CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND FOUR

Long AN at the bottom.

Al blinks tiredly as the door snicks closed behind us "Cammy?"

Cam nods, striding around the table and wrapping her arms around Al "Hap rang me and told me what happened. I left as soon as I got off the phone."

"But what about work?" Al mutters into Cam's shoulders.

Cam snorts "I'm not going to work while my brother is recovering from being assaulted and my sister needs me."

I smile slightly at hearing Cam so easily referring to Juice as her brother, the pair of them hadn't spent much time together before our cross country drive but obviously the days in cars has helped their closeness. I know that Juice has easily taken the fourth spot in my list of favourite Sons, but with the way things are going it's going to be 2 places. Jax first and then everyone else joint second.

Al walks back around the table, sinking into the seat by Juice's head, one of her hands settling on his head while the other lifts his hand. "I've never been so terrified in my life." She mutters, her fingers tracing the lines of ink etched in Juice's head. "I thought he was dead when they brought him through, he was covered in blood and so pale." She snickers softly, but the sound is not amused at all "I guess it's just as well he wasn't wearing his kutte or he'd be patching leather."

I shake my head, walking around the table and sitting beside her, ironically both of us have managed to pick our corresponding man's seat. "He wouldn't be patching the leather, that's the Old Ladies job." I giggle when she slaps her hand onto my arm.

"How can you be so calm?"

I shrug "I may look calm but I'm not, not really."

Cam folds herself into the chair on the other side of Al, that she's in Piney's chair isn't a big deal, unless she leans down and finds the 'hidden' holder and the bottle of Patron that lives there. "How do you appear so calm then?"

I look around the room quietly, the dark panels and posters familiar in their positioning. My eyes stop on the banner across the wall 'Brains before Bullets'. I wonder how much that worked tonight, but push the thought away when my eyes meet the questioning ones of my friends.

"I trust them all."

Cam snorts "Really? That's it?"

Nodding I twist in my chair so I can look at them both easier "Yeah, that's it. I trust the Sons; every single person in this building wearing a patch would kill, or die, for their brother. Yes it's scary as hell thinking about the fact that any day one of them might not come home which is why you grab hold of every day with both hands and refuse to let go. I'm terrified every time Jax leaves on Club Business, always was, even before we ended up together. But you learn. Lean on me, lean on Donna, Gemma, Luann. Granted those three have been Old Ladies longer than me but I've loved members of this club since I was a baby. Uncle Clay means as much to me as your Dad does to you Cam, when Clay would go on runs when I was a kid I used to force Gemma to let me stay till he came back." I pause and smile while I remember "Not that it was ever much of a battle with her, Jax would kick up a stink till he realised that meant Ope could stay too."

Al lifts her hand from Juice's head and rubs her face tiredly "Lean on you, how? How do I share this fear that he won't be okay? That he'll never wake up? That he won't remember me?" Al's shoulders shake as she starts crying, leaning her forehead onto Juice's forearm.

Squeezing her thigh I lean back in my seat and cross my legs, the movement making the leather creak. "Does it help if I told you that Juice saved someone's life? Stopped one of his brothers from coming home in a body bag? Kept a family whole? His actions mean that we don't have a grieving wife with two children and a third on the way."

Cam looks up at me and I shrug one shoulder "Juice jumped in front of a bullet that would have killed Ope. That's the level of love these guys have for their brothers. They're not just members of a club Ali-cat, they're family."

Al sighs "Blood makes you related..."

"But loyalty makes you family." I finish the sentence I said often enough while in New York that they both know it. "Juice was protecting his family, just like Happy would, just like Jax would. It would have been the same if their positions were reversed honey. Ope would have jumped in front of a bullet for Juice too."

Al lifts her head again and blinks at me, her face tear streaked and her eyes red and puffy "But he didn't get shot."

I shake my head "No he didn't. But Chibs patched Juice up and said he'll be fine. We just have to let him rest and recover so you have to play nursemaid and make sure he doesn't move."

Al giggles "Can I buy a nurses outfit."

I roll my eyes "I'll do one better. When Juice wakes up I'll go out and buy you a nurse's outfit, and a doctor's outfit."

"And a French Maid." Our heads all shoot in the direction of the croaky voice that's come from the table. Juice smiles painfully "Hey baby, did anyone get the number of the semi that hit me?"

Al bursts into tears again and throws herself forward, onto his uninjured arm sobbing loudly.

Cam and I share a quick look and both get up, "We'll be out with everyone else when you're done in here." Cam says, squeezing her shoulder lightly.

Slipping back through the door I look at Chibs with a smile "He's awake."

Chibs nods and jumps to his feet, heading to the bar "I'll get him some pain relief."

"Yeah, he's not gonna say he's in pain with Al right there but I'd say he needs it." I call after him, Cam agreeing with me as we walk towards where Jax and Happy are leaning against the bar.

Happy folds his arms around Cam as she steps between his legs, resting her head on his chest and sighing "Missed you."

Hap chuckles, tugging her hair lightly "Missed you too." Narrowing his eyes at Jax and I we both smile at him.

Jax turns around on his barstool and lifts me onto his knee with a smirk "Not that we're not happy to see you Cam, but why are you here?"

Happy growls and I see Cam's hand tighten on his arm for a second "As I said to Al and S, I'm not going to be 6 hours away when my brother is recovering from being attacked and my sister needs me. I'm here till Al or Juice tells me to leave."

Jax leans back slightly before laughing "Okay." Looking at Happy he sniggers "You picked her."

Hap grins, leans down and kisses Cam's head and then winks "That I did." Lifting her chin he forces her to look at him "What about your job?"

Cam shrugs "I told them I had a family emergency and I'd be back when I could. I don't care if I get fired."

Happy frowns, a gesture that is echoed on my face as well. Sliding off Jax's knee I hug him tightly, whispering "Rain check on sleep, I have some questions to ask." Reaching into the box on the end of the bar I grab a couple of bottles of water and pull Cam down the hall and into the room where Abel's still sleeping.

Cam sits down on the desk chair in the corner of the room and sighs "I'm not going to get it past you am I?"

I shake my head "Nope, neither of those secrets your hiding."

AN: I feel like I need to share as to why I've been so absent. Updates have been very slow for me to write lately as my husbands mother had a 'mental breakdown' 2 weeks ago, right around the time my husband and I went out of town for the weekend. I put that inside quote marks as I'm not entirely sure I believe her. She is completely fine until she knows that someone is around when she starts walking slow, becomes unsteady on her feet and starts talking very slowly. She's been given some new drugs to try to see if they help and while she's on them she's refusing to drive, or do any housework claiming the drugs make her sleepy and unable to focus so in addition to working full time I am now having to get up at 7am every morning to take my daughter to school, which wouldn't be a problem except for the fact I work evening shifts so don't get to bed till 1am. I am also having to do all the cooking, washing, house work and be her chauffeur. She used to do all the housework as that was her way of contributing as she does not have the finances to pay more than her portion of the electricity bill and the rent each week, so my husband and I pay for everything else for the whole house.