Realistic or Modern Family Ties: 1980s Gangs - IC (Ended)

[Melanin-Gxdess]

Sullivan Family Home
~Dublin, Ireland~
Leo Sullivan​

Having had a reputation of being forgetful Leo couldn't even be upset with Thomas' statement. "Oh, haha. Funny," he said, rolling his eyes and stepping out into full view. Thomas then informed him he'd basically given Lucky the day off and she was at home resting. To Leo, this seemed like a good thing. The fact that Thomas felt like he would be able to leave his support at home felt like a true step forward. He may not have been completely better but it was better than nothing. He'd then brought up Natasha and expressed his surprise at not seeing her around. "You're one to talk," he teased, lowering his voice. "Elena not sick of you yet?" A part of Leo was surprised that he, Thomas, Natasha, and Elena had yet hung out together as couples - with maybe even Braden and Lori coming with too. Despite not being a fan of double or even triple dates, being able to hang out with people in his age group was much appreciated.

Leo had opened up with his mouth to say something else when Conor walked in, putting a stop to it. Things had still been weird between the two of them and Leo had planned to talk to him about it. However, hearing about what happened between Michelle and Ali he figured it could wait - it would have to. His father informed them they were going on a job - something Leo was particularly surprised about. He hadn't been expecting Conor to include him but he wasted no time in nodding his head in understanding. Hearing Thomas joke about getting paid though he was off, Leo couldn't help but let out a slight chuckle before letting out a quip of his own. "Do... I get paid for this or...?"

The three of them arrived at their location and both Thomas and Leo turned to Conor, waiting for his instructions. Leo followed his father's gaze towards where Phelan and his accomplice stood talking, clearly up to no good. He couldn't help but wonder if he were to take over one day if this was what he had to deal with - morons in his family's turf when they shouldn't be. Conor didn't sound too happy about it either and told them they would take Phelan to his older brothers. "I'm guessing he gets in trouble a lot, then?" Leo stated, climbing out of the car beside Thomas. While walking up to the pair, the one Leo presumed to be Phelan immediately took off down the street in a sprint. The moment Conor instructed the two of them to chase after him and bring him back, Leo took off after him. The man hadn't exactly been a fast runner - strength was more his thing. But he was determined not to let Phelan get away from them.
Conor, Phelan (before he got his ass beat Misty Gray ) Thomas ( Bellz )

The Royal Taphouse
~Behtnal Green, London~

Darcey Winona Hargraves​

The one thing Darcey had always been used to was the dramatics that followed Bruce and his family. Darcey herself didn't have any blood relatives alive ever since the war so she didn't have to worry about such familial issues. However, Trevor's sudden arrival after so many years had thrown her for a loop. Darcey - along with the others, she was sure - thought they'd seen the last of the man when he abandoned their family. She herself had thought he'd have been dead within that same year and was very disappointed to find that he wasn't. She wasn't just disappointed, either, but she worried for the boys, Harper, and even Bruce. He didn't seem to be doing well and with the added stress of the boys and Jeremy being over in Dublin she was sure he'd be doing even worse.

Bruce reached for her hand and she happily accepted it - a small smile on her face. "That's alright, my love, you know I love your presence more than anything." Hearing that he'd been thinking about Dublin at the moment she nodded her head. "I know. But they'll be okay. They're out watching each other's backs and will come home in one piece," she reassured. She leaned forward to try and catch his eye, sending him a smile. Sitting back in her seat she glanced around the bar and as if knowing she was looking for her, the barmaid approached their table with her drink. Just as she walked away Christian appeared and the three of them moved to the back office. Darcey would be lying if she said she wasn't curious about what the man had in the folder, but she'd have to try and be patient. Darcey sat on the corner of Bruce's desk, her body angled so she'd be able to pay attention to Christian as he gave his report.

Christian informed them of the man's seemingly new life and occupation as the owner of a car dealership. Darcey couldn't help but chuckle at the thought and shook her head, allowing Christian to continue without interrupting. There had apparently been a conversation pertaining to Trevor being hit with a car by a drunk driver. "Shame. Should've finished the job," she muttered under her breath. Bruce asked how it would've even been possible for the man to purchase a dealership, with Christian responding in kind. Darcey didn't believe for a second the man hadn't done something shady to be able to purchase such a business. As someone in the car world herself, she couldn't help but wonder if she'd be able to help Christian - if he needed help, of course - figure that out. For now, she listened as he explained Trevor's past to him.

Darcey was curious as to why the man had been going into such detail when it came to Trevor and it wasn't until he revealed the reason that she slowly rose to her feet. She stared down at the picture of Trevor. Looking at it and thinking back to May she tried to see if she could see any resemblance - she couldn't. Maybe if she saw them side by side, perhaps, but she figured the girl was lucky not to look anything like him. Darcey then started chewing on the tip of her thumb as her mind raced. Ever since May came into her life she'd been trying to protect her from whatever consequences her birth would bring. Finding out she was a Sullivan was one thing - this was another entirely. Hearing Bruce's comment about the information changing things, she let out a brief scoff. "You think? He may not have stuck around, but the man technically went and started another family. At least that's how they may see it," she started, rubbing her temples. "I know we can't just bury it, but do you know how many more issues this is goin' to cause?"

"The kids already hate Trevor and want nothing to do with 'im; what are the chances they'll want somethin' to do with her?" Groaning at the thought of it, Darcey started to pace the floor in thought. "Well, now we know the real reason Alex hates her - you saw the way he acted when Laura brought home Harper," she joked, trying to lighten things up - though it was quickly ruined the moment Bruce asked her about May. For weeks now the young woman'd been working for her and Darcey had given her tips and advice. Darcey was trying to tame the wild woman with her teachings and Darcey had seen her as something of a daughter; something she had never gotten the opportunity to have. "Jesus, Bruce, what would you have me do? Turn her away because of this?" She shooked her head, sucking in air through her teeth. "She can't help who she was born to the same way the kids can't help that Trevor is their father either." It'd been an argument she'd remained firm on ever since they found out May was a Sullivan. Now that they found out she was related to them as well, she'd have to keep it up. "Truly what I want doesn't matter, though, does it?" She asked Bruce seriously. "What do you want?"

She then turned her attention to Christian, a tense and already exhausted look on her face. "Does he have other children? Her brother... Tim? No, Tom. Is he a Trevor spawn as well? Does he have any more mysterious seed hanging around somewhere? I'd like to know who to keep an eye out for so we don't run into this issue again."
Bruce ( Pyroclast ) Christian ( Misty Gray )

Undisclosed Location
~Dublin City Center, Ireland~

Alex King

​

Billy responded to Alex in confidence, surprised to hear that the man had steeled his own resolve just as everyone else had. He hadn't exactly been trying to change his mind but his response gave him confidence that if he was, it wouldn't be changed so easily. He made it clear he was doing this job for more than just a few people and Alex nodded his head in understanding. "Then I'll shut up, yeah?" He muttered, a small smile on his face. When it was time to get to work, however, it quickly disappeared and Alex climbed out of the vehicle.

The three of them had waited until it was clear the fight was going on to make themselves known. The moment he laid eyes on Conor he could fill the rage boiling up inside him. Everything he'd done to cause this - butt into his business with Sav, attack his brother, blowing up the nightclub sending his sister to the ER, and even try to keep his son from him - played in his head on loop. Conor Sullivan had been a bastard from day one and today was the day he paid for it. Today was the day he got what he deserved and nothing - like the size of Conor or how strong he appeared to be - was going to get in his way. Not even the itching in his hand that desired to just stab him immediately and get this over with. They had a plan - a meticulous one at that - and he needed to follow it to a 'T'. So even though Spencer was on the ground spitting up blood and in pain, he needed to follow the plan.

"Lot 'o big talk for someone about to taste concrete," he goaded, watching as Spencer took the pipe planted earlier to the back of the man's knees. To say seeing Conor in pain didn't do anything for him was a lie as he was enjoying seeing the man on the other end of things. This portion, he thought, was payback for beating up Spencer all those months ago. Every strike and blow dealt was well deserved by his older brother and Alex had again gotten that itchy feeling in his hand. The two men then wrestled for the pipe on the ground and Alex launched himself forward to try and help Spencer - using whatever force he could muster to kick his boot into Conor's jaw to prevent him from winning. He was hoping that the pain would cause him to recoil and allow his brother to gain the upper hand.

When he looked to find Jeremy and Billy, his eyes caught sight of the latter with his knife in his hand. Everything that followed happened quicker than he could process before he watched the stranger fall to his knees in a heap. "Bill!" Alex shouted, looking from Spencer to Billy. He watched as the younger man then ran back over informing them they were out of time, hearing the trembling in his voice. For a brief moment, Alex worried that the whole thing had been for nothing until his eyes laid on a gun that was sitting a few feet away from them. Alex scrambled up to get to it and once he had it in his hand he stood up and pointed it at Conor. "Enough!" He growled, staring down at the man. "You're getting into the fucking van and you're gonna play nice, you piece of shit, or I'll lay you out right here in this alley." He stared at Conor with a burning fury in his eyes, hand gripping the holster of the gun tightly. He wasn't aware there were no bullets in the gun, but he did know he wasn't about to shoot him right here. Really he was hoping that he'd comply without any further issues.

Billy ( Pyroclast ) Spencer ( Misty Gray ) Jeremy ( BasDorcha )

 

[BasDorcha]

Undisclosed Location
Dublin City Center, Ireland
Jeremy Gray​

Jeremy watched the scene before him like it played in slow motion. He wanted to step in, but knew he needed to wait for the right moment. Conor and Spencer was like a planned puppet show, Spencer enticing the man into moving the way he wanted him to, and landing planted right next to the pipe. It was like a bloody play. In his mind he was calculating the right moves – if it seemed he moved slow, its because he moved with intention, and was waiting for the right moment to strike the most effectively. Just about the time he was ready to jump in and assist Spencer with his first swing of the lead pipe, the sound of footsteps echoed down the alley. As Jeremy spun, ready to attack, Billy was already scrambling with the newcomer.

Eyes narrowed, he moved to take a step, pissed he’d let the man get so close because he was focused solely on Spencer and Conor, forgetting there were other threats for a split second – a split second to long. Still, he realized he needed do nothing as Billy planted the knife in the man’s chest, and the rush of blood started down his front. He didn’t have time to check on him, or to see if he was injured, Spencer was still fighting for his life.

Snagging up the long knife behind his back just as Billy ran back up to them, he decided now was the time to move. As Alex made for the gun, ready to point it at Conor, he counted for a moment of uncertainty in the man before he would make the same assumption they knew – that Alex would not be firing the gun in this alley where it could echo into the police, or other employees of the Sullivan gang. In that frame was where he was needed.

The intent had been to just knock the man out, one swift swing with the threaded pommel knife, but Jeremy couldn’t help it, he wanted in one good shot on the man beforehand, the image of Harper appearing dead in his arms sickening him for a moment. Instead of the back of his head, the fist clutching the knife landed slick on his cheek, the blade pressing into the tender flesh as his hand pulled away. It was quickly followed by a guttural growl, full of rage and pain. “YOU FUCKING PIG!” His hand made a quick change in motion and the butt of the knife clashed into the back of his head. It was enough force that Jeremy’s hand tried to slip past the guard, almost cutting his own hand.

Standing, Jeremy didn’t shake, he didn’t show any other emotion. In fact, he just looked at Conor, waiting to see if the man fell into unconsciousness as he had hoped he would. There was nothing on Jeremy’s face showing the slightest bother to the dead body behind them, or the blood rushing down Conor’s cheek, or any of it. He might well be some inhuman beast inside, based on the growl he gave and the animistic sound of it.

