by Nikki Ash
I rise from my seat and walk over to the door. “I’ll never toast to a fucking Galani. Go on and get out of here before your viper girlfriend tries to make a meal out of your balls.”
He drains his glass and slams it down with a hard clunk. Then, he stands, shooting me an unreadable expression. With a deep breath, he inhales and then exhales whatever was threatening his composure. A wide grin spreads across his face.
“Have a good night, Kostas,” he says with a smug grin. “My night will be a helluva lot better than yours, I can assure you.”
He walks out without another word.
I glance over at my untouched ouzo and straighten my spine. I’ve been a cloud for far too long.
It’s time to wake the fuck up and find my goddamn wife.
Talia
“I need more formula,” I yell over the screams of my pissed off daughter.
Selene glares my way. “I was just in town a few days ago. Aris told you to make a list.” She eyes me accusingly, but I just shrug nonchalantly, not bothering to settle Zoe down. Her screaming always flusters Selene. For the sake of the human population, the woman should be sterilized so she can never reproduce.
“I did make a list.” Zoe’s screams get louder. “But Zoe had a growth spurt and I ran out sooner than I expected. Babies grow,” I challenge.
“And you don’t have any left at all?” she questions. I can see it in her features, she’s about to reach her limit. Her hands are shaking, and her eyes are twitching. Come on, bitch…
“If I did I wouldn’t be asking. Look, if you don’t want to go, I can.” I shrug with a smirk that I know will piss her off. “Zoe isn’t going to stop crying until she’s fed.” As if on cue, Zoe’s screams get louder. Every wail from her squeezes my heartstrings, but it’s for the greater good.
“Jesus!” Selene shouts over the loud crying. “Fine. I’m going.” She knows damn well she’ll be in trouble if my daughter is unhappy in any way. A pissed off Zoe leads to a pissed off Aris. And a pissed off Aris never ends well. We’ve both learned that the hard way. The only difference is Aris actually cares about me since I’m the mother of his daughter, whereas with Selene, he views her as nothing more than a human pincushion. Poking every hole when he feels like it. The thought has me gagging. Better her than me, though.
Frustrated, she quickly unlocks the key box right in front of me, just as I hoped she would. Seven-two-two-four. She grabs a set of keys, slams it closed, then heads over to the garage door. I watch as she types in the code. Four-nine-nine-five. The light flashes green and she opens then closes the door behind her. I wait until I hear the garage door open and close and then I run into the kitchen. I type in the code to the key box and it clicks open. Grabbing the pair of keys, I pull one off the ring and put the other one back. As I’m closing the box, I spot Selene’s cell phone on the counter. Holy shit! She forgot her phone.
Grabbing it, I tap the screen. It comes to life, but there’s a password. No problem since I know it. Four-six-three-six. I type it in, but it’s wrong. What the hell! I type it in again, but it’s still wrong. I saw her type it in myself. This has to be right. The phone prompts I only have one try left before it locks.
I hear the garage opening back up. Damn it! She must’ve realized she forgot her phone. What do I do? Then it hits me. I bring up the passcode screen and hit the emergency button. The car door slams closed as the call connects.
“What is your emergency?”
I run with the phone in one hand and Zoe in the other to hide in another room. “My name is Talia Demetriou and I need you to—”
Before I can finish my sentence, my head is yanked back and the phone is snatched from my hand. “You bitch!” Selene yells. She raises her hand to slap me, but I duck. Zoe is now screaming bloody murder, and I’m running to get away from Selene so she doesn’t inadvertently hurt my daughter. I make it into Zoe’s room and slam the door just before Selene can touch either of us.
The door doesn’t lock, so with my weight against the door, I grab the rocking chair and wedge it under the doorknob so Selene can’t get in. Once I know we’re safe, I make Zoe a bottle and feed it to her. She calms down right away, and once she’s full, falls asleep in my arms.
