Disclaimer: I don't own Sons of Anarchy or anything else associated with the franchise. All that beautiful goodness comes from its creators. Thank you
Story is rated M for mature themes, language and sexual content.
Note: This is a rather long chapter. But I wanted to finish season 1, which I am so excited to have done. I do intend for this story to end at the beginning of season 4 and as long as I keep my motivation up have a squeal that will contain the last seasons.
Her head was pounding from all the noises that suddenly set in around her as she finally pushed Hale away from her. He called out for her, but she ignored him walking forward towards the crime scene. Her eyes landed on Jax and Chibs pulling Opie away from the body of his wife as he shouted out telling them to leave him alone.
She was running then at a break neck speed towards him, "Opie!"
His head snapped up at her voice and he broke away from Jax and Chibs before stumbling headlong towards her. She leapt into his arms and wrapped hers tightly around his neck as he sobbed into hers. They remained there for several minutes just holding onto one enough before Opie set her back down on the ground. Both her hands moved to his right arm and she pulled him towards Donna's car, "I'll take you home, come on.
"Clary." Jax called for her as Opie and her made their way to the car.
She glanced over her shoulder meeting his eyes and shaking her head letting him know not now. He stopped and stared at them for a second a broken-hearted look on his face, but he nodded in understanding. Clary held onto Opie's arm as they walked forward back to the tiny little car that he had arrived in. Reaching it she grabbed the passenger side door and opened it for him to climb in. He didn't say anything as he got into the car and she pushed the door shut.
Walking around to the driver side she looked over to see Clay and Unser talking just a few feet away. Even at this distance she could hear Unser, "The guy walking his dog said he saw a black SUV roll up on the truck. Shot her through the back of the window and…."
The police chief finally seemed to notice her and stopped talking when he saw her looking at them. She turned away to pull the driver's side door open before climbing into the car. The keys were still in the ignition so she started the car and turned it onto main street before stopping briefly next to her jeep so she could grab her purse.
Locking it up, she climbed back into the car and began the drive back to their street. She kept her eyes on the road except for a few glances towards Opie who was staring out the window in a trance. The car remained in silence the entirety of the trip and it was only when she pulled into his driveway and parked that Opie whispered, "We had a run in with black today."
"What do you mean?" she questioned looking at him.
He glanced over not willing to make eye contact, "There was dispute between the Niners and the Mayans. We got caught up in it…. I …. I drove my truck to the meet. One of them must have tagged it."
"Opie…." she whispered reaching out for him.
He pulled back away before her hand could touch him as he shoved the door open and climbed out. Clary shut the car off and climbed out to follow Opie to the house, but he stopped holding up his hand, "I need to be alone."
She nodded holding out the car keys which he took without another word before walking back into the house. Clary remained in place staring at the home when the door swung opened again and Cheryl came walking out. The blonde looked worried as she pulled door shut before her. When she turned around to the driveway and saw Clary, she seemed to relax a bit.
"My god Clary what happened? Opie came banging on our door yelling for me to come watch the kids. Then took off without explaining anything."
She looked at Opie's neighbor, "There was an accident…... Donna got hurt."
"Oh my god is she ok?" Cheryl gasped.
Her eyes dropped to the ground, "She didn't make it."
"Oh my god."
"Thanks for watching the kids."
Cheryl nodded and reached out to squeeze Clary's arm as a symbol of comfort before turning and walking back to her house. When the blonde was out of sight Clary glanced back to give Opie's now dark house one more look before she started her walk home.
It was just after eleven when she walked through her front door, the sound of the door opening must have spooked Sam because a not so quiet curse of fuck came from the living room. Clary turned towards it stopping in the threshold to stare at her friend.
"God Clary you scared me. I didn't hear the jeep pull up." she exhaled walking around the couch.
"I didn't drive the jeep…." Clary whispered a tired look on her face with the weight of the evening's events, "I walked here from Opie's."
"Where is the jeep?"
Clary sighed running a hand through her hair, "Parked on main street."
"What's going on?" Sam asked her voice laced with concern.
Taking a deep breath, she exhaled, "Donna's dead."
"What?" Sam gasped gripping the back of the couch for support.
"There was a drive by… Donna was shot."
"Oh my god, Opie…. the kids are they okay?"
Clary nodded, "She was on her own when it happened. Physically their okay."
Sam stepped forward and wrapped her in a tight hug, "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine." she responded returning the hug.
Squeezing her tighter for just a second longer Sam let her go and stepped back, "I'll go and give you some privacy. But if it's okay I'll come back in the morning and take you to pick up your jeep."
"Thanks Samantha I really appreciate everything you do for me." Clary replied.
Sam hugged her one more time and squeezed her hands with a soft smile before leaving the house. When the door closed Clary left the living room and wandered down the hallway into Josie's room. Her little girl was asleep snoring softly in her crib that she was just on the verge of being too small for her. Clary smiled just for a second thinking about what a tiny thing she was. She rested her hands on the frame and stared down at her with sorrow filled eyes. The last time she had seen Donna, she was holding Josie in her lap with a look on her face like she missed cuddling a baby close to her chest. Clary was certain with a look like that Opie and her would have had another baby at some point.
Her gripped tightened on the wood of the crib at that thought. That chance was gone now and she knew Opie was never going to be right again. Sighing softly, she gazed down at her daughter with a forlorn look. She stayed there watching Josie sleep, for how long she wasn't sure but the sound of a motorcycle in the distance broke her from her trance.
Reaching down she stroked Josie's cheek softly before leaving the room and walking back down to the living room. Peeking out the window she could see Tig in her drive way pulling off his helmet and dropping it on the seat of this bike. She moved towards the front door opening it just as he reached the porch. He looked down at her a sad look on his face, "Hey doll."
Gazing up at him she noticed a small cut on his forehead that had a few droplets of blood sliding from it. Knowing his bike helmet probably didn't help in the healing process she held out her hand towards him, "You're hurt."
