Later in the week, a guard came to their cell again, but this time he pulled Happy out for a visit with the attorney, and an hour or so later when Happy returned, he told Jax, "I got your back brother."

"Thanks man," Jax replied.

That was all they spoke of the meeting with Lowen, and she didn't visit Jax that day, just in case anyone was keeping Clay informed of the comings and goings of his club members. Since Lowen hadn't planned to visit Jax, she'd given a few pictures to Happy, to deliver for her. Jax got to see Tara feeding Thomas for the first time, Abel eating watermelon for the first time, and a few other shots of both his boys.

Jax was pulled from his cell for a few hours each week, under the guise of anger management treatment, for his gang rehabilitation program. They taught job skills like typing and resume writing. At the end of the first week they all received typing certifications, if they'd passed fifty words per minute. At the end of the second week, they had resumes that listed all their legitimate work experience, and at the end of the third week, they'd all been fitted for a suit to wear to job interviews, that they would be given at their release from prison.

Tara visited Jax again at the end of the fourth week, and she had a surprise for him. When Jax entered the visitation room, Abel was sitting on the bench next to Tara, and on the table was an infant car seat with Thomas nestled safely inside. His eyes filled with tears as he hurried toward his family, the first time he'd seen Abel in eight months, and the first time he'd ever met his youngest son.

Tara smiled as she saw Jax coming toward her. She stood, picking Abel up and pointed at Jax. Abel squealed "Dada! Dada!" and Jax's heart melted. He hugged Abel close to his chest and put an arm around Tara as he peeked in the carrier at Thomas. "I've missed you so much buddy," he said as he kissed Abel's head over and over.

Tara unbuckled the straps of the car seat and got Thomas ready to get out of the seat before she took Abel from Jax and gestured for him to pick up his newborn son and hold him for the first time. Thomas was now ten weeks old, but he only weighed seven pounds and eleven ounces. He had just been released from the NICU the day before and Tara had been nervous to bring him out so soon, since his due date was still almost a month away, but she knew she couldn't keep him from Jax.

Jax picked Thomas up from his seat and cradled him against his chest. He was, again, taken back to when Abel had first come home from the hospital, so tiny and seemingly fragile. He took in that soft powdery baby smell and just enjoyed holding his son, not taking a moment for granted, for once in his life. He relished every grunt and coo that his son made, because he understood just how lucky they were, that he was so strong and healthy. He sat down on the bench and closed his eyes, trying to commit every smell and sound to memory. When he opened his eyes, Tara and Abel were sitting across from him. Tara was grinning at him with tears shining in her own eyes.

"Thank you so much babe," he said, his voice hoarse.

"For what," she asked, slightly confused.

"For sticking by me through all this. For adopting my son and making him ours. For giving me this beautiful boy in my arms. For never giving up on us, even after ten years apart. For not packing your shit and leaving like you had every right to do, after I treated you the way I did. You deserve so much better than me, but I promise you I am going to spend the rest of my life proving how much you really do mean to me," he said, looking into her eyes.

A few tears spilled out of Tara's eyes at his words. They slid down her cheeks and she brushed them away before Abel could see. "Just keep this one promise Jax. Keep this one promise and I'll know that you really do mean that," she told him, her voice betraying her hope and need.

Jax nodded, "I start getting zapped next week." Happy knew what was going on, but the rest of SAMCRO didn't, and Clay had ears everywhere, so he had to be careful how he worded things.

Tara nodded, understanding his meaning, "I am so proud of you Jax. So proud. Thank you."

Jax nodded and they began to talk about the kids and what had been going on since the last time she'd visited. Tara told him all about rooming in with Thomas at the hospital, even though she already knew how to take care of a premature infant. She was having to pump her breast milk twice a day to give Thomas bottles with formula powder and vitamin drops added to it, so that he gained weight at a slightly faster rate, since his body was working so hard to catch up outside the womb. He was still nursing like a champ for his other feeds. Abel had given up his bottle quite easily. He liked being a big brother, and apparently decided that only his baby brother got a bottle.

