***Hi guys! Thanks for following me over...sorry for the short beginning but there will be longer ones coming!***

The world flashed quickly by as the unmarked cruiser drove Ashley away from the life that had once threatened to swallow her whole. She sat motionless, still in shock from the night's events, in the back of Mark's car. He had made her grab as much of her stuff as she could, helping her shove her things into only a few bags. He said that he had to get her out of there as fast as possible, there was a lot she didn't know and he planned on filling her in on it later. Her mind was blank, her eyes felt dry as she stared out the window at the stars. She only wanted to go to sleep, maybe she would wake up and this entire day would be nothing but a dream.

"Hey," Mark said as he strained his head around from the driver's seat.

She turned her eyes to him but couldn't find any of the words she needed to respond.

"I'm going to get you to a hotel for tonight, you can get some sleep and we will figure out where to move you in the morning." He stared at her in the rear view mirror, waiting for a response, before turning his attention back to the road when she shifted back into her trance.

Ashley could tell they were headed out of Charming. She stared at the mountains in the distance, the outline of their peaks barely visible against the night sky. Her mind was always thinking, always racing every second of the day, even in the night, often causing her restless sleep. But not tonight, tonight she was blank, as if there was nothing left.

It felt like they traveled at least another hour before they pulled into the old motel's parking lot. It was seedy looking, the room doors painted bright turquoise and the vacancy sign flashed on and off like in a horror movie she had seen once. She noticed a police car pull up next to them, the cop who was driving it passed Mark what looked like a room key through their window. The two of them spoke but none of their words registered with her, she stared out at the empty parking lot, wondering what was going to happen now. The cop pulled away and Mark parked their car. He got out, walking over to Ashley's door and helping her out of it.

Once they got to the room Ashley sat on the bed. She was so tired she struggled to keep her eyes open, but at the same time she knew there was no way she would ever sleep. She lay back on the crispy thin comforter not even wanting to put the effort into climbing beneath it.

"Get some sleep and we can talk in the morning. You're safe I promise." Yeah right, she'd heard that before.

She didn't remember falling asleep. But when she woke up that terrible feeling was still inside of her, it hit her even before she remembered what her reality was. She didn't want to open her eyes but she did. She looked over and saw Mark asleep in a chair, his gun in his hand laying across his stomach. He was still completely dressed, only he had taken off his shoes. She never thought in a million years that she would be in this position.

She went to use the bathroom and wash her face, her stomach cramping again. "If you survive this it will be a miracle," she said out loud, her thoughts drifting to Jax, but that sickening feeling came rushing back. It rushed so hard back that she ran to the toilet, throwing up all the contents that were left inside her stomach. She hovered over the toilet for a minute, tears rolling off her chin and landing in the bowl beneath her. She didn't know there were any left to fall. She pulled herself together, rinsed her mouth and went back into the room. Mark was now awake and sitting up straight. He had moved his gun to the table beside him. He looked at her with pity in his eyes and she wondered if he had heard her get sick.

"I'm sorry Ashley." He said. This guy was something else. No matter what she did he was still a nice guy. If she wasn't practically in a walking coma she would have found that amusing.

She sat down on the bed and stared at the floor, finding her voice again. "Before any of that happened I was already asking myself, what am I supposed to do now." She spoke to no one. But he heard her.

"I saw the test."

"Yeah, well."

"I know that only complicates things more, but you're going to have to trust me that I know what to do to keep you and your baby safe."

"Nothing matters anymore."

"Ashley, you don't mean that. You are just processing a lot of information right now. More than anyone should have to process."

She thought about where she should start before speaking again, "Rob said he was following Clay's orders."

"Yes we know."

She turned to glare at him. "You knew all of this?"

"I only found out yesterday. Trust me, I was trying to get to you immediately."

"Was Jax in on it?" She knew it was a crazy question, but did she really even know him? The man she saw yesterday was no one that she had ever seen. She remembered how deep her relationship with him was, how far it went back. Him and Opie. Donna...

"No, I really don't think he had any idea." His voice bringing her back into the present.

"How do you know about Clay?"

"We bugged Rob's car yesterday once we figured he had something to do with it. We heard Tig deliver him a message from Clay.

"Tig too?" She should have been shocked, but it made sense, he had wanted her to catch Jax with that skank, he had chased after Rob and not caught him when he assaulted her.

"Ashley, I know it's hard, but we have to get you away from Charming. We took care of Rob's body so that no one will know what really happened, but we can't have Clay knowing that you are still around."

"So what am I supposed to do? Where am I supposed to go?"

"I have my partner Sandy working on finding a place for you. It's going to take a little time, but we will help you start over, somewhere safe."

Ashley stared at him incredulously, how could she just leave everything? But what was everything when there was nothing. There shouldn't be nothing. "I was going to tell him yesterday."

"You didn't tell him?" Mark asked and she felt the guilt creep up inside her.

"No. I wanted to but…."

"No, it's a good thing he doesn't know."

"How is it a good thing?" She stared at him, what kind of person would suggest that?

"Because if he knew, he would look for you."

Right. If he knew she was pregnant he would look for her. Because he wouldn't walk away from his baby. Only her.

"So I'm supposed to just never tell him? Let him live his life not knowing he has a child out there? That's your plan?"

Mark sat quiet and Ashley could tell that's exactly what she was supposed to do. She dropped her head to her hands and began to cry again. This nightmare was going in slow motion, with no end in sight.

***Hope you guys liked it!***