A Bomb Built in Hell

Book excerpt: Before Burke, before Cross, Andrew Vachss created Wesley: a ruthless assassin who would stop at nothing to take out his targets. A BombBuilt in Hell is Wesley's story. While doing extended time for killing a fellow prisoner, Wesley meets Carmine Trentoni in a New York state prison. Carmine's life sentence hasn't cut him off from his outside sources, and he sees great potential in Wesley to carry out his revenge, and carry on his lucrative business. Wesley emerges from prison prepared to be the perfect hitman: calculating, deadly, and driven by money. On his release from prison, Wesley follows Carmine's directions to locate a Mr. Petraglia—the Q to his working-class James Bond. Pet and Wesley set up shop in Brooklyn, and execute their assignments, from a rising Chinatown mobster to a visiting Haitian dignitary, with finesse—and, occasionally, more explosives than are strictly called for. But Wesley isn't satisfied with his low-profile lot, and sets out to make a mark on the city that everyone will notice—which he does, in a shocking, dynamite conclusion.