Okay, I know there aren't a lot of Boondock Sainst readers, but those of you who do read this, please review. I don't care if you love it or hate it. Please jsut let me know. I love to hear what people think of my stories.

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"It has always fallen to a few, to sacrifice for the good of many."

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"Aunt Keeva!" Keeva looked down at her niece with a smile, and knelt down next to the little five year old girl so she was eye level with her.

"What is it Catrina?" The young woman's Irish accent was plainly audible, even when she spoke softly.

"There's some men in a car across the street." She said. Keeva raised her eyebrow.

"Did ya tell Mommy about that?" The little girl shook her head.

"You're the first one I found."

"Which car is it?" She asked, glancing up at the small suburban street.

"The black one." She said, and Keeva immediately saw which one the girl meant. It was black, American made and had dark tinted windows. She wet her lips nervously.

"Where's Braden?" She asked, naming the girl's elder brother. He was fifteen, and tended to get stupid ideas in his head. Like going over and talking to the two men sitting in the car across the street, who, Keeva was sure, would not take too kindly to that.

"In the backyard." She said with a grin. "He's in trouble." With a sigh, Keeva stood and curled her fingers around the little girl's hand.

"Well, why don't we go talk to them?" She asked. Catrina grinned, and started running, making her Aunt run with her. It wasn't that hard to keep up, considering that her strides took nearly two of every the little girl's steps. When they reached the backyard, they found the girl's father and mother with angry looks, talking to the fifteen year old boy, who was glaring at them. Keeva paused, and leaned down to Catrina's height.

"Why don't you run on inside and make some lemonade?" She asked, a gentle smile on her face. "Then we can make some ice pops after I talk with your Mommy."

"Okay!" The girl tore into the house, and Keeva laughed, smothering it as she walked up to the two fuming parents. Keeva lay a hand on her sister's shoulder.

"Brigh?" She asked. Her older sister turned her emerald eyes on Keeva. Over a decade separated the two, but they were close. "What happened?" She directed the question at her nephew. John, her brother-in-law, threw his hands up.

"I don't know what we're going to do with you!" He exclaimed. Braden's dark hazel eyes darkened even further.

"Kee? Ya think ya could give John and I a minute?" Brigh asked, grabbing hold of her husband's arm, and dragging him off. Keeva eyed her nephew.

"What'd ya do this time?" She asked. He sighed.

"I asked to go to a party tonight. It's Friday, and I didn't think they'd have a problem with it." He replied, his voice heavy and slightly sad.

"Okay, but you're fifteen. Who were ya going to get a ride from?"

"Um. . ." He didn't have an answer. She smiled. "I hadn't thought that far." His eyes suddenly lit up. "Hey! You could take me!" Keeva froze.

"What?"

"I mean, you're pretty young, and you're cool! See, my friend's band is playing tonight at this club downtown, and I can get in, I just can't get there!"

"Okay. . ." She trailed off, thinking.

"Great!" He threw his arms around her, just as Brigh walked back over. "Aunt Keeva said she'd take me!"

"N-no I didn't!" She protested, but Brigh's smile widened.

"I think that would be great!" She said, and smiled in response to her sister's glare. "Calm down! I know the club he's talking about. Susan's son works there. He said that it's a great mix of adults. Trust me, you won't be the oldest one there."

"B-but-"

"Plus, John is taking Catrina over to her friend's house, so I'd finally get some peace and quiet." She said, and Keeva couldn't resist the begging look in her older sister's eyes.

"Fine! Okay, okay! You win!" She threw her hands up, and Catrina's head appeared in the back door.

"Aunt Keeva!" She called. "The lemonade's done!" She ran out and grabbed the woman's hand, dragging her inside.

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Keeva pulled her coat tighter around herself and glared at her nephew. After coming downstairs, he saw her outfit, and demanded that she go back upstairs and change, insisting he'd disown her if she wore a T-shirt and jeans to the club. Shaking her head, Keeva produced her ID for the bouncer, and so did Braden. Except his said he was eighteen. She smirked as the bouncer looked him over, then turned to Keeva.

"Is he eighteen?" He asked. She swallowed her grin and nodded.

"Aye." She replied. "Can we go in? It's freezin' out here." The bouncer nodded and allowed them inside. As they made their way through the crowd, Keeva smacked her nephew on the back of the head. "You could've told me you had a fake ID!" She hissed in his ear. He grinned at her.

"I could have, but would you have let me come?"

"Yes! And I wouldn't have told your mother either! Now I have half a mind to!" Braden rolled his eyes.

"Have a drink! Maybe you'll calm down!" She glared at him, but stalked off to the bar anyway. He'd get his eventually.

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"Conn, please explain to me what the fuck we're doin' here?" Murphy asked, jumping a little bit to keep warm.

"Because! I figured it'd be a nice change from McGinty's." He replied, sounding as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"Yeah, well I'm fuckin' freezin' my ass off." He said.

