Page 81 of Scarred Hearts

“I’m going back with you,” he growled, “and I’m fine.”

Tyler reached out to help him again, but he yanked his arm out of the way. “Stop touching me, man, I’m fine. Get me the fuck out of this house. There are people after me.”

“You need to rest, Luca.” Frankie huffed. He was so used to our bullshit, but I knew Luca gave him a run for his money when he worked for our father. He was always causing problems, which Angelo and Frankie had to step in many times to fix.

Luca grinned menacingly through his swollen, bloody face. “I do what the fuck I want,” he taunted, a rebellious gleam in his eye. It was just like him to push boundaries and defy authority, even in the middle of turmoil. “You know this.”

Tyler lifted a hand. “Can we go somewhere private before your own brothers come out here and kill you for what you did?”

He flickered his gaze at him, his smile fading. Tyler and Frankie stepped forward, stabilizing him again when he stumbled. After passing a few more rooms, they followed me left, into a guest room.

They gently lowered Luca onto a navy-blue velvet chaise lounge. Frankie strode across the room, disappearing into the adjoining bathroom. The sound of running water echoed for a moment before it abruptly stopped, and he emerged with a damp washcloth in hand. I extended my arm, taking the cloth from him, and gently dabbed at the cut above my brother’s eyebrow. With a sharp inhale, he leapt out of my reach.

I stumbled back, my heart racing. “Oops.”

“Watch it,” he rumbled.

“Sorry,” I murmured, biting down on my bottom lip. “I’m being careful, but it looks pretty bad.”

“I know,” he grumbled, finally meeting my gaze. I could see the pain etched into every line of his face.

“Where have you been?” I asked, gently cradling his chin between my fingertips as I dabbed at the cuts and bruises on his cheeks.

“The Mussolini’s found me after Ian and his prick men?—”

“Watch what you say about my family,” Tyler warned, his expression hardening.

Luca held up a hand. “I’m still mad at them for what happened to my dad.”

“That was your fault,” Frankie and I chimed in simultaneously.

“We’ll get to that in a second,” he said, shifting his gaze to Tyler, who was tapping his chin with a finger impatiently. “I’d been trying to figure out why my show in Boston was cancelled.” He jerked his head back again. “Damnit, Gia, be careful.”

“Ugh,” I groaned, blotting beside his mouth. “I’m trying.”

“Anyway,” he continued, “someone said something about a bomb threat, but then I heard the AC went out. I’m not buying any of it. I just know it’s all bullshit and someone set it all up. They wanted Ian to kill our dad.”

“I’ll do some digging,” Tyler replied.

Nodding, he added, “Yeah...because right now, I can’t trust anyone. I need to stay under the radar.”

“You’re too famous for that,” I scoffed.

“I’m sure there’s somewhere I can hide to recover,” he said, pointing between Frankie and me. “And for both your information, it wasn’t my fucking fault. I was going to get the message to dad, but some fucking car came out of nowhere and T-boned my fucking car at a traffic light. Then the fucking hospital kept me for three fucking days. By the time I got out, everyone was looking for me and wanted to kill me, and I got jumped somewhere. I need to clear my name.”

Tyler and I darted our eyes at one another.

“What?” Luca and Frankie asked.

“My wif…ex… my former wife,” he sighed, “was T-boned at a light and died. Chance’s former bodyguard was too as you know.”

“Mussolinis?”

Tyler nodded subtly. “But I don’t know why they’d fuck with you too. I’ll talk to my family and see what we can figure out. For now, I want you where we can keep an eye on you. I know Gia’s been worried about you and we’ll hide you.”

My heart swelled at the sight of him, and I fought the urge to leap into his strong arms and never let go. My words caught in my throat as I gazed at him, but before I could speak, Frankie’s voice broke through the silence.

“We’ll let the boss decide that.”

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