For All Our Sins (O/F)

[f a l l i n 4 d a n c e]

Lex answered fire with fire, flames licking up and gripping at his gut. She knew exactly what his plans had been, what he had intended. He had wanted to give her freedom and a life away from here, but part of him understood that once you became part of this family, this job, it would never leave you. They hadn't given Lex much of a chance to get out, to find some other way of life she would like, instead they did what they selfishly believed to be right. Now she wouldn't be contact, Toni understood that. With the passion seeping through his veins he understood too that he wouldn't be able to let her go either. He was too weak of a person, to selfish to let her find her own way. She couldn't work behind a desk, she claimed, he could understand. "I know." He murmured gently as he ran his hand softly along her jaw.

Lex met his gaze, holding him with those beautiful eyes of her's as he unbarred his soul to her. The things he had realized in the last week, had she realized them too. Lex took it in stride, perhaps she had known longer than him, those changes between them, perhaps it had been that kiss on the way to the warehouse. Whatever the reason Lex voiced a solution. He wanted to make her his, she'd never realize how much, but he wasn't sure if he could. Would she be safe? It was better than having her back on the field and it kept her near to him, but how long would she be content? "You already are." Toni's deep voice quietly informed her, guiding her face closer to him with gentle fingers on her chin before he captured her lips again. Damn with the circulating thoughts this was what they both wanted and that was enough for the man.

Only a moment later there was a knock on the door. Under his breathe Toni cursed, before he relaxed slightly against the pillows, tugging Lex with him. "Yes?" "Mrs. Moretti wants to know if she should make a plate up for you?" Toni rolled his eyes, just like his mother to send someone to remind him of his duties, the quivering voice of the teen that echoed through the door told Toni that it was one of his younger cousins. He looked down at Lex to see if she wanted him to stay or not. Tonight he owed her a night with no duties.

[TDA_Romeo]

SAMUEL JOHNATHAN PATRICK
ϟ Moretti Hacker

Location: Moretti Mansion
Company: None

S.J. hummed to himself as he worked on the secure electronic transfers from their shell businesses into the family accounts. It only took him a few moments and when he finished, he cracked his knuckles and leaned back in his chair. "Well, there we go, Toni, you're now about a million dollars richer." He chirped. With his need for his workstation completed, Damien switched over to his tablet and began looking over the electronic security suites for the family, noting a couple of firewalls lacking appropriate security measures and went right to work fixing the deficiency.

A few moments later he heard three sharp wraps at the door. After finishing his work, the hacker stood up from his workstation and made his way to the door, opening the door slightly and sticking his head through the door, the light from the hallway suddenly blinding him for a few seconds. Samuel noticed no one in front of the room, that is until he looked down, when he saw one of the younger Moretti cousins. "Umm... Nonna was wondering if you wanted food." The young boy managed to squeak out. S.J. nodded his head and opened the door further. "I'll be there in a second." He commented as he stepped out of the dark confines of his office and into the hallway.

As S.J. made his way through the labyrinth of hallways until he arrived at the kitchen and watched as the family went to work putting together the plates for family and employees alike. If there was one thing that Sam liked about the family. It had to be that. If you were blood or not, everyone treated you like family- even if Sam hardly ever left his office to enjoy the family dining.

[Xothe_jer_bearXo]

Wearing

No sooner had she thought it, the door opened and she was being ushered out behind Antonio, as she walked her brown eyes took everything in, alert. When the man in front of her stopped, so did she, her eyes immediately locked onto her sister. Rosa looked no different, she didn't show any concern for her, nor did she looked like she had been worried, not like Antonio Moretti looked, beaten down and weary but still she knew Rosa loved her and had been worried about her, her sister was just that good at not showing it. She stood there as the two talked, not really listening as she looked at Alexandra, immediately feeling sorry for the girl. Aless knew what the girl had gone through since Damien wasn't your everyday torturer. She had only seen him use his methods once and that had been more than enough for her, she wished there was something she could do for the girl but knew there was nothing she could do.

