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General trigger warnings for this story: Language, smut, mentions of rape, abuse, drug use/overdose, violence/death.

CHAPTER 66: GUARDIAN ANGEL

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Sydney sat down at her desk in the TM office for the first time since the shooting, sorting through the stacks of papers that had piled up in her absence. Her and Tig had been up until nearly 5:00 A.M. and she was exhausted, but she couldn't be more thrilled to have something to do other than sitting around and thinking about all of the things that she couldn't do.

"God, I've missed you." Gemma chortled as she watched the eager young woman as she zipped through inventory sheets at the speed of light.

"I bet you have." Sydney chuckled, gulping back the caramel iced latte that she had spruced up for the lengthy day ahead of her with three espresso shots.

"How's the leg feeling?" Gemma asked.

"Fine." Sydney nodded, avoiding her skeptical gaze.

"Surprised to hear that." Gemma scoffed, tossing her glasses onto her keyboard.

"I told you I would be fine." Sydney shrugged with a theatrical smile and roll of her eyes.

"Yeah well, forgive me for believing the Doctor instead of you." Gemma widened her eyes incredulously.

"Apology accepted." Sydney nodded curtly, returning to her paperwork with a mischievous smile as she felt Gemma's narrowing eyes penetrating the top of her head.

"Mornin." Clay's voice filled the office, breaking the tension in the nick of time. "How you doin?" He nodded to Sydney.

"Jesus." Sydney scoffed. "I can carry out a hit just fine but you're worried about how I'm feeling sitting at a desk?" She smiled playfully.

"I'll take that as a good sign." Clay chuckled at her familiar antics, leaning down to kiss Gemma on the cheek.

"Goddamit." They all turned to see Bobby grumbling as he entered the office. "Need the number for the sewage guys. Someone's flushing panties again."

"Again?" Clay scowled, looking to the women for an explanation.

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Hale stormed into Unser's office where Stahl was sitting at the desk, slamming the door behind him. "I cannot believe that we let them sneak her out under noses while you and I were-" He shook his head angrily. He had been so worried about Sydney getting in the way of him doing his job properly this whole time, but ironically it had been someone on his own team that had kept him from carrying out the duties that he'd committed himself to by oath.

"Oh ease up, sweetheart." She scoffed. "Don't slit your wrists just yet." She pulled two pieces of paper out of her briefcase.

"Cherry was half your case?" He scowled.

"Oakland D.A.'s office just faxed me these." She placed the papers down onto the desk in front of her, pushing them towards him. "Turned up an eyewitness to Hefner's murder - ID'd two guys."

"Holy shit…" Hale exclaimed when he immediately recognized the faces of the composite sketches sitting in front of him. "Bobby Elvis… And this looks like Opie."

"I sent their mugshots - we should have a positive ID by this afternoon." She grabbed her purse and stood from the chair. "Screw the tart - this gives us our present-day crime." She leaned into his ear. "Now I am gonna go and get me some yesterday." She whispered as she bit his earlobe, leaving him stunned.

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"So, who do you think the panty thief is?" Sydney grinned to Tig from across the table where they were eating lunch in the sun.

"Babe." Tig groaned as he chewed the last bite of his BLT, wiping his mouth and tossing the napkin down into the now empty takeout container. "I don't wanna think about which one of my brothers is snatching my old lady's panties, okay?"

"You used to be fun." She rolled her eyes, stabbing a crouton with her plastic fork.

"I'm not fun because I like to keep some integrity for my woman?" He deadpanned.

"Yeah." She nodded theatrically, trying to keep a straight face as she pushed her unfinished salad aside, but when she looked back up he had already turned his attention away from her - picking at a piece of chipped paint on the wooden picnic table. "Come on, Tiggy." She lifted her bare feet up onto his lap, bouncing them up and down. "Was loving on me all night really that bad?" She pouted, knowing that he was just cranky from the lack of sleep - especially after the hard time that he had given her this morning when she had tried to get him out of bed. But if he wanted to continue giving her a hard time - she would do the same.

"No." He sighed, rubbing his thumbs into the soles of her feet. "Come here." He nodded to his side of the bench.

