“All right,” he agreed. “Let’s start with a list of everyone Christos has had dealings with over the last few months.”
Virginia beamed at him, unknowingly setting off a spark in his chest. Placing her cup on the table between them, she rose in a smooth, graceful movement, then strode behind her desk. A minute later, she was holding out several sheets of paper to him.
“I thought you might ask,” she said in answer to his questioning gaze, “so I took the liberty of creating one for you.”
Gabe stood, too, and accepted the list. It held names, dates, contact information, and the subjects of the meetings—the legitimate ones, at least. It could prove useful, especially since it was likely that whomever Christos was dealing with behind closed doors, he dealt with in front of them as well.
He folded the papers and slipped them into his pocket. When he returned to base later, he’d hand them off to Livingston so she could cross-reference it with the information they already had. With luck, some leads might shake out.
“This is great, thanks.”
“You’re welcome. Anticipating needs and ensuring they’re met is what a personal assistant does, you know,” she added with some amusement. “And I’m very good at my job, Commander.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
“Please do. Now, what do you want to do next? Have a look around Chris’s private living space or interview more of the staff?”
She looked up at him with those pretty eyes. What he wanted to do—that sudden urge to pull her into his body, press his lips to that soft skin, and find out what she sounded like when she came—was not on the table.
Unnerved, he took a step back. He’d always been a sucker for brown eyes, and hers were an unusual shade, somewhere between amber and pale gold, filled with intelligence, hope, and determination.
“I thought you had a busy schedule.”
“This is more important. I’ll make time.”
“In that case, I’d like to have a look around.”
Unaware of his inner struggle, Virginia returned to her desk and bent over it, giving him a nice view of her ass and a barrage of inappropriate thoughts in the process. When she turned around, she dangled a set of keys in her hand. “Then let’s go.”
Fred’s barely audible growl was Gabe’s first clue they weren’t alone when they stepped out of her office. Daskalakis was lurking in the hallway and he did not look pleased.
“Commander, my apologies. I have only just been informed that you arrived earlier than expected.” Censure laced his tone. Gabe didn’t care for it at all.
“No problem,” Gabe said easily. “Ms. Miller has been quite helpful.”
Daskalakis shot Virginia a look of annoyance. She met his glare, the hint of a challenging smile ghosting over her lips.
“I was just about to take the Commander to Chris’s study.”
“Yes, well, I shall be glad to escort Commander Michaels from here. I’m sure you have other things to attend to.”
“Actually, I’ve cleared my schedule this morning. This is far more important. Don’t you agree, Gregory?”
Gabe bit back a smile as he watched the exchange. Virginia continued to smile pleasantly, but Daskalakis’s glare intensified. The tension between them was palpable.
“If it’s all the same to you, Mr. Daskalakis,” Gabe said, interrupting the standoff, “I’d like Ms. Miller to show me around. As Christos’s personal assistant, she can offer a unique perspective.”
Daskalakis’s eyes flashed before his face smoothed over into a professional mask. “Of course, Commander. I’ll be in my office should you require anything.”
With one last scathing glance at Virginia, Daskalakis turned on his heel and stalked away.
“Does he always treat you like that?” Gabe asked, his personal dislike for Daskalakis deepening.
“Pretty much. Gregory is something of a control freak, and he hates that he has no control over me. I’m the dirt he can’t quite sweep under the family rug.”
Virginia’s tone was soft and light, but a subtle undercurrent flowed beneath the words. She might want everyone to believe Daskalakis’s attitude didn’t bother her, but it did. Now that her champion, Christos, had mysteriously disappeared, she was probably feeling the pressure more than usual.
“Not by your own design,” he found himself saying.
She offered him a sad smile. “No, but life has a way of making things happen whether it’s in our plans or not.”
True enough. “It’s not all that bad, is it?”
“No,” she answered, turning away. “But if we don’t find Chris soon, it could be.”
A sense of foreboding rolled through him. Because he was watching so closely, he saw her shoulders lift and straighten, and heard the deep, steeling breath she took. When she faced him again, that friendly but professional mask was back in place.
Chapter Twenty
Gabriel
Virginia led him through a series of hallways filled with priceless art in gilded frames, stopping when they reached a massive set of double doors.
“This is Christos’s private study,” she told him, fitting a key into the lock. “It’s one of nine rooms that comprise his personal living area.”
Gabe whistled softly as he took in the space. In the shape of an octagon, four of the walls held polished hardwood shelves with an eclectic collection of books, artifacts, and small sculptures. A huge stone hearth comprised an entire section. Deep, richly-colored leather seating was artfully arranged atop a jewel-toned Persian area rug large enough to span his entire cabin. He looked up at the vaulted ceiling, complete with panels depicting scenes from classical Greek mythology.
“A bit overwhelming, isn’t it?” Virginia commented beside him.
“It’s something, all right.”
She laughed softly. “Before I met Chris, I’d never realized people actually lived like this, but for him, this was normal. I sometimes wonder what Robert would have thought of it.”
