Chapter 30 – Markos
Stepping into the meeting room at Olympus, I waited for the others to arrive.
It was such a beautiful day, and I would have preferred to be outside.
But that was unheard of. Our resident tech wizard forbade conducting any business outside of this very room.
It was his fortress, one he personally secured against listening devices and even drones couldn’t hear through the windows he boasted.
As if summoned by my thoughts, the giant arrived.
“I have the information you requested,” he rumbled, tapping a finger on the laptop bag.
At six-foot-eight, he looked the part of a warrior. And while he could hold his own in any heavyweight fighting class, his skills lay in the intangible web of darkness and shadows. What he could make happen on a computer felt like sorcery.
“Thank you, my brother,” I said, slapping his upper arm, knowing full well he had an aversion to being touched.
The burly muscles of his large frame shivered. “Don’t touch me.”
With quick, efficient movements, he connected his laptop to the screen on the opposite wall and pulled up pages and pages of information.
“Keep it off the screen until I’m ready in my presentation,” I requested.
Not taking his eyes from his laptop, Anatole nodded.
His fingers flew over the keys, imputing commands and clicking on data.
I chuckled softly. He was likely multitasking.
It was hard to say what else occupied his mind.
Espionage, digital hacking, or maybe a game where his character was defeating any opponent stupid enough to challenge him.
Ten more minutes passed, and then the doors shut on the last member of the Twelve. I stood behind my seat, watching them. There was no reason to fear their reaction, but the nervous thrum under my skin was purely because I wasn’t sure if they would believe me.
They have to.
“The floor is yours, Markos,” Atlas intoned.
“Make it good.” Korinna yawned before taking a long sip of her overpriced coffee.
“I have reason to believe it is not the Skorpios family who’s behind the assassinations and attacks,” I began.
The gentle hum of voices filled the air as they bounced from person to person, intermingling and overlapping in a chaotic harmony.
Each word and question carried a different tone, some disbelief, others curiosity, but all with an underlying sense of urgency as the members of the Twelve reacted to the startling revelation.
But I looked the kingpin dead in the eye. “Alexios and I had a little chat the other day.”
A muscle in the king’s hard face tightened, and his eyelids fell closed. “órkhis. What did you do?”
“Nothing bad.” Thankfully. “But he’s under the impression that we’ve been taking out his organization. Five of his top people are dead, including their wives. Anatole confirmed the death certificates.”
I shot a glance at the wizard, who dipped his chin in a nod. Five profiles illuminated the screen on the wall.
Indigo leaned forward. “Skata! I went to elementary school with her.”
“We didn’t do this,” Alexie insisted. “Why would the Skorpios think we did?”
I shrugged. “The same reason we saw their mark on a boat and assumed they were behind Iakovos’s death.” Turning to Atlas, I added, “You were right.”
If my admission brought him pleasure, the kingpin didn’t say.
“Well, do you know who is behind it?” Draco swept his hand through the air, speaking the question they were all wondering.
“No.” I blew out a long breath. “Only that someone wants us thinking it was a rival attack.”
Atlas finally spoke. “War is brewing in the underworld.”
“Who would want a war?” Iris countered. The glint in her eye said she didn’t like my moment of victory.
I ignored her petty reasoning and focused on the true problem at hand.
Zephyr spoke up, breaking his usual stony silence. “Wars are always profitable. It could be anyone seeking chaos.”
The decades-old scars that littered my misshapen body pulsed with an echo.
Profitable—yes. Disastrous? Absolutely. That would not happen here.
I would give my life to protect the peace I’d found in this new world.
But more than that, the family that had been ripped from me, the idea that I would forever be an orphan, living as a lost boy amongst relatives, was fast fading.
Yes, decades after a war, I finally had hope.
“Who would profit?” Korinna insisted.
“It’s hard to say,” Atlas started.
With a nod from me, Anatole pulled up another profile.
“Hey! I’ve taken him fishing,” Iosif piped in.
I nodded. “John Smithfield—a.k.a. David Parker—has been to our village four times. And he was talking with Alexios the other day.”
As the others read through the digital dossier, flipping through the screen, my mind wandered again.
If this was our target, it was going to take more than my skill to defeat him.
It would take a combined effort to destroy someone so well connected with the outside world.
Like a roach, Parker would have investors.
So if this was some grand scheme to make the mobs battle it out, if the law was brought in to contain our war, then a business could come in and scoop out the remains.
“Zephyr and I can kill him, but I want to make sure the threat stops there,” I concluded.
Atlas rubbed his jaw—the damn thing was likely sore from clenching all the time. “We need to be certain.”
“Oh, on that, I agree.” I nodded. “But this is the first solid lead we’ve had on the situation. Now is the time to act.”
“I’ll set up a meeting with Alexios,” Atlas sighed. “We need a cease fire before the actual carnage begins. And perhaps they’ll work with us.”
“Shouldn’t you talk to his father?” Iris countered, laughter concealed behind her words. “He is the head of the Skorpios Syndicate after all.”
But Atlas shook his head. “If the businessman met with Alexios, I want to know why him and not the senior. No, I’ll start with the prince and only go to the king if the situation warrants it.”
The conversation droned on with a relentless hum, voices clashing and mellowing as each member of the Twelve raised questions, dissected options, and offered opinions in turn.
No one seemed to hesitate in giving their own thoughts on the matter.
For my part, I stood back and watched, allowing them the chance to debate the situation.
I’d done all I could do. I’d done my part and presented the information, and now I wanted to go home.
I wanted to get out of this room and away from Olympus.
I wanted to be with her.
I hated that after last night, I left to deal with this. I needed to check on my wife, to see that she was fine. While she promised our nocturnal tryst left her sated—and the evidence of that played through my mind on repeat!—I wanted to simply spend time with her.
“Good work, Black Tide.” Atlas rose, signaling he too had reached his limit. He held out his hand and we shook. “For once, your penchant for sneaking about has paid off.”
His grip tightened, forbidding me from moving just yet. He pinned me with his narrowed eyes, a reminder of the weight of our circumstance.
“But don’t let this go to your head.” His voice was firm. “You still need to be careful.”
I shot him a grin, refusing to let the moment drag me back down. “Always.”
The meeting ended with the shuffle of feet and clatter of chairs thudding against the table.
I left with hurried strides, wanting nothing more than to be off Olympus grounds.
I didn’t grow up here, but now, it felt like I finally belonged in this part of the world.
And it was all because I found the missing piece to my life.
I’m coming, princess. I am coming home.