Page 72 of Star Crossed
“The odds are so strongly in your favor on this one.” Nova sighed, looking away from Romeo miserably. “He told Aldo it’s about the payday, but you know that’s not it. He’s banking on your fucking pride. He’s hoping you’ll tell him to fuck off and win anyway.”
Tino dropped his head to the table. “Fuck.”
“No,” Romeo choked, finally finding his voice. “No fucking way. I’m not doing it.”
“If you do that, you let him win,” Nova said, sounding pleading and desperate. “You give him the excuse he needs to get back at me by killing you.”
“This is your bullshit, Nova!” Romeo barked at him. “You get him off my back. You tell Aldo—”
“I tried!” Nova threw down his fork and gave Romeo a look of disbelief. “You think I didn’t fucking try? I would’ve licked his shoes to stop this, but the thing is, Frankie’s not the only liability. Aldo thinks you’d sell out the organization.”
“He’s right,” Romeo assured him. “The FBI can shove a wire up my ass, I don’t give a shit! I’m not throwing the fight!”
“Then you’d sellmeout…and Tino,” Nova reminded him. “I know you’re living in a magical bubble that lets you believe he’s still the kid following you to the dojo every day, but Tino’s got dirt on his hands too. He started working for Frankie when he was twelve. You think he hasn’t done shit that put him in confession?”
Romeo stood up. He kicked his chair and sent it across the kitchen. It crashed against the stove, the leg breaking off and then rolling to the side as he raged and fought tears. There were so many things he was angry about, he couldn’t even focus on what had him more appalled.
Finally he pointed at Tino and shouted the same question he’d asked a hundred times before, “Have you killed to protect that bastard Aldo?”
Tino lifted his head from where he’d been hiding against the table and swallowed hard before he whispered, “No.”
“Are you lying to me?” Romeo screamed, his hands shaking from the level of his fury. “I’m so tired of this fucking game. One day you’re a good kid, then all of a sudden you’re drinking like a fucking fish and partying your ass off like you have shit to forget. If you did it, just tell me.”
“I didn’t,” Tino said passionately. “I wouldn’t kill for Aldo or Frankie or any of them. Fuck ’em.”
“But,” Romeo pressed, hearing the confession in Tino’s voice.
“They’re blood, but they’re not my family,” Tino explained, looking away from Romeo, a haunted look passing over his handsome face. “You’re my family. Nova’s my family. And if I had to clip someone to protect my family, yeah, I’d fucking do it, and I wouldn’t feel bad about it.”
“Have you?”
Tino shrugged, looking away from Romeo, the confession locked tight enough that it might never come out.
“You did this to him.” Romeo pointed at Nova accusingly. “If his liver is dying, it’s your fucking fault!”
“No, Rome, you did it!” Nova jumped up, his eyes narrowed in fury, making it obvious the jibe hit its mark. “You let Frankie get to you! You got arrested! You left! What the fuck were we supposed to do? I was fourteen and stuck living with Frankie and Mary. How do you think that bitch treated us? Having his bastards under her roof because Frankie wanted to use my brain. If Tino had to be hard to survive, I made him hard and I made us valuable. That’s what you never got: if you’re valuable, they don’t hurt you! Now you’re expendable because you were too fucking proud to push your shit aside and give Aldo respect. So it’s either throw another fight or die! Those are your options.”
“Then let Frankie kill me.” Romeo turned around to leave the kitchen. “I feel dead anyway.”
He walked to the front door without looking back, hearing Nova curse in Italian over the splintering sound of a plate smashing against the wall. Romeo stormed out the door bare-chested and barefoot, uncaring about the chill in the night air.
He wanted to walk until he forgot everything, Tino who’d once been so full of love and joy, and Nova who’d planned on going to Harvard and doing something that made a difference in the world.
He wanted to walk until it didn’t feel like his fault that Tino had blood on his hands and Nova had dropped out of high school when he was sixteen.
He wanted to walk until it didn’t matter that he was probably going to die for a stupid fight and something as pointless as pride when he couldn’t help but feel like he had more to live for.
He wanted to walk until he forgot about Jules and the fact that he’d fallen in love with her when he knew this day was going to come.
Too soon.
He wanted to walk until it didn’t feel like his heart was going to shatter in his chest because he needed more time with her.
Whatever reasons hewantedto walk for, he knew hehadto walk until he stopped crying.
* * * *
The front porch light was on when Romeo got back. His skin was sticky with a cold sweat that was uncomfortable. He smelled distinctively of the outdoors, not something he enjoyed. His feet were muddy…even worse.