Because he was so engrossed in the epic battle scene painted above his head, it took Gabe a moment to place the name. Robert was the husband she’d lost, and the reason she was now a part of this world. “He really didn’t know?”
“About his father being Darius Kristikos? No. Robert knew he was illegitimate, and believed he was the unplanned result of a young lovers’ tryst, which in a way, is true, I guess. But he assured me he’d never felt unwanted or unloved. His mother provided a safe and loving home. He never got to hear his mother’s deathbed confession. Honestly, I’m glad he didn’t.”
“Why is that?” Gabe asked, genuinely curious. “Many people would be happy to discover they’re part of a wealthy, powerful family.”
“That’s because they don’t realize all the strings that come with such a discovery,” she told him, a cloud passing over her features. “It is possible to have too much, and Robert was a simple man at heart. I’m not sure he could have handled all this. There’s beauty in simplicity, don’t you think?”
Yes, he did think so. That was why he chose to live in a cabin in the woods, far away from the rest of the world and all its bullshit. He had everything he needed and nothing he didn’t. What surprised him, though, was that she apparently thought so.
Of course, her idea of living simply was probably much different than his, involving a condo instead of a cabin and a local organic market instead of a garden.
“Does that mean you’re not happy here?” he asked.
“I’m thankful, Commander,” she said, not really answering his question. “Chris didn’t have to do what he did for me. As a result, he will forever have my gratitude and my loyalty. I won’t rest until we find him. I’ll never be able to repay him, but I can at least do this.”
Another piece of the intriguing puzzle that was Virginia Miller fell into place for him. Much of her reason for staying with Kristikos was not because she wanted to, necessarily, but because she felt it was the right thing to do.
She wal
ked toward an ornate desk on the far side. “Chris conducted a lot of business in this room, often entertaining guests here in the evenings. It’s entirely plausible that he came here after his dinner meeting.”
“Without being seen or heard?” Gabe asked doubtfully.
Virginia approached one of the walls and slid her hand beneath one of the built-in shelves. The lower half of the case shelving swung open silently, revealing a seven-foot archway into the private dining room he’d seen the day before, the one where Christos and his guest had been last seen.
Well, that answered his question about alternate exit and entry points. “No one mentioned that during my initial walk-through,” he commented, irritated.
“Did you ask specifically about hidden panels?” The corner of her mouth tilted upward. “Because if you didn’t, I can guarantee no one here would volunteer the information. This place is full of secret passageways and hidden doors. I’ve been here ten years and I bet I don’t know half of them. I doubt anyone does, not even Gregory. Chris likes his secrets.”
“Eccentric much?” Gabe muttered.
“Perhaps. But when you consider who his father is, taking extra precautions seems warranted. Given what’s happened, maybe he didn’t take enough.”
Her face clouded over again. It was a reminder that, unlike the rest of the staff, she showed genuine concern that her boss had gone missing.
“Have you considered the possibility that Christos left of his own free will?”
Gabe heard her swift intake of breath, but she didn’t immediately discount the idea. “Yes,” she said slowly, “I have considered it. For what it’s worth, I don’t think he did. Chris has his secrets, but I’d like to believe he would have told me if he’d planned something like this.”
She might want to believe that, but that didn’t make it true. She certainly wouldn’t be the first woman to expect more from a man than he was willing to give. Gabe’s ex-wives could attest to that. He’d been told often enough that he was “closed off” emotionally. They didn’t understand that not only could he not share information about where he’d been or what he’d done as part of his job, but that he didn’t want to. Hell, some of the shit he’d seen still gave him nightmares. Why would he ever want to put those images in someone else’s head, especially someone he cared for?
Virginia continued. “I’ve already gone through his things in the hopes of finding some clue, but so far, nothing. Maybe a fresh pair of eyes will help.”
They spent the next hour looking through the study, but didn’t uncover anything new. The lingering scent of lemon oil and the lack of dust suggested the place was kept clean in spite of Christos’s absence. If there had been any physical evidence, it was gone now. The question was, was that deliberate or just unfortunate?
Being in close physical proximity with her was proving to be more of a challenge than he’d thought. While they searched, Gabe kept his mind off of Virginia’s nicely toned curves and light, feminine scent by mentally reviewing everything he’d heard and learned so far, rearranging conversations and observances in his mind like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. The big picture was coming together, but too slowly for his taste. The longer Christos remained missing, the colder his trail became.
It was when he was running through an earlier conversation with Virginia that he remembered something that might prove important. “You said Christos received a package that morning. Do you know what he might have done with it?”
Virginia put her hands on her hips, her brows furrowed in concentration. “No. The last time I saw it, it was right here on the corner of his desk. It’s not here now, obviously.”
“Might he have taken it somewhere else?”
“Perhaps. It depends on what it was, who’d sent it, and what kind of mood he was in. His relationship with his father is complicated and mercurial. It’s completely possible he threw it away, or even burned it, without opening it.” They glanced toward the hearth, but it, too, had been swept clean.
“Are you certain the package came from Darius?”
