Author Notes: This started out as an unfinished AU for a different series and after awhile I realized this story would work so much better with Murphy and Connor. I am changing a lot between the two stories and I am going to attempt to keep this story on par with the actual events and time line of the Patriarca Family. Reviews are loved and constructive criticism is welcome.

Summary: Connor and Murphy go undercover to try and take down Luigi "Baby Shacks" Manocchio, the head of the Patriarca crime Family in Boston. There they meet a young lady who's entire family has been murdered by the mafia. Disaster ensues. Murphy/OC

Disclaimer: I do not own any characters from The Boondock Saints. Tessa and Vince are mine.

Grá a mharú

When I was growing up I never really had the chance to watch television or play video games like most of the teenagers do now. My brother Vince was involved with the Patriarca family in Boston, and we spent a lot of time dodging bullets and causing trouble, but that's how we survived.

See, our parents were murdered right after I turned sixteen. It was their wedding anniversary, and they celebrated by going out to eat that night. It was late when they left the restaurant, and they walked right into trouble. They happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time and they were murdered in a cross fire between the cops and a renegade gangster. That left Vince as my legal guardian. He was twenty one when they died and that night he promised he would avenge their deaths, no matter how long it took. That's when he decided he would join the mafia.

Things worked out fine for us at first. We had a small apartment and a car. I was able to finish high school and eventually took on a job as a waitress at a small bar. Vince began to climb the 'corporate' ladder, so to speak. He was well respected and had many connections.

As I got older Vince became my best friend. By this time He had turned twenty six, and I was twenty one. He always made sure I was well dressed and had nice jewelry. He took me to fancy restaurants and always took me with him when he had business to attend to.

That's how I met his associate, Murphy.

Vince led me through the doors of a small hole in the wall bar. His hand was on the small of my back as he guided me towards the back of the building. The band was playing a song that I could not recognize but it had a nice upbeat tempo. I slid into a chair at our usual table and my brother sat next to me. We were the first to arrive that night and we sat in silence. It wasn't long before the rest of his crew arrived. The table filled up quickly, but the seat to my left remained empty. As usual I was the only female at the table that night.

Drinks arrived and I casually sipped mine and kept to myself. I never talked at these meetings unless someone was speaking to me directly. Most nights I never even followed the conversation, but I did notice when the entire table went silent. I glanced around the room, and I couldn't help but stare at the stranger who had just walked through the door. Vince stood up at once and went to greet him.

"I'm glad you could make it here tonight." Vince shook his hand, and the conversation at our table came back to life.

"It was my pleasure." My brother motioned him towards the table, and he took a seat right next to me.

"Tessa, this is our new associate, Murphy." Vince introduced the newcomer to me.

He took my hand and placed a chaste kiss upon it. "It's a pleasure ta finally meet ya. Vince talks about ya all the time." He had a thick Irish accent. Something very uncommon in this part of Boson.

I smiled and brushed a strand of blond hair out of my face. "I wish I could say the same."

Normally when I met someone that Vince worked with I would find it hard to talk to them, but things were not the same with Murphy. Things were different with him and I found that the conversation just seemed to flow.

We talked throughout dinner and there was never an awkward silence. I was comfortable around him, even if he was a stranger. After our meal Vince dismissed his crew, but Murphy remained at the table. The two spoke in hushed whispers for the next half hour. Discussing what I assumed was just business. Unbeknownst to me this would be the last meal I had with my older brother.

We left the bar later that evening. Vince had his arm around my shoulder and Murphy was on the other side of me. As we stepped onto the sidewalk Vince stopped dead in his tracks. He shoved me behind Murphy and spoke to his associate.

"Something's not right here." His eyes began to scan the street. "I don't like this." He began to focus on a well dressed man across the road.

"What's going on?" I tried to look around the frame, but Murphy would not allow it.

"Stay behind me Tessa." I unconsciously grabbed the back of his coat and nodded my head.

"Let me go grab the car." Before Murphy had a chance to stop him Vince had taken off towards the parking lot.

Murphy turned around and pressed my back against the wall just a gunshot rang out. I heard my bother cry out and a loud thump.

"Vince! Are you alright?" I wanted to see what had happened, but Murphy blocked my vision. I needed to know if Vince was alright.

Someone yelled out, "No one move!" The gun went off again.

