Hey guys. I will start off by saying that I am sorry for taking so long to bring you this update. I have no real excuse. I will say that after the finale of the show, I sort of lost my passion for writing for this series, and I needed to take a bit of a break to rediscover what I loved about this show. No, I am not complaining about the ending of the show. It couldn't have ended any other way, really, but it was overwhelmingly sad, and it wasn't at all where I wanted to see any of the characters I love end up. I needed a bit of distance for awhile. But I love you guys and I didn't want to leave you hanging with this story, so I wanted to update. That being said, I hope to bring you more regular updates as often as I can, and since there are only 3 more weeks until this teacher is on summer break, hopefully I will have more writing time!
Thanks for you patience, and with that, I offer you the next chapter!
It was nearly two hours later when the group of women rolled into Teller Morrow. The guys were finishing up work and preparing to close down shop for the day and do whatever it was they did after work. Chibs was handing paperwork off to Chuckie to be dealt with and filed, his eyes lingering quite obviously on his wife. One of the older mechanics was finishing up a transmission rebuild that he had been tinkering on all day. The Prospects were sweeping up, most likely waiting for the signal that they were officially closed and drinking could start. Opie had been gone since noon, supposedly to spend some time at home, but since Lila was here, it was hard to tell where the man was.
Kozik should have been putting tools away and handing off his own paper work and looking over tomorrow's schedule, but for the past hour, he had found himself perched atop his workbench, fiddling with the business card in his hand. He hadn't gotten even a lick of work accomplished since she the older, upper class woman had swept in and out of the garage, and it pissed him off, but he was worried. Things hadn't exactly been going well for Tess since she had settled in Charming. Between trouble caused by him and trouble caused by the Russians, she was having a relatively shitty time. The two of them had finally reached a place where they were happy and settled, and even that felt so new and fragile. He would do whatever he needed to protect it. He had no idea who this woman was, but something told him she was trouble.
It only took a moment for Tess to find him, and he shouldn't have been surprised. It wasn't exactly like he was trying to hide from her, he just hadn't quite figured out what he was going to say or do about the woman or her business card. Should he hide it until he could investigate who she was? Should he come right out and ask Tess about it? He had been so busy worrying over who the woman was that he really hadn't even thought too hard about what he should say to Tess.
"There you are," Tess approached him, wearing a grin that distracted him from any of his previous thoughts. "Seems like you're working hard."
"Always," he shrugged, returning her smile and reaching a hand out to pull her closer. "I mean, just because I am sitting around, don't think I am not hard at work. Being a mechanic takes a lot of mental fortitude. I need a break."
"Yeah," Tess scoffed, shaking her head. "I am sure doing oil changes in a garage that you could never be fired from is tough work."
"Thank God I am up for it," he smirked, pulling her down for a kiss. "You have a good day?"
"Yeah, I had a pretty…enlightening afternoon," she muttered, color flooding her cheeks. He noticed her blush and was instantly curious. He wanted to ask about it, but she continued talking before he had a chance. "Just went shopping with Tara and Fi and Lila. You know; girl stuff. How about you?"
"No shopping for me, and definitely no girls," he told her, hoping his humor distracted from the fact that he was once again reminded of the strange woman who had shown up, looking for the woman right in front of him. Kozik began fidgeting with the business card again, and he wondered if he should bring it up and just get it over with, but she took the decision out of his hands, quite literally.
"What's this?" she asked, plucking the small rectangle from his hands, a sly grin on her face. "You haven't stopped messing with it since I came in. Must be pretty important."
Kozik cleared his throat before answering her. "Actually, I was hoping you could tell me."
Her face instantly clouded with confusion, and her eyes focused on the card in her hand, intent on actually reading it and not just messing with him. Kozik watched her carefully as she read the name printed on it. He watched shock, confusion, and, if he was not mistaken, anger flit briefly across her face, before a calm look settled over her features.
"Where did you get this?" she asked in clipped tones, as if trying to disguise whatever emotion she was really feeling. It didn't quite work.
