Chapter 39: Firinne
A/N: Okay so as I was updating the last chapter I noticed that I had it 100,000 words on this story. I can't even believe that, but honestly the more I think about it…I'm really not surprised. I mean most of these chapters are over 2,000 words each. I'm really glad that I finally broke through my writer's block on this story. It's become one of my favorites that I've written. It's completely different than any other story that I've written. I'm hoping that you guys are enjoying reading it, just as much as I enjoy writing it. Here's the next chapter…I can't believe that we're almost 40 chapter in. Enjoy!
Jax POV
When I woke up, I looked next to the bed and saw Kellan Ashby sitting there. "What time is it?" I asked.
"Almost noon." He said.
I slowly sat up and looked at him. "Guess you heard." I said.
"Yes. I'm sorry about Patrick." Kellan said.
"Jimmy killed your brother and five members of my club. That blast was meant for SAMCRO." I said.
"Greed pushed him over the line. This betrayal means he's gone rogue." Kellan told me.
"I need to know where to find Jimmy." I said.
"We'll make that happen, but first we have to prove that Jimmy blew up that truck." Kellan said.
"Why?" I asked.
"Our conversation the other night. When I show the council proof that Jimmy sabotaged that shipment, knowingly murdered two of our men, then that task I put on you is no longer covert. You do it with the full support of the Army." He told me.
"And what about my kid?" I asked. I still just wanted to get Abel and go home.
"With Jimmy out of the way…your son will return to his loving family." He told me.
I snorted. "Like I got a choice." I said.
"You'll need to find someone working with Jimmy, the closer the better." He said.
"I got a few ideas." I said.
"Once you, uh, find the right man, give Sean a ring. You'll find he's quite resourceful." Kellan said before he stood up and walked out of the room.
Jimmy POV
"So, what's the fallout?" I asked Donny, pouring myself a glass of whiskey.
Donny sighs. "If Kellan proves to the council at the attacker was you, I don't know how we're going to spin it. I'm not sure how our crew will react." Donny said.
"These are my boys. I pulled them out of the stinking gutter." I said.
"Yeah, you did, but the ones who chained up that barn thought they were killing traitors. When the truth comes out, then you become the traitor." Donny said.
"Aye. We can feed our boys any truth that we need. Only one can prove that I was connected to that blast is O'Neill, so you and I are going to go and tie up that loose end, yeah?" I said.
Donny nodded. "Right." He said. "Any news from stateside?" He asked me.
"Aye. Victoria called. She's got the girl. Depending on how everything plays out here, we'll make our way there. I have quite a few ideas for her." I said, downing my whiskey. Caius would have to get over it. I would get rid of Victoria and then the girl would be all mine.
Tara POV
They'd taken us to a house out in the middle of nowhere. Dragged us up to the attic and chained us to some pipes. They'd left us up here for a while but now they'd come back. "I guess you weren't lying. We got ourselves a doctor and a hospital boss." The guy said. He still hadn't told me his name. Or hers.
"What do you want?" I asked.
"Shut up. You don't get to ask questions." His girlfriend said.
"I need a way to reach your club." He said.
"Why? What do you want?" I asked.
The girlfriend backhanded me. "What did I just say, Bitch?" She said.
"They need to make their demands." Margaret said.
"Smart. So, she's the boss?" He asked.
"Give them a number, Tara." Margaret said. I couldn't understand how she was so calm.
Jax POV
After Kellan had left, I got dressed and made my way out to the common room. Everyone had already gathered. "Kellan needs us to prove that Jimmy blew up that gun truck." I told them.
"And what about Abel?" Ma asked.
"Same promise." I said. Bobby poured me a cup of coffee and handed it to me. "Thanks." I told him. "Get Jimmy, we get Abel." I said.
"Then we start with O'Neill." Clay said.
I nodded. "Yeah. Him and Jimmy's guys were the only ones not in that barn." I said.
"Any remote detonator could cover that distance. It had to be him." Ope said. He would know.
"O'Neill's their officer. We call him out as a rat, we pretty much condemn the whole charter." Bobby said.
