Page 172 of Safe and Sound

“Should I?” he asked.

“N-no,” I stammered.

He laughed. “I think I’m going to enjoy getting to know you better, cousin.”

The adrenaline coursing through me evaporated, and my knees buckled. I would’ve fallen over if Ares hadn’t caught me. “You’re really not going to kill me?”

He shook his head. “You were an excellent distraction that allowed me to do something I’ve wanted to do for a long time.”

“You planned this all along?”

With a nod, he replied, “It’s why this house isn’t crawling with my father’s men. He was banking on having your daughter here, not you. He knew that your husband would never charge in here with guns blazing and risk Piper’s life. That gave me the in I needed.”

“Will you be in trouble for killing your father?”

Amusement danced in his eyes. “No, Ava. The men of the Trakos family have been looking for a new direction for a long time. With the money from the mine, I’ll be able to support them in new endeavors.”

“I can’t believe you’re not going to kill me,” I muttered.

Ares laughed. “I had planned on it before I met you.”

“You had?”

“I didn’t want any loose ends as I moved forward. With my father gone, no one else knows about the mine but you. No one has a claim to the mine but the two of us.” He stared intently at me. “But after meeting you, I realize you’re no threat.”

Jerking my chin up, I replied, “Thanks a lot.”

Crossing his arms over his chest, he countered, “Would you actually want to run this family?”

In that moment, I allowed myself to think about it. Although there was a small part of me that wanted to honor my father, I knew I could never be like Dare and his brothers. I hadn’t been raised in the world like Aeres had. He was the right choice.

“No. I wouldn’t.”

“I figured that’s what you said.”

“So because I’m not a threat, you won’t kill me.”

“More than anything, I saw the mother you were. I knew then I didn’t want to take that away from your daughter.”

Tears pooled in my eyes. “I can never thank you enough for that.”

“How about 60/40 of the sapphire mine, and we’ll call it a day?”

I stopped mid sob. “You aren’t serious?”

“55/45?”

“I don’t care about the mine.”

Ares shook his head. “It belonged to your father as much as it did mine. You should have a part of it.”

As he started walking ahead, I skidded to a stop. Sweeping my hands to my hips, I countered, “Wait a minute. Why aren’t we going 50/50?”

Ares turned with a grin. “I was wondering when it would hit you.”

“Excuse me for being shell-shocked.”

“Don’t you think your life is worth an extra 10%?”

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