Being a Son

Disclaimer: I own nothing of the Sons of Anarchy. Me no own, you no sue.

Chapter 1: My Baby

Tig was getting shit faced tonight. It was Edie's twentieth birthday. Earlier he had stared at her picture and sang a birthday song to her. It was the one he had sung her on her seventeenth- really inappropriate and full of innuendoes, but she had giggled and loved it.

Tonight, in honor of her, he wasn't taking a croweater to bed. He was going to drink until the room span and then pass out at the bar. He'd deal with the consequences tomorrow.

He was on his fifth beer when the party suddenly stopped. He hadn't heard anything, but the other people in the room had. He followed the crowd, thinking 'What the hell?' He might as well see what the commotion was about. It was probably a fight in the parking lot.

He was in the middle of the crowd, looking around, trying to see what the others were looking at. They were all staring toward the front gate. Tig looked and saw a small bundle dumped in the driveway. He watched as Clay made his way through the crowd and to the gate where he nudged the bundle with the toe of his boot. They all heard a soft groan. Clay looked up and motioned for the Sons to come over and check it out.

He was right behind Chibs who was pulling a scared looking Half-Sack by the ear. Clay motioned for the Prospect to roll the bundle over and when he did, they were all surprised.

Tig couldn't get a good look at it. "What happened to her?" Half-Sack whispered. Now Tig was dying to know. He pushed past Chibs and sucked in a breath. It was Edie.

The party was over, Clay having kicked everyone not SOA out of the compound. Edie was laid on the Redwood, unconscious as far as they could tell. They would know more when Jax was back with Tara.

Tig was sitting at her side, gripping her hand so tight he was sure it would hurt if she was awake. He couldn't identify the many emotions whirling through him. He supposed he was happy that she was back with him where she belonged. He was also pissed at whoever hurt her. And relieved- yes, he was relieved, he knew that much. Relieved that he wouldn't have to spend the rest of his life alone without someone, any one, to really truly understand and love him like she did.

He looked up as everyone came barging in. First was Gemma who took up vigil on her other side, then Clay, always with his Old Lady, then Jax who led in Tara. Chibs, Bobby and Juice filled in the rest of the room.

"What happened?" Tara asked, setting her bag down and then pulling off the hoodie in which Edie had been dropped off.

"She's been gone for two years," was all Tig could manage at that moment.

"The party was going full swing and we heard gun shots. We found her dumped at the front gate." Gemma, while disliking the doctor, knew that she was only person who could help right now without asking too many questions or trying to exact justice. Punishment for a crime against the SOA would be carried out by SOA and no one else.

"They probably kept her locked up. I've heard about other girls going through something similar." Tara was checking her head first, making sure there were no serious injuries there. She looked up and around, "I'm going to be undressing her. The men will have to leave." The Sons stood up and filed out slowly, all but Tig. He was rooted to his chair, almost afraid that if he left, she be taken from him again.

"Go on, Tig. I'll be here with her and get you when Doc's done." Gemma was gentle with him. She was the only other woman, besides Edie, who could understand even a small part of him.

He nodded and stood up and had to force himself to let go of her hand. He closed the door behind himself and occupied the first seat nearest the chapel. Clay came over and sat next to him, slapping him on the shoulder, showing his support. He leaned close to Tig, "I didn't wanna say nothing in front of the Old Lady, but the assholes left a note with her." Clay handed him a folded piece of paper. Tig opened it and clenched his hands, wrinkling the sides.

'Happy Birthday, Bitch! Have fun, Tigger. We sure did.'

Tara noted the marks on the young girl's body. Bruises everywhere, she was sure the girl had a few broken ribs, cuts and scrapes. She was afraid though of what she would find next. She turned to Gemma, "I'm going to need to do an internal exam." Gemma just nodded, sitting down and taking Edie's hand.

After she was done, Gemma helped her dress Edie's wounds. She noted old and new scars along with the many cuts that covered her entire body. She would always feel guilty about not forcing Edie to come with her that night.

Gemma called the men in when they were done.

They all made their way in, somber and silent as the dead. Gemma noted that Tig came in looking even more pissed off than when he left. Jax, of course, took up next to Tara and asked what was on everyone's minds, "What's the news?"

