Dani's POV:
My heavy eyelids opened to a different room than I had expected to wake up in. I groaned, lifting my upper body to lean on the soft pillow…of my bed. From the muted light outside my window, I could see that I was in my bedroom, not the den where I fell asleep last night. The afghan blanket lay on my naked legs, covering them with its warmth.
How had I gotten in here? I couldn't have been sleepwalking since I took all that medicine last night before drifting off into empty unconsciousness. Basically, I didn't have any dreams that would have caused me to sleepwalk.
I shook my head and squeezed my eyes shut, trying to awaken my senses. Not caring that I was just in a nightgown, I slipped out of bed and walked to the cracked open bedroom door, listening for the boys' voices. As I waited, I remembered that I would have to pick up the girls after school today at 3:30. Looking over to the clock on my nightstand, I saw the crimson numbers read 9:30 in the morning.
The girls would be on their way to school with Katy and her parents.
Then, the Irish lilts of the boys' voices traveled through my ears, causing me to be more alert. After I opened the door as wide as it would go, I reached over to my coat-rack and dressed in my purple robe to keep me warm. Letting my tangled hair hang limply down my back, I walked down the hall and balanced myself against one of the walls, not wanting to reveal myself just yet.
I peeked around the corner into the living room, staying quiet as I absorbed what I was seeing. Connor had his bare back to me, concentrating on the assembly of a tool from his duffel bag. What actually had me surprised was the sight of Christ on the Cross, engraved in permanent black ink along the Irishman's powerful back muscles. In fact, it was the first time I noticed how the amount of musculature in both of the boys had increased from all that farm work in their homeland.
Connor still didn't see me staring at him like a stupid bimbo as his head slightly turned in intense focus on the weapon in his hand. From what I could still see of his profile, he still bore the Virgin Mary tattoo on his neck and the Latin word Veritas along the index finger of his left hand. I took a deep breath as I stayed hidden in the shadows of the hallway, trying to keep the fast pounding of my heart to a minimum.
Then, I felt a hand gently touch my shoulder. "Ya can take a picture, if ya want."
I turned around in shock, feeling relieved when I saw Murphy's blue eyes light up with humor at my reaction. Leaning against the wall, I saw him reach over to a nearby light switch and turn on the hallway light. "Jesus, Murphy! You scared the living hell out of me!"
Connor's twin smiled brightly at me as I frowned at him. "Sorry, just wanted to see if you were still awake. Me brother was worried ya went into a fuckin' coma."
"I'm sorry. I…I didn't think I'd sleep so late. I was just exhausted after last night." I rubbed some sleep out of my eyes as I felt Murphy's hand on my back.
"Ya got nothin' to be sorry for, Dani. Ya deserve to rest after savin' our asses at The Silver Peso. You've been sharpenin' yer shootin' skills, haven't ya?" He leaned against the wall next to the bathroom door, which he had apparently just exited from when he scared me.
"Murphy, would you happen to know how the hell I got into my room last night? Because I remember falling asleep on the couch." I crossed my arms and stared at him, trying to be intimidating.
His eyes briefly widened as his lips pulled up into a smirk. "Hey, Conn." He called out to his brother, who turned his head toward us both as we emerged from the darkened hallway. "Dani wants to know which one of us broke her rule by steppin' foot inside her chambers."
"I hope you're not implyin' somethin' by that, Murph." Connor stood before us, now wearing a dark gray shirt, and focused on me and his twin. "What's goin' on here?"
"Connor, did you move me from the couch to my room last night?" I walked closer to him, stopping when I was merely a foot away from his tall form.
"Maybe. I was only tryin' to be a gentleman and take ya to a more comfortable sleepin' spot." He took a step closer to me and brushed a lock of my hair off my shoulder. "I was only tryin' to take care o' ya, lass. You're doin' enough by lettin' us stay here and allowin' me near the girls."
I could only nod in response, not finding any appropriate words. Instead, Murphy spoke up from behind us. "Dani, we saved ya some eggs in the fridge. They're fried, but me brother makes 'em extra good."
"Oh, no! You guys aren't supposed to be the ones cooking in my house! What kind of hostess does that make me? What…what?" I babbled on until Connor took hold of my bandaged hand.
"Don't worry about it, Danielle. Ya deserved yer rest." He lifted my hand to his lips and kissed it.
"Jesus, Connor. If Ma could see ya right now, she'd be in tears." Murphy laughed as he went toward the kitchen. "She'd be so happy to see ya fawnin' over a lovely girl like Dani."
