Hi Guys! So sorry for the long delay between chapters. Life had been a little bit insane lately, but I apologize. Hopefully, you guys will enjoy this chapter! I wanted to thank all of your who have favorited and followed this story, and an extra special thank you to you guys who have reviewed. You have no idea how much it means to me. Anyway, without further ado, here we go
When Tess opened her eyes, the very first thing she felt was fear. Immediately, many facts became clear to her. She couldn't see, and wherever she was, she was being kept in complete darkness. When she forced herself to focus hard, she realized that she was blindfolded. Her hands were bound behind her back, which made moving around incredibly difficult. Even without the ability to move, she could tell that wherever she was, she was in a really small space, enclosed or caged, like an animal. She listened for a moment, but she couldn't hear any voices, and it was far from quiet. There was a constant rumbling noise and the sound of cars all around her. That, plus the sensation of being in motion told Tess that she was in a car, most likely the trunk.
The sudden, jarring sensation of the car hitting a bump had Tess gasping in pain that emanated directly from the back of her head. She bit her lip, hard, to keep from crying out. Desperate, she tried to focus on anything but the pain. Slowly, the memories came back to her. She had been at the Clubhouse, and Kozik had warned her that she was in danger. She hadn't believed him, but then he had kissed her, and logic had left her high and dry. She had left him a note and gone outside to meet Lex, and then...somebody had hit her. She really couldn't remember anything else. Somebody had hit her and obviously taken her, and she didn't know where she was or who she was with or where she was going. She immediately began to hyperventilate as the panic set in.
Kozik. He had tried to tell her; tried to keep her safe. She wondered where he was right now. Had he gotten her note? Had he realized yet that she was missing? She wondered what he would do when she didn't come back. Would he think that she had ignored him and his warning and his kissing and gone off with Lex anyway? Would he be angry? Would he come looking for her? As soon as she thought that, she pushed it out of her mind. She didn't want him to come looking for her. Wherever she was, she was clearly in danger, and that was bad enough. Tess did not want him to get hurt, not on her account. Besides, even she didn't have a fucking clue where she was going or who she was with; how was he supposed to know?
Before Tess could even begin to ponder what she might do to get herself out of this situation, the car hit another bump, sending overwhelming pain through her whole body. As she lost consciousness, all Tess could think of was blonde hair and a pair of bright blue eyes.
Church had lasted a long time; too long, in Chibs's opinion. It was necessary, as there were a lot of decision to be made, but everybody was too on edge, too tired, too stressed, and too bogged down with this crap. He worried that it was taking a toll on all of them, both inside the room and outside. Their VP was laid up in a hospital bed recovering from being stabbed half to death. People that depended on them were ending up dead. His family had been targeted and had lost their home to this situation. Chibs wondered how much longer he could hold up under the strain of all of this shit.
They filed out of the chapel one by one, Chibs bringing up the rear. They were greeted by a full Clubhouse.
"This place got crowded, fast," Kozik commented, his eyes scanning the crowd.
"Aye, it does that when we tell people that their lives are in danger if they don't come," Chibs replied dryly, his own eyes scanning the faces that surrounded him.
"If you're looking for Fiona, she's over there," Gemma spoke up from behind them, near the bar. "And before you even ask, yes, she is still angry."
Chibs sighed heavily. It was not as if he expected that a couple of hours away from him, locked in the Clubhouse, would cure the rage he knew Fiona was feeling, but that didn't make him feel any better. She had to know that if there was anything at all he could do to make the situation better, he would do it in a heartbeat. The trouble was, there was literally nothing he could do to fix this right now. His family was angry and sad and flat out miserable, and it wasn't exactly his fault, but that didn't stop him from feeling guilty as hell.
"I'll go talk to her," he muttered, turning in the direction Gemma had pointed out.
"Don't," Gemma stopped him. Chibs turned and raised an eyebrow before Gemma continued, "She spent a while calming Kerrianne down and getting her to go to sleep. She's back in your dorm. Let Fiona relax and spend some time with us girls and calm down a little bit. We finally got Tara to join us and Lila is telling porn stories. Just let her unwind for a little while and let things settle. It will be alright. We have wine."
Gemma smirked and held up a wine bottle, but Chibs was still uncertain. Fiona and Gemma had never been the best of friends, but at the same time, her words made a lot of sense. If he was honest with himself, he was still reeling from what Fiona had said earlier, and he would have no idea what to say if he went over there. He just nodded at Gemma, still not quite convinced that he was doing the right thing.
"Gem, is Tess over there with you guys?" Kozik asked. A worried look crossed Gemma's face.
"No, honey," she shook her head. "Tess isn't here."
