It's been so long since I've updated this! I'm sorry! I hit a wall and it took me a while to get through it. In the end, I decided to get a little A/U with the next few chapters. Thank you all for your reviews, support and patience!
Chapter 30
"What's wrong with this one?" I asked after the realtor stepped outside to give us a few minutes to talk about the third house we'd looked at that day. Happy had a major issue with every one. First he didn't like the neighbors, then the windows weren't safe. I was starting to think he was just going to say no to everything.
"The yard is a little small." He said, putting his hands on the edge of the kitchen sink and looking out over the backyard. It was the largest yard out of the three and he hadn't complained about the yard in the last two houses. I scrubbed my face with my hand and leaned against the kitchen island.
"What's really wrong?" I asked, no longer believing that the problem had anything to do with the house. He let his head drop and I watched his shoulders rise and fall with a deep breath.
"We're looking at houses for a family I won't even be a part of." Happy said. I bit my bottom lip and stepped over to him. He didn't turn around until I put my hand on his back. "Our kid will outgrow the yard before I even get out."
"You don't know that, Happy. You haven't been to court yet." He rolled his eyes and moved to shake his head before I put my palms on either side of his face. "It doesn't matter if you're here or in Serbia. You'll always be a part of this family, our family. I like this house."
"I like the neighbors." Happy muttered. Jax's house was diagonal to the house we were standing in. I laughed and kissed his cheek. "The house is good if you like it."
"I do. The neighbors are a little questionable though." He smirked and then kissed my lips. "So, do you want to put in an offer?"
Everything was being rushed because we didn't know how much longer we had before he and the majority of the club would be going to Stockton. We were looking at houses in the morning and hoping to have the offer signed and the process started by the afternoon. I was doing everything I could not to show how much his departure was really going to bother me, for his sake. I saved most of my tears for when he was at the garage or my lunch breaks at work.
"Yeah." He gave me a smile but it didn't reach his eyes. I hated that he was hurting as much if not more than I was. "Go start the car. I'll talk to Rob."
I took the keys from him and headed out of the house that we would hopefully get moved into before he had to leave. I started the engine and glanced out of the window to see Happy and Rob talking on the sidewalk. Rob looked like he was going to be sick, but he'd looked like that every time Happy had gotten close to him. A few minutes later, Happy got in the passenger seat and squeezed my thigh.
"He's sending the papers over in a few hours." Happy said, driving us back to Tara's to celebrate and start packing. Four days later, we were running late for my doctor's appointment. The closer we got to the court date, the more we seemed to be rushing.
"Let's go get you probed." Happy said, rubbing my stomach. I rolled my eyes and backed out of the driveway. "It's a girl."
"You can't know that." I said with a laugh. He nodded and leaned the seat back. He'd barely gotten much sleep in the past few days. It only got worse after we went down to Bakersfield to tell his Mom about everything that was going on. We'd saved the bad news for last but she still hadn't taken it well. There was a lot of back and forth in Spanish that I didn't understand but by her angry tone and Happy's submissive posture, I knew she was putting him in his place.
"Okay. Alexis, Happy, are you two ready?" The doctor asked as she squeezed the ultrasound gel onto my bare stomach. I tightened my hold on Happy's hand, hating the cold gel. He nodded and watched the screen intently. I closed my eyes, hoping the baby would cooperate, just in case Happy couldn't make the next appointment. The doctor started rubbing the wand over my stomach and I looked over at the screen.
"Is that her nose?" Happy asked as the baby's head came into view. The doctor chuckled and I couldn't help but laugh.
"You don't know it's a her, Hap." I said. At first I had been leaning more towards wanting a little boy but knowing how his heart was set on a girl won me over. The doctor paused the wand right above my navel and clicked a couple keys on the computer.
"Do you want to know now or are you planning a reveal?" She asked, looking from me to Happy. I shook my head and Happy scowled. She held her free hand up to apologize before zooming in on the screen. "We can't always guarantee what we're seeing but this is a nearly perfect image. Congratulations. It's a girl."
