The Enforcer (Untamed Hearts Book 3)(142)

Fucking government.

Nova came into the closet as Tino worked on putting on his boots. “I could handle it. I’d cut off my own arm for you. Of course I could handle it, and I want you to talk to me. To finally get it out.”

“Madonn’.” Tino groaned as he sat on the floor and tied his laces. “Remind me never to knock you out again. It’s fine. I’m great. No harm done. There’s nothing to get out.”

“I can see the harm, though,” Nova argued. “I know it’s there.”

“Well, I can’t help you with that.”

Tino stood and reached for his holster. He slipped it on, all the while feeling Nova’s gaze on him. He put his Beretta in the back of his jeans and the Glock on one side of the holster, and then he stood there looking at his guns, deciding what he wanted to play with today.

“Tell me why you won’t talk to me?” Nova pressed.

Tino was still incredibly on edge from the encounter with Brianna the night before. He didn’t want to, but he turned and shouted, “Because it’s f*cking horrible, Casanova!”

Nova flinched like Tino had punched him.

“It was horrible.” Tino shook his head as he repeated himself. He had taken enough steps back and been out of the sex market long enough to know that nothing about what happened was okay, even if he’d convinced himself otherwise at the time. It could’ve been worse, but it was still pretty f*cking bad. “Mary is a very cruel person, and you would never wanna know what she did to me. You would never wanna know what she used to say while she was doing it. It would destroy you. It would destroy all this worship you have for Ma. I can’t stand hearing Ma’s name. I can’t stand talking about her. I want to beat my head against the wall every time you or Romeo cross yourselves when you talk about her like she’s some goddamn saint. Hearing my shit would destroy that love, and one of us needs to have it, so just let it go.”

Tino went back to getting ready.

And it wasn’t until he walked out of the closet fully dressed that Nova said, “I should’ve let Carina kill her that night. I’m the one who stopped her, you know?”

“Trust me, what Carina did is punishing Mary worse than God could. Mary is just that f*cking vain, and the surgeries keep making her worse.” Tino reached out and grabbed Nova’s shoulder. “Now she doesn’t leave the house. You’re good. It’s all good.” He kissed Nova’s forehead, because now Tino had about an inch on him. “Ti voglio bene.”





Chapter Thirty-Seven


Nova planted the seed.

Probably some deep-rooted, long-standing problem that caused Tino to naturally believe Nova, even if everything in him was opposed to it.

Plus, Tino hadn’t ever once contemplated the possibility of healing.

He hadn’t considered it an option.

To somehow recover from Mary. To undo all her f*cked-up brainwashing. He’d just been rolling with it. Coping. Lying and pretending to be the Tino he should’ve been and giving up on the Tino he was.

Except Nova wasn’t giving up.

This wasn’t the first argument they’d had about it. Nova had been trying different things for a while now. Urging him to go to therapy, even if it was an intense risk to security, but Tino nixed it, and Nova had to agree.

Now this.

And Tino hated seeing Nova miserable. It wasn’t easy being so broken that anytime Tino let himself show, he could see how it gutted his brother. Like the guilt was eating him alive.

Twelve-year-old Tino was angry at Nova.

Adult Tino hurt for his brother, even if the anger had been easier. Now he just ached for all the hours Nova worked. For the demons that tormented him and forced him to jerk awake from nightmares he always denied the next day.

Tino didn’t have nightmares.

He wasn’t haunted like Nova.

Broken—abso-f*cking-lutely—but not haunted.

Guilt, Tino supposed, was more poisonous than pain and humiliation.

So if all those f*cking books said Tino was supposed to talk about it on the slim hope of healing, he was willing to try it.

Not with Nova.

Certainly not with Carina.

He thought of talking to Mei, but that was kind of like the blind leading the blind. Even if she was in school now, studying for some psych degree, and went to all those support groups. She was probably the one nagging at Nova about all this talking shit.

The two of them were tight now.

Nova was tight with a lot of Lost Girls and Boys.

Always trying to fix their problems. He even had a f*cking study group on Friday nights. Romeo thought he was out partying; instead he was coaching Lost Kids and setting up mutual funds. Mei helped him, and together they tried to save the world one broken sex slave at a time.

And screw Mei and her stupid psychology shit she was always spewing at Tino, because he was starting to realize Nova spent all his spare time hosting GED study groups to make up for the fact that the one person he wanted to help, he couldn’t.

So this idea started to form while he and Carlo were out.

It was an easy job.

No dead bodies.

No chemicals.

Only a trip to Jersey to “discuss” some financing issues with a casino executive. There was hardly any blood. Tino didn’t even bother with blow, and he noticed Carlo didn’t either.