Page 22 of Winds of War

A reassuring smile on his lips, Seamus caressed the boy's dark-blond strands, then disentangled from the embrace and left the room. He intended to use the time left until lunch to take a walk around Montemayor's huge mansion to map the surroundings and count the guards. Although the Mexican wasn't suspicious, things could change at any moment, and Seamus wanted to be prepared in case things went downhill.

Meanwhile, Van was pacing around the room he and Spyros shared, staring at the screen of his phone. Lauren Briggs, the only woman he ever loved, sent a message, asking him to meet her after lunch, and for the first time in many years, he didn't know what to do. He didn't feel anything for the current Lauren, who was nothing like the one he’d madly fell in love with nineteen years earlier.

Still, Van considered going to meet her, even if only to give them both the closure they deserve after almost eighteen years of silence on his part. The man also wanted to know if the woman he loved and Lucas's, or better said Ira's mother, was the same person, and if so, find out how she could sell her own son to that disgusting piece of shit who shattered his soul.

From behind the paper he was pretending to read, Spyros was studying Van, wondering what had made him so agitated. The man had changed a lot since the three of them arrived at Montemayor's mansion, and Spyros couldn't figure out what was the cause. While Van maintained his composure and “professional attitude” in the company of Seamus, Montemayor, and those working for the Mexican, he was often melancholic when no one was around.

Every time that happened, Van looked vulnerable and lost, Spyros's heart aching at the sight. A few times, he fought hard against the urge to go and hug the man, rock him back and forth, kiss his temple, and tell him everything was going to be all right. Spyros was afraid Van would reject him, considering it as another prank or way of mocking him.

I would completely understand if he reacted like that after all the shit I piled on him, all the pushing into the wall and insults. I was an immature asshole, Spyros sighed inwardly, cursing his impulsiveness and hot, Mediterranean temper. Checking his wristwatch, the man left the bed, took some clothes out of his suitcase, and went to the bathroom to take a quick shower and change for lunch.

When Spyros came back into the room, Van was sitting on the edge of the bed, face buried in both hands, his phone next to him, the screen still turned on. Although he tried hard to ignore the device left in plain sight, Spyros gave in to temptation and glanced at the screen with the corner of his eye.

It took all his self-control not to let out a loud gasp when he read the message from Lauren Briggs, Montemayor's so-called assistant. The woman wanted to meet Van and talk to him, and Spyros couldn’t stop wondering what the two of them had in common. The possibility of Van betraying Seamus made his blood freeze, and he decided to find out what the two were up to.

Spyros carefully examined Van during the lunch, but nothing from the man's behavior betrayed his intentions or the emotional turmoil he witnessed earlier. Once everyone finished eating, Montemayor retired in his bedroom for the siesta, Seamus went out for his afternoon walk, and Van left the dining room without a word, heading to the villa's main door and walking out of the building.

As discreetly as he could, Spyros followed Van, who stopped next to a small, seemingly abandoned annex. Back against the building's wall, the tall, muscular, black guard looked around, his body tensed. A feminine silhouette headed toward him, coming from the mansion, and the sight of her made Van visibly relaxed.

The woman, who Spyros identified as Lauren Briggs, threw herself into the man's arms, putting her head on his chest. Taking advantage of Van's temporary lack of attention, Spyros moved closer to the two, in a spot from where he also could hear what they were saying. For a few seconds, Van and Lauren silently stared into one another's eyes, then the woman started to talk.

“When you left like that, without a word, my whole world came to an end. Mack found out about us, and he wanted to finish me off. I had to run, to protect at all costs the tiny part of you growing inside me. We had a child, Van, a beautiful boy named Lucas, but Montemayor took him from me.” The woman spoke in a seductive voice that had nothing in it to show the sadness of a mother who lost her child.

“Lucas...he is...was...my child?” Lauren's words cut through Van's heart, making it bleed. “How did it happen? How did my...our son die, and where is his grave?” Tears started to fall from the man's eyes and ran down his cheeks, leaving two streaks behind.