He didn't say anything just took her hand and allowed her to pull him inside. He kicked the door closed with his foot before following her into the kitchen where she pointed at the table for him to take a seat. Walking over he pulled out a chair and sat down as she disappeared out of the kitchen to the hallway bathroom to grab the basic first aid kit. Returning she sat the small box on the counter and pulled out the disinfectant to clean the cut.
"How did this happen?" she asked as he flinched when she cleaned the wound.
He looked up at her, "I… ugh… tripped back up the club house."
Her eyebrow rose at his explanation, but she remained quiet as she grabbed a cloth and dabbed his forehead. While she treated him, he slowly raised his hands to her legs grasping her gently before moving up to her hips. As he squeezed her softly, she stopped her movements and looked down at him with curious eyes.
Tig slipped off the chair and on to his knees, his face stopping just next to her belly which he nuzzled with his face. Clary blinked in confusion at the sweet gesture and moved her hand down to run it through his dark curls. His left arm had shifted down to wrap around her legs while his right hand moved up next to his face to caress the small bulge in her stomach.
With his face still nestled against her he whispered in a mournful voice, "Oh baby… I'm so sorry."
Clary's brow furrowed even more as Tig continued to caress her belly whispering that he was sorry over and over. Her fingers were stilling running through his hair and as his sorrow filled voice entered her ears her grip started to tightened. His remorseful tone made her suspicious and she grabbed his hair roughly pulling his head back forcing him to look up at her.
"Ow doll…." he whispered.
She looked into his eyes to see them full of pain and self-loathing, it was in that moment she knew the truth. A defeating roar filled her ears as her vision turned red and her grip against Tig's scalp turned even more painful for him. He tried to pull away, but she kept a firm hold as the monster that was born in that warehouse so long ago roared to life as it always did in moments like this.
"Let go baby." Tig grunted reaching up to grab her arm.
She reacted then, gripping his hair fully she started walking and Tig found himself scooting forward on his knees to keep up with her. Stomping towards the door she flung it open and shoved Tig out onto the porch. He hit the ground roughly before sitting up on his knees and rotating around towards the house. As he turned, his eyes widen when he saw Clary standing in the door way holding a shotgun looking every bit the niece of Piney Winston.
She glared at Tig with raged filled eyes, "Get the hell off my property."
"Clary baby…" he started.
Pumping the shotgun, she kept it pointed at him, "Now."
He didn't say anything just climbed to his feet, keeping his eyes on her as he walk backwards to his bike. When he bumped into it, he reached back to grab his helmet and climbed onto the bike. Tugging it on he started the motorcycle and glanced back over to her. She was still standing in the door way with a deadly look on her face. His blue eyes met her hazel ones only for a moment before he hit the throttle and his bike hurled forwards into the night. When she was sure that he was gone she slipped the shotgun back into the hidden cutout in the wall and swung the painting back into place to cover its existence. She then pushed the front door shut before walking over to the couch to where she had dropped her purse. Grabbing the bag, she pulled out her phone and hit a number that was programed in the speed dial.
"Sorry." Jax whispered against Wendy's forehead as he rolled out of bed to answer his phone. She turned over in the sheets to gaze at him as he grabbed his phone and flipped it opened to answer, "You okay Clary?"
Wendy sighed and watched Jax as he spoke on the phone quietly next to her. This wasn't an unusual occurrence, there was only ever two women in this world who Jax would drop whatever he was doing for and she knew she was not one of them. But that was something she had come to terms with long before Jax and her even got married.
Jax climbed out of the bed and started pulling on some clothes, "I have to go."
"Everything alright?" she asked sitting up and looked at the clock to see it was two twenty in the morning.
He nodded, "Yeah, she said she has something important to talk about and it can't be over the phone. I'm sorry."
"Don't worry about it Jax, I understand." she replied with a comforting smile.
He returned her smile and leaned over the bed to give her a quick kiss, "Take care of our boy."
Her smiled doubled at that and she nodded watching him leave the room. When she heard the front door shut, she laid back in the bed hoping to get a few hours of sleep before Abel woke up.
Jax coasted his bike to a stop in Clary's driveway before parking it and dropping his helmet onto the space in front of him. Climbing off the dyna he walked across the grass to the walkway and up to the dark front porch. He reached out for the door knob when Clary's voice came from his left, "Over here Jax."
He turned to see her sitting on her porch bench wrapped up in a blanket, "What are you doing out here in the dark?"
"The fresh air calms me down." she replied as he walked over to sit next to her. She turned to set her tea mug next to the baby monitor on the little table beside the bench, "I hope I didn't interrupt anything when I called."
Jax sat back against the bench, "Nah, Wendy and I were just about to go to bed."
"Wendy?" Clary turned her head to glared at him, "Why the hell were you with her? What about Tara?"
He sighed rolling his neck, "Tara and I had a disagreement at the party."
"And your way to fix that was to put your dick back in Wendy?"
Jax frowned at her accusing tone, "It's been a hard night Clary."
He watched as she turned on the bench in his direction and pressed her toes against his leg, "You know what else is hard…. juggling two women. I like Tara, you shouldn't string her along."
"That's a bit pot calling the kettle black isn't it?"
It was her turn to sigh, "Yeah, well I guess I have to take my own advice now."
"What do you mean," Jax questioned with a raised eyebrow, "You want to tell me what's going on?"
Her eyes grew distant as her shoulders slumped and when she didn't answer right away, he reached over to grab her chin to make her look at him, "What is it Clary?"
When her eyes finally rose to meet his they were filled with a smoldering fury, "That drive by tonight was meant for Opie…. and it was Tig who was driving the SUV."
"What?!" Jax snapped sitting up and turning so fast towards her she had to yank her feet back from being crushed, "How do you know it was Tig?"
"He came by here about half an hour ago. He was really…." she paused thinking about the way Tig had tenderly stroked her belly. Moments like that for him were so rare she wouldn't feel right sharing that with Jax. Biting her lip for a second she continued, "I just know it was him Jackson. Clay wanted Opie dead and ordered Tig to do it."
