Chapter 14

All truths are easy to understand once they are discovered; the point is to discover them.

~Galileo Galilei

Genesis POV

The alarm goes off at 10am telling me it's time to wake up. Not sure why I bothered setting it, I haven't slept since Saturday night, before I knew Grace was missing. I slowly crawl out of bed and shuffle to my bathroom to shower. I finish showering, brush my teeth and dress in jeans, a tank top and gym shoes. Definitely dressing for comfort. Today is my day off work and I have a bunch of errands to run before cleaning the apartment, hopefully it will keep my mind off Grace.

As I walk down to my car, I take my phone out to call the club.

"Hey Jerzy, I didn't expect you to be there yet" I say.

"Hi sweetheart. I came in early to stock the bar. Good thing too 'cause Jameson is MIA this morning and the liquor delivery driver was here waiting for someone" she says frustration evident in her voice.

"Really? That's not like him" I say. Then quickly add "Then again he has been pretty out of character lately."

"You got that right honey. So what's up?" She asks.

"Just wanted to make sure someone was there so I can get in. I need to stop by and pick up some costumes for the cleaners. Grace was supposed to take them on Sunday, but…" I trail off.

"You'll see her soon Genesis. I still think she just needed a break from the crazy and will be back soon trying to figure out what all the fuss is about" she says with a laugh that sounds hollow. I know it's that meant to make me feel better, but all it does is tell me she doesn't even believe herself.

"Thanks Jerzy. I should be there in about 15 minutes, see you then" I say as I disconnect the call. I can't handle the placating and coddling. I know Grace is in trouble and all we are doing is sitting on our hands waiting.

I walk into the club and Declan is there now too.

"Hey guys" I say. "Jameson make it in yet?"

"No. He texted me to say he had to head out of town, family emergency, and will be back in a few days" Declan says. "Told me to hold down the fort and get help from Jerzy if I need it."

"And so it begins" Jerzy says with a sad shake of her head. "Won't see him for a few weeks I'd bet."

"First Grace, now Jameson. I'm running out of friends. You two better stay put" I say with a high pitched, slightly hysterical tone to my voice.

Declan wraps his arm around my shoulders and squeezes. "You think you could get rid of me? I'm like a fungus baby" he says with a wink.

"Gross Declan" I laugh. "Thanks." I squeeze him back. "Well I gotta' get these costumes and get out of here. Errands, laundry and house cleaning for me today, yippee!" I say as I walk back to the dressing room.

"See ya later babe" Declan calls out.

"Bye Genesis" Jerzy says.

I open the dressing room door and walk to the closet. I sort through the costumes looking for the ones that need to go to the cleaners, but they aren't there. That's weird. I called the cleaners yesterday just to make sure Grace hadn't dropped them off and she hadn't, so where are they?

I walk back out to the bar.

"Odd question, but you guys haven't seen a stack of 10 dirty costumes laying around have you?" I ask.

"Um, no" Jerzy says. Declan just raises an eyebrow.

"They aren't at the cleaners and they aren't in the dressing room. I know they didn't just walk away, so where the heck are they?" I ask not really expecting an answer.

"Maybe Grace took them home before she left town?" Declan says trying to be helpful.

I turn and look at him like he's crazy. "Really? She's planning to skip town but thinks, hmm? I think I better take these costumes home with me so I can drop them at the cleaners first? You realize how crazy that sounds, right?" I say with a laugh.

"Don't kill a guy for trying Gen, I was just thinking out loud" Declan says a little sheepishly.

"Sorry Dec, I'm frustrated and tired. I'm just gonna' go home and clean. It helps me feel better" I laugh. "I'll figure out the costumes later."

Jerzy smiles "If cleaning makes you feel better, I got a store room that will make you feel like a million bucks."

"Cleaning my house makes me feel better, cleaning your store room would probably make me sick" I laugh. "See you later."

I get in my car and drive home.

Three hours later I have scrubbed the bathrooms, my bedroom, the living room and the kitchen with music blaring. The music along with the catharsis of cleaning is helping my mood a little. I'm still completely freaking out but feel a little less hopeless. I decide to vacuum and dust Grace's room so it's clean when she gets back. As I push the vacuum under the edge of the bed there is a clinking sound as it runs over something too hard to pick up. I turn off the vacuum, bend down to look under the bed and see a ring. A thick silver band with a black crow carved into it. It's pretty, in a strange way, but doesn't look like something Grace would wear. I put it on her dresser and decide I need to get out of this room. It just makes me miss her more.

