Aven drove to the church. Torrin sat in the passenger seat, nervously chewing on her bottom lip.

"See, if you smoked, you could give your lip a break." Aven's joke landed just as flat as her tone; both girls were too tense to see the humor in just about anything right then.

She parked behind the old building, pushing the gear into park and glancing at Torrin. The girl was still chewing on her lip.

"Ever think maybe this Russian thing is just the first ripple in knowin' those boys?" Aven asked.

"What do you mean?" Torrin asked with a frown.

"I mean, it could always be like this. We get in with them, there's always gonna be someone comin' after us."

Torrin nodded. "Same shit, different day, Av. Come on; Father's waitin' on us."

Aven nodded and turned off the ignition. She checked her rearview mirror to make sure her hair and make-up were presentable, and climbed out of the car. She smoothed down her dress and pushed the button to lock the car as they walked to the front of the church.

A mass was ending when the girls entered, so once they had crossed themselves with holy water from the basin just inside the door, they kneeled in a back pew. There were certainly a few things to pray about in their lives.

The mass ended fifteen minutes after they arrived. Torrin nudged Aven's shoulder, and she broke from her prayer. Moving to the front pew and kneeling down again, they waited patiently for the church to clear out and the priest to return.

"My daughters," he greeted with a smile and hand on each of their cheeks. "I spoke with Peter this morning. His company will support you, and a contact has been designated. You'll meet your contact late this evening, here in the church – for safety purposes, of course."

"Aye," they replied in unison.

"Go in peace to love and serve the Lord."

"Amen."

Again in unison, Torrin and Aven bowed their heads, crossed themselves, and stood. They exchanged glances and bee-lined out of the pew.

"Aven, would you stay behind a minute, please?" the priest asked.

"Of course," she replied cautiously. "Go ahead, Tor. I'll meet you at the back."

Torrin moved away to allow them privacy, and to light some of the candles at the altar. The Father moved Aven even further back toward the door, rousing some concern in her.

"You really don't want Torrin to hear this," Aven noted.

"Well, it is my understanding that Torrin is not informed of your true intentions in returning to the States."

Aven drew in a sharp breath and shook her head. "As far as she knows, I've returned to get away from a … project that went bad. Oh, Father, please tell me our contact isn't …"

"It's not," the priest assured her. "But he is at the top of the chain here in America, so he will find out. I suggest you tell her before he does find out – your new cohorts as well."

"It isn't that easy," Aven whispered. "She'll be so angry. She waited a long time to get away from that life. She'll have expected me to tell her right off."

"You couldn't," the priest reminded her. "You've done what you can to protect her, now you must let others take over."

Aven didn't like hearing that, so she simply nodded. The priest moved on to his next task for the day, and Aven waited patiently for Torrin to finish with her candles before again dipping into the basin of holy water and crossing herself. Just as she pulled on the door to open it and allow Torrin through, somebody pushed from the other side.

"Sorry, didn't know – oh. Hello."

Aven nodded a hello back. "Murph, Connor. How are ya?"

"Better after a night's rest, for sure," Connor answered. "You girls both look lovely."

Aven looked behind her, where Torrin was trying her best not to look tense. "Aye. Our parents always raised us that whatever time you spend in the church, be it little or long, you're to dress properly. We had a short meeting with the Father, but we'll be on our way now."

"Wait," Murphy spoke up. "Will ya be home later, for a talk?"

Aven didn't want to talk to him, but seeing his bruise from the Russian mob soldier exacerbated by the punch she had thrown to his face the night before softened her heart. "You know my hours and where I'll be. See you later, boys."

Torrin nodded to Connor, and then the girls were on their way. Aven unlocked the doors and they climbed into her car, ready for another pot of coffee.

"Well, I'd hoped that we wouldn't see them till this evening," Torrin admitted.

"I'd hoped it as well," Aven sighed as she pulled out into traffic. "Also hoped that meeting with the priest would be more informative."

"Aye, but what can we do. We're at the mercy of Da's 'company'," Torrin replied, scoffing at that last word. "Some company."

