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Opie had been awake for nearly an hour now just watching Madison as she slept. He knew it was creepy but she just seemed so calm and looked much younger than she was. He was taken aback by the urge to pull her close against him and just hold her. With a sigh Opie flipped to his other side and climbed out of the bed. It was still pretty early, only seven according to the red digital numbers in the alarm clock sitting on his night stand. "Fuck man, why am I up?" He grumbled and rubbed his eyes. The movements woke Madison up and she groaned softly as her eyes tried to get used to the sun light already peering in to the room. Opie turned and looked over his shoulder. "You can probably go back to sleep. It's still early and I doubt anything will happen until later." Her green eyes focused on his and she nodded.

"Doubt I'll sleep any more. Once I'm up, I'm up." Madison pulled herself to a sitting position and she looked around the room. It was virtually bare, which was why she was a little confused as to why Ope had been climbing into the bed. Save for the gun on the nightstand and a few papers and an ashtray the room was void of anything personal or anything signaling this was someone's room.

"Not what you were expecting?" Opie asked as he slid back in to the bed. His hand yanked out two cigarettes and he lit both at one time. Releasing one from his mouth he handed it to Madison, her fingers brushing against his. Despite the callouses on his fingertips the backs of them were smooth to the touch. Madison inhaled the smoke before answering.

"There's not much in here." She commented.

"I don't stay here too often. A lot of my stuff is back in the apartment I share with Juice and Chibs." This was the first Madison was ever hearing about Opie's life outside of the bedroom. He never spoke about the club or the other bikers. He never spoke about what happened to his wife and children. Opie never spoke to her about a single personal thing and in return neither did she. "It gets a little crowded there sometimes but it's a decent enough place."

"Why have a room here at all if you have a place?"

"Well glad I have one now huh?" He smirked at her. "Jax has a room here too. A few of us do but these are mostly for visiting club members from another charter." Madison nodded not really knowing what a charter was.

"Do you…how do you think people are going to react about me being here? I mean, I'm not an Old Lady or even your girlfriend. How do I fit in to all of this?" Madison didn't want to beat around the bush. She almost wanted to just hole up in this room until everything was over but she knew she was going to have to come out eventually. She knew about the Croweaters and hang arounds. She had seen them often enough in the parking lot during a party as she drove by. She knew about Gemma Morrow. Everyone in town did. She would be lying if she said she wasn't nervous about meeting her. Hell, she was nervous about being in the same room as her. Last night felt like hell.

"Dunno. Some of the girls are gonna give you a hard time, say shit that's gonna either make you cry or hit them. The rest of the guys won't say shit. They'll treat you with respect because if you weren't a friend of mine then you wouldn't be here." At the word friend Madison looked at Opie. They never gave what they had a label. Was there honestly a label describing what they were? "What?" Opie saw the look on Madison's face and felt panic rise in his chest. Did she not want to be friends?

"Nothing….nothing. I just didn't know we were friends. I mean I didn't know friends…did what we do. I just…" Madison shook her head and suddenly became very interested in the cigarette in her hand.

"We don't have to be if you don't want to. I just figured we were." Opie put his cigarette out then handed the ashtray to Maddie to do the same. Once it was out she handed the ashtray back and sat quietly for a few minutes. Opie started wondering if he had said the wrong thing once again when she finally spoke.

"We…we can be friends." She turned and shot him a small smile. "But a special kind of friends." Opie smirked and nodded in agreement. The room grew hot as Opie leaned over and pressed his lips firmly against hers. He bit down on her bottom lip as she slid beneath him, her legs instantly wrapping around his hips. He groaned into her mouth when she pushed her pelvis up into his. One hand tangled in her hair, the other slowly slipped down her body and stopped at the top of her yoga pants.

"Yo Ope, early Church." Jax could be heard behind the closed door banging on it loudly. Opie stopped his attack on Madison's lips and sighed. Madison held in her own sigh of disappointment and let her legs fall on to the bed.

"Sorry. Better get up and dressed." He heaved himself off and started digging through his clothes. There wasn't time for him to shower so he stripped down quickly in the room and began pulling on clean clothes. Despite what they had just been doing Madison blushed as Opie stood before her naked. To distract herself she started pulling out clothes from the suitcase and walked into the bathroom. Opie slid in behind her to brush his teeth as she pulled off her dirty clothes and dropped them in a pile on the floor. "Those are clean towels." He commented, the tooth brush hanging from his mouth.

