He Who Walks Among Roses

"Murph It's Doc, he's in the hospital."
"Well how the bloody hell is he calling us from teh' hospital then?"
"No, it wasn't him. It was a girl, her name was Ev- somethin'. She says shes been workin' for 'im."
"Well, Doc hiring a hand. Thats new. She must have some "purpose" other that runnin' that bar if you know what I mean." Murphy casually joked.

The Saints, when they last saw Doc he was in fit condition to run his own place, they hadn't seen him since they broke the Hoag. Since then, Doc's health had declined. His brain was just a little more spacey and he'd collected a bad cough working around so many people smoking. So he and Evalin put up a no smoking sign, fixed up the bar and have been running it well ever since. All the money going to renovations and Doc's bills.

"Well where do ya' suppose' she came from eh'? asked Connor.
"Well I think that this chica sounded oh so caliente."
"Yeah what was with your crappy spanish anyway?
"I- Me entró el pánico, no sabía por qué una chica llamada en busca de los dos! Ambos están prácticamente célibe!"
"Thats not fuckin' funny Romeo."
"Come on let's get packed to go see him. Bloom will have a fit, but she'll live."
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When the Saints rolled into boston they capped their heads under two Boston Sox hats and wore some shiny aviator sunglasses. McGintys was a great place to be, They were worried about what had happened to Doc but hopefully this girl could fill them in. Murphy grabbed his duffel and the keys and left first. Romeo and Connor decided to put a cover over the car to be safe. Murphy got out the key to the bar and slid it in the lock. The cold air made it harder for the key to fit and he had to jimmy the lock before he could fully get it to turn. He walked inside, he didn't see anything out of the ordinary except that the bar looked in better shape. All the upholstery matched, the bar had been rebuilt as well as the shelves behind it. It looked a lot nicer actually.

*rinnngg-* Murphy answered the phone,
"McGintys."
"Hello, I'm calling for Ms. Mullaine."
"I don't know who- oh, righhht uh she's my sister. Yeah. She's out right now."
"So you're family as well?"
"Yes, suppose I am."
"Well he came out of surgery just an hour ago. It was supposed to be a simple procedure, we're sorry that you weren't notified. Can you or Ms. Mullaine come down, we need to speak with you."
"of course. Is Doc- Is he alright?"
"For now." *click* Murphy hung up. Where is that girl he thought. He looked down the hall. The storage room was empty, and again looked in better condition. He headed up the stairs to the old speakeasy. The rooms were dim due to lack of windows but the first two were empty. One was clearly doc's room, the other was the recreational room he and Connor stayed in last time. There was a futon and a pool table, and it now included a few tables with shelves and books.
"Theres definitely a womans touch to this place." Murphy checked the upstairs bathroom and still no one. He checked the room across from the rec room and it was just an office, then the last room. It was the only room with hard wood for floors, he could see that before he opened the door. And realizing that this was the last room in the bar, this had to be where that girl was. And sure enough, when he opened the door there was a girl. She was praying. Murphy stood silently waiting for her head to lift, but it didn't. "Is she dead?" he thought. So he gave her a sharp poke in the head. And then her eyes opened.
"You always pray asleep darlin'?
"Sometimes." she replied.
"Well that must've been some prayer." Murphy looked at this tired girl on her knees. She was just in a pink robe, her eyes were blue, and not just the normal eye blue but intense out of a crayon box blue. The seemed to glimmer when she blinked, she just stared at him. Evalin couldn't remember who this man was supposed to be. Her brunette hair was disheveled, and her pale face showed agony, including three scars on her right temple. "This girl reminds me of an ally cat." Murphy thought. Evalin stood and walked down the hall to the bathroom to brush her teeth.
"The phone rang this morning." Murph said. Evalin walked out of the bathroom with wide eyes expecting every detail. And when Murphy said nothing she began to cry. With toothpaste still in her mouth she cried.
"No Doc came out of surgery, he's alive, the nurse just said the Doctor needs to speak with family as soon as possible." she looked releived.
"you bastard." She rolled her eyes and went to clean up. Murphy strolled down stairs to find Connor and Romeo.
"Found tha' girl. She seems like a damaged piece of work, she is pretty though."
"Damaged?"
"She's covered in scars. In some places it looks like she's been through a wood chipper."
"How much did you see, Hombre? asked Romeo.
Murphy chuckled to himself. "Nothing man, just her face, and knees."
"Oh a womans knees... how x-rated."
"What the hell why are we talking about her knees? We need to talk about Doc. Surgery took longer than expected, so I think theres gonna be a big problem when she gets to the hospital."
"Why am I going alone?" She asked. Evalin was sitting at the bar like she was there all along.
"What th-"
"what th-" Don't you watch the news dollface?
"No." She replied.
"Read the papers?"
"No." She again replied.
"Well guess thats better for us then." They all looked at each other.
"Whatever." she said. Then Evalin walked out the door.
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Hospitals. She hated hospitals. Last time she was here she was interrogated by a detective about domestic abuse, and had been told she was pregnant. But the man that sat outside her room looked at the the entire time. He was looking for any sign of betrayal, of which Evalin gave none. With a broken wrist and a black eye the detective asked her to speak.