Aven nodded. The guilt over the secret she was keeping from Torrin was beginning to consume her. It was true, things would break soon and her cousin might find out, but until then, Aven hoped to keep the reason for her presence in the States a secret. In order to make certain she had more time, she waited for Torrin to go down and open the pub before making a private phone call.

When the call was completed, she hung up. That was done, and Gavan wouldn't be a problem for several days now.

.&.

Torrin dropped her mobile on the desk and shook her head. The call had been from Gavan, letting her know that he was locked up, didn't know why, and would not be allowed to bail out. Torrin had drilled him, even claimed to leave him – it would have been a good out – but he swore up and down he had no idea what he could have been picked up for.

Sighing, she poked her head around to the front of the pub. "Hey, Alana. I'm going up to talk to Aven real quick. Be back soon."

Alana waved her acknowledgment, so Torrin went out through the kitchen door and up the stairs to the apartment. Aven was in the bathroom, combing through her wet hair.

"Enjoy a nice long shower, did ya?" Torrin asked, taking a seat on the edge of the tub.

"I did. Should have done it before going to the church this mornin', but I was so tired."

"Same." Torrin played with her fingers for a few moments before continuing. "I've just gotten a call from Gavan. Police picked him up, but he doesn't know why, and they aren't letting him bail out."

Aven set her brush down and faced Torrin. "All right."

"I mean, can they do that?"

"I don't know American law so well as I used to, but it could be they're waiting on a specific detective to come in, or they're stalling for more evidence to show up for whatever it is."

Torrin shook her head. "I even threatened to leave him, and he still wouldn't budge. I don't think he did anything worth being arrested over. Is there anything you can do?"

Aven picked up her brush, but didn't speak for what Torrin felt was almost too long of a pause. "Not that I would for that selfish son of a bitch anyway, but no, I can't."

Torrin nodded; she has suspected as much. Yet, she couldn't keep herself from asking. Why she cared so much, she wasn't even sure. She had one foot out the door on her relationship with Gavan, and something with Connor was brewing not too far in the future, she was certain. Her head and her heart were muddled over the circumstances, and this potential threat from the Russians wasn't helping any.

"Ya carrying on a gun on you at all times?" Aven asked.

"O' course," Torrin replied, patting the holster on her hip. "I've got to give myself at least a fighting chance."

"When was the last time you shot?"

"Been a few years," Torrin admitted.

Aven nodded. "Thought so. We'll go in the next few days down to the gun range and break the rust off of ya."

"Sounds fine," Torrin agreed. She went back down to the pub, where the lunch rush was beginning. Thankful for the distraction, Torrin spent the next several hours immersed in food orders and clearing tables.

.&.

Aven needed to talk to someone. She needed to get some things off of her chest, but as they weren't confessions, she didn't feel like it was appropriate to go back to the church and speak with the priest. Any other time she would go to Torrin, but this wasn't something her cousin needed to know just yet – or maybe Aven wasn't ready to deal with the probable backlash of Torrin finding out yet. Whatever the case, Torrin was not a plausible option as confidante.

She could call home, speak with one or both of her parents, or her brothers even. She could call the headquarters back in Ireland, speak with her boss there. Against her better judgment though and despite still being somewhat infuriated with him, Aven really wanted to talk to Murphy.

All of their conversations over coffee had been exactly what she felt like she had missed over the last years. Someone she could tell anything to, without judgment, and who would share things with her, too. Someone who could be so caught up in her and with whom she could be so caught up in that they would start talking and not realize how much time had passed until the sun started to come up.

Well, that had happened with Murphy. Groaning, she grabbed her car keys and texted Torrin that she was going out, would be back in time for her shift at the pub. After her shower she had donned her church attire again – the fitted dress with the hemline just above her knees, the nude peep-toe heels, and the pretty earrings her father had given her for her sixteenth birthday. Instead of a prudish bun, she let her long hair fall down her back, and left behind the blazer she had worn over her dress that morning. There was a black leather motorcycle jacket in her car if she needed it.

