A/N: Thank you to wolfchick11, IrishBoysareHott and IrishSaints for reviewing and thank you for reading! I'm currently working on a Murphy/OC, so keep a lookout for that! Happy reading! xx IFHD

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Chapter 12: Veritas

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"If I Fail"

By: Cartel

Time to go, "This is goodbye"
She said "Does it ever get easier to live like this"
And kiss the cheek
For I can't kiss you anymore
And I, I would honestly love you now
But I would lovingly let you down

Oh I have the hardest time resisting you
And oh if you
If you feel the same way then how can we be friends
He's right you know, we can't go on like this
And oh I try to give you everything
And if I fail well then I failed
But at least I gave you something

I could put my trust in giving up the heart
It makes the difference
And how can you afford to settle down
When I, I would promise to love you now
But I would lovingly let you down

(It's better than silence)
(Give me one good reason)

It's better than silence (you know)
Give me one good reason (you know)
To leave this in silence (you know)
No, you don't have a good reason (you know)

It's better than silence
It's better than silence

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Paul Smecker sat on pins and needles on his swivel chair, trapped in an uncomfortable silence in his own office. Lourdes' eyes bore through him as she sat directly in front of him, her face firm and unyielding in his presence. Earlier, he had found her in front of his office door, poised to knock, still showing evidence of being battered and bruised. Seeing her state, he ushered her inside without a word, examining her injuries with sincere concern. Simultaneously shrugging off the oversized black coat that she was wearing, she had taken a seat in the chair that she usually sat on when she would pay him a visit, a cold aura surrounding her.

Now, they were still alone, with so much being said in so little words.

"I don't know what to say." Smecker admitted guiltily, biting his lower lip. When Lourdes did not respond, he folded his hands and placed them upon the wooden table in front of him, reassuring her, "You know everything."

"I don't know what to do, Agent Smecker. A part of me still thinks that these men are lunatics." Lourdes admitted in return, though her face barely showed any signs of emotion. "I held you in very high regard, and to suddenly uncover that you had made such a rash move by abetting the controversial Saints…"

"It was not a decision that I would normally make." He elucidated, simultaneously recalling his so-called 'epiphany' in that confessional booth all those many months ago. He mused, almost to himself, "Believe it or not, Agent Villamor, I did actually seek spiritual guidance about the matter."

"And that was the decision that you had made?" Shaking her head in incredulity, Lourdes couldn't help but openly scoff at this. "Then I suggest you change priests. Or religion."

"Agent Villamor, I'm sure you've already spoken with the brothers about their principles. I'm not going to sit here and try to convince you of their purpose, since I'm still trying to grasp it myself." Smecker took a long drag of his cigarette, leaning back into his chair. "But we all have to admit that their ways – vigilante as they may be – has helped the city of Boston tremendously. Whether you like it or not, or agree with it or not, they may be the ones who can lead us in our fight against these Unionist bastards." Smecker flicked his cigarette on a nearby ashtray. "I have high hopes that they will apprehend the men responsible for the attacks against you and your agents. They're good at what they do, Agent Villamor. At least give them a shot like I did."

As if on cue, a knock sounded on the door. As Smecker called for them to enter, he and Lourdes eyed the door expectantly. In what resembled a procession, the MacManus brothers stepped in, followed by their father. The three stood at the doorway, eyes all falling upon Lourdes. She briefly met Connor's hard orbs, but immediately looked away. She swallowed in nervousness, gripping the arms of her chair more tightly as they stood in a line parallel to her and Smecker, never breaking their stares.

Eerie silence plagued the room, creating thick tension between all of them. Thanks to Murphy, though, the tension was somewhat broken. Involuntarily tilting his head to the side, he suspiciously eyed the coat that Lourdes held on her lap. Following his gaze, Lourdes finally looked down and realized that she had taken his coat, judging by the look on his face and the…thing that he was wearing. Murphy had covered himself with what could've possibly been a bear, the fur coat hanging loosely over his shoulders. Lourdes had to admit that he looked quite ridiculous, and upon seeing the glint of amusement in her eyes, Murphy raised an eyebrow in warning. Seeing this, Lourdes cleared her throat, giving him a sheepish look of apology as she silently handed him back his coat.

Nobody except for Il Duce made a move after this silent exchange. Placing his hands behind his back, he languidly walked towards Lourdes, stopping just a couple of feet beside her. He could see her squirm just a little on her seat as she met his hard gaze. Without taking his eyes off of her, he simply instructed, "Leave us."

