Page 62 of Claimed Gem

Neither of them would mind.

Epilogue

Several weeks later…

Nicolai Kafatos satin front of his computer screen in his private office, reading and then re-reading the report his security team had put together. As the middle brother, the mundane and behind-the-scenes work seemed to always fall to him.

Damon wanted to be out front and, for years, that had been his place amongst the three of them. Ries had always wanted to get attention – by any means necessary; but since marrying Stephanie, he’d settled down and was quickly becoming an integral part of the family business. Behind the scenes, for the most part, which left Nicolai holding the books and sweeping up the details.

Nicolai had always been the level-headed brother. Since finding out about the threat in his and his brothers’ lives, Nicolai had been working tirelessly to keep them all safe. That seemed to get harder with each passing week. He normally preferred working behind the scenes, but once the media had gotten wind of Ries’ and Stephanie’s wedding, it had been a feeding frenzy. With both Damon and Ries staying hidden, that left Nicolai to deal with the reporters and gossip mongers, looking for an inside scoop to boost their ratings and secure them a better paycheck. It was tiring and the reporters continued to ask questions for which he didn’t have any answers.

Nicolai had been working side-by-side with the Kafatos security team and their own IT people. They were trying to locate Dmitrius Yttrios and determine what he had up his sleeve before he could strike again.

Nicolai seemed to have an affinity for all things electronic, which came in handy during his searches for any social media traffic concerning Yttrios or smuggling activities in and around Greece. In this era, people rarely went truly silent. They just spoke in channels they thought would not be monitored.

His latest discovery had him gravely concerned. It seemed a mineral ore matching the same unique chemical signature found in the Kafatos brothers’ mines had been showing up in weapons that terrorists in Kurdistan were using.

These were terrorists by any definition: they fought for control of oil wealth and nothing more, mowing down freedom fighters and established governments alike in their path. As Nicolai read the reports of their treatment of the women that they captured, his heart filled with rage.

“I can’t believe this,” h e said softly. “Whoever is stealing from us is also funding violence of the worst kind.”

“I wonder if Dmitrius is responsible for this – is terrorism just another income source to him?”

The mine was located at the northern edge of Kurdistan, and the only way to find out exactly what was going on up there was to make a personal visit. He didn’t trust his security team to do the kind of snooping that would need to be done. And no one in Kurdistan would recognize a Kafatos – he hoped.

Nicolai didn’t even consider calling Ries. He was newly married and had never handled a problem of this magnitude. Damon had his hands full managing the use of the Moustakas shipping vessels as well as their own – and Nicolai knew that he would strictly forbid his younger brother from going into danger.

But finding this information troubled Nicolai. It wouldn’t leave him alone. He knew he had to make the trip himself. It was too important to be trusted to hirelings.

Nicolai thought about calling his secretary and having her schedule his trip, but then he paused.

The last assassin sent after them had managed to turn one of their own against them. Ries said he had captured several ships by placing inside men on their crews. Nicolai didn’t want to see that happen again. Especially not now. Not with this.

He arranged for the company jet to be fueled up and provided the pilot with his flight plan. He then called Spencer, his head of security, and informed him of what was happening.

Spencer wasn’t thrilled to be traveling to that part of the world, but he was professional enough to know that he needed to be there for Nicolai.

He placed the next call to Damon, whom he’d hidden this from in order to keep the peace.

“I’m going to check a few things out,” he informed Damon, playing it off as a casual errand. “There’s some possible information about our assailants – I just want to travel to check it out myself.”

“Be careful,” Damon urged him, and Nicolai could practically hear him frowning over the phone.

“We will be. In fact, I was hoping I could start those first thing in the morning.” Nicolai disconnected the call, hoping what he was about to do would prove successful. His brothers needed a break.

But Nicolai had hidden behind the scenes long enough, while their enemies grew more and more violent.

He was going to Kurdistan, whether his brothers liked it or not.