Sydney dropped her facade easily, a grin spreading across her face as she hopped up quickly and pranced around the table before jumping into his lap.

Tig couldn't help the smile that pulled at his lips when he realized that this was what she had wanted all along, shaking his head with a laugh as he wrapped his arms around her. "You gonna tell me who you think it is?" He asked as he pulled back with a raised brow.

"I have a real good theory." She nodded excitedly.

"Let's hear it, doll." He responded with as much energy as he could conjure up.

Sydney chuckled when she saw how hard he was trying. "Okay, I'm between Juice and Half-Sack." She began.

"No surprise there." He scoffed.

"But my money is on Juice. I'm convinced that he's gay and the little panty stealin operation he's got goin on is all just a tactic to condition himself. Same with going after those blondes twice his size." She chuckled.

Tig threw his head back and laughed - regretting turning down her initial request to speak on the subject. "What?" She exclaimed, laughing with him as a warmth spread through her while he squeezed her tightly and pressed his lips against her neck.

"You're too good, Princess." He snickered. "Too good."

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As the afternoon rolled in, Sydney found herself getting more and more anxious as the minutes seemed to pass twice as fast, getting closer to the many situations that she wanted to avoid: running into Happy, her doctor's appointment, and Tig who would surely insist on accompanying her at her doctor's appointment.

"Hey." She snapped her head up as an idea came to her, looking at Gemma across the room. "Would you mind if I take off a little earlier than I'd said? I wanna say goodbye to Cherry… Make sure Sack is okay." If she could stay one step ahead of the Tacoma Killer's movements, she would at least be able to knock one of her many concerns off of her list.

"Sure." Gemma nodded. "You might see Tara up there - asked her to bring up the rest of Cherry's stuff."

"Tara?" Sydney raised a brow, surprised to hear that name coming out of Gemma's mouth in a way that wasn't bitter.

"I'm trying, okay." Gemma widened her eyes.

"Yeah." Sydney scoffed as she grabbed her purse, wanting to get a move on before Happy arrived on the compound. "You just needed some extra help while I was out of commission." She smirked.

"Feds won't follow her." Gemma winked.

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"Hey." Tig heard from behind him where he was bent over the engine of a white Malibu, smiling as he felt Sydney's long nails running over his back.

"Hey." He turned over his shoulder, leaning down to peck her lips as he wiped the grease from his hands. "Time to go already?" He squinted at the clock across the garage.

"Uh, no." She felt the dread wash over her once again as he reminded her that she still needed to find a way around that problem. "But I was hoping that you would take me to the cabin so that I can say goodbye to Cherry…" She looked up at him with wide eyes and an innocent smile. She knew that he would ditch work for just about anything, but she still wanted to give him the satisfaction of acting like he needed convincing.

"You really came around to the little tart, didn't ya?" He smirked.

"It was never her that I didn't like." She rolled her eyes with a chuckle, glad that they had moved on to the stage of the incident where they could joke about it.

"Yeah, of course I can, babe. But uh… Isn't Hap gonna be here soon?" He looked out across the compound.

"Yes…" Sydney nodded slowly with wide eyes, hoping that he would catch on.

Tig nodded along slowly with her, squinting his eyes and biting his lip until he finally understood what she was getting at - realising why she really wanted to go to the cabin. He was a little surprised, even though they hadn't talked about it since she had gotten upset, he had expected that this thing with Happy was nothing more than the result of her heightened emotions during her recovery and would calm down as her injury did - but now he worried that maybe it was more serious than that.

"Okay, let me get changed." He nodded, kissing her temple.

"Thanks." She squeezed his hand before he pulled away completely, turning over her shoulder as she heard footsteps approaching. "Hey." She nodded to Jax. "How did last night go?"

"I'm worried, man." He chewed his lip as he turned a wrench in his hands while he watched Tig saunter across the compound.

"Why?" She scowled. As far as she knew, the night had gone accordingly to plan and then some. But as soon as she saw the pain behind his eyes, she knew exactly what it was. "Ope…"

"He's gonna get himself killed with this half in, half out shit. Trust me, I would know." He scoffed.

"A guy with something to prove but a lot to lose is a dangerous thing…" She nodded as she carefully assessed the situation.. "What do you want?" She asked pointedly with a matching gaze.