Kozik was stunned. "What they hell do you mean she isn't here? Where is she?"
"Not long after you guys went into chapel, she came out and said that she had to go do something. She said that you knew about it," Gemma explained. "I am guessing that you didn't."
Kozik blew out a breath. "No, I didn't. She said she was going to stay here."
"Do you know where she is, brother?" Chibs asked, knowing what the stress would do to Kozik if she was just missing.
"Yeah," he nodded with a forced smile. "She was supposed to go meet that guy Lex...her boyfriend. They were going out of town for the weekend. I convinced her to stop here first. I explained what was happening and she said that she understood and was going to stay here. I guess she changed her mind."
"Oh, honey," Gemma started, laying a hand on his shoulder.
"Do you want to go after her?" Chibs asked wearily, knowing that they didn't have the bodies to pull it off, but also knowing that they would go anyway if Kozik wanted them too.
"Nah," Kozik shook his head. "That little car of her may look like a piece of shit, but it's pretty fast. She's been gone long enough that we probably wouldn't catch her. She's with her boyfriend and they were leaving town. I am sure she'll be fine."
Kozik turned back towards the bar and waved for Chuckie to bring him a drink; maybe that would help calm the onslaught of feelings threatening to overtake him. He had apologized as many times as he could. He had explained that she was in danger. He had even kissed her, but she had gone anyway. She had clearly made her choice. He didn't know anything about Lex, but right now, Kozik fucking hated him more than anything. More than that, Kozik hoped that he was taking her somewhere far, far away from here, where nothing Russian could touch her.
Gemma watched him turn around uncertain of what she should do, but Chibs nodded at her. "You go handle my wife," he whispered quietly. "I've got him."
Chibs watched her walk away, really wishing that he was going and she was staying. Regardless, he turned back towards Kozik, just as the blonde man demanded another shot. Chibs swore under his breath. Clearly, Kozik planned on drowning this sorrow. That wouldn't usually be an issue, except for the fact that they were on lockdown and things could go very wrong any minute and if that happened, they needed Kozik to be at least somewhat sober, which was why he hustled over to the bar and intercepted the bottle of top shelf whiskey being passed to the blonde man.
"I'll take that," he said, snatching the bottle from Kozik's hands. "I can't have you drinking all of my good stuff."
Kozik shrugged and went back to the mostly full beer in front of him. Chibs motioned for a glass and poured himself a drink and tossed it back before looking at the the man next to him. He could tell that Kozk was brimming with anger and probably a lot of other things, so he was going to have to tread lightly. Fantastic.
"Koz-" he started before being quickly cut off.
"No," Kozik said firmly, shaking his head. "We're not going to do this. I'm fine."
"What?" Chibs asked, pulling an innocent face that almost never worked.
"This," Kozik reiterated. "This whole back and forth, are you okay, talking about our feelings like a couple of goddamned pussies. Tess left. I asked her not to, and she left anyway. End of story. I'm sure she's fine and there are plenty of other women, in this very room even, who actually want to be here. So fuck Tess."
"Please," Chibs joked. "Tell me how you really feel."
Kozik laughed bitterly. "Besides, did you really think that I was going to take love advice from you? I mean, don't you have a wife that is barely speaking to you? One who is sitting over there with Gemma Fucking Teller?"
"Aye, I do," Chibs sighed, not really wanting to think of Fiona and Gemma and what they could possibly be talking about. "But I wasn't going to give you love advice, not really."
"Then what were you going to do?" Kozik asked in disbelief.
"I was going to ask you to hand me a napkin," Chibs lied. "But since we are on the subject, I will give you a bit of advice, whether your want it or not. If you like Tess, and I know you do, then don't give up on her so easily. If she's worth it, then fight for her."
"She left, Chibs," Kozik replied dumbly. "She went out of town with another guy."
"Worse things have happened," Chibs eyed him warily. "Trust me. I know."
"Yeah," Kozik agreed, feeling instantly bad. He knew that in pretty much any contest of difficult relationships, Chibs would always win. "But Tess is gone with her boyfriend. She will be fine. I am here, and fortunately, so are a lot of women who DO want to be with me. And here come a couple now. Be cool."
Chibs groaned as two barely dressed women made their way towards them. He had meant to talk Kozik out of drinking and maybe reassure him that their shop girl didn't hate him and would be back eventually, but now he was apparently playing wingman with a couple of whores. With all the shit that had happened in the past 24 hours, this was definitely not turning out to be his night.