Finally the two girls were swapped and Aless walked behind her sister, no words were said, no hugs, all those pleasantries would happen once she was back home. The youngest DeLuca watched as the back door to the second car was held open for her at the same time the back door to Rosa's car opened. She knew this was the way Rosa worked but it still hurt, she wished her sister acted like she cared for her but instead Rosabella DeLuca was all business. She smiled at the driver as she slid in to the car, the interior was warm and inviting as much as a a car could be. No sooner had she put her seat belt on the car was moving and she was on her way home. The noise of the city drowned out as her eyes closed and she drifted off to sleep. Despite her good fortune, the past week had worn her out and all she wanted was to sleep. Aless was tired of her life, of who she was and what she had to do. There was a knock on her window, startling her awake and she realized the car had reached its destination, the DeLuca manor.

She exited the car, there was no one there to greet her, and Rosa's car was still no where to be seen. Inwardly she shrugged but mentally it was just another small thing that pained her, she knew if her mother were still alive things would be different but she said that a lot while growing up. When she entered the house, all was quiet, her step-mother was no where to be found and she could only imagine her father was holed up somewhere with a bottle, although there was a familiar smell coming from the kitchen and when she entered the room the sight of her family's cook, Gemma, made her smile. The older woman was pulling out a pan of what looked like ciabatta bread, it was then she noticed a pot on the stove. "Pomeriggio, signorina Gemma. Vuoi un aiuto?" The woman jumped almost dropping the pan as she placed it on the stove and then turned to look at her. She noticed the tears the cook held back as the older woman embraced her, "How good it is to see you home safe, il mio piccolo corvo."

Aless couldn't help but smile as Gemma called her, her little raven. "Grazie, Gemma, it's good to be home." Aless inhaled, "Gemma, is that pasta e fagioli?" The older woman smiled, "Si, go shower and I'll have a bowl waiting when you get out. Rosa had some of your things brought over, they are in your room." Aless scowled at that and the woman patted her arm, "She worries about you, piccolo corvo, in her own way. So don't fight her, it'll only make it worse, yes?" Aless kissed the woman's cheek, "Yes, nonna." She saw the way Gemma's eyes lighted up as the woman cupped her cheek before shooing her out of the kitchen.

It didn't take her long to shower, dress in some pajama's and make her back down to the kitchen where on the island sat a bowl of the steaming soup and a cup of hot chocolate. The sight of Gemma humming as she moved around the kitchen made Aless smile and the young woman sat down in the chair and begun to eat.

[f a l l i n 4 d a n c e]

With little hesitation Rosabella unfolded herself from her seat and seated out into the cold Chicago air, she could feel the relief like a physical presence at the mere sight of the car, but she needed to see her sister too. Part of her already realized that the tension would only leave once Damien made his way back to her as well, the weight that had lingered had seemed like an albatross hung around her shoulders, now it merely seemed as if there were cinder blocks tied into her very chest. Rosabella had to school her features and her steps to not echo the relief she felt, to not rush to her little sister and tuck her away somewhere safe. Even here, among friendly faces, she needed to keep up appearances.

Walking into the front hall of the mansion Rosabella looked around, few people were to be found. Petro followed Rosa’s gaze and nodded to the kitchen door, a small tilt of the lips was Rosabella’s thanks for his information before she slipped through into Gemma’s warm domain.

Seated at the counter, a bowl of soup before her, already changed into a pair of pajamas, was little Lessy. She had a small smile on her features as she conversed with Gemma. Rosabella’s entrance had been quiet enough, giving her ample time to take in her sister before she was noticed. Other than bluish circles under the woman’s eyes Rosabella could almost believe that the past two weeks hadn’t happened, Aless seemed largely unharmed. The relief that Rosa had felt at the sight of the car was nothing compared to the feeling of seeing her younger sister seated in the kitchen so calmly. And yet Rosabella couldn’t make herself move to embrace her sister, to hold her tight and let her know it was all going to be just fine. All she could do was watch her sister and send up a silent prayer of thanks, she didn’t even seem able to walk all the way into the room. For once her features softened, the relief blatant on her features.

Had Alessandra and Rosabella been two different girls than perhaps Rosa would have rushed over to her sister to engulf her in her arms, had they been anything beyond DeLuca’s heirs she might have forbidden Aless from her role. But business always came first and for one of the first times this left Rosabella lost.