"I've learned my lesson." He assured her. "Just not sure how to get him to learn his without putting him through the shit I went through."

"Sweetheart, he's already been through it." She scoffed. "If he was gonna learn a lesson the way that you did, he would've learned it already."

"I don't know…" He rubbed the back of his neck skeptically. The human in him hoped that her words were true, but the leader in him feared that they were.

"Opie made his choice, Jax." She looked deep into his eyes as she tried to convey the message that he was still trying to deny. "Him staying in is about money - nothing else. The only way to guarantee his safety is to give him what he wants."

"Sounds a little against your club code there, Cali Queen." He smirked.

"Safety aint the only thing that money can buy. It can buy loyalty too." She nodded, watching his doubt turn to confusion. "Keep him on small jobs. Jobs that make him feel important but don't make him feel like he will lose it all if he gets caught or distracted. Runs, protection, intel, whatever. He gets what he wants, and so do you." She explained.

Jax looked down at their matching white sneakers as he listened to her advice, nodding along firmly with the strength of her words. "Okay." He agreed, deciding that this truly was the smartest option that kept all parties safe. "Thanks."

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Sydney sat in the passenger seat of the van as Tig drove them down the bumpy dirt road that led to the cabin, clutching the door for support as they rolled over tree roots and potholes. She felt the pit of dread in her stomach slowly beginning to rise into a panic in her chest, trying to keep calm as she stared out into the dense woods and told herself over and over that somehow, everything would be fine.

"You nervous?" Tig's voice pulled her from her thoughts, but she didn't comprehend what he had asked as she blinked and tried to refocus her eyes. "About your appointment." He clarified, nodding to her leg.

"Oh, yeah." She nodded quickly, deciding that it was close enough to the truth.

"Don't worry, babe. I'll be right there with you." He nodded as he placed his hand on her knee and squeezed it comfortingly.

"Yeah." She forced a smile as she placed her hand overtop of his, that was what she was worried about... "I'm just excited to wear my normal fucking clothes again." She scoffed as the van rolled to a stop outside of the cabin, looking down at the giant blue hoodie that she was wearing as a dress.

"I like these clothes." Tig purred, pulling at the hem of the bulky garment that swallowed her frame with a playful grin.

"You only like em cause you know what's underneath." She teased with an eye roll, making to get out before she felt herself being pulled back.

"Exactly." He grinned, pulling her to his lips where he kissed her sweetly.

Sydney felt herself smiling against his lips, almost enjoying the tender moment before the guilt flooded her once again. "Come on." She pulled away, nodding towards the cabin. "Bet you won't miss riding in a cage." She called over her shoulder with a smirk as she ascended the few stairs up to the door, her ponytail bouncing with each step.

"I could get used to it." He tried to be as convincing as possible as he stood beside her while she knocked on the door.

"Uh-huh…" She nodded skeptically with a raised brow. "You'd strip that patch for me, ride in a cage and be a law-abiding husband the rest of your life?" She mused.

"I might." He stayed firm with his hands on his hips, fighting the grimace as he thought about adjusting to a normal life after decades of being an outlaw.

Even though Sydney knew that they were just joking around, it still tugged at her heartstrings to hear that he would even consider giving up everything he had ever known, just for her.

"I would never want you to do that." She whispered as she wrapped an arm around his waist and took his face in her sleeve-covered hand, the tips of her fingers grazing the stubble on his cheek.

"I know you wouldn't, baby." He whispered back as he rested his forehead against hers. "That's why I love you." He nodded, lowering his lips to hers in a slow, long kiss before they were startled by the door opening.

"Glad to see you're okay." Cameron scoffed as he opened the door to the romantic embrace, smirking as stepped aside to let them in.

Sydney bit the inside of her lip as a bashful smile came to her face, looking up at Tig who was fighting the blush creeping up his neck.

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Tara winded down the dirt road that wove in and out of the dense forest, squinting as she peered through the sparse openings in the tall trees in search of the log cabin that Gemma had given her loose directions to. She felt herself beginning to panic as she reached a narrow ridge after ten minutes of driving aimlessly through the woods, one that her wide car barely fit on. There was no way that there was a cabin all the way out here? In this thick brush? She began worrying that this had been a set up - that Gemma had just been pretending to warm up to her so that she could get her out here and whack her, but she willed herself to calm down when she remembered that Jax had talked with her about the cabin in these woods many times.