"Maybe it's time we look at that." Clay said. Maybe he had a point. "How do we know Jimmy didn't turn others?"
"Right. Without that rat bastard…" I trailed off, noticing that McGee had walked in.
"Because my boys are loyal to the MC. Aye, you're right about O'Neill. The Irish became more important than the patch." McGee said.
"Well, that's not what you told me." Clay said, slightly raising his voice. He was starting to get pissed.
"Cause I like to give my boys the benefit of the doubt, Clay. But after yesterday, there's no doubt left. He's gone. His flat's empty, and he's got to be with Jimmy." McGee said. Something was off. I couldn't pinpoint it…but something was definitely off.
"Son of a bitch!" Chibs yelled.
"Look, I'll take care of O'Neill. SAMBEL will take care of the betrayal but we need to get to Newry and but a bullet in Jimmy." McGee said. He was too eager.
"No." I said, getting everyone's attention. "Only way I get my son back is if we find O'Neill and make that bitch tell the truth." I told everyone.
"Alright. Great. So I guess it's the truth we're after." McGee said.
We all headed over to Ashby's knowing that Cherry was other there working. "Need to find O'Neill." Clay said to her.
"Why? What happened?" She asked.
"Liam's in some trouble, Cherry." McGee said to her.
"Your old man was responsible for that blast yesterday." I told her.
"No, no. Liam loves the club" Cherry said.
"We just got to find him, get the truth." Bobby said.
"I know what that means. You going to kill him?" Cherry said.
"He'll get his say." Clay told her.
"Just tell them what you know, sweetheart." Maureen said.
"I don't know anything. Okay, he didn't come home last night. He hasn't called." Cherry told us.
"He have family? Someplace he might lay low?" I asked her.
"No." Cherry said. "I mean the club is his only family. I'm sorry, I-I really…I have no idea." She stuttered.
"Let's go turn over his apartment." I told them. We made our way out of Ashby's.
Gemma POV
"Hold on. You hear what happened to Half-Sack?" I asked her.
Cherry nodded. "Yeah."
"You know O'Neill's connected to right?" I asked her.
"Bullshit." Cherry said.
"No, she's right. Cammy and Liam. Both under Jimmy's authority. You know, Liam was privy to your man getting a knife in the belly." Maureen told her.
"And your protecting this guy makes you just as guilty." Maureen told her.
"I'm…no…" Cherry tried to say.
"O'Neill's not in the MC anymore. He turned on his brothers, and he bailed on you." I told her. It was a hard truth but she needed to hear it.
"Just tell them what you know, Cher." Trinity told her.
"All right. Last week, I found a lot of cash in his pocket, so it made me curious and I went looking through his things and I dug up two receipts for bank accounts, both with a lot of money and a contract for some kind of a loft down at the docks. So maybe he's there." Cherry finished. Maureen grabbed her by the throat lightly choking her.
"Ma!" Trinity shouted.
"Never, ever lie to the club. Do you understand me? Do you understand me?" Maureen asked her. She let go of Cherry and she started coughing.
"Yes." Cherry said.
"Ma!" Trinity shouted once more.
"Get the Club." Maureen said sending Trinity out the door.
Jimmy POV
Victoria was keeping Bella occupied at the safe house while Donny and I tracked down Liam. The sooner I finished up things here the quicker I could get back to California and get to my shiny new toy. My phone started ringing. I quickly answered it. "Glad you reached out. Been worried." I said.
"Sorry Jimmy. It all went to shite. SAMCRO's on to me. I'm underground." Liam said.
Now to find out where. "Deed served it's purpose. You did good, brother. Now tell me where you're at so me and Donny can come and collect you." I told him.
"Aye. Okay. Appreciate that." Liam said.
Third Person POV
The phone starts ringing at TM. "Teller-Morrow?" Chucky says answering the phone.
"Let me talk to a member of the Sons." Salazar said.
"I can help you." Chucky said.
"Are you a member?" Salazar asked.
"Trusted friend." Chucky said.
"Put a goddamn member on the phone!" Salazar yelled.