Mentions:Spencer - @ Misty Gray
Alex - @ Melanin-Gxdess
Billy - @ Pyroclast
Harper - Bellz

 

[Misty Gray]

Undisclosed Location
~ Dublin City Center, Dublin ~

Spencer King and Conor Sullivan​

Conor had caught Alex's goading and were he not suddenly hit at the back of the legs by the pipe Spencer was holding, he'd have gladly made it so Savannah's ex was the one tasting concrete. Instead, Conor soon found himself on his knees wrestling to grab the lead pipe out of Spencer's grip. The eldest of the brothers put up a surprising fight in managing to keep hold of the makeshift weapon. Still, Conor felt himself gaining the upper hand, but before he could prise the pipe from Spencer's hands, the impact of Alex's boot slamming against his jaw caused Conor's head to flip to the side and he loosened his grip on the pipe. Already bleeding, the impact caused further blood to spray out from the Irishman's mouth.

Spencer pulled the weapon out of Conor's hands before stumbling back up to his feet, wincing as the pain his sudden movement brought to his ribs. Using the back of his hand, he wiped away the blood from above his eyebrows, by now a mixture of his own and Conor's. It was a fleeting moment, giving him enough time to compose himself and looked ahead to Billy who seemed disturbed by something. Hearing they were out of time caused Spencer to quickly shake his head. Conor meanwhile took a moment to shake off the tightness and throbbing pain in his jaw. He could just about see the face of the man Billy had seemingly taken down. Any relief at realising it was neither Leo nor Thomas was soon washed away when he was sure the man on the floor was his employee, Aidan.

Conor didn't get time to dwell as Alex snapped at him, staring down as he aimed a gun at him. The Londoner ordered him to get into the van. Conor looked up at him, old memories suddenly flooding back to the forefront of his mind of a time decades ago. The time Angel and his goons ambushed him and drove him off to the basement where he was subsequently tortured in by the Romanos. The suffering he endured that night was something he would never want to go through again and so he would not willingly get into a van to be driven off by the Kings. He'd rather be shot than give them that satisfaction. "No, I'm not going to do that," Conor firmly assured Alex. To make his point, Conor got back up onto his feet and stared into the barrel of the gun Alex was holding.

Gripping onto the pipe, Spencer was about to continue what they'd started, but didn't need to act as Jeremy made his move to attack the Sullivan boss. All of the men present had a score to settle with Conor and Spencer wasn't about to deprive any of them of such a right for catharsis. Conor was caught by surprise, having split his focus between Alex's gun and the weapon Spencer was holding. As a result, Jeremy was able to slash Conor's cheek with his knife before striking him on the back of the head with the butt of the handle. By that point, Conor's face was soaked in blood and Spencer had begrudgingly ended up with yet more on himself and his clothing. Worth it, for the end result, he silently reasoned. Conor stumbled, gripping onto the wall to steady himself as the blow caused him to feel dizzy and his vision turned blurry. Spencer watched closely to see if the action had been enough to knock the big man out, but despite the immediate effects and the sight of the man with his bleeding face, it was clear Conor wasn't down yet, even if he was still getting his bearings.

"Enough of this. Fuck the van. We finish it here!" Spencer spat, his hate-filled stare fixed solely on Conor. "Even when you weren't a complete wanker, you were still a prick. Couldn't handle that someone was cockier than you, eh?" he asked. Even when they were younger and family relations were more amicable, there had still been a clash of personalities between Spencer and Conor, the Irishman, in Spencer's opinion, acting like he'd never been a cocky and aggressive man at a younger age. His anger building, Spencer momentarily lost his focus and gave Conor enough time flip around and land a punch into Jeremy's jaw. Without hesitation, Spencer swung the lead pipe and forcefully slammed it against the top of Conor's back, causing him to double over. He then grabbed Conor by the back of the head and brought his knee up to crack into Conor's nose. Another harsh kick to the legs and Conor fell onto his hands and knees, coughing up blood as he struggled to catch his breath back. Spencer tossed the pipe out of the way, creating a clattering sound in the alley.

Pressing the sole of his shoe against Conor hip, he force the man to roll over onto his back. Clearly the blows were starting to take their toll as Conor appeared to be much more unsteady and struggling to focus. "This wouldn't have happened if you hadn't been such an arrogant and cold bastard. Having me beaten up for protecting my brother and nephew was one thing. But then blowing up my nightclub where my family were having drinks. Injuring the people I care about. That was a big fucking mistake and I don't give a shit about the innocent people your death will hurt, because you're a piece of shit who we'd all be better off with knowing you're dead." Spencer paced the spot as he looked between Alex, Bill, and Jeremy. His anger, the pacing, his bloodstained clothes and face, all seemed to reflect the built up anger and frustration. The frustration perhaps partially owed to Trevor was easy enough to expel onto Conor. "Any last words or anything else for him, do it now, lads," he told his brothers. Spitting out more blood, Spencer took a moment to catch his breath back. He could block out the pain in his ribs and head, but he knew there was some kind of damage there to be treated. That didn't matter in the immediate future, though. As he removed the knife from his pocket and extended the large blade, there was only one thig on his mind and that was killing Conor. He'd spent the last few weeks picturing it. One scenario involved him repeatedly stabbing the Irish giant until the man was left dead in a pool of his own blood. Now the opportunity was there in front of him, the same thoughts were still running through his mind. In reality, Spencer knew stabbing the man just once, in the right place, was all that was needed to finish the job.

Pyroclast (Billy)
Melanin-Gxdess (Alex)
BasDorcha (Jeremy)

 

[Misty Gray]

The Funky Cat
~ Dublin City Center, Dublin ~

Benjamin Reznik​

As they stood outside, Benjamin couldn't help but notice Lorelei was somewhat intoxicated, which made him feel more responsibility to look after her. Of course, it came naturally anyway. Drunk or sober, he never wanted any harm to come to her. He couldn't help but smile when she spoke of how much she liked Aidan. He let out a small laugh when she mentioned her father and how they hadn't gotten off to a good start. Still, she assured him Gwen was fond of him even if Jason wasn't. "I guess I'll have to work extra hard to win over your old man, eh?" he lightly told her. Despite speaking casually about it, it did mean a lot to him that both of her parents liked him. He just hoped he'd be able to prove himself to Jason. "For now, I'll just make sure I stay in your mom's good books," he told her. He looked down as Lorelei turned to face him and rested her head on his shoulder. "I love you too," he softly replied, placing a kiss on her head. "I can't wait for you to meet my dad. He's going to like you, for sure," he told her as he thought about Kurt.

A few more minutes passed by without Aidan showing up. Though it might have seemed premature, Benjamin knew it should only have taken a couple of minutes for his guardian to get to them and he couldn't help but get a bad feeling. Knowing Aidan's line of work and the dangers of the mob, he often worried about the man. "Hey, I'm going to call again and check if Aidan got held up. Come on," he said, leading Lorelei back into the club so she wasn't left alone outside. After calling back to the base and not getting an answer, he returned to Lorelei with a small smile, hoping to mask his apprehension. "Nobody answered, but it's only a few minutes' walk to the base. You alright walking there? We can get the guys to radio through to Aidan and sort us that lift home," he suggested.

After walking for a couple of minutes, Aidan's parked vehicle came into view. Benjamin's curiosity about the car being there distracted him from seeing what awaited them ahead. He peered into the car window and tried the door handle to confirm the vehicle was locked. Benjamin looked around, unsure what could have distracted Aidan on such a quiet street. Then, his eyes finally landed on the sight up ahead. There were two clear figures ahead. One was the unconscious body of the Kings' driver slumped on the ground beside the black van. Opposite him and sat propped up against the wall was another man, this one not quite as still. A sudden wave of nausea overcame Benjamin as he began to put two and two together. "Oh God," he unconsciously muttered.

Not wanting to leave Lorelei behind, but at the same time concerned about what was up ahead, he hesitated. Holding her hand tightly, he had no choice but to have her walking towards the two figures with him, though keeping himself slightly ahead of her in case he needed to be her shield. All composure left him the moment he saw Aidan slumped against the wall and clutching at his bleeding chest. The man's hands, clothes, and the ground beneath him was stained with blood from the stab wound. "Aidan?!" Benjamin gasped as he released Lorelei's hand to fall to his knees in front of his guardian. "No, no. You're not. No, it's..." he began. Placing his hand over Aidan's, he moved the man's hands aside to catch a glimpse of the severe wound in his chest. Replacing his guardian's hands over the hole in his chest, Benjamin put additional pressure on, in a vain attempt to stem the bleeding. He placed his free hand on the man's shoulder as he looked him in the eyes. Beneath the streetlights, he could see Aidan was paler than he'd ever seen him before. The man's eyes seemed to be searching until they finally landed on Benjamin and fixed there. A strained attempt by Aidan to speak resulted in only a gurgling sound as more blood stream out of the corner of his mouth. "Aidan, look at me. You're going to be okay, right? This is nothing," he reassured him, despite it clearly being deadly serious.

Benjamin couldn't even process his surroundings, nor the sounds coming from the alley just feet away. He couldn't see beyond Aidan and his own thoughts. He'd already been the one to discover his own mother dead on the couch; murdered. He couldn't process that he was now witnessing the death of another of the people he cared about and looked up. "Aidan!" Benjamin cried out, reaching up to place a firm hand on the side of the man's face. "Keep your eyes open," he commanded the man as saw him struggling to do so. Although Aidan was unable to get any words out, the hand Benjamin had pressed against Aidan's wound was soon gripped by the older man. Benjamin let out a gasp as he realised his beloved guardian was unable to keep fighting it. Clutching the man's hand tightly, Benjamin bit down on his own lip as he tried to hold back his sobs. His body convulsed as he struggled to contain his emotions. Then, feeling Aidan's hand loosen completely and seeing his head fall to the side slightly, Benjamin franticly shook his own head. He lightly tapped the man's face to try wake him up, but he knew it was too late. Like his mother and father, Aidan had now been taken away from him too.

There was a brief moment of still silence before the tears flooded out of Benjamin's eyes and he let out a painful, heartbroken sob. "Aidan, no. Not you too," he desperately pleaded. He looked down at his hands, seeing them soaked in Aidan's blood. Quickly shaking his head, he tried to fight off the urge to be sick. Turning his head, his desperate gaze caught Lorelei, practically pleading with her as if she could somehow make none of it real. "I don't know what... I... I can't..." he stuttered, his eyes glazing over as his face became soaked with tears.

Bellz (Lorelei)
Nearby: Those mean Kings.

 

[Bellz]

Julia Avvocata
Moretti Family Home
~ Brooklyn Heights, Brooklyn ~​

Julia had long since stopped counting the number of funerals she had been to in her lifetime. The life she'd lived had made her desensitized to them but when her friends needed her to be emotionally available, Julia didn't waste any time to step up to the plate. Ricky and she had been in a small conversation when Ava walked towards them with a scowl on her face. She asked if mafia funerals were always like this, with people who didn't even know the deceased attending. Ricky answered before Julia could but she nodded her head in agreement with what her boyfriend was saying, knowing well he was all too familiar with this sort of thing.

Julia took a sip from her own glass of wine, looking around the room that was so packed with men wearing suits that she was sure that what little women were in the rooms around the home felt suffocated in toxic masculinity. Ava asked how many people worked for Gabriel and Ricky looked to Julia, offering for her to contribute to the answer. He stated perhaps hundreds and Julia found herself looking around the room for a moment longer before chiming in, "Just enough people to not quite know who is loyal and who isn't...who is here to just kiss his ass and who's here to do the opposite." While the likes of Gabriel and even Giovanni liked to boast their power with large manpower, Julia thought it was dangerous to have so many loose ends walking around.