"Ah, what'd you give now for some rope. Maybe draggin it around'd keep ya warm." Murphy smacked his brother as they produced IDs for the bouncer. After getting in, Murphy was even more annoyed with Conner. His twin may have enjoyed places like this, because he could dance. Murphy was just going to get himself plastered.

After making his way over to the bar, he saw a young woman, only a couple years younger than himself holding an almost empty beer. He eyed her. She was pretty enough. He'd seen more beautiful women in his time, but there was something about her that just held him where he was. She had dark hair, almost the color of his own, but her eyes where the color of sparkling aquamarine crystals. Pale freckles were splashed across her equally pale face, which reminded him of so many girl in his homeland. Her eyes lifted from the crowd to him, and a smirk twisted her pale lips upward.

"Can I help you with somethin'?" Murphy was stunned into silence for a moment by the thickness of her accent. His eyebrow raised, and a smile pulled at the corner of his mouth.

"No, just admiring the Irish beauty." He said. The smirk widened into a soft smile as she heard his accent. "Reminds me o' home." She grinned, a slight blush creeping up her neck. It was endearing.

"Well, it's nice to meet you. . ."

"Murphy." He supplied quickly, and extended his hand.

"Keeva." She replied, shaking it.

"Can I buy ya another beer?" He asked. She shrugged, and downed the last of it with a smile.

"Just one more." She replied. "I've got to fuckin' drive tonight." He nodded, left, and returned a moment later with two bottles of open beer, and sat down next to her.

"You drove?" He asked. She nodded, taking a sip of beer.

"My nephew knows someone in the band." She replied. "And his mother wouldn't let him come unless someone drove him. . ." She sighed, raking a hand through her hair. "So I got fuckin' volunteered." She wasn't sure why she was so comfortable talking to this man, she didn't even know his last name.

"Well, would you be upset if I said I was glad you got volunteered?"

"That's a cheesy line." A commotion on the dance floor drew their attention to a group of boys surrounding a younger-looking on.

"Fuck! Brigh's goin' ta kill me!" Keeva shot to her feet and shouldered her way to the center of the group. She didn't notice Murphy following her. "Braden!" The boy in the center looked up and saw her coming. He paled.

Trailing behind her, Murphy could now see her outfit, which made him think completely un-catholic-like thoughts. He smacked himself.

She was wearing a pair of tight jeans that hugged her body perfectly, the ends shoved into knee-high black boots. Her black halter top didn't exactly cover all that much of her back, and dipped quite low. She obviously wasn't wearing a bra. He shook his head, pausing at the edge of the ring of boys as she walked straight into it, and took hold of the boy's arm.

"Come on." She said, and tried to drag him off. One of the boys in the circle pushed her back, causing her to stumble and let go of the boy's arm.

"Aw, your Mommy come to rescue you?" He sneered. Keeva's liquid blue eyes darkened and flashed.

"Do I look old enough to be his fuckin' mother?" She asked. "Open your fuckin' eyes kid." Her accent had thickened with her anger.

"Aunt Keeva. . ." Braden said. "I wouldn't start with these guys. . ." She glanced at Murphy, and a small bit of surprise and something else flickering in her eyes before she looked back at the boy who had pushed her.

"Your Aunt, huh?" He stepped forward, and circled Keeva. Murphy shifted, and was not surprised to see Conner standing on the other side of the circle.

Conner caught his twin's eyes, and sighed. He saw it at a glance. This girl had invoked Murphy's feeling of protectiveness. He sighed.

"Well, your Aunt can stay. You can go fuck off." Murphy started to step in, but within a few seconds, he could see that there was obviously no need.

The boy who'd been talking to her reached out and grabbed her ass. She whipped around, slamming her elbow straight into his nose. He let out a howl and fell back on top of one of his buddies, his nose spurting blood. One of his other buddies lunged forward and grabbed her from behind. Murphy almost lunged in, but she snapped her head back. The kid let go immediately, and she spun on her heel, slamming her knee into the kid's gut. Before anyone else could grab her, she grabbed the boy's arm and pulled him into the crowd. Murphy saw she was heading in the direction of the table they'd been sitting at. He reached the table as she was speaking sternly to the boy.

"What the fuck was that?" She demanded, yanking her coat off the chair. "Do you know what your mother would say?"

"You can't tell her! You'll be in as much trouble as me!"

"She may be my older sister, but that doesn't mean she scares me!"

"I know for a fact that she does!"

"Shut up Braden!"

"You shut up!"

"Braden, so help me, keep this up, and you'll really regret it! I can take my sister! I've been doing it all my life!" Her eyes lifted from her nephew to Murphy, and she glared back at Braden as she pulled on her coat. She took a step so she was slightly closer to Murphy.

"Sorry." She said. "I was having a nice talk with a nice Irish guy, and my nephew ruins it." She smiled. "I'll see you around?"

"Definitely will try." He said with a small smile. She nodded, and turned, her glare setting itself back into place as she grabbed her nephew's arm.

