Page 4

The soft feelof paper against my fingertips’ pads as I turned the page was soothing to the soul like a scalpel slowly slicing through warm flesh. The words were beautiful poetry that sang to my soul every single line, a piece of the author that could never be taken back.

“What are you reading now, Enzo?” Giancarlo asked, effectively bursting the bubble around me.

He knew how to ruin a perfectly peaceful moment. I should be used to it working with my half-brothers for so long. Giancarlo’s sense of personal space needed work.

I attempted to engross myself in the book once more to surround myself with the world of fiction, but no such luck. A shadow was cast over the pages obscuring the pure poetry I’d been reading. A heavy sigh slipped from my chest and out of my mouth.

“Let’s se—” Giancarlo attempted to snatch my book away.

Don’t touch my things.Agitation settled in the pit of my stomach and fizzled out just as quickly. Holding onto anything was nearly impossible for me.

The moment his fingers came within an inch of the book, I had a knife out and pressed firmly against his exposed wrist. He went still as our gazes locked. One wrong move, and he’d be decorating our oldest brother’s office in red. And after the last incident, I doubted Giancarlo wanted to pay for another renovation.

“Is that necessary?” Giancarlo asked through gritted teeth.

Is breathing necessary?I blinked slowly at him before retracting my knife and placing it back in its hidden pocket.

“Why must you bother him, Gin?” Benito waltzed into the office, and I promptly closed the book.

“I was bored.”

“Don’t have me send you back to the hospital. It's nothing but a call away,” Benito said as he took a seat.

The paper on his mahogany desk was neatly organized. The moment his hand touched it, I forced back the urge to put a bullet in his head. Benito moved things around, ruining the perfect organization that I’d created.

I looked away from the ruined perfection and met my brother’s hard gaze head-on. He knew what I’d been thinking. I glanced away and stood up, moving closer to his desk now that he was there. The Blues music that filtered through Benito’s speakers was turned down, and the mild thumping of the club under us could be heard through the walls.

“You can go home and have your peace once you check on a few things,” Benito said.

“Fine.” There was no use arguing. I’d ultimately do it.

“I get to go home, too, right?” Gin asked.

Benito didn’t even look up from his paperwork as he answered. “No, you have been slacking off, and I’m not going to clean up your shit.”

“Neither will I.” I shook my head at my brother as he tossed his arms up.

He acted like a child on a good day. Still, Giancarlo was the second to Benito in our family.

“Enzo, there have been two busts lately of my warehouses. Find out who’s leaking the information.” Benito passed over two yellow folders, and I grabbed them.

He did everything the hard way, making it nearly impossible for the cops to keep track of our movements or even place anything on us. I opened it, and four cops’ faces and addresses were on the papers. I scanned each one, committing them to memory.

“They were recently removed from the police force. Looks like they had a clean-out day. Take care of it,” Benito said.

He never liked loose ends. Something close to excitement sent little sparks dancing over my fingertips. I’d get to touch a scalpel soon or, better yet, a saw this time. My shoulders dropped as I imagined what I’d do to my next project.

“Don’t draw it out, Enzo. I want it clean.” Benito’s words cut through my momentary excitement like a serrated steak knife through the hand.

“Consider it done.” There was beauty in a clean kill. Still, it was nothing like the chaos I indulged in when I was untethered by other orders.

“Gin, I need you in that meeting with ACTI developing.”

“I get boring meetings?”

Benito glanced up. “Don’t start, we both know your talent is best used there.” He passed over the card to the company. “Get it done. I want them no matter the costs.”

A knock at the door stopped any more talk of plans as it opened. One of our men stepped in and brought over a tablet. He placed it down on the desk before retreating.