Austin's first night at the bar went better than she had expected. She felt so at home, and within the first hour the nervous feeling she had had was completely wiped away. The noisy bar was music to her ears, she was in her element and loved every second of it. She had learned that most of the bar's patrons preferred beer and whiskey to any of the drinks she made.

It was almost one when Doc started ushering people out the door into the street. Sighing with relief, Rachel went to the cash register and took about five dollars out. When Austin looked at her quizzically she just smiled and slid across the bar and went over to the juke box.

"Doc always lets us play a few songs while we clean up." Rachel said as she put the first bill in and punched some keys. Austin smiled and started wiping down the counter.

When they were almost done with the closing list the door opened. The MacManus brothers came in and sat down with smiles on there faces. "Hey Rach, can we get two beers, we're parched?"

Austin looked at Doc, rather confused. It was past closing and they come in asking for beer? Doc just laughed as Rachel gave the twins there beers. "The b-boy's are welcome in my b-bar anytime." Austin nodded and went to finish wiping down the tables. Looking at her watch she was shocked to see that it was already 1:30.

"It's really late, am I almost done?" James would be furious that she was out this late. She had to get home. She had to talk to him.

"Go ahead lass, we're pretty much done here and the b-boys can close up themselves if R-rachel doesn't stay."

"Thanks a lot." Austin grabbed her coat from the back room and was quickly on her way home.

James was at home furiously pacing the floors, he couldn't sleep. What kind of job had his cousin gotten him into? He thought he could handle what his cousin asked him to do.

FLASHBACK

James was sitting at a restaurant eating lunch during a break in his business trip to Boston. He was enjoying a sandwich as three people came in for lunch. At once he recognized one of the men. "Joey?"

The man looked at James with a blank expression, and then his face lit up as with recognition. "James, what a pleasant surprise. I never would have expected to see you in Boston."

"I'm on a business trip, I had forgotten that you moved back here or I would have given you a call that I was coming. I'm so sorry to hear about your dad. I would have been at the funeral, but my girlfriend was in a car accident the day before."

"I understand, and thank you, it's still hard to accept that he's gone. When do you leave?"

"Early tomorrow morning." James planned on spending the night at the airport, why waste money to be in a hotel for only a few hours.

"Why don't you come to my house for dinner tonight, we can catch up."

"Sure."

That night was a night James would never forget. Sitting in his cousin's office after dinner, he found out a family secret he never wanted to know. He was pretty sure Joey had had a little too much to drink, since he was openly talking about the secret.

"I took over the family business after Pop's died. It's probably the coolest job ever. I get what ever I want and no one, I mean no one says no to me."

"What family business? I've never heard anyone say anything about a family business."

"That's because it's a secret and they only family that know about it are the ones in on it. Your mom was never told because they didn't think she was strong enough to understand it. But I bet you are. Do you want to know the secret? Do you want me to tell you?"

"I don't know." James was really confused and kind pissed about Joey calling his mom weak, she had raised him practically by herself.

"I'll tell you, but if you tell anyone, anyone at all, I'll make your pretty little girlfriend disappear. Our Family's big secret is that we are part of the Italian mob. Dad was a big time boss till someone knocked him off and now I'm in charge. Uncle Louis works in New York and Grandpa Frankie use to be in charge in Baltimore. I love this job. Just last week I got over $20,000. It's great. You should try and get in on it. I could have you transferred here."

James's mind was going a crazy. He couldn't process what Joey was saying. His family, his own family were big shot mob members, and he didn't even know it. Why would he want in on that kind of stuff? He wasn't a bad person. "I don't know. I'm not sure I would be much help."

"I'll tell you what. You go back home and send me your resume and your boss's phone number and I'll see if I think I can use you. And remember this is a big secret, so if you tell anyone, I will make you wish you had never even been born."

End Flashback

So now James was trying to figure out what to do. This job was different from any other job he had ever had. It was exhilarating and heart pumping and it made his adrenalin pump through his veins so fast that he thought he would have a heart attack. But at the same time, it hurt him to know that he was hurting people. His morals were fighting inside of him and he couldn't control them. He was constantly telling himself that he wasn't the one holding the gun, so he wasn't responsible. He hated, yet loved this job, it gave him power, yet it caused him to be constantly battling himself. If only he could figure out a way to not feel so guilty. Going to the kitchen he found exactly what he needed: alcohol, and plenty of it.

James was halfway through a bottle of rum when Austin finally got home. He was so out of it he didn't even hear the door open. Austin just looked at him sadly and went to go get ready for bed. As she stepped out of the shower James was standing right in front of her with an unreadable expression on his face.

"Why do you hate me Aust? Why do you hate me?" He said in one of the saddest voices she had ever heard him use.

"I don't hate you James. I could never hate you." She smiled at him, trying to be reassuring. But he just looked even more upset and there was a hint of anger in his eyes. He took a step towards her and roughly grabbed her shoulders

"Don't lie to me!! You hate me because I dragged you here and you hate that I work all the time and you hate me, you hate me, you hate me!" With each accusation he shook her harder. She didn't know what to do. He wasn't usually like this when he drank, and he had never accused her of such things. With a final shake he pushed her away from him and walked out of the room. Austin felt her feet get caught in the towels on the floor and then she felt a throbbing pain in her side as she hit the tub. Naked and sobbing she sat on the floor, trying to figure out what had just happened.

When Austin woke up she was cold and he body ached all over. She couldn't figure out where she was at first. Then she realized she was in the bathroom. She wrapped a towel around herself and walked into the bedroom.

James was passed out in the floor beside the bed snoring loudly. The clock on the bedside table said that it was 6:00 in the morning. As Austin put her clothes on she saw that her side was already black and blue from the fall last night. She used to never bruise as a child yet now even the smallest thing seemed to give her a nasty looking bruise.

After dressing Austin went into the kitchen. Started the coffee and got out some cereal and made some toast. James wouldn't want a big greasy breakfast after all that alcohol last night. She also put a glass of water and some aspirin on the table. She wrote him a note saying she was going running, then grabbed her CD player and left.