Murphy's face was close to mine as the bullets went flying. I could feel the tears welling up in my eyes as he started to speak. "I'll get ya out of 'ere, I promise." His arms wrapped around my small frame. I couldn't see a thing for my head was buried in his chest but I could hear screams from all around us.

The squealing of tires along the street caused Murphy to turn his head. I took the opportunity to take a peek at the spectacle that was unfolding. The police had arrived on the scene, and the sirens were drowning out the screaming. I saw Vince laying on the ground in a pool of his own blood.

I couldn't control myself as I began to sob into Murphy's chest. Vince was the last member of my family, and I had lost him the same way I had lost my mother and father. He held me tighter, and began to guide me away from the body but keeping us close to the wall.

When we reached the corner of the building I thought we were going to be alright. I attempted to catch my breath, but stopped short as I saw a figure in the distance. There was a man that looked to be in his mid thirties dressed in all black standing across the street, his gun drawn, his finger on the trigger. I watched in horror as he pulled the trigger and the bullet headed toward us.

I wanted to scream, but I couldn't find the voice.

Murphy didn't panic, that was something I learned right away. Even with bullets headed straight for him he kept his cool. His grip around me tightened as he protected me from the oncoming bullet. He barely flinched as it grazed along his left arm tearing through his coat and brushed his skin.

He reached into his coat, and in one fluent moment he pulled out a Beretta then quickly turned and fired a shot behind him. He never once hesitated as he went against both the police force and the mobsters in the street.

I stood there clinging to his arm, afraid to move. The only thing I could think of was Vince. He was laying in the middle of the shootout. Unmoving. I couldn't keep back the tears as I thought about how moments ago he was standing next to me. I didn't notice the bullet pierce my skin at first, not until I saw the blood flowing from my arm. This time I screamed. I could hear the chaos around us, but it sounded like it was far away. The screams, the gunshots, the sound of bullets ricocheting off the wall behind me. All I could focus on was the pulsing pain in my left arm.

Everything after that moment was a blur. Even if I try and recall what happened my memories are only broken fragments of what happened that evening. I know that Murphy was one of the only men still standing at the end of the shootout.

I don't remember leaving the street, or what happened to Vince's body, but I do remember that Murphy never once let go of me. He took us to an dingy old building that looked like it was once an apartment complex and lead me up a few flights of stairs before plowing into one of the rooms. The apartment was nearly empty save for a few random pieces of mismatched furniture. He guided me to the sofa.

"Con, get in here!" He called out.

"What tha fuck happened?" I couldn't see the man, but he also carried a thick Irish accent.

"We were ambushed." Murphy spoke in a hushed voice.

"How did ya miss it?"

"I wasn't paying attention. Just get the bullet out" His hand tightened around mine and I could almost feel the darkness around as I subsumed to the pain and blacked out.

I was quite content to just lay there and pretend that I was still sleeping. I could ignore the dull pain in my arm, but not the sound of my stomach. It let out a low rumble and then I heard a subtle laughter. My eyes fluttered open and came to rest on Murphy.

"Good morning Tessa." His deep voice broke the silence. Murphy was sitting on the floor next to the mattress I was occupying. I tried to sit up, but I was hit with a sudden dizziness. "Ya might not want ta move just yet. Connor is trying ta find something for ya ta eat."

Murphy stood up and moved closer. His hand went behind my back and he helped me sit up. My head was soon resting against a pile of pillows.

"How long have I been out?" My voice sounded raspy.

"Only two days."

I closed my eyes and tried to recall what had happened that fateful night. The only thing I could vividly remember was Vince's body on the ground in a pool of his own blood.

Before I could even get the question past my lips Murphy was answering it.

"Vince was hit pretty hard. After I brought ya here I went back for him, but he didn't make it." He placed his hand on top of mine and gave a gentle squeeze. "I'm so sorry."

Before he had finished the last sentence I had tears welling up in my eyes. My brother was dead, the last member of my family. I was alone.

Murphy's hold on my hand tightened, and he pulled me into his chest. I remember laying there and crying until I had nothing left. Murphy didn't leave my side once. He murmured a foreign language in my ear and held me while the tears wracked through me.

I remembered the other man coming onto the room and leaving a plate of food, but I didn't eat it. I couldn't. All I could do was mourn for my brother.