Holly sat in Jax's room at the clubhouse with Lyla, both women making up a list of things they'd need to go get from the store the next day, and what they should make for breakfast. When Lyla started yawning, she made her go to Ope's room, making sure that the kids were all asleep before calling Jax.
"You should be asleep, Hol."
"Not tired. You get anything yet?"
"No. But this is the only info we got from Belfast. So we have to work with it. You got everything locked down over there?"
"Yeah. It's definitely packed to capacity. But everyone's here that wants to be here. Otherwise there's a Tacoma member with them. I'm in your room with the kids making a list of shit I have to get tomorrow."
"Get some sleep, babe. You're gonna need it."
"I will. I was gonna take some ZQuil and go to bed."
"Good. Love you, babe."
"Love you too. So much. Stay safe."
Holly walked through the clubhouse, making sure that everyone there had breakfast and coffee or juice before going over to Chucky, putting down the coffee pots in his hands before giving him a hug.
"Otto loved you, Chucky. You wouldn't be here if he didn't."
"He saved my life inside."
"You wanna repay him for that?"
"Absolutely, I do."
"Don't waste your life. And don't stop being yourself. You're a good guy, Chucky. We love you around here too."
"Je vous remercie, Holly."
She smiled at him, kissing his cheek gently.
"De rien, Chucky. How are we doing on food?"
"We've got enough to last until tomorrow, but we need beer and soda."
"I have to go out in a little bit anyway. I gotta take Unser to his chemo appointment in an hour."
"Who are you taking with you?"
She just gave him a smile before sending him off.
Holly looked as ADA Patterson walked over to her at the hospital, holding onto Lilia, who was asleep in her arms. She'd called Patterson on her way to St. Thomas with Wayne, asking her to meet her.
"I got your message. What did you want to talk to me about?"
"Lee Toric. The man that Otto Delaney killed the other day."
"I know who he was."
"No you don't. You knew what he let you know. I know who he really was. An asshole with a twisted sense of justice, a drug problem and an imagination that rivals a 5 year old's."
She put Lilia in the stroller before looking back at Patterson.
"The man that pointed you towards the Sons of Anarchy in connection with the school shooting, which as a mother and someone with a moral center, I find it incredibly tragic, did so under false pretenses. I don't have the time to pretend that the club is anything else at the moment, but there is not a single member that had any intention of letting any child to get ahold of a gun of that caliber, nor had any responsibility of what happened afterwards."
"Sounds like you're speaking from experience, Ms. Pavlov."
"Holly. And yes I have a couple guns in my house, some loaded and some unloaded, but all of them are out of reach of any prying hands and most are in a safe, protected by a combination only I know."
"Do you have any intention of teaching your children how to shoot?"
"Absolutely none. Jax is trying to move the club onto a safer path. But that's not in question here. Neither are my parenting skills. Lee Toric lied to you and manipulated you to get to your resources. He killed Erin, framed Nero Padilla and threatened to make a false report to CPS and have them take my children from me. The reason he pointed you to the club was because Otto Delaney killed his sister and then bit out his own tongue to kill the RICO case Toric was conducting on his own. The boy that opened fire, his mother, Darvany Jennings, OD'd and the boyfriend, Arcadio Narona, the man who bought the gun, was killed by accident. All parties responsible are dead. A family snuffed out in the span of two days. The entire club is feeling that."
"Shit. And what do you expect me to do with this information?"
"Whatever the hell you want with it. You can sweep it under the rug if you want. But, because I need some security to keep my friends and family safe, I must let you know that I don't forget things. I'm gonna hold onto this information until I'm sure that I don't need it anymore. You will leave my club alone. Or I bring this information to the public. Yes you were manipulated, but you still allowed an unstable man to use funds given to you by the public to fund his vendetta. How do you think people will react to that?"
She looked at Patterson, watching her smirk at her.
"You fit right into the outlaw life, Holly. Jackson Teller chose right."
"Yes he did. But I am a mother first. An old lady second. And a public defender third. Everything else goes down the line. And Jax knows it. I will do what I need to do to protect my children. Then I will do what I need to do to help my old man. Sometimes the law helps me do that. Sometimes it doesn't. It's a roll of the dice."
