The Enforcer (Untamed Hearts Book 3)(43)

“Carina,” a man called out. “Are you up here? Your nonno told me to come check on you.”

“It’s fine,” Carina said to Nova quickly and then yelled, “We’re in here!”

“I’m sorry.” Nova turned to Tino and cupped his face. His hands were shaking again. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry.”

Truth again.

Tino went to an underground dogfight once with Paco and his brother Roberto. He hated it, seeing those dogs tear into each other. It was one of the most horrible things he had ever witnessed in his life.

There was something in the dogs’ eyes, wild and terrified and savage.

Tino couldn’t begin to imagine what happened to those dogs to make them so unstable. He never thought to see it in a human, and he definitely didn’t expect it from Nova.

Shirtless and covered in dried blood, his eyes wild and terrified, Nova reminded Tino exactly of one of those damaged pit bulls. Broad-shouldered, thick-necked, everything in him tense and dangerous, completely untrusting of the world around him.

The stranger let out a low gasp of horror when he walked in. “Maronna.”

“Don’t you touch him,” Nova growled as he pushed Tino tight against the wall. “You kill him, you better f*cking kill me too. Take a baseball bat and crack my skull open, or I’ll spend the rest of my f*cking life making you suffer.” Nova jerked and growled low in his throat. “Do you know what I could do to you?”

“Hey, hey, it’s okay,” the man said in a slow, hesitant voice, as if he were indeed talking to a feral animal. “I’m here to help you. What’s your name? Tell me your name, and I’ll help you figure it out, okay?”

“Fuck you, my name,” Nova snapped at him. “Just f*cking kill both of us. You’re strapped. Kill us. He’s gonna die anyway. Just leave us alone. Let him die in peace or f*cking kill us.”

“What is going on?” This guy sounded really out of his element. “Carina, sweetheart, where did you find these kids? Why do you have their blood all over you?”

“They’re my brothers,” Carina said simply. “Didn’t Nonno tell you?”

There was a deafening silence over the sound of more footsteps on the stairs; then the man in the bathroom whispered, “You motherf*cker.”

“The f*ck, Carlo? Is this your f*cking business? What’re you doing in my house?”

Everything in Tino tightened when he heard his father’s voice. Nova let out a low grunt of terror. His entire body was shaking as he reached behind him, grabbed Tino’s hand, and squeezed it tightly.

“Carina, go,” the stranger said. “Go wait for your nonno outside.”

“But—” Carina started in complaint.

“Go,” the stranger urged again. “Make sure the don can find us, okay?”

“Fine,” Carina huffed.

When her footsteps echoed down the stairs, the man asked, “Are they Isabella’s boys? Did you take them away from their brother?”

Frankie let out a dark, bitter laugh. “What? You’re taking it f*cking personal? They came from my balls. I made them. I can end them. This one doesn’t have any f*cking respect. He respects me now.”

“I take it personal.” The voice was suddenly icy cold, terrifying and dangerous as if this man hadn’t heard anything else. “I want you to get the f*ck out. Get out, Frankie! Get the f*ck out!” Tino heard the click of a gun. “GET OUT!”

“This isn’t your business,” Frankie said as if immune to the threat.

“I will shoot you, motherf*cker.”

“Who do you think you’re talking to? You can’t f*cking ice me,” Frankie growled. “Who the f*ck do you think you are?”

“I think I’m the motherf*cker who’ll shoot you and eat a bullet before the old man gets here. He can find both of us. We’ll die together. I’m ready. Are you?”

“Oobatz, Carlo. You’ve always been f*cking crazy,” Frankie snapped, but there was a quiver of fear in his voice. “You wanna have a bastardi convention with these two, go crazy, but just remember, the older one’s mine, and I’m telling Pop about this.”

“Tell your pop,” Carlo urged him. “Go f*cking cry to the don. He’s the one who sent me here. These are kids. They’re your kids. You better hope this one doesn’t f*cking die, ’cause I take it personal, strunzu,” he reiterated. “I take it personal as f*ck!”

There was a silence after Frankie stormed back down the stairs.

Then Carlo said, “Listen, Nova. You gotta let me help you.”

“Who the f*ck are you?” Nova barked at him. “Why the f*ck do you care? This is a trick. A test.”

“I work for the don. He sent me to help.” Carlo’s voice was still shaking. “Look, me and you, we’re the same. You think I grew up in Dyker Heights? Fuck, no. I’m from Washington Heights, okay? Big friggin’ difference.”

“Are you Frankie’s brother?” Nova asked cautiously. “You’re—”

“The don’s dirty secret? Yeah. Then Frankie’s mother kicked it, and suddenly it’s not so dirty. Not like the don and Frankie are the only wiseguys with a dirty secret or two, capisce?” Carlo let out a bitter snort. “You gonna let me help your brother or what?”