Doukas by Demetra Georgiou

Chapter 16

 

“You’ll have to draw me that map after all,” I tell Doukas as we leave his rooms to join the others.

I might be here a lot, but this house is really vast. Doukas at one time gave me an extensive tour, but that’s failed miserably to orient me. The grounds are magnificent, with long stretches of grass and well-tended gardens. I’d love to see them in spring when they’ll have fully blossomed.

As he’s informed me, the main house is actually an expansion from an old structure. When the twins were born, Nicholaos Tremes added to the original house. There are five stories, and each Lord and Harmonia share half a floor.

Today, Doukas decided to take a shortcut, and it’s like I’m in a different part of the house. I don’t know what’s more magnificent, the paintings on the wall to my right, or the beautiful view of the garden and the mountain outside the series of windows to my left.

“I told you, baby. If you get lost, just scream. There’s always someone close by.”

I smile at his carefree profile. “I prefer to scream when you’re inside me.”

I’m a brazen hussy and love every minute of it.

“God, Ria,” he groans and backs me to the nearest window overlooking the garden. He brings his mouth to mine, and once again, I have some trouble following his rhythm. My favorite kind of trouble.

“I have to give you some time to recover. You haven’t eaten, and you had a shock. Please don’t make it more difficult, my love.”

Raising my hand, I touch his beautiful face.

My love.

“I love you, Doukas.”

Something tells me that I will never get enough of him.

“I love you, my Ria.”

Taking my hand again, he leads me through a door, and we’re suddenly under the massive staircase on the right, close to the hall.

“This house is a maze.”

Doukas chuckles. “I find that in a house where everyone can wield a gun, having your space is mandatory.”

“You have a point there.”

“Coming through,” Giorgos calls out from behind and rushes past us.

I look at Doukas questioningly, but he just shrugs his shoulders. The Tremes family is a rather amusing bunch, and I know that what I’m about to encounter will be thoroughly entertaining.

“Get away from me,” Harmonia screeches the moment we enter the kitchen.

Her back is turned to us, and Alcaeus and the twins are around her. She’s sitting on top of the kitchen island, holding a wooden spoon in her hand. I wonder where Victoras is. It’s so unlike him not to be close to his sister.

“Are we having a party?” Doukas asks, and everyone turns to us.

I gasp at the sight of Harmonia, and she grimaces as she tries to smile.

“You have exactly two seconds to tell me what happened to my sister.” Doukas raises his voice at his brothers.

I don’t think I’ve heard him that mad before. Even the night he confronted Fanaris, he seemed calmer. I can understand why.

Harmonia is sporting one angry bruise under her right eye, and her nose is red and swollen. It’s as if someone punched her in the face repeatedly.

“I bumped into a streetlamp,” she mumbles, twirling the spoon in her hand.

I go to her and remove a fallen tendril off her face. I smile at her. “What happened?”

“What happened is not important. The thing is that those four are useless. Giorgos wants to give me a tetanus shot, Alcaeus refuses to call the doctor, Victoras is looking for something to feed me, and Icarus…well, Icarus is being himself. I never know what he’s doing.”

“So, I’m your only hope?” Doukas asks, amused.

“Yeah, where has the world come to?”

I laugh at their repartee. I find it exceptional that hardly anything brings them down. Despite their different character, all the siblings rush to each other’s aid, bringing their own.

“Yes, but you’ve scratched yourself,” I reason. Perhaps the whole situation needs a feminine touch. “If it was on a streetlamp, then you need the shot. They’re made of metal, and sometimes rust has accumulated on them from the rain. As for the food, I’d like to cook for you tonight if that’s all right.”

“What are we eating?” Alcaeus pipes in.

“It’s a surprise,” I say and note that the girl with the streetlamp incident is getting ready to make a run for it. “Why don’t you want a tetanus shot, Miss Harmonia?”