Fiona was sitting between Tara and Lila, wondering how she had gone from deliriously happy to homeless in the span of a single day. No matter how many times she said it, or thought it, the idea that her home and her things and her memories were reduced to ashes just didn't seem real. She had broken down and run an internet search, and had found pictures of what remained of her apartment building. She shivered thinking about it, even now. The very thought that she and Kerrianne might have been there when that happened was enough to bring her to tears.
"Looks like they're done in there," Lila spoke up. "It's about time."
Fiona looked up just in time to see her husband filing out of Church. Just looking at him, she could tell so much. The way he walked, it was as if he had the world on his shoulders. He looked older than his years and just...tired. She tried to think back and remember when he last got a good night's sleep, but her brain was not exactly working at full capacity right now. She knew that it had been awhile, and she knew that he was probably feeling more strain than ever. For a moment, she wanted to go to him, to try to offer some comfort in this shitty situation, but then she remembered that every single baby picture she had of her daughter was in a pile of ashes. She looked down at the table.
"You're still mad at him, huh?" Lila asked, an understanding smile on her face.
"I don't even know what I am mad at," Fiona admitted quietly. "I am just...mad."
"It's understandable," Lila sympathized. "You go on vacation, and somebody burns down your place. It'd be hard for anybody to take."
"It's not just that," Fiona muttered, her frustration at the situation shining through. "It's this; all of this! Babies getting kidnapped, half the members in prison. Lockdown in the Clubhouse because somebody is trying to hurt SAMCRO. Don't any of you ever get sick of your lives being in danger every bloody minute?"
"I thought that you'd be used to that," Gemma spoke up as she joined them at the table, bottle of wine in tow. "Weren't you born into the IRA?"
"Aye, I was," Fiona laughed, but without any humor. "But it was always different with Filip. I always felt safe. These past couple of weeks in Charming have been, dare I say it, normal. But now…"
"Now shit is real and it's not just playing house," Gemma finished, topping off Fiona's wine glass, and pouring some for Lila too.
"It's never been just playing house," Fiona corrected. "I love him. I just don't know how to do this, be here in Charming, handle the Club and everything that comes with it. Right now, we are on lockdown surrounded by whores. It's just not how I wanted to spend quality family time."
"Well Darlin," Gemma smirked. "What else are you going to do? The way I see it, you have two choices. Go back to Ireland, just you and your kid, try to rise from the ashes and deal with IRA shit. Or, stay here, with your family whole, and be an Old Lady like the rest of us, and deal with Club shit. When you think of it that way, how bad are we really looking?"
Lila swallowed a snort, and even Fiona managed a tiny smile. These women would never have been her first choice for companions, but even she couldn't deny the fact that she liked them and was glad that she wasn't drinking alone tonight.
"What do you think, Grape Juice," Lila nudged Tara, who glared at her as she sipped the aforementioned grape juice, envious of the cheap red wine the others were indulging in. "You've been awful quiet this whole time."
Tara sighed and peered at Fiona through red rimmed eyes. "I think that your husband isn't lying in a hospital bed half dead right now, though he has been there a couple of time. I think it's stupid to waste the time that you do have being mad at something that's not even his fault. You may not like the Club or the whores, but he's a good man, Fiona, and he loves you. You love him, too. I think that you should go tell him."
Fiona's mouth dropped open, but before she could formulate words, Gemma spoke again. "I would take her advice, Sweetie. Go give your husband something warm to hold, because if you don't, I am pretty sure that one of those whores we were just talking about will."
Fiona turned to see what Gemma had her eyes fixed on. There was a twenty something, dark haired, pale skinned woman in tiny shorts and a leather halter top flirting with her husband. Fiona gripped the table and tried to steady herself as the blind rage washed over her. She sat frozen on the spot, struggle to quell the anger she felt. Gemma nudged her softly.
"Use that anger, Sweetheart. I think it's time you let all these whores know that Chibs isn't a free dick anymore," Gemma whispered. "Unless…"
"There is no unless," Fiona snarled, nearly knocking her chair over as she rose from it. Gemma was right.
Her path across the crowded room was quick and filled with glares from those she knocked aside, but Fiona didn't notice. It was only a matter of seconds before she stopped, a couple of from the girl whose hand rested on her husband's forearm, and grabbed the shoulder of the other woman, turning her around. Chibs saw her, and concern instantly filled his eyes.
"Fi, what-" was all he got out, but she took no note.
"Bitch, what are you doing?" the young woman screeched at Fiona.
"I'm teaching you to keep your filthy hands off of MY husband," she replied, her voice deadly.
The other woman opened her mouth to respond, but Fiona didn't give her the chance. As much as she liked to pretend she was above physical violence, even she had to admit that it felt good to split her knuckles over this whore's face.
"Jesus, Fi!" Chibs exclaimed, jumping from his stool as Kozik took a quick step back to avoid a falling woman.
