CHAPTER TEN
MILES’S THOUGHTS RAN a mile a minute as he processed what had just happened.
I’ll never forget the look on Letty’s face for as long as I live. She is even more beautiful than I remembered. Letty isn’t the doe-eyed teenager I left behind. Letty had filled out into a gorgeous, voluptuous woman. She is so much more than I expected. But as she gazes out at me from her soft caramel eyes, I can’t tell what she is thinking.
For the first time in Miles’s life, he felt vulnerable. He felt at risk. He was wide open for attack from the one woman he loved. As the glasses dropped from her hands and crashed to the floor, it occurred to him… Letty looked scared.
Her glare, which is laced with fear, pain and uncertainty, cuts me like a machete. The thought that Letty is frightened of me now, shatters me to the very core of the man I am. I’m a man of principle… a man with values and integrity. I keep up an image because of the machine that I have to fight against. The tats, the beard, the “If you look at me, I’ll fuck you up” stare? They ward off ninety percent of the bullshit I would dealt with in the can. It seemed to be helping out here, too. But if she is afraid of me looking like this, I’d shave. I’d drop the act. I’d also have a lot more guys on my ass, trying to show me who’s top dog. With Letty, what you see is not always what you get. She’s good at masking what she is feeling. Letty had always been a kind and loving girl, but she wasn’t someone who was in touch with her sensitive side. In my experience, when Letty is hit with a case of the feels, her brain goes haywire and she freaks out. It’s like a switch is flipped and she doesn’t know what to do. I knew I would have to be the one to make a move. I would make her see that my time at Franklin didn’t break me. My wrongful incarceration strengthened me. It made me more determined than ever to right the wrongs of the past. To make up for the sins of my family.
Miles needed to remind Letty that although he looked different, he was no stranger to her heart. His kiss was an unavoidable reminder of the past that anchored them and the future that lay ahead. Letty was still his guiding light who had led Miles from the darkness more times than he would ever admit.
I would continue to be her great defender, whether she asked me to or not. I was not about to let her leave without showing her that despite the time and distance between us, the spark that we had long ago still exists. Fuck, it had exploded like a powder keg igniting a full blown wild fire. I’ll be damned if I’m gonna let her burn it out.
Standing beyond the tree line, Miles watched as Letty recovered from his ambush. Her cheeks flushed as her eyes tried to find him among the trees. Her soft eyes had thawed as she looked for Miles.
I see my Letty staring back at me.
Falling back against the cherry red car, Letty brought her right hand to her lips as a delicious smile grew across her face. As the pain and worry and sadness melted from her face, Miles knew without a doubt, Letty’s heart still beat for him, even after all these years. Raising his eyebrows as a look of deep satisfaction crossed his face, Miles turned away and disappeared in the shadow of the trees.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
FALLING AGAINST THE HOOD of her car, Letty released a breath of relief as she recovered from a kiss that only Miles could deliver. Her face felt hot as she watched Miles climb the front steps of the Capadonno residence.
How could everything change in just a second? Did he not know me at all? He thought I was leaving for good? Or maybe he knew me too well and I played right into his hand. Whatever the case is, I have a feeling that Miles won’t be too far away.
Climbing into her car, Letty started the engine as Bruce Springsteen’s “Hungry Heart” began to play.
That’s Miles’s boy.
Letty could not help but laugh as she watched Miles reach the top step. He turned around, almost as if he knew she was watching him, and waved to her with a smile. She honked the horn before pulling off down the long Sycamore-lined driveway. Turning right from the Capadonno compound, Letty pulled onto Vandemeer Parkway and left the stressful mood behind her. Vandemeer Parkway is a major thoroughfare through Carrion. Though the town is surrounded by forest on all four sides, the town is brick and mortar. It has a big city feel with the sidewalks lining each street, row homes and plenty of corner stores and little boutiques. The tallest building in town is all of three stories tall, and it’s the clock tower at City Hall. Letty lived on the opposite side of town from the Capadonno compound, but tonight she was not heading straight home. She wanted to pay her father a visit.
