Someone wrote, She stood there alone until the mafia boss stood up. I'd kill for that kind of loyalty. Lisa sat on the couch speechless. You "You leaked it." Marco didn't look up from his phone.
"I said we'd give him a chance. He didn't take it." She pressed her hand to her mouth. "He's finished." He looked at her then, slow, deliberate.
"No, sweetheart. He's exposed. He's not finished yet." What else could you possibly A knock interrupted her. Luca entered holding a file.
Boss, Bennett's lawyers are folding. Sponsors are pulling out. He's holding a press conference tonight. Marco's smile was small, cold. He'll deny.
Then the rest drops. "The rest?" Lisa asked. Marco nodded toward the folder. Evidence of his campaign money laundering.
Every deal he made with the same companies he pretends to fight. Lisa's stomach twisted. You had that all along. I told you, he said, I run this city. I know where the bodies are buried.
I just don't always dig them up. He stood buttoning his jacket. "Come on." She blinked. "Where are we going now?"
He looked at her like it should be obvious. "To the diner." "The diner?" She echoed stunned. You said people think you're trash.
He said. Let's remind them what trash looks like standing beside me. Lisa's pulse raced. Marco, if people see me with you They already have, he said. Let's make sure they see what that means.
Miller's Diner looked smaller than she remembered. The same cracked floor tiles, the same smell of coffee and oil, the same old neon sign flickering in the window. But when Marco Conti walked in holding her hand, the entire room went silent. Cups froze midair. A waiter dropped a fork.
Someone muttered his name like a prayer or a curse. Lisa's heart pounded, but she didn't pull away. They sat in the same booth where he'd watched everything happen. He ordered two coffees like he'd been doing it all his life. The waitress who came to take their order, a shy girl with freckles, looked terrified.
Marco gave her a faint smile. "Don't worry, sweetheart. We're just here to eat." The girl nodded too fast and ran off. Lisa leaned forward whispering, "You like scaring people, don't you?"
His eyes stayed on hers. "No." I like being understood. Her breath caught. He looked around the diner at the same people who'd watched her humiliation in silence a week ago.
"Funny, isn't it? How quiet they get now." She swallowed. "They're scared of you." He met her eyes again.