"We know she's alive but that's it."

EZ's words haunted them all but Bishop took the news harder than the others. He knew about the pregnancy, still the only one to know, and that made it exponentially worse.

"Does he know?" Bishop asked mournfully.

"No," EZ shook his head. "He's been really out of it because of the surgeries. Doc said he's out of the woods, he'll be up soon, he's going to snap, Bish."

"I know," Bishop gripped EZ's shoulder. "Let me talk to him, I'll tell him."

EZ looked at Bishop with surprise. "You sure?"

"Yeah, I'll wait," he sighed. "Get out of here, clean up and get some sleep."

"Yeah, not sure he'd be thrilled to see me anyway," EZ said sadly. "We weren't on good terms when shit went down."

"At least he's breathing," Bishop said sagely. "You can still work it out."

When Bishop sent the others down the hall, EZ didn't do as his president suggested, he went to meet with his father.

It seemed cruel, but Bishop hoped Angel would wake quickly. Without knowing what went down that night, they had no idea where to start looking for her. Bastian told them he was working on it on his end but they couldn't just leave the job to him.

"Angel, you gotta wake up." Bishop began prodding the moment he noticed Angel's eyes fluttering. "Come on. We need you."

Angel's eyes opened and he looked at Bishop, confused and obviously hurting. "Bish," he said with a startled gasp. "What the fuck?"

"You scared us, son," he said sadly.

"Where's Z?" He asked, memories slowly coming back as his mind got a chance to catch up. "Did you get Gabe?"

Bishop suddenly regretted pushing Angel to wake up so quickly. "We're working on it."

"Working on what?" Angel asked in disbelief, attempting to sit up despite the pain. "Where's Zara?"

"We don't know," Bishop admitted shamefully. "She's alive, we know that, but we're still working on finding Zara and Gabe."

"Where is she?" Angel asked again, more urgent the second time. "We have to find her."

"We need to know what happened," Bishop said firmly.

"Gabe took her," Angel snapped, pulling his monitors off. "He made her fucking shoot me and he took her."

"Why?" Bishop presses his hands against Angel's shoulders before he could yank his IVs out. "You have to calm down. You're not ready to be out there."

"Calm down?" Angel scoffed. "He's gonna hurt her, he's gonna hurt my family, Bish. I can't fail Z again, I can't let anything happen to her or that kid. Not again, man. I can't do that again."

"We're not going to let anything happen to her or your kid," Bishop said, "But you just got shot in the chest, Angel, went in for two surgeries, you can't go running out there, not yet. Gabe thinks you're dead, he got what he wanted, it'll appease him until he gets bored. By then we'll have him and you can go in there and get Zara yourself."

"I'm bringing her home, if you can't have my back I'll find someone who does. I'm not leaving her with him for a second longer than I have to."

Bishop glared at Angel. "You're gonna get yourself killed and you know who's gonna be left to take care of your family? Me, Taza, Coco," he huffed, "The whole club. We always have your back I'm trying to help you down the right path because you can't see through the shit in your head."

"I know what's best for my family," Angel said, slapping at the call button. "No one is gonna tell me different."

Bishop shook his head and swung the door open again. "I'm not gonna be the one to tell her you got yourself killed. I won't do it."

Storming out, Bishop left Angel in intense physical and emotional pain but nothing was stronger than his indignation. Reaching for his phone on the table, Angel scratched off the dried blood from the screen and text Bastian.

"We have to find her. I'm ready. Can you help?"

—

It had been days of running, driving, and hiding when Gabe finally found somewhere to stay. Zara wasn't completely sure how many days, 3 or 4, she was exhausted and grieving Angel so intensely that the days ran together.

"I didn't eat for weeks when Molly was gone," Gabe remarked. "Kind of surprised you've been eating three meals a day."

Zara nodded slowly, fighting the urge to vomit. "Yeah, well, I stress eat." She was forcing the food for the baby and only the baby. If she wasn't pregnant she would have refused everything he offered. "What are you going to do with me, Gabe?"

"I don't know," he admitted. "I kinda feel bad. I liked Angel. Were you gonna go after Bastian after you found out everything we'd done?"

Zara shrugged.