[deathangelle]

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Three men came out to look at the car that was going off. Watching them she seen one man turn to call to the one next to the door. He went to the door frame and heard him telling someone that their car had a broken window. Soon enough another man forced his way out and ran to the car. He stood there for a moment then combed a hand into his hair while a rush of Italian flooded from his mouth. M.J tried to translate most of it but it was to fast for her to get the full translation. Looking over her shoulder she was about to sneak away till her phone vibrated in her back pocket, surprising her, a tiny little scream passed her lips. She quickly pulled her phone out to see that Damian had sent her a text. How am I supposed to do that? Hearing the voices behind her getting closer she knew they were about to find her but maybe that could help. Sending a quick reply she tried to think of something and had a little smirk.

Quote:

Text Message
To Damian
From: M.J
Message:
Alright give me a few minutes.

Putting a sweet smile on her face she popped out of her hiding spot to walk in front of two men pointing guns at her. Surprised she stood there for a moment but didn't have the reaction of a person not used to getting a gun pointed at them. "Ah um hello," she put both her hands up in front finally realizing that would be the smart thing to do. "I was checking to see what damage the car had gotten." The owner of the car walked closer to M.J and looked her over, "What do you know about it?" He sneered at her then quickly grabbed her arm and dragged her close to the car. The other men were just hovering close to the door of the house watching her and the man holding her arm. "There was a guy coming from that way," she pointed down the road, "he suddenly stopped and jumped out of his car and broke the window. I think the alarm startled him cause he was going to do it again but he ran back to his car and," pointing up the road she looked at the man holding her, "he drove up the hill." She then felt a sharp pain on her arm from him gripping it tighter. "Why were you hiding then? She gave a sheepish smile, "I was about to keep walking but the door was opening and I thought you guys would think I did it." She looked down acting as if she was ashamed, "I then figured I could be helpful and tell you about it." She felt the hold on her arm relax, "I got the license plate number so if you have some paper or something I can give it to you." The response she got was a grunt and her getting tugged toward the house. "I'm just going to let my friend now I'm going to be late. She's been nagging me all day to come over." She was pushed inside the house and the rest of the men followed behind, "Whatever just get inside already its cold out here."

Following the men she pulled out her phone to text Damian again. With that problem out of the way she wouldn't have to get lecture well more exact yelled at by Rosabella. She figured this would be a good distraction for Damian and his friends to get out with whatever they had. She put her phone away and looked around while they lead her to where ever they were taking her. She looked in the rooms and didn't see anything that was suspicious. She was hen pushed from behind so she looked straight ahead of looking around. Taking her into an office she was handed a piece of paper and pen. She wrote down a license plate from a guy that had been an jerk cutting off her and a few other people and almost hit a little kid while her and her mother were crossing the street. A little satisfaction for her part she figured they would destroy his car not kill the guy. Writing it down she looked at the men surrounding her and finally realized the danger she could be in. She gave a small smile, "Um got it down I'm going to go now," turning to leave her elbow was grabbed and one of the men smiled. "What's the rush?" Giving a sheepish smile one thought went through her head, Damn it.

Quote:

Text Message
To Damian
From: M.J
Message:
All set. See you soon.

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[Xothe_jer_bearXo]

Wearing

Since Toni had returned from college to find her to be a part of the business he had always talked, threatened, about sending her away where she would be safe mainly a desk job. It was what their first fight had been about. Both of them had been to stubborn to even meet each other half way, words had been said, lines had been crossed; Lex could still see Toni's fist going through the wall. She had moved out into her apartment later that week and had avoided Toni for at least a month, maybe more. So when he answered she was preparing for another fight but instead all he said was, I know. While she wasn't sure of the answer the moment she looked into his eyes she could see he was telling the truth. Maybe, just maybe, things would work out for them.

Lex's gaze searched his as he ran his thumb along her jaw. Could they finally be together? Would he dare to make the jump without any second thoughts? With Toni she could never tell, he had always been good at hiding things from her, schooling his emotions so no one would know what he was thinking or how he was going to react. "You already are." Her heart fluttered at his words even more so as he brought her face closer to his, capturing her lips once more.