The fact that she openly glares at me doesn’t go unnoticed. “Open your eyes, Ria. Giorgos is holding the damn syringe. The man is an ox. He’ll just stab the needle, hoping for the best. Also, I’m pretty sure I had a tetanus shot four years ago, so I’m good.”

“I think you might be right about this,” I admit, racking my brains to think.

Doukas nears his sister, inspecting her closer. “How did it happen, Harmonia? You jumped from a roof and didn’t get as much as a scratch.”

On the first night I stayed here, I remember her telling me that they all know first-aid. I’m glad that she doesn’t require any stitches because I don’t think I can handle Doukas pulling out a needle and stitching her. I might know first-aid, but I draw the line at needles.

“Yes, Harmonia. Do tell your big brother how it happened.” Icarus crosses his arms, arching a brow at his sister.

Harmonia narrows her eyes at him a minute before her lips twitch as she lowers her head. “Icarus pushed me, Doukas. I told him that I thought you were the bravest man alive, and he got angry.”

No one breathes for a long, agonizing second. Icarus never struck me as vindictive, more of an impulsive guy. On the contrary, his twin always seems to be serious and unyielding. Not angry, but he doesn’t smile often. When he finds something amusing, his lips just twitch, and that was it.

Doukas bursts out laughing, and Harmonia follows suit. “Nice try. How many times do I have to tell you? Always maintain eye contact. It’s good for business, and it could have worked here as well.”

Not your average brother-sister talk.

“It’s hard to look people in the eyes when you want to laugh your heart out. Anyway, it’s Icarus’ fault, but not how I said it. When you left us, we were walking to the front of Ria’s taverna to meet Giorgos. Icarus saw a black car and claimed it belonged to Rigas Pechlivanos.”

“The car is Rigas Pechlivanos’s, but I never said the man himself was inside,” Icarus says, glaring at his sister’s back.

Harmonia snorts and wordlessly brings her fingers to her injured face. Icarus nods at his twin conspiringly, just as Alcaeus opens the cap of an antiseptic or alcohol bottle—can’t be sure—and looks first at one and then his other brother. Are they going to…?

“Now!” Alcaeus yells.

It happens so fast that I’m stunned to immobility. Icarus cups his sister’s shoulders and brings her back flat on the counter while Alcaeus squirts some alcohol on her arm—possibly to disinfect the area—before securing her kicking legs. Harmonia’s fears are realized as Giorgos slams the needle into her upper arm.

To be honest, I expected screaming and crying. I would definitely do all of these. To my surprise, when they eventually let her up, all she does is glare at all three of them.

It must be the shock.

“Are you all right?” I whisper as I go to her.

She doesn’t say anything, only grunts as I help her from the counter. “Can you do me a favor, Ria?” she asks in a low voice, wiping under her eyes.

“Of course, anything.”

“Can you stand next to Doukas?” Her voice is barely audible, but I decide to humor her.

Clasping the counter, she takes deep breaths. The three culprits remain where they are, looking smug. All of a sudden, Harmonia clasps the counter and twists her body, bringing her foot towards Alcaeus’s face. Before her kick connects with his face, he catches her foot mid-air.

“I’m not going to fall for that again,” he growls at her.

“Perhaps not you,” she answers breathlessly. The next instant, she brings her other foot up and kicks Giorgos in the nose before gyrating her body and hitting Icarus on the side of his neck.

It’s hard to believe that she can move with such speed and efficiency. She practically uses Alcaeus as a clutch to attack the other two. And to think that when she drew up her guns in my taverna earlier, I thought she was showing off. This girl is a menace.

“Now what?” Alcaeus sniggers, still holding his sister’s foot.

“Now you’ll learn that I don’t fool around with the utensils,” she says and lifts the discarded wooden spoon from the counter and slams it hard to his groin.

“I brought some frozen...what the hell is going on?” Victoras demands as he comes out of the pantry and takes in the scene before him.