He lives alone now, after my mother passed away last June, and he’s terrible at taking care of himself. His idea of a square meal is a cigarette, a beer, and a bag of potato chips.
Walking into the corner row house at 201 Mulberry Terrace, Letty found her father, Juan, laid out on the couch, half asleep watching the hockey game.
“Hey Dad…” Letty called out, almost screaming over the noise of the game.
“Hey! Where’s my grandson?” he asked, just barely poking his head up from his pillow.
“Sitter’s. I’m just getting off work,” Letty explained as she sat down beside him on the couch. Her father’s eyes zoned in on her legs which were bouncing up and down from anxiety.
“What’s wrong?” Letty’s father asked her.
“Nothing,” she insisted, giving him a wide-eyed look. “I’m fine.”
Juan continued to eye Letty up and down. Letty forced her legs to stop bouncing, but that didn’t keep her father from thinking she needs a hero.
“No you’re not! What happened?”
“Dad, really… I’m fine.”
“Did that greaseball do somethin’? I told you I don’t like you working for him!”
“Calm your nerves, tough guy! The money I earn from Mr. Capadonno helped pay off this house so…” Letty explained.
“Then what’s up? I can see it all over your face. Something has you thinking…” Juan insisted.
The man can read my body language like a book.
“Heaven forbid I think…” Letty said with a laugh.
“No, no, no! You’re not escaping this conversation!”
Letty sighed as she looked at her old man.
Jesus, he’s persistent.
Finally, she relented, “Miles was released from prison today.”
Juan looked up at Letty with a shocked look upon his face.
“Did he bother you? I’ll ring his scrawny neck!”
Rolling her eyes, Letty replied, “No, Dad… and Miles isn’t scrawny. He’s huge.”
“Fat?”
Letty laughed. “No, Dad. He’s built like a brick shit house.”
“Nothing else to do in the can except hit the weights, I guess.”
“I guess. He was never a little guy, though…” Letty explained.
“I don’t care how big he is! I’ll knock ’em down to size!”
“Down, killer!”
Letty’s father rolled his eyes as he grumbled at the TV.
“Oh well, I just figured I’d stop in to see if you needed anything,” Letty explained. “Did you eat?”
Letty looked at the coffee table that had a half empty beer and an ashtray full of cigarette butts.
Juan shook his head as he replied, “No. I wasn’t hungry. I grabbed a beer and watched the game.”
Rolling her eyes once again, Letty spat back, “You need to eat!”
“There’s nothing in. I have to go to the market. Maybe I’ll just order some take-out. Do ya want something?” Juan offered.
“No! You keep Lucky Panda in business! Tell me what you want, and I’ll come back and make it for you.”
“You don’t have to go to all that trouble, Letty!”
“Shut up! It’s no trouble, now what do you want?”
As she waited for him to make up his mind, her cell phone rang. At first, Letty wondered if it was Miles, but then she realized that he didn’t have her number. As she pulled her cell phone from her pocket, Michael Capadonno’s photo popped up
on the screen.
“Why is he calling?” Letty said out loud with a look of confusion on her face.
“Who?” Juan barked. “Miles?”
Giving her father a look of contempt, she said, “No! Michael…”
Letty’s father screwed up his nose as he said in an angry voice, “The Butcher.”
Sighing heavily, Letty picked up the phone.
He’s one person’s phone calls you don’t let drop to voicemail.
“Hello?” Letty asked in her most cheerful voice.
“Bellissima… are you okay, pretty girl?” Michael asked Letty in a charming tone of voice. “I just told off my idiot son for scaring you like that.”
“Oh, no, Michael. I wasn’t scared. Just surprised,” Letty explained.
“I told him to clear out while you’re working so he don’t upset you anymore,” Michael said, thinking he was doing Letty a favor.
“I’m fine, Michael. It’s okay. It’s not Miles’s fault.”
“I want you to feel safe in my house.”
I would if you stopped killing people at the drop of a fricking hat.
“Okay, Michael. You should get some rest.”
“No rest for the wicked, babes,” he said, trying to sound cool.
Groan.
