Paid In Full (Vitale Brothers Book 2)

Prologue

The soundof my hammer cracking against skull was loud. Bone broke, and bits of brain and blood stuck to my instrument. I turned it around toward me, frowning at the mess of skin and hair clumped onto the metal.

I sucked my teeth. “Damn, my favorite hammer.”

“It’s a hammer. How much can it really be damaged?” Benito asked.

“Look, she’s flaking!” I pointed out, spinning the hammer around and showing it to him. “See? Right there! Skull fragments are terrible for hammers.”

The man on the ground coughed out blood, his whole body trembling. I scrunched up my nose as the distinct smell of piss filled the air.

“Will you fucking die already?” I groaned.

I brought the hammer down once more. The vibration of steel against bone ran up my arm, making it tingle. I love that sensation. Nothing compared to the way it felt to hit something with Silvy.

“Will you finish this up?” Benito asked. “I’ve got things to do, and so do you.”

Enzo dragged a body and dropped it on the ground. “Fucking hurry up. I have things to do too. You’re playing around.”

I groaned. “You’re both boring as hell.”

So what if I liked playing with my food? It wasn’t every day that I could get the release I was looking for. One that shook the deepest parts of me. Usually, I was forced to keep it all in check and deal with the boring shit Benito assigned me to do. Not right now, though. Sweet freedom.

I crashed the hammer into the man’s head one last time, and he stopped twitching. Panting, I stood up and twirled Silvy in my hand. Three bodies were piled up, each needing to be broken down and disposed of. Enzo and Benito had already started, which left the last one for me.

“Clothes,” Enzo said, snapping his fingers. “You’re a mess, and I need to destroy those.”

I looked down at my blood and brain-stained suit. “You know we’re disposing of bodies here, right? Things are going to get messier.”

“I’m having a cleaning crew brought in.” Benito shook his phone at me. “Give him the clothes. You have new ones on the way.”

Great.

As much as I loved my brothers, I wanted to kill them sometimes. Enzo was being impatient as always, but it was enhanced by the fact he had a tall, big-chested, sexy boyfriend at home.

I’d kill for someone to be waiting for me.

When I went home, the only thing that greeted me was silence. Benito working me overtime was a godsend at times. It was better than wandering around my empty house. Alone.

“Are you good?” Benito asked.

I gazed over at him and nodded. “Yeah. I’m good,” I said, my tone more clipped than I wanted it to be. I cleared my throat. “Guess I’m just tired. I still have that meeting.”

“Yes, I know,” Benito said, taking my clothes as I stripped and passing them over to Enzo. “It shouldn’t take too long. You can go home and get some rest soon.”

“Yeah. Great.”

Benito peered at me more carefully. I turned away from him as quickly as I could. My older brother was entirely too good at reading me. I didn’t want him to see me when I was feeling vulnerable. When I turned around, Enzo was carrying my hammer off.

“Hey! What the fuck are you doing?”

“Cleaning it,” he said flatly. “Do you want to do it?”

“I want your hands off Silvy. That’s what I want!” I snatched her away. “I can clean her up.”

Enzo pulled a face. “The fact that you named a stupid hammer…”

“You’re a stupid hammer!”

“Enough!” Benito snapped. “What are you, five?” he asked me. “Stop. Get your shit together and go figure out what’s going on with our bid.”

I frowned. “Already did that. Weston’s still figuring out who to choose for the construction contract. I’ve tried to talk to him about it a few times, but the annoying fuck likes dangling it over everyone’s heads. Bet it makes his three-inch pecker feel real big.”

“No excuses,” Benito said, shoving a finger into my chest. “Get it done.”

It took everything in me not to slap his finger away. Why he was hellbent on testing me, I had no idea, but I would snap that finger if he kept jabbing it into me.

“Fine,” I grumbled through clenched teeth. “I’m going.”

At least I didn’t have to break down bodies. My back wouldn’t be screaming in pain when I returned home. I walked over to the hose in the corner of the warehouse and turned it on. Ice-cold water kissed my skin, making me jump.

“Shit! Why can’t we get a good shower installed in these places?”