Giorgos applies pressure on his bleeding nose, while Icarus glares at his sister, rubbing his neck. In the center of the room, Alcaeus is doubled over, grunting and holding his groin.

“Where were you? They gave me the shot.” Harmonia takes the packet of frozen peas from Victoras and passes it to Alcaeus. “In all probability, only Doukas, you, and I will continue the line. Alcaeus’s chances just diminished, and if the world is lucky or they attempt something like that again, then the twins won’t procreate either.”

“I think I’m in shock,” I admit.

“Oh, but to the Tremes’s household, this is just a regular day.” Doukas chuckles close to my ear, rubbing my arms.

“Did you see what she just did?”

I feel that if I blink, something will happen, and I’ll miss it.

“Yes, she’s been doing martial arts for years,” Doukas explains.

“Unfathomable.”

“Now you see why I felt somewhat relaxed when Harmonia was with you at the taverna.”

No shit.

“Aww, do you really mean that?” Harmonia says as she hands Giorgos a dishtowel full of ice cubes.

“Beggars can’t be choosers,” Doukas murmurs.

I want to tell him to stop provoking her. I’m grateful his sister was with me. Absently, I wonder if she’s ever attacked Doukas. Alcaeus and the twins seemed to toy with her, but I believe that Doukas wouldn’t act that way.

Harmonia snorts as she passes a bottle to Icarus and hops on the counter again. “I would love to see you do better,” she says.

“The plan was faultless,” Doukas seethes, leading me to the kitchen island next to a groaning Alcaeus.

“The plan was stupid,” Harmonia counters.

“It was my plan, and we all agreed,” Icarus pipes in.

Harmonia sniggers. “I might have known. We have to thank God that Fanaris’s men are stupid, then.”

Doukas sits next to me, taking his hand in mine. “Don’t blame us for your fuck-ups. No one told you to jump off the roof. If anyone had gotten out of that window, you’d have started shooting them, and that would’ve been our cue to bring down the pantry door.”

“Hm, I see. And what if they had a grenade?”

“A what?”

“A grenade, you idiots. I’ve seen you pack at least one grenade when you go for…errands. Well, if I were in their shoes and I was cornered, the first thing I’d do was to throw a grenade on the roof. Would go out with a real bang.”

All the Tremes brothers stop and look at their sister, who seems smug.

Harmonia picks up an apple from a bowl and wipes it on her shirt. “You know what, Ria? With everything going on here, I’m getting rather hungry. Is your offer to cook for us back on?”

 

 

“I think I’m going to die,” Icarus whines, sprawled on the sofa next to his sister.

“For as long as I live, Ria, I’m not going to forget today’s lunch,” Alcaeus says, and he picks up a slice of apple dipped in white wine.

It shouldn’t surprise me anymore, but it does. Alcaeus has a healthy appetite, closely followed by Giorgos. Those two are still going strong while the others have long since forfeited.

“It was nothing, just some lamb in the oven with herbs and spices.”

“And tzatziki, fried bread with feta cheese, aubergine salad. All from scratch,” Alcaeus says, patting his stomach. “You’re an excellent cook. I give you my seal of approval.”

“I’m honored,” I say, shaking my head.

He sniffs. “You should be. Everyone says that wherever Alcaeus Tremes eats, the food is excellent.”

“No one says that,” Harmonia says with a giggle.

“You’d be surprised,” Alcaeus says with a devilish grin.

Preparing a meal for Doukas’s siblings reminded me why I love cooking so much. Everyone ate their servings, and some of them asked for seconds. Doukas kept staring at me with a peculiar expression and never left my side. I loved having him with me. I feel like however much we talk, it's never enough.

The moments he stood behind me while I checked the pots with just his palm splayed on my stomach were priceless. I don’t think I will be able to cook another meal again without picturing him behind me, kissing and touching me.

Naturally, Harmonia didn’t eat much even though she sat next to Victoras, but I noted that Doukas didn’t eat much either.