Without protests, Smecker and the MacManus brothers quietly exited the room. Il Duce began to pace behind her, head slightly bowed. "It's good to finally meet ye, Miss Villamor."

"Il Duce." She croaked out cautiously, more in question than in greeting.

The pacing stopped behind her. "Ye need not fear me, girl. My sons and I will not touch ye."

Lourdes said nothing, but tilted her head upwards so that she could see him. Throughout her many years of experience with the Irish Forces, she has seen many things and, consequently, has met many people. It took quite a lot to unnerve her. But Il Duce, she found, was another case. His aura screamed of such power, strength and ferocity that she felt so minute beside him, resembling a mere child.

"So ye've had yer agents relocated to the Irish Embassy, aye?"

Her eyes immediately widened. She had only called her boss in Ireland a couple of days ago to speak about everything that was transpiring. Having the agents under the auspices of the Irish Embassy was the decision that they had both made then, thinking it was the safest thing to do under the circumstances. How did he know this information?, she screamed to herself, keeping her expression neutral. Looks like they've been investigating on me, too. With a gulp, she responded, "I insisted upon it. We will be protected at all times."

"T'was a good decision." Il Duce walked into her line of sight, halting directly in front of her. "Agent Villamor, the man who tried to kill ye at yer hotel was a Unionist member. Not one high in the ranks, but he had been a supporter for years."

"The Unionists only sent one man?"

"They probably thought ye were all alone in yer room." he hypothesized, adding, "Luckily Connor had been there to help ye. If he wasn't, there would've probably been an extra body in the morgue."

Unexpectedly, Lourdes slightly blushed at the statement regarding Connor, thinking about that specific night with him. To her own confusion, she really did have second thoughts about carrying out her 'operation' that night. Regardless of what she had uncovered about Connor, she did truly believe that he was a good man. Her thoughts then flashed to what had transpired between them just a few nights prior. She couldn't remember the last time she had been touched so…tenderly. Her heart immediately wrenched at the thought of Colin, briefly closing her eyes at the painful memory.

"The leader of the Extreme Unionists is named Keiran O'Sullivan." Il Duce's voice shook Lourdes out of her reverie. "He owns illegal stocks and businesses all over the United Kingdom, having stockholders all over the world. As always, the son o' a bitch wants more money, so he supports the reunification of Ireland and the United Kingdom. He will gain more profit out of it."

Lourdes tried to process all of this information, trying to connect the attacks and killings to what Il Duce was saying. It was not long before he answered her.

"Some of his stockholders are honest men that belonged to the IRA. When they found out from a mole in O'Sullivan's camp that he was dirty and methodically murdered his stockholders in order to take their accounts, they spread the word throughout the organization. O'Sullivan eventually found out and decided to silence these men once and for all." Il Duce took a brief pause, leaning on Smecker's desk. "I have just recently discovered the whereabouts of Keiran and his followers right here in Boston. We need to act now and get rid of them as soon as possible before more people die."

Lourdes found herself protesting to this. "Mass killings of these people will not end these crimes! They will only cause more outrage, and this backlash may be bigger than anything that we have dealt with thus far!"

"Ye get rid of the leader, and ye make them scatter." Il Duce continued to reason with her. "Divide and conquer, Miss Villamor. They will only fight amongst themselves when O'Sullivan's dead and buried."

"This isn't…"

"Protocol?" he interjected, arms crossing in front of him. "Young woman, there is a time when 'protocol' can kick itself in the balls. Yer tellin' me that if someone shoots at ye, ye won't shoot back? This is real life, and ye cannot wait for yer boss to tell ye what to do when yer life's in danger." It was then that Il Duce stood, his face cleared of any emotion. His next statement shocked Lourdes, so much so that she felt as though she was going to have a heart attack. "I knew yer father, Riley, many years ago, long before I spent twenty five years in jail. He was a good man, one of the best agents in the United Kingdom. Even he didn't abide by the protocol all the time."

Lourdes furrowed her brows at his somewhat cryptic statement, visibly confused. Il Duce did not intend to answer her questioning glance. Instead, he merely said, "We didn't come here to reason with ye, Miss Villamor. We merely came here to inform ye of what we're goin' to do."