"That's a serious accusation." he spoke staring her in the eyes.
She nodded, "I know it is, but I know I'm right Jax."
"Clay swore to me that Opie was alright."
"Then it was a lie. Stahl must have approached with another angle I didn't foresee and Clay probably thought he actually turned rat."
Jax brow furrowed, "What else could it have been?"
Clary shook her head, "I don't know, I just…. I was so angry earlier when I realized what Tig had done I didn't question him."
"We can't just accuse them without proof." he spoke tilting his head as he looked at her.
She nodded her eyes casting back down, "Yeah, I know."
"Hey, what else is it that you're not telling me?" Jax asked grabbing her hand.
Clary's hand tightened around his as she looked back up at him, "I wanted to kill him Jax. I had a shotgun pointed right at his fucking head and I wanted to pull the trigger."
"If you really believed he killed Donna then why didn't you?" he questioned.
He watched her eyes fill with sorrow as her hand moved down to rest on her stomach, "Because I didn't want to have to explain to this child one day, that the reason they never met their father was because I blew his head off with a shotgun."
"Jesus," Jax whispered leaning away from her an against the bench.
She frowned circling her arms around herself, "I would have killed him."
Jax climbed to his feet while running his hand through his hair. Clary watched as he began pacing the width of the porch his facing growing more and more agitated as he pondered her words. After a few laps he stopped turning back to look at her, "Does Tig realize that you know he killed Donna?"
"If he didn't it won't take him long to put two and two together." she answered.
He rubbed his face his eyes turning serious, "If Clay believed Opie ratted and then ordered Tig to kill him, that means he lied to the whole table at Church. If he finds out Opie wasn't really a rat and had him killed any ways, he will try to cover up his mistake."
"Everyone will know Opie wasn't the rat when the real identity of the witness comes out later today." Clary replied.
"If Tig tells Clay he thinks you know the truth what do you think will happen?" Jax questioned his voice full of concern.
Clary grabbed her tea from the table before leaning back, "I think Clay will order Tig to do whatever it takes to keep this mistake between them."
"Which means you're in danger." he sighed.
"It would seem that way."
He groaned pacing the porch again before stopping and turning on her, "You need to leave. Go down to Bakersfield stay with Hap's mom. Just stay hidden until I can find something to prove Clay had a hand in Donna's death."
"Yeah… I'm not going anywhere." she retorted.
Jax sighed even deeper, "If Clay thinks you're a threat to him he will kill you."
"Opie is going to need me Jax so I'm not leaving, besides I'm not scared of Clay." she huffed.
"It doesn't matter if you're scared or not, Clay will still try to make sure you stay quiet. He will send Tig after you and it doesn't matter what you had. Tig is fucking insane and like a good dog he will do whatever Clay orders him to do." he nearly shouted.
"Tig won't hurt me Jax."
He glared at her, "How can you be sure?"
"Because," Clary spoke looking him in the eye and placing her hand purposely back on the small swell of her stomach, "he won't hurt me for the same reason I didn't put a shell into his fucking head."
Stahl groaned rolling over to pick up her phone as it continued to blare loudly next to her. She hit the accept button on the call while glancing over to the clock to see it was only five ten in the morning.
"What?" she snapped into the phone pissed off that she had only just fallen asleep an hour ago. The guilt over Donna's death had kept her awake most of the night. So, her brain was still groggy when the person on the other end of the phone started to talk and she couldn't quite make out what the man was saying. She had to shake her head trying to clear it, "Wait wait wait, repeat that."
When the agent on the other in of the line repeated that Eviqua Michaels was missing a scream erupted from her throat as she threw her phone across the room. She was out of the bed in seconds pulling clothes on before barging out of the hotel room with her gun and badge in hand.
By the time she made it to the safe house in San Joaquin there were several ambulances and police cars already at the scene. She doubled parked her car, blocking the street without a care as she charged forward towards the house. Her eyes landed on the two Feds that were supposed to be guarding the witness sitting in the back of one of the ambulances. They were both sitting up, but their heads were rolling around as they struggled to wake up. The other two ambulances had a sheriff in them, both of them looking just as groggy as the Feds.
She approached the ambulance with the agents, "What happen here Yost?"
"I…I…. I…." the blonde Fed slurred before slumping against her partner.
Stahl turned to the paramedic, "What the hell is wrong with them?"
"They were drugged with something… maybe a strong sedative. We're not sure but it's already burned out of their system so we aren't going to know what was used."
"Damn it!" she cursed striking the ambulance with her palm, "Were there any injuries?"
"No ma'am, they sustained no damage." the paramedic responded.
"Good, thanks." Stahl sighed turning away and walking up to a group of sheriffs, "Do we have any information on the witness's whereabouts?"
"No, Agent Stahl I'm afraid we don't." one of the men answered.
She glared at them, "Have we found any evidence?"
They all shook their heads no making her growl, "Then why are you all standing around like a group of hens. Get into that house and find me something."
"Yes, ma'am." they turned quickly running into the house.
Stahl turned around to head back to her car as she grumbled, "Useless fucking people."
When Jax woke up the house was already empty, Clary and Josie were nowhere to be found. He had crashed in the guest room only catching a few hours of sleep. After dressing, he walked to the front door and paused when he saw a note taped on the wood trim. 'Breakfast in microwave' grinning he tugged the note from the door frame and turned back to the kitchen.
Pressing the reheat button on the microwave he waited a minute before pulling the plate of eggs, bacon and toast out. It didn't take him long to polish off the meal and when he was done, he placed the dirty plate into the sink. He would have to thank her later as he left the house walking down to Opie's to check on him.
He was still a few houses down, but he noticed some vehicles were already parked in the street leading up to Opie's. Walking up he passed Clary's jeep sitting behind Mary's and Donna's car in the driveway. He didn't knock just strode into the house which was already full of people. Several of the crow-eaters had already showed up bringing loads of comfort food to express their remorse for a member of the patch.