Chucky put him on hold, walking out to the garage. "Yo?" He said getting Piney's attention.
"Yeah?" Piney said looking over at him. Chucky waved the phone in the air.
"Not very nice." Chucky said.
Piney nodded. He walked into the office and grabbed the phone from Chucky taking it off hold. "Hi. This is Piney." Piney told the mysterious caller.
"You a patched member?" Salazar asked.
"Who the hell is this?" Piney asked.
"The guy pointing a gun at Jax Teller's old lady." Salazar said.
Salazar reached over and pulled the tape off of Tara's mouth. "It's Tara. He's telling the truth." She said.
After Piney had heard Salazar's list of demands he went in search of Tig and Kozik who hadn't slept all night because they'd been out searching everywhere for Bella. "He wants us to kill Alvarez and steal a quarter of a mil from his home safe." Piney told them.
"This dude's gone off the deep end man." Kozik said.
"Yeah. He took her and that redhead from the hospital. We don't deliver in 12 hours, they're both dead." Piney told them.
"We got to let Jax know." Kozik said.
"No. He's got enough on his plate." Piney said.
"Yes, he does. We need to handle this. And not only this but my daughter is missing." Tig said.
"We got to reach out to Alvarez, get him to play along. I mean, he could supply intel on Salazar. He might even know where he's got the girls." Kozik said.
"Don't let that horse truce fool you. The Mayans hate us." Piney said.
"What else are we gonna do? We gonna whack Alvarez, start a blood war? It's our only shot." Kozik said.
"He could say no. Then we've played our hand. Girls are dead." Tig said.
"Alvarez is a smart guy man. He's got a family. He'll get it." Kozik added.
"Better be right. We've got to save them and find my daughter all before the guys come home." Tig said.
McGee POV
"O'Neill's loft's got to be near the water." Somebody said.
"This way." Opie said.
"What's wrong?" Bobby asked me.
"Aye. I've just been a bit unsteady since the blast yesterday. Just give me a moment." I told them. "I'll be alright."
"Come on, let's go." Jax said and they all headed down towards the docks.
I pulled my phone out and quickly called Liam. "Aye?" He said when he answered.
"Where are you?" I asked.
"Storage loft." Liam said.
"Get out. SAMCRO's nearly there." I told him and hung up.
Jax POV
As we were making our way around, we heard something. "That's got to be him." I said. Opie, Juice, Hap and myself took off running with the others behind us.
When we caught up to him, he was climbing up a ladder trying to escape. We yanked him down. Chib's was already pissed off because he'd lost a family member in the blast. "I'll kill ya!" Chibs yelled at him, trying to get to him but Hap held him back.
"Easy brother. Not yet." Hap said.
"Call Sean Casey. Tell him we got a confession to record.
Hap quickly made the call and a few minutes later, McGee walked in. Part of me wondered if when we'd left him at the bikes, if he'd given O'Neill a heads up. "You got him?" McGee asked.
"Yeah." Clay told him. He looked over at McGee. "Feeling alright?"
"Yeah." McGee told him.
"Good. 'Cause I got a feeling you're gonna need a strong stomach." Clay told him.
McGee nodded.
When Sean arrived, things really started to get interesting. Hap and Ope had chained O'Neill to the ceiling. Sean got his video camera set up before he began interrogating O'Neill. "I need you to tell me who ordered you to blow up that truck, Liam." Sean said.
"I didn't blow it up. Please, Sean. I didn't…I didn't…" Liam begged.
We all stood there and watched as Sean tortured Liam. He made Hap's torture look tame. "Can't watch this." McGee said, taking a step outside.
"This is some medieval shit." Bobby said and I nodded.
Liam was screaming and crying. "Who…ordered…the hit?" Sean asked him.
"No!" Liam yelled as Sean was about to torture him some more. "Please. I did it. I'm sorry. I had a detonator. I waited till Jimmy's boys chained the barn." Liam said.
"Jimmy O'Phelan ordered you to blow up that shipment and kill Army men?" Sean asked him.
"Jimmy set it up. I put it in motion." Liam said. "We didn't tell McGee about it. Knew he wouldn't get on board." Liam said.
