35/
"What the fuck?" Kate heard Tig rouse loudly in the clubhouse early the next morning. "Who the fuck let him prospect?"
"Chibs sponsored him."
"Well that was clearly a fuckin' oversight!" Tig continued to fume.
"What's going on?" Kate asked sidling quietly up to Kozik's side.
"One of the prospect's bailed and left Lumpy unprotected last night. Somebody beat him to a pulp and left him in a pretty bad way."
Tig rolled his eyes. "You bringing the old lady in on club business pretty boy?"
"You brought it up in the clubroom." Kozik responded.
"Cool it you two." Piney put in. "We need to get this sorted, not argue about how it happened."
"Yeah. We should head to the hospital and see what Lumpy has to say." Tig said rising from where he sat and heading toward the door.
Piney rose to follow but Kozik hung back. "We got word that they arrived in Belfast safely." He said quietly to Kate.
"Thanks Koz." She said with a smile. She knew he was still a little torn up over the whole situation.
"Hey Blondie, you comin'?." Tig called from the doorway.
"Yeah. Give me a minute." He called back.
"You know you don't have to put up with his shit right?" Kate asked.
"I know. I figure it's his way of letting me know how much he really does care." Kozik answered her.
She smiled in return. "Yeah maybe."
"Just sit tight here until we're back okay?"
"Yeah okay." She said glancing up to bar where one of the other prospects was cleaning it.
"So I suppose you didn't get a chance to visit any of the bars you mentioned today?" Kate asked across the dinner table later that night.
"Shit babe. No I didn't. I'm sorry." Kozik said reaching across for her hand.
"It's okay. I know you were busy."
"I should be able to get to it tomorrow."
"Don't stress about it Koz. How's that guy you mentioned this morning?"
"Lumpy? Not so good."
"Sorry to hear that. I didn't quite catch who he actually was this morning. You hadn't mentioned him before."
"He runs the local gym in town. Someone is trying to pressure him into selling up."
"Was that where you and Tig were yesterday when he roughed you up."
"Yeah. Lumpy reached out to us for protection. Looks like we failed him though."
"Do you know who it was?"
"Nah. He said the guy gave him a message for us from the Mayans but that makes no sense. They have no reason to be pushing him out or starting any kind of turf war with us."
"I'm sure you'll sort it out babe."
"I hope so. The pressure is sure on while half of Samcro is away."
"Have you heard anything else from them?"
"Nah. I'm sure they're fine though."
"Are you really okay with this sharing me thing Koz?"
"Yeah. You bet. I see how happy it makes you. We should have seen from the outset that you'd never be happy with just one of us." he said with a smirk.
She gave a small smile in return.
"C'mon babe. Let's clean this up later." He said rising and pulling her up from the table and toward the bedroom.
Kate stretched her arms above her head the following morning as she rolled to find the bed beside her empty. She had a vague recollection of Kozik kissing her awake as the sun rose over the horizon to inform her that he had to get an early start. She'd mumbled something about it being too early and he'd told her to go back to sleep.
She rose from the bed still stretching the sleepiness from her as she headed to the shower. Mornings had never been her thing.
She sighed as she emerged from the bathroom a short time later to immediately hear what could only be a fist pounding against the front door.
"You gotta come with me." The prospect she found on the doorstep informed her.
"Why? Kozik said I didn't have to come to the lot today." Kate answered, confused. Miles she remembered his name being.
"Things have changed. He wants to know you're safe and that means coming with me to the clubhouse."
"Sure. Just let me grab my purse." She said with a sigh. She figured there was coffee at the clubhouse.
she didn't protest as she would have once. She knew that the Californian sons only had her safety and welfare in mind and she'd never fought against anything here like she had back home.
She threw her leg over Miles bike behind him and realized that she hadn't ridden with anyone other than Happy or Kozik in the entire time she'd been there. It felt strange but she knew the absolute trust these men had in each other when it came to protecting their old ladies.
She was surprised to find the lot devoid of the presence of any Sons; only the garage workers were around. "Phil's in the clubhouse. You should go find him and stay put." Miles informed her as he let her get off.
He quickly took off again. She'd met Phil only briefly the day before and sighed as she went off in search of him.
She spied him behind the bar wiping it down almost as soon as she entered the clubroom. "Hey." She greeted him.
He glanced up and gave her a small nod of acknowledgment. It wasn't as confident or self assured as one Happy would give but she immediately saw in this large man that he was also a man of few words but for very different reasons to Happy.
"So Miles said I should come and find you."
"That was their instructions before they sent him off to get you."
"So I don't suppose you can tell me what's going on?"
"Nah. You'll have to ask Kozik when they're back."
"And when will that be?"
"No idea."
"Is there coffee around here?" She asked.
"Sure is. I'll fix you a cup."
He poured a cup from the percolator that sat behind the bar and slid it across the bar toward her. Silence fell between them for a time after that. Kate could feel his eyes upon her as she glanced around the empty clubroom. She sighed knowing that it would likely become a second home to her but she didn't have anywhere near the problem with that that she thought she would have. It was brighter and in many ways much more homely than the Australian clubhouse had ever been, not to mention the company within it's walls was much more welcoming, usually.