“That wouldn’t be suspicious at all,” Enzo said. “A shower in a random warehouse full of your pubes.”

I glared at him. “What do you think I’m gonna do? Shave my balls in there?”

Enzo and Benito exchanged a look before Enzo nodded. “That’s exactly what you would do.”

“Keep going, Enzo. No, I want you to. You’re going to get a fist in your face.”

“I don’t recommend it,” Enzo said with a shrug. “We both know how fast my knife is.”

“Fuck, will you two shut up?” Benito growled. “Goddamn, why would anyone ever go into business with their family?”

“You love us,” I said, aiming the hose at myself again. “Shit, that’s cold!”

I washed off all the blood and bits of viscera that clung to my skin. My suit had collected most of it, but what had been attached to my flesh was gone too. I dropped the hose, shivering as one of our men jogged up to me with a towel.

“We have clothes for you, sir.”

“W-wanna give them to me instead of flapping your f-fucking mouth?” I snapped, trembling in the drafty ass building.

“Yes, sir. Sorry, sir.” He stared at me for a minute longer, and I raised a brow.

“I know my dick is mesmerizing. Want to suck it?”

His eyes widened. “No, sir!”

“Why? You don’t like the way my dick looks?”

“I— um, that’s not it at all, sir.”

“So you do like the way it looks?”

His eyes darted around wildly, looking for someone to save him before they came back to me. “It’s a perfectly nice cock, sir.”

“Gross,” I said, smacking him upside the head. “Don’t stare at my dick, newbie. Get the fuck out of here. And don’t come back without my goddamn clothes!” I shouted as he scrambled away.

“Do you have to screw with them?” Benito asked as he moved over to me.

I grinned and gave him a shrug. “What? It’s fun to watch them squirm. Poor, scared bastards.”

“This is why they all think you’re crazy.”

“They think he’s crazy because he is,” Enzo interjected. “Can I go now?”

Benito sighed as I glared at my brother. “Yes, you can go home to your boyfriend. I expect you to go to the next benefit. These things are important for our name and our business.”

“I know,” Enzo said. “But Tex wants to go to the movies tonight, or he’s threatened to go by himself,” he said, pulling his phone out of his pocket. “And he will.”

“So let him go,” I said.

Enzo’s dark gaze landed on me. “I’d rather die.”

“You’re so fucking possessive.”

“And?”

“Go!” Benito said, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Gin, get out. Here are your clothes.” He snatched away the stack that was rushed over. “Get me that bid and stop antagonizing him.”

“It’s just so fun.”

“I’m this close to sending you back to the hospital.”

“Okay, okay,” I said quickly. “I’m not that bad. It’s a joke.”

I huffed as I tugged my clothes on. He always assumed I was spiraling off the deep end if I had even a bit of fun. Torturing the newbies and sometimes my brother was simply par for the course. What would life be without pulling their chains a little?

Finally dressed, I picked up my fancy leather shoes and expensive socks bought purely for the stupid event. I glanced at them. My feet were still wet. I would have to wait to put them on.

“Do you know what you’re supposed to be doing?” Benito asked.

“You gave me all the paperwork this morning. How could I forget that quickly?”

Benito’s lips stayed sealed. Would it really be so bad if I punched him in the back of the head? Sometimes the way he talked to me was like a father talking to a child. We were brothers. I didn’t need him to be on my ass about my job.

He laid a hand on my shoulder and squeezed. “I just want to make sure the job is done correctly. This is a big deal for us. Sorry, I’m on edge.”

All the irritation drained out of me with one glance at the serious expression on his face. I nodded. “Don’t worry. I’ll take care of it.”

Benito blew out a breath. “Good. I have a few things to take care of as well. See you there?”

“Of course.”

Benito patted my shoulder hard, a small smile on his face. Immediately I felt better. We were only half brothers, but the love and appreciation I had for him weren’t diminished because of that fact. I knew Benito well. As much as he was a pain in my ass, he deserved some type of peace. I watched as he talked to one of our men before I pulled myself away. I had assignments to complete.

Time to get this shit done.