She reached for her phone, opening her call log to see Gemma's name, but she couldn't make herself press call - not after she had finally made her way into the Queen's good books and had been trusted with something to help the club. Especially when just weeks ago she had come close to being the cause of the club's demise.

She scrolled further down the list, landing on the name of someone who she hoped would be able to help her without it getting back to Gemma.

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Otto sat on the hard metal bench in the interrogation room where he had been propositioned by the fed the day before, but the cold metal, the blasting air conditioning, and the fear of turning rat did nothing to dull his spirits as he sat with his wife in his arms as she kissed all around his face, over and over again for the first time in years - not daring to wish for anything more.

"Jax said that ATF is using RICO against the club." He heard in his ear. "Are the feds pressing you to turn… Because of me?" She began whimpering as he held him tight.

The blissful comfort that Otto had been able to enjoy for a few short minutes began to fade away. "No, no, no, baby - I took care of it." He nodded assuringly. "I got you clear." He told her softly. He wished that things didn't have to be this way, but he wasn't a greedy man - he knew that this was what he signed up for when he took the patch.

"Jesus, Otto…" Luann's eyes widened. "Did you rat?" She let the dirty word pass through her lips as they quivered in fear. "If Clay sees that I got out he'll know that you made some kind of deal, you know what they'll do to you…" She wove her shaky hands into his long hair.

"Don't worry, baby. Don't worry." He stroked her long, golden locks. "I'll get a message to the MC." He knew exactly what he needed to do to make sure that she, and his club stayed safe.

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Sydney sat on the couch with Tig as Cameron relayed the plan that he had for their guns moving forward, confident that he would be able to get everything set up in Ireland and have his son handle the business locally without alerting the feds.

"Excuse me…" Sydney looked to the Irishman apologetically as her phone began ringing, pushing herself off of the couch and walking out the backdoor, looking down to see Tara's name. "Hey, you okay?" She answered, expecting that the doctor would've been there by now.

"I'm kind of freaking out." Tara sighed.

"Why?"

"Do you know anything about that cabin that the guys talk about?"

"Uh, yeah. A thing or two." Sydney replied as she stood on the back porch, looking over her shoulder at the very building that she was being asked about.

"You got any idea where it is?" Tara chuckled. "It feels like I've been driving for way too long and these roads don't look like they were meant to be driven on."

"That's the point." Sydney smirked. "I'm assuming you just passed over that narrow ridge, mountain on the left?"

"Yup…" Tara pursed her lips with a nod as she looked to her left to see exactly what Sydney was talking about. "So I am going the right way?"

"Gemma is many things but a bad director isn't one of them." Sydney chuckled.

"Guess I'm just a little paranoid."

"I'll stay on the phone with you until you get there."

"Thanks." Tara nodded as she followed the winding road until she reached the top of the small mountain. "Down the hill?" She asked.

"Yep. Left at the T once you reached the bottom."

"Okay." The brunette breathed a sigh of relief, her eyes widening as she looked out at the beautiful scene from the top of the mountain. "Wow…" She drawled as she came to a stop, letting herself take it all in.

"Gorgeous, isn't it?" Sydney smiled as Tara approached the exact same spot that never failed to take her breath away.

"Breathtaking…" She looked over the mass of pine trees that covered the surface of peaks and valleys that stretched on forever. "Never thought I'd see something like this in California…" She shook her head as she began rolling down the hill.

"No wonder you hate it here." Sydney scoffed. "You haven't seen any of the good stuff."

"I don't hate California…" She realized. "Maybe just… Me in it."

"How are you feeling about you in it, now?" Sydney broached the touchy subject with the flighty woman. "Things seem better with Gemma." She pointed out optimistically.

"Yeah." Tara nodded fondly. "Yeah, they are. I just hope it lasts…" She chortled as she reached the bottom of the hill, turning left as Sydney had instructed.

"Me too." Sydney chuckled, hearing Tara's car in the distance. "You should be almost there."

