The Next Day:
Jax pulled his black sweatshirt away from his eyes, expecting his wife to be next to him.
He slowly sat up in the bed, feeling his stiff muscles begin to stretch and contract underneath his skin.
He set his feet onto the wooden floor, placing his hands on each side of him to lift himself upright.
Once he finally suceeded in doing so, he picked up his cellphone off of the nightstand.
He pushed the power button on his phone to check what time it was.
12:00 pm.
Jax sighed, shoving his phone in the back of his jeans.
He didn't want to sleep all morning.
The earlier he was awake, the more time he could put in on finding his son.
He made his way out of the bedroom, advancing down the short hallway.
From afar, he discovered the bathroom door open and its light on.
He reached the bathroom, spotting Mel dressed for the day, wearing a fitted black tanktop, standing in front of the mirror with her stitched up bullet wound in her right shoulder on full display.
"Hey darlin'."
I looked up in the mirror to find my husband standing directly behind me.
"Hey baby. Did you sleep well?"
I turned around, giving him a kiss on the lips.
"Not too bad. I didn't really want to sleep till noon though."
"Jax, you needed the sleep which is why I didn't wake you," I replied, turning back around to face the mirror.
I opened the medicated cream Maureen supplied me with, squeezing a generous amount onto my fingertips.
I carefully applied the cream onto the sealed wound until it was completely absorbed into my skin.
"How is the shoulder?", he asked as he watched me tape a fresh bandage over one of my horrible reminders of yesterday.
"I'd be lyin' to ya if I said it didn't hurt. How are you?"
"I'm good. I'm still breathin'."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, I'm sure."
"Okay. Hey, do you mind changing the other bandage for me?"
"Yeah, no problem."
Jax carefully peeled off the used bandage on the back of my shoulder. He tossed the used bandage into the nearby trash basket.
His eyes remained glued to where the bullet made its exit.
He brought his right hand to my shoulder, allowing his fingertips to lightly trace over the injured area.
His hand gripped the top of my forearm, pulling me backward gently until I was flush against him.
He lowered his head, giving my shoulder a tender kiss.
"I'm so sorry that this happened to you," he mumbled against my skin.
"I should've been here to protect you, Mel. If I was here.."
"Don't. Don't you dare apologize. What happened to me is not your fault. It's no one's fault but Jimmy's. Do you hear me?"
Jax looked up at me in the mirror.
"I hear you loud and clear, Torres."
"It's Teller, handsome. Or have you forgotten that I married you?"
"I'll never forget that because that was one of the best days of my life. Pass me that cream and a new bandage."
I nodded, handing him the cream first.
"Jimmy will pay for what he did to you. I can promise you that. No one gets away with fucking hurting you," he threatened, handing me back the cream.
I set the cap on top of the tube, twisting it until it was sealed shut.
I picked up a bandage out of the first aid kit, passing it to him over my shoulder.
He pressed the bandage against my skin.
"Tape."
I ripped off two pieces of tape, sticking them to the tips of my fingers.
He took one at a time, securing the bandage against my back.
"Thank you," I stated, laying my head back against his chest.
He wrapped his arms around me, kissing the top of my head.
"You're welcome."
Maureen came down the hallway until she reached the bathroom.
"I'm sorry to interrupt, but my brother is here and he'd like to speak to you both."
"Okay, we'll be there in a minute," I replied, closing the first aid kit.
Jax and I walked side by side down the hallway, meeting the shady priest in the living room.
"I just want to start off by saying how sorry I am about Padric. He was a good lad."
"We lost four other members yesterday. That blast was meant for Samcro. Jimmy was behind that fucking blast."
"Aye, but we need proof of that Jackson in order to recieve full support of the army."
(Break)
I sat on the bed as Jax moved around our temporary bedroom to get dressed for the day.
" Jesus christ, your proof that you need is wearing a reaper? I wish I could say that's hard to get my mind around, but that asshole just reeks of betrayal."
"Yup. O'Neill was the only one not in the barn when all of us were blown to hell. It makes sense. Once he confesses that Jimmy was behind the explosition, which he will, I can move forward with killing Jimmy and we will get our son back."
"You can ask Cherry pie. She's downstairs, sweeping the store. If anyone knows where O'Neill is, it's her."
Cherry stopped sweeping altogether when the entire club entered the store, where as Mel and Gemma were already in the store behind the counter.
"Cherry, we need to find your old man."
She shook her head as her hand tightened around the handle of the aged broom.
"I know what that means. It means you're gonna kill him right?"
"I need him to fill in some blanks. Once those blanks are filled, I get my son back," Jax pleaded, but Cherry didn't budge.
"He's been more distant than usual. He doesn't tell me shit anymore. I'm sorry, I honestly have no idea where he is."
Gemma and I both exchanged a glance.
We knew she was full of shit.
The club was ready to file out of the store when I decided to speak up.
"Wait."
"What is it, Mel," Jax asked.
"Cherry is full of shit. She knows exactly where her old man is."
"Mel, I'm not lying."
"Yes, you are. And hey I get it. If I was in your shoes, I'd want to do the same thing because I love my man. But, if he was responsible for multiple deaths and betrayed the men that are his family, his brothers, I can't see myself wanting to stay loyal to him. So, tell us what you know Cherry."
"He uh.. he has a loft at the storage docks. It's about twenty miles from here. Maybe he's there."
Jax came up to her, standing only inches away from her.
"You won't like what happens to you if you decide to lie to the club again, especially if it has to do with my family. Do you understand?," Jax whispered in her ear.
She nodded frantically, pushing her back against the closest wall.
(Break)
Jax and the club finally made it home round ten o'clock.
Everyone except one member came into the house.
My husband.
I moved past the guys and went outside.
I stood at the top of the stairs, leaning against the wooden rail in search for him.
He was on his cellphone, leaning against one of the picnic tables by the Sambel clubhouse.
I headed down the stairs and across the lot to reach him.
Once I came into his view, he said goodbye to whoever was on the other line and ended the call.
"Hey handsome," I greeted, coiling my arms around his neck.
"Hey babe."
I stood on the tops of my toes, giving him a kiss on the lips.
"I'd hate to sound like the typical nosy wife, but my curiousity is taking over full force. Who was that on the phone?"
"It was Piney. He wanted to check in and see where we're at with finding Abel."
"And where are we at?"
"From the looks of it, we'll have him back in our arms by tomorrow."
A huge smile crossed my face.
"Really? You really mean that?"
"As serious as a heart attack, Mel."
I pulled Jax into another tight embrace.
I loosened my grip, resting my hands on each side of his face.
"I'm so glad this is almost over and we can become a family again."
Jax wasn't expressing the same level of excitement as I was.
That was the tell tale sign that something was still plaguing him.
"What is it, baby?"
"When Clay and I met with the IRA earlier, the deal was changed. They're taking care of Jimmy instead of me. All Kellan said was we'll talk later."
"Do you think he's gonna renege about handing over Abel?"
"I don't know."
"Then you do what you have to do. He doesn't leave this god damn place until he gives us the location on where our son is."
(Break)
As I entered the house, Gemma looked at me with a puzzled expression.
"What is it, sweetheart? Did Jax get the address?"
"I need a set of car keys," I stated, walking past the living room.
Gemma stood up and followed me.
"Mel, why do you need a set of keys? What's going on?"
I ran my hand through my hair, feeling a set of tears itching to force themselves from my eyes.
"Jax went and talked to the priest. Twenty minutes later, he comes out, looking broken and drove off on his bike. He wouldn't talk to me or even look me in the eye. I need to go after him to find out what the fuck happened in that room."