I decide to go grocery shopping and walk down the stairs to my car. I drive to the grocery store and as I'm walking in I realize I forgot the reusable bags. Grace always remembers them I think sadly. I really need her back. I end up shopping while fighting back tears, but a few escape when I walk down the ice cream aisle and take out a half gallon of Rocky Road. I get a sympathetic smile from the older woman next to me. She probably thinks my boyfriend just broke up with me or something. I debate telling her that I'm actually upset because I think my best friend has been kidnapped by either a psycho biker queen who is in love with her own son or a crazy junkie whore who blames my friend for her son's death. I decide not to give the woman reason to call the wacko wagon on me and just smile back at her.

I pay for my groceries and carry the two bags out to the car. I pop open the trunk with the remote and as it opens I drop both bags. Inside my trunk are the missing costumes, my spare car key Grace had on Saturday and Grace's phone. I scramble into my purse for my phone. I scroll through my contacts and tap the one I just entered a few days ago.

Opie POV

I keep going over the conversation with Jax in my head. Should I have told him that I couldn't do what he asked because I don't know where Tara is now? Maybe I shouldn't have told him I saw her at all. All it did was stir up a bunch of old shit that is better left in the past.

"You look like a man deep in thought" Chibs says as he sits down next to me.

"That I am" I say in return.

"Thinking about Jackie boy?" He asks.

"How did you…"I start and he cuts me off.

"Not that hard to figure out. He's been on all our minds the past few days" he says.

I nod but say nothing.

"Seeing Tara, seeing her there. That's not what I expected to see. Doesn't make sense" he says looking at me with one raised brow.

"You should know as well as anyone, things aren't always what they seem brother. I'm beginning to think we all may have the wrong idea about what happened when Tara left" I say.

"Aye, I reason Jackie boy may have been less than honest with us about why the lass left in the first place" he says with a sad smile. I say nothing. He stands to place his hand on my shoulder and squeezes my once before walking away. Before he is out of the room, my phone starts ringing. Chibs turns back as I am looking at caller ID. I shrug my shoulders because I don't recognize the number.

I open the phone and put it to my ear "Yeah."

"Opie?" a voice I don't recognize asks.

"Yeah. Who's this?" I ask.

"This is Genesis Grace's, I mean Tara's, roommate" she says. Her voice sounds panicky and shaky. "I um, I just opened my trunk for the first time since Saturday and I found my spare key and Grace's phone in there. There is no way she took off without her phone Opie."

"Okay take a breath, you sound really panicked and I don't need you passing out while we're on the phone" I say as Chibs walks back over to me.

"I'm not gonna' pass out you ass. I'm a little freaked out because I just found proof my friend did not take off by choice and I'm pretty sure some crazy psycho bitch you are associated with took her. Excuse me if my voice sounds a little shaky right now" she says and now she sounds pissed.

"Woah, honey, I didn't mean it as an insult" I say. Why do I find her yelling at me kind of cute? "Tell me exactly what you found."

"I opened the trunk and inside was a stack of costumes Grace was supposed to take to the cleaners on Sunday morning, the spare key to my car she was using that night and her cell phone. I also found a ring in her stuff earlier today that I don't think was hers. A wide silver band with a black crow carved into it, definitely a woman's ring though" she pauses to take a breath. "Still think I'm crazy for thinking she didn't take off on her own?" I can hear the anger in her voice again.

I let out a slow breath "Okay I'm beginning to think you were right. There is a definite possibility Tara didn't take off on her own, but we can't jump to any conclusions, that just makes shit worse" as I say these words, Chibs takes out his phone and starts dialing someone. "Genesis, can you text me your address? I'm gotta take care of some stuff here and I'll meet you at your place in a few hours. It'll probably be about 5 hours before I'm there. You got someone you can hang with until then?"

"I'll go back to the club and hang with Jerzy and Declan. I'll meet you at my place in a few hours" she says as she hangs up. She definitely still sounds pissed. A minute later my phone pings with her address.

"I just talked to Jury. He said he would call Jerzy and have her call Genesis. If anyone can keep the lass from panicking its Jerzy" Chibs says with a chuckle. "No one can say no to her when she gets going."

