Page 80 of Before Broken Vows

I stand and walk to the edge of the balcony, looking out over the Italian countryside.

"I understand exactly what I'm saying," I reply, my voice like steel. "If Cosmo Kouris ordered the hit on my father, or had anything to do with it, I don't care who stands with him. He dies."

"You're playing with a different kind of fire now, Kastaris." Zervas sounds almost resigned. "Once you move against someone like him, there's no going back."

"I heard you," I say.

"I hope you're listening," Zervas replies. "Because what you do next, this decides everything."

Just as I'm about to tell Zervas that I'd burn Greece to the ground to get to the bottom of everything that's going on, I hear little footsteps behind me.

I turn to find Xander standing in the doorway to the balcony, his tiny frame drowning in dinosaur-print pajamas, one small fist rubbing sleep from his eyes. His dark hair, my hair, is messy, and there's a crease on his cheek from his pillow.

"I have to go," I tell Zervas abruptly. "I'll be in touch."

I end the call before he can respond and slide the phone into my pocket. Something inside me shifts instantly, the murderous fury replaced by a different kind of protectiveness.

"Hey, buddy," I say, my voice entirely different now.

Xander takes tentative steps toward me, bare feet padding on the cool stone of the balcony. "I woke up," he says simply, still rubbing his eyes.

"I see that." I crouch down to his level. "Did you have a good sleep?"

He nods, then looks around. "Where's Mommy?"

"Probably still sleeping. I can take you to her," I gesture back toward the house.

He nods and stretches out his arms for me to pick him up.

He rests his head on my shoulder as we walk back inside. "You smell like Mommy," he observes innocently.

I smile but don't respond because I'm unsure what to say.

"The sun looks like fire," he says, pointing with one small finger over my shoulder.

I look back. "It does," I agree. "In Greek mythology, the sun is pulled across the sky by the god Helios with his horses."

Xander looks at me, eyes widening with interest. "Horses?”

"Yes, four of them, with fiery manes," I tell him, surprised that I remember these details from childhood stories my mother told me.

"Wow," Xander breathes, looking back at the sunrise with newfound appreciation.

As I walk him toward our bedroom, I suddenly think of my father—of how he raised me and my brothers. How young we were when we witnessed our first beating, our first killing. How he hardened us deliberately, believing it was necessary for survival. I'd never questioned that approach until this moment.

I thought I'd do the same, but now, now all I want is to keep him away from that life for as long as I can.

I open the door and see Stassi sitting in bed. Seeing her hold him, I know in a few hours, I'll have to make decisions. About Cosmo Kouris. About returning to Greece. About how to protect Stassi and Xander while pursuing those who threatened them and my family.

But for now, for this moment, I won't think of any of that.

24

STASSI

The zoo is quieter than I expected for a Saturday morning.

Maybe it's the heat, or maybe it's the tucked-away location Theo's men insisted on vetting first. Either way, it's perfect. Quiet enough that we're not overwhelmed, but full enough that we blend in. Just another family with a curious kid and matching water bottles.