"Thanks." Madison quickly slid in to the hot spray and began massaging her hair.

"Just come out when you are done. Tara will be out there with the kids." He called to her then left leaving her alone for the first time in the clubhouse. Madison didn't want to take too much time in the shower so she rushed through it, disappointed in finding only axe shower things. Well it looked like she would be smelling manly today. Freshly clean and clothed Maddie ran a brush through her hair and took a deep breath as she left the room. She could smell food being cooked somewhere and she traced her steps from the previous night. Once she walked into the bar she wanted to turn and go back upstairs. There were a few women lounging around in almost no clothing staring at her. One leaned over and whispered to the other and they both laughed in her direction. Before she could take off Tara appeared with a baby in her arms.

"Madison! Come on we are just making breakfast now. It will give you a great opportunity to meet the others while the men are in Church." She smiled and waved her over. Madison nodded but had no idea what Church meant here. She highly doubted it was anything remotely to what she did when she went to Church which was maybe three times a year. She shuffled over to Tara feeling over dressed in her skinny jeans and t shirt. I mean these women glaring at her had almost nothing on at all. Making their way into the relatively small kitchen Madison was greeted by Gemma and a few other women. Gemma stopped mixing what looked like pancake batter in a bowl and walked towards her.

"So you're Madison Grey." She squinted, her eyes traveling every inch of Madison's face and body. She felt like she was undergoing an exam and this one she was sure she was going to fail.

"Yes ma'am."

"Don't call me ma'am. I'm not old enough for that." Madison nodded, fear apparent in her eyes. Gemma found her to be plain, skittish, too much like Tara when she first came here with Jax. "What's going on between you and Ope?" Madison swallowed and her eyes shot to Tara for a moment. Tara said nothing but gave her a small smile.

"We are just friends."

"Just friends don't get threatened by a club's enemy." Madison didn't know what to say about that so she didn't say anything. "I will find out what's going on. He's like a son to me." Her threat was clear and Madison nodded as Gemma strode out of the kitchen. Tara immediately came over to her.

"I'm sorry about that. When it comes to Gemma just let her ask and answer truthfully."

"I did. Opie and I are honestly just friends. We discussed it this morning." Madison brushed past Tara and picked up the bowl Gemma had abandoned.

"You are something more than a friend Maddie, whether or not you two will admit that." Her voice was low so only Maddie heard it. The women finished making the breakfast just in time for Church to let out. All of the men grumbled about how hungry they were and hooted at the sight of food laid out along the bar. After the men grabbed their food the women grabbed theirs. Madison stood behind the bar with a pancake rolled up in her hand. She was letting her eyes scan around the clubhouse just watching everyone interact. Her eyes stopped on Opie and one of the croweaters as she leaned in giving him an ample view of her tits hanging out from her shirt. One of her hands gripped his thigh tightly. When the bleached blonde looked up and saw Madison watching her she moved her hand up further so she was almost touching him. The smirk on her face made Madison see red but she had no right to be upset. Right? Shrugging like she didn't care she grabbed another pancake and made her way over to Tara and the boys.

"Hey Madison, sleep well?" Jax asked her as she approached. She smiled and sat down next to Able on the floor.

"Yes thank you."

"You okay? You look a little rattled." Jax took a seat on the floor in front of Tara, close enough that Madison wouldn't have to talk loudly.

"Yea just not used to all of this." Her eyes shot to Opie and the croweater. Her blood boiled when she saw Opie whispering something in her ear before nipping at her neck. Her obnoxious laughter rang out and Madison wanted to tear across the room and punch her. Jax followed her gaze.

"Oh shit Mads. Look Ope…" Madison held up a hand to stop him.

"I'm not with him. We are only friends so I really have no right or reason." She smiled and turned her attention fully to Abel who was writing his alphabet on a piece of paper. He held out the crayon to Madison.

"I can't remember the R." Madison took the crayon and scooted him and the paper over so he was sitting in her lap.

"It looks like a P but with another line, kind of like a tail." She drew out the R and handed the crayon back to Abel. He copied what she had done then smiled up at her.

"I did it!" His excitement made her giggle.

"You did and it looks great." She rested her lips against the top of his head and sighed.