“Didn’t you like it?” I ask as I pick up the plates.

“Of course I liked it, Ria,” he says and puts a hand to stop me. “Leave it. You cooked. We’ll clean up.”

“I don’t mind. If you liked it, then why didn’t you eat?”

“Because I’m…full. I only feel replenished at the thought that you’re in my life. I don’t care much about cooking but standing next to you today was all I wanted.”

“You have to eat, Doukas. If what they’re saying is right and the best way to a man’s heart is through his stomach, then I want you full. Always.”

He chuckles at that and closes his arms around me. Soon enough, our sweet kiss has me panting for breath.

“I’ll have to leave for a few hours, but I want you to stay here. Actually, would you mind staying over for a couple of days?”

“Why?”

He’s never asked something like that from me before.

“Because our patience is over, Ria. The Royals forbade us to kill Fanaris but said nothing about striking him where it hurts.”

“Won’t there be…I don’t know, repercussions?”

“We are the repercussions. We’ve made it clear that your place is out of bounds, and not only has he disrespected our direct order, but he killed three of our men and opened fire on you and my sister.”

“I get it, Doukas, I really do. But what if something happens to you or your brothers because of me? How could I ever live with that? When I’m with you, I feel like I’m breathing. I don’t want to lose you.”

“Nothing will ever keep us apart, Ria.”

 

 

“So, let me get this straight. You can attack three grown men, jump off a roof and fire with precision, but when you have your period, you’re crippled by the pain?”

“Exactly…” Harmonia murmurs.

It’s been a while since the others left, and since I was in dire need to get my mind off things, I went in search of Harmonia.

Naturally, I got lost, so I called her, and she directed me to her rooms on the second floor. Harmonia’s rooms are bigger than Doukas’s and way girly. Where Doukas surrounds himself with brown and deep blue tones, Harmonia is all white and rose gold.

I found her on her sitting room sofa overlooking the pool, clutching a hot water bottle and looking miserable. I’m one of the lucky ones that don’t have as much as a tingle during my period, but I don’t understand why I can’t do something for Harmonia. She’s taken some painkillers, but that brought her some serious nausea.

So, I decide to sit with her in case she needs anything. As I cover her with the throw blanket, a book falls at my feet. A regency romance? I can’t remember the last time I read one. Smiling, I make myself comfortable on the armchair opposite her and start on page one, hoping my reading will bring Harmonia some solace.

“The morning dew was not so unbearable anymore. Spring would be soon upon them, but as Miss Norton’s step quickened, she doubted she would be able to shake off the eternal winter from her heart…”

Reading to her really draws me in. It’s such a rare luxury for me to sit down in utter silence with a book in my hands. Harmonia’s breathing soon evens out, but I don’t stop. Surprisingly, the sound of my voice is quite soothing, even to me.

At some point, I must have drifted off, and I’m jolted awake when someone picks me up.

“It’s me,” Doukas whispers and sits down with me in his arms.

I don’t know how long I stay there, basking in his scent, but when I open my eyes, I gasp in shock.

Harmonia is still sleeping peacefully on the sofa, with her injured face appearing to be more purple now. Alcaeus is sitting by her feet, and all the others are around us on the couch and armchairs. Their suit jackets are discarded, while Icarus’ white shirt is bloody. The light from the fireplace dances along with the shadows in the room. Even with their eyes closed, they seem beyond exhausted.

A crippling thought comes to mind. I burrow my head deeper into Doukas’s arms to reassure myself he’s still here with me.

Why do they think I’m worth all that trouble?

All the people in this room suffer because of me. They might joke, trying to make me feel at ease, but at the end of the day, it isn’t worth putting them in danger to keep a silly girl’s dream alive. I can make something new. Surely grandpa or dad wouldn’t want me to put my and others’ lives on the line.

“How are you?” Victoras asks next to me.

