AN: Thank you all for your support! I love you all very much so here you go!
The room felt stifling and Madison couldn't catch her breath. She was going to be shot, going to be killed right here in the room they called a chapel. She was going to have her life end at the hand of a biker like Tommy did. Swallowing hard, her trembling hands hidden in her lap she waited for someone to say something, anything. If felt like forever before Jax finally spoke.
"While you two were out gallivanting this afternoon we got some information we thought you'd be interested in. Especially you Madison." His eyes were hard and she knew all personal shit was out the window and he was in full President mode.
"What's going on here Jax?" Tara asked, her eyes flipping from her husband to Maddie and back.
"Madison's phone kept ringing this afternoon so Opie picked it up. An Agent Markoff asked for you. Funny thing is he didn't wait for you to say hello before he started flipping about Roosevelt and some guy Ryans." Madison felt like she was going to be sick. Her eyes moved to Opie's who had glossed over. She was terrified by what she saw. He was like an entirely different person. He sat forward, his hand moving over the gun as a threat. "You gonna explain why an Agent is calling your phone and why how you know our Sherrif?" Madison was trained for this. She had spent countless hours before coming up with lies on the spot. Anything to get out of a bad situation. Taking a deep breath she forced herself to relax. Acting as if this was nothing at all she let her shoulders slump from their previous tensed post and lifted her hands to rest on the table.
"Markoff was my brother's friend. Yes, he is an FBI Agent but he has no idea that I have anything to do with the Sons. Like I have said before, no one knew about me and Ope."
"Why is he calling your phone?"
"He does that, checks on me time to time. My brother died a few years ago, killed during some secret mission or something. It hit me hard and Markoff helped me through it. He's like family. When I don't pick up he tends to freak out and overreact." She shrugged it off.
"And Roosevelt?"
"I met him at a fundraiser years ago. We stayed friends and when he picked up as Sherriff here we reconnected a bit."
"You sleep with him?" Opie cut in. Madison's eyes shot to his.
"No Ope, I didn't sleep with him. I'm glad that's your concern right now."
"Back to Roosevelt." Jax butt in before the two could start fighting.
"He found out I was picked up with you guys, had someone bring me to his office. I told him we had nothing to do with the accusations. He knows I wouldn't lie to him so he let us go. You're welcome." Madison was trying to act annoyed by this the best she could. Jax let out a loud sigh and sat back in his seat.
"You need to understand we have to keep this club safe Madison. I don't know shit about you and you have a fucking Fed calling your phone. You are with my kids 90 percent of the time. You know some of what we do here I'm sure. I couldn't risk it."
"I completely understand but was the gun necessary?" She looked pointedly at the gun still under Opie's hand.
"Everything is necessary here." Tara had been quiet up until now but even as her husband spoke those words she stood.
"Can we go now? Since this has been cleared Maddie and I have things to put away and I'd like to see my boys." Jax didn't say anything, just stood, kissed Tara on the cheek and walked out with Opie right behind him. Opie hadn't even looked at Madison. Shakily the brunette stood and pushed her chair in. Tara didn't waste a second in wrapping her arms around Madison. "I'm sorry. Jax gets like this sometimes. His family and club are everything to him. He just gets a little overprotective."
"Don't worry about it. I should have told someone, even Opie about Roosevelt or my connection with the FBI." She waved off Tara's apologies on her husband's behalf. She didn't want to talk about it anymore, didn't want to slip up in the web of lies she was spinning. "I think I need to talk to Ope. You saw how he acted…" Tara nodded and led her out of the chapel.
"I'll be here for a little while longer if you need anything." Madison nodded her thank you. She couldn't trust her voice right now. She hadn't realized how attached to the people here she would become. She knew she should call Ryans or even Markoff and tell them she wanted off the case but she knew damn well they would just slip someone else in to take the MC down. Could she really let that happen now? At least with her on the inside she could bid them some time, maybe even stop this altogether. But Tommy. You forget why you're here. Distance yourself Madison or you will end up just like him.