The knock on the door pulled them apart, she couldn't help but smile at Toni's curse as he pulled her closer down to him. Leave it to Mama Moretti to think about feeding everyone as they tried to work things out. She saw the question in Toni's eyes as he looked at her and while she wasn't ready to be up and about facing everyone she knew she had to look strong, even if she wasn't feeling like it, and she didn't want Toni to leave her even though he had a duty to go and eat with everyone. "Let put on some pants and I'll go down with you." The red-head carefully climbed out of bed, trying not to wince or pull out the stitches in her arm and walked over to her dresser to pull on some sweat pants. She then looked over at Toni, all she wanted to do was keep him in her room for as long as she could but she knew it was better to get this over with. "But don't think just because we got interrupted that we're done cause we're not, we still have a lot to talk about."

[f a l l i n 4 d a n c e]

Toni groaned, "I was really hoping you wouldn't say that." But she was right he needed to hold up expectations. His people had done a good job today and he needed to support them and show them the family they were. He kissed the top of her head, murmuring into her hair, "I was really hoping to buck the system for once." But he pulled away so he could see the almost humor of his look, letting her know that whatever she had chosen was what they would do. She knew where he needed to be, and knew where he wanted her to be and where he wanted to be, and artfully she had surmised a compromise for the two of them. "Thank you." He quietly and sincerely told her.

"Tell Momma we'll be down in a few minutes." Toni called through the door to the young boy. He heard the teen move on down the hall and chatter to someone else. Lex slipped out of the bed before Toni could snatch her back. He could tell she was trying to be brave, keep the wincing and pain out of her face, but it was there. Would it always feel like this? Would the guilt always linger on the edges of his heartstrings? He decided he didn't particularly care at the moment. He'd take the future as it came.

Dressed in sweatpants she turned and faced him, Toni also stood and faced her. At her stern words he gave her a serious look and crossed the room. "I would hope we do." He told her as he embraced her and tucked her in. She was right, they did need to talk. But for once he felt as if there had been too many words between them. After dinner he had different plans than talking. Or rather he had a different way of conversing. "Dinner's probably getting cold," He mused, "Ready?" He stepped away and looked at her for a moment. "Mama'll tan my hide if she thinks I dragged you from your bed." The man mused for a moment, then he slipped his hand behind her knees and picked her up bridal style. "No arguments." He said sternly and then carried her down the stairs to the door of the kitchen, gently placing her down knowing that she wouldn't want to be carried in. "Ready?" He asked her before they walked into the kitchen.

Inside the room the raucous sounds of the 'family' only increased, as people noticed Lex and Toni they stood, greeting her and engulfing her in the fold. Lex was one of them and they had worried nearly as much as their leader. Over the crowd Toni noticed his mother's gaze, harsh with disapproval at his disobeying her. But as they took their seats he knew she'd understand that it hadn't been another fight. He found himself next to S.J. "I'm surprised to find you down here." He admitted to the man, remembering how he had snuck down for food only the night before. Sam didn't often join the family for dinner, Toni had noticed. "Run out of ramon?" He asked, feeling despite his often dark mood a sense of humor that had been missing since Lex had been captured. But now with her back in the fold and his sudden realization that he didn't want to fight with her, not after only having barely gotten her back, had brought a peace to him that he hadn't felt in a long time.

[TDA_Romeo]

Send in your skeletons
Sing as their bones go marching in... again
The need you buried deep
The secrets that you keep are ever ready
Are you ready?

DAMIEN CARTHAGE
? DeLuca Toymaker

Location: Moretti Weapon Specialist Residence
Company: The "A-Team"

Damien adjusted his position to the front of the group, squatting next to the gate of the fence as he awaited the sign that he and the others could move. As the group waited, he felt a sharp chill travel up his spine. South American blood never really mixed well with Chicago winters. When Damien began to hear voices, he quietly worked the locking mechanism on the door, using the suppressor of his sub-machine gun, Damien cracked the gate to the point he could see the scene outside with a good chance that he could maintain a low profile without being seen himself.

Through the sight of his weapon, Damien could make out that his Hacker had started to distract the uninvited guests. From his position, he could make out what the woman and the men were saying. He listened into the woman as she described her false story. Not that kind of distraction, M.J. God Damn it! He cursed in his mind. While he appreciated her attempt, Damien had to admit the cover had been blown. He didn't see any possible way that the Moretti Thugs would let her go. Not after claiming that she had seen who had vandalized the vehicle. Watching as the three men and his accomplice made their way back towards the house. Yet again, Damien cursed under his breath. He only blamed himself. He had asked for a distraction and he was getting it.

