Page 7 of Sinful Embers

“Yes,” he confirms with a slow nod. “My agency worked with her to ensure I was erased. Carlos knew that if he tried to approach her as me, she wouldn’t fuck around and would publicly demand a DNA test to prove he wasn’t me. And... given my mother’sconnections, even if it was me, the test would say otherwise.”

I stare at him thoughtfully for a long moment seeing an opportunity to get some answers. “Why does your mother command so much fear?” I ask finally, voicing a question I’ve held for years. “I’ve wondered for a decade why men would rather die than cross her—especially the Greeks. No one will speak of her, not even in whispers.” My brow furrows. “There are even some powerful crime families that are petrified of her.”

Nikolas’s lips press into a thin line, his green eyes sharp as glass. “Let’s just say... the Archontis family has its own dark history. Like her father and grandfather before her, my mother has kept that history buried in the shadows to protect everything the Archontis name stands for today.” He pulls a face, shruggingslightly. “But those shadows are still there, and some things... some people... don’t forget.”

A gnawing unease stirs within me.What the hell are he and his mother hiding? And what the fuck have I gotten myself into by marrying Leigh?This rabbit hole keeps pulling me deeper and deeper, and I’m starting to see the truth—what we call the light above our criminal dark world isn’t as bright as it seems. And what is this agency Nikolas keeps speaking about?

“This agency of yours... what the hell is it?” I drum my fingers once on the desk. “And don’t give me some bull crap. I’ve seen you disarm men like it’s nothing, and they have enough clout to erase you as well as falsify police reports.” I catch the corners of his mouth lift slightly, a rare flicker of amusement. “So I doubt it’s some environmental protection agency and more like some covert government branch or elite task force.”

Before Nikolas can answer, the door creaks open, and Sabrina strides in, her oversized bag slung over her shoulder. “He’s a government eraser,” she says flatly, cutting through the tension.

Nikolas and I greet her as she takes the seat beside him, dumping her purse on the floor at her feet. “Uncle Nik erases people—either gives them new lives or sends them to the next one: heaven or hell, depending on what they deserve. At least, that’s how Sam explained it when Leigh and I were ten.”

“An eraser,” I mutter under my breath. “Of course, you are.” Glancing at Nikolas, I ask, “Why let Carlos take over your life in the first place if you work for an agency like that?”

Nikolas answers without hesitation. “They wanted Carlos to lead them to the elusive and camera-shy leader of the Russian syndicate. No one—except Carlos—knows what he looks like or what his real name is.”

“And to steal weapons, government secrets, and whatever else Uncle Nik’s high-level access gave him, which is somethingno ordinary civilian would ever have,” Sabrina interjects. “Especially since Uncle Nik is also UK SAS.” She pauses, her expression darkening. “And as you can imagine, having the face of Nikolas Vasilikis would give him direct access to Leigh, as her father.” Blowing out a breath, she adds bitterly, “Pity Carlos didn’t do away with that Vivienne bitch when he had the chance.”

“He tried,” Nikolas says flatly. “It was one of the reasons she and Leigh were relocated by Galina”—he glances at me—“and Mark Dalton.”

Sabrina’s lip curls as she looks at me. “Mark thinks Nikolas killed his wife,” she says, her tone heavy with accusation, before adding for my benefit, “His wife was Uncle Nik’s younger sister, Thea. Leigh told me stories about her. She was young when Thea died, but she still had fond memories of her—well, when Leigh still had her memories.”

I sit forward, the weight of the revelation hitting me square in the chest. “Fuck!” I exclaim. “Mark’s Leigh’s uncle? But why let him take care of her? He’s nothing more than a gambling-addicted, grifting drunk.”

“Shows how much you know,” Nikolas counters, his tone sharp. “Mark is not just some grifter. Everything the man does has a well-designed purpose. People like you take him for nothing but a loser, which is exactly what he wants. That way, you don’t pay too much attention to him.”

“Fuck, I knew it,” I mutter, shaking my head as the truth sinks in. “My mother took great joy in telling me that Mark was the one who won the game the night Leigh came into my care—and that I’d played right into his hands.”

“You did,” Nikolas confirms. “If you hadn’t bet Leigh, Mark would’ve.”

Sabrina glares at Nikolas, her temper flaring. “Jesus!” she spits. “And you allowed this? I’ve always thought you were the best father—besides mine, that is—ever. But now…”

Nikolas meets her fiery gaze without flinching. “It was either that or locking Leigh up,” he says, before turning his attention to me. “Although now I’m thinking my idea would’ve been the better of the two. I had a secure site set up and ready as well.”

The truth lands like a punch to the gut, the blame cutting deep. I don’t need Nikolas to say it aloud—I know he holds me just as responsible for Leigh’s current predicament as he does himself. And he’s right. The guilt weighs heavily, suffocating me.

I swallow hard and ask the question clawing at the back of my mind as I look accusingly at Nikolas. “How long have you, my mother, and Mark been planning the poker game scam to introduce me to my future wife?”

My eyes narrow as I include Sabrina in my accusing glare. “Fuck no!” she snaps, crossing her arms. “I didn’t know a thing about this.”

“No, Sabrina did not,” Nikolas says, backing her up. “We know how loyal she is to Leigh. And we also know that while Sabrina wouldn’t directly have told Leigh, she’d have found some ingenious way of foiling the plans.”

Sabrina grins, unrepentant. “You’re damn right I would’ve,” she says, turning her glare back on me. “No offense, Radomir, but you’re not who I would’ve wanted my best friend to marry. Leigh has had enough shit happen in her life. A big part of it is a black hole to her. All she wanted was to become a songwriter—maybe even a singer.” Her eyes flash with anger. “But you clipped her wings, and she may as well still be living in the tight invisible chains Mark had around her.”

“I’m nothing like Mark.” I bristle at her words, but I don’t interrupt. “He used her in his cons,” I say finally. “I’ve givenher a life of luxury and I never discouraged her writing. In fact I think she’s a fucking amazing song writer and I was going to offer to help her get them out there.”

“Her family own fucking Matriarch Records…” Sabrina points out and then looks at Nikolas scathingly. “You could’ve told me you owned it.”

“I did tell you,” Nikolas reminds her. “I told you and Leigh that I bought a record company for you both when you girls were about eleven.” Before giving her a chance to respond he turns his cool green eyes to me. “As for Mark, he never conned anyone who didn’t deserve it.” He steps in to defend the man. “We called him the con artist Robin Hood. He conned people who had been stolen from or unethically targeted in some way or the other.”

Sabrina’s jaw drops. “Oh, fuck!” she exclaims, the realization hitting her like a freight train. “You know, I always wondered why, when he pulled off those big elaborate cons, he and Leigh just seemed to scrape by. They never had a lot of money to buy big extravagant things. I thought the fucking bastard must gamble and drink all the money away.”

“Nope,” Nikolas says, shaking his head. “He’d help the person the money was originally taken from. And as Mark was a damn good investment broker, he’s helped a lot of those people double what was stolen from them. And they always had money, Mark just didn’t flash it around and for good reason.”

“Still” I say, stunned by this new image of Mark. It doesn’t fit with the man I’ve come to know—or rather, the man I thought I knew. “Mark wasn’t the best option to hide Leigh and Vivienne? If my mother helped hide them, my uncle Gunther, who had been widowed for years back then, would’ve been the better choice. He’s at least bratva.”

Nikolas and Sabrina answer in unison. “Really?”

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