Madison found Opie in the garage working on a car. His head and torso were blocked by the car he was lying underneath. She gently kicked the side of the rolling board he was lying on and called his name. "Ope?" His movements stopped and he pulled himself out from underneath the car. Instead of talking to her or even looking at her he moved around her and started tinkering with something under the propped open hood. Madison looked around at the other two club members who were watching them and sighed. "Opie I want to talk to you, please." She moved to stand aside him and he still didn't say a word. Grabbing his wrist as it was tweaking something on the engine he finally stopped moving. "Talk to me." With a yank he wrenched his wrist from her hand and started working again. "Fine. I'm going home. Don't call me anymore." Madison turned on her heel and slammed into Jax. "Sorry." She muttered before jogging out into the parking lot.
"What was that about?" Jax asked as Opie finally stood straight and watched her retreating figure.
"She's going home. Where she belongs." He grunted before reaching for a wrench. Jax knocked his hand aside and shoved his friend back a step.
"What the fuck Ope? I understand you are pissed that she didn't tell you but do you really think her going home is a good idea? She has no idea about that email. You're just gonna let her go like that?"
"She has Fed friends. She will be just fine." Jax stood there staring at his best friend for a moment before turning and leaving.
Everything was exactly the same as she had left it. Nothing had been touched or moved since the night she had left. Had that only been maybe three weeks ago? It felt like forever. Madison had left the sheets on Opie's bed, not wanting them anymore. It had taken her not even five minutes to collect her things and have a prospect help her with packing her car. She explained quickly to Tara that she was heading home and would call her later and then she was gone. It wasn't until she had cleaned the coffee cups, scrubbed the bathroom and had begun making something for dinner than she realized she felt a hollow emptiness in her chest. She stood staring out the small window above the sink out into the pitch black darkness. All sound had faded and her eyes began focusing on her reflection staring back at her. Everything had changed so much in the last month. How could time have passed so quickly? How could her entire life just turn itself inside out like this? As Madison stood there her face began to warp in the reflection. It stretched out forming another on her right. Squinting she watched as the features formed. Dark eyes and hair. Scars. Mouth open, hand coming up aside her. Madison screamed realizing there was someone else there. Turning she grabbed the pan from the drying rack and swung. The person didn't collapse but took a few steps backward clutching his head.
"Chris' almighty girly. I've been callin' yer name fer five minutes now. Didn' need ta swing at me." Madison held the pan in front of her ready to swing again but the accent caught her attention.
"Chibs?" Madison slowly lowered the pan, breathing heavily. What the hell was he doing in her house? How did she not hear his bike, let alone not hear him come in?
"Aye. Now why don' ya put the pan down?" He stood straighter, clutching the side of his head where you could already see a large purple bump. Maddie placed the pan down on the counter.
"What are you doing here?" She crossed the kitchen and grabbed a package of frozen veggies from the freezer and handed them to Chibs. "I don't own ice packs, sorry." He took it and held it to his head as he plopped himself down in a chair at the breakfast bar.
"Jax asked me ta check on ya. Said ya went home." His last statement had a hint of a question in it. Maddie shrugged and turned to pull the chicken from the oven. Placing it on the stove she began dishing out two plates, her back staying turned towards the biker.
"Figured I should. I'm sure you know what went down behind those doors today. I needed to come home, safe or not." Pushing a plate across the small bar she stood against the other side and shoved a fork full of food in her mouth. "He pulled a gun on my Chibs. He was so quick to assume I was a bad guy and even after I explained he wouldn't talk to me. I don't want to play games anymore. We were never supposed to be together like this anyway." She tried to act like it was nothing but she felt a pain in her chest that she had only felt twice before. Chibs knew that women felt more than they let on but he also knew not to push the boundaries too much either.
