Thank you for the wonderful reviews.

Megan: Thank you for your patience. You have stayed with me for so long and continued to check up on me even when I disappeared for awhile. I know how I'm ending this, but of course I'm not giving anything away. I think you'll like it though. Just keep coming back and hopefully you'll be satisfied.

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Fallon: End of an Era

Chapter Thirty

Dru walked in first before Jax got the drop on her. If anyone was going to handle Conner, it was going to be her. After all, she had known Conner far longer and far more intimately than any of them.

"You're gonna want to listen to them, Con," Hugh told him.

"You're a popular guy, Conner," Dru announced.

"You don't know what you've done, Drusilla," Conner growled.

"I know exactly what I've done. I have bought you the damn farm by killing the Kings."

"No! You've put a bloody target on my back by killing the Kings. There will be retribution and everyone thinks I was the one to do the deed!" he yelled.

Dru snickered. "That has no standing whatsoever. If you wanted the Kings dead, Conner, you would've done it long ago. You've had several chances, I've seen them. Instead you were biding your time until you could get a slice of the pie. Now…" She moved closer to him until she was practically in his face. "Who are you selling to?"

Confusion glimmered in his eyes. And fear. "What are you talking about?"

"You know exactly what I'm talking about, Con," Drusilla stated. "I found out that you've been selling. Outside of the Sons territory, but you've been selling all the same. Which is one of the reasons that the Kings were so pissed at you. Now, who were you selling to?"

"You've been selling?" Jax questioned.

"I was wondering why you were so quiet while we were slamming up against Marks," Chibs cut in.

Conner looked at Dru. "How did you find out?" he asked her.

She smirked. "I hope that's a rhetorical question."

"Who have you been selling to?" Jax questioned.

"It was outside of your territory," Conner started.

"Specifics!" Happy growled.

Conner sighed. "Salvadorians outside of Nevada. Some Chinese and Russians up north, ones you know."

"You had access to AK's and Glocks," Dru said as she narrowed her eyes. "You're getting them from rogue IRA members."

"Aye," Conner nodded.

"What kind of volume are you promising?" Chibs asked.

"I can get as many AK's as I want and half the Glocks," Conner replied.

"Fucking IRA," Dru muttered as she shook her head.

"You were the one to kill the Kings, Drusilla! You knew what would happen," Conner reacted.

She looked at the Irishman. "Yeah, I did. I knew I'd be handing you the reigns. But you've proved to me over and over that you're a better man than the Kings. But rogue IRA members, Conner? That decision is gonna come back to bite you in the ass."

"It was the only choice I had!"

"There are more distributors out there, Conner, than just the IRA!" Dru shouted. "But ultimately you can't get out, can you?"

"It's the only life I know, Dru. And I know what they did to you, but I was never a part of it, same as Murphy. I also know that Murphy followed me here after you disposed of the Kings. Murphy went rogue, for God's sake, Dru."

"He went rogue as soon as the Kings locked me up in that room and began raping me!" Dru roared. "He just followed along with them for four more years to make sure I was safe from their clutches."

"And he did just that, didn't he, Drusilla?" Conner stated. "He has protected you for four years and he'll keep on protecting you until the day you meet your Maker."

"That's right. Murphy could teach you a thing or two about loyalty," Dru told him.

"Is that all you think it is?" Conner shook his head. "Dru, he's been in love with you since Galen brought you to Belfast."

Dru wouldn't allow her surprise to show. She'd had her suspicions about Murphy's feelings for her, but never had the man crossed any lines. Dru assumed it was because he knew her heart belonged to Jax and didn't want to interfere with her happiness. Murphy would make someone a good man one day though.

"It doesn't matter if he loves me. As long as he has my back," she shrugged, "that's all I need from him."

"Well, you have that in spades, lass," Conner said. "And thank you."

Her brow furrowed. "For what?"

"For getting rid of the Kings."

Dru nodded her welcome and then went into announcing her strategy she had just come up with. "I have a new plan for you and your rogue guns. Alvarez will distribute here in northern Cali. Mayans will move as much stock as you can get Dunglo."

Jax's eyes swept hers. "What the hell are you doing?" he asked her.

"Fixing the problem, so that maybe you can save face with August and have a fighting chance," Dru answered.

"There is no fixing the problem with Marks. It's a done deal."

"Fine," she growled. "Then I'm helping the Mayans, so that you can get your foot out the door yet again. The Sons will no longer have any play in the gun distribution. Isn't that what you wanted anyway?"

Jax heavily sighed. He knew what he wanted personally and this wasn't it. Drusilla finding another route for the guns to be distributed would just piss Marks off more. What the fuck was she trying to pull?

"I am getting you out of guns yet again, Jax. You're taking this whether you like it or not."

"At your expense," he muttered.

"I told you to let me go," Dru said.

His eyes snapped to hers. "Don't you dare say that to me again."

Dru turned her attention to Conner. "Tig will make sure that the Belfast charter is up to speed, make them your boots on the ground there in Ireland. They will deal with the IRA heat."

"We will keep you alive, protect you from the IRA blowback," Alvarez offered sweetening the deal.

Conner seemed to be thinking about it. Chibs put his arm on Conner's shoulder and said, "I think the words you're looking for, Con, is 'thank you very much'."

Dru smirked as Conner nodded his head. "Aye," he agreed, "I get it."

"Don't worry about breaking any IRA culture barriers. You're just an outlaw like the rest of us now," Dru told him.

"It's our only play, Con," Hugh cut in. "We can't go home again. We're dead men in Belfast."