"Now come on!"

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"You can't tell Mom!" Keeva just shook her head as she pulled into their driveway, and grabbed her purse as she cut the engine. "Please!" Keeva sat back in her seat, then looked over at her nephew with a sigh.

"I'll think abou' it." But she couldn't help the smile twitching at the corners of her mouth. Braden rolled his eyes, and got out of the car as John and Catrina pulled into the driveway.

"Hey, you guys're back early." He said. Keeva shrugged.

"We had some difficulties, and decided ta split. She turned around, and Braden grabbed her arm.

"You've got something in your hair." He muttered in her ear. Keeva's eyes widened, and she reached back, feeling the dried blood from the boys' noses in her hair. She smirked at him.

"See? This is what you get for making me change." She replied with a smirk as she pulled her hair back into a ponytail. John sighed as he gathered the half-asleep Catrina from the back seat. He grinned at the two of them.

"Ah, conspiring against us all now?" Keeva fished her keys out of her pocket as Catrina woke up. "Sometimes I feel like Brigh and I have three kids instead of two." Catrina held out her arms to Keeva, who glanced at John, who was grinning as he handed his daughter off. "Then, there are other times when I'm glad you're around to keep us all sane." Keeva shook her head, and turned to walk up the front steps, but Braden was blocking the way.

"A-Aunt Keeva?" His voice was shaking. "T-The door's open." Keeva stuck her head around the boy to see that the door was indeed open. Wide open. She turned back to John and handed him her purse.

"Call 9-1-1." She said. "It might be nothing."

"But it could be something?" John pulled her cell phone out of her purse as his sister-in-law handed his daughter to Braden.

"Right. Stay here." She directed the last part at all three of them.

"No! Aunt Keeva!" Catrina called loudly. Keeva turned and shot a look at Braden, who moved back down the steps toward the car.

"She'll be fine. Aunt Keeva can take on anyone." He assured the girl softly, though he certainly didn't sound sure. "I bet Mom just forgot to close the door."

Tuning out John on the phone with the 911 dispatch and the kid's chatter, she slipped into the dark interior. Something felt off. That's when she heard the glass crunching under her boot. She swallowed, and patted along the wall for the light switch. Her hand found it on the second pat, and flicked in on. Nothing happened. Exactly as she'd expected. The dread in the pit of her stomach was growing with each passing second. She saw the flashing blue lights through the door, and heard John's shout.

"Keeva! The police are here!" She ducked back outside, and walked straight up to the officers.

"The front hall light bulb must have been broken." She said. 'There's some sort of glass on the floor, and the light won't turn on." The two patrol officers just nodded, pulled out their flashlights and went inside. Catrina was whimpering in her brother's arms, and John was looking incredibly pale. When the officers were inside, he turned to Keeva.

"Do you think this has anything to do with. . ." He trailed off, as though unable to speak the words he needed to. Keeva chewed on her lips, shaking her head.

"We can't know anything right now." She replied. "I don't know if-"

"Miss?" She turned to look at the officers. "Could you come in here please?" Keeva gave John's shoulder a squeeze, then hurried up the steps to the officers.

"What do you need?" Her accent was thicker with her fear.

"We don't know." She choked on nothing.

"What?" The first officer lead her through the kitchen and into the living room. He shined the flashlight on the wall, and Keeva's stomach twisted.

"Oh God." She fumbled for the light switch, and the room was suddenly flooded in light. In red paint, the word Treason was painted on the wall in red.

"You know what this means?" Of course she did. She'd thought they were safe. Obviously not.

"Is, is that blood?" She asked, and scurried over to the far wall. She leaned forward and smelled paint. "Paint." She muttered, incredibly relieved.

"Miss. . ."

"Dolan." She supplied, and shook her head, backing away from the wall. "I have no idea." It was a lie, but they didn't need to know it. If they did, it could tear the kids apart. Especially Braden.

"The house is owned by-"

"Me brother-in-law. John Clark." She swallowed. "They needed help with their kids. . ." She trailed off, and the officers nodded, apparently satisfied with her shocked act.

"Do you have anywhere you can stay?" She bit her lip, and shrugged.

"I'll have to ask John." She said, and left the house, hugging herself. She glanced up at John's worried face, and nodded. He nearly collapsed on the ground, but she gripped his arm.

"We've cleared the house. There's no one in there. We did find this." The second officer held up a note. "It's addressed to Keeva Aslinn Dolan." Keeva set her jaw, and took the paper. She unfolded it, and her eyes blazed. It was almost as though she were willing her glare to set the paper on fire.

550,000. One Week.

-B.Y.

"Mind telling us who B.Y. Is Miss Dolan?" Keeva swallowed, and looked at John before biting her lip.

"I have no idea." She said, looking back at the officers.

"Okay. But you're going to need to find somewhere to stay. This is an official crime scene."

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Tell me waht you think, and be honest. She'll meet up with the brothers again soon.