Bud lit another cigarette and looked Paulie over, slouching in the chair on the other side of his desk.  "So, do you get the drift of what I'm telling you here?" he asked, trying to get a read on how the kid was picking things up.  "Yea, sure.  It seems pretty simple really." Paulie said, with a little too much smile in his voice.  "Well let me put it this way kid, these people that come to us, there not just regular people, you know?"  Bud waited for him to catch on, but Paulie wasn't thinking enough about what he was hearing.  Bud elaborated.  "They're the kind of people who have a need to get rid of other people on a regular basis."  This seemed to at least make Paulie pause.  "Just keep in mind, we may do business with someone, but that doesn't mean we trust them.  Okay?"  "Yea.  I got it." Paulie said. 
    Bud sat back in his chair and took a couple of deep drags on his cigarette.  He knew Paulie could come off as goofy some times, but he also had a feeling that he could be smart when he needed to be.  And he had nerve.  He could walk on the edge.  When Paulie was just a little kid, riding around on a skateboard with his punk friends, Bud had seen how they taunted cops just for fun.  The cops would try and run them off, and these little skate rat kids knew just how to needle the freaking cops with smart ass comments.  It used to crack Bud up.  The cops would get so freaking frustrated, that they were ready to blow their stack, but Paulie knew just where the edge was.  He knew just how far he could go without getting his head cracked.   It was amazing to watch really.  This little 13 year old kid in total control of the situation, and the cop just going way off tilt.
    "There's something else kid."  Bud said, leaning forward again.  Paulie looked him in the eyes.  "We handle our own house cleaning."  Bud paused to see if the kid would catch on.  Paulie nodded.  Bud continued, "Sometimes things need to be done; internal issues, if you know what I mean."  Paulie nodded again.  "We don't involve any outsiders in our business.  We handle that ourselves."  Bud saw Paulie raise his eyebrows slightly.  He could tell that Paulie knew what he meant.  "This is a family business kid, it always has been.  Sometimes that means unpleasant things.  You got to understand that.  Now, I'm going to give you a little work.  It's nothing you can't handle."

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