"A girl?" Happy asked in a near whisper. The doctor nodded and I looked up to see his eyes starting to glisten. "We're having a girl."
"We are." I said before his lips were on mine. I could barley manage to kiss him because of my huge smile. "Go call your Mom, baby."
"Maybe she'll be too happy to bitch at me some more." He said. I kissed his cheek and gave him a reassuring nod. Once he was out of the room, I turned to the doctor.
"Is it possible to detect any cardiac problems yet?" I asked quietly. She turned from the monitor and nodded, sitting down on the stool.
"You know we've been watching everything closely since your first appointment. Your daughter's heartbeat is strong and her growth schedule is on par for your gestation. Your blood pressure is still a little higher than we would like to see it." She said, wiping my stomach off. I nodded and looked up at the ceiling tiles.
"There's some things going on." I stated. I had to find a way to get my blood pressure down. I didn't have time for bed rest and I wanted to give our little girl every chance to be healthy.
"Life doesn't stop because we get pregnant. Try talking to someone. I know your lives can be, complicated. Is there anyone you can talk to?" I appreciated her understanding that I couldn't just talk to anyone about what had my stress levels elevated. I had Tara though. Without her, I probably would have been on bed rest since the third week.
"I do. Thank you." I said, sitting up and pulling my shirt down. She gave me a hand off the table so I could pull my jeans up and button them. They were getting a little tight and I'd already gone up a size. Happy met me in the waiting room and held his hand out expectantly. I laughed and handed him the copies of the ultrasound.
"Go ahead and say it." I grinned and looked at Happy who was staring at the ultrasound picture when we got in the car. He laughed and shook his head. I felt my phone vibrating in my bag and dug around for it. I answered it just before it went to voicemail. "Tara! Hey, what's up?"
"You're mother is driving me insane. She wants this big family dinner tonight and gave me a mile long list to go to the store with. Please tell me you have good news." She said with an exhausted laugh. I smiled as Happy slid a copy of the ultrasound into his inside, chest pocket.
"We're having a girl." I caught Happy's lips curving into a smile as he backed out of the parking spot. "Do you need some help at the store? I don't mind."
"That would be great. Happy doesn't mind?" Tara asked. I told her not to worry about it. I knew Happy was going over to the clubhouse for church and to meet with Lohen. I dropped him off to get his motorcycle and headed over to Tara and Jax's.
We were in the middle of grocery shopping when I started feeling anxious. It seemed like everyone was watching us. In the back of my mind, I knew it was crazy to think that. Still, it made me uncomfortable enough to step outside for some air. I leaned against the brick façade and used some breathing exercises I'd read about in a recent medical journal. I caught a glimpse of blonde hair out of the corner of my eye.
"You." I growled as Zobelle's daughter got into a sedan. I felt like I was in autopilot. I got into my car and started following the young woman, careful to stay a few cars back at all times. It wasn't easy in the sparse, Charming traffic. I watched as she turned into the driveway of a plain looking house on a plain looking street. I parked on the opposite side of the street and a few houses down so that I could still see her but she wouldn't be alerted to my presence. I watched as she walked up to the front door and walked right in. She looked so normal. You wouldn't know how black her soul was just by looking at her.
I got out of the car and closed the door, careful not to make much noise. I had my bag on my shoulder and my hand down in the bag, grasping my pistol. When I got to the front door, I heard yelling. I drew my pistol and tried the knob. She'd left it unlocked. There was a single gunshot before I even had the door open.
"Oh my god." I said, looking at her lifeless form across the living room. Agent Stahl turned around with wide eyes.
"She drew on me." She said, motioning to the gun that had fallen beside the woman. I walked over, dropping my own gun back in my bag. "Here, hold this. I'm trying CPR. She's worth more to me alive."
"What are you doing?" I asked as she rose to her feet. She hadn't even tried one compression. I looked at the gun in my hand and narrowed my eyes. She'd just ensured that my prints were all over the murder weapon. "You bitch."