"Ricky's right, Ava. Just worry about those who truly matter, faces you know. Everyone else is just here to cover their own asses." Julia murmured, reaching out a hand to gently touch the woman's arm. "You are more than welcome to hide with us in this room. Not a lot of foot traffic."

"What kind of mob house would this be if she didn't, hmm?" Julia said, trying to make light of the situation despite the funeral that had just taken place. Julia looked to Ricky with a small smile, "He's not usually right, but he's right about this. You deserve a stiff drink more than anyone else right now. Would you like me to go get you something, Ava? You can sit down if you wish, I know entertaining these men during a time like this can be exhausting. I can sneak whatever it is you want from the kitchen. I'm sure Elvian won't say anything about it. Pick your poison, dear, just say the word and it's yours."
with: Ava Melanin-Gxdess ; Ricky Misty Gray

 

[Bellz]

Harper King
White Hart Pub
~ East London ~​

Kerry had asked about her brother's but Harper had been slow to answer, letting her friend go get the drinks. When she came back, Harper was all smiles as she thanked Kerry. Taking a sip from her pint, Harper let out a relaxed sigh as she slumped slightly into the padding of the booth they were sitting in. "About my brothers..." Harper said to Kerry, "I haven't heard from them today...they are supposed to give me a call later tonight though after..." Harper didn't bring herself to say what they were doing.

While they all thought they were doing the right thing, Harper couldn't help but feel conflicted about the entire situation. How could they all expect to keep things okay with Savvy if they succeeded in what they set out to do tonight? Callum would never forgive them all if and when he found out later in life and while Harper was extremely angry about the attack that ended up putting her in this state, she didn't feel angry enough to kill someone over it.

"I just hope they know what they are doing, I don't know how much more abandonment I can take these days." Harper said, seeming to have sobered up from her pain medication for a moment in complete seriousness. Whatever Kerry or Kit said, Harper found herself not meeting their eyes as she looked around the pub for a moment. She gulped down about half of her pint as she observed her surroundings and just as she placed her glass down on the table her eyes found an older man staring at her. Harper raised an eyebrow in curiosity, wondering why the man was looking at her like he'd just seen a ghost.

He quickly looked away from her and down at his newspaper that he clearly wasn't paying any attention to and Harper nodded her head in the man's direction as she got Kerry and Kit's attention. "What's up with that guy over there?" Harper asked, "Do I have something on my face? He's looking at me like I've got a spider crawling on me." Harper huffed, looking to Kerry. "He kinda looks like Alex, doesn't he?? Same eye shape and nose! How weird." Harper said in slight amazement, "It's like they could be related."

"Speaking of Alex, don't think I haven't noticed the little eyes he's been giving you recently." Harper said with a knowing look as she wiggled her eyebrows at Kerry. "I haven't seen him give anyone that look since...you know." She didn't want to say Savannah's name, as it was hurting her too much mentally to utter the woman's name whom she thought had been her friend. Harper didn't take betrayal lightly, Jeremy was getting a front-row seat to that experience. While he may have thought it wasn't fair to be upset with him after she turned him down, he clearly didn't understand that she had to turn him down for a reason. Then again, men didn't really seem to understand anything these days, if their ego was hurt then there was no explaining anything or telling them otherwise. She wondered how they could have the audacity to say women were so emotional and only acted on those emotions when men were walking about kicking the crap out of each other left and right for those very same emotions.

"I may be in a wheelchair but I hope you know that I can be very deadly if on a downward hill, my older brother better be nice to you or I'm going to run him over." Harper said with a small smile. The room spun around her ever so slightly, reminding her that she was far from capable of running someone over. Clearing her throat, her skin turned clammy. "Any chance I could get some water?"
with: Kerry Misty Gray ; Kit Melanin-Gxdess
mentions: Mr. Disappear Misty Gray

 

[Bellz]

Clayton Byrne
The Ugly Pub
~ Dublin, Ireland ~​

Clayton nearly had a heart attack seeing Emery walking up to him though he played it cool with the cigarette in his mouth to keep him steady. He raised a brow as she requested a light and he silently lit her cigarette with his zippo before placing it in his back pocket. He took a long drag from his just as she did from hers. Watching as the smoke from their mouths filled the air, Clayton felt her eyes studying his face. His eyes met hers as she went on to say that he was either a loan shark or he'd gone soft, causing a smirk to form on his lips as he shook his head. She then joked that being a loan shark could get him into trouble with her family, all of which he was doing his best to avoid getting into again.

He neither confirmed nor denied what she said, just continuing to smirk as he placed his cigarette between his lips once more. Pinching the cigarette between his fingers, he removed it from his mouth before blowing out another cloud of smoke. "Above average pub, eh? Quite the compliment coming from someone who belongs at a well above average joint. I'm flattered, Luv." Clay said, flashing her a genuine smile.

Watching her take another drag from her own cigarette, Clay's eyes couldn't help but land on her lips, wondering if they felt as soft as they looked. She graced him with a playful smile, causing his own smile to widen as he forced his eyes to look at her entire face now. She asked what he was up to now that he'd shipped ole Horus off to bed and Clayton shrugged his shoulders. "Didn't have anything in particular planned. Between you and me, I guess I've gone a little soft. But I'd rather your family know I'm soft and an outstanding citizen rather than what you lot thought of me before. After that whole...job gone wrong incident, I'm trying to stay out of trouble." Clay admitted, giving Emery a boyish smile.

"A girl who is addicted to danger doesn't want to be with a boy- scout like me. But I will say if you are looking for a man who is good at tying knots...I'm your guy." He flirted, giving her a wink before laughing slightly to himself. "In all seriousness, this pub has become boring now that Horus left. I was thinking of hitting up another place I like to go to...if you'd like to join me?"

Clay went to kill off what was left of his cigarette before letting it drop to the floor. Putting it out with his shoe, he placed his hands in his jean pockets before raising his brows at Emery, wondering if she was going to turn him down or not. She wasn't as easy to read as some of the other girls he interacted with. It had made dating extremely boring. Emery was a closed book and Clayton was a fan of reading, perhaps that could make for some fun if she was willing to give him a chance.
with: Emery Misty Gray

 

[Bellz]

Roxie Carriveau
Jeanie Carriveau-Porter
JJ Carriveau-Porter
Roxie's House
~ 010010010101 ~​

Roxie could see just how nervous Syd was when she opened the door. While she found it endearing that he was trying to be natural around her, she didn't want him to cover up how he was feeling about everything either. Her having sliced her finger open seemed to distract him enough and when he placed his hand on her back, Roxie wasn't sure if he knew what he was doing. He suddenly realized it, however, withdrawing his hand from behind her as they walked towards the bathroom together. The dogs had walked their separate ways out of disinterest now that Syd was in the house. Roxie told him the first aid kit was under the sink and once he grabbed it, she stayed silent as he looked at the cut. The smell of blood was making her woozy, so her eyes just stayed focused on him as he helped her out.

Roxie wasn't sure what to say or where to even start. She knew it would seem out of the blue for her to invite him to her house after a week of steering clear of him. Roxie wanted to make it clear that she had done that for his sake rather than hers. She was projecting all of her emotions onto him and it wasn't fair to him or the kids to get caught up in something that may have happened because of the state she was currently in emotionally and physically. She had been trying for more than a week to convince herself that was the sole cause of it all, her hormones, her delicate mental state but it was becoming near impossible when the other reason had so much evidence to support it.

Roxie let out a quiet laugh at Syd's comment about him not cooking, "Smart decision on your part, all my years of cooking has come back to stab me...literally." She tried to joke as well though her voice lacked the playful inflection needed to pull it off. He wrapped the band-aid around her finger before leaning against the sink and Roxie cleared her throat before crossing her arms, feeling insecure at that moment as she took a small step back from him. "Thanks." She tried to say, her voice cracking as she cleared her throat. Roxie was about to say more, to apologize for everything when he beat her to it. She watched him as his eyes started to water, listening as he apologized for letting what they had done happen. He stated that he got swept up and he felt stupid for it and Roxie shook her head softly. He could barely look at her and she felt that she had officially ruined any chance of reconciliation they had for good. While there was one moment in time that she could blame everything solely on the man standing before her, she couldn't allow him to take any of the blame for this.

"Syd...please. You know as well as I do that I was the one to force myself on you...I mean, am I in my right frame of mind? Not entirely. Am I completely hormonal? Yea. But that doesn't excuse me from what I did and that doesn't mean you take the fault for it." She went to reach out her hand to force him to look at her, but it stopped short...knowing what touching him could do. She quickly pulled it back to tuck some of her hair behind her ear, "I've got a lot on my mind sure but if you hadn't been here for me lately I don't think I would have made it this far, you know that...don't you?" Roxie asked, biting her bottom lip nervously as she listened for the kids for a moment.

"I know that you think that I don't have to explain a thing but...Syd." She looked nervous as she shifted from foot to foot. "I have days when I'm not sure I made the right decision...more than I would like to admit to." Roxie shook her head, "And as I've said before I broke up with you because I was mad at you not because I stopped loving you and I've carried that with me for a long time. All those feelings...they just came rushing back." She let out a huff as she placed a hand to her mouth, shaking her head for a moment. Letting her hand slide away from her face, Roxie looked to him, "It's not fair to you, you shouldn't have to apologize for me continuing to confuse you in this way. It's certainly not fair to the kids. But I won't lie to you when I say I miss you and keeping your distance is the exact opposite of what I want or what I need right now."

Before much more could be said, Roxie could hear the kids running down the stairs. Quickly, she pushed the bathroom door open wider. "Mom?" JJ called out, "Is Dad here? I thought you were gonna call us down when he got here!" He asked, spotting his parents walking out of the bathroom together, JJ's eyes narrowed. "What's going on?" He asked curiously."I had a bit of an accident in the kitchen, it's safe to say blood-soaked garlic bread is off the menu," Roxie said with a forced smile on her face. "Ew! Blood? I wanna see!" JJ said a little too enthusiastically and Roxie pulled a disgusting expression. "Go say hi to your father weirdo," Roxie said, looking to Syd as JJ ran up to greet him with a hug. "You know what's weird?? That you're here to have dinner with us!" JJ said.

Jeanie had walked down the stairs, expecting Jane to hopefully be following behind her. "It is weird, J," Jeanie commented looking to Jane to see if she agreed. "I almost feel like we are going to get some sort of news." She murmured before walking towards her dad to give him a hug as well.
with: Syd Pyroclast
mentions: The sugar, spice and everything nice twin Pyroclast

 

[Bellz]

Lorelei Costello
The Funky Cat
~ Dublin City Center, Dublin ~​

"If he's anything like you then I am sure I will like him too, love." Lorelei murmured sweetly. While she was slightly inebriated, she realized that they had been waiting outside of her club a few minutes longer than it was supposed to take and when Benjie said that he was going to call to check if Aidan got held up, Lorelei didn't hesitate to let him lead her back inside. Watching him use the phone, she noticed the slight goosebumps on her arms in the dim colored lights of her club and a nervous feeling washed over her. She looked up just in time to see Benjie walking back to her, a small smile on his face that didn't meet his eyes like his smiles normally did. Biting her lower lip, she nodded her head, "I'm tipsy but I can still use my feet. I'm sure he's just taking care of something." Lorelei tried to reassure him as they walked out of the club into the warm night air again.