Jax entered the kitchen to see Mary positing some bowls of food along the counter, "Hey Mary."
"Morning Jackson." the short blonde smiled sadly up at him.
"How's he doing?" he asked leaning against the counter.
Opie's mother frowned, "Not good, he's outside with the kids."
Jax leaned forward planting a kiss on her cheek before turning and walking out the back-patio door. His eyes landed on Opie who sat at a kiddy table with his long legs stretched out before him making him look like a giant. He was staring over at the swing set where Clary was seated on the ground in front of Ellie and Kenny. Josie was a few feet from them pulling clovers from the grass oblivious to the sadness around her.
"Hey man," Jax spoke walking forward and take a seat on one of the tiny chairs, "How are they doing?"
"She's been crying all morning… Kenny still doesn't get it." Opie sighed.
Jax glanced over to him, "And how are you holding up?"
"How do you think? Donna…. she knew I was gonna bring on something like this."
Jax's brow furrowed, "Ope, you didn't bring this…."
"A banger shot my wife! If that isn't my fault then whose is it?" Opie voice rose as he spoke.
Jax kept quiet letting Opie vent his anger which was the only thing he could really do in this kind of situation. They sat in silence at the small table looking over the yard watching the kids sitting with solemn looks on the swings. At the point Josie had grown bored of playing in the grass and started looking around. When she realized Donna wasn't around, she looked puzzled, "Where Dona?"
Josie's innocent question made Ellie burst into tears and Clary immediately held her arms out, "Come here sweet heart."
Opie and Jax watched as Ellie leapt off the swing and into Clary's arms. She wrapped Ellie in a tight embrace holding the little girl as she cried into her arms. Josie still baffled by everything climbed up and walked over to Opie holding her arms up. He rose to his feet and picked her up bringing the tiny little girl to his chest. Josie nestled her head into the crook of his neck while her right fist gripped his beard.
Reaching up to stroke the back of her head softly Opie glanced over to Jax, "We'll see you tomorrow."
"Yeah." Jax replied as Opie turned his back on him and walked towards what was left of his family.
After Jax left Opie's he had gone home to check on Wendy and Abel before grabbing a shower. Once he showered and dressed, he left for the club house where they met for church to discuss the loss of Donna. Piney who had been furious by Clay's lack of initiative in finding out who had killed his daughter in law stormed out of Church. After Piney's departure the rest of them had dismissed themselves from Church and Jax sent the prospect to tail the old man.
Half Sack ran out of the clubhouse with Jax following him. While the prospect jumped on his bike and took off after Piney, Jax grabbed his helmet off his bike with the intention to head to the station to see if Unser had any more details about last night. As he was about to climb onto his dyna a black BMW pulled into the lot which he recognized immediately.
Dropping his helmet back on his bike he approached the BMW, "Hey Rosen."
"Hey Jax, are the others around?" the lanky lawyer asked climbing out of the car.
Jax nodded, "Yeah everyone is inside, follow me."
Pushing his car door shut Rosen followed Jax into the clubhouse where he was greeted with curious looks from the bikers. Clay walked out of Church with Tig in tow, "Rosen, this can't be good if you're here."
"Actually," the dark-haired man smiled, "It's good news for once."
The guys perked up at that as the lawyer continue, "I received a phone call with news I thought I should deliver in person. The Prosecution against Bobby just informed me that their witness has gone missing."
"What?" all the biker's voices blended together in surprise.
Clay took a few steps forward, "What happened?"
"Apparently sometime last night someone incapacitated the sheriffs and federal agents watching the safe house. The next guard shift showed up at five this morning to find the others unconscious and the witness gone."
"Who the hell could have done that?" Juice questioned looking around the room.
The lawyer shrugged his shoulders, "It had to be a professional. From what I understand not an ounce of evidence was found. Looks like the sons have a guardian angel."
"So, what does this mean for Bobby?" Jax asked.
"Well I know ATF is pissed. They're going to try to stall the hearing in hopes of finding the witness. They might be able to push it a week maybe two. When they have the hearing, they can then suspend the case for thirty days in hopes of reinstatement."
Jax sighed, "Which means….?"
"Bobby could be inside for two months." Rosen answered.
"Jesus, two months?" Clay growled.
Rosen nodded, "I know it sounds like a lot, but if they can't find the witness then Bobby goes clear of all charges."
"Well I guess we will take all the good news we can get." Clay reached out to shake the man's hand as he nodded his head back, "Can we have a word in private."
"Yes, of course." Rosen replied following Clay into church.
As the two disappeared into the room all the other guys wandered out of the club house to head for their shifts in the garage, everyone except Jax who approached the door to Church. Rosen had been the last one into the room and he hadn't pushed the door all the way closed. Jax still suspicious after his conversation with Clary and had a feeling whatever Clay wanted to know would tie into everything.
Leaning near the small gap Jax could hear Rosen talking, "The case they were trying to bring to trial was going to implement Opie in the murder of Hefner."
"Just Opie? What about Jax?" Clay's voice filtered out of the room, "You said that Stahl knew Jax was involved."
"Apparently Agent Stahl was bluffing that piece of information. There isn't one mention of Jax anywhere in the case." Rosen replied.
"Shit!" Jax heard Clay curse followed by the sound of him striking the table with his palm.
Jax rounded away from the door seeing red, he made his way from the clubhouse towards his bike in a fury. He shoved his helmet onto his head roughly before climbing onto the dyna and peeling out of his parking spot. Leaving TM behind he sped in the direction of the police station determined to find out every detail of the plan Stahl had orchestrated.
Clay approached the first opened garage door and leaned in to glance around, "Tig!"
"Yeah boss." came the reply as said man rolled out from under one of the cars.
Clay gestured behind him, "Need a minute."
