When she wakes this time, her hands are tied in front of her and she's lying on her side. She blinks, flinching at the light. Then she opens her eyes wide. Light. No blindfold. She looks around frantically.
It's a grimy room, with two chairs in the center. She's been tossed down on a mattress against the wall. She sits up, ignoring her pounding headache, looking for Abel. She has to bite back a scream when she spots him.
He's in dark corner, head resting against the wall. His blond hair is dirty and pushed back. His eyes are closed, showcasing two magnificent black eyes. Bruises and cuts darken his face and it looks as though there isn't a patch of skin that hasn't been touched. She gets up, stumbling towards him. She practically falls into his lap when she kneels next to him.
"Abel, wake up." She says desperately. He twitches a couple times and finally opens one eye.
"Willow." He says instantly, trying to reach her face, hands still tied together. "Are you ok, did he touch you, did anything happen?" He asks and she shakes her head, trying to clean the blood off his face.
"Why did they untie me?" She asks and he shakes his head.
"I don't know, they both just walked in and untied me from the chair. I got another beat down and they left me here. They untied you, but you must've been drugged still because you didn't even move. They threw you over there and left. I must've passed out, I don't know what happened next." He tells her and she leans back, taking another deep breath.
"Who the hell are these guys?" She puzzles and Abel shrugs then winces. "You need to lie down. You can't sleep, you have a concussion." She tells him and helps him stand. He limps over to the mattress and reclines slowly.
"How do you expect me to stay awake?" He asks and she leans against the wall next to him.
"I'll talk to you." She promises.
"I should've never let this happen to you." He mutters and she shakes her head.
"Abel, I heard them talking. They drugged me and then Nick knocked you out when you came around the corner. Neither of us had a chance. This is not your fault." She says firmly.
"Well, I know one thing." He says and she looks down at him. "They're not going to live much longer because if I don't kill them, Tig will." A shiver runs down her spine at his words. She has no doubt Abel will kill.
"Ok, we need to talk about something so that you don't fall asleep." She says, trying to change the subject. "Where have you gone on your bike?"
"All over California. I used to take the weekends and skip school Friday to go ride wherever I felt. I always avoided Charming though." He says and she looks at him curiously.
"Why?" She asks and he sighs.
"I remember a lot for a kid." He says slowly. "I remember my grandma and my dad and my mom. I remember what it was like to live here with them. I remember being happy and then everyone started dying. Do you know anything about me?" He asks and she ponders the question.
"No." She says honestly. "We hardly talk about our past or anything that involves dad. If it has to do with him, everyone usually clams up about it."
"Would you like to?" He asks and she nods. "I told you my mom was a junkie. She was addicted to crank when she was pregnant with me. I was born premature and my insides were upside down. I had a 20% chance of surviving." He says all this plainly and Willow stares at him in amazement. "I also have a heart condition. Call it the family flaw. My grandma Gemma had it and so did my dad's little brother, the first Thomas. Guess who performed the surgery that saved my life?"
"Dr. Tara Knowles." Willow says, remembering that title from an obituary Lyla has tucked in her box of all things SAMCRO.
"That's the one… I thought she was my mom. No one ever told me different, till after she died and my dad explained that she was Thomas's mom and Wendy was mine. Am I a terrible child for wishing that she were mine? I mean, Tommy's an orphan. I lost my dad, but he lost both. But sometimes I would rather have a dead doctor for a mom than a junkie that's still alive." He muses.
"I know that feeling." Willow admits and he looks up at her. "Mom's a pornstar. Trust me, eighth grade is hard enough, but when you have a woman who has sex for a living as a mom? I mean, she was behind the camera at this point, but still. Google Red Woody and her face is the first thing that comes up. I've had more guys ask me for a blowjob than I can count." She says and Abel bristles.
"And Ken and Piper let that happen?" He points out. She gives a little humorless laugh.
"Ken and Piper didn't know." She clarifies. "What would they have done, punch everyone? They were already SAMCRO at this point. Trust me, I didn't want any problems with them, so I just learned to let it roll off my back." She says dismissively.
"And one hell of a sucker punch." Abel says, chuckling before it turns to painful coughing.
"Well, Jaycee decided that all us girls need to be able to hold our own. I'll never forget the look on Piper's face the first time I decked him in the jaw." She says fondly.
"You know they're doing everything to find us, right?" He asks and she feels like someone has squeezed her heart tightly.
"I know." She says quietly. There's a pause and she takes a shaky breath. "It's my fault. They were after me." She confesses.
"I gathered that." Abel says, a hint of his familiar sarcasm back. "Which means that in all likelihood, this was against the club and not me. So there's a high percentage that they already know and are likely fighting tooth and nail to get you back." He says and she's surprised at how much he's thought about it.
"I don't know who would take us though." She says, frustrated. "I didn't think the club was in trouble with anyone."
"Willow, no offense, but I don't think you really know what's going on with the club." Abel says and Willow gives him a look. "You're not a member, you don't know what goes on in church."
"Well, incase you haven't noticed, I'm a girl, so I can't be a member." She says tightly. "And you're not a member either." Before he can retort, the door opens and someone walks in.
It's not Nick, but this man is short as well. He's larger, with a bald spot and one eye that droops shut. He's wearing a stained black tee shirt, showcasing hairy arms covered in tattoos. He surveys them and Willow suddenly remembers something she had learned watching a crime show when she was younger.
If you see their face, that means they're likely going to kill you.
AN: And I'm back! For those of you who expressed concern that this storyline might go on for too long, I promise it's going to be swift, but the implications might last a little bit longer... Well I hope you enjoy this chapter- if you did, please let me know. I love hearing your thoughts!