Since there’s no way I’m going back out there until Aris gets home, I use the time to go over my list. Stealing Selene’s cell phone wasn’t my original plan anyway. I just saw it on the counter and figured it was worth a try. Pulling the small diaper bag out from under my bed, I double-check everything I’ve accumulated over the last several months. Formula, bottles, diapers, wipes, clothes for Zoe and me, three knives, over two hundred euros. Reaching into my pocket, I add the spare keys I stole to Aris’s SUV. Selene and Aris will be so focused on me trying to steal her phone, they won’t even think about the fact my entire purpose was to steal his keys.
Not wanting to risk the bag being seen, I shove it back under the bed. While Zoe naps, I read a book, and once she wakes up, I spend the rest of the day playing with her in her room. It isn’t until I hear Aris’s voice on the other side of the door, I move the chair and open the door.
“I heard you’ve been busy today,” he says, eyeing me with annoyance.
“I was scared for my life,” I cry out. “Selene is psycho, Aris. The only reason I tried to call the police was because I was scared.” Tears prick my eyes, but Aris just rolls his.
“Stop your shit, Talia. Your little stunt today was stupid on your part.” Aris smirks. “Want to know why?” I don’t bother to answer. I know he’ll tell me. “Since I now have to worry about you trying shit, I had to give Selene a gun.” Jesus fucking Christ. Is he serious?
“If you try anything, she’s been told not to hesitate.” Aris steps forward and grabs ahold of my ponytail, jerking my head up to look him in the eyes. “I don’t give a shit if you live or die, Talia,” he hisses. “The only reason I keep you around is so you can take care of Zoe. You’re her mother and I didn’t want to take you from her. But if you’re going to become a problem…” He lets his sentence linger, releasing my hair. “Now, dinner is ready. Let’s try to have a good night. I’ve had a long day at work. My brother has become a raging alcoholic and I’m now having to do both of our jobs.” Aris rolls his eyes then walks out of the room.
Kostas has become an alcoholic… My heart squeezes in my chest at the thought of what he’s been going through this last year. It’s hard to believe anything that comes out of Aris’s mouth. I knew the night he raped me, he was a wolf in sheep’s clothing, but I had no idea just how deadly of a bite he had until the day I was taken.
I’m sitting in the auditorium, waiting for rehearsal to begin. I’ve only been here for a few minutes, but I want to go home. When I left this morning, Kostas and I were fighting. I know part of it is my fault. I’m overemotional and haven’t told him why yet. Mostly because I’m scared of how he’s going to react. But it’s also his fault because he’s so damn jealous. I have to kiss Macbeth in the play and I know Kostas is going to kill him if I do, which means I’m going to have to either tell my professor I can’t play the role as Lady Macbeth or figure out a way to fake-kiss my partner, so my husband doesn’t rip his heart from his chest. I want to be mad at him for being such a possessive asshole, but then he sends me a sweet text and I turn into a pile of mush.
Kostas: I miss you even when you piss me the fuck off.
Okay, well, sweet for Kostas… It’s crazy to think how quickly he’s become my entire world, and not because I was forced to marry him, but because I love him. The problem is, while I’m not sure if Kostas loves me back, I do know he wants to own and possess every part of me. At this rate, there is going to be no me without Kostas, and I’m scared of what will happen when I can’t put him first. When I can’t give him all of me. Will he still want me? Will what I can give him be enough? Or will he do what my father did and stray? The thought has me wanting to throw up.
“You are going to make the craziest Lady Macbeth,” Penelope says, sitting next to me. When I
glance up at her, she frowns. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.” I shake my head. “I’m okay.”
“No, you’re not,” she insists. “You’re crying.” She reaches over and swipes a tear off my cheek I didn’t realize was there. “Talk to me.”
As if the dam that was holding back my flood of emotions caves, I let out every thought and feeling without holding back. Penelope wraps her arms around me and listens as I pour my heart out to her. She doesn’t say anything the entire time as I tell her about everything I’m feeling and how much I miss my home and my family, especially my mom. When I’m done, she hugs me tightly.
“What is it that will make you okay right now?” she asks.
After a moment of thinking about her question, I say, “I-I think…” I hiccup through my sobs. “I think I really just want my mom.” We both break out into a fit of giggles at how much of a child I sound like in this moment.
