Chapter 262 Message
Galdino's P.O.V.
"Wow, I wasn't expecting so many greeters," he says as he hugs Rain lightly.
"Nikolas, can I talk to you briefly before you leave with Rain and Luka?" I ask him as I shake his hand.
"Sure. Does it need to be private?" he asks.
"Only semi-private. Rain and Luka, you are welcome to join us; I'm sure Dakota is going to let you know soon enough, anyway." I lead everyone to the family room.
"What's going on?" Nikolas asks.
"I just found out that someone claiming to be my brother had my dad killed. Did my dad ever mention anything to you, or did you hear anyone else say anything about my dad having another child?" Everyone looks surprised, and then Nikolas' eyes narrow.
"A few years before Santino died, a man came to see me, claiming to be Santino's son. I was not in the country at the time, and he refused to share any of his information with my staff. He never came back. I had forgotten about it until now." I sit in one of the chairs, and Valentina sits on its arm and rubs my back.
"Dakota believes Raul, who is here with Arkadi, is the man claiming to be my brother." I leave out the part about Raul being Arkadi's boyfriend because I'm not going to spread that information around, knowing how some people feel about homosexuality.
"I haven't met Raul. Is he Italian?" Nikolas asks.
"Yes," I reply.
"That's interesting. What does he do for Arkadi?" I glance at the others, wondering if I should be honest. Nikolas chuckles lightly and shakes his head.
"He must be the man Arkadi has pretended doesn't exist. He should know by now that I know all of his secrets. How are you going to find out if he's the one claiming to be your brother?" he asks.
"Dakota is having Noah look into him to find out everything he can, and then we're going to have a talk with him. He and Arkadi are staying in the guest house. She was the one who figured out it was him. Dakota had a dream that she was missing something right in front of her, and she heard someone laughing. When we were talking, she heard Raul laugh outside and connected the dots. I honestly don't think anyone other than her could have put it together so quickly." Everyone nods in agreement.
"She is quite a remarkable woman. Let's go to the office and see what they found. You don't mind going to the city a little later, do you?" Nikolas asks Rain and Luka.
"We don't mind," Rain says as we leave the family room and return to the office. When we walk in, Dakota and Ari look up from something Noah is showing them on the laptop. She glances at Nikolas and then at me. I nod, letting her know he already knows about Arkadi and Raul's relationship.
"Did you find anything?" I ask them.
"Maybe. Noah was able to trace Raul back for thirty years. It's almost as if he emerged from nowhere, which means Raul is probably not his real name. He's used this identity all over the world, but has mostly been in Russia. I'm assuming it's because he started his relationship with Arkadi. We haven't found anything about who he was before he was Raul." Dakota sighs and goes to the window that overlooks the guest house.
"Do you want to talk to him now?" She looks at me and nods.
"Yes. I hope I'm wrong about this. I feel so bad for Arkadi. He really loves Raul." Valentina, Nikolas, and I follow Dakota and Ari out of the office. Everyone else stays behind.
We go outside and walk to the guest house. I notice the front door is slightly open, and the others notice as well. Dakota pulls out her knife while Nikolas, Ari, and I pull out our guns. I have Valentina stand behind me as we get closer. Dakota slowly pushes the door open, and we follow her inside.
There's no one at the entry or in the rooms near the front of the house. As we make our way further inside, the house is eerily quiet. When we reach the kitchen, Dakota gasps. Arkadi is lying on the floor with a knife sticking out of his abdomen. Dakota and Valentina run to his side while the rest of us continue searching the house. It's empty. Which means Raul is gone.
"He's alive. Call an ambulance," Dakota says as she puts a towel that Valentina hands her around the knife sticking out of his abdomen, being careful not to pull it out. Ari takes out his phone and calls 911.
"The kids. Get the kids," Arkadi whispers as he struggles to keep his eyes open.
"What kids?" Dakota asks.
"Enzo and Addy. Raul went to get the kids. Stop him." Arkadi passes out, and Valentina and I run to the main house. When we reach Enzo's room, Valentina screams. He and Addy are gone, and written on the wall in what looks like blood is a message.
If you want the kids, give me what is mine.