it's worth considering," Dimitri cuts in. "We did some research. They couldn't have done this alone, both on pulling it off and financially. Someone is backing them."
I sift through the photos again, looking for something—anything—I might have missed. "Zervas could be using these Athenian Warriors to make a move or expand. Taking bolder risks without it being tied to the family."
"That's what I think," Theo says. "I think they are behind it and using new tactics to stay under the radar.
But I fucking see them," he says, turning to grab a new folder from his bag and handing it to me.
"Look at this. Unusual movement of funds in accounts affiliated with the Zervas families.
Large transfers, money being shifted around in ways that don't make sense.
Especially to the one at the bottom. We think that account is tied to Sebastian. "
"How'd you get these?" I ask, holding up the forms.
"Kalamata Bank and Trust. I've got a guy who has connections at Athens Central Bank. That's where these are from."
"So someone's financing a war," I conclude.
Dimitri nods. "And Zervas is trying to hide behind these small groups of thugs in Greece."
"But we know who's really pulling the strings," Theo adds.
I lean back in my chair, mind racing.
"Oh, did Sebastian get our gift?" I ask, my voice cold.
A brutal smile crosses Theo's face. "They did. We heard it caused some mayhem."
"I'd pay to have seen Sebastian's face when he opened that box," Dimitri adds with a dark laugh. "Nothing says 'fuck you' like sending back the head of one of their shooters."
"Good," I say. "Let them know we're not fucking around."
"They've doubled security at their main compound," Theo says. "Sebastian hasn't been seen in public since our delivery."
"He's scared," Dimitri says. "As he should be."
I tap my fingers against the desk, thinking. "If there is someone else involved, they might be counting on us going after these Athenian Warriors while they move in the shadows."
"It's such a dumb name," Theo says.
We all laugh in agreement.
"So what's our play?" Dimitri asks.
I stand, walking to the window that overlooks the garden. In the distance, I can see Katerina has moved outside, still sketching in the sunlight. The sight of her makes me lose my train of thought for a moment.
"Two tracks," I finally say. "We put some pressure on Sebastian and his wannabe crew. Maybe rough up a couple of them. Let everyone think our attention is fixed there. But quietly, I want to know who's behind those meetings. Follow the money. Find the face that's being hidden from us."
"Okay, we'll put that in motion," Theo says.
I nod and turn around and see my brothers standing there like statues.
"What?" I ask.
They look at one another and then at me.
"Look, first, I just want to say, we're all 100% focused on finding our dad's killer and going after who shot at Calli and Katerina, but..." Theo trails off.
"But what?" I ask.
Dimitri steps forward. "You're fucking slipping, bro. You're so obsessed with revenge, you're losing control. Calli says you stay in here for days, not sleeping, not eating. It's not good."
"We get you're going through a lot. Tons of shit has been tossed into your lap almost overnight, but we can cover a lot of things, Ares. We're a family—we can help, man. Don't burden yourself with trying to do everything. That's what you've got us for," Theo says.
I stare at them for a moment, going back and forth between anger and a sense of subtle relief.
"I think Calli is exaggerating a bit," I say, knowing it's a lie.
"Maybe," Theo says, but I can tell he doesn't mean that either. "You need to step back before you ruin yourself, man. Take your wife somewhere. We've noticed you two are doing well."
I rub my face. She's become my Achilles' heel. The mention of her name and all I want to do is be with her. I turn and look back out the window, back at her.
Theo and Dimitri come on either side of me and look out and see Katerina.
"Take a night off, Ares. Go enjoy your wife. Take her somewhere that'll shake her out of that little shell she hides in."
Little do they know, I'm the new keeper of the wall my wife keeps up around her.
I drop my gaze to the desk, tension still coiled in my shoulders.
If I can't be honest with my own brothers, then who the fuck can I be honest with?
"I get what you're saying," I admit, drawing in a deep breath. "But the second I step back? We look weak."
Theo leans forward, eyes sharp. "No. The moment you lose focus, we look weak. And right now? You're not focused. You're consumed."
I scoff, but it's true. It's what Katerina has been telling me, what she's been trying to pull me from.
"Okay, smart guy, and where exactly would I take her?" I ask, looking at Theo.
Theo laughs and pats me on the back. "I know a place."