"Here ye go lass," the landlord turned the key in the lock and pushed open the door to the apartment. "If ye be needing anything just come on downstairs and bang on me door. I or the missus will be more than glad to be of 'elp."

"Thank you but I should be fine." I stepped past him and dropped both my suitcase and duffel just inside the door.

"Well then I'll leave ye to it. Here is your key, and remember rent is due at the end of each month." The landlord pushed the key into my hand and left closing the door behind him.

I scanned my surroundings. I was standing in the living room, to my left was a small kitchen and to my right two doors that I assumed led to the bedroom and bathroom. The carpet was dirty and the faded wallpaper, which appeared to be a pattern of flowers, was peeling.

The apartment was sparsely furnished. A battered sofa and end table occupied the living room; the kitchen had the basics – fridge, stove, counter, cupboards and sink – along with a table and two chairs; the bedroom had a mattress shoved into the corner and a lamp sitting on an old box; I then discovered the cramped bathroom with an even more cramped shower. The bathroom definitely needed to be cleaned, but then so did the rest of the place.

I gave a sigh. "Maybe this wasn't such a good idea after all." I rubbed the bathroom mirror with the edge of my sleeve and stared at my reflection; wavy shoulder length brown hair that I had cut myself just days before by flipping my head over and cutting straight across in order to achieve a layered look, a mole just under the outside of my left eye, and black rimmed glasses that framed my tired green eyes. I looked the way I felt, twenty ones years of age with no direction for my life. Here I was pretty much right out of college in a cruddy apartment in some South Boston neighborhood, with no job, and no idea what I was even doing. All I did know was that I couldn't go back home, even if I had wanted to, and that I had to get as far away home as possible.

I placed my glasses on the edge of the sink and turned on the water. At first it sputtered and then spat out brown water, but after allowing it to run for a couple minuets the water came out clear. I placed my hands under the stream and splashed the cool water on my face. I knew I had my work cut out for me. Not only did I have to find a job, but I had to thoroughly clean this apartment from top to bottom and find some decent furniture to make it livable.

All of a sudden my stomach gave a growl. I glanced at my watch. No wonder I was hungry, it was hours past dinner, and the last time I ate was at the coffee shop at noon, where I had seen and read the ad for the apartment I was now standing in. I had then spent the rest of the day simply trying to find the place. But right now all that other stuff could wait. I needed food. I vaguely recalled passing a bar on my way here. I figured I could find it again pretty easily. Surely they sold some measure of actual food there.

Going into the living room I unzipped my suitcase and pulled out a fresh shirt; my black long sleeve-tee with the v neck. I also changed into a clean pair of jeans and pulled on my black pea coat. I locked the door behind me, placing my keys and wallet in my inside coat pocket, went down the three flights of stairs and out the door to the street. The cool air made me shiver, so I turned up the color of my coat and jammed my hands into my pockets before heading down the street as quickly as possible.

It took me fifteen minuets to reach the bar. I eagerly pushed open the door stepping into the bars inviting warmth. I just stood there at first trying to warm back up when I realized that all the occupants of the bar were looking at me. There really weren't that many of them but they were all guys sitting in the one big booth, and I guess considering how late it was an individual female all alone in a bar in the middle of an Irish neighborhood might look odd. I ducked my eyes to the floor and made my way to the empty booth in corner. I slid in and grabbed the menu, hiding behind it. Anything to make the staring stop.

Eventually the eight or nine guys in the other booth ignored me and started talking again. And for that I was grateful, still I did notice that they weren't speaking in English.

As far as food went there wasn't much on the menu, just a couple of sandwiches. I figured a ham and cheese was safe enough. I glanced around for anyone who might resemble a waiter. There was no one except for the guy behind the bar. I groaned, that meant I had to stand up and walk past all those guys all over again. But once again my stomach growled and I had no choice but to give into its demands. I made for the nearest bar stool.

No sooner had I taken one step than the door to the bar was slammed open and three guys wearing masks and holding guns entered the bar.

In the time frame of just a few seconds, I heard someone yell "what the fuck is that girl doing here?"; saw the guys in the booth and the guy behind the bar all draw guns and then all hell broke loose. The first shot fired and I just froze in terror, my mind blank and my body numb. I was vaguely aware of the three men running into the room firing back to back and turning in a circle as they did so. Then one broke off from the other two and came straight at me. It was at that moment that my brain turned back on and I screamed. But instead of being shot I found myself on the ground with a full grown man on top of me.

"Get under the fucking god damn table and stay down!" he rolled off of me and shoved me in the direction of the booth. I was too confused and terrified to not do what he said so I scrambled under the table, curled up into a ball and covered my head. I'm not real sure how long I was under that table but it felt like an eternity.

It got real quiet, the smell of gun smoke and blood reached my nose and I held back a gag. In my mind I was saying over and over "Don't let them find me, don't let them find me." I heard foot steps and crunching glass that stopped right in front of me. I cautiously cracked open one eye. One of them guys in the masks was crouched down and staring at me.

"Con' ya better come look at this." Another pair of feet came into view followed by a head as the guy bent over to look at me. The first one shoved up his mask and stared at me his face stony. "Fucking 'ell."

The other also shoved his mask up and then reached out his hand. I shrunk back as far as I could against the base of the booth. I bit my lip to keep from making any sound but was unable to stop the tears that were forming.

"Now I ain't gonna hurt ya."

My eyes got wide. Less than twenty four hours in this town and I was under the table of a bar where a shoot out had just happened and this guy who had just shot up the bar was telling me he wasn't going to hurt me. My life was getting worse by the minuet. I shook my head profusely. No way was I getting out from under the table.

The first one gave an aggravated sigh and leaning under the table grabbed my arm and forcefully pulled me out. "Ow! Let go!" I kicked him in the shin knocking him onto his backside.

"Would ya two idiots get over here and help me, we'll deal with the lass later." The third guy came over he was much older than the other two. He had a beard that was grey going on white and his face was deeply lined. The guy I had kicked away had a bit of a baby face with dark brown hair and mole to the left of his mouth and the one who was standing had dark blond hair and his face was more rugged. Both the younger ones had about a day or two's worth of stubble on their faces and they all had the exact same piercing blue eyes.

I tore my eyes away from my attackers, rescuers, I really had no idea what they were, and looked around the bar. Everyone else who had been in here was dead. Again I gagged, only this time I couldn't stop it. I closed me eyes. "I don't feel so good."