Once again, it was all too soon that the guard was calling the end of visitation, and Jax had to slide Thomas back into his carseat. Tara buckled Thomas in while Jax held Abel and kissed all over his face, making the toddler laugh at his father's antics. Jax pulled Tara into his arms as much as he could, since he was still holding Abel, and kissed the side of her head. "You're amazing, you know," he told her.

"I know," she replied cheekily, taking Abel from him. She grabbed Thomas' carseat and followed the other visitors out of the room. Jax waited until the he could no longer see her back, before he headed back to his cell.

When he reached his cell, Happy grinned at him, "You're outta here today bro."

"Huh?" Jax asked, confused.

"Your new cell. You're getting lasered on Monday, right?"

Jax nodded, "Yeah, I forgot about packing my shit. I got to hold Thomas today."

"Dude, that's awesome," Happy said, slapping him on the back.

"Did you call your mom yesterday," Jax suddenly asked.

"Yeah, why," Happy replied

"I need you to call Chibs tonight, if you will. I need him to call and talk to Lowen. I think my best chance of getting out as clean as possible, is if I talk to Chibs and Opie, and have them bring it to a vote while Clay and Tig are locked up," Jax explained.

"Yeah brother, I'll call him. You gotta call and check in with Tara," Happy nodded.

Jax would never be able to express how thankful he was for Happy's help. As unlikely an ally as the man was, he was a loyal friend until you crossed him, and Jax had no intentions of crossing him.

A guard brought a cardboard box and told Jax to pack his shit, he was being moved to a different block. Once he'd packed his letters and the pictures from Tara, he told the guard he was ready. He didn't care about the little TV or the other small things they'd bought to make the time pass in this hell hole. He clapped Happy on the back and thanked him for all his help.

The guard led Jax to the other side of the prison and placed him in a cell alone. It would be different, getting used to sleeping alone. Not having anyone to watch his back was scary as shit, but it was good to be out from under Clay's watchful eye.

On Monday, Jax was taken to a private infirmary room and was met there by a doctor he'd never seen before. "Hello, I'm Dr. Robert Rey, and I specialize in tattoo removal. I hear you have a big piece for me to work on today."

Jax pulled off his shirt and turned his back to the doctor. "Black is not as hard to remove as one would think. Reds are much harder. This should take three to four sessions to completely remove the ink. You may be left with some mild scarring, but for a new life, I think it's worth it."

"To take my girl and my sons out of harm's way, it's worth any amount of pain and scars," Jax said as he laid face down on the table that the doctor indicated.

"This will feel like snapping rubber bands. About the same as getting the tattoo felt," Dr. Rey explained.

Jax nodded and gritted his teeth as the doctor got started. Two hours later, Jax had just about had all he could take, when the doctor announced that he was done for the day. After spreading some cooling gel over Jax's back, the doctor placed a large bandage that he was informed would be removed by a guard in the morning, across his back. Jax thanked the doctor and went back to his cell to take a much needed nap. He didn't remember the tattoo hurting nearly as much when he got it, but he'd been high and piss drunk when he did, so that probably had something to do with it.

It was a long week, getting used to being alone in his cell, not having a brother to talk to, or to watch cartoons with. He actually missed Happy's constant laughter at the ridiculous cartoons they'd watched together. He just kept looking forward to the prize at the end of all this bullshit.

After week five of his gang rehab, he received a certificate proving his completion of the anger management portion of the class, as well as the certificate for completion of the conflict resolution part of the course. Jax was doing everything he could to make sure that he could get any grants possible when he got out of prison. He was taking another course to get his GED, since he'd never actually passed the test after he dropped out of high school. Piney had insisted that Opie pass his test, but Gemma never gave a shit, as long as Jax was in SAMCRO, she couldn't care less.

By the time Jax got out of Stockton, he was determined to have his GED, as many certifications as possible, and an acceptance letter to the community college in Portland, where he could take automotive shop courses, to get a degree in mechanics, and open his own shop. He was determined not to mess this up again. He'd been so close to losing everything so many times, but he refused to give up this time. He refused to fail his family again.