Chapter Forty-Four Ava
A t the slamming of the helicopter door, I jumped. I pressed my hands against the window, peering out at what was most likely the last time I would see Dare and Piper. Tears clouded my vision.
“That was an incredibly selfless thing you just did,” the man across from me said.
I didn’t reply. Instead, I kept staring at my world as they grew smaller and smaller as the helicopter’s altitude grew higher. As my fingernails scraped against the glass, I fought to breathe.
“My mother was a lot like you. She always put me and my sister first. Most mafia wives are socialites who flit from one party to another. But not my mother. She was utterly devoted.”
Tearing my gaze from the window, I took in the man. With blonde hair and blue eyes, he wasn’t conventionally handsome, but there was something very attractive about him. He appeared younger than me.
Swallowing down my panic, I questioned, “She was?”
“Was what?”
“You reference your mother in the past tense.”
He nodded. “She was murdered a year ago.” There was a flicker in his steely resolve. “She refused to press her family for money, so my father killed her.”
My eyes widened in horror. “That’s awful.”
“Yes, it was.”
“I’m sorry for your loss.”
“Thank you.” Tilting his head at me, he asked, “Do you know who I am?”
“One of my uncle’s men. Probably someone important if he sent you to kidnap me.”
He smiled. “I’m your cousin, Ares. Christos’s son.”
“You are?”
When he extended his hand, I eyed it suspiciously, which caused Ares to chuckle. “It’s just a simple handshake, Ava.”
“You kidnapped my daughter. Nothing is simple with you.”
“You’re very astute for someone who didn’t grow up in the mafia.”
“ Anaginoskein anthro?pous ,” I replied.
The corners of his lips quirked. “The gift of reading people.”
“Exactly.”
Leaning back in his seat, Ares asked, “What else can you read about me?”
“Your father obviously trusts you very much.”
“That is true.”
“He shouldn’t.”
Ares’s blue eyes flared. “I beg your pardon.”
“You loathe him for what he did to your mother. If I had to guess, you’re biding your time.”
As Ares stared me down, I wondered if I’d gone too far. I was desperately trying to play off the animosity I’d seen in him when he spoke of his father’s role in his mother’s death.
“Biding my time for what?”
“To take over the Trakos family.”
“And where do you fit in with that picture?”
“Far away with my husband and daughter.”
“You have no aspirations to take your rightful place as head of the family.”
“Absolutely not.”
“Why?”
“You’re seriously asking me that?”
“It’s a plausible question, isn’t it? There is a vast amount of wealth to be had by becoming head of the family.”
Once again, I reached out for the right words to say. “I think my inheritance isn’t worth as much as you say it is.”
His jaw clenched. “I’m afraid you’re showing your ignorance.”
“Am I?”
“I’m sure your husband told you we were one of the most powerful families in Greece.”
“Power can be built on illusion.”
Leaning forward in his seat, Ares said, “Keep reading, Ava.”
“Your mother wouldn’t ask her family for money. Your father was so desperate for that money that he killed her. Money that is desperately needed is somehow tied to the key from the necklace.
Area brought his hands together to begin slowly clapping. The sound unnerved me. Somehow I didn’t think uncovering this was a victory.
“Where’s the key, Ava?”
“Why should I tell you? With my husband and daughter safe, what should motivate me to tell you?”
Ares tsked. “As smart as you are, that’s a silly statement.”
“Maybe.”
“At this moment, they’re safe. That safety is fragile. It depends on you giving up the key.”
Since I felt cornered, I sighed. “It’s in the safe at my parents’ house.”
“Do you know the combination?”
I hadn’t until the night of Nick’s murder. Mom had revealed it was my birthdate. “I do.”
He gave me a shark like smile. “Congratulations.”
Furrowing my brows, I said, “I don’t understand.”
“You passed the test.”
“What test?”
“The bullshit test. We apprehended a safe this morning. Normally, we would use a blowtorch to open it, but we didn’t want to do anything that might melt the key.”
As the helicopter began to descend, I glanced out the window. We were at an airport. From the look of it, we were at Logan. “Where are you taking me?”
Once again, he gave me that shark-like smile. “Let’s see if you’re people reading skills can uncover it.”
After Ares and I exited the helicopter, we walked down the tarmac to where a private plane sat. We weren’t in the air long, and I surmised that we must be in Philadelphia. Once the SUV I was shuffled into started driving through the city, I recognized the landmarks.
The silence between me and Ares was starting to get to me. I knew better than to ask him anymore questions about where we were going. So, I decided to go for more personal ones.
“Are you married?”
He quirked a blonde brow at me. “Do you see a ring?”
I shrugged. “Maybe you don’t wear it.”
“I’m not married.”
“How old are you?”
“Don’t tell me you’re thinking of trying to fix me up?”
To my surprise, a laugh tumbled from my lips. “No. I wondered how close in age we were.”
“I’m thirty.”
“We are close.”
“My sister is a year older than you.” Although I didn’t ask, Ares said, “There were two more sisters between us, but my father made my mother abort those.”
“Why?”
“He didn’t want to look weak with daughters while trying for a son.”
“I knew he was a monster to murder his own brother, but to do that to your mother…” I shuddered. “He is truly evil.”
“I’d say he comes in a close second with your late father-in-law.”
My brows shot up in surprise. “You knew him?”
“I did. His cruelty was legendary and surpassed Ireland and America.”
“I never had the misfortune to meet him. However, from what I’ve heard from my husband and his brothers, Hugh Kavanaugh was evil incarnate.”
“While you never got a chance to meet Hugh, you’re about to meet my father.”
I swallowed hard. “I am.”
He motioned to the mansion in front of us. “He’s waiting for us.”
After what Ares told me, I didn’t look to my uncle to show me any mercy or compassion. When the SUV pulled to a stop in a circular drive, Ares got out. He then motioned for me to follow him.
When I started up the stairs, an older version of Ares stood at the top. “Hello, Ava,” he said.
“Hello,” I answered cautiously.
“I assume by your presence here you are forsaking your birthright and handing over the key.”
“I am.”
“I’m glad to hear it.”
He motioned for me to go ahead of him into the house. As I started inside, I wondered if I would ever see outside of it again.