Cold City (Repairman Jack - the Early Years Trilogy) by F. Paul Wilson

expect anything.  We’ve been over for a long, long time.”
    “He still carried a torch for you.”
    A small, sad smile.  “My torch sank in the East River a dozen years ago.  I’m glad Darren’s getting it all.  I would hate to have Harry will it to one of his floozies.”
    She went about watering the ferns, then said good-bye and left.
    Julio was thinking that maybe he could sit down with Darren and agree to get rid of these ferns.  If Darren stayed overseas for a while, he might turn out to be the perfect majority partner.  Julio had enough to deal with, what with the falling receipts and his sister’s ex giving her a hard time.
    He heard the door open again and, figuring it was Nita, didn’t look up. 
    “Forget something?”
    “We thought she’d never leave,” said a male voice.
    Julio spun and saw two guys, one heavy, one slim, standing in the doorway.
    “We’re closed.”
    The heavy one pulled a donut from a bag and bit into it.  The thinner one closed the door and locked it.
    “You are now.”
    “My name’s Vinny,” the heavy guy said around a bite of donut.  “This here’s Aldo.  We know you’re Julio.  We need to talk.”
    “About your partner,” Aldo added.
    “Harry? What about him?”
    Julio had a pretty good idea now who had gone through Harry’s apartment.
    “He owes some people money,” Vinny said.
    Uh-oh. 
    Julio leaned his mop against a table and headed for the bar.
    “What people?” he said as he moved.
    Vinny took another bite.  “People who don’t like to get stiffed, even by a stiff.”
    Aldo laughed like it was the first time he’d heard that.  Maybe it was.
    “What’s that got to do with me?”
    “He owns part of this business – a real big part, we’ve heard – so we figure the business needs to settle up.”
    Behind the bar now, Julio removed the sawed-off twelve-gauge from its clips under the bar, but didn’t show it.
    “The business didn’t borrow the money.  You got loan papers?”
    Aldo laughed again.  “I love this guy!”
    Vinny said, “He borrowed three G’s at ten points a week and–”
    “Ten a week?  Mierda!”
    “You didn’t let me finish.  He’s three weeks behind, which means he owes four grand now.  The vig is four hundred a week.”
    Aldo said, “We need at least that tonight to keep you from getting further behind.”
    That did it.  Julio raised the sawed-off and rested it on the bar, pointing toward the two men.  Aldo stepped back, but Vinny only paused briefly in his chewing.
    “You seen Scarface ?” Julio said.  “This is my ‘li’l fren’.”
    Vinny said, “You pull that trigger, the next cocktail you serve will be a Molotov.”
    “ Chingate! ”
    “Whatever,” Aldo said.  “Look, you ain’t dealin’ with just a coupla clowns off the street.  There’s an organization involved.  You hearda Tony Cannon?  Well–”
    Vinny nudged Aldo.  “I ain’t so sure Tony wants his name thrown around.”
    Tony the Cannon Campisi?  That meant the Gambino family.  Mierda!
    Aldo said, “Who’s throwin’?  Just mentioning.”  He turned back to Julio.  “Your ex-partner is in to him for four large and Tony ain’t the forgive-and-forget type, so we need to walk outa here with four C-notes minimum, or we go collect it somewheres else – like from Harry’s wife.”
    “Or maybe from his kid,” Vinny said.  “We know he’s comin’ in tomorrow.”
    These two cabrons must have been listening at the door.
    Julio was ready to let loose with both barrels but held back.  His older sister Rosa was always on him about she what called his “macho thing” and how he had to control it – maybe because he was always wanting to mess up her ex husband.  What if he didn’t want to control it?  Two goons come in and demand money.  Was it a “macho thing” to refuse to bend over and take it up the ass?
    No fucking way.
    But he had other people to consider.  Nita… who knew what they’d do to her?