His voice startles me, and I lean back, but Doukas tightens his arms around me, and I sigh in relief. “This… I can’t do this anymore. What if tonight one of you was hurt or worse?” I try to whisper back, but I’m soon overcome with emotion.

Victoras smiles, and his austere features relax considerably. In moments like this, I can picture the boy who looked after his baby sister all those years ago.

“We stand up for our own, Ria.”

“That’s what Harmonia said.”

“She’s right, Doukas has made it clear—”

Victoras never finishes his sentence. A phone buzzes on the coffee table, and everyone moves so rapidly that I have trouble grasping what’s going on. In a moment, every Lord has their guns drawn.

Harmonia sits up just as Giorgos passes her a switchblade. Alcaeus looks at us before he finally picks up the phone.

“Yes,” he says, and his brows knit together as he listens intently.

I can’t hear the person on the other line, but from the frown on Alcaeus’s face, it can’t be good.

“Understood,” is all he says and ends the call, sitting down once again.

“Gentlemen, we’re called to present ourselves before the Royals.”

Harmonia springs into action, throwing her blanket away. “Great, I won’t be a minute.”

 

 

“Can you believe they left us behind?” Harmonia huffs as she puts a huge dollop of ice cream in her mouth.

I don’t know if her brothers are aware, but this girl can live off on ice cream alone. This is her second tub, and she’s going strong at it.

“Can I ask you something?” I start, and she nods. Her blue eyes—the same as Doukas’s—look at me with so much faith that I almost cower. “When we were in my taverna and you—you know—drew those guns? Were you ready to kill?”

“Yes,” she answers without hesitation. “If it comes to protecting myself or the people I care about, Ria, I won’t hesitate.”

“Have you ever…?”

“Killed? No. But I can still die from a gun, so if it’s either them or me, I’ll side with me.”

“But is it really worth it, risking your life? Now your brothers are going to face the Royals.”

“Family is our axis. Whether it’s by blood or choice, the people you call your own matter. The Royals know that.”

“I just hope Doukas and the others will be back safe,” I mumble, twirling my spoon into my bowl.

Shortly after the telephone, Doukas and his brothers changed into expensive suits and left the house. A feeling of foreboding has consumed me ever since, and I can’t bear it. I feel sick to my stomach only by the thought that Doukas might not be coming back.

Doukas’s parting words play into my mind as he gets in his silver Mercedes and disappears down the long driveway.

 

“If I’m not back by morning, go to Harmonia. She’ll give you money and arrange for both of you to leave the country.”

“Please, Doukas, don’t talk like that.” I sob into his chest. “I don’t want to live without you.”

“Shh, my darling, don’t say that. You’re more important than anything there is. Promise me you’ll be okay.”

I shake my head, refusing to do so because I think that if I do, I might not see him again.

Doukas’s mouth comes down to mine, and I clutch the lapels of his jacket in a vain attempt to keep him here with me.

“No matter what happens, Ria, I regret nothing. If I had a hundred lives, I’d do it over and over again.”

I kiss him with all the fervor I’m capable of until a sob bubbles up from inside me, and I break off our connection.

“Come back to me, Doukas,” I plead, and he just nods once before he becomes one with the night.

 

Harmonia’s phone pings, and I spring up.

“Doukas?” she asks and smiles at me. “She’s here. We’re all right. Sure,” she says and hands me the phone.

“Ria?” His husky voice comes from the other side of the phone, and I feel my heart start to beat again.

“Is everything okay?”

“It will be. I just wanted to speak to you in case you were worried. Your phone is dead, by the way.”

“I’m sick with worry, Doukas,” I admit, and that’s the absolute truth. As for my phone, I haven’t the slightest idea where it is.

Ever since he left for Fanaris’s club, I’ve felt rather queasy. No doubt my nerves are getting the best of me, and I can’t focus on anything else but Doukas.

“I thought as much. I’m coming to you, baby.”