Theo nodded, exhaling quietly.
For a moment, they both stared at Dani. The silence between them was not uncomfortable—just heavy, like air thickened with everything they hadn’t said yet.
Alexandros finally broke it.
“Did you get him?”
Theo nodded slowly. “Yeah. But identifying him… that’s been tricky.”
Alexandros turned to him, his brow furrowed.
Theo continued, “He didn’t have any real identification on him. No digital footprint, nothing we can trace. Authorities think he used aliases. But it’s been turned over to them now. The man was killed after he opened fire on our team.”
Alexandros exhaled—not in relief, but in bitter surrender.
Still, it wasn’t enough. Nothing would be.
“This is my fault,” he murmured, staring at his hands. “If it weren’t for me, she never would’ve been taken.”
Theo frowned. “What are you talking about?”
“She was targeted because of us. Because of me. Because of the money. The name. If I’d protected her properly, she never would’ve?—”
“That’s not true.”
The voice was quiet. Steady. And came from the doorway.
Both men turned.
An older man with thick gray hair stood there, framed in the soft light spilling from the hallway. His navy-blue sweater was worn, his khakis rumpled, his expression carved from granite and sorrow. But his eyes were clear. Focused.
Alexandros and Theo rose immediately, instinctively. He recognized the man’s voice as Stuart, Dani’s grandfather.
Stuart walked over to the bed, his movements slow but steady. He bent over Dani, his hand brushing her curls back from her forehead with the tenderness of a man who had been a part of her life since infancy. He pressed a kiss to her brow, closed his eyes for a long moment, then exhaled deeply.
“I love you, girl. You did good. You did real good,” Stuart murmured with a sigh.
When he straightened, he looked at them both with quiet gravity.
“Come,” he said, his voice low. “Let’s go down to the cafeteria. We could all use some coffee.”
Alexandros hesitated. His gaze dropped back to Dani.
Stuart placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. “She’s safe now, son. And there’s something I think you need to know. It might help ease some of the guilt I can see on your face.”
His words hung in the air like a thread about to unravel everything.
Alexandros exchanged a glance with Theo.
Then, with a torn glance at Dani, he followed Stuart into the hall.
“I’m surprised you made it from New York to Athens so fast,” Theo said as the elevator descended.
Stuart gave a tired chuckle. “It helps when you have the resources. I’ve never formally introduced myself. My name is Stuart Bouras.”
“Bouras? As intheStuart Bouras ofBouras International?” Alexandros asked, his voice coming out on a hiss of disbelief.
“The one and only,” Stuart replied with a faint smile.