Tig jumped up from the ground to follow his president over towards the bikes where no one else was present. When they stopped Tig looked curiously at Clay, "What's going on?"
"That info on Jax being the getaway driver at the thing with Hefner was bogus. A goddamn bluff made up by that bitch ATF agent."
"What?" Tig whispered his eyes growing wide.
Clay gripped the handle bar of nearby bike, "Part of her plan to set up Opie as a rat. She took a chance in setting up that little story for Bobby, hoping he would get it passed onto us."
"Shit."
"The only good thing going for us is that I'm the only one Rosen told that Jax wasn't a part of the case."
Tig's brow furrowed, "Meaning what?"
"Meaning this Donna mistake can't blow back on us if no one else realizes that part about Jax was ever a factor." Clay informed his sergeant at arms. Even though he loathed himself for ordering the kill on Opie he was relieved that it couldn't be tied back to him as long as Tig and him kept their mouths shut. However, his relief was only short lived when a panic look spread across Tig's face. Clay's eyes narrowed, "What?"
"I…. I think Clary knows that I killed Donna."
"What?!" Clay shouted drawing the attention of some of the other guys from the garage. They were peeking their heads out to stare at them making Clay raised his hand to shoo them away. When everyone went back to their business he leaned in close to Trager, "What do you mean she knows?"
"Last night I went by her house…. I don't know I guess I just…." he trailed off for a second trying to collect his thoughts.
"You just what?" Clay growled.
Tig shook his head not want to go into the full intimate detail of what had occurred. He didn't want to look weak, "We were just hanging out then she went crazy all of a sudden. Threw me out of house and ordered me off her yard with a shotgun."
"What did you say? Why do you think she knows?"
"I don't know it's just a feeling I have. It's the only thing I can't of why she would throw me out like that." Tig answered.
Clay reached out to grab him by his kutte and leaned forward, "You listen to me. I want you to go to her house right now and find out exactly what she knows. If she thinks we killed Donna and tells her suspicions to Jax it's going to create a shit storm for us."
"Yeah, okay." Tig nodded turning towards his bike. He took a few steps forward before turning around and walking back up to Clay, "If she does think I killed Donna and says she's going to tell Jax…. Then what do we do?"
There was a dark look in Clay's eye when he opened his mouth to speak, "You either make her understand that she keeps her mouth shut or we end up burying two Winston women. You got that?"
Tig's eyes widen ever so slightly but he quickly nodded, "Yeah I got it boss."
Clary laid a sleeping Josie down on her bed, they had left Opie's only an hour ago to come home so the little girl could take a nap. There were still too many people stopping by his house to pay their condolences and all the foot traffic had kept Josie from being able to take a nap there. As soon as she started getting fussy Clary had let Opie know they were leaving for a bit, but would be back by dinner time to help clean up all the food.
Leaving the bedroom, she walked back down the hallway to the front door where she had dropped her duffle bag after arriving home. Grabbing the bag, she walked halfway back down the hallway and opened the door to the cellar. She flipped on the light switch and made her way down the stairs. It was a finished basement, but small at only one room which was unusual considering the space of the level upstairs.
The stairs ended in the center of the room, the space to the front of them was a small gym set up with a workout bench and a treadmill. She didn't walk forward but instead turned to the right to the back of the room where there was just a small nook that would be the perfect size to eventually drag her desk down to. On the wall under the stairs were built in bookcases, each of them filled to the brim. Walking along the book wall she raised her hand up to the bottom of the fifth stair where her thumb found a small niche that she pressed making the fourth bookcase in the wall pop open.
The door under the staircase was low so she had to duck her head to enter the hidden section of the house. Years ago, when she bought the place the cellar had been the full length of the house. Stuart, her go to computer expert had been raised in Indiana by a family who had own a small construction company. He had learned the ends of outs of building and even though he enjoyed it, his real passion had been hacking. He was also only one of the few people in the world to know of her dual identities so she had contacted him for assistance.
The hacker had flown out to her and spent two weeks walling off the cellar, installing the wall bookcases and latch door. He has also set up the rest of hidden space for her before deleting all traces of off the blueprints of the house. If anyone were to search the house on any forms the square footage of the space under the stairs was not accounted for.
She walked deeper into the hidden section passing two rooms without some much as a glance towards them before walking into an open space the size of the upstairs living room. Only one side of the room had a wall, the other three were rows and rows built in shelves. She dropped the duffle bag in the center of the room and pulled the blonde wig out. Turning to the left side of the room that housed two of the shelf walls, the shelves were filled with multiple wigs of various colors and styles. She slid the blond wig back into place on the only mannequin head that was empty.
Strolling back over to the bag she pulled the blue plastic container and driver's license out before turning towards the right-hand side of the room. The last shelf wall was filled with dozens of blue plastic containers like the one in her hand. Each of them was labeled with a different name of the front, dozens and dozens of different names and identities sat before her. A tiny separate plastic container set on the top of all the other ones, all expect one that sat by itself between two large blue ones. She stepped forward picking up the lone small container and slid the large blue Jenny identity container back onto the shelf. Once it was in its place, she opened the smaller container which revealed a passport and several credits cards bearing the name Jenny Crenshaw. She dropped the driver's license for that persona back into the container before placing it back onto the prosthetics case.
Moving back over to the duffle bag she picked it up off the floor to finishing emptying it when she glanced up to the last wall. The fourth wall had no shelves instead there were built in tv monitors that displayed footage from small cameras all over the property and inside the house. Her eyes moved over the camera that displayed her bedroom where she could still see Josie asleep on the bed. She was about to turn away to head to one of the other rooms when she noticed a motorcycle pulling into her drive way. Even from her distance from the camera she could tell it was Tig by the dark tuffs of hair sticking out from underneath the helmet.
She dropped the duffle bag back down to the ground and quickly made her way back out through the door under the stairs. After stepping through it she grabbed the edge of one of the shelves and pulled the door closed. Once she heard the click of the bookcase being secured, she was moving back up the stairs and kicking the cellar door closed. By the time she opened the front door Tig had just reached the porch and he nodded at her, "Hey doll."
