I'm baaaaack! Sorry for the hiatus. I never intentionally meant to take one. I just got caught up in life, as most people do sometimes.

This chapter is a little shorter than all of the others, but I would never call it a filler chapter. This chapter was kind of hard for me to write. It's a lot of Dru's thoughts and feelings. I know her true north, but sometimes it's just hard to explain such deep loyalty. I would consider this an important chapter.

Megan: You are the most loyal fan that I know. Thank you for always checking up on me by sending me your wonderful reviews.

wideawakepastmidnight: You're a newbie, but I already like you. Your review was well thought out and very much appreciated. Thank you for your support.

This chapter is dedicated to the two of you.

Fallon: End of an Era

Smoke drifted away from her as she slowly smoked on the cigarette she had stolen from Gemma's pack. She sat on the step that led into the garden. Dru could still see the former Queen's feet in the path. The rose bushes hid the rest of her dead body. She had needed to take a minute after the evil she just committed. It didn't seem right that she was the one who needed to take her surrogate mother's life, but Dru understood she was the only one who could. The truth was, Dru was the only one who could withstand the emotional turmoil of the act later. She could keep the havoc inside and not be bothered by it. She had learned long ago that the coldness in her heart could be an advantage.

Dru was grateful for Gemma's decision to turn around at the last minute. She had given Dru her blessing. Something inside of her had cracked open with Gemma's last words.

"You were the little girl I had always wanted. I didn't mean for any of this to happen. If I had protected you better you wouldn't be the one standing here. I am so sorry, baby girl. I am so sorry. But it's time. It's time for me to go."

Dru had pulled the trigger with no hesitation. In the end the words hadn't mattered. Gemma's death was a need. It was necessary for the club's survival and more importantly, Jax's. She had done enough damage with all the lies she had told. Dru had never given her permission to make up the stories that she did. It was all Juice. It agitated Dru to know that Gemma had gone to Juice for further cover. If she would've just allowed her to finish it none of this would've happened. But alas, Gemma had taken it upon herself to fix everything. Giving Jax a target for Tara's murder had given him a reason to continue, a path for his anger to take. Really, Gemma had just set him and the club on a course to self-destruction.

If Jax was to find out what she had done she knew the consequences that she would have to endure. It didn't matter that Gemma's death was a necessity far beyond even the need for oxygen. Jax should've been the one to handle it in the chain of command, but Dru never would have allowed such a despicable thing to occur. She loved him enough to save his soul. Killing his mother would've ultimately destroyed it.

She felt the footsteps before she heard them. Dru quickly tensed up preparing for whoever it was. They would have to die too.

"Dru," the whisper came softly.

She quickly breathed a sigh of relief to find that it was Murphy that stood behind her. Dru looked up at the shadow of her old friend. This was the man who had saved her from Galen all those years ago. He had helped her escape and became a lifelong friend. Also being one of her contacts, he was privy to what she was doing and what she had done. Murphy accepted her for who she was, who she had become. What she had become.

"What are you doing here, Murphy?" she asked him.

"You know what I'm doing here, Dru."

"The Kings are here." She nodded. "Did you sneak away?"

"I was not followed," Murphy told her. He pointed towards the body in the rose garden. "I see the Queen has fallen."

"Yeah," Dru agreed. "Her reign of terror is over."

"And all of this—all of what has happened…"

"Is on her," Dru finished. "All because of a lie. Deception was far more important to Gemma than anything else. Family ran a close second. The ironic thing is she didn't used to be like that. The club and family was a treasure to be protected, a jewel beyond measure. Here she was the one to wreck all of it."

"You did what you had to do, Drusilla."

"Yeah, and the fallout will be catastrophic if anyone is to find out that it was me who killed her."

"I'm sure Jax will figure it out."

"It doesn't matter," she shook her head. "He can't know the complete truth. Not even of my involvement in Tara's murder."

"If you were worried about being involved why did you help Gemma in the first place?" he asked.

Dru sighed. "I wasn't thinking. All I seen was a desperate Queen trying to protect her kingdom. My Queen. I hadn't planned it considering Gemma hadn't planned on killing Tara in the first place. It was a very impulsive and reckless decision on my part, but not careless. I could have called Jax after I took care of Roosevelt and let him handle the aftermath like the President is supposed to do. But in that moment it was my duty to protect him, protect Jax, from the outcome of what she had done."

"Protect him from what? I'm sure Jax knows by now just what his mother is capable of," Murphy argued.

"Not the full extent. Only I know Gemma that way because I would go to war with the devil himself to defend Jax and the club. That's loyalty, Murphy. It's the only thing I know for certain about myself, is how loyal I am," Dru explained. "I couldn't have stood by and watched Jax kill his own mother. He never would've come back from it. His soul would be bought and paid for. I can't let that happen. He already has difficulty looking himself in the mirror."

"And you would know all about bad reflections, huh, lass?"

Dru looked over at Murphy afraid to see the pity that once dominated the blue irises. For years she felt the sympathy that filled Murphy on behalf of what his bosses did to her. However, it wasn't pity that filled them. It was compassion. He understood her better than anyone, maybe even better than Jax. Besides for the Kings themselves, Murphy was the only one to witness the brutal torture that she had endured at their hands. And he was the only one that hadn't participated. He was also the source of her escape from their evil clutches.

"I know what you see in the mirror every day, Drusilla. I saw the struggle you bore to once again stand tall. You never succumbed to their cruelty. If anything you became stronger because of their torment. This is why you're the perfect person to do the jobs that you do. You see both sides," Murphy told her.

"I never wanted to see both sides!" she growled. "I hate the grey! Black and white is easier."

"Maybe. But it still doesn't take away from the fact that you're flawless in this job, in this life."

"It wasn't fair, Murphy. None of it was fair. I had to suffer to become the person I am today and I have to live with that agony for the rest of my life. There is no comfort for this kind of pain. The only thing that even halfway makes me feel human again is the club and my love for Jax." She pointed at Gemma's lifeless body. "That was a cake walk. As much as I hated killing her because she's been my family for so long, and once upon a time ago she took me in when no else would, even with that history I would do it again to safeguard Jax's life. To shield his soul. If I can't have my humanity back, then I'll make damn certain that Jax keeps his."

"And that, lass, is what makes you human," Murphy assured her. "But what I'm wondering now is how you're going to handle what's coming next. You knew what would happen, Dru."

Dru turned to once again stare at the Queen's motionless body. She didn't know where she went from here. But one thing was for certain… She was going to pay for the choices she had made. She could already feel the shadows closing in on her.