A Taste of Danger

Getting the Job Done

Victor

I pull up outside of the apartment complex and scowl at the disgusting state of it. Tony sure doesn’t know how to take care of it, even though he took a large loan to renovate the place. I wonder where all that money went.

Meh, it doesn’t matter where they went. Tony’s time has run out, and that’s all I care about now.

I walk up the dingy stairwell, walking straight to apartment 3B.

“Want me to break the door down, Boss?” Marco asks.

“Nah, no need to be rude.” I shake my head and knock on the door gently.

After a moment, the door opens slightly, revealing a young man with greasy hair and bloodshot eyes. He looks nervous as he peeks out at us.

“Who are you?” he asks, his voice shaking slightly.

“I’m here to see Tony,” I reply, giving him a warm smile.

The young man hesitates, eyeing me warily. “Tony’s not here,” he finally says.

I arch an eyebrow. “Is that so? Mind if I come in and wait for him?”

The young man looks like he’s about to refuse, but then he seems to think better of it. He steps back and opens the door wider, gesturing for me to come in.

I step inside, taking in the cluttered and unkempt apartment. Tony’s apartment is in a worse state than the building.

“I’ll just wait here until he gets back,” I say, taking a seat on the grimy couch.

The young man nods, looking like he wants to say something more but holding his tongue. He disappears into the kitchen, leaving Marco and me alone in the living room.

I turn to Marco, my right-hand man, and give him a nod. He knows what to do. He gets up from his seat and heads towards the kitchen, following the young man. I can hear their muffled voices as they speak, and after a few minutes, Marco returns to the living room alone.

“Boss, he doesn’t know anything,” Marco says, his voice low. “He’s just the druggie brother who Tony lets crash here sometimes.”

I nod. “Alright.”

Right then, the door opens again, and Tony walks in. His eyes turn wide when he sees me, so I offer him a smile too. “Hey Tony, how ya doin’?” I greet him cheerfully.

Tony looks at me, his eyes still wide. I know he is contemplating turning around and running away, but he just stands there. He knows why I’m here, and he knows Marco will shoot him if he tries to run.

“I-I’m doin’ alright, Victor,” Tony stammers, trying to appear calm. “I was just about to call you and let you know I’m working on getting the money together.”

I chuckle. “Listen, Tony, I’m not here to play games,” I say firmly. “You owe me a lot of money, and we’ve been more than patient with you. It’s time to pay up.”

Tony’s face falls, and I can see the fear in his eyes. He knows there’s no getting out of this.

“I don’t have the money right now, Victor,” he says, his voice shaking. “But I can get it to you. Please, just give me some more time.”

I shake my head. “I can’t do that, Tony. You’ve had plenty of time, and you’ve been dragging your feet. You know what happens to people who don’t pay their debts to us.”

Tony swallows nervously, and I can see the sweat starting to bead on his forehead. “Please, Victor. I’m begging you. I’ll get the money, I swear.”

I take a step closer to him, my voice low and menacing. I grab his throat suddenly.

“Tony, listen to me,” I say, my grip tight but controlled. “You have one last chance to get me the money you owe me. And since I’m such a nice guy, I’ll give you another 24 hours. If you fail, I will not hesitate to take drastic measures to get what’s owed to me. Do you understand?”

Tony nods frantically, and I release my grip on his throat. He gasps for air, coughing and wheezing. “Y-yes, Victor. I understand,” he says, his voice hoarse.

“Hey! What are you doing to Tony?” I hear the young man shout behind me.

“Stay out of this, Carlos,” Tony breathes and struggles to get out of my grip.

I turn around to face the young man, Carlos, and give him a cold stare. “This doesn’t concern you, kid,” I say sharply. “Mind your own business.”

As soon as the words leave my mouth, Carlos lunges at me with a wild scream. Marco reacts quickly and grabs him by the arm. He twists it behind his back, causing him to cry out in pain and fall to the ground.

“Get off me, you bastard!” he spits at him, struggling to break free.

“Leave him alone, he didn’t do anything wrong.” Sheer panic reflects in Tony’s eyes.

I let go of Tony and walk over to Carlos, then press my foot against his back, keeping him pinned to the ground.

“You really shouldn’t have done that,” I say calmly, my voice menacing. “Now, you’re going to learn a lesson about respect.”

I deliver a swift kick to Carlos’ ribs, causing him to gasp for air and writhe in pain. I repeat the action a few more times until he stops moving, and then I release him. Carlos is lying on the ground, groaning in agony.

I turn to Tony, who hasn’t moved an inch to defend his brother.

“Remember, Tony, 24 hours,” I remind him. “Make sure you have my money by then.”

“Y…you didn’t have to hurt my brother, he has nothing to do with this,” Tony stammers.

“Then he shouldn’t have gotten involved, Tony. Teach him some manners after we leave, would you?” I say. “And you know how these things go. I gave you a deadline, and there will be consequences if you don’t come through. It’s not personal. It’s just business.”

I pause for a moment before continuing. “So let’s make sure you have my money by the deadline, okay?”

Tony nods quickly, clearly intimidated. “I’ll have it, I promise,” he says.

“Good. Then we won’t have any problems,” I reply, my tone still firm. “Remember, I’m not the kind of person you want to cross. So make sure you keep your end of the deal.”

With that, I turn and leave, feeling satisfied. Next time, Tony won’t be so lucky. I have two very hungry pigs living in my stables, Porco and Rosso and my freezer has been looking rather empty lately. It would be a shame if Tony was the one ending up in it. For him, not for me and certainly not for my pigs. They would love him.