Once the three were out of sight, Damien motioned to the three member of his group to move, pulling the gate open and making his way back to the unmarked van they had arrived in. He moved quickly, aiming over the sights, Damien arrived near the end of the alleyway, tucking away his sub-machine gun and zipping up his coat to make sure that his weapons were perfectly concealed, the rest of the group holding for a moment to do the same. Once their weapons were perfectly concealed, they moved to the vehicle and quickly piled into the rear of the van. Standing at the rear of the van, Damien grabbed one of his men by the shoulder. "We need to head out separately. Meet me at the shop. I'll have your guys' compensation waiting when I get back." Nodding in acknowledgement, his brother in arms climbed into the vehicle, closing the door behind him and moving to the front of the vehicle and merging into the street.

With his brothers parting from the scene, Damien turned back into the alleyway and back towards the house he had just left, throwing on his ski mask once more. His primary mission had been completed. The weapons were loaded into the van and the fan was en route to his shop. Now the mission had changed. Now he was going to have to perform a rescue mission. His footsteps were carefully planned out and quiet, keeping as silent as possible as he reentered the home, his weapon removed from the inside of his jacket once more and his gaze over the sights of his weapon. With ever step, he scanned, his finger on the trigger guard, waiting to move onto the trigger. Keeping low as he went down the hallway, trying to make sure that his profile stayed as low as possible. The moment he gauged that he was only around the corner from the four, Damien took a knee and slowly leaned out, pieing the corner and minimizing his exposure to the others in the room. He then took into account where each person stood in the room. He noticed that M.J. was being held back by the arm. A thug keeping her from running. Two others surrounded the hacker. Damien hoped that he was going to go the day without spilling blood, if he planned it out right, he might still be able to do it.

What if I say I'm not like the others?
What if I say I'm not just another one of your plays?
What if I say I will never surrender?
I'm what's left, I'm what's right
I'm the enemy

[TDA_Romeo]

SAMUEL JOHNATHAN PATRICK
ϟ Moretti Hacker

Location: Moretti Mansion
Company: Antonio Moretti

S.J. sat quietly as he stared at plate of Italian delicacies that lay before him. The noise of the Moretti cronies around him ringing in his ears, making him feel rather claustrophobic when compared to that of his quiet office or his electronic music that played in his ears when he worked. However, considering that he was invited down for the first time since he had been implanted by the Bureau, Sam considered it to be a monumental event.

And it was a monumental event proper for the family.

Alex was back with the family. All the tensions of watching the deal go down, had faded (even though Samuel was back in his office watching the drama unfold). Antonio was going to be less harsh on him now. Samuel's work load was going to lessen now; or so he hoped. As the hacker thought of the boss-man's attitude having changed, there was movement beside him. That was when he heard the man speak up at the surprise of seeing him seated at the family table. S.J. nodded and stroked his facial hair, As soon as his hand covered his mouth, he retorted the man. "Well, it was the first time since I came into the family that I was actually invited down for food." He commented back, his hand covering his mouth as if he was telling the boss a childhood secret.

Once his comment was delivered he dropped his hand under the table, looking as though he was sitting at the table with some sort of royal family, trying to keep on his best behavior and careful not to disrespect the upper class with lower class actions. "But aside from that and the fact that we got Ms. DeCarte back... Yes. Yes I did." His face remaining almost emotionless and his body posture appearing as though he was in a private catholic school. Patiently, S.J. awaited to see if the family would engage in some sort of pre-meal prayer or some other family tradition.

[Xothe_jer_bearXo]

Wearing

Lex couldn't help but laugh, it had been a while since she had seen this side of Toni. For five long years they fought and butted heads, each trying to get the other to see their point of view. When she was little she followed Toni around blindly, hung on to his every moment and word, in truth she thought he had hung the moon and starts but that was as a girl looking up to a brother which then progressed into a lovesick teenager. Now she knew different, she tried not to hold anything against Toni. When he had been at college, both of them had changed, they were still growing and now it seemed instead of growing apart they could grow together, become who they were meant to be, not what the world wanted them to be or who the family wanted them to be. She just prayed nothing would happen to drive them apart.