"You are really great with kids Maddie." Jax smiled at her.

"I had a son once. He didn't see age six." She said sadly. The smile on Jax's face dropped and he looked at Tara who looked heartbroken.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know…"

"No one really does. This was a few years ago now. I don't usually tell people. I knew it was going to happen."

"What do you mean by that?" Tara asked as she handed Thomas to his daddy.

"Leukemia. Cancer ran very high on his father's side. He developed tumors when he wasn't even a year old. They couldn't subject him to chemo yet and they spread quickly. They gave him until the age of three but he surpassed
it. At the end he wasn't my little boy anymore. Only a shell. When it got to the worse of it they put him in a medical induced coma so he wouldn't know." Tears had filled her eyes and she swiped at them.

"Don't cry Maddie. He's in heaven now with Kip and Uncle Piney." Abel stood and hugged her. She laughed a little and hugged him back. She assumed he meant people from the club.

"I just get a little sad sometimes when I think about how much I miss him." Abel sat back down in her lap and started writing again.

"Kip and Piney are from the club right?" There was a look shared between Tara and Jax.

"Kip was…a friend when he was a baby. Piney was Opie's dad." Madison felt a pain in her chest and she pressed her hand to her mouth. Her eyes shot to the big biker and she wished they hadn't. Opie was groping the croweater who was now sitting in his lap. Jax looked over and stood up ready to say something.

"Jax no. Just leave it alone." Madison begged. She could see him grind his teeth debating.

"Fine. Tara let's bring the boys out for a little while. They can go on the swings or something." Madison stood and helped Abel up, being sure to put his crayons and papers on a table so no one stepped on them. Abel took her hand and led her over to the playground which was encased in a fence. Thomas was placed in the baby swing and Abel started climbing the ladder to the little clubhouse and slide.

"Come on Maddie! Play with me up here! We can be spies!" His enthusiasm was contagious.

"Sweetie Maddie might not…"

"Oh no it's fine. I'd love to play spies with him." Madison cut Tara off with a smile. Tara waved her hand in a go ahead gesture and Madison climbed the ladder. Jax was on the outside of the fence smoking a cigarette.

"Maddie you get to be Agent 2 because I am Agent 1 okay? We are gonna spy on daddy. He's a bad spy and he stole the secret necklace that has magic powers." Madison crouched down next to Abel and peered out between the wooden slates at Jax who was oblivious. She held in her giggles and nodded.

"Like really cool magic powers?" She played along.

"Wicked cool. Like we can be invisible if we wear it!" Madison gasped.

"That is the coolest! How do we get it back from the bad spy?"

"You can distract him and I'll sneak up and steal it okay?" Madison nodded and Abel smiled. "Okay let's go. Remember you need to make sure he doesn't see me." Abel slid down the slide and turned to wait for Madison to follow. Madison held her knees up near her chin as she went down. Standing up she brushed her jeans off and followed Abel towards the door to the fence of the playground. He made a thumbs up at her and she walked over to Jax.

"Hey Jax." He came closer to the fence and put his cigarette out.

"What's up Mads?"

"So we are playing spies right now and you're the bad spy. You stole a necklace with magical powers." She filled him in quietly. Looking over at Abel sneaking up behind Jax she spoke a little louder. "How are you doing today?" Jax shook his head and laughed before lifting a black cord with a reaper on the end over his head and holding it behind him. Abel snatched it and ran back to the door of the gate.

"Maddie I got it!" She rushed over and picked him up in her arms.

"Yay mission accomplished! You my little friend are a terrific spy." He slipped on the necklace and looked at her expectantly. "Oh no! Abel where did you go? I can't see you." She joked.

"I made cookies!" Gemma called out from the doorway of the clubhouse.

"Cookies!" Abel yelled and squirmed to be let down. He took off across the parking lot. A few pop sounds had Gemma scream and Tara snatch Thomas from the swing and duck. It only took a few second for Madison to realize those were gunshots and she took off next to Jax. Madison ran ahead of Jax and snatched Abel, pulling him into her arms. Another group of shots rang out and Madison hit the ground covering the boy with her body. There she was in the middle of the parking lot with no cars nearby to hide behind as Jax and a few others shot back at the van. She lay on the ground holding Abel tightly as he cried into her shirt.