"What are you doing here?" she spat with an evil glare.
He frowned at her, "I just wanted to come by to check on you baby. You know after what happen last night…"
"Which part of last night? The part where Donna was gunned down or when I told you to get the fuck off my property with a shotgun?"
His frowned deepened, "Where is all this hostility coming from baby? What did I do?"
"Don't!" she snapped letting the door fall more open as she took a step towards him. She jabbed her finger into his chest, "Don't treat me like a fool."
"Clary…."
"No, stop pretending like I don't know the truth Alexander."
She felt him freeze as he grimaced at her, "What truth is that?"
"That you killed Donna! It was written all over your face last night!" she hissed
His eyes dropped to the ground his hands moved to his hips while he nodded. She watched as his head rose and he looked around from side to side unwilling to make eye contact. He chewed on the inside of his cheek for a second before asking, "Where's the kid?"
"Taking a nap in my bedroom."
Tig nodded, "Good."
With that said his hands launched upwards grabbing Clary by the throat and shoving her into the house. A swift kick to the door sent it slamming shut as he pushed her into the wall his hands tight around her neck. His body was inches from hers as he leaned close to her face, "Goddamn it doll! Why couldn't you just not say anything?"
"Clay trying to cover his tracks?" she rasped against his grip.
He pressed his body against her but didn't tighten his hold, "It was an accident. Stahl told Bobby that she knew Jax was there at Hefner's murder driving the getaway car. Only people who knew that detail was Bobby, Opie and Jax. We thought Opie had actually ratted…... turns out that ATF bitch was bluffing."
She didn't respond to his rant only remained limp in his hands. His eyes continued to look everywhere but her, "We thought he ratted. It was mistake, it was all a mistake. You can't tell anyone, I swore you would keep the secret for the good of the club."
"I already told Jax."
His head snapped up, his eyes finally meeting hers which bore into him without any sign of fear. He remained quiet as she choked out, "I would really not like to have to wear a scarf the next few days."
At her words he released her before walking backwards until his back hit the opposite wall. He watched as she reached up to rub her throat trying to soothe where he had been holding her. Leaning against the wall he stared at her, "You told Jax? Do you know what this will do to the club?"
"I called him as soon as you left and as for the club, we will let him decide its fate." she retorted.
"Fuck…. Fuck!" Tig cursed throwing his hands down by his side as he took a step forward.
Clary kept her head raised as she glared at him, "Jax should questioned Clay's leadership. After all that man sent you to kill me if I didn't agree to keep quiet, didn't he?"
"I…." he trailed off his eyes shifting back to the floor.
She didn't allow him to continue, "Jax said I would be in danger if Clay realized I knew the truth. He told me to leave and hide until he could find evidence to bring to the table. But I refused to run despite his warnings that you would hurt me."
"Why wouldn't you go? If you knew Clay would order me to hurt you." Tig asked looking confused.
Clary stepped towards him grabbing his hand and pulling it to the small swell of her stomach, "Because I told Jax you would never hurt us."
"What?" he replied with a sharp intake of breath.
"I wanted to blow your head off with that shot gun. And I would have, if I wouldn't have to explain to our child why I killed their father."
"It's mine?" Tig whispered before looking up to meet her eyes, "How do you know?"
"I've always known. Just like I knew Josie was always Juice's. I know how to keep myself from getting pregnant if I don't want to be."
He didn't say anything else as his hand tightened every so slight on your stomach. She reached up to grabbed his chin to keep his eyes on hers, "You have two choices from this point Alexander. You either tell Clay I know the truth and told Jax or…."
He silenced her by moving his hands up to cup her face, "I already know."
"Alexander," Clary whispered reaching up to pull his hands away, "after everything that has happened you know that this can't continue."
Tig remained quiet only nodding his response as she reached up to tenderly stroke his cheek. He leaned into the gesture for a moment before stepping around her and walking to the door. Clary turned around to watch him leave and as he opened the door, he paused in the doorway his eyes meeting hers.
"I really am sorry Clary." he said softly and then disappeared out of the house pulling the door shut behind him.
Tig climbed onto his motorcycle and backed it out the drive way to head back to the clubhouse. As the wind hit his face, he drove on autopilot his thoughts drifting back to yesterday and his conversation with Opie in the truck. The other man had asked if it bothered him that he didn't get to see his kids as often as he liked. His response had been that it used too but not anymore.
He sped up the bike in disbelief that he was going to be a father again at fifty. And while Clary might hate him now for killing Donna, she wasn't anything like his gash of an ex-wife. The guys wouldn't lie they were all a little jealous of how much time Juice got to spend his with his little girl. Bobby like Tig rarely got to see his kids because of their angry ex's and no one had it as worse as Chibs who hadn't seen his daughter in years. Yet, Juice saw Josie all the time and he couldn't help but think he would actually get a chance to be a real dad for once. Clary might hate him now, hell she might hate him forever but she would never keep this baby away from him.
Pulling into the TM yard, he parked his bike among the others and climbed off of it. Dropping his helmet onto the seat he walked to the clubhouse to find Clay. The Sam Crow president was sitting at a table next to the pool table and Tig walked over to sit at the table as Clay eyed him.
"Well?" he huffed.
Tig looked around making sure no one was in ear shot, "I was mistaken man. Clary doesn't know anything."
"You sure?" Clay stared at him in suspicion
Tig nodded, "Yeah man I'm sure."
"Then why did she kick you out of the house and threaten you with a shot gun?" Clay frowned.
"She uh…. she thought I came there to get my dick sucked and with Donna just dying she went a little crazy. You know what pregnancy hormones can do to a woman." Tig grinned as he watched Clay visible relax against his chair.
Clay chuckled, "Guess I can't blame her for thinking that. You do pick the worse times to get laid."