Lorelei held Benjie's hand tightly, walking in silence for a few minutes. She was just about to reassure him again when she also recognized Aidan's car up ahead. Benjie walked a little quicker and Lorelei struggled to keep up for a moment. When they had reached the car, Lorelei watched as her boyfriend peered into the car window before trying to open the door. "Maybe Conor needed him to do something..." Lorelei offered, trying hard to not think the worst. The redhead looked around her, wondering if she could spot the man walking despite there being very few people out at the moment.

Benjie had spotted the scene up ahead first and only when he muttered to himself did Lorelei look in the same direction, an audible gasp escaping her. His hand tightened around hers and they hurried towards the figures with Benjie walking slightly in front of her. "Oh my god." Lorelei gasped, Benjie released her hand before falling to his knees in front of Aidan who looked like he didn't have much time left. Lorelei placed both hands to her mouth to keep herself from crying, shaking her head as she stood next to Benjie. There was so much blood and seeing Aidan looking as pale as he did was enough to make Lorelei faint.

Watching Benjie try to stop the bleeding, Lorelei immediately removed her light jacket and knelt down beside Benjie, handing it to him so that he could use it to try and stop it. Whether he took it or not, Lorelei left it there before standing again wanting to give them the space they needed. Reaching into her purse, she went to grab her portable phone to call an ambulance but it was dead from not charging it the night before. "Shit." She hissed out, tears falling down her eyes as she listened to Benjie beg Aidan to keep his eyes open. Though she was at a distance, Lorelei saw the life leave the man's body causing her to once again place her hands over her mouth. The whole thing felt unreal and she was sure the amount of alcohol in her system wasn't helping but when Benjie looked at her desperately anything she felt soon fell away and all of her focus was on helping him.

"Hey..." Lorelei murmured, moving onto her knees which scraped against the asphalt as she shuffled closer to him. "Benjie, he's gone." The redhead murmured, moving to wrap her arms around him in a tight hug before moving to kiss the side of his head. "I'm so sorry. I'm so so so sorry." Lorelei said, her voice trembling with emotion as she fought to stay in control. "I'm right here, okay? You aren't alone. He loves you. I love you. I'm so sorry." She whispered to him, unsure of what else to say that could help but knowing that perhaps her physically and emotionally being there for him would do more than her words.

Despite the gravity of the situation, Lorelei knew they couldn't stay with Aidan. "Benjie...it can't be safe here. We...can't..." She couldn't bring herself to say that they couldn't stay with Aidan when she knew that was all Benjie would want.
with: Benjie + dearly departed Misty Gray

 

[BloodThunder27]

~Stella Kwon~

Dublin, Ireland​

---

Dublin StreetsOnce Ruby had gotten packed up and ready to leave the gym, Stella was looked forward to getting fresh air again instead of the smell of sweat due to people working out, which smelt pretty bad. Or maybe the Bounty Hunter just had a sensitive nose. When Ruby said that she wasn't very good with guns, Stella frowned a little bit. Then again, there were more fist fights around here then firefights. Sure, there were some that spilled out, but they were far and few. Not to mention with her job, Stella herself rarely used her firearms despite being armed to the teeth almost all the time. Either way, that was something that they could build on; Stella could help Ruby in Marksmanship, while Ruby helped Stella in Hand To Hand combat. It was a win-win. But since they just met, Stella figured that they'd build towards such plans. Putting her hands into her pockets, Stella continued to the front door so that they could go on their evening walk away from the gym before taking her chance to speak. "Mmm, for me its the other way around. I'm a lot better with a gun. I think we can help each other out; you help me, I help you. And along the way, get to know one another." She said, not knowing how flirtatious her voice was with that sentence.

Once she got a more clear look at Ruby's face and was even more surprised, but more or less embarrassed that she mistook the woman for a man. Keeping this to herself, it wasn't long until they were outside, feeling the cool breeze against her face. It was not long until the conversation transitioned to what Ruby was hired for, reminding Stella that they were going to be working together for bodyguard duty. Thinking about it though, her failure to Ali still weighed heavily on her mind. "Normally, I am just sent out for debt collection, so protection duty is kinda new to me still. Adam didn't tell me who we were going to be watching over either, but hopefully not a spoiled rich kid. Most of the people I've met so far are very well-mannered and the children are relatively well-behaved, so we won't have to worry about a demanding spoiled brat." She chuckled. "I've worked with Adam several times over the last year. Seen my fair share of action. You know, guns blazing, bar fights, street fights... There's always something going on because some people don't know their place and think they're untouchable when it comes to our boss."

Soon they came across a group of rowdy young men. A raging fire ignited in her heart when she heard the misogynistically-charged remarks they were making towards the other women who were walking nearby. Sadly, the only way to continue their walk was through that group. Finally, one of them called Ruby a dyke...which caused the raging fire to evolve into an inferno. Sure, her blood may of ran a little cold, but Stella was not having it with the disrespect towards women, especially her new friend. God these fuckers give men a bad name... Without a second thought, Stella punched one of the men in the face as hard as she possibly could. With a lot of anger behind it, she was able to cause a nosebleed. As the man tried to retaliate, he was immediately met with one of Stella's Revolvers in his face, the barrel only a quarter of an inch from his face, particularly his eye. "You have two options, friend. Either you can apologize to my Friend here...or, you and all your fucking buddies can go to the Doctor's Office with bullet wounds." She growled as she drew her second Revolver, pointing it at the man's friends as a warning. "If you take another step, it'll be the last mistake you ever make. I've put people in the ground before...And I'm not afraid to do it again. And I don't miss."

---

Interactions: Ruby BasDorcha | Rowdy Boys...

 

[Misty Gray]

White Hart Pub
~ East London ~

Kerry Patrick and Trevor Stewart​

Kerry felt bad when Harper said she couldn't take much more abandonment. She figured it was in reference to her deadbeat father who'd made a reappearance, but perhaps there was more to her comment that Kerry didn't know about. "I'm sure they wouldn't go to Dublin without a solid plan. Whilst your brothers may have reckless tendencies, I doubt your uncle would have let them do anything without a solid plan," she reasoned. If the Kings were successful in their plans, Kerry only hoped no innocents would get caught up in the crossfire. She'd seen too many times how people could get hurt in gang wars they had no part of.

When Harper suddenly asked what was up with some guy, Kerry raised a curious eyebrow. As she had her back to the man, she knew if she turned to look it would be too obvious. She would have to engineer a moment to take a look without the man in question knowing they were talking about him. "Harper, if you had a spider crawling on you, I would not be sitting here so calmly," she drily pointed out. The thought of any small creature crawling over her always brought a chill to her. Just as Kerry was about to playfully ask if the man in question was at least attractive, Harper pointed out that he resembled Alex. As if reading her mind and seeing Kerry was now thinking about Alex, Harper directed a comment to her, mentioning Alex had been making eyes at her recently. Letting out a scoff, Kerry quickly shook her head. "Harper. I'm female. Alex makes eyes at most women," she pointed out. Still, Harper persisted to tease and suggested he hadn't looked at anyone in such a way since he started looking at Savannah.

Trying her best to fight off the blushing, Kerry looked to Nikita. "She's relentless, isn't she?" she asked the bodyguard. Looking back to Harper, she lightly nodded when her friend spoke about running Alex over in her wheelchair if he wasn't nice to her. "Put it this way. He wouldn't get away with approaching me the way he does other women in bars. He'll have to work for it," she remarked, deciding not to confirm anything but also not to allowing herself to get flustered by the conversation.

Still, when Harper said she wanted a drink, Kerry jumped at the chance to break away from the conversation about Alex. Whilst she had seen a different side to him lately and did like him, she didn't want to scare him off or make him think she was only concerned about him because she was attracted to him. Once she got to the bar, she asked for a glass of water and whilst she waited for it to be brought to her, she let her curiosity catch up to her and turned to look at the man who had apparently been staring at Harper. As if he could tell, the man looked up to meet Kerry's gaze and the woman momentarily froze on the spot. It was only the sound of the barman addressing her that she broke her stare. Now she felt flustered. Though she grabbed the drink, she didn't rush to step away from the bar, taking a moment to process the man's face. Of course he resembled Alex. He was the same man she'd seen being ushered out of The Royal Taphouse following his heated meeting with the men of the King family. It was Trevor, no doubt about it.

Finally turning to return to the table, Kerry noticed Trevor standing up and still looking towards her. Apparently, she was familiar to him too. "Harper. Kit. We need to go," Kerry bluntly urged them, setting the glass of water down on the table. "You don't need to speak to that man," she firmly told Harper. "He looked like Alex because he's your... It's Trevor," she told her. "So, we need to go," she urged once more.

"Excuse me, do I--" Trevor spoke up as walked up to Kerry from behind. Whether it was out of being startled or on account of knowing how much the man had hurt Alex, Harper, and the others, she instinctively whipped herself around and slapped the man hard across the face. Clearly taken by surprise, Trevor froze for a moment before bringing his hand to his cheek, his face rapidly becoming an output for everyone's anger. "Why is it always the face?" he uttered under his breath. "Listen. I don't know what I've done to upset you, I just couldn't help but..." Trevor cut himself off as he looked to Harper again. Seeing her up close only hit him harder. It was like looking at a ghost; that of Laura. For once in his life, it rendered the man who usually had a lot to say speechless. There was always a longing for Laura that he knew he had no right to hold. Now distracted from Kerry being vaguely familiar, he was more focused on why Harper looked extremely familiar. "Do I know you?" he wearily asked, having a feeling he already knew who she was.

Bellz (Harper) Melanin-Gxdess (Kit)

 

[Misty Gray]

On the Road to Home
~ Clontarf, Dublin ~

Sinead and Liam Callahan​

When Aliana confirmed she had the book of telephone numbers and would go make the phonecall, Sinead momentarily felt concerned about letting her friend go outside alone. Then she felt concerned about leaving Liam in the car alone if she went with her. And then, she felt concerned about all three of them going out. After the attempted abduction of Liam, she didn't want him to go outside in the dark in case it happened again. Not without male backup. Reluctantly, she nodded her head and didn't stop Aliana from going outside. The whole time her sister-in-law was outside, Sinead kept her eyes fixed on the woman and her surroundings, making sure she stayed safe.

"Your head isn't exploding is it, Mam?" Liam asked from the back of the car, in a poor attempt to ease the tension. "I think you need a new car, but not a girly colour. I get enough stick at school without having to get out of a pink car."

"You keep at it, kiddo, and you'll be grounded. So grounded even Jesus won't be able to get you off the hook to go to church," she lightly warned. "So you keep pushing me, mister."

Aliana soon returned to the car, allowing Sinead to let out a relieved breath. She was glad to hear someone was coming to hep them, but raised a curious eyebrow. "Do you know who's coming? Do I get to blame them for this rubbish car?" she asked.

After waiting for a short while, the tow truck finally approached and parked up in front of Sinead's car. She watched as the young man got out of the truck and approached their vehicle. As he smiled and waved, Sinead looked to Aliana. "Does he check out? Not dodgy or anything?" she asked. When they finally got out of the car, Sinead looked to Tom for a moment, the streetlights providing plenty of light. "Ahh, a fellow ginger. Now I know you can be trusted," she remarked. Once Liam had lazily climbed out of the car, Sinead pointed to the vehicle. "Okay, so this dumb car broke down and won't start up. I don't know the technical terms, but I think it's what my brother would call 'buggered'," she informed Tom. "What do we do?"