"Chibs, I think we've got a real problem here brother" I say seriously. "It's looking pretty obvious Tara didn't take off on her own. Genesis just found her spare key that Tara had that night and Tara's phone in the trunk of her car."

"That all?" He asks.

"No" I say as I rub my hands over my face in frustration. "She found a ring. Says it looks like a woman's, thick silver band with a black crow carved into it."

Chibs eyes shoot up to mine "Shite."

"Yeah, shit is right" I say. "We both know who that ring belongs to. One of two women who don't have an alibi for the time Tara disappeared and who both have reason to want her gone." The club gave Gemma and Wendy those rings. They were a gift last Christmas after some crazy shit went down with the ATF. They took us all in, prospects included, so Gemma and Wendy got stuck cleaning up the fall out in the clubhouse.

"How do we handle this brother?" I ask Chibs. "We tell Clay and shit is gonna' get crazy."

"Can't tell Juice either. That boy is so pussy whipped for that junkie, can't say what he'd do" Chibs says.

"So what do we do?" I ask. Chibs says nothing, I can tell he's trying to work something out.

He takes out his phone and dials. "Hey brother, Chibs again. I need a favor. Gotta' get some brothers out there to help figure out this shite with Tara, but with what we already know, we have to keep this quiet." He pauses to let Jury talk.

"Aye brother, that sounds good. You make the call. Oh and Jury, you find our Doc fast. She's been nothing but good to us and that poor lass has seen more than her fair share of shite because of it" he says sadly. He closes his phone and pockets it.

"Jury is calling Clay, asking for you, Bobby and Happy to help out with a run. Gives you three maybe four days to figure this out before we have to tell Clay and Juice."

"Thanks brother" I say and stand to go home and pack a bag.

An hour later I am back at the clubhouse. Mary agreed to pick up the kids from school and keep them for a few days. She didn't ask any questions which is unusual, but I think she could tell from my voice this wasn't a normal run. As I climb off my bike, I see Clay walking toward me.

"I just talked to Jury. He needs some guys to come help with a big run, some delivery shit for a supplier, and he's shorthanded this week. He asked for you, Bobby and Happy. You up for it?" Clay asks.

"Sure, brother, why not?" I say with a smile. "Always up for a few hours on the bike and the open road."

"Ain't that the truth" Clay says with a smile. "You leave in 20. Bobby and Happy are inside" he says as he turns and walks into the office.

I walk in and Bobby and Happy nod in my direction. I look to Chibs to see if he has filled them in and he nods slightly. That helps, at least they won't be blindsided. Twenty minutes later we pull out of the lot. An hour into the trip Booby signals for us to pull off, so we find a rest area and park the bikes.

"Opie, what the fuck is going on man?" Happy asks. Straight to the point.

"Crazy shit, brother. I don't know much just know that it looks like Tara might have been kidnapped the Saturday we were in Reno. No one's seen her since that night" I say.

"Why are we just hearing about this?" Bobby asks angrily.

"That's on me brother. I thought after everything with Gemma and Wendy, she may have taken off again. She has run in the past" I say.

Bobby still looks pissed but he nods slowly.

"What changed your mind?" Happy asks. I fill him in on my call with Genesis including the ring.

"Fuck" Happy says. "Do you really think Gemma or Wendy would hurt her?" Happy doesn't know either woman that well, so his question is genuine.

"Gemma would kill anyone she thinks has caused her baby boy harm, and Tara definitely fits that definition" Bobby says. "Wendy, well I think she's capable of anything when cranked up on enough stuff. Especially since she thinks Tara stole her man and killed her son."

Happy whistles slowly and nods.

"So we have a missing woman and two women with motive and opportunity" I say. "There's one more piece to this puzzle that I can't figure out. Apparently Wendy knows the guy who manages Jury's club, some guy named Jameson. Tara saw the two of them shooting up and fucking on Friday at the club."

"Was that the tall, skinny guy in the suit running around Jury's club like a chicken on speed" Bobby asks laughing at his own description.

"Yeah that was him" I laugh. "Why?"

"Just trying to place him. I thought he looked familiar when I saw him but still can't figure out why" Bobby says shaking his head.

"Well you'll get a chance to ask him soon" I say as I climb back on my bike. Happy and Bobby do the same and we get on the road.

Two hours later we are pulling up to Genesis and Tara's building. It's a nice building but no security. I see someone just pull the front door open, no key. We park our bikes and go inside. I knock on the door of unit 203 and notice the door has a handle lock and deadbolt, but don't hear Genesis unlock either when she opens the door.

