Hey guys, sorry for the long wait. This week has been hell. Next week will likely suck just as hard. (Sidenote: I am a teacher and my students take a high stakes, state test this coming week) I am so sorry for the delay in this chapter. Hopefully, after testing is over this week, things will get easier. Anyway, I really hope that you enjoy the chapter, and PLEASE feel free to leave me some love. Thanks guys!
It was mid-morning by the time the van crossed the border back into Charming. They had hit rush hour on the highway heading back towards town, which had inspired some creative cursing from Kozik and a heavy sigh from Chibs, but now they were within ten minutes of the Clubhouse, and quite frankly, it couldn't happen soon enough. Everybody was on edge and the last place any of them wanted to be was crammed into a van, but here they were. As they pulled up to a stop light, Opie eyed his companions, wondering how the fuck they were going to get out of this shit storm that was piling around them.
Kozik was in the back, much more subdued since their latest discovery, thought his quiet demeanor didn't fool Opie for even a second. It was obvious that he was still reeling out of control, still scheming, still anticipating the moment they found Tess. Kozik had revenge running through his veins right now, and it was warring with his own common sense and basic needs, such as nourishment and sleep. There was little doubt in Opie's mind that, as soon as they returned back to the Clubhouse and took care of their little surveillance problem, Kozik would be raring to go off half-cocked all over again, and it would likely fall to Opie to stop him.
His eyes shifted to Chibs, who sat in the passenger seat, no doubt thinking on the conversation they had overheard between their Old Ladies. Opie knew that he sure was. Chibs was generally loud and outgoing, quick with a dirty joke and full of charm. The Chibs that sat next to him in the van was like a different man altogether. He was utterly silent and looked completely spent. Every single year he had lived was evident on his face and he looked as if the world rested on his shoulders. Opie wondered when that had happened. Chibs was a good man, a good friend, and a good brother. He was Opie's go to guy these days, when he had a problem or needed advice. Never had he considered the effect that may have had on the Scotsman. He wondered who Chibs went to, when he had a problem or needed somebody to lean on.
Finally, they arrived at the Clubhouse, which looked just the same as ever in the morning sun. There was always something incredibly welcoming about seeing the Clubhouse, like coming home after being away for awhile.
"Get the gate," Opie told the Prospects, and watched as they clambered out of the van. He idly wondered if these two would make it in the world of SAMCRO. They looked young, barely out of high school, and though Opie was barely ten years older than both of them, it may as well have been a hundred. The things that he had seen, the things that he had done, Opie felt older than all of the Prospects combined. He couldn't help but wonder, if these men knew what they were getting into, would they be running for the hills? More than that, all those years ago, if he had known exactly what he was getting into, would HE have run for the hills?
The sight of about twelve custom, fully equipped Harleys greeted his eyes when he pulled into the lot. It seemed as if the other charter had arrived, and Opie couldn't help but think of it as a boone. Redwood Original was the mother charter, seeped in strength and power. Opie didn't like having to rely on other charters to protect their own, but he didn't have any other choice at the moment. SAMCRO was bleeding, and Opie was grateful that he could count on the other Clubs to help them out. It looked as if Gemma had called in the NOMADS, and they had clearly answered her calls.
They all piled out of the van, glad to be free from the metal confines. There was something so restrictive about riding in a cage. The van had been a very necessary evil, but that didn't mean Opie liked it. They had only been out of the van for five seconds and Chibs already had a cigarette going, and Kozik wasn't far behind him. They all made their way over to the picnic table, not wanting to go back into the Clubhouse yet when they knew it was bugged. Opie nodded at the Prospects.
"Go inside and get Gemma. Tell her to grab anybody important and meet us out here," he instructed. "And be discreet, we don't know who's listening."
Opie and Chibs both sat down, but Kozik remained standing, pacing back and forth, full of manic anxiety. Opie sighed and shared a look with Chibs. A look was all that was needed. They were both well aware that they would need to do something about Kozik, and soon. Opie already had an idea in the works, but it was all in the execution, and the execution would have to wait a few minutes, as people were pouring out of the Clubhouse.
"Distract Kozik for a minute," Opie whispered to Chibs, who nodded in compliance as he stood and made his way to Fiona, who had just come outside. Opie shook his head, in awe of the way those two seemed to work like magnets, instantly drawn to one another. As he looked around, hugging and greeting and thanking the Nomad members, Opie couldn't help but notice that Lila hadn't come outside. He couldn't dwell on that right now. Chibs and Fiona had cornered Kozik over near the boxing ring, so Opie took the opportunity to find Tara.
"Hey Op," she smiled tiredly. It seemed that some of her worry had eased, but Opie was sure that she wanted to be home, and more than that, she wanted Jax home with her. "Lila was asleep. She has been taking care of all the kids, all night, and she literally just fell asleep a few minutes ago. We didn't wanna wake her up."