Melanin-Gxdess (Aliana) BasDorcha (Tom)

 

[Misty Gray]

Sullivans Weapons Warehouse
~ Dublin Port, Dublin ~

James Porter​

James listened as Reina spoke about making the warehouse private, making it so pedestrians don't accidentally stroll through the area. "You've gotta find a balance. Make it too private and it attracts more attention and curiosity," he informed her. "Any cop dumb enough to question it isn't worth worrying about yet. You'll find there's plenty of back-handers going on in Dublin, and the port in particular if rife with folk wanting extra cash." Still he shrugged his shoulders. "But I'm sure if you take it up with Conor he'll hear you out. I'm staying out of it," he ominously commented. To suggest any kind of business matters to Conor would give the impression he wanted back in on it all.

As they walked towards the warehouse, Reina pointed out the distinct smell of gasoline. The general feeling that something was off seemed to radiate from Reina, prompting James to unconsciously check his handgun was concealed on the inside pocket of his jacket. "Nah, don't think we've got any oil trucks 'round here," he answered her. Before he could engage his hawk-like eyes, he heard someone shout out against the Irish. The figure fled before their car exploded from its parking spot behind them "Fuck sake..." James grumbled as he grabbed his gun. He didn't have time to think before the rapid sounds of gunfire filled the air. Along with Edwards and Reina, James took cover behind the concrete traffic barriers before gripping the handle of his gun ready to fire back.

"You think?!" James remarked back when Reina said he had a problem. It had been years since he'd been involved in heavy gunfire, or any real action, for that matter. Years of retirement from the mob, followed by years in prison, meant James hadn't done much of what would have come naturally to him years ago. He looked to Edwards to see if the man had an idea of how many shooters they were dealing with. "Four or five? I mean, I've had worse odds..." he said, trying to weigh up the situation. He nodded in agreement at the comment about needing more firepower. "Agreed. But this is all I could sneak out under Luce's nose," he grumbled, suddenly longing for some real weapons.

As a bullet practically whizzed past Edwards' head, James was quick to take the opportunity to fire back in the direction he'd calculated the bullet to have originated from. He then quickly ducked back down behind the barrier before attempting to see if the bullet hit an intended target. Other than the barriers between them and the shooters, James was struggling to find anything else to utilise to keep them sheltered. It was open road behind them or the shooters and the warehouse ahead of them. "The gunfire should at least draw some attention. Just depends on how many of our guys are on alert around the port tonight and how long we can hold out..."

Melanin-Gxdess (Reina)
BloodThunder27 (Edwards)

 

[Pyroclast]

Undisclosed Location
~ Dublin City Centre, Dublin ~

Billy King​

Alex seemed to hear the urgency Billy was trying to convey as he then swooped down to snatch the dying man’s gun from off the ground and pointed it at Conor, threatening to kill him if he didn’t get in the van with them. A few tense seconds passed before Conor spoke up to reject the offer. The man had decades of experience behind him and had likely been through similar situations before, on both the dealing end and the receiving end, so even though it seemed like a surprising response, Billy had to assume the man knew what he was doing. “Alex, just pull the trigger and let’s go,” he urged his brother. But with the tension rising, Jeremy snapped and lunged forward, striking Conor in the face with his knife. Blood began to pour from the man’s cheek, but before he could react, Jeremy struck him hard on the back of the head with the knife’s blunt handle. It was enough to make Conor stumble, and for a second Billy thought it might bring him down, but the Irishman proved he knew how to take a hit.

By this point, Spencer seemed to have had enough, stating that he was ready to just finish the job in the alley rather than taking him in the van. While he took some time to hurl a few further insults at Conor, Billy’s attention was turned towards the sound of voices at the end of the alleyway where he had stabbed Aidan. Even though he couldn’t see them from where they stood, he could tell the voices sounded young, maybe his own age if not younger. A man and a woman. Billy couldn’t make out what they were saying but it sounded like they were trying to talk to the man, suggesting he wasn’t yet dead.

Billy’s attention then snapped back to Jeremy as Conor managed to punch him square in the jaw, prompting Spencer to slam the lead pipe into the Irishman’s back. He watched as his oldest brother beat up the man, but he was so distracted by the company the dead man had attracted that he could barely focus. Eventually the mob boss ended up on his back, looking worse for wear as Spencer began to pace and vent his frustrations and his anger. Billy understood that his brother had a lot he wanted to get off his chest before he killed the man but he was so anxious that they were taking too long that he just shook his head at his brother. It was becoming harder to keep his composure, his feet just telling him to run back to the van, and as soon as Spencer said they would all be better off knowing that Conor was dead, Billy snapped. “Just fuckin’ do it then, Jesus!” He shoved Spencer out of his way and dropped to a kneeling position before delivering a hard punch to Conor’s face. The brass knuckles on his fist came up dripping with the man’s blood, and after just one more punch, he could barely recognise the man for all the blood that coated his mangled features. With equal vehemence, Billy launched himself back up onto his feet and took a few steps back, turning away from everyone as he shook off the blood from his dripping fist. As impatient as he was to leave, Billy didn’t really want to be the one to take another life.

A heavy sob sounded from beyond the alleyway and, leaving his brothers to waste more time on Conor, Billy couldn’t help but edge closer to the source, staying hidden in the shadows as he leaned against the wall. He didn’t know the guy, nor did he know the two mourning him, but that wasn’t enough to stop the nauseating guilt from spreading through his body. His chest was tightening just like it had after the confrontation with Trevor and he wasn’t confident he wouldn’t throw up at some point in the next few minutes - but he knew he had to do everything in his power not to let the others down or hold them back, no matter what it took. They had arrived together and they would leave together, and he wasn’t going to let shock take over in their presence.

Interactions
Misty Gray Spencer, Conor, Benjie, Aidan (sorryyyy!)
Melanin-Gxdess Alex
BasDorcha Jeremy
Bellz Lorelei

 

[Misty Gray]

The Royal Taphouse
~ Bethnal Green, East London ~

Christian Brooks​

Christian lowered his gaze as he caught sight of Bruce's reaction to learning that Trevor was May's father. He took it about as well, or badly, as Christian had been anticipating. When the boss addressed him to ask if there was any way he could be wrong, the private investigator looked up to him and shook his head. "I'm as sure as I can be without personally questioning Kathleen on her sexual history around the few weeks Trevor was shacked up with her," he answered. "I'm not sure what reason the woman would have to lie about it, and everything points to it being true. I wish I could find a flaw or anything to raise questions about this, but I've got nothing of the sort," he admitted.

He listened along as Bruce addressed Darcey, pointing out that they couldn't hide the truth, especially with Trevor now showing up and May knowing what her father looked like. "Believe me, if I could have deterred May from wanting to find out the man's identity without raising her suspicions further, I would have. Now he's shown up here, it seems impossible to keep his identity from her, as better off as she'd be not knowing him."

Christian couldn't help but feel bad for May as Darcey explained that the King siblings were likely to want nothing to do with her. Alex in particular already shown a great deal of hostility towards May when learning about her Sullivan ties. Not to mention, Christian knew all too well how blunt and suspicious Spencer could be with people. Still, Darcey seemed to be fighting May's corner as much as she reasonably could. It wasn't May's fault who her parents were and Christian had no reason to believe she had any idea about Trevor being her father nor of her ties to the Irish Mob boss. He looked to Bruce to see how the man felt when Darcey asked him what he wanted, as he would essentially have to final say on the matter.

When Darcey turned her attention to him, Christian looked back to her. "Tom isn't Trevor's, I can confirm that. He didn't stick around long enough for that. As for other children. I mean..." Christian couldn't help but let out a dry and ironic laugh, despite not feeling any amusement in the situation. "If he's got any more offspring around, then they're still a mystery to me. But really, who knows? I generally try to avoid making personal assessments and judgements on one of my cases, but let's face it, the man was a dirty bastard with no self-control. So, I would not be surprised if there were more, even if I have no evidence to back up such a claim."

Pyroclast (Bruce) Melanin-Gxdess (Darcey)

 

[BloodThunder27]

~Harmony Ryu~

New York City​

---

Moretti Family Home

Much of Harmony's life had been very quiet since Cristina's kidnapping at the hands of the Irish. Her time off had often been spent attending Karate with Quadir, who has since returned to the Cocaine Trade at Don Moretti's behalf and also attending therapy due to her meltdown that day, even if it was about two months ago. Even if she had back-up, she started feeling self-conscious about what had happened and started going to therapy once a week...now that she was able to pay for it. Aside from talking about what she did for a living (Which her therapist assumed to be 'Security'), Harmony voiced her worries about her Mother, who was still living in Los Angeles and how she feels upset with herself due to her apparent inability to move on from the deaths of her Brother and her Father. Her therapist then told her that everyone deals with sorrow differently and in some instances that people will never move on from the deaths of those who were once close to them. With that being said, the suggestion to have her Mother move to New York City was now on the table so that she wouldn't have to be alone anymore. Elvian would have a new friend to hang out with on occasion to help her Mother get out of the house. Still, in that small apartment, it would be difficult. Still, it was an option to consider.

Aside from Therapy and Karate, Harmony's life as a Bodyguard for the Wycliffs was once more about to get a little much, but not in the way she had anticipated. Marcus Moretti, Gabriel's Son, had passed away following a Boating Accident during a trip to Italy. The thought of going to another funeral sadly made her blood run cold. Not knowing who was getting the worst of it, Harmony remained silent throughout the morning at the Moretti Family Home, not to mention the trouble brewing in Europe between the long-time enemies of the Morettis, the Sullivans, based in Dublin, and the Kings, a Corporate Crime Family in London. And quietly, the Moretti Family was backing the Kings. This family really hated the Irish, didn't they? Harmony hadn't been around for very long, so she didn't really understand the long-term rivalry between the two. The only thing she did know, was that there would be a lot of blood and death before the end. Wait, if Gabe was backing the Kings in their impending war against the Sullivans... wouldn't he be backstabbing them and going back on their peace talks?

Now her train of thought was running at about Three-Hundred Miles Per Hour (Four-Hundred and Eighty-Two Point Eight Kilometers Per Hour) as she listened to everyone around her. While she was worried about Val and Teddy, Harmony was even more concerned for the children; Cristina, Paolo and Francis. If going through losses like this as an adult was hard...she didn't even want to imagine what it was like for them. The thought of it made her want to cry, but she didn't, wanting to put up a strong front for Val's sake. Because she didn't know Marcus all that well, she just kept her mouth shut, not wanting to piss off anyone at such a sensitive time. Out of respect, Harmony had quietly set a White Rose by Marcus' Portrait alongside the other flowers before making a prayer in her native tongue...well, one of them. Soon her and Damien were speaking with both Gabriel and Elvian themselves, suggesting that they would likely be needed to keep people in line and saying that Ricky was treating himself to the complementary sweets, to which she briefly chuckled. "Yes, the man has quite the sweet tooth, unfortunately." She agreed. "Nonetheless, I'd hope the guests will be on their best behavior. If not, I'm more then happy to be given an excuse to throw them out. I don't think me or Damien here have the tolerance for bad etiquette right now."

It wasn't long until the two Moretti Employees made eye contact, furthering the current conversation and prompting Harmony to break her mostly-ongoing silence. It had been quite some time since they last saw one another, let alone worked together. Still, the two were doing very different jobs for the Moretti Family, so that was already natural. When asked about how the Wycliffs have been treating her, Harmony took her next chance to speak. "The Wycliffs have been treating me well, all things considered. Granted it hasn't been all that easy since what happened in April." She said, referring to Cristina's kidnapping that took place that month as there was no doubt he had heard about it.