"How often does this happen," no reply. "We all know whats going on here, I just need you to say it." Still Evalin didn't reply. She just cried as she pushed the button for more morphine. She didn't tell Dalin she was pregnant. And then about after four months, when her little bump appeared, he connected the dots more quickly that fire melts ice. And for a moment he considered letting her go on with it, but at the last moment when Evalin went downstairs to do laundry he pushed her. And once she fell to the bottom he walked down and kneeled beside her, then spent an hour or so beating whatever was inside of her.
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"So during surgery he started bleeding into his liver. Due to drinking over the years its become something that more resembles a dried prune. He'll need a transplant, we believe your probably a good match since your his daughter."
"No. I'm- I'm adopted."
"Well your welcome to still test for it, and if not he'll be put on the national list."
"Okay, lets do that."
"A liver transplant is all thats keeping him from recovering. The Heart surgery went very well if you don't count the liver." Evalin just nodded. She was tired from sleeping upright and she didn't like the men staying back at the bar.
"Can I see him?" The nurse nodded and lead her down the hall.
"Now he's under heavy sedation. He won't wake up, but your welcome to speak to him."
The nurse left and Evalin sat, feeling alone.
"Doc- Doc, your friends came this morning. I don't know what you want me to do with them. I guess I can always put them to work until your awake. -I miss. I miss you, I wish you'd come back. I miss your mix and match proverbs they are still wise even when they don't make sense to anyone but me. I'll be working a lot so we can pay the bill, so don't you worry I'll have everything taken care of. You just need to stay strong."
"Eva-eva-lin. You dd-on't have t-t-o."
"Doc. shhh. Go back to sleep."
"The boys- they- they will keep Cash and his gang away from you. I p-p-romise, you can trust them.Their an-angels of G-God." With tears in her eyes, she thanked him. She knew the only thing Doc had for them was a favor. He wanted them to look after her while he couldn't. Something that a father would do for his daughter. (fyi they still aren't related.)
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"So 'ow is the old man?" Connor greeted.
"He's fine. He needs a new liver. The doctors are looking for a match." Evalin just walked upstairs.
"Well she's fuckin' weird." said Romeo. Evalin ran into Murphy sitting on the futon reading a Louie L'mare book. They looked at each other for a moment and then she walked into her room just to be alone. Murphy not seeing how this would help at all, got up and followed her. She was standing in front of her mirror dabbing her eyes with a tissue.
"So I guess this means you're pretty close to our Doc eh'?"
"You could say that."
"What exactly do you do for him?"
"I look after him, I run the bar. I'm his ticket to extra money."
"Well thas' a relief, the boys and I were taking bets to see if you were one of those tickets that costs money." As insulting as it was it made Evalin laugh. Murphy walked over to her and put his arms around her.
"Everythin's alright. We're here, Doc's safe. We just gotta wait around for that donor." Even though Murphy wasn't sure, he thought he heard a "thanks" muffled through his shirt.