"That's good, she probably needs the rest," he nodded. Taking note of the dark circles under Tara's eyes, and the way Chibs leaned heavily on his wife to keep himself upright, he continued. "We all do. That's what I wanted to talk to you about. Do you have anything here strong enough to knock Kozik out?"
"You wanna dose him?" she asked, eyebrows raised, surprise evident on her face.
"It's not a matter of wanting to, it's a matter of needing to. Kozik is desperate right now, and desperate men are dangerous," Opie explained. "We're going to get Tess back, but we need a plan in place first. Kozik isn't about planning right now. If he can get a few hours rest, that will give us time to put something together, to get her back safely, without any of us getting killed."
Tara seemed to consider it for a moment, but nodded. "I have something. It will give you about eight hours, if he takes it."
"Yeah, we're not going to ask. We'll put it in food, or whiskey, or something," Opie said casually.
Tara laughed, "Of course you will. I'll handle it. Be right back."
Opie nodded to Chibs, who came and stood by his side, Kozik right behind him. One loud whistle had everybody quiet while Opie began to talk.
"I wanted to thank you guys for coming," he nodded at the Nomads who stood around him. "You are all brothers, in the truest sense of the word, and we hope you will make yourselves comfortable. As you all probably know, we are having an issue with the Russians. They targeted Jax in prison, and an attack on the mother charter's VP is an attack on all of us." He shifted a moment. "That wasn't the only attack though. They kidnapped our receptionist, right outside our own doors. She is a….friend, and they are holding her hostage." Opie waited a moment for that news to settle in before he continued. "I am not sure how they did it, but they have the Clubhouse wired, and they have been listening in for God knows how long. When we went to the spot they were stashing Tess at, we could hear you guys talking." He noted some nervous shifts and uncomfortable looks. "We need to get that corrected, before we do anything else. Our technology wizard is currently in prison." He nodded towards the Nomad president. "Quinn, are any of your guys good at that sort of thing?"
"Sparky can handle it," Quinn indicated a skinny redhead. "He's a total genius with all that shit. He almost gives Juice a run for his money."
"Good," Opie replied. "We will probably need somebody that good, because I have a feeling that there is more than one bug in place. Filthy Phil took pictures of the equipment that they had at the house. Get with him, we need to make sure everything is gone from inside. We don't need ears inside our Clubhouse."
Sparky nodded and he and the Prospect headed towards the door. As they made their way inside, Tara came out, carrying a tray of brownies. "This is the last batch of Bobby's brownies from the freezer. We thawed them last night. Couldn't leave them in there, because the whores were hovering around them. Besides, I figured everybody could use some chocolate."
Opie watched in delight as she went around and handed one to everybody. She gave him a subtle wink as she him a brownie. Chibs seemed confused, but didn't hesitate to eat the brownie she offered him. There wasn't a person alive who could resist Bobby's homemade brownies, Kozik included. Opie had to hold back a grin as Kozik devoured the brownie as soon as Tara handed it to him.
"This batch tastes off," Kozik commented suspiciously. "Bobby made these?"
"Yeah," Opie hurried to agree. "Mine tastes weird too. No telling what Bobby put in these. You know how he is."
That actually got a small smile out of Kozik. "Yeah, I guess you're right. I fucking miss Bobby."
"We all do, brother," Chibs spoke up. "And not just for his baking skills."
"Right, but enough discussion about fucking brownies," Kozik said. "How are we going to find Tess?"
"Well, I've been thinking about that," Opie explained. He turned towards everybody who hadn't been at Lex's house. "They were already gone by the time we got there. They knew we were coming, probably because of the bugs. She managed to leave us a note, though." He didn't want to go into details and explain that the note was in her own blood. "They are taking her to Oakdale. She left the name Popov. It didn't ring any bells with us, but Gemma, if you can, get in touch with Clay and see if he knows anything about this Popov. Quinn, we could use some help from you guys making calls to some crews. We don't want to put our business out there, but we need to find a location, so be as discreet as you can."
"We can do that," Quinn agreed easily.
"We, uh, made a call while you guys were gone," Gemma explained, hesitantly. "To help try and find her."
Opie's eyes went wide with panic, but Unser spoke up. "We called in an anonymous tip. Told the cops that he tried to sell drugs to a kid. They obviously won't hold him long, unless he actually has drugs in the car, but we are listening to the scanners so we will know if they stop him."
Opie really hoped that they could avoid law enforcement involvement, but at this point, whatever got Tess back faster was fine with him. "Let's hope we can catch up with them before the cops do. I am really not excited about answering questions for the cops."
"Aye," Chibs agreed, while Kozik stared blankly ahead. Chibs elbowed him gently. "Are you okay, Koz?"
"Yeah, maybe," Kozik slurred. "I feel...weird. Not bad, but weird. I don't know what it is."
"Don't worry, I do," Opie interrupted. "I just want you to relax. You need to get some rest, so we may have slipped you something to help with that."
"You drugged me?" Kozik accused. He intended to sound mad, but his words came out as more of a breathy yawn. "But...Tess. She needs me. I have to find her."