“Moms do make everything better,” Penelope agrees.
I stand and wipe the tears from my face. “I’m going to go use the restroom and wash my face. Thank you for listening. Honestly, I think I just needed a good cry.” I choke out another laugh and Penelope joins in.
Grabbing my purse, I throw my phone into it and walk through the side stage doors that lead to the bathroom. Setting my purse down on the sink, I wet a paper towel and wipe under my eyes until I no longer look like a raccoon.
Leaving my purse on the sink, I head into the first stall to go pee. I hear the bathroom door open and then a masculine voice yells, “Talia! You in here?” Aris? What the hell is he doing in here?
I swing open the door and find him standing in front of the door.
“We need to go now.”
“What? Why?” I’m so confused.
He grabs my arm and yanks me from the stall and out of the bathroom. “I’ll explain once we’re in the car. Kostas sent me to get you. There’s been a threat and he needs to know you’re safe.”
“What about Michael and Tadd?” My head is spinning.
“They are the threat,” Aris says as he opens the side door to the building. Something isn’t right here.
“Aris, wait!” I shout, but he doesn’t listen. I reach for my phone and realize it’s still in my purse…in the bathroom. Shit! “Aris, I want to speak to Kostas,” I demand, but he ignores me. When I dig my feet into the grass, refusing to walk, he turns around and whips a gun out.
“Get in the fucking car, Talia,” he says.
Instantly, my hands go to my stomach, fearful not only for myself, but for my baby. “Okay,” I tell him. “Okay, just please don’t shoot me.”
The entire drive, my only thoughts are that there’s a good chance I’ll never see or speak to Kostas again. My last words to him were said in anger. He texted me to tell me he misses me, but I never texted him back. He’ll never know how much I love him, and that I’m pregnant.
Kostas
The entire three-hour flight from Heraklion to Thessaloniki was difficult. Being trapped in my private plane with nothing but a stocked bar and a building rage, I was about to explode. I wanted to drown out my thoughts, but something keeps niggling at me—something I need to keep a clear head for. Like the answer is right in front of me, but I can’t seem to put my finger on it.
Aris.
I want to say Aris has something to do with it, but he’s afraid of me. Deep down, I know he is. Where he might willingly sleep with my wife just to show he could, he’d never kill her. And hide her away for a year, that’s just bullshit Aris couldn’t keep from me. I see him every day, all day. If he was hiding something huge about Talia, I’d know.
Wouldn’t I?
When she was taken, I was blinded by determination to find her. Then, anger that I hadn’t. Now, drowning in grief also known as fucking alcohol. Alcohol that Aris has no qualms about offering me anytime he’s around.
Which is exactly why I need to keep a clear head. For the first time since she’s been gone, I feel alert and aware. I didn’t get to where I am today for being a blind fool.
I’m brooding on my thoughts while we hit the tarmac. The staff on the plane is accommodating, but I’m distracted by Talia. Always Talia. Once I step out of the plane, I’m irritated to see Phoenix leaned against a door-less Jeep. He’s dressed casually in a pair of jeans and a black T-shirt showcasing all his tattoos and looking like a fucking escaped convict. I hate how much he looks like Talia. It’s a painful reminder of my loss of her.
“Where’s my car?” I grumble.
Phoenix shrugs and hops inside. I follow suit and climb into his metal death wish. I’m sure I look out of place in my Armani suit.
“Where are your men?” he asks, nodding at the plane.
“Where are yours?” I challenge back.
“I don’t need them,” he sneers, side-eyeing me like I’m a minnow he can easily scare away.
“Same,” I bite back like the shark I am.
He smirks as he throws the Jeep into drive. We haul ass down the road into the city. It’s been a while since I’ve come to meet him about the taxes. In the beginning I did, right after he took over for Niles, but then, when I was losing my ever-loving mind over Talia, Aris took care of business.
“Where are we going?” I demand upon realizing we’re not headed toward the city where his office is.