Connor only grunted in answer. "I see those bags under yer eyes are goin' away." He reached toward my face and tenderly traced the tip of his index finger under my eye.
I smiled briefly, closing my eyes in thought. "That reminds me. What was that you said back at McGinty's? Was that Italian?"
"Aye. I was tellin' ya that you're beautiful in every way, no matter what. All those fake magazine models…they don't compare in any way to yer angelic purity, darlin'." He purred in his deep voice, his fingertips caressing the bottom of my chin.
"Hey, I'm gonna eat all this food unless ya two lovebirds get yer asses in here an' join me." Murphy poked his head into the living room from the kitchen.
"Alright, Murphy. You better let me have some eggs or else, you get your nose on the wall for 15 minutes." I walked toward the Irishman I was acknowledging, taking the container of eggs out of his hands.
"What kinda fuckin' punishment is that?" He asked as Connor leaned against the kitchen side of the counter.
"It's the kind of punishment where you stare at the wall where its right in your face and you can't move a muscle until I say so." I put the container into the microwave and set the time for one minute.
"That's just cruel, Dani." Connor pulled himself up to sit on the counter.
The following half hour went by so fast I could hardly process it. We looked through the letters Murphy had received from me. They detailed everything about the girls from their first words, to their first birthday, to the first time they had asked about which one of them was the oldest by two minutes.
"Shit." Connor shook his head in disbelief and smiled widely. "Ya won't tell 'em which one came out first?"
"Nope…not yet anyway. Maybe when they're older." I unconsciously looked at the dining room clock. It was now about 10:15. The girls had to be in school by now. As I thought about that, I couldn't ignore the sudden sick feeling in my stomach. "I think I better get around and get dressed, guys."
I could feel the boys' eyes on me, filled with both worry and suspicion. I could almost hear the questions filing up in their minds. Wrapping my robe tightly around me, I went to my bedroom and grabbed the phone on my nightstand. Dialing the number of Katy's parents, Anna and Gerry, I waited anxiously on the edge of my bed for them to pick up. After getting nearly a full minute of just the ringtone, their answering machine picked up.
After leaving them a message to call me and tell me how the girls' night went, I hung up the phone and blew a puff of air through my lips. They were probably just out running errands. No need to get all flustered…
As I pulled myself together, I heard the sound of knocking on my door. "Dani, its Connor. Can ya open up?"
"Yeah, sure." I went to the door and opened it to see him standing in front of me.
"Are ya alright? I just wanted to let ya know that we're goin' with Rome to get ready fer our hit on Yakavetta tomorrow night." His eyes were deep with concern.
"Okay, go do what you need to do. Katy's parents didn't answer their phone, so I'm sure they'll call me back when they get a chance." I smiled with effort, trying to hide my worry.
"I'm sure the girls are safe an' sound. We'll be back later to see 'em, okay?" He gently placed his warm hand on my shoulder.
"Yeah, everything will be fine. You guys go on if you have stuff to do. I understand." I tried to keep my smile genuine as he leaned down and kissed my cheek.
"I'll see ya tonight, Danielle." I could only nod and wave as he said farewell to me. My legs shook, causing my knees to buckle. The last I saw of him was his shadow as he walked away from me.
Why does something feel wrong right now? If there's something going on, I need to find out soon…
.
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Connor's POV:
"I expanded my operation since I saw ya last. Word got out who may or may not have outfitted ya. Turns out, you've got quite the underground followin'." Our fellow Irish gun dealer, Ian, informed us as we explored the weaponry room around us. Murphy and I kept our focus on the wall of impressive armory before Ian interrupted us. "Please, gentlemen. Preferred customers select from my private reserve. If I may make a suggestion?"
With that, he pulled out two black cases and placed them onto the table in front of him. My brother and I stood on the other side of the table to get a closer look. We glanced at one another quizzically before opening the cases.
My mouth nearly dropped open at the sight of what was hidden in the case. Real Desert Eagles…
"I feel like that kid who found the golden ticket in that movie, Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory." Murphy whispered in astonishment, ogling his own set of Eagles.
"Charlie?" Ian asked him hypothetically to correct my brother.
"Yeah, Charlie. And I want an Oompa-Loompa now. Daddy, now!" I nearly sighed as I quoted that brat Veruca Salt, feeling proud at being the movie buff of the MacManus family.
Murphy held up one gun each in his hands to test their weight as I did the same. I could certainly protect my little family of women with these bad boys…
Romeo finally came over to join us, setting his own case of weapons onto the table. "I'll take these."
