Archaic Dreams
Summary: The two McManus brothers are getting along fine with their Da, the trio of saints purging the streets of south Boston of sinners. But when there is hit, he is pushed into forcible retirement, when he returns to their Ma in Ireland, the brothers loose focus. Driven to see so many die, it takes two women to make the boys remember what it is to live.
"Jesus Christ! " Murphy ducked behind an old ottoman torn by ricocheting bullets.
"You good Murph?" Connor asked over the blasts, at receiving no reply he shouted out "MURPHY!"
He jumped when he felt a hand on his shoulder, somehow Murphy managed to slip from around the furniture to behind the bar where Connor was hiding. "stop yer shoutin', I'm right here."
"ya' scared me there for minute ya' know. Fuckin' answer next time alright?" Connor smacked him upside his head.
"Fuck you!" He indignantly smacked Connor back. An all out brawl might have ensued had the Mobsters not shaken them from their quarrel.
"You Fuckin' Assholes! Show yourselves!"
Looking slightly over the counter top the boys saw the relatively short greasy haired gangster holding a .45 with a shaking hand. He nervously looked about, trying to determine which way the shooters could have gone. There was a shot and his eyes glazed over before his body fell lifeless to the floor. There in a black trench coat stood McManus senior. Smoke swirling about him in a surreal, almost ethereal sort of way. The boys stood up fully and brushed off the debris from the floor.
"Where's the Don?" He asked gruffly. BANG!
He cried out as he fell to the floor, Don Alfonsina standing there with a gun in hand. His once white suit stained with sweat, blood, and what would later be determined as a mass amount of gunpowder (it seemed the brothers caught him in the middle of one of his "business meetings"). The brother's world seemed to pause for the briefest of moments. Then as if it had been put in fast-forward, they hopped over the top and rush the Don before he could squeeze out another shot. Connor put his gun to his head while Murphy kicked his knees out making him slam into the hard marble floor of his mansion. There was a sickening crack as Alfansina's knees made contact. Taking deep calming breaths, the brothers put barrels of their guns on the back of his head.
"Non niente lei voi stessi chiama il siants! suo!" He spat, tears and saliva choking him in his emotional state. Feeling as if he couldn't possible make his situation worse, he decided to put salt in open wounds.
"Ucciderò la maniera di youthe ho ucciso il suo vecchio amico! lei l'unirà nella morte, soffocando sul suo proprio sangue, l'adn piangendo fuori da amando un fallig di vigliacco alle sue ginocchia come ha fatto-"
Murphy growled as he rammed the butt of his gun into Alfansina's skull.
" No! Murph No!" Connor grabbed him. "We've got to do this right, for Da." Connor roughly pulled the don to his knees again. The brothers guns were replaced to their former positions. Then, croaking, and wet sounding, came the most beautiful sound they ever thought they'd hear.
"And Sheppard's we shall be…." They turned to see their father picking himself off the floor with agonizing pain. He sat up and leaned against a nearby doorframe. He nodded at them.
"Finish it, " he croaked quietly. They nodded at him and turned their full attention to their task.
"And Shepards we shall be..." They began again.
"For thee My Lord for thee…"
"-Andare all'Inferno! -"
"Power hath descended forth from thy hand…
So out feet may swiftly carry out thy command…"
"-Il Fuck Lei! -"
"And we shall flow a river forth to thee...
And teeming with souls shall it ever be…"
"-Dio ha la pietà su me! -"
"Et nomine patri "
"Et Filii "
"Et Spirit tu sancte "
"AHHHHHH! "
BANG
The McMAnus' moved as quickly as possible. Murphy and Connor carried their Da between them and made their way out to their car. Their Da was Breathing heavily and Bleeding all more than would be normal for such a wound. Having no choice in the matter as they didn't bring any medical supplies with them, Connor and Murphy sped out of the driveway and out onto the highway.
"Connor?" Murphy asked looking back at their Da "where we goin'? "
Connor looked tense and scared, he just looked right ahead. He stared intently on the road and replied tightly "I don't know Murphy."
"But Da-"
"Ya' think I don't Fuckin' know Murphy! What the Fuck we supposed to do!"
"Hospital " a hoarse whisper from the back seat
"Da," Murphy slid over the seat of their car to hold him. " Ya' know we can't…please, tell us what to do?" his eyes were already brimming with tears.
" Be brave me boy, and trust me. " he swallowed and took a deep breath "Go to the hospital. I've been there before. Trust me boys…" he closed his eyes and tried to breathe past the pain. "…go…hosp…"
"Shhhh," he soothed his father "Alright Da. We're on our way." He looked up to the review mirror where Connor silently watched them. "Well, hospital it is."
