I'm back with a brand new chapter!

I'm so sorry I disappeared for such a long time, but I've had a few medical issues that took precedence over this story. I won't be updating again on a regular basis like I did before, but it will be frequent. Maybe in two weeks time there will be another new chapter. Nevertheless, there's only a few chapters left to this story.

Thank you for still keeping in touch even as I was on hiatus. I can't tell you how much I appreciate it.

Now, if you would, please read and review!

Fallon: End of an Era

Chapter Thirty-Seven

Dru was not naïve by any means. She had tried every option she had to get out of what was to become of her, but she would have to accept the consequences of her actions. If anyone ever described Drusilla Fallon you could quickly tell them that she recognized her fate and knew her place in the world. From the time of her birth she was meant to be in this position. Connor Fallon's daughter could be no less than what she had turned out to be.

She had struggled for a long time wondering if this was the path she was meant to take. Dru had constantly questioned if she had been that horrible of a person to receive the outcome of this life she had led. Galen had tortured her and crushed her spirit, but he hadn't been able to seize her identity. Dru had kept who she was. She had made sure to say her name aloud in a relentless manner to guarantee Galen did not conquer her entirely.

Even at her end she wasn't conquered. Dru would go down swinging. She had exhausted every resource she had left, and even though it hadn't turned out the way she wanted it, Dru would fight to live.

She remembered when she had first returned here to Charming. It had been for Opie's funeral. It had almost been two years since that fateful day. That particular event had been immersed in hatred. She had hated Jax, hated him for what he stood for, hated him for what had happened to Opie…hated him for the club's foul works. It wasn't until much later when she had come again that the hatred she had felt ten months earlier had simply been a phase. She was incapable of hating Jax Teller for long. Her love for him was too strong to hate him.

The club had been important too. Her father's legacy was far too superior to just throw away because of the IRA. Besides, she'd had unfinished business with those fucking Kings anyways. She was proud of the fact that she had a hand in dismantling the corrupt table that Galen O'Shay sat at in Belfast. Dru had helped SAMCRO to escape from the gun running business. The Sons would live on. As she sat here at this tiny diner in Stockton, she couldn't help but feel accomplished for what she had done.

And yet, a miniscule of guilt set in. Jax still didn't know the entirety of her business ventures. Hell, the man still didn't know the absolute truth of who she was. Yes, he knew Dru Teller of yesteryear, but he didn't know the Dru Teller of post-IRA years. She had only allowed a limited amount of the truth. Mostly it was for his protection, but the other was because she couldn't stand to see the betrayal and the horror in his eyes.

Her ties ran deep. They ran deeper than what she even knew sometimes, or what she even acknowledged. The IRA had just been the beginning. The organizations she had partaken in in recent years were the tipping point. There had been a reason she played double agent for so long, and it sure as hell wasn't for the paycheck, even though she had been paid handsomely. Dru had been effective in never choosing a side. It worked well to her advantage, not just for the sides themselves, but also because she could remain a player.

Dru never wanted to admit it, but she enjoyed being that so called "player". It was the adrenaline rush. It was that power that Galen had mentioned. She relished in the power. As much as she had taken pleasure in the dominant position she had occupied, Dru had also detested it at times. She had ruined many lives, and stolen them too. Dru conceded that she had made herself into a god-like figure. But because of that specific standpoint she had been able to help Jax and the club, and that meant more to her than anything.

About the time that her thoughts were about to run away again, Dru felt more than she saw someone sit down in the booth across from her.

"For someone who's being hunted you're not doing a very good job of hiding yourself, Dru."

She turned her head away from the window and directed her gaze onto Murphy.

Dru smiled. Liam Murphy. Liam to the IRA and Murphy to her. He was one of those rare friends that you don't ordinarily come across. Dru owed her life to him. He had singularly aided in her escape from the IRA almost five years ago and had given her a second chance. The man had also facilitated in the growth of her empire. However, because of their close relationship Murphy had fancied himself in love with her since her kidnapping by Galen and his lackeys. Dru felt sorry for that truth. The circumstances of their first meeting never should have resulted in those types of feelings. After all, Galen had sent Murphy in to rape her. He had refused and remained one of the few members that hadn't. The others' forced entries had forced her submission, just the way Galen had wanted it. Never Murphy though. He had been a gentleman, a friend to console her during those dark days. She wished a little bit that she could love him back because he deserves that. But her heart would forever belong to the Prince of Charming.