“So they say,” Letty replied. “I’m at my dad’s now. I’ll see you tomorrow at noon.”
“If you need anything,” Michael began. “Anything at all… Call me.”
“I will… Goodnight,” Letty said as she hung up the phone and dropped it into her bag. As she looked up, her father was giving her a strong glare.
“He realizes that you’re not an orphan, right?”
Dropping her head into her hands, Letty began to roar with laughter at the look on her father’s face.
“Yes, Dad. He’s just protective. Very, very protective.”
Juan Alves wasn’t laughing though.
“Letty, you listen to me.”
“Yes, Dad.”
“The Capadonnos… they can be very generous… and charming… and fun… but their protection comes with a cost. They are very dangerous people. Even Miles.”
“Not Miles, Dad… You don’t know him like I do.”
“He’s a Capadonno. That’s all I need to know.”
“All right, enough on Miles. Did you decide on dinner?”
“I really can’t have take-out?” Juan whined.
“No,” Letty said firmly.
He is going to eat a decent meal if I have to force feed him.
“Oww…fine! What about that cheesy chicken rice thing you make?”
“With the bell peppers and fresh salsa?” Letty asked.
Of course he’d pick a meal that takes over an hour to make.
“Yeah!” he said excitedly.
“Okay, I’ll be back. Do you need anything else?” Letty asked, just trying to help the old guy out.
“A pack of smokes.”
“You need to quit. No better time than the present!” Letty said with a wicked grin.
“What?” her father complained.
“You heard me!”
As she turned to leave, Letty’s cell phone vibrated again. Landon’s sweet face popped up on the screen. Opening the text, Letty’s heart raced as she read the message.
“They have him in the war room.”
Letty’s heart hammered in her chest as the reality of the situation kicked in. She tried not to show her father how freaked out she was. Giving him a final glance, Letty opened the front door and swung it shut behind her as her father called out, “Be careful, Letty!”
CHAPTER TWELVE
“IS LETTY OKAY?” Sasha asked as Miles strolled back through the front door.
Miles nodded. “Yeah, she’ll be all right. Seeing me again just brought up a lot of old feelings and memories, I guess. Why was she here anyway?”
“Letty is Dad’s nurse, Miles,” Sasha explained.
As Miles looked up at his father, he received a ferocious glare from the old man.
What the fuck is his problem?
“Leave her alone! You did enough damage to her!” Michael screamed at Miles.
Oh, for fuck’s sake. The old man has a crush. This is too funny for words.
“No can do, old man,” Miles said as his face was painted with a sly smirk.
“I swear to God if I have to hire a new nurse, I’ll fucking kill you!” Michael spat at Miles with rabid eyes.
He’s really quite the charmer, ain’t he?
“Nice to see you, too, Pops!” Miles said as he glared at the old man. He was even more off balance than Miles remembered. “If you haven’t scared her off by now, I sure as hell won’t.”
Interrupting the pissing contest that was brewing, Sasha darted across the room towards Miles with outstretched arms. Wrapping her arms around her brother’s neck, Miles’s sister hugged him tight.
It feels strange for Sasha to be hugging me. She wasn’t necessarily a mean older sister… just distant. Preoccupied. She was never the motherly type. Maybe, with Mom being gone and me being away, Sasha had to take up the role. Then again, she was a mother herself, these days.
Breaking her grasp, Sasha looked up at Miles, her bright hazel eyes inspecting his face as she cupped his cheeks with her hands.
“So good to see you, bud…” Sasha said to Miles as a smile creased her pretty face. Miles leaned in and kissed Sasha on her left cheek.
“You too, Sash… Where’s my niece?” Miles asked.
Sasha smiled. “At a playdate. I’ll bring Arianna around tomorrow.”
“You better…” Miles said in a somewhat threatening tone.
Sasha knows it’s all in fun. I do really want to meet my niece. Kids love me.
“Dude…” Dustin said, barging right into the conversation.
Slapping hands with Miles, Dustin gave him a big smile.
“How’s it hangin’, man?”