Tara looked around, almost afraid to tell them. But she knew they were her family, they wanted, some of them needed, to know. "She has some fairly bad bruising, many cuts, I'm sure most were purposeful, and she seems to have a few broken ribs, but I can't know for sure without an x-ray." No one needed to be told that they had raped her. That was a given. "She should be moved to a bedroom. And someone needs to stay with her in case of a concussion. I didn't notice any bleeding or bruising on her scalp, but it's always a possibility." Tig nodded with everything that the doctor said and without speaking, he picked Edie up, bracing under her knees and back, and carried her out of the chapel to his dorm.

Tig was gentle with her as he laid her on the bed in his dark sheets. How long had he wanted her in those sheets? Five, maybe six years? God, when he first started having those thoughts he felt like a pedophile and like he had finally lost it. He had done it all- threesomes, foursomes, orgies, necrophilia, all of it. But never before Edie had he wanted someone under age. And then one day he looked up and she had grown hips and breasts and was starting to make googly eyes at him. He knew that it was just a school girl crush, but the fact that he wanted her right back made him feel like the lowest of the low- scum of the Earth. He had felt that way before but always found some redeeming quality about himself. But being attracted to someone so underage- that was the sickest of the sick.

Now she was here, in his bed where she belonged. He desperately wished it was under better circumstances- he wished they were back two years previous on the night of her eighteenth birthday. After her party he would have taken her back to his house, the one he kept but rarely used, and made love to her all night.

He flipped on the bed side lamp and began to undress her. He was disgusted with the Mayans after seeing all the bandages that Tara had used. He covered her and sat next to her. She moaned a little but didn't wake up. Finally he grew too tired to keep his eyes open and he laid next to her, wrapping his arm around her.

He felt a sharp pain in his chest and opened his eyes, startled. In instinct he tightened his grip on Edie which only caused the pain in his chest to get worse. He looked down at her and found her punching him with all her might, and her fists may have been small, but they were pointy and they hurt!

"Edie! Edie! You're okay! You're safe! It's me! It's Tig! Baby, no one is gonna hurt you again!" Edie stopped fighting and looked up at his face, breathing heavily.

"Tigger?"

"Yeah, doll. It's me, Tigger. You're safe, baby. I swear you're safe." She buried herself into his arms and started sobbing. He just held her and ran his hands through her hair like he remembered she liked, shushing her and reassuring her that she was safe and that he would die before any of those fuckers ever touched her again.

When he next woke, Edie wasn't in his arms. He was gripped with fear and sat up looking wildly around the room. He found her sitting right next to him on the bed, leaning against the headboard with her arms wrapped around her knees.

Tig let out a sigh of relief and rubbed his hand over his face. "How ya doing, baby?"

She gave him a small smile, "Okay, now." She leaned into his hand as he stroked the side of her face.

"Is there anything you need, anything I can get you?" She just shook her head 'no',

Tig laid back and pulled Edie down to lie next to him. He wrapped her tight in his arms, trying to cover her completely with his body, as if that would take away all the hurt and suffering. "God, I've missed you so much baby. I never thought I'd see you again. It crushed me- I thought I'd never see your pretty smile again, never hear you laugh again."

Edie felt his tears on the back of her neck where his head was buried. Hearing his confession brought tears to her own eyes. She turned in his arms and took his face between her hands, kissing him. She looked into his eyes, "I thought I'd die there. Everyday I hoped you would find me and take me away with you. They- they did aweful things to me, Tigger, just horrible. Things so bad, you wouldn't want me anymore if I told you. The things they did, I-" She choked and squeezed her eyes shut. Tig realized that he couldn't break down right now. He needed to be strong for her, to help her through those years of separation. Once she was taken care of, then he could let her comfort him. It wouldn't do them any good to both be a broken mess.

"They'll never touch you again, baby. Never." He would talk to Clay in the morning about a course of action.

A/N: I know that Tig seems out of character right now, but you'll see in later chapters that he's still the sick, depraved man with a heart of gold that we all know and love. I just imagine Tig as a guy who's been fucked over and up by life and he wants to lash out while curl in on himself. Kim Coates is excellent at portraying him as hard with a type of vulnerability. Please let me know what you think!