“I...I don't know exactly. About two years after he was taken,” Lauren answered, a little irritated that the conversation didn't go in the direction she wanted. “One of Montemayor's personal guards showed up at my doorstep and told me the boy was dead, then ordered me to accompany him here. My son's killer told me that I was responsible for Lucas's defiant nature and that I had to become his assistant or die.”

“I don't understand,” Van said in a somewhat cold voice, studying the woman's expression with great attention, “how you gave up so easily the child you carried for nine months inside you. That boy was made out of love. You should have protected him, fought for him to the bitter end. And then, after he died, you should have killed that monster like the fucking dog he was.”

“While I was pregnant with Lucas, I met this kind, tender-hearted man who married me and loved my son like he was his own flesh and blood. Montemayor killed him, then...well, I already told you what happened. I hoped Lucas would hang on until I could find a way to destroy Montemayor, but... Van, I still love you. There is still time for us to start all over again, if only you would help me to get rid of...”

“Sorry, Lauren, I'm not the naïve twenty-three-year-old boy who fell in love with you anymore,” Van cut the woman short. “I've changed a lot, in many ways. The thing we had is gone, dead and buried, just like that poor boy you didn't fight enough for.”

“Nineteen years is a long time, indeed,” Lauren, who wasn't ready to give up, seductively purred. “I've been married, so I shouldn't have expected you to stay single. Well, I wish the best to you and my lucky rival whose name you prefer to keep secret.”

“It's Spyros. The man is stubborn like a mule, a permanent thorn in my side. He would probably laugh in my face if I told him what I feel for him and would mock me until the day I die. But you know what? I'd still love him because I know for sure that Spyros would have fought tooth and claw for Lucas. Besides, Montemayor is my boss's associate, and unlike others, I don't change my loyalties. Sorry, Lauren, but this isn't my battle.”

CHAPTER 18

For about an hour, Spyros was tossing and turning in bed, sleep eluding him. After dinner, Van said he needed some fresh air, and, with Montemayor's approval, went for a walk in the mansion's luxurious garden. More than an hour had passed since then, and the man hadn't come back to the room, making Spyros imagine all kinds of scenarios.

Van loved him. It took a lot of time for him to assimilate the black guard's words, but when he finally did, Spyros felt overwhelmed by guilt and blamed himself for how he treated the man. After the initial shock dissipated a little, he wanted to apologize to Van, but then changed his mind because that would mean to admit he eavesdropped on him and that Lauren Briggs woman.

She isn't just any woman, Spyros mentally corrected himself. She's the one who bore Van's son, only to send him to his death thirteen years later. Of course, Ira was alive, but there was nothing left in him from that happy kid in the pic Spyros stole from Van. Montemayor's depravity had torn him to shreds.

The door opened and Van stepped inside the room with an absent air. Pulling his suitcase from under his side of the bed, he took out some clean pajamas and a towel and stepped into the bathroom. Ten minutes and a quick shower later, he came back into the room and climbed on the bed, making Spyros let out a breath he didn't know he’d been holding.

Van lay on his back, perfectly straight, palms planted on the side of his thighs, and stared into the ceiling. His chest slowly, evenly rose and fell with every breath, and nothing from the man's outside appearance betrayed his inner turmoil. Nothing, except the tears that left two streaks on his cheeks before soaking into the pillow.

Spyros's heart wrenched in pain at the sight, and he felt the overwhelming need to comfort the other man, to find a way of soothing the pain in his soul, even at the risk of being ridiculed and pushed away. Scooting up closer, he extended a hand and hesitantly started to caress Van's cheek. To Spyros's great relief, the other man didn't reject him.

“Go to sleep, boy. It's getting late,” Van spoke in a hoarse voice. “I'm a grown man. I'll get over it. And even if I don't, you don't have to burden yourself with my problems.”

“I can't sleep when I see you like that,” Spyros replied in a tender voice, still caressing the other man's cheek. “I'm here if you want to talk.”

“I have a son who was put through hell because I had an ego bigger than the Great Wall and the pyramids combined. End of the story. Now go back to sleep.” Van's voice had a tinge of harshness in it that would have made anyone else back away. Except Spyros.

“What happened to your son...stop blaming yourself for it. Maybe we started on the wrong foot, but even back then, I had to admit to myself you are a man of duty and honor. If you would have known about your son's existence...”

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