Hey, everybody! I know it's been a while since my last chapter but, in my defense, I am currently balancing college classes along with a part-time job that I'm at until about midnight... but now my classes are all online due to the Coronavirus, as I am sure is the case with many, if not all, of you as well. My city is all currently on lockdown, so I can't really go anywhere anyway so there's that... Hopefully, this means that I'll be able to post like I used to. All right!

Thank you to 1, PureBloodedGrounder, Xana-fanfiction, and akagami hime chan for following, favoriting, and reviewing.

Last chapter Barry and Marla played twenty questions and decided to go on date! *cue audience awwwws* In this chapter, you find out who hired someone to kill Marla and why. Enjoy!

I do not own CW's Flash or any character or places mentioned.

Chapter Eleven

Secrets of the Bullet

Barry

True to my word, I stopped by Marla's apartment in the morning before I went to work.

As expected, both she and Mardon were still asleep as I ran by. Once I was sure she was safe, I ran to CCPD and met up with Cisco right when I arrived.

"Hey, you get anything on that bullet?"

He shook his head, "Nah, man, you might wanna send it over to Star City for an extra pair of hands. It might be connected to something outside of Central."

I nodded, "Alright."

"So, how was Siren watch?"

I shrugged, trying to avoid actually telling him anything, "It was fine," I shrugged, "uneventful."

He stopped dead in his tracks, "Something happened! C'mon, spill, what is it?"

I shook my head, "I'm telling you, man, nothing happened."

I walked up to my lab, Cisco hot on my heels. Unfortunately, Iris was waiting for me.

"Hey, Barry!"

"Iris! What brings you by?"

"Well, I-" She was cut off by Cisco.

"Thank God you're here, Barry won't tell me about something that happened while he was babysitting Siren last night!"

"Something happened? What?"

I groaned, "Nothing happened."

"Dude! Why are you not telling us."

I sighed, "Because I really don't feel like being judged right now."

"Why would we-" Iris' mouth dropped, "Did you ask her out?!" My silence was all the answer she needed, "You totally asked her out!"

I sighed, "We were playing twenty questions and, by the end of it, I decided that I wanted to go out with her, so I asked."

"And?!" She hit my shoulder, "Don't keep me in suspense! What did she say?"

I smiled slightly, "She said yes."

"So, lemme get this straight." I turned to Cisco, internally preparing for a lecture, "You're gonna go out… with Siren… robber of banks?"

I chuckled, "When she's not being shot at, yeah."

"Why didn't you just say that?"

I glanced at him in confusion, "You're not going to lecture me about it?"

He scoffed, "Do I look like Caitlin?" He shrugged, "Should you maybe not go out with a Rogue? Probably. Am I gonna judge you for it? Not while I still have a thing for Lisa who, hands down, is much worse than Marla in terms of being a villain. Seriously, man, if you were going to date any of the Rogues, she's definitely the best one for that."

I laughed, "Well, you're not wrong."

The rest of the day went by only a few new cases showing up on my desk. Once it was time for me to leave, I grabbed the bullet from S.T.A.R. Labs and ran over to Star City.

I heard Felicity groaned as papers flew everywhere.

"Barry! I love seeing you, but how about a warning so I can set up paperweights!"

"A warning would be appreciated," Diggle commented.

I grinned, "Superspeed still freak you out, Dig?" My grin grew when he nodded.

"What brings you by, Barry? There another enemy who knows your secret that I should know about?" Oliver crossed his arms.

I shook my head, "Still just the one. Speaking of which," I pulled the bullet out of my jacket pocket, "I was wondering if you could tell me where this bullet comes from."

Felicity grabbed it gingerly, "Why?"

I sighed, "Someone shot at Marla… Siren," I clarified, "the other day, we're trying to figure out who's trying to kill her and why."

"Does anybody have a reason to want her dead?"

I shook my head at Oliver, "I had Cisco do a background check on her, no red flags besides the bank robberies."

"So what are your theories?" Diggle asked.

"Honestly, I think it's more about Snart than her. I think someone's trying to get to him through her."