"McGee's working for Jimmy? Who else?" Clay asked Liam.
"No one. Just us." Liam said. Liam grunted.
"Get him." Clay said, realizing that McGee was no longer in the room.
"Did you get what you need?" I asked Sean.
"Oh aye." Sean said. "Turn off the camera."
"McGee took off, and Jimmy's crew's heading this way." Ope said.
"Lock the doors." Clay said.
"Make sure Kellan gets this. No matter what, he keeps his promise about my kid." I said to Sean.
"Get the thinner. Get out of here, boys." Clay said.
We all made our way through the loft and up a ladder getting out of there.
Later in the day, Kellan Ashby had come and picked Clay and I up. When we walked into the small room, we realized that we were meeting with the council. We joined everyone at the table. "I asked the father to bring you here. We want to thank you personally. This information confirms a suspicion we've had about Jimmy for quite some time. We know you risked your lives to get it. We owe you." A guy named Roarke said.
"How do we get to O'Phelan?" Clay asked.
"That's an Army matter. He's a traitor. Be dealt with as such." Brogan said.
"That's not the deal." I said. What the hell was going on here?
"I'm afraid it is, Jackson." Kellan said.
What? Now he was going back on his word? "What are you talking about? You said I would get support to take out Jimmy!" I said raising my voice.
Clay put a hand on my shoulder. "Easy. Easy. Not here." He said.
"This is a…sensitive situation. Has to be handled internally. I'm you can understand that, lad." Dooley said.
"Jackson and I have some… outside issues to discuss. We'll do that later son." Kellan said and I glared at him.
Tara POV
"Are you okay?" Margaret asked me.
I nodded. "Yeah. You?" I said.
"Yes." Margaret said quietly.
"I don't know why they're doing this." I told her.
"I'm sure it's about money." She said.
"Yeah, well, then they're out of luck, 'cause the club doesn't have any. I am sorry this is happening to you." I told her.
"So am I." She said.
"The…um, tattoo on your back?" I asked.
"Another like." She said.
"What is it?" I asked.
"I thought I was in love." She told me.
"That's a…serious amount of ink." I said. And it was. When I'd gotten a glimpse of her tat it was huge. It was almost as big as the one Jax had.
"I was in deep. Started out just another groupie. Before I knew it, I was giving him my money, buying him drugs, then dealing for him. Christmas Eve 1989, we both O.D'd on fentanyl-laced heroin. He died…and I woke up." Margaret told me.
"I'm sorry." I said.
"I'm not. I leave it there so I remember all that shit is behind me." She said.
"Yeah." I said. I remember when Gemma had seen my crow tat that day at the hospital. I'd told her the same thing.
Jax POV
I walked into the clubhouse and sighed. "What happened, brother?" One of the guys asked me.
"I went to St. Matt's. Kellan wasn't there. Casey wouldn't tell me where he was." I told them.
"Well, the cops found the bodies on the docks, and they're gonna be here asking questions." Bobby said.
"We find Abel, catch Oswald's plane tomorrow night, and get the hell off of this musk covered shit hole. I haven't heard from Bells and that worries me." Ope said.
"Amen my brother." Hap piped in.
"I can't just sit here. I'm going for a walk." I told them.
"You watch him." Gemma said to Ope as I walked towards the door.
"Yes Ma'am." Ope told her, following me.
Gemma POV
"Give me a minute." Clay told Bobby. "What's the matter?" He asked me.
"Just want to make sure you're okay." I said. He and McGee had known each other a long time. I knew that it had to be hard on him.
"I'm fine." Clay said. He didn't like to show his emotions very often.
"I'm sorry about McGee." I told him.
He shook his head. "Nothing to be sorry about. He sold us out; got what he deserves." Clay said.
"It's okay to feel bad baby." I told him. He sighed. "McGee was first nine. You'd known him for 40 years." I said.
"Time don't mean shit." Clay said.
"Who did it?" I asked.
Clay glared at me. "Who do you think?"
