Page 130 of Beneath Scarred Vows

I glance over at Katerina.

"What have you found?" I ask Theo, tension coiling in my gut.

"Financial trails that don't add up. Connections that shouldn't exist." Theo shakes his head. "It's not enough yet, but it's pointing somewhere. To someone."

"Who?" Dimitri demands.

"I don't know yet," Theo admits. "That's why I need to go to Athens. Follow the trail while it's hot."

"I should go with you," I say. “I’m the don.”

"No," Theo says firmly, nodding toward Katerina. "Your place is here. With them. If I'm right—if there's someone else out therewith a vendetta against us—you need to be here to protect your family." His expression softens slightly. "Let me do this, Ares. Let me find the truth, bring it to you, and you can decide what we do with it."

I want to argue. I want to be the one to hunt down whoever might threaten what's mine. But Theo's right—I can't leave Katerina and our daughter unprotected.

"Fine," I concede.

"I should go," Dimitri interjects. "Two of us is better than one."

"No," I say firmly. "If Theo's right, I need you here. We don't split our forces any more than necessary."

Dimitri doesn't look happy, but he nods. "The fucking second you need backup—" he says to Theo.

"I'll call," Theo promises.

"How long before you know what you're after?"

"A week, maybe two," Theo says. "Depends on what I find."

"And if you're wrong?" Dimitri asks.

Theo's mouth quirks up in a humorless smile. "Then I'm the paranoid brother who ruined a perfectly good baby shower with conspiracy theories." He grows serious again. "But I'm not wrong."

I believe him. Theo's instincts have always been sharp. If he senses something, it's there.

"Okay, we'll keep this between us for now," I decide. "No reason to worry Katerina or Calli until we know more."

My brothers nod in agreement.

"Especially today," Theo adds, glancing toward the cluster of women. "Let her have this."

If someone is targeting my family—if my father's murder was just the beginning—then God help them. Because I will burn this world to ash before I let anyone destroy what I have.

"Find them," I tell Theo, my voice deadly calm.

"I'll find them," Theo promises. "And then we'll finish it. Together."

He clasps my shoulder, and Dimitri does the same on the other side. Three brothers, bound by blood and loyalty, standing against whatever shadow is still lurking out there.

I look back at Katerina, trying to memorize the curve of her smile, the way the light catches in her hair. Trying to burn this moment of peace into my memory.

Because peace, in our world, never lasts.