"Neva shoulda pulled a gun on ya but listening…Ope doesn' do tha well. Bit of a hot head. He'll come aroun'" Chibs said between bites. He liked Madison, thought she was good for his brother. The only problem was getting Opie to truly let her in. After the death of his family nothing had ever been the same for the gentle giant. He had become a cold, ruthless man. He would kill without thinking, diving into gunfire, just laughed in the face of danger. And yet, the last few runs he had been much more cautious, careful even, and Chibs wanted to say it was because of this young woman standing in front of him. It may have started off as just a physical thing but he had seen the way his brother had looked at her. It was in lust or desire. There had been true feelings in his eye and he had seen it mirrored in hers. It pissed him off to no end that the two couldn't just come to terms with what they were hiding and try being together. He hated that Opie had driven her off the lot at Teller Morrow with his stubbornness and pride. Being forced to be together for the past month had forced them to come to terms with the situation. There had been no choice but to realize that they cared for one another, to act like a couple nearing the end. Now with her home they could either go back to being fuck buddies or stop talking altogether and Chibs didn't want that. He knew the other guys didn't either. He had spoken briefly about Opie's change to Jax and Tig. Even Happy agreed that he liked having her around. Despite them trying to keep it a secret the guys felt as if she was already becoming family. Hell, look how she connected with Abel and Thomas. Even Gemma! Gemma who kept her heart guarded and rock hard had bent to the affection that Madison showed everyone. It had taken years for Gemma to show even the tiniest bit of acceptance to Tara and yet Maddie had gained it in a month. Something had to be done before it was too late.
"This is good. I should come ova more often." He joked which elicited a small laugh from the girl. "It's good ta see ya smile." Madison's eyes left her plate and landed on Chibs'.
"Can I ask you something?" He nodded and her eyes flicked around the room before settling on his again slowly. "I'm such an ass for asking but how did you get those scars?" Madison didn't miss the flash of something in his eyes but it had been gone too soon for her to catch what it had been.
"Luv. Ulitmately it was luv tha' gave me them. Fiona and I…tis is tha last now. The man tha gave me them is dead, I killed him myself. He took my Fiona and daughter from me, banished me from mah 'ome. All because I luved her." He smiled at the memory of his wife and daughter. Even since the death of Jimmy he was slowly rebuilding his relationship with them and couldn't have asked for anything more. Even though they were still in Ireland they had never been closer.
"Love sounds like it sucks." Madison grunted.
"Aye lass, it does but I promise it doesn'. Haven' ya ever been in luv?" Madison shook her head instantly, her answer quick. "Come on now." Madison sighed and moved around the bar to sit down next to Chibs, leaving her food abandoned.
"I wasn't in love with Jeremy when I got pregnant with Jamie. I had thought I was but now looking back I really wasn't. It wasn't until things got really bad with Jamie that I realized it. Jer took off leaving me alone with my baby, alone to go through….to…." Madison's voice cracked and she stopped talking knowing she was going to cry. Chibs slid his chair closer and pulled her into his arms.
"It's alrigh' lass."
"I was completely alone Chibs. It had never been love. After Jamie was gone I had nothing at all so I came here. I had been so careful to keep my heart closed off to everyone and then Opie came and…I hadn't cared that it was just sex. Sure, eventually I cared about him but it wasn't love. If he chose to walk away it wouldn't have bothered me and now…" Maddie wasn't sure if it was love but she imagined it might be close. The thought of not having Opie in her life let a sharp pain in her chest. Her mind wandered to her case and she sobered up quick. She had to let him go. She had to get him out of her life and do whatever she could to point the FBI away from them. Abruptly she pulled away from Chibs and wiped her face on the back of her hand. Hoping down from the chair she took his empty plate and hers to the sink. "It's in the past. All of it." She spoke softly but the biker heard her. Madison kept her back turned towards him until she heard him leave the room. Then she broke down in tears.