"When?" Tig scoffed with a furrowed brow.
Clay shook his head, "Those two Mexican bitches who were watching the warehouse."
"Oh shit, I forgot about them." Tig laughed.
"Why don't you take the rest of the day off man, you've earned it." Clay spoke knocking his fist on the table.
Tig's eyes lit up, "Really?"
"Yeah, after all Rosen said Bobby will be clear of the charges so it's not like we have anything to worry about then."
Nodding, Tig climbed up from his chair and wandered over behind the bar to grab a bottle of whiskey. Moving back to the front he slid onto a bar stool and twist the bottle open. He took a swig from the bottle as he leaned back against the bar rolling his neck trying to loosen all the built-up tension. His eyes glanced around the room while taking another sip he took notice of two ladies talking on a couch by the wall.
With a smile he climbed back to his feet and strode over to them. They looked up as he approached and he grinned down at the two, one blonde and one brunette. He held his hand out towards the blonde, "Hey baby let's go take a walk."
The girl smiled taking his hand so he could pull her from the sofa. Once she was standing, he slid his arm around her waist and directed her towards the dorm rooms.
A few hours later Tig was back on a bar stool feeling rather relaxed after polishing off half the whiskey bottle and having that blonde crow eater suck him off. Some of other guys had wandered into the clubhouse after their shift in the garage was over. Chibs was sitting next to him smoking a cigarette and drinking a beer. They were talking when the door to the clubhouse was pushed opened and Jax walked into the room heading for Church with Clay in tow.
The group of guys went quiet watching their President and VP disappear into Church pushing the door shut behind them. Chibs glanced over to Tig, "Wonder what that's about."
"Don't know man." the sergeant in arms answered.
Clay made sure the door was shut before taking his seat at head of the table. Jax had already taken his spot on the left with his arms resting on the table and his fingers laced together. Clay leaned back in his chair, "What's this about Jax?"
"Two days ago, you sat there and made me a promise that Opie would be okay."
Clay's eyebrow rose and he opened his mouth to speak, but Jax held up his hand and continued talking, "Now, I'm asking you brother to brother, father to son just tell me the truth and I'll accept it whatever it is. Did you try to kill Opie? Kill Donna by mistake?"
Jax stared at his step father as he leaned back in his chair with a puzzled expression on his face, "I don't know whose been filling your head with this shit son, but I'm going to tell you again. I love Opie, loved Donna. I would never do nothing to hurt them."
"So, you didn't have anything to do with that drive by last night?" Jax frowned.
Clay frowned, "No, I didn't. Where is this coming from?"
"When I went to go pull Piney away from Leroy, we took a few minutes to clear the air. Leroy swore to us that he had nothing to do with Donna's death. Told us one of his guy's rovers was stolen in Lodi last night. Just before that happened, I was down at the station talking to Hale, he told me some things like Stahl setting Opie out as a rat."
Clay's frowned turned into a full grimace, "I don't know who gunned down Donna, but it wasn't us. Someone is out there trying to start a war."
Jax remained silent staring at Clay for a minute before nodding, "Alright."
"We're good then?" Clay asked watching Jax as he stood up.
The younger man's face was cold as he glared down, "Yeah, we're good."
Jax turned away from him and threw the door to Church open before striding out into the main room. He scanned the bar catching sight of Tig knocking back whiskey with Chibs, Juice and Happy. His eyes narrowed as he charged over to the bar and the group of men turned to look at him as they approached.
"Jackie boy come have a drink." the Scot grinned holding up his own drink.
Jax didn't say anything as he walked up to Tig who just gave him a sloppy smile and slurred, "Hey man."
Without a word Jax grabbed Tig by his kutte and punched him in the face. Tig even though drunk responded instantly tackling Jax to the ground and returning the punch. The two men continued throwing punches at one another as they rolled around the clubhouse floor knocking tables and chairs over. The others were shouting at them as they fought, but no one did anything to stop them.
"Break that shit up!" Clay roared from the doorway to church.
Chibs and Juice reacted first, the pair grabbing Jax by the arms to pull him off Tig. Once they pulled him back Tig climbed unsteadily to his feet and was about to launch himself towards Jax, but Happy caught him by the arms stopping him.
"What the shite Jackie?" Chibs grumbled as Jax shook in rage, "Calm down."
"Let go of me." Jax snarled struggling to pull himself free from Chibs and Juice.
"Let him go!" Clay bellowed.
Both Juice and Chibs released him at the command and Jax shoved pass all of them for the door. He left the club house letting the door slam behind him as he left TM once again shaking in rage.
"Give me your other foot." Clary ordered. Josie sighed lifting her left leg up so her mother could slide her last shoe on. Clary rose to her feet and held her hands out to help the toddler stand up on the bed to check her appearance. The little girl was dressed in little black dress with ruffles on the end and a pair of small black buckle shoes. Josie stood on the bed with a large frown on her tiny face making Clary frown, "What's wrong?"
"Don't like." the toddler huffed pulling on ruffles.
Clary sighed, her little girl was definitely a princess and only liked to wear bright colors. She reached out to soothe the side of the dress, "I know baby but it is just for today."
"Why?"
"People just wear black on days when they say goodbye to someone."
"Who going bye?"
"We're saying bye to Donna baby."
Josie frowned, "Where she goes?"
"She's gone to heaven baby." Clary whispered softly.
"When come back?"
"She isn't…" she breathed and watched as Josie started to tear up, "Don't cry baby it will be okay, I promise."
Clary picked her up and cradled her close to her chest, "I know it sounds scary, but it will be ok sweetheart I promise."
"I go to heaven?"
A sad little sound escaped Clary as she kissed Josie's forehead, "That isn't something you're going to have to worry about for a very long time."
"What about daddy?"
"Same thing sweetie both your daddy and I are not going to have to worry about going to heaven for a long time."