Both women looked over when Wayne came out. Holly looked back at her.
"Like I said, Jax is trying to turn the club legit. Give him the time he needs to do that. Or I turn this information over."
Holly stood with Jax as he called the Kings, listening to him talk with them for a minute before she could step in.
"Jax is right, Rourke. Gaalen can not be trusted. I won't pretend to understand your cause, but I've been jerked around by people like Gaalen so many times that I know how to tell trustful people. And if I know how he operates, he's in the room with you, listening in on this."
She looked at Jax when she heard Gaalen chuckling.
"I've underestimated you, Holly."
"Not the first time, Gaalen. But it will be your last. You know Jax wants to get out of guns. But you need someone to sell guns to. I have a solution that will be a win-win-win for all involved. Except for Gaalen."
"What's your solution, lass?"
"My mother's parents were Italian mob. My grandmother was a mob wife up until the day she died and my grandfather isn't far behind. My uncle is stepping up, working to take my grandfather's place as don. My uncle is looking to expand. He's cautious. Particular about who he trusts. But he's a good man. Smart. And has connections everywhere. I know all of you are Catholic. So's my family. Another uncle of mine is a lot like your late priest. Plugged into the family business and very helpful. Your causes might be different, but you'll get more money and access to more potential clients than you would with SAMCRO. Jax gets this charter out of guns. My uncle will get excellent quality guns for the family's cause."
"And what'll happen to me, pray tell?"
"You killed and hacked up two members for no legitimate reason other than you're pissed that Jax isn't doing what you want, Gaalen. You have to answer for that."
She looked at Jax, who was smiling at her proudly.
"So here's the deal, gentlemen. I'll return Connor and the others to you because I never had any intentions of hurting them. But setup with my old lady's family only happens if Gaalen gets sent back to us, alive, to face retribution for the two members he killed. He wanted to double your income and output? We can triple it. All it'll take on our end is a phone call from my lovely lady. But that phone call won't happen until we get your word that we'll get Gaalen sent to us."
"We need to talk to the council."
"We'll give you two days to decide. If we don't hear back from you, the deal's off the table and you'll have to find another way to sell your guns."
Holly sat down in the backroom at the clubhouse, answering her phone when it went off, seeing her uncle's number.
"Hey, zio. Did you get my message?"
"I did. And I want to know why you think this is a good idea."
"Jax wants to get the club out of guns. Turn it legit. We don't want our kids growing up like he and I did. But the Irish needs to be able to sell their guns. You're looking to expand. Each group gets what they want and you and the Kings can sit down and talk about pricing and merchandising."
"I don't know about this, Holly."
"I know you're cautious, zio. Members might go rogue now and then, but the Irish have great products and are pretty easy to work with. As long as you get to deal with the right person."
"Do you trust them?"
"As a group? Yes. There have been a few bad eggs, but they're loyal to their cause and if things are done right you can build some lifelong connections for generations to come."
She sat there in silence, letting him think.
"I want to meet them. Talk things out in person."
"We're waiting to hear back from them. As soon as we do, as long as they go for it, we'll set it up."
"Stateside. Your neck of the woods."
"Gives me the chance to pull out some of my mom's old recipes and haul out my rusty cooking skills."
"Big old-fashioned family dinner."
"Absolutely."
She looked over as Jax walked into the room, giving him a nod.
"I've gotta go. Mommy duties. But I'll let you know how everything goes. I love you, zio."
"Love you too, Holly. Mom would be proud if she could see you now. I know papa is."
She smiled and blushed softly.
"I wish I could've known nonna. She sounded like an amazing woman."
"She really was. Next time I come down, I'll bring pictures."
"I'd love that. Night, zio."
She hung up and looked at Jax.
"My uncle's up for the deal. Now we just need to hear back from the Kings."
He smiled and kissed her softly and passionately.
"I wish I could stay and show you how appreciative I am for you, but I have to get to church."
"It's ok. To be honest, I'm pretty beat. And I wanna sleep in my own bed. So I'm gonna take the kids home and get them into bed."
"Ok. I'll see you later. And take Rat with you."
"I will. I love you, baby."
"I love you too, darlin'. You stay safe."