"Yeah! I see the van. Thanks." She smiled, sighing in relief.

"No problem. I'll talk to you soon." She smirked as she hung up, walking down the steps and rounding the cabin where she saw Tara getting out of her car. "Fancy seeing you here!" She called with a grin as she approached.

Tara scowled when she heard Sydney's voice, looking down at her phone to make sure that she had ended the call, but her scowl only deepened when she realized that the sound wasn't coming from her phone. She looked around, a humourless chuckle leaving her chest when her eyes landed on the blonde girl.

"I guess if I'm gonna stick around, I should start getting used to this, huh?" She pursed her lips as she rested her chin on her folded hands on the roof of her car.

"I'd recommend it." Sydney shrugged back smugly as she pulled a pack of smokes out of the pocket of her hoodie - not bothering to offer one to the uptight brunette who she knew would decline.

"How do you do that…" Tara shook her head in awe as she looked over Sydney. Even with a crippling injury - she still managed to look like she could grace a magazine cover at any second. Her hair had been tightly curled and pulled into a bouncy high ponytail, and her flawless face was painted with the perfect amount of makeup.

"What?" Sydney looked up as she flicked her lighter. "Smoke?" She asked as the smoke billowed from her mouth.

"No." Tara laughed. "Trust me, I've seen enough of that to stop asking about it. I mean… This." She gestured to Sydney in her effortlessly stylish outfit, wondering how she always seemed to look so perfect no matter what she was dealing with.

"Eh, practice." Sydney shrugged as she ashed her cigarette against the side mirror of Tara's car from where she stood on the opposite side. "They say the eyes are the window to the soul… But I don't think that's true." She shook her head slowly as she took another drag. "The appearance is the window to the soul. You look like shit? People know exactly what you're feeling."

Tara nodded slowly, really taking the time to understand what Sydney was saying - these were things that she needed to pick up and learn how to apply to herself if she wanted to be the old lady that Jax needed.

"How's the pain?" She nodded to Sydney's leg.

"In and out." Sydney lied, looking down at her white shoes in the dirt when a genius idea came to her. "Hey! Do you think you could take me to my follow-up?" Her eyes lit up.

"Yeah…" Tara's brow creased slightly, wondering why Sydney seemed so excited about having company to get her stitches removed - but she realized as soon as the cabin door opened and Tig emerged. "Ah…" She nodded to Sydney knowingly, who nodded back with pursed lips.

"Hi, baby." Sydney turned around to face Tig as he approached, pulling out a cigarette for him.

Tig nodded, smiling at Sydney as he placed his hand on the small of her back. "Hey, doc." He smiled politely to Tara who returned the gesture. "You find this place okay?" He squinted as he lit up, looking out into the trees.

"I uh… I had some help." Tara chuckled as she looked to Sydney.

"Um, speaking of help." Sydney looked up at him. "Tara's going to the hospital from here, so she's just going to take me to my appointment. That way you can go home and sleep." She tried to sweeten the deal for him as much as possible.

"Nah, baby don't worry about that." Tig shook his head. "I don't mind." The last thing that he wanted was for his crankiness this morning to push her into feeling like a burden - a thought that he now knew was still fresh in her mind.

"I offered." Tara interjected. "If I bring her in as a friend, I can get Dr. Barnes to do the appointment pro bono. He owes me." She chuckled.

Sydney looked over her shoulder at the older woman gratefully, turning back to Tig with those pleading, glossy eyes as she nodded. "You sure?" He asked sincerely, his heart clenching a little when she nodded. As much as he wanted to fight back, he knew that it was best to continue allowing her to do things at her own pace - if the last few weeks had shown him anything, it was that she would come to him if he gave her the chance. "Okay." He nodded, rubbing her back. "Need to save all the money that you can to pay off that fancy table, huh?" He smirked.

"Exactly." She grinned as she winded her arms around his neck. "Go and get some sleep. Come over when you wake up. You can help remind me why I bought that fancy table." She smiled playfully.

"Okay." Tig nodded with a smile, deciding that this trade off wasn't horrible if it meant that he got the rest that his aging body was longing for, and the peace of mind that his cruel conscience needed.