Bella POV
I had to admit for a kidnapper, Victoria was treating decently. She hadn't hit me, fed me pretty good and even had clothes for me. "Why are you doing this?" I asked her, while we were eating dinner.
She sighed. "Caius wants you because Aro promised him that you'd take your rightful place within the Volturi, so he teamed up with Jimmy O'Phelan. I don't know when everything changed, but Jimmy got rid of Caius, Marcus and Jasper. Said he planned on keeping you for himself. Something about you being Irish Royalty. I don't know." Victoria said.
"So basically Jimmy told you to kidnap me and then what?" I asked. I knew that most of the guys were in Ireland trying to get Abel back, was Jimmy part of what they were dealing with? And surely Dad knew by now that I was missing.
Jax POV
After Ope and I had gone for a walk, he headed to meet up with the other while I walked over to Ashby's. I needed smokes. When I walked in Trinity was cleaning up around the store. "Heard you're gonna be leaving." She said.
"Yeah. Soon as I get my kid. Hopefully tomorrow." I told her.
"That's good. Getting your son." She said, sadly.
"I'm sorry about McGee." I told her.
"Thanks. Guess he was the closest thing I had to a Da." She said.
"Where's your old man?" I asked her.
"Killed in Lebanon. I was a baby." She told me.
"He was a soldier?" I asked.
She nodded. "Aye."
Gemma POV
"I heard they buried Kip with his patch." Cherry said, as she, Maureen and I sat at her kitchen table drinking.
"Yeah." I told her.
"That's good." She said.
"No tears for the man that just died?" I asked her.
"Why? He was a lair…and a rat." She said. She was disconnected.
"You don't know the facts." Maureen said.
"Do you?" I asked Maureen. I felt like she hadn't been completely honest about everything. "McGee ever say anything about Jimmy?"
She shook her head. "No. He was more distant than usual. I didn't see this coming." Maureen said.
"Desperate times, huh? Makes men do desperate things." I said, not sure if I meant more about McGee or John.
"What do you know about desperate? All our times here are desperate! SAMCRO has no idea the risk Belfast takes to keep Charming safe and cozy." Maureen said.
"Redwood put SAMBEL on the map." I told her.
"Aye and after four days you nearly wiped them off." Maureen said.
"I'll assume whatever you want." Maureen said. "All I know is, since you and your boys rolled into our alley, we're short three lives."
"And I'm missing my grandson, 'cause your asshole brother is playing a shell game with his life." I told her.
"I should take your right eye for talking shite about a man of god!" Maureen stated.
"It wouldn't be the first thing you took from me." I said.
"Well, maybe if you didn't chew men up like a meat grinder, they wouldn't be overseas looking for some tenderness." Maureen said.
Guess we were opening that can of worms. "You little dink of a whore!" I snapped.
"What the hell are you guys talking about?" Cherry asked.
I'd forgotten for a moment that she was here. "I need smokes." I said, standing up.
"I need whiskey." Maureen said joining me.
Cherry sighed. "I need a new life."
Maureen and I both made our way downstairs into her store when we heard a clattering sound. "What the…?" I trailed off. "What's that?" I asked.
Maureen grabbed her gun from the register. "You get the door." She said.
"Ready?" I asked and she nodded. I quickly opened the door.
"Christ ma!" Trinity yelled.
Not what we were expecting. Jax had Trinity pushed up against the desk with his pants around his ankles. My boy the horn dog. Jax cleared his throat. "You want to shut the door?" Jax asked.
I closed the door and Maureen and I looked at each other. "This is very bad." I said.
"Agreed. Little slut." Maureen said.
"Yeah he is." I said. I quickly sighed. "Well…unless we want a three-headed grandchild, looks like we're gonna have to share some family history." I told her and she agreed.
Trinity POV
"I don't understand." I said to Ma after Jax and I had gotten dressed. She'd told me that she needed to talk to me. "You said my da was a soldier."
"I know." Ma said.
She was currently showing me some pictures that she'd hidden. "He was a member of the club?" I asked.
"Founding member." She said.
I flipped the picture over. "John. John Teller?" I asked.
"Aye." She whispered.