As Toni embraced she couldn't help but sink in to the comfort of it. Lex knew she was home and safe, nothing would ever harm her again, not if Toni had anything to do about it. She had always hoped he would move heaven and hell for her and in his own way he had. When Toni scooped her up she let out a little yelp, she knew if she protested it wouldn't help so she let him carry her downstairs before putting her back on her feet. When she stood, she had to hold on to Toni until she got her balance back, she remembered Dr. Carter saying her medicine would make her a little dizzy, she didn't expect this much. She saw the look of concern of Toni's face but she just shook her head before walking in to the dining room. The moment she did so all the chatter stopped as everyone's head turned to her, if she thought the family couldn't have been even louder she was wrong.

Once the greetings and hugs subsided, she took her seat next to Toni, knowing he'd probably protest if she tried to sit somewhere else so she saved herself the trouble of a headache. Lex saw the look Mama Moretti was giving her son but Lex gave her a soft smile letting the woman know all was well. The aroma of the food was heavenly, it made her stomach growl, hopefully she would be able to keep it down. When she heard Toni, she gently chided him, "Toni, be nice. You're probably the reason why doesn't come down very often." She smiled over at Sam, "S.J. just ignore him, you're always welcome here at the table and if he ever gives you problems come to me and I'll take care of him for you." The red-head gave him a conspiratorial wink. "And please call me Alex."

[deathangelle]

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M.J continued to smile then looked at the other men and cursed herself for not think about what would happen to herself. So at the time she wasn't think about her safety only just getting the job done and that was a success now she was just stuck here with these A-holes. She looked at the other men and they didn't seem that all interested in her but they weren't going to say anything to guy that was holding her it seemed. "Well I just text my friend that I would be on my way so she will get worried if I'm not there soon." While talking she was thinking she wasn't sure if Damian even saw her enter the building so it wasn't like she could depend on him saving her which she kind of hoped he didn't since Rosabella would most likely be pissed that she could be compromising the mission for the gun. Feeling the grip on her arm loosen she looked up at the man to see that he was giving her a smile which sent a chill down her spine. "Don't be like that we could have a fun time. Plus its cold out there I can help warm you up." He was then dragging her away from the others by her elbow. She thought about going with him to wherever she did have her gun on her but she didn't have the silencer on it at the moment. So she wasn't made for this type of stuff obviously she would have to point that out to Damian so he could reminder her if she ever volunteered to help him again. Feeling the tug she noticed a movement that the others hadn't and almost responded since she knew who it was.


Clearing her throat she jerked her arm out with all the strength she had and looked at the three men since they had moved slightly towards her. "I could use a drink if you have anything strong." She shrugged her shoulders while she tried to think of a way to help Damian get her out. Even though her plan was to shoot the guy alone she had never actually used a gun before so she wasn't sure if she could pull the trigger. Shooting a paper was completely different from shooting an actual person. Flesh and blood oozing out with that thought she got a little dizzy. Damn I just want to crawl in to my sheets The man that had a hold of her arm before looked her over and shrugged his shoulders, "Sure I can get you something." Clearing her throat she looked at the door and then to the other,The guy getting his drink looked her over then jerked his head. One of the three men walked out of the room then waited for her. M.J stepped to him but he stepped to the side so she would walk ahead. Seeing which way there were heading she coughed to give a sign that they were coming.

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[TDA_Romeo]

Send in your skeletons
Sing as their bones go marching in... again
The need you buried deep
The secrets that you keep are ever ready
Are you ready?

DAMIEN CARTHAGE
? DeLuca Toymaker

Location: Moretti Weapon Specialist Residence
Company: Mary-Jane

Under his ski mask, Damien could feel his jaw clench, his brow narrowed. Suddenly, blood being on the ground and all over the walls was a fairly tantalizing idea. The manner in which the b*****d spoke to M.J. made his blood boil. The footsteps of the other occupants were loud. Unlike Damien's own. As he listened to the footsteps come closer, he backed away, yet again, making sure he kept low and as quiet as possible. Once the footsteps had entered the hallway, The Toymaker had rounded the corner, trying to stay out of view as best as he could.