"Come on, I'm just trying for some friendly conversation," he complained.

"You are a strange dude," she whimpered. "Why are you playing nice?"

"As I said, I feel bad," he said, his eyes to the ground.

"If you feel bad, how 'bout you let me go?"

"No," he snapped. "We're in this together now, sweetheart," he said mockingly.

"Okay," she whispered. "Wh-what did you mean about Nestor? About trusting him?"

Gabe smirked. "Feeling that sting of betrayal, huh?"

"Actually yeah," Zara admitted, "Planning revenge too."

"He didn't out you," Gabe told her with mild disappointment. "He was just sloppy. He didn't care enough to delete the video and we're still monitoring everything from Galindo. It was easy to find, even accidentally. Is it worse because of your history?"

"I guess a little," she uttered. "Gabriel, I'm sorry. I just wanted the truth, I was so scared for me and Angel. It got way out of hand."

Leaning forward, Gabe nodded. "You let that rage get the best of you?" He asked to which she nodded. "That's uh, that's kind of how I feel."

"So what, we're gonna live happily ever after in this gross shed with our regret?"

"I don't know."

"Please let me go," she whimpered.

Gabe's burner phone rang in his pocket and Zara could see the anger in his eyes. He yanked it out from his jeans and answered with a huff.

"What?...I know I fucked up. Are they looking for me?... SHIT. Okay. I need help. I don't know what to do. Tell me you still got my back, man."

"Is that Bastian?" Zara asked eagerly.

"Shut up," he snarled. Gabe kicked her shoulder hard and sent her down to the ground. "Yeah, she's alive," he said into the phone. "Do I kill her?"

Zara could hear Bastian's panicked response. "No, Gabe. That'll only make it worse. Let me talk to her. I'll make sure the Mayans know she's safe but I need proof."

Gabe tossed the phone at her. "Don't try anything."

"Hello?"

"I'm sorry, Zara," Bastian said with sincerity. "Are you okay?"

"Uh, I mean, yeah, all things considered," she whispered. "Is he dead? Did I kill him?"

Lowering his voice, Bastian whispered, "No. I'm on my way to see him now. I wanted some good news to share when I arrived. You cannot let Gabe know."

"I know," she whimpered.

"I'm sure you'll want me to pass along a few messages. You love him, you're sorry," Bastian chuckled. "Those two are obvious."

"Yeah, please, both of those. So much."

Gabe stomped over and snatched the phone away. "If you can get me money and a way out, I'll hand her over to the Mayans."

"You want to run?" Bastian asked him.

"Yeah, unless you're gonna protect me against these assholes?"

"It's not that easy," Bastian sighed. "You killed a member and these are our business partners now. I can't blindly support either of you. A father doesn't pick one child over another."

"Fine," Gabe snapped. "See what they'll agree to and we'll go from there."

Gabe dropped the phone and stomped it into bits before grabbing Zara by the hair to pull her out of the building.

"Where are we going?" She stammered.

"The desert," he told her. "I know Bastian, he's got my location by now, we gotta go."

"I can arrange that deal," she sputtered. "Please."

"I don't trust you," Gabe said, popping the trunk. "Get in."

"Please, can I sit in the back?"

"Get. In."

Seeing Gabe's friendly attitude, or act, was wearing thin, Zara did what she was told. The moment the trunk was slammed shut she began to sob.

"Please," she whispered, her hands clasped in prayer, "God, I can't do this again. I can't lose anything else."

—

It was later in the morning the next day, mere moments after ending his call with Gabe, that Bastian went to see Angel. Bishop met him at the end of the hall, somberly and silently shaking his hand, before directing him toward Angel's room.

"He's up and he's not happy," Bishop explained. He wouldn't share the club's internal strife but it weighed heavily on Bishop's heart and mind. "Any news?"

"They were at an abandoned utility shed near the border earlier this morning but by the time we got there they were gone," Bastian explained shamefully. "May I?" He asked, gesturing to Angel's door.

"Yeah," Bishop huffed, "Go ahead."

As he entered the room he heard Bishop grumble something under his breath but Bastian ignored it.

"You look better than I expected," Bastian said to Angel. "I'm glad."

Angel nodded. "What do you know?"