"You always keep the door unlocked when you're home alone?" I ask more gruffly than I intended.

"Hello to you too asshole" she says then turns to Booby and Happy and smiles sweetly. "Hi I'm Genesis, would you like to come in?"

They smile and introduce themselves then walk inside. I'm still standing in the doorway.

Genesis looks at me and says "You coming in?"

"Yeah" I say and shut the door behind me. "Sorry, I'm an asshole. I should have said hello first, asked how you are. I'm just worried about Tara and until we know what happened you need to be careful."

She sighs "I know I'm worried too. We really are careful about safety, Grace drilled that into me. We always keep the door locked, deadbolt too."

"Always?" I ask.

"Yeah pretty much" she says. "When we go out sometimes we only lock the knob. We joke about hoping someone will break in so we can collect the insurance money" she says with a laugh. The laughter quickly dies "Oh, god! Do you think someone did actually break in here? Was I right about the ring not being Grace's?" She brings her hand up to cover her mouth as there is a knock on the door.

Happy stands and draws his gun from his waist band, Genesis gasps. She is entering a whole new world, poor girl.

I walk to the door and look through the peep hole. Jury. I signal Hap to put the gun away and open the door.

"Hey Jury" I say. He nods. He, Bobby and Happy exchange hellos before Jury walks to Genesis and hugs her.

"Guess you were right sweetheart. I was hoping you weren't" he says with a sad smile.

"Me too" I say and sit down on the couch.

I fill Jury in on what we've figured out so far and then we all sit in silence as we try to figure out our next move. We've handled kidnappings before, but this one is different. Doesn't seem to be about demands or trying to get something. If it really was Wendy or Gemma, then the goal was just to get rid of Tara so we have no idea how to figure out where she is.

After a few minutes Genesis speaks up "What about Jameson?" She asks.

"What about him?" Jury asks.

"He and Wendy have a past, and a present, relationship. If it was her, you think she'd tell him?" she asks.

"Maybe, but Wendy honestly seems the less likely suspect to me" I say. "She's so high all the time, I don't think she could pull off something like this alone."

"Well Jameson did suddenly go out of town today, family emergency. Left Declan in charge" she says.

"What?" Jury asks. "He didn't tell me that."

"Well that definitely seems suspicious" Bobby says. "Anybody got a way to get ahold of him?"

Genesis says "He didn't answer when I tried calling earlier."

Jury growls "I'm betting he'll answer if I call. After all he runs my club and forgot to tell me he was taking off for a few days." He takes out his phone and dials.

"Jameson, it's Jury. Where the hell are you? I just stopped by the club and Declan says you took off for a few days?" He pauses to let Jameson talk.

"You're in California. You planning to let me know?" He pauses again and looks at all of us.

"Well how long you gonna' be gone? I can't have my club run by a security guard for too long. You ain't back by the Wednesday night and we are gonna' have problems." Jameson must be talking again.

By now it's 8pm on Monday. That gives Jameson 48 hours to get back here, in the meantime we have no leads. I know Jury doesn't want to raise suspicion, but that's a really long time.

"Alright as long as you're back by Wednesday. If not, don't bother coming back" Jury says and disconnects.

"Well?" I ask.

"He says he's in California. About 3 hours away so he says he can get back for work if he needs to and then head back to deal with his family. He sounded weird, distracted and nervous. Didn't sound high though" Jury says, a note of surprise in his voice.

We all sit silently for a few minutes, no one sure what comes next.

"So what do we do now?" Genesis asks. No one says anything. "Aren't you guys supposed to be able to fix these things? Isn't that what you do? So fix it!" She yells.

"Genesis, this is new for us. We've never had to handle a kidnapping where there was no contact, no ransom, no demands of any kind. Makes it hard to figure out the next move" I say. "Anyone have any ideas?"

"Jury, you got anyone in the sheriff's department you could ask for a favor?" Bobby asks.

"Maybe" Jury answers. "Let me make a call." Jury goes into the kitchen to make his call as my phone starts to ring. I look at caller ID, Lowen.

"Yeah" I answer as I walk toward the front door. I'm not sure why Jax's lawyer is calling me, but I don't want the conversation overheard either.