"Have ya been cryin' again?" Murphy asked the Mexican, eyeing him with scrutiny.
"Yeah! Tears of joy." Rome defended himself fiercely as I held back my laughter. "Those are queer." He referred to our beloved Desert Eagles before turning his attention to Ian. "How much?"
"No, no. You boys are on the house." The gun dealer assured us quickly.
"Obliged." I thanked him, thinking of what else I could spend our money on while we were here on Boston…perhaps on something special for my Dani…
"Well, let's see." Murphy urged Rome, wanting to see what choice of weapon he had in mind.
The Mexican opened his case and revealed two smaller guns with skinny barrels bearing the respective colors of the Irish flag: Red, white and green. "What?" He asked us both as we held back our quips of ridicule.
"Nothin'." I attempted to shrug it off, but couldn't stop the smirk from forming.
"What, are you saying I look gay?" Romeo's eyes bulged with accusation.
"No, ya just hail from a colorful people." Murphy raised his arms in a mocking fashion as Romeo turned to Ian.
"Hey, you don't know me. Do these make me look gay?" He held up both of the guns in his hands and stood still in a cheesy pose.
"You look like you might've seen one up close." Ian answered bluntly, making Murphy and I double over in laughter.
.
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Dani's POV:
I wrapped my wet form in a towel as I stepped out of the shower, feeling slightly relaxed now that I was cleaned up from all the excitement last night. With my long hair drying inside another towel on my head, I went to my drawers to pick out my clothes to wear. After I slid into a bra and panties, I was slipping on some jeans when I heard the phone ring.
Anxiously, I grabbed it off my nightstand and answered it, my heart flying with anticipation. "Hello?"
"Hello, this is Dr. Ben Coughlin from Mass General. May I speak with Miss Danielle Smecker?" The male voice asked on the other end of the line.
"Yes…this is she." I tried to keep the nervous stutter out of my voice. Why would the hospital be calling me…?
"Ma'am, I'm afraid we have some rather upsetting news. We need to you come to Mass General right away. Your daughters have been involved in a car accident this morning." I didn't hear anything else from the monotonous voice from the phone as it slipped out of my grasp, dropping onto my bedroom carpet.
Struggling to hold back my approaching screams, I ran to my bathroom sink and leaned over it, attempting to catch my breath.
Don't panic…Don't pass out… Its not gonna help anything.
Then, I remembered the weight of the cell phone in my pocket. As the nausea and dizziness threatened my equilibrium, I knew I was in no condition to drive. I'd call a friend instead…
Pulling my beautiful cell phone into my hand, I speed-dialed the one person who'd be available to help me right now. Silently praying to God that she'd answer, she did right on the second ring. "Howdy, Danielle."
"Eunice, I need you to come and take me to Mass General! Please, the girls were in a car accident this morning. I don't know any details; only that I'm too scared to drive right now!" I struggled to keep the tears out of my voice.
"Okay, okay, honey. I'm on my way right now. Just stay where you are." She instructed me in a calm tone. "I'll be there in ten minutes."
I hung up without responding, sinking down to lean against the cold porcelain surface of the toilet. I felt like I was falling and all the terrible memories came flooding back into my subconscious. Fighting the urge to faint, my body replaced that instinct with sickness as I bent over the toilet and emptied out all the contents of my stomach.
What would Connor and Murphy say if they saw me like this? I knew I'd have to tell them about this sooner or later…
After I finished over the toilet, I laid my head down against the cold tile of the bathroom floor, feeling hollow and useless, sweat pouring down my temples. Then, relief flooded through me as I heard Eunice's southern accent blur in my ears and the click of her high-heels…
She managed to help me up off the floor and slip a jacket from my coat-rack around my upper body so I'd be decently dressed. But, that didn't matter to me right then.
All I cared about was getting back to my children. Fury mixed with the fear inside me as Eunice sped down my neighborhood in her car. Silently crying to myself, I wondered if any criminals were familiar with nature shows on TV. Even more so, I was curious if any of them were aware of what a lioness in the wild would do to protect her cubs…
AN: I know, its kind of a dark twist in the chapter, but I hope you don't mind it. And guys, if you plan to add this story to your Favorites or Alerts, PLEASE, PLEASE REVIEW! Its really a letdown to only get an Alert or Fave Story e-mail without knowing what that person honestly thinks. Really it only takes a minute to write something in that box.
And, I will be starting school next week, so my updates will be less frequent. Nevertheless, I hope you guys are enjoying this anyway.