Josie squeezed her tightly for a moment and Clary carried her around the room for a few minutes before setting her back down on the bed so she could change her clothing. The toddler sat with her little legs dangling over the side watched as her mother slide on her own black dress and heels. Just as Clary finished dressing her doorbell rang, "That would be our driver."
She scooped Josie off the bed and grabbed her purse off the dresser. Hurrying down the hall the pulled the front door up where a man was standing in a dark suit on the porch. She had hired a Lincoln town car and driver to drive them to the funeral.
"Ms. Winston, I'm Simon your driver."
"Nice to meet you Simon." Clary smiled softly pulling the door shut and locking it with her free hand.
The driver returned her smile, "We have some more people that we are picking up right?"
"Yes, my Aunt and her grandchildren. They live just a few houses down." Clary answered as they walked down the pathway to the street where the Lincoln was parked. The driver held the door open for her and she thanked him as she climbed into the back seat.
They drove the few houses down to Opie's and Clary climbed out of the car with Josie to walk up to the front door. Mary opened the door before Clary could reach the porch and she ushered Ellie and Kenny out of the house. Both children immediately ran up to her and Clary had to drop to her knees so they could hug her.
"Come on guys we have to get going." she whispered to them standing up. Ellie grabbed her free hand as Kenny took Mary's and they walked to the Lincoln to head for the cemetery.
The funeral was a full-on Sons of Anarchy event with charters from all off the west coast coming to pay their respects to Opie. The Redwood charter led the procession while rows and rows of motorcycles followed behind them. The Lincoln town car that was carrying the Winston family drove directly behind the hearse. When the car stopped the driver opened the door and Clary was the first one to climb out. She turned around to help Kenny out first, followed by Josie, Ellie and then finally Mary.
Opie met then by the car and after giving his mother and Clary a kiss on their cheeks he took his children by the hands and led them to the burial plot. Clary gave Mary a comforting smile as she linked her arm with the older woman and helped her towards the funeral while still carrying Josie in her other arm. They hadn't even made it halfway when Juice came walking up with a smile.
"Would you like some help?" he asked.
Josie immediately reached out to him, "Daddy!"
Clary smiled handing the toddler over to her father and finished helping Mary to her seat. She took the seat between Mary and Ellie, then proceeded to watch as friends and the members of the other charters made their way to the grave site. When Ellie let out a sniffle next to her, she looked over towards the little girl and wrapped an arm around her. Ellie wrapped her little arms around Clary and snuggled into her side as Clary reached up running her hand up and down her back.
"Clary."
Clary looked up to see Tara standing over her with Jax's kutte in her arms, "Hey Tara."
The doctor gave her a sad smile and reached out to squeeze her hand before turning to give her sympathies to Opie. When Tara was done giving her condolences she moved to go stand in the crowd when Clary's voice made her stop, "Tara come take the last seat next to Mary."
"Thanks." Tara smiled turning and walking back to the chair.
"Right here sweetheart." Mary spoke patting the empty the seat next to her.
Clary watched as the doctor sat down before turning back to watch as Gemma walked up with Clay and Wendy, Tig trailing not far behind them with face cut and bruised. She frowned watching them take a seat in the chairs across from them. Gemma made eye contact with her and her eyebrow rose at the unhappy look that was being sent their way.
The SAMCRO queen didn't have time to question the look as the service started. She frowned as she looked around at all the people around and immediately noticed Jax was missing. Sit back against the chair she leaned toward Clay and whispered, "Where's Jax?"
"Haven't seen him since last night." Clay whispered back.
"Shit." Gemma sighed turning back to the service.
The service was almost over when Jax came walking up from another part of the cemetery. He was in the same clothing he wore yesterday and his face was cut up from his fight with Tig. Tara leapt up from the chair and walked over to Jax carrying his kutte to him. Taking the kutte from her he slid it into place on his back and leaned down to give her a quick kiss.
Clary watched as he stepped away from Tara and approached the casket. He dropped a flower onto it then with a quick nod to Opie he turned around to leave. When the service was over Clary gave Ellie a quick hug before disappearing away as a crowd formed around Opie and his children to pay their respects. She followed the path Jax had disappeared down and found him sitting on a head stone smoking a cigarette.
"Hey." she whispered walking up to him.
He looked over his shoulder, "Hey. Are you ok?"
"I should be asking you that." she smiled stopping next to him.
He smirked, "Yeah, I just got into with Tig."
"What did you find out?"
"Piney and I spoke to Leroy and after talking to Hale I confronted Clay about everything. Of course, he denied it which just…. when I saw Tig just sitting at the bar drinking with the guys I lost it."
Clary nodded, "I know your mad at Tig, but you have to remember Clay is the one who ordered the hit."
"Tig isn't exactly innocent."
"I know." she whispered reaching out to run her fingers through his hair the same way she did to Josie to soothe her when she was upset.
Jax looked up at her with unsure eyes, "What do we do next?"
"We evolve and move forward." came the rough voice of Piney as he approached holding out an envelope.
Jax took it as Clary looked on, "What is it?"
"Change." Piney answered.
Opening the envelope Jax pulled out another copy of his father's manuscript as Piney spoke again, "It's time for a new way of life son."
"I agree Piney." Jax spoke sliding off the headstone turning towards the old man, "But there is something I need from you first… from both of you actually."
"What is that?" Piney questioned.
"We can't tell Ope the truth about what happened."
"Why the hell not?" the old man growled.
Clary gripped Jax's arm as she looked at her Uncle, "He's right. If we tell Ope it will destroy him."
"He deserves to know the truth." Piney grunted.
Jax gripped the manuscript, "He's just barely holding on by a tread right now Piney. He needs the club to get his shit together and besides with no definite proof it with just make more problems."
"So, we just lie to him?"
"We just don't say anything. The important thing right now is taking care of him, give him time to heal." Jax answered.
Piney remained quiet as he contemplated Jax's words before nodding, "Alright."
The three of them stared at one another in silent agreement as the sounds of motorcycles roaring to life could be heard in the distance.