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Taming Ava & Fixing Jax - A Modern Fairytale

Chapter 19 My Husband's Been What?

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Ava was pleased to discover that after more than two weeks of marriage her life wasn't much different from when she was single. That was the advantage to having an inmate for a husband.

She did visit Jax, talk to him on the phone once a week and write to him weekly as well, so it would look like she was a good dutiful wife—something she would never be if he weren't in prison. Of course, she had given up dating and partying. Moving to Charming had resulted in her giving up shopping since there wasn't much available and it was a drive to go anywhere with decent shopping. She had actually been forced into internet shopping, but it just wasn't the same.

Today Jax was supposed to call her. The time varied based on when he got in line for the phone and how many guys were ahead of him. He had never been this late before. Maybe he wasn't going to call. That was fine with her, but she was annoyed that he didn't let her know that he wasn't going to call so she didn't have to wait around. She could have gotten her nails done.

She was in the middle of watching a Hallmark movie when her phone rang. Jax was more than three hours late.

"Is this Mrs. Jax Teller?" a woman's voice asked.

Ava hadn't changed her name and had no plans to do so. Too much paperwork and then there would be more work to change it back. Besides, she had a better place in the alphabet and it was feeding into the toxic masculinity climate for a woman to change her last name to a man's. Women's last names mattered.

"Who wants to know?" Ava demanded.

"This is Dolores Jones at Kensington Federal Prison."

"I'm married to Jax Teller, but my name is Ava Becker. I don't believe in all that name changing patriarchal crap."

"Ms. Becker, I regret to inform you that your husband has been injured in a fight."

"Did he get hurt?"

"He was shivved several times."

"He was what?"

"He was attacked with a prison knife."

"What the hell is wrong with you people letting prisoners have knives? He is going to be OK?"

Ava was worried. If something happened to Jax, she didn't have the money to hire another husband.

"The wounds are deep and near the heart. He has been transported to San Francisco General Hospital's prison ward. He should be out of surgery soon and you can visit him."

Ava hung the phone up feeling stunned. She wasn't sure what to do. She decided to talk to her father. Since moving to Charming, he'd been spending a lot of time at home working out of his office.

Ava walked over to his office and tapped at the door frame. She'd started to do that as a small child and had continued.

"Come in Ava. You really don't have to do that knocking thing."

"Old habits. I just got a really disturbing phone call from the prison. Jax got stabbed with a prison knife and he's having surgery."

"Where did he get stabbed?" her father asked looking up from his laptop screen. He didn't read actual papers much anymore. Everything was on his computer.

"Near the heart. He's having surgery and is in . . ." Ava paused trying to remember, "San Francisco General Hospital."

TB looked at his daughter and realized that she had no clue what she needed to do. She had a lot of growing up to do and he needed to pitch in and help her figure this out.

"Go pack a bag in case we need to stay a few days depending on his condition. I'll call Elliot to have the car brought around."

"We? Are you coming with me?" Ava looked at her father uncertainly.

"Of course," he said. "Your husband is having emergency surgery."

"He was stabbed with a prison knife. Why do they let them have knives in prison?"

TB looked at his daughter and wondered how she could be so naïve and out of touch with the real world.

"To cut their steaks with," he said. He couldn't resist.

"I guess that makes sense."

"Ava, they do not let prisoners have knives," her father said with a sad shake of his head. "They make them out of whatever they can find."

"Jax fights a lot in prison," Ava said with a sigh.

"Do you know why?"

"Toxic masculinity," Ava said promptly.

"He fights to stay alive," her father said sharply. "It's a fucking prison not a nightclub. Go pack and hurry."

He couldn't rely on Jax to completely finish raising Ava. He needed to step in. He should have done it when she was growing up, but he'd never been comfortable around children or teens.

A half hour later with bags for each of them packed, Elliot was driving them to San Francisco General Hospital.

TB continued to work on his laptop.

"What did Gemma say?" TB asked about an hour into their drive finally looking up from his laptop.

Ava looked up from her phone where she was reading magazines.

"Gemma? I don't know. I haven't talked to her since the wedding."

"You didn't call to tell her about Jax?"

Ava thought about that for a moment frowning.

"No. I'm sure the prison called."

"Ava," her father said trying hard to hold on to his patience. "the prison called you because as Jax's wife you are his next of kin. You should have contacted Gemma. Call her now and tell her what's happened. If she needs a ride, I can have Elliot drop us off and then return to Charming for her."

"I don't have her phone number."

"Ask your phone for her number and call her right now."

Ava rolled her eyes and scowled at her father. For a moment she was back to her teenage years. She hated to be told what to do, but she should make sure that Gemma knew about Jax. She deserved that much since she was his mother.

She called Gemma at TM. The prison hadn't called her just as her father suspected. She told Gemma about Jax's medical condition and that she and her father were on their way to the hospital. Gemma told her that she would see them at the hospital.

"Let me talk to Gemma," TB said.

Ava handed her cell phone to her father.

He told her that he'd gotten two hotel suites at a nearby hotel and invited her and any of her family members to stay in one of them as his guest.

Ava stared at her father and wondered what the hell was going on between Gemma and her father.