Chapter 29 Dimitri
DIMITRI
Iwalk.
My legs burn, but I don't stop. Can't stop.
I don't know how far I've gone. I just put one foot in front of the other, moving in the direction they took her.
Blood crusts down the side of my face, drying in a line that itches when the wind hits it. Each breath is like swallowing glass, and my ribs scream in protest. A dull, grinding agony that tells me something might have cracked when they pulled me out of the car.
But I don't care about any of that.
It won't stop me.
Every few seconds, I hear her voice in my head. The way she screamed my name as they dragged her from the car.
"Dimitri!"
Raw. Terrified. And there wasn't a fucking thing I could do to stop it.
It hits me harder than the impact of the car slamming into us.
I tuck my gun under my jacket as a car passes, gripping it so tight my fingers ache.
I try to look in the car as they pass, but my vision blurs, and I blink away what might be blood or sweat or both.
The road stretches ahead, sparse with cars. I have no idea how far I've walked. Somewhere behind me is our mangled car, a fucking monument to how badly I failed to protect her.
And then, four black SUVs materialize out of thin air. They're moving fast, weaving between cars with no signs of slowing.
I stop walking and wait.
The vehicles roll to a stop in a staggered line. Doors opening almost instantly as soon as they stop.
Theo climbs out of the first one, his expression blank except for the flicker of relief in his eyes when he sees me standing. His gaze sweeps over me, cataloging injuries, damage, risk.
Ares steps out of the other, a rifle slung across his chest. His eyes land on me, and his jaw is tight, a muscle flickering beneath his skin.
He's angry.
Behind them, men spill out of the other SUVs, fanning out to secure the road.
No one speaks right away.
Theo approaches me first, finally breaking the silence.
"Where's your car?" he asks, voice calm, the breeze catching the flaps of his jacket.
I nod behind me. "Back there."
Theo looks over my shoulder and pulls out his phone.
"Liam, I need a cleanup crew on the road heading south from Kalamata. I'll drop a pin." He pauses. "Yes. Now."
He hangs up, sliding the phone back into his pocket.
Ares walks up, his gun hanging loosely at his side. "And they took her?" The words sound casual, but I know my brother.
I nod. "Too fucking many of them."
Ares begins to pace, his body a coiled spring that can't stay still. His pistol swings at his side with each turn.
"What about the—" Theo says.
"They took it all. The phone, the laptop," I say, my voice raw. "It has to be S. We had everything to track him down."
Ares scoffs. "Fucking convenient," he says and turns to look at me. "And she had nothing to do with this? She did try to kill you after all."
My vision goes red at the edges.
"Fuck you," I snap. "She didn't."
Ares tilts his head like he's studying me. "Then why take her?"
I take a step toward him, my body moving before my brain catches up.
"I don't fucking know," I grit out.
The tension crackling between us turns volatile. The men behind Ares shift slightly.
Theo moves between us, his hand flat against my chest, stopping me from closing the last foot of space.
"Everything we had on S. The key to finding him was in the phone. That she unlocked. That she gave to us. More fucking help than you ever did," I say, instantly regretting the last part, but I'm too worked up.
"Hey. Hey. Everybody just calm down. Same fucking team, remember?" Theo says, looking between us.
I nod and take a step back.
"Is she worth this?" Theo asks, looking me dead in the eye.
I don't hesitate. "Yes."
Ares shows an unreadable expression, then shrugs. "Well, let's go get the phone and the laptop back," he says, voice cold. "I'm not interested in her."
Something hot and violent snaps inside me. I lunge at Ares, but Theo's hand clamps around my bicep, hauling me back before I can get a fist into Ares's face.
"Chill, Dimitri," Theo says quietly in my ear. "If she really gave us what you said, he'll come around. Let's go."
I yank my arm away from Theo's grip, breathing hard. Ares just watches me. His eyes are steady, unflinching, but he doesn't speak.
Theo walks back to the SUV, and one of our men hands him a tablet.
"The gods may be on her side," he says, walking back to where we're standing, "and ours, too."
He unlocks it and taps the screen, opening up a map.
"One of our contacts off route 91 spotted a group of black SUVs moving south toward the old quarry mining headquarters," he says, finger tracing the path on the screen. "Could be her."
"Then that's where we go," I say without looking at the map, already moving toward the nearest vehicle.
"They could be using her as bait, you know," Theo calls after me. "They'll be expecting you."
"I don't give a shit," I say. "Let them expect me."
Ares lets out a sarcastic laugh. "You're going to get us and yourself killed for her."
I look at him over my shoulder. "Then stay here."
"Fuck you, Dimitri."
"No, really. Stay, and when I get her and the laptop back," I say, looking at him, "you'll see what she gave us. We'll find out who killed our father because of her, so don't forget that as you stay behind."
I get into the passenger seat of the SUV Theo brought. My legs feel unsteady, like they're moving out of habit more than intent.
Theo and Ares exchange a few words, and then Ares walks to the SUV behind me and gets in.
Theo walks over to me and slides into the driver seat, slamming the door as a few men get in behind us.
I rest my gun across my lap, my hand draped over the grip. My thumb strokes the safety switch like a prayer.
Theo starts the engine.
Once everyone is ready, Theo turns the SUV around, and we start driving.
I close my eyes for just a moment. My body aches for rest, but my mind won't allow it.
And in the darkness behind my eyelids, I see her.
Athena. My Alepoudítsa.
Not as she was when they took her, but as she was in the ruins, or the way she looked at me when we're pressed up together as one, her hair tangled in my hands.
Her eyes—God, those eyes.
I make her a silent promise.
Hold on.
I'm coming.
And when I find you, I'm never letting you go.