---

Interactions: Damien Nicolosi Misty Gray
Nearby/Mentioned: Ricky Biancardi, Gabriel Moretti, Valentina Wycliff, Cristina Wycliff Misty Gray | Marcus (Deceased) | Elvian Moretti Melanin-Gxdess

 

[Misty Gray]

The Ugly Pub
~ Dublin, Ireland ~

Emery Callahan​

Emery laughed when Clayton said she belonged in a 'well above average' pub. "Oh, you should be flattered. Play your cards right and I could wing it for you to be granted entry into such a prestigious establishment," she played along. "I'd have to be there, of course. To vouch for you and all."

When Clayton told her he had gone a little soft she suspiciously eyed him. "Well, that's a turn up for the books. Not many guys around Dublin are willing to admit they're soft. Most fellas around here work overtime to prove they're macho men," she remarked. She took another long drag of her cigarette as he mentioned the incident at the docks a few weeks back. "It's probably for the best you do stay out of trouble. I got into bother for saving your arse, mate. Not that I wouldn't do it again, of course," she assured him, with a wink.

Emery found it interesting to hear him say she was addicted to danger. Whilst she did find herself getting into dangerous situations quite often, she wouldn't say she was addicted to it. Before she could set him straight, he mentioned his knot-tying skills. "Oh, well... Now, that does sound like a handy skill. I'd quite like to see a personal demonstration of such a claim," she flirted back.

When he invited her to join him at another place, Emery took a moment to pretend she was thinking about it before nodding her head. "Sure. Lead the way, Blue Eyes. Sweep me off my feet," she playfully told him. As they walked, Emery allowed her features and tone to turn more serious. "You know, I'm not exactly addicted to danger, even if me and danger are never too far apart. I just get bored... very easily. Soppy people don't attract me, but at the same time, those who try too hard to look strong and confident are off-putting too. I'm attracted to adventure and fun. People with quirks and eccentricities. Maybe even the odd weirdo, hence me talking to you right now," she joked, but flashed him a genuine smile.

Bellz (Clayton)

 

[Misty Gray]

Paddy's Diner
~ Ashtown, Dublin ~

Adam Harper​

Adam was glad that Elena seemed to be enjoying her day with him. Drinking with friends or going out on dates were things he was more than familiar with, so never had any doubts about whatever he had planned to do. But this time he had to think of activities to do for his daughter, and one who he'd missed out on getting to know for the first two decades of her life. So, as they sat in the diner and Elena enthused about everything they'd seen that day, he couldn't help but smile at her. She had an endearing personality which made him momentarily question how someone so sweet could possibly be his daughter. "We have had a good day, haven't we?" he agreed with, her flashing a smile. As his daughter went on to say how happy she was to have found him, he gazed down to the table top as he processed her words. He was glad to hear that she didn't believe he was the horrible person Isabella had built him up to be. "I'm happy you found me too," he assured her. "I'm glad you've been able to learn more, from me and about me. And though today can't last forever, we can always arrange more todays," he suggested to her.

Adam couldn't help but chuckle as she voiced her confusion about the word "rides". It was that adorable nature she seemed to reflect. "You know rides? Recinto ferial... carrusel, montaña rusa? You'll see," he told her. Elena seemed to agree with him about wild animals needing to stay in the wild but then she mentioned how she belonged in Ireland now. "You belong here just as much as you belong in Cuba. Hell, maybe I'm biased, but you belong here more than anywhere else. With me, your friends, your job. Thomas..."

Adam let out a small chuckle when Elena said Thomas wasn't scared of him. "He isn't? Maybe I need to try harder then," he joked. Still he nodded along when she assured him Thomas was fine with the news he was Elena's father. She went on to say how much she and Thomas liked each other. Adam smiled upon hearing how happy she was with Thomas. Then, Elena said how learning the truth about Adam been her father hadn't changed anything, even going as far as to say she and Thomas weren't sleeping together, nor had they before. Adam wasn't immediately sure how to respond to that, his mouth slightly open but his expression somehow remaining neutral. He found himself wondering if that was information he needed to know, but at the same time it did bring out a protectiveness he didn't know he had. Had Thomas been dating anyone else, he'd likely have had encouraging words for the young man about sleeping with his girlfriend, but when Thomas' girlfriend was his own daughter, things were different. Even though she was now an adult and he hadn't been around all of her life to have such conversations, he still felt some responsibility for making sure nobody took advantage of her. "Well, I... That's good," he told her, nodding his head as he reached for his own drink to help fill the awkward silence. "No need to rush into anything like that," he reassured her.

Elena soon changed the subject to Adam's own love life, prompting a coy smile from the man. "I've never really been one for relationships, not serious ones," he admitted to her. He figured she may already have some idea of that fact due to his brief fling with her mother. "But now that has changed and there is a woman in my life. Your mother was a long time ago, yes. And I have changed since then," he explained. "I'm in a relationship now, with Blake. Do you remember Blake? Me and her are often in the pub together," he explained. "She has a daughter, Natasha, who is around your age. And a young son too, Collin," he explained. Studying Elena's face, he sent her a warm smile. "Blake knows your my daughter and I think she would like to meet you properly one day. What do you think?" he asked her.

Pyroclast (Elena)

 

[Melanin-Gxdess]

Undisclosed Location
~Dublin City Center, Ireland~

Alex King

​

Alex hadn't been expecting Conor to call him out on his bluff. He figured with the number of people Conor had to look after - his sisters, his wife, and his children - that he wouldn't go and put his own life at risk. Alas, he was wrong and being beckoned to shoot him. Alex frowned, brows furrowed as he clenched his jaw. Picturing shooting someone and saying that you would were two different things altogether - he realized this now. The weight of the gun seemed to match what he thought the weight of his actions would feel like, causing him to wrap his other hand around the grip of his gun. Billy's voice then echoed in his ear, telling him to just go ahead and pull the trigger, but he was hesitating. What would happen if he pulled the trigger? He was still unaware of the lack of bullets in the gun, but the question still remained. He narrowed his eyes and slowly started to pull the trigger, only to quickly lower it when he saw Jeremy moving to make his attack on Conor. Jeremy's move had caused Conor to try and get his bearings and Alex hoped Jeremy's sudden attack was the necessary blow to make Conor finally back down.

But it wasn't. And Alex couldn't help but internally groan at the sight of the man still standing. How much more of this could the guy withstand, he wondered? Sure, he may have been stronger than the four of them but surely because of his age, he would slow down eventually. While he silently prayed the man would just give it up, Spencer shouted at them to change the plan. His head whipped to him when he said they would finish things in the alley and not at their agreed location. Alex opened his mouth, wanting to show how much he disagreed when his older brother started going in on Conor, expressing how much he disliked him ever since the beginning. Though Alex had been so focused on Savannah at the time, he was more than aware that his brother and her uncle didn't always get along. Whenever the two men were in a room together, you could feel the tension in the air. Even if they were to hide the disdain and contempt they held for each other from their faces it was still present in the air they both carried.

The sound of clattering grabbed his attention once more, looking on as Jeremy recovered from an apparent punch. Billy was no longer by his side, suggesting that Alex was so deep in his own mind that he wasn't focusing properly. Spencer had already dealt a return blow for their childhood friend and was now pushing Conor over to his back. Alex was sure Spencer was letting out all the built-up anger he'd had growing this year - from the attack to the club to Trevor showing up. Conor had been getting every last drop of anger Spencer was holding inside and Alex couldn't blame him; after all, he was doing the same thing.

Both Billy and Spencer suddenly shouting made Alex flinch, but only because he had been so out of it again. He swallowed the lump forming in his throat as he watched Billy deliver a final blow to Conor's face before pushing himself back up. When he remembered what it was he was there to do, Alex regained the resolve he had nearly lost and walked towards Conor. The man seemed to be exhausted, but Alex didn't really care. He had a few more things to get off his chest and he was going to do just that. Kneeling down to the ground, he sniffled before straddling the man and grabbing him by the collar. "Don't think this is just for Spence and your meddling and you tryin' to kill us," he stated, delivering another punch to his face. "Harper, Darcey," he said, clutching his collar with two hands. "Even Kerry. Innocent people, you didn't give a shit about when you decided to blow up our club." Alex then roughly threw the man to the ground before standing up. "These are the consequences. Karma is a bitch," he spat, kicking him across the face for the final time.

Alex walked back towards the brick wall trying to catch his breath. He looked down at his now bloodied and bruised knuckles, willing his hands to stop shaking. He'd seen Billy watching out for anyone on the other end of the alley, so he decided to do the same on the opposite end. Once he was sure they were good he returned to where he was originally standing. "Oi, Bill's right. Let's hurry this up. We got another issue to deal with," he said, glancing towards where he remembered seeing Billy stab Aidan. If the voices he heard were real, then there was a chance they would call the cops any moment now.

Billy ( Pyroclast ) Spencer ( Misty Gray ) Jeremy ( BasDorcha )

Sullivan's Weapons Warehouse
~Dublin Port~

Reina Richards​

"I mean, your warehouse is flooded with what I'm assuming to be your enemy so technically," she shouted, looking towards James and Edwards, "You have a problem." It was semantics, Reina was more than aware, but the fact still remained. If whoever this was had been able to make themselves at home in a Sullivan-owned warehouse so easily, then obviously they had a problem. But, that wasn't what she needed to be focused on at the moment. She listened - as well as she could with multiple guns shooting at her - to Edwards give her a rough estimate of how many gunmen there were. They were outnumbered for sure, but Reina had it in good faith that the three of them would be able to take care of themselves in a situation like this. Edwards asked for a game plan before she glanced at the weapons all three of them held - pistols. With a dry chuckle, Reina knocked her head against the concrete barrier a few times, trying to think.

James informed her that the noise would attract attention, specifically to the men that worked the area. Though Reina was hoping that meant someone would arrive in the next couple of minutes, she wasn't going to grip onto that sliver of hope. "Ugh, I can't think what all this gunfire!" She shouted, looking up. Right above her head had been a streetlight flooding her in bright, white light. Raising her eyebrows as a thought slowly formed in her head, she turned and got on her knees. She quickly peeked her head over the median to look around before ducking back down immediately. A bullet had narrowly missed her and instead lodged itself in the concrete. Turning back to her company, Reina pointed up at the light. "They can't shoot what they can't see," she said, aiming for the light before shooting it out. There had been a few stationed throughout the lot - another a couple of feet to the left of Reina and a couple more to the right of James.

"Let's shoot the streetlights out, but only the ones that highlight our locations," she stated before jerking her thumb to the warehouse. The gunfire still hadn't ceased, feeling as if the enemy had an endless supply of bullets - which Reina wouldn't find hard to believe seeing as they were at a weapons warehouse. "We can use those crates as cover. They look and sound like they're made of metal so the chances of getting shot are like, slim." Reina then peeked her head out once more trying to gauge the distance from the barrier to the crate on her side. It wasn't that far if she stayed low and ran - plus with the light now being gone, it was harder to see her anyway. "Edwards, you make sure Jimmy doesn't end up like swiss cheese," she said, nodding her head off to the side. "I've met his wife and she's scary," she joked. "I'll go this way and take out the baddies to the right. That is unless either of you has suggestions?" As another bullet lodged its way into the concrete, Reina flinched and scowled. "Today, please. I've inhaled more concrete than oxygen at this point."
James ( Misty Gray ) Edwards ( BloodThunder27 )

On The Way Home
~Clontarf, Dublin~
Aliana Sullivan​

Sinead asked if Ali knew who was coming and she gave the woman an unsure head nod. "I mean, it sounded like Tom, but I can't be certain. Only met him once at George and Finn's so," she said, shrugging her shoulders. The meeting the two of them had was very brief and to the point. She'd only heard his voice a few times, but it wasn't enough for her to get familiar with. Either way, she was just hoping whoever had turned up would come sooner rather than later. Sitting on the side of the road in the dark with her sister-in-law and nephew was the last thing she wanted to be doing - especially after the attack the three of them endured a little over a month ago. While thinking about this she raised her hand to her throat again but quickly dropped her hand before she could trace the scar. She was working hard not to think about that day, even if it were hard to get over. Ali let out a soft chuckle when she was asked if she could blame him for the car. "Mmm, no, not this time. Perhaps your husband or brother are better targets. Next time you go out to buy a car, maybe me or Lucy should go with you. Or even Roxie or Blake. Leave the men at home where their opinions won't hurt anyone," she joked.