“We can do business anywhere with our phones,” he grunts out. “I’m hungry and I figured you are too.”
It’s noon and I didn’t touch the refreshments on the flight. He’s right, but I won’t tell him that. He takes us to a small restaurant outside of the city. It has horrible curbside appeal, but the moment we exit the Jeep and I get a whiff of the savory garlic scents in the air, I know looks will be deceiving.
He greets the man up front and then ushers us to a dark corner booth. When he orders ouzo for the both of us, I change my order to water, which gets a lifted brow of surprise from him.
“Got a problem?”
His nostrils flare. “Nope.”
As soon as the waiter runs off to fetch our drinks, Phoenix crosses his arms over his bulky chest and glowers at me.
“What?” I demand.
“Nothing,” he sneers. “Just finally looking at the man who let my sister get taken. The same man who can’t find her.” He’s pissed and his jaw muscle keeps flexing. If I had any thought that he’d taken her, it’s squashed in this moment.
“You’re looking at the man who will cut your throat for fucking disrespecting him,” I growl, cracking my neck. “Watch your tongue, Nikolaides. Seems you forgot who you were talking to.”
He grinds his teeth but relaxes his posture. “I just don’t see how after all this time you haven’t found her.” His eyes narrow. “Unless you don’t want her to be found.”
“Me?” I snap. “If I wanted to get rid of her, I would have, and I’d gladly fucking tell you. I don’t play little girl games.”
“Then where the fuck is she?” he bellows, leaning forward, fire gleaming in his eyes. “Where the fuck is my sister?”
“Maybe she’s with your father,” I bite out. “Since you can’t find him and all. Maybe they’re in the same magical hidden realm of the earth.”
“What are you, a fuckin’ fairy?” He shakes his head in frustration. “Dad is quiet, but if he had her, I’d know about it. For one, she’d drive him insane. He’d make me deal with her. Dad and Talia haven’t gotten along in some time. I’m the peacemaker between the two.”
The waiter brings our drinks and we order from the menu.
“What about those men who were supposed to be guarding her?” he asks bitterly. “Could they be in on it?”
I crack my knuckles before picking up my water and chugging it down. With a slam of the glass on the table, I level him with a hard glare. “We can’t exactly ask them because I skinned them alive.”
His brows furrow, but his eyes flash in appreciation. “Mom keeps yapping at me about the Galanis. You two chat an awful lot.”
“I want answers,” I grit out.
“And Mom has them?” he challenges.
“Fuck no, she doesn’t have them.”
“Then why do you call her?”
Because she reminds me that Talia was a good woman who wouldn’t just leave me.
“I check every lead.” I lift my chin and meet his glare. “Can I say the same for you? What about the traffickers your dad was letting come through?”
“That shit ended when I took over. And I look for her every damn day, Kostas. I think that’s the only fucking thing we have in common. Well, that and the inability to find her.” He lets out a heavy sigh. “We’ll find her.”
I hate that we have a common goal. Nikolaides and Demetrious working together. It’s a shitshow, clearly.
“I’ll find her,” I amend, my fierce stare begging him to argue.
“Glad you put the bottle down, man. I was tired of dealing with your arrogant brother. At least with you, I know what the fuck you intend to do. With him…” He frowns. “With him, I don’t know what to think.”
I’m not about to buddy up to Phoenix Nikolaides of all people and share a drink gossiping like two teenage girls over how much my brother is a sneaky bastard. No, I can think about that all by myself.
“Where’s my money?” I demand, putting an end to all things Talia related.
He rolls his eyes like the fucking teenager I pegged him for and pulls out his phone. “I’ll wire it over right now.”
“I know, Selene,” Aris grits out, his voice booming from his office. “I said I know, dammit.”
Her annoying, screeching voice can be heard all the way into the hallway. I lean toward the door, hoping to catch her end of the conversation, but I hear nothing.
“Is that all?” he asks in a bored tone. “I have shit to do.”
She must end the call because he slams the phone down on his desk and curses. I choose that moment to saunter in. He shoots me a weary look and then sighs heavily when I sit in front of his desk.