"You have ten seconds to start telling me everything I need to know about the Sons of Anarchy and the Real IRA." Stahl said, raising a full size pistol at me. "Give me the gun."
"I'm not telling you shit." I tossed the gun on the ground in front of her feet and turned away. I heard her calling out shots fired and requesting back-up as I ran out of the house. I wasn't stupid. She was going to use me as the scapegoat. I was going to be charged with a murder I'd longed to do but was denied the chance.
**Happy's POV**
"Juice, turn that up." Jax said. I ended what was probably my fiftieth call to Lexie's phones. Tara had called and said that she left her at the grocery store, no explanation or anything. It wasn't like Lexie.
"All units, be on the look out for Alexis Grace Teller-Grant, white female, five foot eight, blonde hair. Party is considered armed and dangerous. Will be suspect in double homicide. Any contact: use extreme caution, stop, hold and notify for ATF Agent Stahl." I stared at the police scanner, trying to remember if this was some fucked up nightmare or not. Jax pushed his hair back and turned to look at me.
"That's bullshit. She wouldn't risk our daughter." I said, racking my brain for where she may be headed. I knew Alexis. She was smart. She would ditch her car but she wouldn't risk getting a ride with anyone. No, she'd boost a car. Tig showed her how to hotwire cars when she was a teenager. Where would she go though. She wouldn't risk staying in Charming.
"Mom can't know about this. Her damn heart will give out." Jax said, looking around the room. My burner started vibrating on the table and I lunged for it.
"Alexis, where the fuck are you?" I was too worried about her to not sound angry. I needed to know she was safe and I needed to be with her.
"Hap." I heard the tears in her voice and kicked my chair over in blind rage. "I didn't hurt anyone, Happy. I didn't."
"I know, baby. Where are you?" I asked, turning my back on the room to avoid seeing anyone else's worry or anger.
"I shouldn't have left. I was terrified. I'm sorry." She cried. I shook my head and imagined twisting Stahl's head of her long neck. She had to be behind this bull shit. "I'm going to my grandpa's. You can't follow me. They'll be watching you."
"Damnit, Alexis! Why did you leave Tara? We've got a kid on the way. You stop to think about that for a second?" I knew I would regret yelling at her soon but I couldn't help it. She thought I'd been reckless for going in on the raid and she pulled this shit.
"Hap, let me talk to her." Jax said, stepping in front of me and holding out his hand for the phone. I slammed it into his hand and turned towards the door.
"I knew she'd be trouble. Should have kept her ass in Georgia." Clay grumbled. I pulled my Glock and leveled it in line with his forehead.
"I don't care where you sit at the table. Talk about her like that again and it's going to be the last thing you say." I had my finger on the trigger. All it would take was a couple pounds of pressure and the hollow-point bullet would find it's mark right between his eyes. I took a deep breath and reminded myself that killing him didn't make sense at the moment. I holstered the Glock and yanked the door open. I had to get out of the room before I did something I would regret.
"What's the plan?" I asked Jax when he sat my phone in front of me. I had gotten a beer out of the fridge but couldn't even open it.
"You're not going to like it." He said, leaning on the bar. I put the phone in my pocket as I stood up.
"If it ends in my old lady and our baby being safe, I don't give a shit." I growled. I didn't care how we got from point a to point b, as long as point b was safe for my family. Jax went over the plan and he was right, I didn't like it. It made sense though. We were getting Tig up to Eureka to keep Lexie safe and move her if need be. The plan relied on us giving Tig a head-start to get on the road without a tail. After that, we had to get Lohen to figure out a way for her to come back home without going to prison.
The plan had a lot of moving pieces and a loot of room for error. It was the best thing we had though. I took the ultrasound picture out of my pocket and looked at our little girl.
"Whatever it takes." I muttered before securing it back in my pocket. I followed Jax back into the chapel to finish hammering out some of the details.