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Lourdes and Il Duce stepped out of the office a few minutes later, where they found Smecker and the brothers sharing a laugh. They immediately stopped and instantly grew serious when they saw the two walking towards them, with Il Duce leading the way and Lourdes following closely behind.

"We will take her to the Irish Embassy." announced Il Duce, almost regally, as he reached his sons. "Smecker, we will contact ye as soon as possible when we get new information."

The four swiftly exited the Boston Police Station, piling into Da's car. To Connor's annoyance, Murphy had shoved his way through the three of them to claim shotgun. Not being in the mood to argue, Connor opened the door to the backseat, allowing Lourdes to enter first. They briefly made eye-contact before she entered, though said not a word.

As Da began to drive, Murphy turned his attention to Lourdes and his brother, who sat as far away from each other as they possibly could. Noticing the two feet of space in between them, he raised a questioning eyebrow. With a cheeky grin plastered on his face, he piped up, "Ye two over everythin' now? Did ye kiss and make up?"

Connor's response wasn't exactly what Lourdes was expecting. "Of course we are!" The light tone in his voice immediately caught her suspicion. Proving her instincts to be correct, he continued in the most sarcastic of manners, "Although, I must say, yer kissing abilities were quite excellent."

A million words flashing through her mind, Lourdes' rebuttal was quick as she retorted, "In my humble opinion, you were pretty damn sloppy. And to think that you weren't even drunk!" She even gasped and placed a hand over her mouth for effect. "Travesty!"

Murphy had to bite his lip to keep from laughing, highly enjoying the banter between the two.

"Really now?" Unphased by her intended insult, Connor retaliated smoothly with a forced smirk, "Well, why don't you let me try again? Maybe it'll refresh your memory."

Lourdes merely squinted her eyes tiredly, turning her head away from Connor. She was through with bickering with him like a five year old! But even if she was done with the 'conversation', Connor certainly was not.

"Why did you wait so long to hit me over the head, then?" He only moved his face closer to hers, their noses merely inches apart. A smirk of conceit appeared on his handsome face. "You were enjoyin' it too much, weren't ye?"

"I had to make it convincing, didn't I?" Lourdes cocked a brow, looking upon his face once more as she made her finishing blow, "And by the looks and feel of it, you were thoroughly convinced."

A chorus of laughter from Murphy, and even – was she mistaken? - Il Duce, sounded from the front of the car before Connor could strike again. Mouth agape, he had no words to retaliate with, merely staring at Lourdes in incredulity. When she eyed him triumphantly, Connor's bewildered expression had suddenly changed, lips curling into that gorgeous smirk of his. He leaned in closer to Lourdes once more, mouth stopping right beside her right ear. He gently whispered, "I must admit…I was very…convinced."

Lourdes gulped, feeling the shivers running through her body. Connor only chuckled to himself as he saw her stiffen, content that he had won the battle. Murphy gave them both a round of applause, seemingly content at their wondrous display of bickering.

Taking a folder out of his bag, Connor held it out to Lourdes, wholly disregarding their previous 'conversation'. Her eyes glanced at the yellow folder dangling in front of her, then at Connor.

"The night that ye were attacked, a thought hit me: How could the Unionists have found out where ye and yer agents stayed again?" As Connor spoke, Lourdes finally took the folder from his grasp. Flipping it open, she read through the papers inside, simultaneously listening to what he was saying. "The first attack could have been by chance, but how did the Unionists even know where ye were staying in the first place? Then, the second attack. How the hell did they find ye again?"

Lourdes' face progressively became paler and paler as she sifted through correspondence letters within the folder: written and transcribed documents all printed out before her, between someone and Unionist members.

"At first I just thought that these Unionists are just determined bastards that don't give up until they have their prey, but these Unionist fuckers aren't that intelligent." Connor flipped to the last page, specifically showing it to Lourdes. "They had help."

Lourdes placed a hand over her mouth, unable to believe what was written on the paper before her. It was a transcript from a call intercepted by Smecker himself:

February 13

0400 hours

Westin Boston Waterfront Hotel

We're staying at The Westin Boston Waterfront Hotel, 425 Summer Street. Agent Lourdes Villamor is heading the investigation. She's staying in room 333. Take her out first, then kill the three others. I'll keep you posted on what they're doing.

"They found you all so easily, Lourdes," Connor waited until he had Lourdes' full attention before he finished, "because you have a mole in your team."

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A/N: Ooh, and the plot thickens! What do you think about this chapter? Who do you think the mole could be? xx IFHD