"It's okay baby. It's okay." She kept repeating until after what felt like forever Jax and Chibs rushed over and pulled her off the ground. Jax grabbed Abel from her and began checking him for wounds and only came up with the little bit of scraps from the pavement. Sighing in relief he gathered his crying son into his arms as Tara came rushing over. Madison was hardly aware of Chib's hands checking her over for wounds of her own until he hit a spot on her arm and she hissed.

"Ya got shot Mads." He grabbed her shirt and tore the sleeve from her shoulder. Madison shook her head.

"No. I couldn't have. I didn't feel it." She argued but when she saw the blood she knew he was right. A bullet had gone right into her arm an inch and a half from her shoulder. Her fingers grazed the wound then pulled back covered in blood.

"We need ta get it out luv." He started leading her towards the doors of the clubhouse. Gemma whisked by her to get to Abel nearly knocking her down. "It's safe now. Some of da men went after them." He told Madison as he brought her into the bar and sat her down in a chair. He said something to Juice but Madison couldn't make it out. There was a buzzing in her ears and everything felt too hot.

"I think I'm gonna pass out." She wiped at her face smearing the blood on her fingers across her cheek.

"Hold on luv. Take this." He handed her a shot glass filled with an amber liquid. Without asking what it was she tossed it back and groaned at the burn. "One more." He refilled it and she tossed it back then splashed her arm with some of it. Madison cried out as the alcohol burned her wound and she tried to get away from Chib's arms that were holding her down. "'Appy get ova here and hold her." He shouted over his shoulder. A bald menacing looking biker walked over and Madison flinched as he walked behind the chair and held her down. "This is gonna 'hurt like a bitch but I need ta get the bullet out." Chibs spoke softly to her as he slipped on a pair of gloves. She was crying now but managed to nod her head. The alcohol was beginning to take effect making things a little hazy.

"Another shot. Please." She begged. Happy let her go only long enough to hand her the bottle. Drinking right from the bottle she sighed and forced herself to be still as Chibs pulled a chair up next to her. The tweezers dug into her skin sending searing pain straight through her body. Madison screamed and struggled against Happy but she didn't budge from that chair.

"What the hell is going on?" A voice yelled from across the bar. Madison turned her head and found Opie storming over to them. Chibs took the distraction to his advantage and dug in again earning yet another scream.

"Bullet in her arm Ope. I hafta get it out." Opie's eyes landed on the wound then the tear stained face of the girl in front of him. He kneeled down and took the bottle from her hands handing it off to someone. His hands took hers and he squeezed gently.

"Come on babe. It's almost out. Just squeeze my hands okay? Focus on me. When this is all over we'll go for a ride." He promised her with a small smile.

"No offense…I'd rather get drunk." This earned a laugh from the guys.

"Okay we'll get drunk. So drunk that we don't remember our names okay?" Maddie nodded and screamed again.

"Almost luv. This is going to be worse. Just stay as still as possible. One more." Madison was shaking and crying hard now. She nodded and grasped Opie's hands as tight as she could. Gritting her teeth against the pain Opie nodded at Chibs and he went for it again. Opie leaned up and pressed his lips against hers hard trying to distract her. It worked a little and Chibs was able to get the bullet. Opie pulled back and looked at her.

"Are you okay?" His hands released hers and moved over her face wiping away tears and blood.

"I know you are going to say you need to stitch it up Chibs so please just get it done." She eyed him wearily and he sighed. He hadn't wanted to tell her. He felt bad enough already. "Bottle." She demanded and Opie handed it to her. She tossed it back twice before handing it to Chibs and steeling herself for another splash of liquid pain. It wasn't as horrible this time, having gone through much worse when those tweezers were in her arm. The first few hurt like hell but eventually she had gone numb with alcohol. Opie had to take the bottle away when she started chugging from the bottle. Once he was done Happy released her and Maddie stood. The alcohol rushed to her head and she fell forward into Opie.

"Alright, shower time." He effortlessly picked her up and carried her upstairs. Freeing her from her damaged clothes Ope helped Madison into the shower. She stood there as he washed her up and washed her hair. Deeming her clean he helped her out and got her into some clothes. As Madison slowly slid into the tank top she finally spoke.

"Where were you?" She asked.

"What do you mean?"