"I just spoke to both of them," Bastian told Angel. "I recorded the call," he explained as he played the audio file on speaker.

As soon as Zara's voice hit his ears Angel hid his face to keep Bastian from seeing him cry. "I gotta get out of here."

Bastian shook his head. "You were shot and had two surgeries in less than a week, Angel. What good is it to save her if you die in the middle of it?"

"She'll be safe," he said. "That's all I care about."

"That's not all she cares about," Bastian pulled the chair over and sat. "Pull yourself together. That's always your problem, you let your emotions cloud your head. We're tracking him, it's just a matter of time before he ditches the car though."

"What's your master plan for all this?" Angel asked angrily.

"I don't have one this time, I was hoping you could help with that," Bastian said.

"You find him, get me a map of the area, and I'll set something up," he said ominously.

"Anything you need I'll get it for you, I want you to bring our girl home."

Angel nodded. "We do this and I'll owe you, man. I mean it."

"No, you won't," Bastian said. "Sleep, get some strength back, and I'll be here with a car to take you home tomorrow."

"My club can handle that," Angel said dutifully. "I appreciate it though."

Bastian nodded. "In that case, let me know when you're home and we'll get to work."

—

Walking into their home knowing Zara was gone felt like a blade slicing into Angel's still healing chest.

"We still think it's too soon for you," Bishop told Angel as they sat at the dining room table.

"I don't give a shit," Angel spat. "We got a plan, I got my guys, I'm gonna bring home my girl."

"Bastian one of those guys?" Bishop asked with annoyance.

Angel shook his head. "You know who I'm taking, Prez. Gilly, Creeper, and Coco. You and everyone else are a mile down the road in the van."

Bishop wouldn't say it knowing it would only put him more on edge but he was worried about Angel.

"Alright," he sighed. "This is your thing, if you feel good about it I'll follow your lead."

"Tomorrow morning," Angel said, "I'm getting Zara. The club has my back, right?"

"Always, you know that, brother."

Angel nodded. "That's all I need to feel good about then."

—

Zara was almost amazed by their second location, had she not been there against her will she may have been able to appreciate it more. It was a massive cave in the desert, impressive in its size, with an extinguished campfire and two coolers.

"Were you here before?" She asked sheepishly.

Gabe nodded, gazing out into the desert as the sunset. "This was one of Adelita's spots, that's how I found it."

"What?" Zara sat up straight, eager to know more. "How could you track her?"

"My old man ran the Sonora cartel," Gabe explained. "I know people who heard of her when she first got started. Bastian was watching her for a while, he wanted to use her as an in, then he found you assholes. Easier to manipulate, I guess."

Zara didn't know that and the news hit her pretty hard. How long had Bastian been pulling strings and manipulating their lives?

"O-oh," she huffed.

"Listen, I'm dumping you soon, somewhere near the border," he said, suddenly seeming anxious. "This was such a bad idea," he said. Taking out his frustration, Gabe began repeatedly punching himself in the side of the head. "I'm so fucking stupid."

"No, you're not," Zara told him, growing more worried for her safety. "You're intense and you're passionate and you loved Molly. This may have been a mistake but you're not stupid."

Muttering to himself, Gabe began to pace the cave with an expression that showed his mounting panic.

"Angel is Bastian's little puppy, him and EZ," he said ominously. "This is a fucking trap. We gotta go now."

"No," Zara snapped. "It's not and even if it is I'll talk to them, as long as you don't hurt me I'll get you out of this hole." She knew they were working on finding her but the more they moved the less likely a rescue was. Zara was desperate to stay in that cave until Angel brought her out.

Gabe's eyes moved toward the entrance as if he caught a glimpse of movement or sounds of someone approaching that Zara had missed.

"Fuck," he hissed. "Now, let's go." Gabe moved to grab Zara off the ground but she fought wildly, getting a few strong kicks to his stomach and crotch. "You bitch," he snarled.

"Fuck you, I'm not leaving," she screamed, winging a large rock at him.

Gabe grabbed her ankles and roughly pulled her toward the opening. "Murder-suicide sounds perfect. We both lost our partners so what's the point?"