"Opie its Ally Lowen" she says, as if I don't know that. "I just came from Teller-Morrow and Gemma told me you were out of town."

"Yeah, I had to leave town for a few days. Why are you looking for me?" I ask.

"Can you get back tomorrow?" She asks.

"I don't know, why?" I ask.

"The parole board pushed Jax's hearing up. It's two weeks from tomorrow. He and I are meeting tomorrow and he's insisting you be there" Lowen says.

"Two weeks? I thought he had another 6 months" I say surprised.

"Over-crowding. He is considered low risk because the crime was not premeditated, so he is eligible for early release" she says. I can hear her sarcasm as she says low risk.

"Do you need me there?" I ask.

"No, but he won't meet without you, says he needs you to be there. We are meeting tomorrow at 10" she says.

"Alright, I'll be there" I say as I disconnect the call.

"Everything okay?" Bobby asks.

"Yeah but I gotta head back to California tomorrow for a while" I say and I can see Genesis is about to argue. "I have to go to Stockton to deal with some legal stuff." The way she closes her mouth tells me Tara must have told her who I would be dealing with at Stockton.

Bobby and Happy both raise their brows, but neither asks anything. Thankfully Jury comes back into the room.

"So my contact in the sheriff's office said she can put out feelers on Tara's plates quietly, keep it within people she can trust. Says she'll talk to some guys in the San Joaquin sheriff's office to see if they can keep an eye out as well" Jury says.

"It's a start. Seems like that's all we can do right now, we just don't have enough information" I say and look at the clock. "I don't know about you guys, but I could use some sleep. Jury you got a place we can stay while we're in town?"

"Yeah Op, you guys can stay at our clubhouse, plenty of rooms. Genesis, you gonna' be okay alone?" Jury asks. Shit, I should have thought of that.

"Um, yeah sure" she says softly. Then she plasters on a fake smile "I'm a big girl, I can handle myself. You guys get some sleep and we'll check in tomorrow morning." She's not fooling anyone.

"Why don't I sleep on your couch?" I ask. "Bobby and Happy, you can stay at the clubhouse. You can meet Genesis at the club tomorrow morning. I gotta' leave for Stockton by 7:00. After I'm done there, I'll come straight back."

Genesis considers this for a minute and then nods. Everyone else agrees and Jury, Bobby and Happy leave. Genesis closes the door and locks the deadbolt and the knob. She stands and looks at the door silently. Time to break the tension.

"So you do know how to lock the door" I say jokingly. "Wasn't that hard was it?" I see her shoulders shake slightly and she turns around laughing.

"Okay asshole, shut it" she says as she keeps laughing. She walks over to me and we sit on the couch.

She turns to me and her eyes are so sad. "Do you think we're going to find her?"

"Absolutely" I lie. "There is no doubt."

She takes a deep breath. "Stop lying to me."

I sigh. "Truth?" I ask and she nods. "I don't know. I am going to do everything I can, Jax would kill me if I didn't, but this situation is just so weird. I don't get it."

"Thanks for being honest" she says and stands. "Let me get you a blanket and pillow. I'd let you sleep in Grace's room, but…"she trails off.

"No way, Gen. No way I would sleep in there" I say. She goes to the closet and gets the blanket and pillow. She comes back and gives them to me.

"Thanks. I'll be gone before you wake up tomorrow. Do you have an extra key so I can lock up behind me?" I say

"There's an extra one hanging next to the front door" she says as she points to a key rack. She starts to walk to her bedroom, but as she reaches the door she turns around.

"Opie, thank you for coming. You could have said no, called me crazy, but you didn't. So thank you" she says quietly. I just nod and she goes in her room and closes the door.

Of course I came, how could I not? I know Gemma or Wendy took Tara, but which one? If we can figure out who maybe, we can figure out where they have her. But how do we figure out who? I eventually drift off to sleep with that thought on a loop in my mind.

My cell phone alarm goes off at 6:15. I get up and shower using the towels Genesis laid out for me the night before. By 6:45 I am on my bike headed to Stockton.

At 9:40 I pull into the lot at Stockton, go through security and am in the visiting room at exactly 10. Lowen is already there.

"You know why he wants me here for this?" I ask.

She shakes her head no. As I'm getting ready to ask another question, the door buzzes open and a guard brings Jax in. They uncuff him and we hug.

"Long time no see brother" he jokes as we sit down.