"Why are you staring Phil?" She turned her attention back to the prospect behind the bar, unable to ignore his eyes upon her any more.
"I … well … never mind. It's none of my business."
She fixed him with a not unfriendly glare. "C'mon. What do you wanna ask?"
"Well I'm new around here. I only wondered if you being with two of them was a common thing."
Kate smiled. "I don't imagine so."
"So um, how'd it come about?" he asked hesitantly, almost shyly. "Only if you don't mind me asking?" He quickly added.
Kate shrugged. "They were both pretty instrumental in helping me when I arrived here. I'm not sure what you know about my past but I was pretty broken, still am in a lot of ways. They both bring something to my life and well being here and I guess together they complete what I needed."
he nodded avoiding her gaze. She wondered whether he was embarrassed by the conversation or if there was something else behind his questioning.
"So ah, has Gemma said anything about it?" He asked her.
"No. I've been advised to expect her input at some point but she's had her mind on other tings so far. Why do you ask?"
"I guess I just wondered what sort of thing she expects and well what they all expect."
"I'm pretty new around here too so I'm not sure I can really answer that. Is there a reason for your questions Phil?"
"Well not really but kind of."
Kate frowned, seeing that the reason for this man's quietness was likely an unsureness of where he fit within this world.
"What does that mean? Do you have a girl the club doesn't know about?" she asked, narrowing her eyes curiously at him.
"Well no. I only wondered what the protocol would be if I did."
Kate nodded, not sure that she believed the other man's words.
"Well I'm not sure I'd really know from a sons point of view and I'm clearly an exception to any rules anyway. Besides no one around here has really had the time to address it with me."
"Yeah." he responded quietly.
She hardly felt equipped to be giving him club advice or relationship advice, being unsure about what it was he was even after, but she felt he was a man who often struggled in his own skin about what was expected of him. He seemed to lack the confidence and self assurance that seemed essential in this clubhouse.
"What's going on?" Kate was hesitant to ask Kozik as he came weerily into the clubhouse later that afternoon. She could tell the stress of the day was heavy on his shoulders.
He didn't answer her right away but instead pulled her to him in a tight embrace. She knew his mood likely had to do with the reason they were out all day but in the pit of her stomach she hoped that all was well on Irish soil.
"We got word that Lumpy passed away earlier today." He said quietly as he loosened his arms around her, keeping her close as he sat back upon one of the bar stools.
"I'm sorry to hear that." She said with a frown.
"Also Tara has been abducted and we're at a loss as to how to get her back."
"Shit. What?" She asked shocked at what she'd just heard.
"We're still connecting the dots but it seems related to Lumpy somehow. We've been following her trail all day but we keep coming up short."
"So is that why you wanted me here so I'd be safe?"
"Yeah, partly."
"Your girl is safe Blondie." Tig said as he passed by. "It was Tara they were after."
"I'm not sure that they were particularly fussed whose old lady they had to make their point." Kozik replied.
"Maybe so but they've made it now so they're not likely to go after anyone else." Tig pressed his point across.
"Forgive me for wanting to keep Kate safe asshole."
"Just cool it you two!" Kate interjected, growing tired of there near constant bickering. "Koz, I appreciate that you wanted to keep me safe especially being that you probably weren't sure of the exact circumstances to begin with." she continued quietly to him.
"That and I wanted to be sure you're in one piece once Happy returns." she gave a small smile but saw the heavy meaning behind his words. While she knew they both cared for her and had both an emotional and sexual involvement with her in their own right, an underlying reason for their investment in her was to keep her safe for the other, neither wanting to be held responsible for anything happening to her.
"And what about Tara? Who has her?" She asked, watching Tig move away and into the arms of a crow eater.
"We're not entirely sure just yet but that want a ransom, but only gained from murdering the Mayan's president."
Kate raised her eyebrows, knowing that shit rarely got this heavy back on Australian soil. She had no doubt though in their ability to handle it.
"Okay. Well I'm guessing that's not an option."
"No but we're handling it and hopefully before the guys are back from Ireland."
"I'm sure Jax won't hold you guys personally responsible. I mean I'm no stranger to the fact that things like this are par for the course in the Sons world."
"Yeah. Yeah I know. It's just kinda feels like a chance to prove myself in their absence."
"Koz, they wouldn't even be ascertaining the thought of patching you in here if you had to prove yourself."
"i know. I guess all this shit with Tig has me doubting myself."
"Are you forgetting you have one of these too?" She asked running her fingers over his sergeant at arms patch. "That means something Koz, whether it's Tacoma or here, you have just as much worth within the club as he does."
He smiled. "You're right. Thanks Katie."
"And I know you'll do whatever it takes to find Tara."
He nodded slowly. "Yeah." he said. "Oh and by the way they've located Abel. They're in the process of organizing to bring him home."
"well that's good isn't it? More hands on deck to help find Tara?"
"Yeah. We were hoping to not have to involve them though." He said with a heavy sigh.
Kate rested her head against his shoulder and let his words hang in the air between them. She knew how important it was to him to earn his spot within Samcro.