Kozik knew that honesty was his only real option now, so he shrugged his shoulders, crossed his arms over his chest, and sighed. "Was working on one of the cars this afternoon, and a fancy sedan pulled in. The kind that people from around here don't drive. A woman got out, older woman, the kind with money. I figured that if she was having car trouble and wanted to bring it here, then that would be a decent chunk of change for this place, so I went to talk to her."
Tess sighed, her eyes glancing around before focusing on his yet again. "I don't see the car anywhere around. I take it she wasn't looking for a mechanic?"
"Nah, she wasn't," he shook his head, eyes never leaving hers. "She was looking for you."
He watched as her eyes sunk to the floor and she muttered a few choice curse words. Clearly, this woman, whoever she was, was not a welcome visitor. Kozik didn't know whether to be happy about that or worried about it instead.
"What did she want?" Tess asked quite suddenly, her voice surprising him. "What exactly did she have to say?"
"All she wanted was you," he told her honestly. "I asked if I could help her with something, and she said she was looking for a girl named Tess. Described you. Asked if I had seen you around."
"And what did you tell her?" she asked, her voice holding a nervous edge. She was biting her lip in a way that made him feel guilty for being turned on by it. She was worried, and she was showing it now, which worried him.
"Hey, hey, hey," he reached out again, pulling her in for a hug. "I didn't tell her shit. Told her that I had never seen or heard of you. This shouldn't come as a surprise to you, but we don't exactly like it when people we don't know show up, asking questions. Just doesn't usually sit well."
Tess let out a breath that she wasn't aware of holding. She cracked a smiled and tilted her head up to kiss him.
"Thank you," she said. "I mean, you didn't have to do that; to lie for me. But you did, and I honestly appreciate it."
"You in some kind of trouble?" he asked, holding her close, hoping to God she would say no. "If you are, you can tell me. I can help, you know?"
She smiled up at him, shaking her head before resting it against his shoulder. "No, no trouble, not really. Just a bit of my past catching up with me. It was bound to happen sooner or later. I'll handle it."
"You're sure?" he asked, wanting to know more, but not wanting to pressure her.
"Positive," she assured him. "But that was really sweet, you know."
He groaned. "Not sweet. Definitely not sweet. Super masculine and protective? Yes. Sweet? No. Definitely not."
Tess giggled. "Definitely yes. But don't worry. Your secret's safe with me."
Kozik prepared a comeback, but was interrupted before he got a word out.
"If you two are done over here," Chibs spoke louder than was necessary, his arm around his wife, attracting the attention of everybody nearby. "We were going to go get dinner. You two want to join us, or are you…busy?"
"Shut up," Kozik demanded immediately. He glanced down at Tess. "What do you think? Want to grab a bite with these assholes, or do you think we could find somebody better to eat with?"
"I like them," Tess informed him.
"That's because you have bad taste," he muttered, rolling his eyes.
"Maybe you want to think a little bit harder before commenting on her taste in company, friend," Fiona offered her advice.
"She's not wrong," Chibs agreed with his wife.
"Fine, let me finish up and we'll be good to go," Kozik sighed. "I'm starving, so we'd better be getting something good."
Tess watched Chibs lead Fiona away before she rose up on her tiptoes and kissed her guy. "As if you are a picky eater."
"You know me well," he admitted easily, before turning more serious again. "Listen, you sure everything is okay? I know you said everything is good, but…"
"I know," Tess nodded. "You're worried, and I get that. It's really sweet, don't argue with me. I know you are trying to take care of me and make sure I am okay, and I can't tell you how much that means to me. Nobody has ever really done that for me before. But this? I've got this. I promise. It's all good."
He realized that he wasn't going to get any more out of this right now. He has to believe her and trust her when she said that she could handle whatever this woman had to deal. He believed that if she needed him, she would let him know.
"Alright, let me finish up," he told her, picking up a stack of paper. "You ready to go? I really am starving."
"Yeah, just give me a couple of minutes. I am going to go use the bathroom. I'll be right back," she grinned at him. "You'll eat soon!"
