Chapter 27 27

Chapter 27 27
Chapter 27 – Lost & Found

I found a parking space a few cars away from where Ninos had parked earlier. Ninos and Giota walked towards me, arms ladened with shopping bags. I moved to the rear of the Range Rover and opened the back for them. The windows were tinted dark, and no one would be able to see the bags.
“Great timing, my car is already stocked full,” Ninos laughed. “Your mate sure knows how to shop.”
“And where is my beautiful mate?”
“She’s in the shoe store, picking out a few more shoes for Thea.” “Excellent, we should get lunch after.”
“That’s what I’ve been saying for nearly an hour now,” Ninos said as he stuffed the last bag into the back of my car.
We weaved our way through the crowded sidewalk of shoppers. Giota pointed to a shoe store on the other side of the street, and we stepped out to cross. Jaywalking was more of an unspoken rule when it came to crossing a street in Athens. Sure the humans had a law against it, but everyone does it and no one enforces it.
We entered the shoe store and Thea was seated in the corner, holding Kronos with Alina smiling next to her. Kronos looked perfectly content, purring away, and I suspected he had fully recovered from the shock of being flung across the room. My mate was with the cashier, paying for whatever was in the four bags with the card I had given her. Ninos reached for the bags and carried them for her.
“She’s taking care of her pack,” Haze hummed in approval.

“Hades is ready for lunch too. There’s a great taverna in the little square down the street,” Ninos eagerly suggested.
“Are we still going to get Kronos his toy?” Thea asked my mate as Alina slipped him back into his tote bag.
Odessa assured Thea that we were still going to get Kronos something special after lunch. Ninos and Giota held hands while walking in front of us. Alina held Thea’s hand and Thea maintained a close watch on Kronos, who kept his head poked out of the bag. My fingers were entwined with Odessa’s and we strolled behind the others.
“Any luck with Doctor Evros?” She asked.
“Actually, I did get a lead. Would you believe Doctor Evros has a sister who’s also a pack doctor and he could be staying with her?” My lip curled up in a bitter side smile. “I’ll give you two guesses which pack that could be.”
A small gasp slipped from her lips as she formed a conclusion. “At my pack!”
“Sweetheart, this is your pack now. But yes, I believe your brother might know where our missing doctor is.”
“We need to call him.”
“We will, but I’d like to have lunch first.” I pulled her hand to my lips and kissed it.
“Can’t put it off forever,” Haze yammered.
“How’s Alina been, she seems a little detached?” I asked through the mind link.
“A little sad, of course. She thinks Kazimir is in love with someone else,” Odessa told me. “Some beauty queen she saw in Cyprus.”
“Does she know how mates work?”

“Yes. Giota told me Alina asked her a lot of questions. I can’t begin to imagine how hard this must all be for her. It’s like jumping into the deep end of the swimming pool to learn how to swim.”
“Think she’ll reject him?”
“I’m not sure she knows about that part, but her wolf, Anna, is smitten with Kuzma already.”
We reached the square and Alina walked to a street vendor selling fresh fruit. She looked like a child in a candy store. I imagine fresh fruits and vegetables weren’t something so readily available to the poor in Russia. The harsh climate in the larger parts of Russia would have limited what could be grown and the quantity that had to be imported.
“Alina, you can have anything you want.” I handed her money and watched as she and Thea selected strawberries, bananas, grapes, and an assortment of other fruits.
We decided to have lunch in the outdoor seating area of the taverna because of Kronos. Alina ordered the fish for lunch, and I was certain I knew why. The square was bustling with vendors, artists, and musicians. Some of the musicians standing a few feet away from us held stringed instruments and started playing. The slow opening of the most well-known sirtaki melody filled the air.
“Zorba!” Ninos called out, recognizing the song and joining a few people in the square for a sirtaki dance.
He stretched his arms out wide and moved his legs in a rhythmic languid dance. The music started picking up pace and the dancers linked arms as more people joined in. Ninos had spent several years growing up in the streets of Athens and had more exposure to the culture than I had. The onlookers clapped along with the music and Kronos looked anxious at the sudden burst of merriment.
“I need to go,” Thea wiggled needing the restroom.