It took Aven a while longer to find the place than she had anticipated. The three men had tried to describe to her once where the place was at, but she had never been there and hadn't navigated around South Boston much outside of the pub and the cathedral. Once parked in front though, Aven sat behind the wheel for a moment, taking a deep breath and trying to prepare her speech; after all, she had some apologies to make.

Force of habit had caused her to notice the gray Lincoln parked across the street and caddy-corner to where she had parked her black Charger, but she hadn't thought any more of it until she got to the apartment door and noticed that it was left open slightly. She could hear voices inside that didn't belong to Connor, Murphy, or Rocco. Carefully and with her senses on high alert, she withdrew the small gun from a holster around her thigh, made sure the safety was off, and prepared to go in shooting if necessary.

"Simply tell us what you know and we'll be on our way," a large, bald, Russian man was saying.

"I doubt that'd be the way of it," Connor refuted.

"Right," Murphy agreed. "So why should we tell you anything at all?"

The Russian man sighed. Slowly creeping closer to the door, Aven could make two other men with him now, holding the brothers while the leader questioned them. She couldn't see any new injuries, but she doubted that would last long. Sure enough, just following the sound of the sigh, was the sound of a gun hammer cocking back.

"This can be painless for you, or it can be very, very painful," the Russian continued as he paced the floor. "Now, you. Tell me the information I wish to know, or I will shoot your brother first. No more chances."

The gun was pressing against Connor's forehead. Murphy was struggling against his captor, cursing up a storm in Irish. Aven let out a deep breath and made her move. She nearly ran into the apartment, placing the business end of her gun at the base of the Russian's neck.

"Strelyalki, chto chelovek budet poslednim nerazumnym resheniyem vy delayete, ser. Pust' oni idut, i ya dam vam zhit'." Hoping that speaking in the man's native tongue would reinforce her point, Aven informed him that shooting Connor would be the last mistake he would ever make, but she would let him live if he let the brothers go.

The man turned slowly; Aven didn't budge. Her gun was now at the base of his throat, and she was staring him in the eye.

"Well, if it isn't the little suka I was asking about," the man chuckled. "I love it when my work does itself for me. Why don't you tell me where your little mafia cousin is, then we can make this easy for everybody, get it over with now?"

"Bog amach as an mbealach." This time speaking in Irish, she hoped that Connor and Murphy were not too stunned by her actions to just do as she said, and move out of the way.

Although it did take a glance at each other for them to process it – a look Aven would later find out was reassurance for the brothers that this was really happening – both men found the strength necessary to pull free from the men holding them.

The first shot took out the leader's throat. The second went through the forehead of the man on her right. Aven's third and final shot tore open the heart of the third man. Within seconds, she had rendered all three Russian crime soldiers dead.

Closing her eyes, Aven let out a deep breath. She raised her right hand, touched it to her forehead, her chest, her left shoulder, her right shoulder.

"Forgive me, Father," she whispered to herself. She knew she was visibly shaking, and it made her furious – which, in turn, caused her to shake more. It was not the first time she had shot her gun, not even the first time she had killed a man. It was, however, the first time she had killed anyone outside of orders.

"Ya all right, Aven?" Murphy asked moving to her side.

She put a hand on his arm to balance herself. "I am. Are you boys all right? Where's Rocco?"

"He was on his way to the pub to get us some lunch," Connor explained.

Aven nodded. "Right. I'll call over, tell Torrin to hold him there. You boys should gather up some things. Best not to be around here for the next few days."

Connor moved to follow her suggestion, but Murphy paused. "Aven, my girl. I'm real grateful that you saved our asses just now and all, but there are some things he was saying that I think we deserve some answers about. You and Torrin both have some explaining to do."

The time had come far before she was ready. "Aye, suppose we do. Get your things and let's get back to the pub. We'll talk at the apartment."

A/N: Well, there was some hinting in this chapter about Aven's and Torrin's backgrounds, but more will be revealed next chapter. This thing with the Russians won't last too long, but another issue will come up. And some fluff soon, I think.

Thanks for reading and, please, leave some reviews if you read! I have anonymous reviews enabled – it would just be nice to have the feedback!