Page 41 of The Enforcer's Revenge
Tino looked at it hesitantly before his gaze darted to Carina. “No, I’m good.”
“It’s not that bad,” Carina snapped at him. “I’d like to see you do better.”
“I didn’t say anything.” Tino’s voice was raspy, making it obvious he was still tired and burned out. “You’re assuming, Rina.”
“Maybe.” Carina gestured to the coffee pot. “It’s fresh.”
“Grazie.” Tino walked to the coffee maker and pulled down a cup from the cabinet above it. “I guess I should thank you for the benzos, too. That was an unexpected hookup. When did you start popping those?”
Carina laughed incredulously. “Are you giving me shit about my habits?”
“Yeah.” Tino set the cup down without pouring coffee into it. He folded his arms over his chest and leaned against the counter to glare at his sister. “I’m giving you shit.”
“I’ll tell you what. Why don’t we do a few lines and discuss it?”
“Okay.” Tino gave her a look rather than back down, his eyes wide, his smile cynical. “You got some?”
“You know, strangely enough, considering I’m such a raging addict, I don’t carry blow on me,” Carina said haughtily. “Bet you can’t say the same.”
“Nope.” Tino didn’t bother to deny it. “I can’t.”
Brianna jumped when Carina reached into the sink and hurled a plate at Tino. He managed to swiftly lean to the side, dodging the impact despite recovering from a multiple-day-long binge. Instead, the plate shattered against the counter, sendingshards of glass everywhere as Carina screamed, “You turned into him! You’re Frankie!”
“Where have you been?” Tino laughed, completely unfazed by Carina’s fury. Then he stepped away from the counter, and Carina actually backed up, almost looking fearful as Tino crowded into her personal space and leaned down to whisper in Carina’s ear, “And I promise, I’m much better than he is. You’re insulting me by comparing me to him.”
Carina shoved him hard, but Tino didn’t budge. He was like a big, unmovable wall. She grabbed another dish and threw it on the floor, making it shatter at Tino’s bare feet.
Still, Tino didn’t move, so Carina threw another one.
And another.
At the same time, she was screaming, “I hate you! I hate you! You were never supposed to be him! That was supposed to be Nova’s job! They took both of you, and you let it happen!”
“Maybe you oughta eat more of your mommy’s benzos,” Tino suggested as he looked down at Carina losing her mind. “’Cause I can’t tell you how much I fucking love watching you turn into her.”
Brianna knew better than to step in between a Moretti sibling fight because they had their own way of handling things. Usually, they sorted it out on their own, but this one was a little too catastrophic to ignore. Not to mention, she was going to be the one cleaning up the dishes.
So, Brianna said, “Tino, stop.”
She wasn’t mean or angry about it but firm, and Tino turned to her and arched an eyebrow.
“You think making her hate you will make you feel better?”
Tino shrugged. “Maybe.”
“Just go, Carina,” Brianna whispered.
“You’re kicking me outta my own apartment?” Carina’s voice was still unnaturally loud before she shouted, “Fuck you!”
“Let him reset.” Brianna didn’t know how else to put it.
“Yeah, maybe a few more Valiums, and I’ll be able to fake it for you again. Wanna hook me up with that?” Tino added as he gave Carina another hard look. “You think you’re scaring me, little girl? I want you to hate me. I know I’m disgusting. I know I’m hurting you. I know I’m hurting her, too. You’re the one who missed the fucking news flash. Hate me. I dare you.”
Carina glanced down because the dishes had crunched under his bare feet. Brianna looked, too, seeing the stains of Tino’s blood on the tile, even if he seemed unfazed by the pain.
“Stop it,” Brianna said again. “Tino!”
“I’m pissed at you, too!” Tino growled at her, turning on Brianna all of a sudden like a wild, terrifying animal.