“I think there’s one inside. I’ll take you,” Alina offered and lifted the tote with Kronos. No doubt hoping to escape the noise and calm the cat.
“Do you dance?” Odessa asked Giota.
“I never really had the chance, but Ninos is great!” She told my mate who also joined the dancing as the tempo of the music picked up to a faster speed.
I sat alone with Giota for a few moments watching our mates dance. “We’re going to have to learn if we want to keep up with them,” I chuckled.
I watched in fascination as they bounced in unison, legs moving, hips twisting. A large circle was formed, and they continued dancing with linked arms. I tried not to ogle my mate's breasts as they rhythmically bounced but I couldn’t help myself. I suddenly had a strong urge to see her in nipple clamps.
The sound of applause tore me from my fantasy and people dropped tips in the bucket near the musicians. I paid the waiter and we remained seated at the table, waiting for Alina and Thea. A phone started ringing and Odessa retrieved her phone.
“It’s my brother,” she said and answered it. I was trying to tap into her thoughts when she pulled the phone away from her ear and held it out to me. She had a shocked look on her face.
“He wants to speak with you,” she swallowed hard.
“He knows,” Haze rumbled, ready to fight for his mate. I held the phone to my ear. “Hades!”
“Dimitri.”
“You returned to Athens?” He questioned.
“How do you know?” No sooner than I spoke those words, I remembered the motorcycle. “You’ve had someone following me on a

motorcycle.”
“Is it Niko or Alec?” Odessa demanded.
“I assume you’re not calling to congratulate me on this perfect union.” I felt my anger flare and Odessa placed her hand on my thigh to help calm me.
“Oh we’ll have plenty of time for that later,” he withheld his growl. “I’m looking for our pack doctor.”
“Doctor Evros?”
“Yes. I know his sister is your pack doctor.”
“I may know where to find him,” Dimitri grumbled and I could hear his mate saying something to him.
“Why is your man following us?” “To keep my sister safe!”
“She’s my mate! I’m capable of keeping her safe.” I took another deep breath and let her scent wash over me.
“Then why have you returned to Athens? The city has been crawling with Russians the last two days and I’m not talking about tourists!”
“What?”
“Get out of Athens!” He barked.
“Fuck! We’re leaving now.” I disconnected the phone and motioned for the others to hurry.
“Alina and Thea are still in the restroom,” Giota reminded us as she grabbed the shopping bags beside her.

I motioned for Ninos to go retrieve them quickly. If Kronos got into any mischief I swear I’m going to leave him here. Thea was going to be disappointed not getting him a toy, but I’d make it up to her. A few more minutes passed, and it seemed like an eternity. I knew the line for the restroom could be long at places like this in a busy square, but it was a little too long.
“They’re not here,” Ninos said looking alarmed. “Is there another restroom in there?”
“No, but there is another set of doors leading out to the street on the other side.”
We hurried through the taverna and reached the other street. I recognized a small shoe on the edge of the street curb. It was Thea’s new shoe. Someone had taken her and Alina.
“Is that Thea’s shoe?” Ninos asked and Giota let out a sob.
“We need to get out of there. The city is crawling with Russians,” I pushed down the urge to break something. How could we have missed it?
“What about Alina?” Odessa asked.
“They were probably after her.” At least for Kazimir’s sake, I hoped it was the case because if Alina was working with the Russians, I won’t hesitate to kill her myself.
“Calm down,” Odessa’s voice came through the mind link. “Even if Alina is working with the Russian what reason would she have to take an orphaned girl with her?”
“How the hell am I going to explain this to Kazimir?” I ran my fingers through my hair, desperately wanting to kick something. He trusted me to take care of his mate, to keep her safe. I was the damn Alpha, it was my job to keep them safe.

“Let’s get back to the cars, we’re not going to find them here,” Odessa said as Giota’s crying became more frantic.
“We’ll find them, I promise,” I tried to reassure her.
We rushed back to the cars, Ninos helped buckle his inconsolable mate in the passenger seat. Odessa demanded my keys and insisted on driving us back. Haze was snarling with anger, and I was too distracted thinking about all the possibilities. Odessa shot off like a race car driver chasing a need for speed. When we finally made it out of the city and the long stretch of road opened up ahead of us, she pressed her foot down on the gas.
“Don’t they have speed limits here?”
“Merely suggestions, in Greece it’s a matter of national pride to ignore the limits. Now, tell me all about these Russians and why they want Alina?”
“I’m not really sure. I already explained our history to you. I’m not sure if Alina is just a loose asset the Russians are trying to recover or if it has something to do with her being Kazimir’s mate. Our work is pretty much untraceable, and we maintained low profiles. We never spent enough time in any country to really make connections and we mostly lived in the human world. Everything was fine until Alina came along.”
“So you never intended to return to the Moon Warriors?” She asked with a hint of disappointment.
“No, I never wanted my father’s pack because it was his pack. Then I met the Vampire King who changed my mind.” I continued and explained what happened the night I felt the family bond break with my father and what the vampire told me.
“The same vampire who saved my mother! The world is too small.” “You have no idea!” I said bitterly.
The phone buzzed again and this time I reached for Odessa’s phone. I held it up and showed her the screen, it was her brother. She nodded her

