Miles Away (Carrion #1)(17)
Releasing a breath, Letty tried to slow her heart as it hammered in her chest.
“Now, if you don’t mind, Michael, I’m going to put on Jeopardy and get you ready for bed. Sasha and the others should be home soon…”
“There goes our peace and quiet!” Michael shouted, the fear quickly evaporating from his eyes.
“It’ll be nice to spend time with your kids,” Letty replied, with a smirk on her face.
The fact is, each and every one of the Capadonno kids has some sort of dysfunction. The funniest part is that Miles, the one who had just done seventeen years in Philly’s toughest correctional institute, was the most normal of all of them… even sweet little Landon.
“Whatever…” Michael said as he rolled his eyes. “I plan to confront Sasha to about that jar of sauce.”
Patting Michael on his leg three times, Letty replied, “Whatever will make you happy, Michael.”
Grabbing the remote control, Letty clicked the power button and put on Jeopardy. It was their nightly ritual. Letty would sit with Michael while he watched his shows and then she’d go home once he fell asleep. Alex Trebeck crossed the screen in his usual charming manner, and Michael seemed to relax again. His calm wouldn’t last long, though.
The heavy walnut front door crashed open as the quiet of the house was interrupted by discord.
“Oh, here we go,” Michael said to Letty as a stressed-out look grew across his face.
Letty’s hand gently covered Michael’s own as her index finger stroked his skin. Letty’s eyes lifted from Michael’s face to the source of the noise coming from the foyer. The familiar sound of shouting voices caused Letty to roll her eyes. Raine was always the drama queen of the bunch. She was Michael and Andie’s youngest daughter, and by all accounts, Michael’s baby girl. She might be an adult but she sure didn’t act like one.
“Fuck you, Anthony! We’re done! DONE!” Raine’s high-pitched voice screamed out, her voice raw from their screaming match.
“Raine, what the f*ck is your problem?!” Anthony Spinelli called out to her. “It’s always f*ckin’ something!”
Spinelli’s Jersey accent was as thick as the morning fog coming in off the bay.
A sigh released from Letty’s mouth as she turned back around to face Michael. “Raine’s home,” she said to him, sounding unimpressed. Michael looked just as dissatisfied at the turn of events as Letty did, but instead of looking at Letty, Michael cast a deeply irritated glare towards the foyer.
“Get off of me, Ant’ny!” Raine spat out as she continued to argue with her longtime, on again off again boyfriend Anthony.
“Rainey?” Michael called out with a sound of deep disgust in his voice. Setting off a chain of events that Letty certainly didn’t see coming, Michael quickly ripped his blankets off of his legs and proceeded to rise up from his bed. Michael, who had barely been out of bed at all in six months with the exception of toilet breaks and bath time, had risen to his feet.
“Michael, please let them worry about their own problems,” Letty pleaded as Michael’s bare feet slapped against the cool marble floor.
Letty watched nervously as Michael’s legs steadied themselves. With purpose, he walked in his bed clothes from the parlor into the dark hallway beyond. Letty’s heart raced in her chest as she watched him. He shouldn’t have been out of bed, and he most definitely shouldn’t be getting involved in his daughter’s relationship problems, but as time had proven before, Michael Capadonno does whatever he damn well pleases.
“Please, Mr. Capadonno! You’re not well enough. Please get back in bed…” Letty asked, but clearly Michael wasn’t paying her any attention whatsoever.
This time, Michael waved Letty off as he crossed into the dim hallway. Under the faint lights of the crystal chandelier that was anchored from the ceiling, Michael Capadonno approached an antique cherry wood console table. Atop the table sat a crystal vase with a beautiful but elaborate arrangement of red roses and casa blanca lillies. On the table, an old photograph of Andrea Cormack, Michael’s only true love, sat nestled in an oval, porcelain frame, surrounded by old photographs of each of the Capadonno children. Hanging on the wall above the table was a massive antique mirror with French Baroque accents. Gazing at himself in the mirror, Michael looked up at his reflection as a deep scowl glared from his face. A chill ripped through Letty’s body as she watched Michael stare callously at his likeness in the mirror. He grimaced at the man he had become. His eyes were still the same as they had always been—dark and mysterious, cool and calculating—but everything else about his appearance had changed. Michael had dark circles under his eyes. His hairline had receded and his black hair had lightened to an unwelcoming shade of grey. Michael’s cheeks were sunken in, his cheekbones and nose becoming more prominent with age. The man looked emaciated. As his nurse, Letty knew with certainty that Michael was well-nourished. Michael had a hearty appetitite, his body had simply stopped absorbing the nutrients in the food he ate. The disease had run its course. Michael’s once stout, muscular frame had atrophied into that of a sickly old man. At sixty-six years old, Michael’s life had reached the end of its rope.
Letty watched as Michael stared coldly at his own reflection in the mirror. He seemed to be getting more agitated by the second. Raine and Anthony’s screaming match had reached a feverish pitch. But Michael didn’t turn to the foyer. He continued to stare himself down in the mirror as his calculating gaze summed up his likeness. There was a flash of recognition in his eyes. Something was very off about him. Michael Capadonno’s mind had snapped. In that instant, the man that Letty had grown to respect and care for was gone, and he was replaced with the man that sent larger men cowering in fear. A monster stared back at Letty from the mirror. She had never been more terrified in her life. With a swift backhand, Michael sent the crystal vase flying from the table to the marble floor where it shattered into a million tiny fragments. The red roses lost their petals and rained down upon the floor like droplets of blood.