A few idle conversations with both Sinead and Liam seemed to make the time pass until Tom had finally arrived. The flashing lights were almost blinding as Ali squinted to make sure she knew who had shown up. When it was clear it was Tom, she was able to relax a bit. Sinead asked if he could be trusted, clearly in the same mindset about strangers as she herself had been as of late. Aliana narrowed her eyes for a moment before turning to look at her. "I'll be honest, I'm not sure. I mean, he works for Syd and Syd is like, the most paranoid person in the world. If he trusts him surely we can too?" Though she was meant to be reassuring Sinead Tom was to be trusted she found it hard to keep the uncertainty out of her voice. Kerry Patrick had ruined Aliana's trust in strangers, no matter how innocent or broken they may seem. Letting someone into her home or her life took a lot - even if that person were just a mechanic working for her nephew.

The two of them then climbed out of the car to greet Tom, Sinead taking to him immediately. Ali gave Sinead and Tom a playfully skeptical look, crossing her arms. "Mmm, can they though? They're not as innocent as they perceive themselves to be. Are you, Sin?" She teased, before turning to Tom. "Thanks for coming out here. She was fine until she wasn't," she explained, gesturing to the car. She then moved off to the side to let him look at the car if need be. Sinead then explained how the car stopped working, asking Tom for advice on what they should be doing next. As the time passed she slowly became hyper-aware of their situation again and she wrapped her arms around herself to try and keep calm.

Sinead, Liam ( Misty Gray ) Tom ( BasDorcha )

White Harp Pub
~London~
Nikita Blake​

Hearing about the job the King brothers and Jeremy were on made Kit cry on the inside. Here they were having all the fun in the world and she was in London on babysitting duty. It was one thing for her to be able to tell Jeremy to fuck off when he asked her to watch Harper and another completely when Bruce told her she was doing it. Babysitting gigs weren't her favorite but as she listened to Harper's slurred speech she was at least a little entertained. The woman's drug use had become an area of concern where her family was concerned, which Kit figured was because of how their mother had died. It would be interesting if Harper got in too deep with drugs and died the same way Laura did, but even as fucked in the head as Kit was she wouldn't wish that on the younger woman.

The topic was then changed to Kerry and Alex making eyes at each other, Kit missing the part about Trevor. She had been so focused on not downing her drink in one go that she'd missed it completely. Instead, she looked up to Kerry who had commented that Harper was being relentless when it came to the man. "You can't turn a man-whore into a husband," she said, crossing her arms in front of her chest. Granted she had never tried to do so, but as someone with a background in psychology, she knew that men were difficult to change. "He'll either revert to his old ways during a moment of reminiscing or resent you for the rest of your lives," she said, shrugging her shoulders. "Men aren't as complex as they try 'n get women to believe." Kit had heard about Alex and his past through idle gossip and rumors and had even seen the man in action herself. "It's no wonder he ended up cheating on the girl. Samantha?"

Kerry had then gone to get Harper her drink and while she did so, Kit looked Harper over. She didn't seem to be doing horribly or anything so maybe this night was going to end on an easy note. Wrong. Not even a whole five minutes later and Kerry returned. Not with just a glass of water in her hand, but with a worried tone in her voice and look on her face. It alerted Kit that something was wrong and without even needing to know all of the details, Kit pushed her drink away and immediately stood up. "What's goin'-," she paused, letting Kerry speak. She informed Harper that the man she had seen was Trevor and for a moment, Kit froze. She was under direct order to make sure the man didn't come within a foot of Harper. Her head quickly whipped to the man in question, a frown on her face. "She's right; we need to go," she said, sliding out from her seat. She then positioned the wheelchair so it was ready to go for Harper.

It wasn't too much longer before Trevor finally approached him and it earned a slap from Kerry almost immediately. Kit raised an amused eyebrow as she watched the man rub his face. He'd then turned to Harper asking if he knew her. Immediately Kit stepped in front of him to try and hide his view of Harper, clearing her throat. "I don't think you do, actually," she said, taking out her knife to rub the hilt of it against her scalp. "In fact, I know for sure you don't. So since you know there's no one you know over here, why don't you go back to whatever hole you crawled out of?" Kit was aware of Trevor and his misdeeds and it made her relive the memories she had of her own father more and more. She didn't appreciate the reminder in the slightest, but unfortunately, she was working. "As much as I miss opening people up, I'm exactly dressed for it today."
Harper ( Bellz ) Kerry ( Misty Gray )

 

[Bellz]

Thomas Porter
In Pursuit; Found the Assholes
~ Dublin City Center, Dublin ~​

As the three of them got out of the car, Thomas felt this sudden deja vu feeling that was telling him to turn back. Shaking his head, he refused to listen, acknowledging that ever since he returned home most things gave him that sort of feeling. The men in question were quick in their attempt to scatter but Conor had managed to grab one of them. The man running with his hood was sure to be Phelan and Conor told Thomas and Leo to bring the asshole back.

Leo took off without a second thought but Thomas hesitated, looking back to his Uncle for a moment. He never felt good about splitting up. Not wanting to get his head chewed off for leaving Leo unprotected and not listening to Conor's orders, Thomas took off after his cousin. Thanks to all of the PT he had to endure, Thomas had become a naturally fast runner catching up with Leo rather easily. Phelan was at a good pace in front of them, throwing any sort of easily moveable object in front of them in an attempt to escape.

He turned corner after corner, trying desperately to get them off his trail. They felt like they were running for ages and finally, the pursuit came to a halt when Phelan turned down the wrong alleyway, stopping just short from running into a wall. A beautiful dead end. Thomas stopped a few feet away and pulled out his gun, "Turn the fuck around!" He barked at him, noticing that the man was refusing to show his face. The Ex-marine once again had an odd feeling and as he continued to watch the man he noticed a hint of moonlight shining off something metal in his hands. "Duck!" He screamed at Leo before moving to push his best friend to the ground, successfully doing so. Phelan fired a shot, missing them completely before trying to jump over them to escape. Thomas grabbed one of his legs just as he dared to escape and the man was sent tumbling to the floor face first.

Thomas didn't waste any time overpowering him, taking the opportunity to swipe the gun from his hands before getting a good look at his face. Looking down at the man, he immediately knew it wasn't Phelan, and the feeling that he had earlier had been correct. "Son of a bitch!" He growled, before pistol-whipping the man in the face, breaking his nose. Thomas grabbed him by the collar and pulled him to his feet before looking at Leo. "It was a fucking trap! We need to get back to Conor, now!" Thomas shoved the man he had a hold of so hard that he stumbled back and hit the back of his head against the wall, effectively rendering him useless for the time being.

"Come on!" Thomas said to Leo before sprinting in the direction they had previously come from. The adrenaline rush was causing Thomas to feel like he was about to go into a PTSD meltdown but he was fighting to stay in control, he felt responsible for this after all. Thomas and Leo ended up exiting out of an alleyway about a few feet away from the one they had previously gone in through and as he looked to where the car had been parked, he heard shouting and cursing coming from the alleyway they had left Conor in to deal with the other man.

Not waiting for Leo, Thomas ran towards the entryway, seeing Conor beaten to a bloody pulp with a bunch of men standing around him, taking turns in the beatings. "HEY ASSHOLES!" Thomas roared out, raising his gun, "GET THE FUCK OUT OF HERE!"
with: Leo + Alex Melanin-Gxdess ; Spencer + Conor Misty Gray ; Billy Pyroclast ; Jeremy BasDorcha

 

[Melanin-Gxdess]

Sullivan Family Home
~Dublin, Ireland~
Leo Sullivan​

Knowing that Thomas was ahead of him gave Leo a bit of relief. If he wasn't able to stick with him then he knew Thomas definitely would be. His lungs were on fire by the time he and Thomas followed Phelan into the alley, Leo trying to catch his breath. "I'm goin' to beat the shit out of you for making us run so long," he huffed, keeled over with his hands on his knees. While Leo tried to catch his breath, Thomas continued going after the Phelan double, yelling at him. As soon as Leo stood up he heard a gunshot and felt Thomas tackling him to the ground. He groaned hitting the ground and though he was grateful for his cousin possibly saving his life, it still hurt. "Fuck," he muttered, looking up to see Thomas grabbing the Phelan double. While he dealt with him, Leo started to worry. It didn't feel right and he couldn't help but shake that something was amiss. The moment Thomas confirmed that feeling his heart dropped.

Running back towards where they came, Leo had flashbacks to when he and his mother were attacked. It was enough to have thought about the times Ali had come home with cuts and bruises and almost losing her. Now he had his own father to worry about. That feeling in the pit of his stomach was what propelled him forward where they'd last left his father. When the two of them arrived Leo froze at the entrance. Conor had been laying on the ground in a puddle of his own blood. He stared until it was no longer Conor laying on the ground but Aliana. The whole scene brought him back to that moment and he felt his heart basically slow down. His blood ran cold and his eyes started to fill up with tears before croaking, "Dad?"

If Leo had looked up and taken note of his surroundings he'd have seen the King brothers and Jeremy standing around him. Thomas had yelled at them to get away but the words hadn't registered in his mind yet. Instead, he started moving his feet again until he was kneeling next to Conor's body. Seeing him up close made him realize just how serious the situation was and that it had been a true attempt on his father's life. Leo figured eventually something like this would happen but he was hoping it never actually would. At the moment it didn't matter that he was surrounded by the enemy or that he was risking his own life and safety by being so close, but this was his father. Despite how angry he had been with him the past few weeks the last thing he wanted for the man was for him to die.

Soon the rage took over - his hands balling up into tight fists. He threw himself to his feet before turning to look at the three men. Before Leo had left the car he had grabbed a gun he noticed sitting in the glovebox. It was only now that he remembered the weight of it weighing down on his hip and he pulled it out. He pointed it at the first person he made eye contact with - that person being Spencer. His eyes bore holes into the man as the fury took over every single crease on his face. Leo had heard about the bombing in London. Spencer's attack. The way Conor was trying to control the Alex-Savannah situation. In their mind, he deserved every punch, every kick, every bit of what he was receiving. And even if Leo could put himself in the frame of mind to understand both sides, Conor was still his father. "You're not supposed to be here," he warned, heart pounding. The gun was starting to feel heavier in his hands and though he wanted to shoot Spencer, he wasn't sure he could. "Fuck, Spencer, you're not supposed to be here!"