There was a second set of footsteps. Smaller and slightly sharper, an indication of smaller sized feet. Too sharp to be that of a man's. He came to the conclusion that they had to belong to M.J. As they walked closer to his position, Damien found a small nook for him to hide behind. shrinking his profile as best he could, the Brazilian man flattened himself so the nook obscured his body. Closing his eyes, he tried to focus on the noises around him. The footsteps became louder. The air that came from the air vents became more distinct. When Damien deduced that the pair were nearing him; the small, sharp steps were first, followed by the heavy, more dense steps.

As his partner passed him, Damien remained still and flat against the wall. Careful not to give away that he was in position. Careful to let no one else know that he was there. When the Moretti thug entered his field of vision, he allowed the man two steps in front of him, springing quickly and quietly into action. Damien was quick to cover the man's mouth,making sure that any noise he attempted to make was obscured by his hands. Lifting up on the man's septum with the edge of his hand, Damien quickly tilted the man's head back, allowing the Brazilian a good visual of the man's larynx, using his free hand to give the man's throat a good strike. Feeling the palm of his glove begin to get warm, he then wrapped his arm around the man's throat, so it rested in the "V" of his elbow. Once he felt that the man's neck was in the vice of his elbow, Damien kicked the man's knee out from under him, controlling him as he fell, continuing to apply pressure on the man's larynx as the pair descended. When Damien arrived at the ground with the man, he continued to strangle the man until he blacked out. Even when the man did go limp he didn't let go for a good few moments, wanting to be sure that the man was down for the count.

The whole encounter took less than a few moments. When he was satisfied with his work, he turned to see M.J., waving for the woman to follow him before raising his finger up to where his mouth was, trying to tell her to keep quiet. He then crouched down as he retraced his steps and made his way back to the back of the house and to the backyard, looking back periodically to make sure that the hacker followed.

What if I say I'm not like the others?
What if I say I'm not just another one of your plays?
What if I say I will never surrender?
I'm what's left, I'm what's right
I'm the enemy

[deathangelle]

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M.J could feel panic building up inside what if Damian couldn't get her out of this place. What would that a hole in the kitchen do to her. She felt her palms get sweaty she brought her hands together and rubbed him. The man behind her pushed her roughly to turn down the hall. Stumbling a little bit she made it passed Damian and almost felt her eyes water since he was helping. Catching her balance she turned around to see Damian knocking the man out. She wanted to hug Damain at the moment but seeing that was a good idea she waited for his orders. Nodding her head quickly she crouched down and followed him.

Once outside she quietly closed the door behind them and feel back on her butt for a moment and covered her face with her hand while she waited for her heart to slow down. Adrenaline was pumping fast through her dropping her hand she looked at Damian. "I parked on the other side of that house." She pointed at the house on the other side of the backyard fence, "They weren't home figured it was a good enough distance from this house." She stood up and put her hands in her pocket since she didn't have gloves. Feeling her keys she pulled them out and held them out to Damian with her hand shacking slightly. "Don't think I should drive at the moment," she couldn't wait to go home she didn't even mind if she heard Rosabella threaten her.

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[Xothe_jer_bearXo]

Hours later the blonde pulled out her phone and dialed the number to her brother's phone. When Liam picked up she could hear chatter in the background, a voice that sounded like her father's and a few other men. It was a few more moments before everything was silent, a sign that Liam had excused himself from the room to talk to her. "Hey, Thia. Everything alright? Haven't heard from you in a while." Cynthia groaned inwardly from hearing Liam's childhood nickname for her. It was one she had always hated. "Yeah, everything's fine. I just called to say that I'm packed and should be there within the next couple of days." She heard Liam sigh before he spoke once again, "I remember a time when we were inseparable, all three of us, we always confided in each other, we didn't hold back at all. I can remember the countless of times when I held you while you cried over some silly little boy or some slight Father had done to you. Even when you moved to Chicago you called me everyday, Cyn, and now I'm lucky to even get to talk to you at all. Safe travels, Cynthia. I'll see you soon."

The phone clicked at the same time she felt tears on her cheeks. She knew what Liam had said was true, she had called him everyday but over the last few months she had stopped. It had gone to a phone call a week to one or twice a month and then none at all. She usually called Neal to let him know when a package was on it's way to them but for some reason she had needed to hear Liam's voice. Cyn wiped away the tears and took a few moments to collect herself before she turned and walked back into the room just in time to see the truck take off. A few moments later her phone rang. "Ma'am there's been an incident at the house." Cyn cursed, "I'm on my way." She turned to the men, "Dispose of everything and pack everything else up and move it to one of my father's warehouses out in the country. Await further instructions from me, no one else. Unless you hear the words coming from my mouth don't do anything." It took her at least half an hour to get from the warehouse to her father's mansion on the outskirts of the city.