Sydney smiled when he agreed, feeling the relief radiating from her body as she peppered his lips with appreciative kisses. "Okay, okay." Tig chuckled, pulling her down away from his lips. "Don't make the good doctor regret it." He looked to Tara who was standing on the other side of the car with an awkward smile and reddening cheeks.

Sydney smiled bashfully, her grin widening when Tig winked at her before he climbed into the van. "Thank you…" She nodded to the dark haired woman sincerely once the grey vehicle was out of sight.

"That man loves you." Tara shook her head in admiration, still a little shocked by the genuineness of the odd pairing.

"I know." Sydney sighed, looking down the road longingly before she was pulled from her guilt by the sound of a different vehicle approaching. "For fuck's sake…" She grumbled when Happy came into view in the truck, but her forehead creased when Gemma pulled up behind him.

"Jax couldn't make it." Gemma told the two women as she stepped out of her Caddy with a stern look on her face as she attempted to get used to the idea of Tara being around.

"It's a family fuckin affair I guess." Sydney scoffed, throwing her cigarette butt into the dirt as Happy joined their circle.

Gemma looked between the two former San Bernardino residents, immediately picking up on the tension between them as they stared each other down, clearly waiting for the other to speak.

Happy gave Sydney a curt nod once he felt Gemma's eyes on him, not daring to hash this out in front of the Matriarch. He gave a courteous glance around the circle at the other two women before making his way to the cabin to collect his cargo.

Sydney couldn't believe her luck. She had somehow managed to squash every single dilemma that had been weighing on her mind since she'd woken up that morning. The only thing that she had left to tackle was her doctor's appointment herself, but she welcomed that challenge now that she no longer had the worry of Tig finding out the truth.

"What's going on there?" Gemma probed, bringing her back to earth.

"You know how families are." Sydney shrugged, taking a deep breath of cleansing forest air before following him inside.

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Stahl sat watching the tape in the security room down the hall from where Otto and Luann were having their visit, sighing as looked up from his statement that he'd written on a napkin to see the same uneventful scene playing out that had been for the last thirty minutes: the couple hugging and crying.

"Poor Otto…" She sighed. "Not even a handjob." She scoffed as Luann shakily made her way to the door - turning the head of the camera technician who had been sitting behind her.

"Just talked to the DA…" Hale entered the room. "Eyewitness could only ID Bobby Munson - couldn't get a positive on Opie." He grinded his teeth in worry.

Stahl shrugged at the dreary news, looking back to the transcript she had printed of Otto's statement - the statement that she needed to nail this shit coffin shut.

"After this? They all go down." She smirked as she stared at the screen which now displayed the traitor of a man sitting alone with his head down at the table.

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"Alright kids, wrap it up! It's time to go." Cherry and Half-Sack heard Gemma calling from outside the bedroom door where they had been trying for the last half an hour to say their final goodbyes.

Cherry felt the tears pricking at her eyes once again, clutching at his dog tag that she had placed around her neck while she grabbed at the one still around his which now held her charm. "Don't forget me." She choked out.

Half-Sack brought her into his arms where he hugged her for the very last time. "Never." He whispered with his lips on the top of her head. She nodded with her face buried in his chest, inhaling the last bit of his scent before she pulled away and led him out the door.

"Ready for the road trip, kids?" They were greeted by Happy's gravelly voice as he stood in the doorway, nodding sadly. "Let's go, Cammy." Happy nodded to the Irishman, wanting to get out of that house as quickly as he could.

Cameron nodded to the bald man, turning towards Gemma. "Thanks for everything, love." He accepted her hug with a smile.

"Be safe." She told him as she patted him on the back gently.

"Always am." He winked, making his way to the door where Tara and Sydney were standing. "Thank you…" He nodded to the little blonde girl. "I mean that. You're a tough little lass. Give these men a run for their money, I'd imagine."

"Eh, I try." Sydney shrugged with a wink, pulling the foreigner in for a hug.

"I want you to have this." He reached into his pocket as he pulled away. "Soldiers need guardian angels too." He looked into her green eyes sincerely as he handed her his rosary.

Sydney turned the cross in her hands as a warm smile came to her face when he referred to her as a soldier. "I've got one." She nodded gratefully.

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