He was sounding drugged now, and beginning to sway. Opie grabbed him by his shoulders. "We will find Tess, brother. I promise you we will, but you are going to be much more useful to her is you get some sleep and calm down a little. We need you at the top of your game. She needs you at the top of your game. Don't fight it, brother."
He looked like he wanted to argue, but he didn't have that kind of time. Instead, his eyes rolled back into his head as he passed out, thankfully with Opie and Chibs right there to catch him. Some of the Nomad guys rushed in to help.
"Let's get him inside, back in his dorm," Opie instructed the men who proceeded to lift Kozik. "Remember, keep official business quiet inside. We don't need to give the Russians any more ammunition."
It took four Nomads and a Prospect to open doors to get Kozik inside, and Opie felt guilty for doing it, but he needed Kozik gone for now. They needed a logical, rested Kozik who could understand reason. Opie understood that he was enraged and panicked that Tess was gone, but they needed him to think clearly in order to get her back safely.
"Well, that went well," Chibs commented sarcastically. "The brownies were a nice touch."
"He needed sleep," Opie pointed out, before continuing. "We all need sleep."
"I won't argue with you," Chibs agreed wearily. "I feel like I've been hit by a train."
"I'm there with you," Opie nodded. "I say we all go catch a couple of hours. That'll give the Nomad crew some time to finish their sweep and let us look at things with fresh eyes when we wake up. We have a lot of things we need to think about. We need to keep the phone lines open and clear. If the Russians are feeling the pressure, they will likely call us soon with demands."
"What could they want?" Fiona asked, frustrated by the whole situation.
"Money," Opie replied. "We kind of owe them a couple of million dollars."
"For what?" she asked, in shock.
"For Jimmy," Chibs muttered, looking away uncomfortably. He hadn't exactly shared the details of Jimmy's death with his wife. He plead with his eyes for her to let the matter drop, for the time being, and thankfully she acquiesced, but he knew it wasn't for long. "If it's money they want, they can forget it, because we don't have any."
"I know," Opie agreed. "Which is why I want to find a way to appease them in some other way. I need you to make contact with the Irish, let them know that this situation arose from their thirst for Jimmy's blood. See if they can offer us any potential solutions, or at least free up some guns. I am hoping, if it comes down to it, we can make a business arrangement to keep them happy for now."
"I'll do what I can," Chibs agreed reluctantly.
"Get some sleep first, brother," Opie demanded. "They haven't demanded anything yet. We've got time. I am going to go find Lila. If anybody needs anything, ask somebody with a patch."
"Aye," Chibs agreed, but he didn't move quite yet. He waited and watched the small crowd break up and head in different directions, before turning to his wife who looked as exhausted as he felt. "Where's Kerrianne?"
"Asleep," Fiona explained, crossing her arms over her chest. "She passed out in Juice's room, surrounded by computers. She's been off since just after you left."
"Lucky," Chibs muttered, taking her hand in his own. She was worried, and not at all happy about being in the dark regarding some so personal to her, and he knew it. There would need to be yet another conversation, and soon, but now, he wanted to crawl into bed. "I need to sleep, Fi."
"I know you do," she replied.
"Come with me?" he asked, putting on his best pleading face.
She raised an eyebrow. "You know at some point, you are going to have to explain why you owe some Russian guy two million dollars over Jimmy?"
"I know," Chibs agreed. "And I will, I promise. But right now, I need to go to bed, and I sleep better with you than I do alone."
It was so sweet that she couldn't help but crack a smile and run a hand through his hair. "Sleep first, talks second, and then you can call and request favors from the IRA. Good luck with that, by the way."
Opie made his way through a surprisingly quiet Clubhouse, in search of Lila. It seemed as if every available surface was taken up by a sleeping person, or somebody savoring a cup or coffee, or a kid and their toys. He couldn't see even a trace of his Old Lady, nor any of their kids, anywhere. Remembering that Tara had mentioned she was asleep, he headed back to his own dorm.
The sight that met his eyes made him smile for what felt like the first time in forever. Ellie and Kenny were laying together on the air mattress with Piper in between the two of them. There was a Disney movie playing on the small TV in the corner, but none of the children were watching it, as they were all sound asleep, completely oblivious to the animated animals singing about happiness and friendship.
Lila, on the other hand, had claimed the bed. She was curled on her side, in her jeans and one of his old SAMCRO shirts. Her hair was spread across the pillow and she looked supremely content. He knew that there was a lot that needed to be done, not the least of which was talking to her about the conversation he had overheard, but none of that seemed to matter with him. It was 9:00 in the morning, and his little family was sleeping soundly, and he decided right then and right there that was was going to join them.
He toed off his boots, and climbed into bed behind her. She responded instantly, cuddling close to him even as she slept. Opie knew that there were problems piling up all around them, but there was nothing that he could do about it right now. The problems would still be there waiting for him when he woke up. His kids were happily asleep and his girl was right here next to him. The rest could wait.