Sempre (Forever Series #1)(52)

“Not just yours.” Vincent turned back to his laptop. “I need another favor.”

“Of course you do.”

“I need someone to keep an eye on the girl.”

Carmine looked at him incredulously. “You want me to spy on her?”

“Not exactly,” he said. “I need to make sure she stays safe. I caught Squint touching her.”

Carmine’s rage boiled over. He stood so quickly his chair flew back. “He touched her?”

“He didn’t harm her, although she did burn her hand,” Vincent said casually, ignoring Carmine’s outburst. “I handled it.”

“You handled it?” Carmine clenched his hands into fists as he fought back the urge to pummel something.

“Yes, I handled it,” Vincent said again. “What’s gotten into you?”

Carmine glared at his father as he flopped back down in the chair. “I don’t like that shit.”

“I know, but you need to control your temper. I’d get rid of Squint if I could, but Sal’s blinded by the fact that he’s technically family. Sal has no blood relatives left, since his brother’s and sister’s families were all murdered. That’s why he’s always been fixated on you. You are the closest thing to a son he had—his godson. Getting him to believe Squint’s untrustworthy won’t be easy.”

“Do you think he could be a danger?”

Vincent sighed. “Trouble’s brewing, so there’s little focus on things going on within the walls of the fortress, so to speak. I think Squint’s more than happy to take advantage of that.”

“Why’s he interested in Haven, though?”

“Probably because it’s wrong for him to be.”

Carmine’s heartbeat thrashed in his ears. Wrong? “You mean it’s wrong for someone like her to be with one of you?”

“I was referring to him having no right to touch what isn’t his,” Vincent said. “Although, that is a good point.”

“So you do think that’s wrong?”

“Of course it is,” Vincent said. “Rape is always wrong.”

“I mean consensual.”

Vincent shook his head. “Do you really think a girl in her position has the right frame of mind to consent? It would take a strong woman to look at him as a man and not a master, to see him for who he is and not what he is. But just because it could happen, doesn’t mean it should. It’s asking for heartache for everyone involved.”

Carmine sat quietly. He’d never given any of that much thought. To him, she was just a girl.

“Regardless, Squint’s advances were unwanted,” Vincent said. “I should’ve figured this would happen, but I couldn’t have done anything differently. I couldn’t have kept her hidden. Sal would’ve asked about her because of who she is.”

Carmine’s brow furrowed. “Who is she?”

“Excuse me?”

“Is her father important or something? Michael Antonelli?”

Vincent gaped at him. “I don’t recall telling you Michael was her father.”

He shrugged. “Haven may have mentioned it.”

“I’m surprised,” he said. “He didn’t claim her, so not many people know that information. His own wife only just recently found out. She wasn’t very happy.”

Carmine laughed dryly. “Haven mentioned that, too.”

Vincent raised his eyebrows. “Have you told her you know them?”

Carmine stared at his father. “I don’t.”

“You do,” Vincent insisted. “Or, well, you know Katrina’s brother. We’re related to him.”

Silence permeated the office. It took a minute for that to click with Carmine. “Katrina Moretti? Are you telling me the bitch who tortured Haven is Corrado’s sister?”

“Yes.”

“That motherf*cker! Does he know what they were doing?”

“Possibly, but none of that matters right now,” Vincent said. “Squint has his eyes set on the girl, so she needs to be watched for that reason.”

It didn’t make sense to Carmine, but he knew his father wasn’t going to tell him anything more.

* * *

“Just relax,” Carmine said softly, pulling out a chair for Haven as they made their way to the table for dinner that night. He took the seat beside her, and Haven remained still as they bowed their heads for a prayer. They helped themselves to food but Haven only took a little, too anxious to eat. She scooted the food around on her plate with her fork, alarmed, as she tried to ignore Nunzio’s gawking from across the table.

“So, Carmine,” Salvatore said, attempting conversation. “You’ll be eighteen in a few months. Any plans for the future?”

Haven peered at him, curious. She, too, wondered what his plans were, but Carmine merely shrugged, offering no answer.

Dr. DeMarco cleared his throat. “Carmine can do what he wants with his life, but I like to think he’ll hang around here until he graduates.”

Nunzio laughed mockingly. “School’s useless. What’s a diploma gonna get you these days—a job at McDonald’s? There’s money to be made out there, and no piece of paper from some school will matter a bit when it comes to it.”