Looking out his window Murphy could see the lights of a town up ahead. The bright red cross stood out in the darkness. He wondered what they would do if their Da were to die. They all knew the risks they had to take each time they did a job. But they had done so well, killing the scum of the earth, being a family. And out of everything they all came out with minimal wounds. This was a bitter dose of reality, sure for twenty years their Da had been in prison, it was always he and Connor. But now that he finally has his father, he felt very hard pressed to give him up. How could he? He looked to the mirror again; he could see Connor's expression. His features were set, his eyes intense. He was so beautiful, Murphy felt a stirring in his heart, he knew (not just because they were twins), that Connor was perceived as his other half, that together they were complete. But it just wasn't true. There was always something missing, he wasn't even sure if his Da filled that gap. The job was always what kept him from going crazy, but lately it was losing its appeal. He had fears, and dreams, and things he wanted to share, but knew Connor wasn't the one to share it with. He wondered what it was he was feeling, and then he was jarred from his thoughts when the vehicle came to a sudden halt.
"Come on Murph, lets get Da inside." Connor sounded jaded, he slowly turned to help when he just froze.
"Wha-" Murphy followed his eyes to the still form of their father. "DA!" he screamed.
He stirred and opened his eyes, he must have forgot he was injured because he tried to move and jarred the wound. Crying out in pain he started shaking violently "Jesus Christ!"
The boys rushed to open the doors, and pulled their father out. Connor ran to get a wheel chair and a nurse. Murphy tried to help soothe the pain to no avail, he flinched as his father's cries echoed in the night.
Jasmine and Liliana started work at the hospital early. The day had gone by slowly with minimal patients. Over all the day was well spent goofing off and trying to ward away the doctors and EMTs that flirted shamelessly with them. It wasn't until around the end of their shift when their lives were changed forever.
They were at the front desk, chit chatting with the receptionist.
"I'm telling you Mary, Dr. Everton wont stop! I was in the closet getting some linen when he full out grabbed my ass!" Jasmine said. Her best friend Liliana gasped and sputtered indignantly while Gail giggled.
"That is not Funny Mary!" Liliana put her hands on her well-shaped hips.
" Awww, come on. Is it really so bad that a young, attractive, single, rich doctor likes you?"
The Girls answered in unison "Yes!"
Mary shook her red hair. Her freckled nose crunching cutely. "I wouldn't mind it. "
"Yes well, your Irish. " Liliana stated bluntly
"Lili!" Jasmine ground out. Elbowing her friend.
"No!" Lili tried to explain, "I just mean you're cute! You have that red hair, and those freckles and smooth skin. You should have no problem getting anywhere."
"Yeah, and you have this natural highlighted dirty blonde hair, with and hour glass figure, and emerald green eyes." Mary sat back smugly while Liliana blushed. Leave it to her friend to rain on her parade. Jasmine piped up.
"trust me, she's not that perfect, I live with her, I know. Besides no one is perfect. "
Mary sat forward mouth agape as if she uttered some unthinkable obscenity. "your just as bad as she is!" Jasmine was taken aback "wha…"
"You're built like ram-bet, with yet again natural dark deep brown hair, almost black! With warm sugar brown eyes! The both of you are ridiculous! You speak over thirty languages, are trained in martial arts, the best cooks I've ever met, not to mention your smart and have the best personalities Ever! If you guys aren't perfect I don't know what is." Mary took a breath "I would kill to be you guys."
Suddenly the mood seemed to die, the air was thick with some unseen force. Mary look concerned at her two friends. They had very crestfallen looks on their faces, and their eyes were dark with hate and pain. They made the most beautiful and tragic picture. Like marble statues, except statues don't cry, and their eyes were glistening, and tears threatened to fall any second. Mary was confused and scared, what had she said wrong? Then as suddenly as the dark cloud descended, it was lifted. The girls looked just as they had before. The only thing to betray what Mary had just seen in the two was when they spoke. Their voices were tight, and hoarse.
"Trust us Mary, you don't want to be us, either of us."
"You admire us, our bodies, our personalities. But remember, and I mean this," Jasmine looked her dead in the eye, pinning her in place with the intensity of her gaze, " there is always a contradiction, there must always be a contrast. No light without dark, no love without hate. We seem bright and beautiful, cheery and chipper…"
"There is a darkness inside us. We didn't acquire our knowledge and skills at a fair price." Liliana looked away.
"oh yes," jasmine continued ,"we had to pay for these so called 'talents' "
Mary was scared, it was disconcerting to hear them speak this way, but she found her curiosity pushing her forward when she knew she shouldn't push. She spoke quietly, enraptured by the strange change in their presence. "What did you pay?"
Jasmine looked away, and answered just as quietly "our souls."
Once again Mary was confused as Liliana waved her hand as if she could wave away the conversation they just had. "Come, let's not dampen the evening with the talk of our pasts. You know it isn't a very nice story, lets not spoil the night." She directed her comment to Jasmine whose demeanor seemed to ebb away reluctantly.
Mary looked down at her sandals "sorry." She mumbled.
Liliana let out a musical laugh; it lifted Mary's spirit. "Nonsense. We should be apologizing to you. You don't need to hear our things like that. Please, lets continue with a pleasant evening shall we?" she flicked her dark tresses from off her shoulder. "tell me, Mary, what do you think about that new doctor in pediatrics?" Jasmine rolled her eyes.