Lowen starts talking "The parole hearing is set for two weeks from today. The current chair of the parole board is a guy named Max Simpkins. Pretty decent guy. If you show remorse, atone for your mistakes, it should be a pretty open and shut deal. You'll get out and will have 18 months' probation. Weekly meetings with a parole officer. We'll request in Charming so you can go home. There are plenty in the area so it shouldn't be a problem." she says.

Jax sits silently but I can see him mind working something out.

"What if I don't want to be in Charming?" he asks.

She looks at him, flustered. "Um, I'm a little confused Jax."

"If I go back to Charming, I will be back in here in a lot less than 18 months" Jax says. Now I'm confused too.

"You're going to have to give me more than that Jax" she says.

"If I go back to Charming, I will kill Clay Morrow. I will kill him with my bare hands and enjoy every minute of it. Then I will kill my mother. That enough for you?" he says deadly calm.

Lowen and I both stare at him.

"What the fuck Jax? You planning a murder spree?" I ask, shock in my voice.

He takes a deep breath and looks down at the table.

"What I am about to tell you does not leave this room. Understand?" He says. I nod. "I was in the yard the other day and Otto was out there. First time I've seen him in months. He was pissed about something Clay did, not sure what. Anyway, he started talking, said he needed to clear his conscience being a dead man walking and all." Jax pauses and takes a deep breath. "He told me Clay put the hit out that got Donna killed, but you and I already suspected that one just couldn't prove it."

I clench my fists and jaw and work really hard to remember where I am. Don't need the guard coming in now.

"Yeah, already figured that but good to know we were right. You might have to fight me for killing him brother" I say. "I'm guessing there's more though since Gemma had nothing to do with Donna's death."

"Yeah, there's more" he says and turns to Lowen. "This is all between you and me, lawyer client and all that, none of this shit gets back to anyone else in the club or you see just how violent I can actually be, got it?" She nods, fear in her eyes.

"So Otto kept going. Starts talking about JT and his vision for the club, wanting to make it like it used to be. A family, no guns, no drugs. Otto says Clay and Gemma, they weren't having it. They liked the cash the guns brought in and didn't want to give it up. Gemma convinced Clay that JT was a threat to the club and the two of them worked together to sabotage his bike" Jax says then turns to look at me.

I say nothing, I have no words. I just stare at him. Lowen looks shocked, her mouth hanging open.

"Now you see why I can't be in Charming?" he asks. I nod.

Lowen recovers "Jax, I'll talk to the parole board. I can't make any promises, but maybe we can get you permission to be somewhere close. It is highly unorthodox to let a parolee go somewhere they have no ties though, so don't count on it" she says.

Jax nods. "Any other official business?" he asks the lawyer. She shakes her head no. "Can you give Opie and me a few minutes alone before the guard comes back?"

"Sure I need to make a call anyway" she steps out the door on her phone and speaks to the guard. "I need to take this call and then will be back in with my client, please do not take him back to his cell yet."

"What's up brother?" I ask.

"You go back and talk to Tara?" he asks. "Lowen said you were out of town when she called you."

"Yeah Jax I was in Reno" I say and take a deep breath. "But I didn't see Tara."

"What? Why not?" he asks, anger in his voice.

This is going to suck.

"Alright brother, the truth is, I didn't talk to her because I'm not sure where she is. After her show on Saturday when everyone realized who she was, she disappeared" I say.

"What?!" Jax roars.

There is banging on the door "Keep it down in there" the guard yells.

"Why didn't you tell me that when you saw me yesterday?" he asks.

"Honestly I thought she took off, she's done it before, twice" I say. Jax says nothing, but looks even angrier. "Up until yesterday afternoon, I was actually pretty sure she took off."

"What changed?" he asks.

"Her roommate found her phone and keys in the trunk of the car. Says Tara would never leave without her phone" I say.

"That all?" Jax asks.

"No" I sigh. "Her roommate also found a ring that wasn't Tara's on her bedroom floor. A wide silver band with a black crow carved into it."

"God damn it!" Jax yells. "Opie you know whose ring that is. One of those crazy bitches took Tara. This is why I let her go four years ago. I knew if I kept her with me, something awful would happen to her. Now I'm not even there, and just her fucking association with me might get her killed. I did not give her up so my crazy ass mother or ex-wife could get to her anyway" he says. His voice is an odd mix of sadness and hysteria.