head and I answered on speaker.
“You seem to have lost more than just your Doctor!” Dimitri’s angry voice came through.
“What are you talking about?” Odessa asked adamantly.
“Alec saw your blond friend and the kid get into a car at the restaurant. He followed them to the airport where they boarded a private jet. The kid tried to run but they carried her into the plane.” Rage consumed me and Haze howled, if they hurt Thea, I’d burn down all of Moscow.
“Anything else?” I asked.
“Yes. I have your pack doctor and I’m on my way to your pack with him. I’ll see you both in an hour.” He disconnected the phone.
As if I didn’t have enough to deal with already, I was going to have to deal with my mate’s brother now. What excellent timing.
“Relax, he’s my brother and you’re my mate. Like it or not, we’re family now.”
“On second thought, it might be good to have him there. Someone will need to take care of you when Kazimir kills me for losing his mate.”
“Can Kazimir call his family to help recover them? They could be at the airport before the jet even lands.”
“Russia is the biggest country in the world. We don’t know if they’re going to Moscow, even if they did, Moscow has several airports. Kazimir has four brothers, any one of them could be behind it.”
“His own brothers?”
“I’m not ruling anything out at this point,” I told her. Not even Alina being involved.

An hour later, Orions’ voice came through the mind link as we neared pack territory. A helicopter was hovering overhead, preparing to land in the large grassy field behind the pack house.
“I’m expecting Alpha Theodorus and Doctor Evros,” I let Orion know. “The Beast of Greece?” He asked.
“Also your Luna’s brother,” I reminded him.
We reached the pack house and quickly rushed inside. I followed the scents down the long hall to the Alpha office. Alpha Dimitri, Luna Raven, and Doctor Evros were in the office waiting for us.
“Dessa!” He called out to her, and she embraced him.
“Dessa?” Haze let out a low whine hearing someone else call her by a pet name.
Alpha Dimitri took one whiff of her and knew we had completed the mating bond. His eyes locked on me, but he wasn’t looking at me, he was looking at my neck. At her claim mark. His eyes lifted and held mine. I was not going to apologize for wanting my mate and there was nothing he could do now. Hurting me would mean hurting his sister and he knew it.
Ninos and Giota entered the office, and her eyes were swollen from crying. She had probably cried the whole way here. Thea was like a daughter to her. “Ninos please pour my sister some water.”
“Sister?” Dimitri questioned. “Where’s Alina?” Kazimir asked.
“We need to get Thea back!” Giota cried. “Who’s Thea?” Raven asked.
“What happened to Thea?” Kazimir’s cool face flashed with concern.

“The Russians,” Odessa stifled a crack in her voice, trying to remain strong.
“Russians! What happened?” Kazimir stood with his fists clenched. “Should we step out and give them some privacy?” Raven asked. “No way, this is just getting good,” Dimitri whispered to her.
“Just shoot me now,” I muttered to Haze.
“We were having lunch when Alina, Thea, and Kronos went inside the restaurant to use the restroom. There was another set of doors we didn’t know about, and they left the restaurant with some men we believe to be Russian. Alpha Dimitri’s Gamma was tailing us on a motorcycle and noticed them leaving. He followed them to the airport and saw them leave on a private jet.”
“They took Alina and Thea!” Kazimir gritted his teeth. “Who’s Kronos?” Raven inquired.
“The cat,” Odessa told her. “Alina is Kazimir’s mate and Thea is an orphaned pup who’s almost five.”
“Who the hell takes a pup?” Dimitri growled.
“Do you know who’s behind this? Humans or shifters?” Raven asked. “I’m fairly certain it’s humans. Possibly Alina’s human uncle, Yuri. She
didn’t know anything about werewolves until a few nights ago. She was raised in complete ignorance as a poor human orphan.”
“Your father is Alpha Volkov, is he not?” Dimitri asked Kazimir. “He is,” Kazimir answered.
“He’s the strongest Alpha in Russia, and probably more powerful than the President. Can’t you call him?” Dimitri asked.

“My father is much like yours, Alpha. He’s also the head of the Russian Bratva. The only difference is his wolf is not insane, but his human side might as well be. I’m the youngest of five sons and I’m disposable to him.”
“Fuck, is there anyone in this room, besides my mate, who had decent parents?” Dimitri growled.