Mary leaned forward "well, I heard from the night nurse, that she heard from the secretaries that…"
Jasmine stopped listening; she knew that Lili was just trying to change the subject. Their pasts were terribly uncomfortable, and even though all the pain and nightmares had stopped months ago, the wounds were still fresh. She didn't share in gossip the way Lili did. Liliana was quick to ignore what happened to them. She acted as though it could be forgotten and therefore like it never happened, but not Jasmine. She knew that you had to face your fears to get over them. She was just having trouble with the whole facing them thing. Lili was definitely the brighter of the two. Though they complimented each other, jasmine still felt like the dark one. Lili was the sun where she was the moon. Lili fire, she ice. Of course she knew you needed yin with yang, but just sometimes she would like to be the sunshine. She didn't begrudge her friend for it; it wasn't even really envy, just a passing thought. She just needed another kind of companion. She was lonely. She was too cold a person to get the gentlemen Lili got. It was hard, lili may be a pretty rose, but anyone with a brain knows every rose has its thorn. Lili liked to get rough sometimes, work in the mud. Just like on the flip side, Jasmine wanted to clean it up, and play in the clouds. She just needed, she didn't even know. She looked to Lili, but she was busy looking somewhere else, past Jasmine into the night. "Jay, get a room ready…" she said distractedly. "Wha..." she turned around in time to see three men stumble from a car, two seemed actually to be carrying the third, one ran to get a wheel chair and called out "Nurse! I need a nurse!"
Jasmine ran to an empty room and tried to pull whatever supplies they may need, she had only second before the shouting and cries of pain burst through the door. There was two men, young, very attractive with matching tattoos of the virgin Mary on their necks, blood caked on various inches of their bodies. They looked anxious and scared. Liliana came bustling in after them, " bullet wound." Jasmine looked around at the two men.
"No, our Da'." The one with dark hair and a beauty mark said. Even in the intense situation she couldn't help but notice the thick accent, she suppressed a shiver. She held a weak spot for men (maybe because she was so lonely) and a very sensitive spot for accents, specifically Irish ones.
"Where is he?" she asked in a calming tone. No sooner had she spoke then he was carried in and laid down on the table, he was cringing and trying to stop the involuntary shouts of pain. Liliana rushed over to help clean him up. They worked in perfect harmony, each knowing what the other would do, each helping without getting in the others way. They cut open his pant leg, cleaned away the blood, and got the tools out. "Okay stay with me sir. We'll be removing the bullet in a minute." But before they could the wound was gushing blood again. "What the Fuck!" Jasmine was suddenly soaked on the belly of her shirt and coat. Liliana tried to put pressure to stop the bleeding, but it was slick and hard to fins the correct point. " What the hell Jay!" Lili was scared she never lost a patient and didn't want to start now. "He must be on blood thinners! We'll need Mary to get in here too. MARY!" She cried
Lili was soothing his brow "its alright sir, it'll be-"her hand froze she couldn't hear what jay was telling her
"Lili God Damnit! Are you listening! "
"Keep Mary out of here." She muttered
Jasmine followed liliana stare and gasped, it was too late Mary ran supplies dangling from her arms. Once she saw she froze.
"what! What the Fuck is it!" the Boys were worried, why were they acting so strange?
"Da?" Mary whispered
He lifted his head from the table and opened his eyes, he looked at her through a haze of pain, but you could see the recognition in his eyes. "Mary!" he whispered. Connor and Murphy's jaws dropped, What?
"DA!" She screamed and rushed to the table. Jasmine caught her before she made it, Mary kicked and screamed and thrashed about in Jasmines arms "DA!" she was crying and harshly punched Jasmine in the face. Jasmine didn't even flinch, she just held on tighter and tried to drag her away from the room "DADDY!" She cried before she was thrust unceremoniously into Connors arms.
"What the Fuck!" he cried, but still held on to the thrashing Mary.
"Hold her, unless you want her to get in the way!" Jasmine turned and rushed to the table again.
The boys views were blocked by the girl's bodies, they had no idea what was going on but they could tell from the yells it was painful. They could barely stand to watch it, Mary cried out again "DADDY!"
"Get her the fuck out!" Liliana cried looking up with an intense blood spattered face.
Connor and Murphy took her out of the room. After a few futile tries of escape Mary finally broke down in Connors arms. She cried and wailed and clung for dear life to his arm. Murphy came around the other side of her, he was going to get them all some coffee. He didn't make it passed her though. She reached out and with surprising strength pulled him to her. At first he looked confused, then he noticed Connor had his eyes held shut tight, and he held out his hand for Murphy's. The three of them held each other tightly and waited in angst filled silence. After what seemed and eternity the two girls came out of the room. They looked weary crestfallen. The door was shut. They all waited with bated breaths.
"we should sit down"