"Uh, Jax you're gonna' have to catch me up here. You keep saying "let her go." I thought Tara left for a job?" I say.

He sighs. "Yeah that's what I told you. I lied. Tara and I had a fight, well not even a fight really. We weren't talking enough to fight. Shit was so crazy. Chibs getting blown up, Tara helping Chibs and risking her career, Abel dying and Donna getting killed. It was all too much. I looked at my life and realized there was no fucking way I could keep her safe. After Donna, knowing Clay did it and not being able to prove it, I knew I had to get Tara out of Charming. So I pushed her away, like I had done so many times before, only this time I knew it would work. She was carrying around so much guilt and pain, there was no fight left in her. So when she asked if I blamed her for Abel's death, I said nothing."

"Jesus Christ, Jax. You let her think you blamed her for Abel's death?" I say, shocked.

"Yeah I know, dick move. But if you had the chance to get Donna out of harm's way before Clay could have gotten to her, wouldn't you have done anything it took?" he asks.

I consider his words for a minute and realize he's right. "Yeah I would have."

He nods. "I knew it would destroy her and I knew there was no way she would stay after that. It was the only way I could get her out of Charming. I also knew that in the process I was ruining my only chance of surviving my shit show of a life, but I didn't care. I just had to get her safe." There is a sadness in his voice that is heartbreaking to hear.

Shit definitely makes a lot more sense now. Tara leaving so quickly, Jax's recklessness after she left, it all makes sense. Now everything he had done was starting to look like it was in vain.

"So what are you doing to find her?" Jax asks, all business now.

"Bobby and Happy are in Reno with Jury. I'm heading back after we're done here. Chibs knows but we are keeping Clay and Juice in the dark until we figure out who has Tara." I say.

"Any other leads?" He asks

"We think somehow the manager of Jury's club might be involved, but we're not sure. He's got some kind of past with Wendy. Seems like they have a present too. Tara saw them shooting up and fucking in his office last weekend" I say.

"What's his name?" Jax asks.

"Jameson" I say.

"Tall skinny guy. Light brown hair, real hyper?" He asks and I nod. "That's Wendy's fucking dealer from a few years back. The two of them used to get high and fuck in my house all the time. I beat the shit out of him for dealing to her while she was pregnant, but he just kept coming around. He skipped town not long after Abel was born. I kept hoping the piece of shit OD'd and died" he says angrily.

"Her dealer? I'll have to ask Jury more about him. If it was Wendy who took Tara, that might explain why Jameson skipped town too" I say as Lowen comes back in.

"Time's up boys. The guards are getting antsy and I can't talk to the imaginary person on my phone anymore" she says.

I say good bye to Jax and promise to get word to him as soon as I know more.

I get on my bike to go back to Reno, thoughts of Tara and all Jax just told me running through my mind.

Tara POV

It's been about 30 minutes since my captor brought my dinner, so they should be back to get the tray soon. I have to try and get a look at them this time. I hear footsteps in the hallway and scoot closer to the door.

The slot at the bottom of the door opens and I see a gloved hand on the other side. The hand reaches in for the tray and I try to grab for it, but they pull their arm back too quickly. The slot slams closed and the footsteps retreat down the hallway. It's been two days and I still have no idea who has me, I don't even know what gender they are.

Damn it! I have got to think of something. I'm not sure anyone even realizes I'm missing so I need to figure this out on my own. I walk back over to the wall next to the bed and slide down it. I lean my head back against the wall and take a few deep breaths. Okay, what are my options? I look around the room. No windows, one door, one air vent up by the ceiling, one single basin sink and a stainless steel toilet with no seat. My very own prison cell. As I keep looking around, I notice something on the floor between the mattress and the wall. Is that what I think it is?

I crawl over and pull out the object. It's my purse. The strap is broken, it must have fallen off me when the kidnapper dragged me in here. What kind of dumb ass kidnapper leaves the victim with their purse? I open it hoping to find my phone, but no such luck. Maybe the kidnapper is smarter than I thought? I dig through the purse looking for anything that might be useful. Gum, hair ties, lipstick, my wallet, tweezers and a nail file. I open the side zipper pocket hoping my kidnapper didn't think to look there. Thankfully the stupidity of whoever has me is astounding. My pepper spray and pocket knife are still tucked safely inside. I put them both in my bra and put the purse back between the wall and the bed.

Now I just need to figure out a way to get whoever has me into this room.