"I'm pregnant," she whimpered. "Please, Gabe. Please leave my baby alone."

"You're pregnant?" He growled. "So there is a little piece of Angel left in the world." Gabe crawled over her and wrapped his hands around her neck. "Not for long. I can finish what Mol started."

Zara didn't see what happened, she didn't see where Gabe had gone, she didn't see anything but suddenly she could breathe again. Gasping and choking, Zara sat up and moved to the back of the cave in a panic, wiping the tears from her eyes. She could hear the fight, punches, and grunts, but refused to open her eyes.

"You're fucking alive?!" Gabe bellowed, audibly out of breath. "Fuck this." Grabbing the gun from the ground, Gabe was seconds from shooting Zara when Angel fired, emptying the magazine into Gabe's chest.

"Angel," Zara cried, "Oh my god, my Angel." She ran to him, grabbing his face to make sure it was really him.

Angel groaned as she embraced him with all her strength, his wound and surgical incision burning from the force. "Are you okay?" He asked her urgently.

"I'm okay. I'm okay. Are you okay?"

"I'm hurtin," he admitted.

"Let's go, let's go," Coco said. "You need to get outta here before you kill yourself."

"Thank you," Zara said to Coco as he grabbed Angel to help him out of the cave.

"You good?" He asked her quietly.

Zara nodded. "I think so."

"She's gotta get checked out," Angel ordered.

"So do you," Coco and Zara said forcefully.

Gilly helped the newly reunited couple into the truck and they were off out of the desert toward the hospital.

"You can't leave him there," Zara whimpered. "What if someone finds him?"

"It's gonna get cleaned up," Creeper told her, pointing to Leary as he passed them in a pickup truck.

"I love you," Zara sniffled, kissing Angel's lips gently. "Thank you. Thank you for finding me."

Angel just nodded, too consumed by the pain in his chest and the urge to cry to speak. They dozed off, or passed out, on the ride with Zara clinging to him.

—

Drifting in and out from the truck to the hospital, Angel was startled when he woke up in her another hospital bed. When he opened his eyes to see Zara sitting on the edge of his bed, her hand holding his gently.

"I thought that was a fucking dream," he grumbled.

"Are you okay?" She asked him, stroking his cheek.

"I am," he smiled. Sitting up, Angel slipped his hand under her filthy and tattered shirt to touch her stomach. "The baby?"

"Okay, I think," she shrugged. "I was waiting for you to wake up to have an ultrasound to be sure."

"Let's go now."

"Calm down, they had to restitch the bullet wound, Angel. You could have been killed out there."

"I had to do it myself. I had to make it up to you after what happened with Campbell. Even after I killed him, every fucking day, I felt like a goddamn failure, I am a failure. I failed you. I failed our kid."

Zara glared at him. "You are not a failure. You saved my life, more than once, you helped transform the club into a fucking force, Angel."

"Can't change what happened to you," he whimpered.

"Angel, what happened wasn't your fault. It wasn't my fault," she whispered. "It wa-"

"Miss Osbourne?"

"Yes?" Zara turned to see the nurse standing in the doorway.

"You two ready?"

"Yeah," Angel was already getting out of bed. "I need to know the kid's okay."

They followed the nurse hand in hand to the open ultrasound room where the tech was waiting. The room was dim and so silent that Angel felt uncomfortable.

"Is this your first scan?" The tech asked casually.

Zara nodded. "Yes. I was due for a dating scan but uh, this happened."

"Well," the tech smiled, "Everything looks great." She turned the monitor around so Zara and Angel could see the flicker of their baby's heartbeat. "So great that you're actually having twins."

"What?" Zara inhaled shapely.

"Baby One," the tech pointed, "And Baby Two. I'll print you some pictures." She said, wiping Zara's stomach off and flicking off the screen.

"Fuck," Angel hissed. Unable to keep his composure, he kissed Zara's abdomen and gave her hand a squeeze before leaving the room. Knocking his head on the wall, Angel imagines life with two babies. Two innocent, helpless babies he was charged to love, protect and care for. It wasn't the love part that scared him, he already loved them beyond measure, it was everything else.

"I gotta do it," he said, psyching himself up, "I'm gonna do it. I'm not gonna be my old man."