Benito stared at the doc. “Long enough to answer my questions.”

She shook her head. “It won’t be easy.” She held her hand up, silencing Benito. She was probably one of the very few women who could, besides our nonna. “Once I’m done, be ready to work quickly.” She started setting up, taking some of his blood and testing.

I turned away and moved to the side as we waited for her to bring Aaron Chandler back around. Couldn’t get answers if he was knocked out or too close to death.

“When he gives up your boy, I want him dead,” Benito said.

I went stiff at the thought of killing Tex. No matter how much I threatened him, if it came down to it, would I be able to pull the trigger?

“He won’t,” I said through gritted teeth.

Benito didn’t look convinced. Giancarlo was quick to jump up before a full-blown argument started again.

“Come on, are we sure he’s working with someone?”

“Yes,” Benito and I both said in unison.

“There are too many products and too many avenues being fucked with for him to be able to do it alone,” Benito said. He put his cigarette out and grabbed another. “Had to have inside information on our shit as well.” He eyed me accusingly, and my fist balled up tighter.

It isn’t Tex! I kept my mouth closed. I could scream it until I got blue in the face, and my brother still wouldn’t believe me. It would take every drop of evidence and then a fucking miracle to convince him otherwise.

“Benito—”

“Shut up, Gin,” Benito said. He pointed his cigarette at him. “I know you don’t want to go back to prison.”

Giancarlo’s face twisted in anger before smoothing out. Out of the three of us, he wore his emotions a lot more. He was also the one who hated confined places. Hospitals and jails were all the same to my brother.

“This is different,” Gin argued.

“Is it? As far as I’m concerned, this is history repeating itself.” Benito glanced my way. “Only this time, he went straight to the enemy.”

It isn’t like that. Right? Am I destined to pick between my family or the man I love?

My chest tightened as I realized that I loved Tex. What was I supposed to do now?

“Stop your quarreling. I know you’re brothers, but you’re going to make me fuck up.” Melony pulled back and finished hooking up the IV. “Alright, I say you got another ten, maybe twenty minutes.”

She stepped back and packed up her things. She didn’t glance back toward the man on the table as she headed toward the door. “Benito, double my fee for tonight. You know how I feel about working on corpses.”

He nodded, not arguing with her. To be honest I was certain we’d pay Melony more than a surgeon made if it meant she would be all ours. But she liked running her low-end clinic with her girlfriend. And we weren’t going to get in the way. Out of all the people who worked for us Melony came close to being family.