"I know," Conner said. He looked at Dru. "Okay, I'll make this work," he told her.

"Give us a minute, Chuckie," Jax requested.

He wasn't prepared for what came next, but there was no other answer. At this point he was out of options. What he was worried about most was the consequences for Dru. The following hours were nothing but a huge question mark for Jax. He knew what he wanted. He wanted Dru. He wanted nothing more than for Dru to be by his side for the rest of his days. He would like for his boys to be there too, but Jax knew that wasn't the right answer for them. Abel and Thomas would have to grow up without him, to get away from the environment that he had bestowed upon them since birth. This is where Nero and Wendy came into play.

"I'll put the plates on your Dad's bike," Chuckie told him.

"Thank you," Jax muttered.

He got into the file cabinet and pulled out a large folder. He held it out for Nero to see. "I need you to handle some business for me. I had a lawyer start the paperwork already."

"What business?" Nero questioned.

"It's all in here," Jax said patting the folder. "I'm giving Wendy the garage and the houses. I want her to sell everything, take that money, and set herself and the kids up somewhere else. Maybe in Norco with you, or if she still has family on the east coast, whatever she wants. It just can't be Charming."

"What are you doing here, Jax?" Nero feared the answer.

Jax sighed. "What I should've done a long time ago."

Nero stared at the man before him. He had never seen Jax so reflective on his life choices. He didn't know if it had anything to do with Tara's death, but Nero was certain that a feisty redhead had helped him along the away.

"Does Dru know what you're doing?" Nero probed.

"It wouldn't matter if she did. This is my decision," he paused. "My piece of Diosa and Red Woody go to the MC and to the dummy corp. They should use the profits to buy Scoops and set that up as home base. Hale will sell it to us cheap," Jax explained. "Apparently grenades lower property value," he sarcastically remarked as he opened up the file cabinet once more. "I'm gonna put it right here, okay?"

Nero opened his mouth to say something, but didn't quite know how to start. If Nero didn't know any better… He wasn't even going to finish that thought. "And why am I doing this? Where the hell are you going to be?" Nero interrogated.

"I'm leaving, Nero," Jax replied.

"Why?"

"You know why," Jax softly answered.

Nero began nodding his head. He knew why. "Gemma," he stated. "What happened…?"

Jax shook his head. "I don't know. My guys had eyes and ears out for her, but nothing ever came of it." He paused to stare at the window. "But I have a theory."

Nero scoffed. "And what's your theory, Jax?"

Jax turned back to look at him. The answer was in his clear blue eyes. An answer that Nero didn't want to see. "Dru," Nero faintly said.

Jax dipped his head in response.

Nero sat down on the couch opposite him. "Jesus, Jax."

"I'm sorry," Jax muttered. "I didn't know. I didn't tell her—" He cut himself off before he began crying. "This is who we are and we can't change. I need you to promise you'll make sure that my boys leave this place. So, they don't become what I've become."

All Nero could do was bow his head in agreement.

There was a knock on the window. Chuckie let him know that Wendy and his boys were here. Jax held up a finger letting him know he needed a little more time.

"Where are you gonna go?" Nero asked.

"I'm not sure," Jax shrugged.

"What am I gonna tell Wendy?"

"Everything. When the time comes, she needs to tell my sons who I really am. I'm not a good man. I'm a criminal. And a killer. I need my sons to grow up hating the thought of me."

Nero shook his head.

"Daddy."

Jax's heart shuttered at the name. He would never hear that sweet voice again.

Dru sat in the office inside of Red Woody. To her left was Chibs and to her right sat Tig. These two men were her family, had been for years. When she had abandoned the club four years ago she never thought she would return. There was too much pain where happiness had once been. But Opie's death had brought everything to a screeching halt. She'd had no other choice than to send herself home. Now with the past few months behind them, Dru had never felt closer to them than she did in this moment.

"I killed Gemma," she said aloud for the first time. Both of their eyes snapped to hers. She shrugged. "I had too."

"Dru…" Chibs began.

"No," she retorted. "It had to be done and Jax couldn't be the one to do it. He never would've survived the torment of his killing his own mother."

"And you can?"

"She wasn't my mom. As close as we were, especially before I left," she paused to get her thoughts in order. "I have the luxury of compartmentalizing everything. I knew that in order for the club to survive that she would have to be killed. She couldn't live any longer, not with what she had done. She almost destroyed this club with her lies and deception. I'm the only one who could do the job without feeling the penance of it later."

"You did it to save Jax. You did it so he wouldn't have to," Tig said.

Dru nodded. "I know that he would have if it came down to it. But his soul… It's already battered. It doesn't need to be completely ripped out. If he had killed Gemma, he wouldn't have a soul left. He wouldn't be human anymore."

Chibs bowed his head in awe of her and the deep loyalty she displayed many times over. There was no other person better suited for Jax than this lassie right here. Chibs felt honored at the allegiance she had towards the club. She was a constant force with passionate ties. As much as she was fucked up, a woman with no remorse and malice in her heart, her love and devotion more than redeemed her in his eyes.

He replayed their conversation many times over in his head already. He didn't like the fact that she was going through this alone. He wished she would tell Jax the truth, but he understood why that could never happen. It was for his protection. If Jax was to find that out, he'd be pissed. Chibs would be grateful if a woman sacrificed their life for his. There weren't many women like Dru, if any did exist at all.

"If no one has told you lately, you're one hot little lady," Tig told her.

Chibs and Dru burst out laughing.