The men who captured him were not Greek airport security or Interpol.
As they stood there stunned speechless, another man dressed like the trio approached them. He was all friendly smiles, but they felt like a slimy lie. Particularly after Green Eyes’s look of panic and his frantic plea.
The new stranger spoke in Greek, but it wasn’t as smooth and crisp as Isidore’s speech. It had to a be second or third language for him.
“He apologized for his friend. Claims he was just playing a prank. He would like to know what he said to you,” Isidore translated.
“Just that…he’s late and can’t find his gate. He left before I could help,” Ed lied, gripping the item in his hand even harder as he held his fist down by his side. He didn’t know if Green Eyes was an evil villain and had just drawn him into his scheme or if he was truly a victim. The only thing he did feel sure of was that the asshole standing in front of him was trouble. His gut had seen him through plenty of trouble over the years. He knew to trust it.
The guy’s slimy smile never wavered as he thanked them and jogged off to join the rest of his gang.
“Ed?” Kairo inquired.
“Car,” was all he said, and it was more than enough. Kairo would understand. There were too many eyes in the terminal and too many cameras. Once they got to the car, they’d be able to talk more securely.
They continued at a steady pace through the airport to Isidore’s car. Isidore waved Kairo off when he attempted to slide behind the wheel, arguing that he needed to talk to Ed. With a little huff, Kairo agreed and dropped into the passenger seat beside his boyfriend while Ed jumped into the back seat.
It was only when Isidore was leaving the parking lot that Ed opened his hand to look at what Green Eyes had given him.
“What the hell is that?” Kairo demanded as he peered between the seats at Ed’s hand.
“I’m not sure. The better question is, did you recognize him?” Ed inquired.
Kairo jerked his head back, his smooth brow instantly furrowing. “What? No. Why would I?”
“Because he asked me to send this to your mom,” Ed replied.
Kairo’s mouth hung open for a second, and he looked at Ed as if he’d lost his ever-loving mind. He hadn’t. “What?” he squeaked.
Ed lowered his gaze down to the small black velvet bag in his hand. Very carefully, he tugged at the drawstring until the bag opened and he could tip the contents into his palm. “He said to send this to Dr. Janet Jones. And considering what I’m holding, I think it’s pretty safe to say that he was in fact talking about your mom.”
Laying in the palm of his hand was a piece of jewelry that appeared to be centuries old, made of gold and emeralds in the shape of a scarab. There were symbols that looked like hieroglyphs etched into the gold. He flipped the scarab over onto its back to find more symbols and a folded piece of paper.
“Let me see it,” Kairo demanded in hushed tones.
Ed handed over the bejeweled scarab while he unfolded the paper. He’d hoped it would be a note explaining maybe who the man was or why he was in trouble, but it was just several lines of more symbols.
He glanced up to see Kairo holding the scarab up to the light, squinting at the engravings. “Can you read it? Does it look familiar to you?”
Kairo snorted. “I knew only a handful of symbols, and that was when I was a kid. I’ve forgotten most of what Mom crammed into my head.”
“Then I guess you can’t read that?” Ed handed over the piece of paper while taking the scarab. He ran his thumb lightly across the gems and gold, wondering about the man who’d pressed this into his palm, trusting him with something that was so incredibly valuable. It couldn’t have been something he’d easily part with. What kind of trouble could he be in?
And what had Green Eyes seen in him that made him decide that he was the most trustworthy of all the people in that airport?
“Nope. Not at all. But I can tell you it’s not authentic.”
Ed rolled his eyes. The paper looked old and worn, but he’d know it wasn’t ancientpapyrus. “No shit, Sherlock. I’m guessing the guy who gave me the scarab wrote that. Used the hieroglyphs to make sure no one else could read it but a select few people.”
Taking the paper back, he carefully tucked both into the bag. “Kairo…”
“Man, don’t say it! Please, I’m begging you. Don’t say it,” Kairo shouted.
Ed stuck out his bottom lip and met Kairo’s gaze as he peeked between the seats, giving his best pathetic look. “The guy seemed like he was in a lot of trouble. He went straight to me. He trusted me with this. I don’t want to let him down.”
“He really did seem to be in trouble,” Isidore chimed in. “I didn’t trust that other man who pretended to be his friend. It definitely felt like he was lying.”
Kairo groaned and sank in his chair, his arms folded over his stomach. “But she’s such a headache!”