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Two for one.
Mom and Kevin.
The bodyguards I got saddled with after their car wreck. Dad losing his mind over security because of the tiniest things, turning my life ever more introspective, closeted within the walls and safety of our house. Me, being watched, guarded, all the time.
It wasn’t an accident at all, was it? I stand so violently from the chair that it falls over. I rush up the stairs to our room, where I reach the toilet just in time to throw up.
Cold sweat swamps my brow when I eventually stand up and wipe at my mouth.
Mom’s and Kevin’s deaths were pure revenge.
And Matteo… What if he had a hand in it?
Then I’ve married a monster.
54
MATTEO
“She’s not from our world, Matteo,” Dominic says. “How—” He throws his hands up in the air.
“Isn’t she?”
“No—” Dominic breaks off. “Whatever her world was in the past, this is a very different future for her.”
“I’m not so sure.”
“Why the fuck did you go and marry her? Honestly. I get the feeling the Don wants both her and her dad wiped.”
The Don can go fuck himself. I won’t be killing Peter Armstrong for him. That third loose end which the Don will only reveal once the other two are completed has been like a skin tag. Irritating, but easily dealt with and gone soon enough.
I ignore Dominic’s question about why I married Tasha. I don’t expect any of my brothers to understand, so why bother telling them that I’m a lost cause when it comes to her. “How’s Dad doing?” I ask instead. Ever since the Don announced to me that he is dying, I’ve been slowly suffocating the idea of him in my head. I barely think of him beyond these last things he asked me to do.
“Fuck if I care,” Dominic says with a shrug. “He’s dead to me already.”
And has been for some time. Maybe this has been the Don’s agenda all along. Make us hate him so much that our brother bond will just be stronger, securing his legacy.
“I need her things.” This meeting is wrapped up. There’s been no crisis at work while I was gone and for the rest, it went about as expected. Nobody is going to be thrilled with having Tasha Armstrong as a sister-in-law. They don’t know her as I do. Not yet. She’ll have them on their toes soon enough.
Dominic unlocks the safe hidden in the wall behind him. “I’ve kept her busy and out of town.” He hands me Tasha’s electronics. Her phone lights up with probably a thousand notifications.
“Good.”
“When are you seeing the Don?” Dominic asks.
“Tomorrow.” I need to get this shit behind me and move on with my life. After Sicily I have so many questions, but whether I’ll get answers I don’t know. All I know is that I’m done. I have a new life to look forward to, with my wife.
As I walk out of Dominic’s office, my phone vibrates. Burley. Hell knows why he’s phoning me. The guy needs to have some downtime.
“Boss,” Burley says without preamble. “Your wife just walked out of here. Thought you should know.”
I freeze in my steps. “What?” And then, as visions of Burley’s call in Sicily when Tasha jumped off the cliff flood back, I turn back to Dominic. “How?” I hiss.
“Boss.” Burley sighs. “She had breakfast, then went for a shower, got dressed from the stash of clothes left in the spare room, from what I gather. Rosalia came to check in on me and Tasha took the gap. Looks like she found your car keys and picked the Maserati.”
“She’s driving herself? And nobody thought to stop her?” I snap, my eyes locked with Dominic’s. “Check my place’s footage. Tasha’s left.”
“Matteo,” Burley groans. “She’s your wife. You left zero instructions. She dangled the keys, telling whoever is on guard that you gave her permission. They were still trying to phone you to check when she burned rubber getting the hell out of there.”