As soon as she exited her truck one of the men came to greet her. "We found Keith passed out in the main hallway, there had been a young woman with him who had witnessed someone try to break into one of the trucks though when we searched the premises she was gone and so were the two compartments from the cellar." The Irish woman had to control herself from lashing out, a feat that was hard to do, her anger was much like her father's but unlike him she had begun to control it. The woman pinched the bridge of her nose, "So you're telling me that somehow the DeLuca's tracked the containers here to my home, the containers that were supposed to have been at the Moretti's northern warehouse, hours ago?" The blonde saw her father's men tense, each knowing exactly what a Doyle was capable of doing when angered. She gave them a tight-lipped smile, "Looks like I'll be moving back into the house since you're all incapable of handling things. Tell Keith to pack his bags, he'll be escorting me back home for the holidays." The man just nodded before leaving.

The hard part was how was she was going to break it to Toni, the Don would no doubt be less than pleased especially since he had entrusted Cynthia and her father's men to transport the weapons to his warehouse. Then there was also the small problem of telling her father as well, luckily she'd have to deal with Toni first. This was just not going to be her night. After making sure the camera's were up and running once more she headed back over to the Moretti mansion, she was going to have to see if S.J. could recover the missing footage to see who exactly had been in her home. Once Cyn arrived at the home everyone had just sat down to eat, Mrs. Moretti motioned for her to join them and she took a seat across the table from Lex, Toni and S.J.

[TDA_Romeo]

Send in your skeletons
Sing as their bones go marching in... again
The need you buried deep
The secrets that you keep are ever ready
Are you ready?

DAMIEN CARTHAGE
? DeLuca Toymaker

Location: Moretti Weapon Specialist Residence
Company: Mary-Jane

Returning back to the backyard of the home, the winter wind bit with a sharp bite. As Damien continued to move, he couldn't help but notice the lack of the sound of crushing snow behind him. Turning around, he noticed that the Hacker had taken a second and had planted herself a seat in the snow. Turning to see where the woman pointed, Damien took notice of the location, turning back in time to notice the keys in the woman's shaking hand. Without any visible emotion from behind his ski mask, Damien snatched the keys with his gloved hands and opened the side gate. All things considered, Damien felt rather sorry that the girl had found her way into the situation. She wasn't trained for such things. She wasn't a fighter. She wasn't a shooter, a thief or some blood-thirsty goon. She was a techy. She wasn't meant to be in harms way. Damien shouldn't have had asked the woman to distract the bastards. It wasn't her job. It wasn't something she was trained to do. He never should have asked her.

As Damien started up the Hacker's car, he pulled out his phone and dialed up Rosabella, removing his mask and placed the phone to his face, watching as Mary-Jane joined him in the car, he heard the phone on the other line click over. "Hey. Your cousin broke his gift, so I'm taking it back to the store. Unfortunately he lost some pieces. So we won't get full price." Damien said cryptically. Hopefully the boss would understand what he was saying, although chances are that she wasn't going to be happy at the fact that some of the weapons were missing. "I'll give you a full debrief when I get back to the mansion." He simply finished, hanging up the phone. Unsure that the woman would appreciate that one of her underlings just hung up on her without letting the queen bee have a final say, would probably piss the woman off more than anything. He would just have to deal with it when he got back to the mansion.

Sighing as he stuck the phone in his pocket, he rubbed the bridge of his nose, closing his eyes. "I'm sorry you had to be in that situation." He apologized, opening his eyes and looking over to the woman. As Damien attempted to make another comment, he couldn't think of another thing to tell the woman. It was his fault she had been in the house. He was the one who had asked her to go out of her element. It was at that moment that he closed his mouth and started up the car, feeling the air kick on and start to blow warm air as he reversed the car out of the driveway and started the drive back to the toy shop.

What if I say I'm not like the others?
What if I say I'm not just another one of your plays?
What if I say I will never surrender?
I'm what's left, I'm what's right
I'm the enemy