“Low and heavy,” Miles replied, earning himself a slap on the arm from Sasha.
Dustin laughed at Miles’s comment.
At least someone appreciates my humor.
“Nobody told me you were getting out today,” Dustin said as he gave his father a heated glare.
I like Dustin. He’s the one brother I don’t really have to try with. We can have a drink, shoot the shit and naturally have a good time. Don’t get me wrong, Landon’s a cool kid, he’s just a little wet behind the ears. I don’t want to be the one to corrupt him.
A deep voice cleared his throat behind Miles. Miles’s head pivoted to the source of the noise, leaving him face to face with Knox. Miles met his cool stare for not more than a nanosecond. That’s all it took. Miles’s stomach soured at the sight of Knox’s smug face. Miles glared at him, throwing Knox some serious shade. It took all the power Miles could muster not to throttle himself at the bastard and beat Knox within an inch of his life.
I won’t kill him. He might prove useful later.
“Really, Miles… Still?” Knox asked, trying to sound reasonable.
Hearing his voice does nothing to alleviate my temper.
Miles glared at him, giving him the courtesy of his hardened stare as rage coursed through his body. Watching Knox sit there in his designer threads, his smug look taunting Miles into throwing all rationale to the wind.
Sometimes it doesn’t matter how much time has passed. Sometimes a voice or a phrase or a facial expression can bring back all the pain from long ago. The sound of Knox’s voice, regardless of the words he’s saying, is enough to set me spiraling out of control. Knox awakens the fury in me just by smiling at me.
Closing the gap between them, Miles walked towards Knox, his boots echoing throughout the room. Knox’s smug look faded as Miles stared down at him, his blood boiling with putrid rage.
“Feeling brave?” Knox asked with a cruel hilt to his stare.
“You got something you wanna say?” Miles asked, not backing down from him.
The loud-mouthed kid I remem
ber is now a poised, high-powered DA fuckwad who is pissing off the wrong dude. I won’t take his bait but I sure as fuck am not backing down either.
Standing over Knox in his chair, Miles continued to size his brother up with calculating eyes.
“Whatsamatter, Miles, cat got your tongue?” Knox asked, a devious twinkle in his eyes catching Miles’s attention. “Or are you just a little pussy?”
Now he did it. I was trying to be cool about this. I didn’t want to have to fuck up his pretty face, but the fucker pissed me off.
“I’m gonna tell you this once and only once. Keep my name out of your cocksuckin’ mouth! Stay away from my girl and don’t pull any of your wayward bullshit with me!”
Knox was blindsided with shock.
“What the fu—” Knox began.
“After the shit you pulled?” Miles screamed, letting his temper hang all out. Pointing in Knox’s face, Miles screamed, “You’re DEAD to me!”
“Mi—” Knox began but he was quickly cut off.
That fucker isn’t interrupting my tirade.
“DEAD!”
“Oh, here we go. Ring-side seats for the showdown of the century,” Michael said with a laugh.
I’m glad he finds this shit amusing.
“Miles, calm down,” Sasha pleaded.
“Dude, it’s not worth it,” Landon begged Miles with a desperate look on his face.
“It’s about time somebody put this douche in his place! This is great!” Dustin yelled. “Whoop!”
Knox ignored the peanut gallery and gave Miles a slice of attitude back.
“I would think seventeen years in Philly’s toughest jail would’ve mellowed you out some! I figured it would at least made you see things differently but I guess it’s true. Sometimes even the dumbest criminals can’t be rehabilitated,” Knox said.
This creep is begging for his head to be knocked off.
“You can’t just play everybody you meet and not expect people to get pissed off, Knox!” Miles spat back.
I’m trying to refrain myself. Truly, I am. I know he’s going to find that button and he’s going to jab his finger in it.
Knox smirked ignorantly at Miles as he adjusted his silk tie. Adjusting himself in his chair, Knox looked like he was preparing to walk into a courtroom rather than a dispute with his brother. In a cool voice, Knox said with a hilt to his gaze, “If you ask me, you got exactly what was comin’ to you.”
Miles Away (Carrion #1) Page 9