Chapter 18
DIMITRI
The night air is cold against my skin. Every sense sharpens as I move low, silent, weaving between broken stones.
At first, I tell myself it could be nothing. Some curious hiker, some idiot drunk wandering through the ruins.
But my gut says otherwise.
The sound comes again.
Not the wind. Not an animal.
A deliberate step, then another.
I freeze. Shift right, angling for a better view.
I crouch lower, scanning the perimeter.
Movement ahead.
A flash of dark clothing beyond a collapsed column. And behind him, more figures. Four, maybe five.
My grip tightens on the gun.
Then I see one of them squat down, a small black device in his hands, blinking faintly.
Son of a bitch.
A tracker. That's how they found us.
There must have been one on the car this whole time. I thought it was that damn burner phone so I ditched it at the gas station.
Either way, this is no coincidence. No mistake.
This is a fucking hit team.
I scan left. Two more men circling wider, flanking toward the shelter.
Toward her.
My jaw tightens.
Not on my fucking watch.
I step out of cover, gun raised.
The first man drops before he even knows I'm there. Two more turn. One takes a shot at me, misses. My second round hits him square in the chest. He falls hard to the ground.
Shouts ring out. Sharp commands in Greek. The others dive for cover, firing wildly in my direction, not exactly sure where I am.
I pivot, take cover behind a half-fallen column.
I see another man dive behind a low wall.
I duck, shift left, circling.
Movement to my right. Another one trying to flank. I aim, shoot twice. Miss the first shot, hit the second. His body jerks and falls.
But there are more.
I move again, fast and low.
More shots ring out, too many. More men than I thought. Maybe six, maybe more.
I don't care.
They tried to kill me. Tried to kill her.
I break cover, fire three shots. Another man collapses, a dark smear against the white stone.
But then.
Athena's voice, high and scared, cuts through the chaos.
"Let go—!"
I whip around and see a man trying to flank me from behind a tree. Two quick shots and he falls over, his shot ricocheting off the stone to my right, inches from my head.
I run toward our shelter. When I get close, I see what's happening.
A large man has Athena by the hair, yanking her out, dragging her toward another man.
She fights, clawing at his arm, her face full of rage.
"Let me fucking go!" she screams.
Something inside me shifts.
A red haze descends over my vision.
The weapon part of me, the part my father made, takes over.
They touched her.
They fucking touched her.
The last thread of restraint snaps.
I move without thinking, closing the distance fast. I shoot one. His head snaps back in a spray of blood. The other, still holding Athena, raises his gun. I fire, but I'm empty.
Shit.
He shoots, but I duck and tackle him to the ground. I rip the gun from his grip and it slides away. My fist connects with his jaw, then his throat. I hear the crack of cartilage, the wet gasp that follows.
I bring my fist down on his face over and over, blood pouring from his nose. I finally wrap my hands around his throat and squeeze.
He goes from red to blue, his eyes bulging. "You don't ever fucking touch her," I yell at him as I squeeze harder and harder.
I hear a noise to my left.
"Watch out!" Athena screams.
I look and see a man charging me. I roll off the man I'm choking and reach for the gun that slid away. I hear two shots but don't feel them, so I know the one running missed.
I grab the gun, bring it up, and press the trigger. The bullet enters the man's right cheek and his eyes darken, his soul fleeing this earth.
Without hesitation, I point the gun at the head of the man I was choking and fire. Blood sprays across the ground and Athena jumps with a scream.
"Inside! Now!" I bark at her.
She doesn't hesitate and runs back into the shelter.
I hear another shout. More footsteps.
How many fucking men did they send?
There's a flash of movement to my right. Two more men charging toward the shelter.
I move to intercept, rolling beneath the first burst of gunfire. Come up firing. One man's kneecap explodes in a spray of red. As he falls, screaming, I'm already on him, pistol pressed against his temple.
I pull the trigger and he folds on himself.
The other man swings a large blade at me. I dodge, but he hits the gun from my hands. I reach for it, but he swings again, slicing my bicep. It's just a scratch, but I don't even feel it.
He swings a third time. I grab his wrist and twist at the same time I kick his legs, causing him to fall to his knees.
I bend his wrist and point the tip of the knife toward his eye. I lean into him. He puts up a fight, but I'm stronger and the knife slides right into his eye socket. He screams and then goes silent, falling to the ground.
I look around, breathing heavy.
No more footsteps. No more sounds.
Finally. It's over.
I run back to the shelter. Back to her.
"You okay?" I ask finally, voice rough.
She nods against my chest.
"Okay. We need to move. There could be more," I say, and walk over to my bag.
"How many did you kill?" she blinks, coming back to herself.
"All of them."
I walk out and over to one of the fallen men, bending to retrieve his sidearm, a well-maintained Glock. I walk back to Athena and hold the gun out to her, grip first.
"What are you doing?" she asks.
"If you still want to kill me, do it now."
Her eyes widen. She doesn't reach for the gun.
"I just killed all those men out there, some with my bare hands," I continue, voice strong. "If you really think I'm the monster in this story, now's your chance. Take your shot."
My arm doesn't waver. The gun stays extended between us.
"Or," I say, "hold onto it. Work with me. And let's go kill whoever has been fucking with both of us."
The silence stretches between us.
She's trembling, but her gaze never leaves mine.
Her lips part like she might speak, but she doesn't. Instead, slowly, she reaches out and takes the gun, her fingers brushing against mine.
She exhales sharply.
"I'm with you," she says.
I don't know why, but without thinking I reach forward and kiss her.
"Good. Now let's get the hell out of here before more arrive."