Tess knew his eyes were glued to her as she made her way towards the Clubhouse doors, so she made sure to put a little something extra in her walk. She made sure she was inside the Clubhouse before she picked up her pace. Ignoring he waves from the mechanics and the off putting looks from the Crow Eaters sitting around the bar, she hurried back towards Kozik's old dorm room, where she knew she would find a burner phone that would ring with an anonymous number. She found herself suddenly grateful that she was with a guy who had the need for quick, easy access to a burner phone. She knew it was stupid unnecessary to call from an anonymous number. If she had already been tracked to TM, she was as good as found. It didn't matter.
Tess took a deep breath, studying the number on the small business card, although there was no need to. She knew the number already. Some things truly never changed. With dialed the phone with shaky fingers.
It rang once, twice, three times, and Tess's nerves were almost ready to snap when suddenly, the call was answered.
"Hello?" came a voice she hadn't heard in months.
It actually made her laugh. She was a grown, adult woman, but the very sound of this voice made her feel five years old again, without fail. She quickly got her bearings back, at least enough for a reply. "Yeah, hey. Hello. Hi."
"Tess?" the woman asked, breathlessly. "Tess, is that you?"
"Who else would it be?" Tess asked with a humorless laugh. "I'm the one you've been looking for, aren't I? Or did you hand out business cards looking for multiple long lost daughters?"
"There is no need to take that tone with me, young lady," came her mother's sharp reply. "You are the only daughter I have. You took off six months ago, in the middle of the night. You gave no reason, no explanation, and now you act like it's a crime for your mother to look for you. What did you expect, Tess?"
"Not that," Tess muttered under her breath, too low to be heard. "Look, I am fine. Really, I am. Alive and well. Taking care of myself. Nothing at all is wrong. So what do you want?"
"Dear Lord," her mother replied, and the sadness in her voice surprised Tess. "You act like you hate me. Like I am committing some kind of crime, just because I found you."
"I don't hate you Mom," Tess told her instantly. "You know I don't. I just needed…"
"You just needed why? What did you need, Tess? What could possibly justify abandoning your whole family, your fiancée, without a word of explanation, barely recovered from a terrifying accident where we almost lost you?" her mother asked, and this was finally something Tess could deal with. This was the mother she was used to, disappointed and expectant.
"I just needed space. I needed to get away. I got to the point where if I had stayed in that house, that town, that relationship, for even another day, I would have killed myself. And that's the truth," Tess told her, honestly.
"That's….that's a horrible thing to say," her mother said, and Tess could hear the tears in her voice.
"I know it is," Tess agreed. "And I didn't want to say it. I was perfectly content with staying away. But you came looking. You asked."
"I know," came the older woman's reply.
"Listen Mom, I don't want to fight," Tess told her simply. "I'm sorry I hurt you. I'm sorry I worried you. But I am fine, I really am. Now you know that, so you can go home."
"Please," came a desperate request, and Tess was positive she had never heard her mother sound like this befort. "Don't hang up. I don't want to fight either."
"Then what do you want?" Tess asked, exasperated and already having anxiety over the phone call.
"Just to see you, please," her mother implored. "I promise, I will go, but I want to see you before I do. Just let me see you?"
"I…I have plans tonight," Tess pathetically informed her.
"Tomorrow, then," her mother asked. "We can meet for breakfast."
Tess sighed. She knew that she had to do this. She really DIDN'T hate her mother, even if she didn't particularly want to see her.
"Alright," Tess agreed. "Tomorrow at 9:00. There is a diner up on 16, heading out of town. I will be there."
"Thank you! Thank you, Tess. I will be there, I promise," her mother agreed quickly.
"Alright, I have to go," Tess said, glancing towards the door, hoping that Kozik wouldn't be looking for her quite yet.
"Okay, okay, I understand," her mother took a deep breath through the phone, steadying her voice. "I love you, Tess. Even if you don't believe it, I love you and always have. I will see you tomorrow."
The dial tone was sounding before Tess could formulate a reply. She stared straight ahead for a moment, before pressing the end button, hoping that she wasn't making a huge mistake.