Page 36 of The Killer Cupcake
"She's completely unhinged! She's always been unhinged, but this—" Debbie's words tumbled out in a rush. "She says she's going to stay with Sandy and tell her everything. She says it's my fault Kathy's dead, that I should have called the family. She says she hates me for keeping secrets—secrets you made me keep!”
"Stop. Stop." He cupped her beautiful face in his hands and kissed her forehead with infinite tenderness. "Breathe,Debbie. Just breathe."
Debbie nodded and closed her eyes, drawing in shaky gulps of air. Matteo felt his own pulse begin to slow. When he'd heard the terror in her voice over the phone, a hundred nightmare scenarios had flashed through his mind—the Feds kicking down her door, rival families making their move, politicians playing their power games. He'd driven through Harlem like a man possessed, running red lights and leaving his security detail scrambling to keep up.
"Now. Tell me exactly what she said," he commanded gently, guiding her to one of the salon chairs and pressing her down into the buttery leather.
"She was waiting outside when I arrived this morning," Debbie said, her voice steadier now.
"Was Willa with her?"
"No. She had Coffey waiting in the car. Said Willa was back home in New Orleans, didn't want to make the trip. That has to be a lie,” Debbie sighed deeply. “Willa would never let her come back to Harlem without her after Carmelo told Janey not to return. I think she just snatched Coffey and came.”
Debbie paced and kept talking. “She said one of Izzy's sons contacted her, told her that Kathy was dead. Said the Elliott sisters were furious that no one called them, that we had a funeral without the family blessing. I told you I should have contacted them!"
"She's not dead," Matteo said firmly, though doubt gnawed at his gut like acid.
"How do you know that, Matteo? How can you be so certain?" Debbie's voice cracked. "What if she is dead? What if they both are? What if I've been lying to myself all this time? Thinking I could make up for all the fucking mistakes I made with this family. With you! Damn it, I never should have listened to you! We can’t change the past!”
She started to stand from the chair, but he moved faster, blocking her path with his body. “Please, please. Stop. Sit. Stay calm."
"You didn't see her, Matteo. You know how Janey gets when she's on one of her crusades—and Willa isn't here to keep her grounded. Carmine’s dead. Pinkie’s dead. Aunt Brenda’s dead. Kathy’s gone. No one can stop Janey. She'll do anything, say anything. She'll destroy everything Kathy and I have built!”
"I can handle Janey," he said with the quiet confidence of a man who'd ordered the deaths of stronger opponents. "Let me worry about her. But this does change our timeline. Fuck." He ran a hand through his dark hair. "Those diaries won't meanshit now if Janey starts filling Sandy's head with her version of history. She's a distraction I can't afford. I’m running out of time.”
"What do you mean, running out of time? What's happening now?" Fear flickered in Debbie's eyes—the kind of fear that came from loving a man whose world operated by its own deadly rules.
Matteo realized he'd said too much. The last thing she needed to know about was the federal task force breathing down his neck, or Jersey and Philly making moves on his business deals, or the mayor's promises to clean up organized crime before the next election cycle.
"The press is circling like vultures. All these arrests have the mayor boasting about chasing out the mob, cracking down on our legitimate businesses across all the families. I'm handling it. Don't worry about any of that."
"I do worry. I worry constantly," Debbie whispered, reaching up to touch the faded scar on his jaw—a souvenir from Vietnam that reminded them both how fragile life could be.
"I know you do,amore. I understand." He caught her hand and pressed it flat against his chest, where his heart still beat too fast. "But I need you to love me. It’s my fire. It gives me strength.”
“I do. Tell me what to do, Matteo.”
“Marry me. Now. Let’s get that done first. Then we go to war.”
Debbie blinked her tears. “You got a one-track mind.”
He smirked. “Or we can get on that sofa in your office, and I’ll make you feel better before we go.”
“No!” she pushed him away. “You always think about sex. I’ll get my purse. Let’s get married.”
“Okay, then the honeymoon, right?” Matteo joked as she walked back to her office. When she disappeared, his smiledimmed. Janey’s arrival was not in the plan. He let go of a deep breath. Time was up.
Lac Tremblant,Quebec
"You overreact, and then—you never forgive, you just punish!” Carmelo's voice cracked with desperation.
"Just tell me! Please stop trying to get in my head and twist everything around. Be honest with me," she demanded, her voice steady despite the hurricane of emotion building in her chest.
"I can deal with your anger. I just... I need you to try to understand my reasons," he said, his dark eyes pleading.
"Tell me! What did you do?" she asked.
A bitter smirk touched his lips as he finally revealed the unthinkable: "I had you murdered. You're dead. We're both dead."