Leo glanced down again towards Conor and the state he was in. If Leo didn't kill Spencer, what would he think? What would the rest of his family think? Would they call him a coward or even berate him for not doing what he clearly had ample time to do? But what would happen if he did kill him? Would it make the situation between both families even worse? All these questions were running through his mind as he held the gun with both hands. He gritted his teeth, closed his eyes, and hung his head. His leg bounced in anticipation before he finally made a decision. "Three seconds," he muttered before looking up. "Three seconds before I change my goddamn mind."
Conor Misty Gray ) Thomas ( Bellz )

 

[BasDorcha]

Undisclosed Location
Dublin, Ireland
Jeremy Gray
​

The situation had changed rapidly. Jeremy felt his head snap to the side, but his feet was properly placed to hold his stance. Blood dribbled out of his mouth, Jeremy coming back to reality as Spencer tossed the pipe out of the way, Conor on his hands and knees. He wasn’t sure who was going to land the last blow, but it was coming soon. Jeremy’s mind kicked into overdrive. Cockiness and emotion had gotten into him momentarily, but Conor had done him a favor – he’d knocked it straight out of him. Jeremy was thinking clearer then he had in months. Down the alley he heard the voices start to reach their ears, but she despair in them told him they were busy, and there was a feminine voice. If the man was smart, he’d take the girl and get out of here.

Billy was turned headed down the alley towards the voices, carefully staying in the shadows where he was not visible to the general eye. Jeremy carefully moved so his back was to the wall as Alex launched at the bloody mess on the floor and landed more pain for him in the form of punches. Something was coming, at the very least they were completely out of time. Jeremy looked up at Spencer, just as the sound of more feet running towards them came echoing through the alley. Jeremy stepped out of the weak alley light, just far enough back that he could keep a reasonable distance from anyone running up to the scene.

Alex and Spencer stood around the man on the floor, all of them were now getting the out of time alerts in their brain, but it was too late. A moment later, two boys burst into the alley. One of them ran straight up into the circle - he recognized Leo when the light hit his face - his gun out, pointed on Spencer. Jeremy watched him closely, his eyes following like a cat chasing a prey. As soon as Leo’s eyes closed, Jeremy stepped forward – it didn’t matter if Thomas - who came running up with Leo - shot him, Spencer was the important one here.

He made a move to unarm the man. Jeremy had used this move many times, but Leo was not just another generic street thug. In either case, he attempted to move in such a manner that even if Leo avoided the disarm, he was at least more in the way of Thomas and Spencer’s direct line of sight. “Spencer, Alex, grab him and run!” Jeremy’s voice growled. They had to get out of here and now, or this was about to get ugly.

Mentions Pyroclast Misty Gray Melanin-Gxdess Bellz and all our 500 characters

 

[BasDorcha]

BodyWorks Gym
Ruby Miller​

Ruby made a mental note to invite Stella to the shooting range to work on her gun skills. It would be a good thing to get more skilled at, and she was happy to learn it. She was grinning and just getting ready to say something then the guys started yelling at them. Ruby rolled her eyes, looking skyward, when Stella swung, hitting one of them. Rube elbowed the man beside her, preventing him from stepping in from behind.

Ruby watched the guys with lazy and bored eyes as Stella drew and trainer her gun on him instead. Watching the remaining third man standing, she stood ready to move on him if he even flinched. The man at the end of the boom stick quivered and gasped a bit. When he finally came back to his senses, he looked at Ruby, stuttering as he spoke. “I-I-I’m s-s-s-sorry. I r-r-really a-am!” He threw his hands up and started backing away. A few moments later, they collected their friend off the ground and drug him off, leaving Stella and Ruby to continue their walk.

Looking over, it was easy to see that Stella took no licks from them. “Common, let’s finish our walk.” She smiled and continued them down the block. “Thanks for that. Pretty cool of you.” She pinked a little across her nose and cheeks.

“You can tell me more about what you’ve done in the past. Give me some ideas of what we might be having to look forward too.”

MentionsStella - BloodThunder27

 

[Bellz]

Harper King
White Hart Pub
~ London, England ~​

"Alex? A husband? Please. I don't believe he is done trying to start his army of illegitimate children, quite yet." Harper snorted to Kit before looking to Kerry with a smirk, "Just be careful with him yea? I'd really hate to have to kill my own brother. Hoes before bros and all that."

Harper was genuinely having a good time for the first time in what felt like ages but that all came to a screeching halt when Kerry returned from getting her water and said they needed to leave. "What? Why?" The blonde asked in surprise. Kerry said she didn't need to speak to the man that had been staring at her and Harper was starting to become frustrated from the confusion. "What do you-?" She was cut off when Kerry said that the man that had been staring at her was Trevor and despite being on a good amount of thought-altering medication, Harper understood exactly who that was in an instant. Kit agreed with Kerry and Harper wasn't in any position to fight them on it. "Okay okay.." She said, moving to awkwardly scoot out of her seat into her wheelchair, only to stop dead in her tracks upon hearing the voice of her father. Startled, Harper's head shot up to look at him only to see Kerry swing around and slap him hard across the face.

Harper's eyes widened and her arms that had been doing their best to support her wobbled painfully before giving out, causing her to collapse back into her seat. Hissing out in pain, Harper moved to grab her side the sharp pain bringing her to the verge of tears. Biting the inside of her cheek, her head shot up again listening as Trevor stated that he didn't know what he had done to upset Kerry and normally, Harper would have laughed cruelly before giving Trevor the classic Harper sass. But she was tired and under the influence of heavy drugs to keep her going throughout the day. Her usual self and tendencies were slowly disappearing and she struggled to figure out how to stop it.

She stared into his eyes for a long moment, watching as he seemed dumbfounded to see her. Uncle Bruce had always said that she looked like the spitting image of her mother and seeing the way Trevor was looking at her right now, she was sure he thought the same. He asked if he knew her and Harper couldn't find the strength to speak quite yet. Kit stepped in front of her and stated that she didn't think he did. Harper watched as she took out her knife, her heart racing as she listened to her drag Trevor through the mud. "Kit. Kerry." Harper said, her voice cracking as it failed her. "Please. Move." She asked gently before her voice found its way back to her. "Now." The blonde commanded in a firmer tone.

Whether they chose to listen or not, Harper forced her way to her wheelchair, basically making them move so that she could get into it properly. Once seated, she turned it with her good foot to get a better look at the man who had abandoned her before she was even born.

"I look like her, don't I?" Harper asked him, her blue eyes watching him closely. That was the only resemblance she had to the man standing before her. They both had blue eyes whereas her mother was said to have brown ones. "Uncle Bruce always said I looked like her...Laura, my mom. Of course, I don't remember anything about her because she died shortly after I was born. But at least...at least she got to know who I was." Harper said, her tone turning angrier by the second. "To answer your question, you don't know me. You didn't care enough to get to know me. Fuck, you stayed for my brothers but decided that I wasn't worth knowing!" Her hands shook as she gripped the armrests on her chair, wishing that she could stand up now more than ever.

"I like to think the universe made me look almost identical to her so that one day you would come crawling back and be faced with the memories of the one person who loved you while also being faced with the one person you never got to know or love because you are a selfish prick." Tears formed in her eyes, as she shook her head. "If you think you can suddenly try to get to know me, you're wrong. I waited 24 years for you to come back and you didn't. Why should I give you any sort of chance now?" Harper felt uncomfortable in her own skin now, causing her to scratch at her wrist repeatedly in an attempt to maybe claw it off in the process. The way her father was staring at her now, so openly like he'd seen a ghost, made her feel like she was about to be sick. Maybe she was going to be sick...
with: Trevor + Kerry Misty Gray ; Kit Melanin-Gxdess

 

[Misty Gray]

White Hart Pub
~ East London ~

Kerry Patrick and Trevor Stewart​

When Trevor asked Harper if he knew her Kerry quickly shook her head. It was the truth, he didn't know his daughter as he hadn't even stuck around long enough to meet her when she was born. Kerry stepped aside a little as Kit approached the man, knowing she was more equipped to deal with him if he got aggressive or became any kind of a threat. She sent Harper a look that practically pleaded with her to get into the wheelchair so they could leave the pub.

Trevor watched a Kit stepped in front of him and brought a knife out into view. He couldn't help the subtle smirk on his face as he figured she was one of Bruce's guard dogs. If there was one thing that stood out to Trevor about the Kings since he'd made his presence known, it was their tendency towards threats and violence. The woman in front of him assured him he didn't know anybody at her table and told him to crawl back into his hole. Although she was holding the knife in a threatening manner, it didn't seem like she was about to use it. Still, the slightest chance of her doing so meant he wasn't about to start an argument. There was also the fact the Kings didn't want him anywhere near them and he was certain his daughter was at the top of the list of people he had to stay away from. Having not had any intention of seeing any of the Kings when he stepped into the pub for a peaceful drink today, he wasn't going to push his luck. "I'm just here for a drink, no need for the--" he began, ready to walk away, albeit reluctantly and with a heavy load of curiosity inside of him.

Hearing Harper tell the two women to move had been enough to keep Trevor firmly in his place rather than walking away. After shaking her head at Harper, Kerry apprehensively stepped aside and Harper soon made it so she was able to see her father without anyone in the way. Trevor studied the young woman again, still unable to get Laura out of his mind as the resemblance was overwhelming. Knowing enough about the explosion from friends he had around the city, he knew she was using the wheelchair due to her injuries that night.

Harper finally addressed him directly, pointing out her awareness that she looked like her mother. "Yeah... spitting image," he solemnly confirmed, nodding his head. As she spoke more, Harper's tone grew angrier, making clear reference to the fact he'd abandoned her before she was born. He couldn't disagree with her statement that he didn't know her, considering he had left before ever meeting her. He wished he had a valid justification for his actions all of those years ago, a reason to have her believe he'd walked away for her own benefit. He'd excused his actions at the time as thinking Laura would be better off without him, that his presence in her life was making her addiction and behaviour worse, but by now he realised he'd taken the easy way out for himself. He didn't want Harper to think he'd specifically left because she wasn't worth knowing, but how could he prove to her it wasn't because of her? He'd left his wife and all of their children, but why wouldn't Harper take it to heart that he'd not even stuck around for long enough to see her be born? "It wasn't because of you," he firmly told her.

Catching her friend's agitation, Kerry rushed to sit by Harper's side to provide her with any moral support she needed. "Ignore him. We can go," she urged her.

Trevor ignored Kerry and Kit, keeping his focus on Harper alone as his daughter continued to address him. Her words were cutting, pointing out how her resemble to Laura was the universe's way of punishing him. He lightly nodded his head when she called him a selfish prick. He was't about to argue with her, especially not seeing how upset she was. It was gut-wrenching hearing how much his presence now and his lack of any presence before now was affecting her. Not only that, but along with her appearance, there was something else about her mannerisms that resembled Laura and it was playing on his mind too much for him to just walk away and leave her in peace. "I have no expectations or assumptions about getting to know you. You're right, I was a selfish prick and I threw away any right I had to know you when I walked out on my family all those years ago. I convinced myself what I'd done was best for your mother and brothers, but I know by now I did it for my own benefit."

Trevor unconsciously took a step forward, but catching the eyes of the women around him, he quickly stopped in his tracks, lightly nodding his head. Focusing back on Harper, he thought about her agitation again, the way she was clawing at her own skin. Of course she was uncomfortable in his presence, but he could see there was more behind her demeanour. He'd seen it and experienced it himself before. "24 years is a long time. Beyond a reasonable time for me not to show up in your life. Even when I tried to return 12 years ago, I realise now that I didn't deserve to know you even then. But 24 years is also a long time for me to change who I am," he paused, expecting some kind of scoff or disdain for his suggestion he had changed. "But I have changed from the selfish prick who abandoned his family. I've spent a lot of time acknowledging my many, many mistakes and I've been doing everything I can to be a better person. I would love the chance to get to know you, but I know I don't deserve that. I can tell you I've changed and I regret that I left my family, but I know I've done nothing to earn a second chance from you. Hell, we only met a few minutes ago. Nothing I say here is going to prove a word I say," he acknowledged the truth of the situation.

Bellz (Harper) Melanin-Gxdess (Kit)