"Why wouldn't you tell me that? Why the hell did you lie to me?" I asked her. I was getting pissed now.
"I lied to everybody, Triny. Your nana shipped me off to Dublin to have you in secret. She wanted me to give you up for Catholic adoption. I couldn't do that. John had another life, another family. And we he died so young…I thought it best to give you a better memory. Neal Duffy was a lad I knew that was killed in the line of duty. He was a sweet, noble lad. He had no kin…no loose ends to untie." She told me.
"I almost shagged my brother, Ma. You know how humiliating that is?" I asked her. I could feel the tears rolling down my face. "Who else knows about this?" I asked her.
Gemma POV
"Apparently, John didn't tell anyone." I told Jax.
"Clay?" He asked me.
I shook my head. "No." I told him. "Sorry you had to find out like this."
"Yeah, no shit." He said, scoffing. "Two minutes later, I'd have been dancing in Tig territory. How'd you find out?" He asked.
"I found a letter that your dad wrote to her. A love letter. Like the ones he used to write me. She was 19. A fresh start." I told him.
"Sorry Mom." He said.
A few minutes later there was a knock on the door. The door opened. It was Ope. "Kellan's here. I cleared out the clubhouse." He said.
"All right." Jax told him.
"Look…you go out there and find our boy. That priest does not leave this alley until you have an address, you understand me?" I told him.
He nodded. "Yeah." I said standing up.
Tara POV
"Times up." Salazar said walking into the attic.
"For what? What are you gonna do?" I asked him.
"Your crew ain't taking me serious. So I'm gonna kill the red bitch." He said.
"No. I'm the one you wanted." I said.
"Yeah. And you still have some value." He said.
"I can get you money. Let me make a call." Margaret tried to bargain with him.
"Shut up!" Salazar said.
"Please!" Margaret begged.
The girlfriend walked towards me like she was gonna hit me. "Don't! I'm pregnant!" I told her.
She hesitated. She looked at Margaret. "It's true. She is."
Jax POV
"You want me in there?" Clay asked me.
I shook my head. "No. This is between me and the priest." I told him. He nodded.
I approached the door and Sean stopped me. "The piece." He said. I handed him my gun before I made my way inside.
Kellan was sitting at a table so I walked over and sat across from him. "Where's my kid?" I asked him.
"I'm about to break a vow…an oath of confidentiality I had with your father." Kellan said.
"What does that have to do with my kid?" I asked him.
"Everything." Kellan said. I leaned back in my chair. "I got to know J.T. very well. I loved him like a brother." Kellan said.
"Well, that makes sense considering he had a kid with your sister." I said.
"I listened to his confession for over three years. I heard every…sin and sorrow that he carried. Your father's pain distills into one resolute desire… That his sons never followed his path. He never wanted this life for you." Kellan said.
"Why are you telling me this?" I asked him.
"Because he died before he could keep his promise. I couldn't do anything to help save the son…but I can do something to save the grandson." Kellan said.
"Save him from what?" I asked.
I was starting to get an uneasy feeling. "The life of his father."
I stood up, kicking the chair across the floor. "Where the hell is my kid?" I asked for the second time.
"He's in the arms of a loving family." Kellan said.
"You son of a bitch!" I yelled. Sean started to come at me but I grabbed him, putting him in a headlock and grabbing his gun. "You tell me where my son is, or I will kill him."
Sean started yelling. "Stop. Stop! All right, oh, I'll tell you. I'll tell you. 2309 Upper Springfield Road, where it crosses Wheeler. Stone house on the corner. And wait until mid-morning. Sometimes the sisters take the infants to the convent for the night." Kellan told me.
"What sisters?" I asked.
"Private missionaries. They look for good Catholic homes." He said.
"You filthy Judas. Adoption?! Get out. Get out!" I yelled. I couldn't believe this.
"I know you think I'm an evil man…but it's my job to look at the greater good. With Jimmy, with your child. That's what leaders do. Your father knew that the patch was a mistake. And so do you. Look at the violence in the last three days alone. Is that the life you want for your child? If you love him…give him more." Kellan said before he ushered Sean out of the room and they left.