Page 133 of Mob Bride

“Ciao,cazzo d’Orro.” It basically translates to Golden Prick or a guy a rich woman marries because she wants that dick.

“Shane, I’m busy. What the fuck do you want?”

“It’s not what I want, Matteo. It’s who I have who you might want.”

“It’s your wedding day, and you’d rather be on the phone telling me stupid riddles.”

It doesn’t shock me the other families know. It’s the lesser syndicates knowing, like the Poles that isn’t a joyous surprise.

“Remember Gianni Campenelli?”

“What about him?” Matteo’s ready to hedge his bets.

“His sister just tried to kill my wife. She’s still breathing. For now. I know you haven’t given Maria that yacht you just bought for her birthday. Give it to my wife as a wedding present, and you can have Angela.”

“You’re trading her for a boat?”

“Save your indignation for the devil. It’s a yacht.”

A super yacht worth several million. It happens to be the one I was eyeing, and the twat knew it.

“I’m not giving you Maria’s present.”

“Fine. I’ll kill Angela and dump her somewhere inconvenient for you.”

“You’re the meticulous one. You leave nothing that could be a loose end, like a body.”

“Call it a gift that got lost in transit. I’ll make it work.”

“And what am I supposed to do with her? If she was stupid enough to get caught, then why would I want her?”

“Trade her to Krzysztof for whatever pissed you off enough to kill Bartlomiej and Jacek.”

He doesn’t answer.

“You have a lot to make up to me, Matteo. I’m giving you a chance to just owe me a favor. You had Angela target my woman to fuck up her investigation, so you could get to the Nowakowskis. She put Carys in Jacek’s crosshairs, so she’d beout of the way of whatever you wanted, and I know you fucking know it. That’s the same as you putting a hit on my wife.”

“Not so great being on the receiving end, is it?”

“You motherfucking shite stained cum dumpster. We fucking helped you get Maria back, and we made sure she got her vengeance.”

“That doesn’t make up for?—”

“The fuck it doesn’t. You did this because of me and a bet we made when we were twenty. It’s not my fault your dad found out. You’ve waited this fucking long to get back at me, and like a little bitch who’s been sulking, you knew I was too much for you, so you went after my woman. You better fucking hide behind Maria because if I get hold of you, I will finally do what I’ve been threatening since we were thirteen, and you broke Sean’s brand-new phone and got me blamed for it. You petty, whiny little bitch. I will take itallfrom you.”

I thrust my hand out, and Sean gives me his phone. I fire off texts in the minute Matteo’s silent.

“You don’t scare me any more than you did when we were twenty. I may have lost the bet that cost me that Ferrari, but you’re the one who broke his arm crashing it just to beat me across the finish line.”

I don’t pay attention as he rambles. It buys me a few more minutes. I interject here and there to keep him going until I’m ready.

“I hope Maria’s at work.” I know she is. “Because it’ll be awfully sad if she’s at home.” I know he’s not there either.

“What the fuck did?—”

I hear an alarm go off in the background. It’s handy having your family live in the same neighborhood as your enemies. It means you have guards around to run errands.

“Shane!”

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