"This is the true story of four young boys. Four lifelong friends. Intelligent, fun-loving, wise beyond their years, they are inseparable. Their potential is unlimited, but they are content to live within the closed world of New York City's Hell's Kitchen. And to play as many pranks as they can on the denizens of the street. They never get caught. And they know they never will." "Until one disastrous summer afternoon." "On that day, what begins as a harmless scheme goes horribly wrong. And the four find themselves facing a year's imprisonment in the Wilkinson Home for Boys. The oldest of them is fifteen, the youngest twelve. What happens to them over the course of that year - brutal beatings, unimaginable humiliation - will change their lives forever." "Years later, one has become a lawyer. One a reporter. And two have grown up to be murderers, professional hitmen. For all of them, the pain and fear of Wilkinson still rages within. Only one thing can erase it." "Revenge." "To exact it, they will twist the legal system. Commandeer the courtroom for their agenda. Use the wiles they observed on the streets, the violence they learned at Wilkinson." "If they get caught this time, they only have one thing left to lose: their lives."--BOOK JACKET.