"When that all went down out in the lot where were you?" She saw the muscles in his jaw tightened and shook her head. She knew damn well. I hope it wasn't in this bed." She commented and shoved past him. He wasn't hers but while he was busy screwing Barbie she had been shot. Madison, now sobered pretty much, made it into the bar before anyone spotted her. Tara rushed over to her and gently hugged her.

"Oh my god Maddie…I….thank you…" She was a mess of tears and stuttering. Her eyes landed on the stitches stark black against inflamed skin.

"Don't okay? Don't Tara. I would have done it either way. He reminds me a lot of Jamie. Abel is the sweetest little boy. All I could think of was that I needed to get to him. I didn't even know about the shot until Chibs touched it. He's safe. I'm safe. Don't cry." She pulled the woman into a hug and sighed. "Come on, I wanna see how he's doing." Tara nodded and wiped the tears away. With an arm around Madison they walked further into the bar towards where Jax was holding Thomas as Abel sat staring at a grilled cheese and French fries on a plate. "Hey buddy what happened to those cookies grandma was shouting about?" Abel's chin dropped into his chest and he looked at his hands in his pockets. Madison took a seat next to him and leaned down. "This looks pretty good. Can I have a fry please?" Abel reached up and grabbed a fry then handed it to Madison. She smiled. "Thank you. Would you like one?" She popped the cry in her mouth. Abel shook his head. "Aww come one buddy whats wrong? We beat the bad spy and got some really awesome food and I bet you I could find those cookies if you want one." When Abel looked up at her his eyes were fill of tears and it broke her heart.

"You almost went to heaven with Kip and Uncle Piney. It's my fault you got hurt." He cried. Madison pulled him into her arms and her gripped her tightly, his arm brushing her stitches.

"Hey come on bud. It's not your fault. It's the bad guys fault and daddy and everyone else will take care of that. I got a little booboo and that's it. Look, it's all patched up and I'm gonna be all better soon." Abel pulled away and looked at her arm.

"Promise?" He sniffed.

"I promise baby." She kissed the top of his head. "Now why don't we eat this yummy food so I can go find those cookies huh?" Abel turned in her lap and grabbed a half of the sandwich. Ripping a chunk off he handed it to Madison and she laughed as she took it. "Well thank you Abel. You are very good at sharing."

"Madison." Madison looked at Jax as he handed Thomas off to Tara. Without another word he walked over and kissed the side of her head. "Thank you so much. I don't know what….just thank you." Madison nodded and Jax knew that it was ok. He walked over to where the guys were sitting and talking in a group. She was about to turn her attention back to Abel when she caught sight of Gemma. The color had been drained from her face and it was apparent she had been crying.

"I'll be right back sweetie, okay? I'm gonna go find those cookies." She slid Abel into the chair and pushed it in for him before walking towards Gemma. Gemma pushed off the bar and closed the few steps. Madison searched for the words to say but came up with nothing. It shocked her completely when Gemma wrapped her in a gentle hug.

"Thank you Madison. You saved my grandbaby. He might have…Jax might have gotten there too late."

"I'll do anything to keep the people here safe. You are doing the same for me Gemma and you don't even know me."

"You sped past Jax like that Sonic thing."

"Yea, I was on the track team in middle and high school. I still run most mornings." She explained.

"Well your hobby just saved my family. You've earned your place here, Old Lady or not." She hugged her one more time and walked in to the arms of a white haired man. Madison smiled tentatively at them and the man shot her a smile and nod back. Madison wasted no more time in getting into the kitchen to find the cookies for Abel. They were still a little warm on the cooling rack. Placing a couple on a plate Madison found her way back to Abel who had just finished his lunch. Placing the cookies down on the table she reached for Thomas who Tara was happy to hand over.

"I'm going to run and use the bathroom." Madison nodded and cooed to the little boy in her arms. She was too busy talking to the baby and Abel to notice that Opie had come downstairs.

"Would you take a look at that Ope? She's terrific with kids and has already earned a spot in the Gemma circle. I'd say that's Old Lady material." Tara patted him on the back as she made her way back to her boys. Opie thought about how Gemma and Jax had described Madison tearing across the pavement to get to Jax's kid. He didn't love her. He didn't even know if he liked her in a way that she could become his Old Lady. The pain of Donna and his kids still fresh in his mind he shook his head and stormed out to climb on his bike. He needed some time to think.