People rushed the scene and the girl's tears were audible over the din of noise, but Fiona paid it no mind as she pushed through the crowd and shoved the door open, allowing the cool air to hit her face as she made her way from the building.
"Jesus Fucking Christ," Chibs swore, running his hands through his hair as he watched his wife leave. He turned towards Chuckie. "Go find me the First Aid kit."
"What the hell was that?" one of the Crow Eaters demanded, as she cradled her injured friend on the floor. "I think her nose is broken."
"Shut up," Kozik told the girl, before looking up at Chibs. "That was pretty awesome."
"That's one word for it," Chibs spat, clearly still agitated. He spun to look at Gemma. "YOU! You said that you were going to talk to her, get her to calm down a little!"
"I think that this was exactly what she needed to calm down," Gemma told him, matter of factly. "Anger does strange things to women. You should go check on her."
He grabbed the First Aid kit as Chuckie rushed in.
"Oh good!" the Crow Eater smiled as she saw the First Aid kit. "She needs some ice for her nose."
"I don't give a shit what she needs," Chibs growled as he walked towards the door. "I'll be back"
As Chibs opened the door, his eyes immediately searched for her, his Fiona. It took a minute for him to adjust to the dark, but he finally found her, perched on the picnic table, arms wrapped around herself, a weak protection against the cold wind. He sighed and stripped his hoodie off as he headed towards her. She didn't look up at him as he wrapped it around her shoulders, but she did softly murmur her thanks. He deposited the First Aid kit on the table and gently took her injured hand.
"This looks like it hurts," he told her as he reached into the kit for an instant ice pack.
"Feel like it hurts, too," Fiona replied, hissing as he applied the pack to her hand.
"If you think that the ice hurts, you are really not going to like the antiseptic," he managed a cautious smile.
"Ack," she dissented. "I don't need all that."
"Yes you do," he insisted. "She didn't seem like the cleanest of girls. I would hate for this to get infected. But it can wait. Budge over."
She didn't say anything as he climbed on the table next to her, close enough that she could feel his warmth. He was quiet for a moment as well, and Fiona couldn't even begin to guess what he was going to say. When he finally did speak, his words surprised her.
"Somebody tried to kill my friend today, Fi," he said softly, and the pure exhaustion and sadness in his voice threw her. "I know you don't get it, but Jax was the first friend I had here, and now he is laying in a hospital bed, and I can't do a thing to help him. Things are going to shit here, and somebody is trying to hurt those close to us, and I have no idea how we are going to keep everybody safe." He paused and scrubbed his hands over his face before turning to look at her. "You and Kerrianne could have died, Fi. If you had been in that apartment, you would both be dead, and I wouldn't have been able to save you. I can't stop thinking about that; about what would have happened if you hadn't come to visit. I just...I don't know...I can't deal with that Fi. Not on top of all of this."
"I know," she whispered in agreement. "It's too much. For anybody."
"I know that this isn't how we wanted it to happen," he continued. "And I still want you here with me, always. But I promise, if it's what you want, I will find a way to get you guys settled back in Ireland, once all of this is over. I swear I will, but…"
"Filip, hush now," Fiona spoke up, reaching out and taking his hand with her uninjured one. "We're not going anywhere. It's not an ideal situation, but with us, it never is. I love you, and we're not going anywhere."
"You're not?" he asked, sounding genuinely surprised. It made her laugh.
"Of course we're not," she assured him. "Where would we even go? You're stuck with us, Love. I hate that we have to do it like this, but it's done and neither of us can do a thing about it. It will take a bit of adjusting for all of us, and I can't guarantee that I won't hit anybody again. But I'm here to stay. Now could you please hug me, because it's fucking cold."
"And you're wearing a jacket," he muttered, but he already looked about 1000 pounds lighter. It only took about a half a second before she was in his arms, and she couldn't focus on the pain in her fingers or the fact that her house had burned down, because she was with him and she was happy.
He stayed wrapped up in her for a solid couple of minutes, her curls tickling his nose. He finally opened his eyes and began to insist that she allow him to clean and bandage her hand, but something caught his eye. Across the parking lot, right next to Gemma's SUV, was a little blue sedan with a Duran Duran bumper sticker on the back. It was a familiar car. It was Tess's car. It may have been a long night, but he clearly remembered Gemma saying that Tess had taken off, supposedly in that car. The fact that it was still here was definitely a bad sign.
"Fiona, we have to go inside, Love," he said quickly.
"Why? What's going on?" she asked, instantly recognizing the tone of his voice.
"I don't know," he said, standing and pulling her to her feet. "But nothing good."