"Yes, but back in Boston."
My pulse quickens. "Can you get it in three days?"
Declan nods. "Yeah."
"Okay, good. Because we're going to Greece in four days. You need to arrive early for job training."
"How the hell do you work that one out?" Keira asks.
"I hacked into their applicant database."
They both look at me like, seriously? Come on.
"Okay, fine. I bribed someone. Still counts." I smile. "You can't be late for training."
The bribe cost me four thousand bucks, money I transferred from an account Ares doesn't monitor. A small price for the access I need.
"Jesus Christ, Cal, if it were anyone else, I wouldn't do this," Declan says.
"Agreed," Keira adds. "But it's her, and it's for her father."
The mention of my father sends a familiar ache through my chest. Vasilis Kastaris deserves justice. He deserves to have his death answered with blood.
Declan nods. "Okay, I need to get back to Boston then."
I stand from the desk chair, my legs slightly unsteady. The magnitude of what we're planning is starting to feel real, not just an abstract idea anymore, but something that's actually going to happen.
"He likes to thrown parties to celebrate his power. Let's make this one the last."
33
CALLI
The ocean stretches before me in shades of impossible blue, waves rippling under the afternoon sun. White-capped crests chase each other to shore, where they break against the rocks below our hotel balcony. I've been standing here for almost an hour, watching boats ferry the staff to the island; seeing Keira and Declan leave as my plans unfold in real time.
Tonight, I become someone who can end a life.
The gala is tonight. In six hours, I'll be standing in a room full of people, smiling and playing the part of Niko's devoted girlfriend while I plan to murder his father.
I wish I could talk to Keira one last time, but truth is, there's nothing left to say.
We've gone over the plan a dozen times since arriving in Kosta two days ago. Declan and Keira checked into a room a floor below me, posing as event staff who needed accommodations. My brothers think I’m off with Keira on a girls trip with her security team, so I don’t have to worry about them.
And Niko arrived late last night, exhausted from handling last-minute business in Athens.
With him arriving however came a complication none of us anticipated.
In passing, Niko told me that guests are searched at the docks. No weapons, no bags, no exceptions. Which means the vial can't be on me when I arrive. Declan will have to pass it to me on the inside.
Speaking of the vial, I saw it yesterday when Declan showed it to me and Keira in their room. It's smaller than I expected. A clear glass, no bigger than a toothpick, filled with a colorless liquid that looks like water. He said I'd only need a drop or two in Stavros's drink.
What he forgot to mention until he showed it to me was how brutal the death would be. Rapid paralysis, full-body pain, total awareness, and then the heart stops. The victim feels everything but can't move, can't scream, can't fight back.
I suppose it's fitting. A man like Stavros should leave this world knowing exactly what's happening to him, and powerless to stop it. The same way my father probably felt in his final moments.
But even without this new speed bump from Niko, I know everything has to go perfectly. One mistake, one moment of suspicion, and we're all dead.
A creak behind me breaks the stillness. I turn as Niko steps into the room, his dark hair damp from the shower. He's shirtless, the lines of muscle on his torso shift as he walks toward me and wraps his arms around my waist from behind, resting his chin on my shoulder.