"Hiding has become irrelevant, Murphy," she told him.

"There's still a chance—"

"No more chances," Dru cut him off. "I've made my peace with what I did. I chose this, and there's no point in regretting it. I won't."

Murphy sighed. He could see that she had yielded to her fate. Drusilla Fallon, with her coffee cup perched on her lips, was a beautiful sight to behold. It wasn't simply her appearance, even though that certainly was enough to break your heart, it was also the loveliness of her heart. Dru's heart was as big as this universe. It had the capacity to hold so much, but she only held particular individuals in that light. Murphy would like to think that she loves him in her own way, but it wasn't the means that he desired most. It didn't matter. As long as she was happy, he didn't care.

He cleared his throat. "Everything's prepared."

She nodded. "I knew I could count on you. Somehow you always come through, even whenever you doubt your own capabilities."

"Well, I can't allow my best girl's wishes to be disregarded. Those must be given in full."

"Because that's what you decree?" Dru chuckled.

Murphy shrugged his shoulders. "It has more to do with the fact that you demand it. You demand others' respect, and in turn there should be something great for you at the end of the road."

"It's not my end, Murphy. I would like to think of it as a new beginning…a blank slate."

"Are you going religious on me, sweetheart?"

"God forbid, Murph," she snorted.

"It's been nice, Dru," Murphy told her as he held out his hand.

She smiled at him and took a moment to memorize his features. He was the only friend she had at one point in her life, and also her savior when she needed him most. She would forever be grateful to him for everything he had done for her, and here he was doing one last thing to ensure her legacy.

"It's been more than nice, Murphy," she said as she took his hand in hers.

"Everything will be shut down when you're gone."

Dru nodded and then let him go.

Dru was riding back into Charming when her phone began to ring. She looked at the caller ID to find it that it was Jax calling. She readily grinned, but it quickly became a grimace. She didn't want to do this, but Dru recognized she had no other choice.

She picked up the phone call and quickly brightened her mood. "Hey, babe," Dru greeted him.

"Where the hell are you?! You just disappeared!" Jax exclaimed.

Dru sighed. "I just needed some time to think, and make arrangements."

"Arrangements for what, Dru?" he questioned.

"Future arrangements, Jax," she answered. "It's nothing for you to worry about. It was just some loose ends that needed to be taken care of."

"Loose ends?"

She rolled her eyes. She ought to have known that he wasn't going to let this go. "There was some money in offshore accounts that needed to be drained and flipped elsewhere."

"You setting us up for life, Dru?"

She smiled, but it didn't quite reach her eyes. "Maybe I am."

"Well, I like the sound of that. How much we talkin', sweetheart?"

"A little over $20 million. That's not including all of the properties that I own."

Dru heard him whistle. "You've been paid handsomely for your services," Jax said.

"I told you I was paid well for what I'm good at," Dru told him.

"Where are we retiring, darlin'?"

She lightly chuckled. "I was thinking an island where there are no extradition laws, where it's really quiet. What do you think?"

"I like the sound of that. Plus, it'd be a perfect hiding spot for you."

Dru swallowed back the lump of bile that had appeared. "Exactly," she replied. "I'll be in Charming in about thirty minutes."

"I'll be at Scoops, so you can just come by there."

"Will do, handsome. I love you."

"I love you too."

When Dru hung up, she went to dial another number. She had sort of lied to Jax considering she was driving through Charming now. But, she had one last thing to take care of first.

"Chibs, I need you and Tig to meet me at the junkyard as quickly as you can." She paused as she listened. "As quickly as you can please. And don't notify Jax. He can't know you're coming to meet me. Promise me, Chibs." She sighed as he assured her repeatedly that he wouldn't. "Thank you. I'll see you two in a bit."

Dru rolled down the window and threw the phone away. It was one less thing for them to track her with. She couldn't take any chances until everything was squared away to her liking. The last thing she needed to make her plan come full circle was coming to meet her. Dru sighed in relief that it was almost over.