Felicity nodded as she typed on her computer, "That would make sense, you know, considering that he's a bigger criminal than she is." Her computer beeped, "Got a match. I think you're theory's right, Barry. The bullet matches that of a gun that is traditionally used by hitmen employed by the Dubháin Crime Family, Irish Mob. They mostly operate out of Star City, which is probably why you didn't get any hits in Central. Apparently they had a beef with the Santini Crime Family. "

I nodded, "Yeah, Snart took them out and runs their territories now. I'd be willing to bet that he did that just as the Dubháin's were gunning for them." Pulling out my phone, I called Snart.

"You better have news, Scarlet."

"I figured out where the bullet came from. A hitman employed by the Dubháin Crime Family, I'm guessing-"

"-they want revenge on me for taking out the Santini's before they could and taking over the areas they think belongs to them but, because they can't get to me, they're trying to do it through Marla. Nice work, Barry. Thank Team Arrow for me."

He hung up before I could respond and I turned back to my friends, "I was right, it's because of Snart's history with the Santini's." Sighing, I thanked them before running over to Marla's apartment.

The knocking on the door was answered by Mark Mardon.

He looked me up and down before answering, "Can I help you?"

"Is Marla home?"

"Maybe. Why?"

I huffed, "I need to talk to her."

"Well, I think-"

"Mark, it's okay. He's cool. You can go home, Len should be here soon anyway." Marla said from the couch.

He sized me up again before scoffing, "Whatever. If she ends up dead tomorrow, I'm coming after you." He threatened before stalking away.

I sighed, "Mardon sure is as fun as always."

She rolled her eyes, "He's just as if not slightly less protective than Len."

I sat down next to her, "Oh? And why is that?"

She shook her head, "Mark said that he wants to protect me in a way he couldn't for his brother, couldn't tell you about Len." She took a deep breath before smiling, "So, what did you need to talk to me about?"

"I found out who's trying to kill you."

"Who?"

"The Dubháin Crime Family. They had issues with the Santini's and, when Snart took them down and took over their territories, the Dubháin's viewed him as their number one enemy. I guess they couldn't get to Snart, so they came after you to hurt him."

She took a deep breath, "Okay… So what, exactly, does that mean for me?"

"You'll have to be protected until the situation is dealt with. Either that or leaving Central, I doubt they would follow you."

She scoffed, "I'm not leaving Central."

"Then you'll have to get used to someone being with you all the time."

A knock sounded on the door before she could reply.

I motioned for her to stay on the couch, "I got it." I was actually a bit relieved to see Snart on the other side of the door.

He raised an eyebrow, "Barry." He stepped into the apartment, "What brings you by?"

I shrugged, "Just filled in Marla on what's going on."

"So she knows about the Dubháin's."

"She does!" Marla piped up.

He smiled slightly, "Good. In that case, I'm going to pay them a visit."

My eyes widened, "Say what now?"

"You heard me. I want to see if their boss ordered the hit or if a member of the family is going rogue." He walked out the door.

I followed him, "Snart!"

He glanced back at me, "I'll send Shawna over in a little while, you good watching her until then?"

I shook my head, "Of course I am. Listen, there's something I've been meaning to ask you."

"Then ask."

"Why are you doing all of this? I know you say that "no one's killing your Rogues," but… I don't know, man… I don't see you doing something like this for Hartley or even Shawna."

Snart sighed before turning to face me fully, "It's because she reminds me of Lisa... before she joined the family business. Back when she was more innocent and less dangerous."

I nodded thoughtfully, "So naturally you want to protect her as you do Lisa."

"If you get that, then you can see my reasons." Without another word, he turned back around and walked away.

I went back into the apartment, to find Marla on the phone.

She seemed upset, but that changed when she saw me, "Tell you what, I'll go if I'm allowed to bring a friend." She let the other person talk, "His name is Barry and, before you ask, he is just a friend. Great! See you then." She hung up the phone and turned to me, "How do you feel about meeting my parents?"

All right, so we're getting back into the swing of things and it turns out the Irish mob is after Marla... fun times! Here's a sneak peek into the next chapter.

"I would have been here, regardless. Remember, I'm supposed to be protecting you." I smiled despite my current situation, "Your brother might be acting like an ass, but I'm still glad you brought me, y'know, let me into this part of your life…" He let out a low whistle, "By the way, was not expecting you to be rich."

As always, reviews are welcome and constructive criticism is appreciated.

See you next time!