News had a funny way of spreading in Charming, and after less than twenty-four hours Tara already knew about her husband's erratic behavior and subsequent expulsion from SAMCRO. This was the final straw. No longer could she wait for the law to come through and rescue her and her sons from Charming and her attempt at getting help from Fiona Larkin had also fallen through. Now, she knew that she was the only one who could save two little boys from a horrible fate, even if it meant packing a bag and stealing away with them in the middle of the night.
Right now, Abel was sitting on the bed playing with a teddy bear with Thomas in his car seat a few feet away.
Tara couldn't help but smile at how happy and peaceful her boys looked as if they already knew that they would finally be free from the influence of the club and would never have to grow up to hurt or kill others. Her thoughts of happiness were interrupted by the loud sound of the front door being opened and somebody walking angrily into the house.
Although she wasn't sure what exactly was happening, Tara's first instinct was to protect Abel and Thomas. Without thinking, she grabbed Thomas and pushed him under the bed, motioning for Abel to follow his brother. "Whatever you do, don't get out from under the bed unless Mommy tells you to." She wasn't sure what she expected to have happen, but something made her feel like she wasn't in a safe situation and she didn't want her sons to get hurt.
Trying to plaster on her best unafraid face she opened the bedroom door and walked out to face whoever had entered the home.
Gemma Teller stood in the entryway. The older woman was absolutely seething. "What do you think you're doing?!"
At first Tara wasn't sure if Gemma was actually referencing that she knew about what she was going to do. "I don't know what you're talking about Gemma."
This was a trigger comment. Almost as if a switch had been flipped on, rather than responding, Gemma lunged at her. Trying to think quickly, Tara felt the table behind her for any item that could be used to stop the charging woman. Her hand felt a statue of an elephant and as Gemma's hands wrapped around her throat she broke the statue against the other woman's face.
Stunned, Gemma released her and reached up to feel the blood oozing out of her now broken nose. Taking this opportunity to attempt an escape Tara tried to dart around the other woman, not planning to leave her sons alone with their mad grandmother but hoping to reach a room with better weapons.
However, Gemma quickly recovered and tripped her, causing her to fall into the shards from the broken elephant. To ensure that Tara would be hurt, as soon as she fell Gemma pressed a shoe into her back forcing the broken glass to cut into the other woman's face.
From her position on the floor, Tara heard the sound of the door opening again.
xxx
As a man he didn't like to admit when he needed help and the admittance that he needed it from the club he'd just turned his back on was even harder to make. Luckily, Chibs didn't have to.
The police had shown up and put up crime scene tape while asking what they thought were all the right questions. Of course they'd looked at him suspiciously. What were the odds of the sheriff ending up dead on the doorstep of an ex member of the city's most violent gang? However, they'd found nothing on him and had taken away Roosevelt's body while advising him not to leave town.
As soon as they left Tig had walked up to the door as if he'd forgotten that the other man was no longer a member of the club. "What the hell happened man?"
"A big bloody mess," Chibs sighed, unsure if he was talking specifically about the sheriff's demise or about the situation of the entire day.
"The club voted Jax out."
"So?" Chibs responded, unsure what the other man was trying to get at.
"I just thought you'd want to know we took care of it."
Chibs snorted "You're trying to persuade me to come back aren't you?"
"At this point we'd take an alliance. Look man, we need you. I know your family needs you too so you don't have to come back to the club, but an alliance would be beneficial to all of us."
Chibs considered what the other man was saying for a minute. He wasn't about to beg for his cut back, but with all that was going on he felt like he could use help protecting his family. Still, he remembered the club using lies to lure former allies into a trap and he didn't want that. "I'm the one in charge in this relationship okay?!" he tried to make himself sound as menacing as possible to show that he wasn't about to be lured and slaughtered by his old club.
Tig seemed to debate for a moment before agreeing, "Okay brother, your terms."
xxx
Chibs made his first condition that instead of him and his family going back to the club base at the ice cream shop, the club had to come to him. If the house had a large kitchen table the men would have been crowded around it, but it didn't so the bikers were scattered around the kitchen and living room claiming various pieces of furniture. Chibs himself wasn't actually sitting, but standing in front of the men with his wife nearby leaning on a chair. In the other room, his daughter leaned over the kitchen island as if she was unsure if she wanted to be there but still too curious to leave. Part of him liked having both his wife and daughter in his sight as it let him know they were okay.
As soon as everyone was in their place, Bobby turned to Chibs. "What's your plan brother?"
Chibs thought for a second before speaking "I want to find out who Jimmy's mole is. We're going to split into groups and talk with the women associated with SAMCRO." Instead of waiting for the club's response he found himself dictating orders of who checked out who. "Tig and Rat have Gemma. Juice is taking Wendy. Bobby talks with Colette Jane. Hap has Lyla and I'll take my wife and daughter and talk with Tara."