“No,” she answered after a moment of thought. “I just assumed it was, because I saw the international post mark identifying it as having come from Greece. Now that I think about it, though, I don’t recall seeing a return address.”
“But everything goes through security?”
“Yes.” Her eyes brightened. “We could ask Sander. Maybe he knows.”
“One of my men is with him now.” Gabe pulled out his phone and sent Dawson a text. “Well, I think we’ve exhausted this room. Let’s check the others.”
She nodded, moving toward another bookcase and another secret panel mechanism.
The room they entered next was less formally ostentatious, but still screamed wealth and privilege. Large, comfortable looking sofas and chairs, a well-stocked bar, a billiards table, and foosball.
“This is Chris’s version of a man cave,” Virginia told him with the hint of a smile. “It’s a bit less old-world and more Americanized than some of the other areas.”
“How many rooms did you say were in his private suite?”
“Nine, if you count the private dining room. Besides the study we were just in and this room, there’s also a home theater, a gym, a sitting/dressing room, a bath, a small kitchenette, and of course, his private bedroom.”
Gabe whistled. “Like a house within a house.”
“Pretty much,” Virginia agreed. “Like I said, Chris is a very private man.”
There was private, and then there was paranoid. Then again, after meeting Daskalakis and some of the other staff, Gabe understood how Christos might have had every reason to watch his back.
“Who else has access to this area?”
“Gregory, of course. Sander. Oh, and Phyllis, for housekeeping purposes.”
“That’s it?”
“Yes, as far as I know.”
The other rooms were every bit as immaculately clean and well-kept as the study had been. Everything was in its place. Pristine. If not for the apartment-sized walk-in closet filled with men’s clothes and shoes, there was no indication that anyone actually occupied the space.
It felt unnatural. Gabe wasn’t exactly a slob, but there was no mistaking he lived in his place.
Fred did his part, sniffing around as they moved from room to room, but didn’t find anything of interest, either. By the time they’d finished, it was well past noon and Gabe had no greater insight into Christos’s disappearance, other than the guy had trust issues and kept a very tight inner circle, neither of which was particularly helpful.
That didn’t mean the morning had been a total waste of effort. He might not have made much headway into the investigation itself, but he was now better acquainted with Virginia Miller. As the morning had progressed, she had become less guarded, occasionally lowering her professional shields and providing glimpses of the woman behind the capable personal assistant.
So far, he liked what he’d seen. Whether that was a good thing or a bad thing was less clear. Having her on his side could prove extremely beneficial, but this increasing attraction to her could also become irksome if he didn’t get a better grasp on his control.
“I guess that was fruitless,” she said, sounding a bit defeated as she locked the door behind them.
“Not necessarily,” Gabe told her. “Sometimes what you don’t find is as important as what you do.”
“If you say so.”
“Seriously, you’ve been a tremendous help. I’m sorry to have imposed on your time so heavily.”
“I’ll let you in on a little secret, Commander. It wasn’t that much of an imposition.” At his questioning glance, she added, “I’m not quite as busy as I might have led you to believe. With Chris gone, things are in kind of a holding pattern. If there’s any way I can help, I’m glad to.”
“I’ll take you up on that.”
“Please do.” She looked at her watch. “I actually do have some things I need to take care of this afternoon, though
.”
Was it his imagination, or was that a flash of disappointment he saw in her eyes?
“That’s fine. I have more staff interviews anyway.”
“Right. Can I walk you somewhere?”
“Doubting my ability to find my way around now, Ms. Miller?” he teased.
She smirked back at him. “Not in the least, Commander. I’m just being polite.”
She leaned down to pet Fred, then walked away. Gabe took a moment to appreciate the view. He liked the way she stood tall and held her shoulders back. Liked the way her top clung loosely to her curves and the subtle sway of her feminine hips. But it was that little bit of sass he found really appealing. Beneath that soft-looking exterior was an inner strength and a streak of defiance that called to a part of him he’d mothballed a long time ago.
She disappeared around the corner, and his ability to reason returned. He sighed and walked in the opposite direction, quite sure the second half of his day wasn’t going to be nearly as pleasant as the first.
Chapter Twenty-One
Virginia
Virginia tapped her finger impatiently on her desk while she listened to a long-winded rant in Italian.
“Yes, I do understand he’s booked more than a year in advance,” she said, taking advantage of the momentary pause when the exclusive tailor’s assistant took a breath. “However, Mr. Kristikos is also a very busy man, and one of your best clients, I might add. If Signore Castavecchio is unable to reschedule, then I’m sure someone else will be able to accommodate . . . Yes, yes, of course . . . Excellent . . . Grazie, Tomas.”
She stabbed the button to disconnect the call and rubbed at a spot between her eyes in an attempt to stem the dull ache that had taken up residence there. Taking a deep, mindful breath, she focused on a butterfly dancing across her small terrace, eventually landing on one of the cascading flower baskets she kept. Maybe she’d take a few extra minutes in the solarium today. Daily yoga and meditation not only alleviated her aches and pains, it also allowed her to re-center and focus on what was really important.
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