Quickly making sure both locks were secure on her door, she dropped her bag and ran for her bathroom. She barely managed to lift the lid on the toilet before she emptied her stomach for the second time tonight. Slowly sitting down on the cold tile floor, she leaned back against the vanity, letting the tears finally flow. The harsh reality of the situation was hitting her all at once like a ton of dynamite. Two hours had passed before she could gather the strength to pull herself off the floor. Grabbing a wash cloth from the linen closet, she turned on the hot water to wash her face. Reaching for her toothbrush, she was desperate to brush her teeth to rid herself of the nasty taste in her mouth. Spitting the mouthwash into the sink, she raised her head, looking into her bathroom mirror for the first time since she made it home. Staring back at her were two green bloodshot eyes. Slightly turning her head, her hand traced the hand print that was now slightly visible on her cheek. She winced a little as her fingers moved across her face. Need to put ice on that she thought turning to start a hot shower. For her own need, she went to make sure that her door was locked, the dead bolt and barrel lock were both secure. Stripping out of her clothes, she walked into the stone shower, immediately feeling the hot water wash over her body. Stepping under the shower head, she let the water wash over her completely, running her hands through her hair. The minute she closed her eyes, he was there. Her eyes opened, as she quickly looked out from the glass shower seeing that she was alone and safely locked in. Unable to stop the tears, she leaned her body against the stone wall, hugging herself tightly and cried.
***Diamonds***
Another successful run down, Tig and Happy made their way into the darkened club, the crowd of men cautiously eying the two members of SAMCRO. Seeing Chibs, Juice and Koz in one of the VIP sections, they headed in their direction. Taking in his surroundings, he saw one of the bar girls already walking over with a tray of drinks.
"Glad you could join us." spoke Koz, his eyes quickly focusing back on the topless blond dancing in front of him, Happy just giving him a nod. Taking a seat beside of Chibs, he was handed a beer from the waitress, making sure she bent far enough over he could see down her corset.
"Any problems tonight?" Chibs asked once the waitress had left.
"Nah. Smooth as always." commented Tig who was looking around the room. "Where's the redhead at?" he questioned.
Finishing his beer, "she's headlining tonight", spoke Juice grinning at Tig. "She'll be out shortly."
Downing the first beer of many, "Fuckin' can't wait. That bitch can dance."
They had been at Diamonds for almost two hours with girl after girl giving them free lap dances. The SONS, highly welcomed guests of the owner, were all accustomed to the VIP treatment, and none of the guys complained about the extra attention they all received. He sat there as usual, eyes scanning the room while the blond danced directly in front of him, pushing her crotch onto his lap and doing her best to seduce him into some after hours activities. Looking to his left, he watched as Koz walked toward one of the back rooms with a blond on each arm. He noticed Tig was entranced with his favorite redhead and Juice was enjoying the company of a new girl. Giving the blond currently trying to get his attention a nod to leave, he sat back enjoying the scene. He watched the girls dancing on the various platforms, all eager to please. At thirty eight years old, strip clubs were all the same at this point, girls with fake tits, mostly too large for their bodies, so thin that one good fuck could break their back and they all looked at least ten years older than their actual age. Not that he minded the scenery one bit, having had in the past a few of the girls on all fours or sucking him off, but for him it was a chance to strengthen his bond with his brothers, enjoy some calmness that rarely happened. Doing another sweep of the room, he saw Chibs speaking with the owner before his eyes landed on a brunette that had just took the center stage. He watched her as she started to dance, her body now moving to the music as she shed her clothes. Taking in her body, she had tits that were way too big, an obvious boob job, that looked downright scary, she was so skinny he could see her hip bones and she had no ass at all. Bitch ain't got shit on Olivia he said silently to himself. Shaking his head, he looked around making sure no one had heard his inner thoughts. Leaning forward in his chair, his arms resting on his thighs, he cleared his head of the woman who was constantly in it. Seeing his brothers slowly making their way back over, he finished his beer, actually ready to call it a night.
***Olivia's loft***
She sat motionless on her couch, a half empty glass of vodka in her hand. Her tears had finally stopped but the realization and severity of what she now knew was almost unbearable. Anthony Weston had raped Tristan. A grown man had brutally raped an innocent twelve year old girl. Her mind was still having trouble processing the thought of what would make an adult want to do such a horrific thing. She wasn't naive, knowing from first hand experience with Tara's rape that evil men existed, some even posing as "good guys". What she couldn't even begin to fathom was how inhumanly sick must a person be to not only hurt a child, but to do something so vile as rape one. Raising the glass, she downs the remaining liquid, feeling an immediate burn in her stomach. Placing the glass on the coffee table, she sat back on the couch, curling herself into the corner and continued to sit in the dark.
***Main Street***
He and Tig were at the back of the group as they came to a stop at the light on Main Street. The cool night air felt good after being inside the club. Seeing that traffic was actually heavy for a late night in Charming, he dropped his hands from the handle bars. Without even a second thought, he found himself looking to his left, over toward the old warehouse that was now trendy condos. The building didn't show any sign of life with the windows being tinted for owner's privacy. Was she at home? he wondered, immediately feeling his dick twitch. SHIT! First his thoughts and now his own dick was turning against him. Seeing the light turn brought him out of his thought, hitting the throttle, eager to get back to T-M and some much needed sleep.
Tig couldn't help but laugh. Watching Happy throw a sly glance over to Olivia's building was priceless. Throughout the evening when he wasn't being entertained by his favorite redhead, Tig had noticed Happy's lack of interest in the naked ladies at Diamonds. Thinking back to what Jax had shared earlier,"Don't know who, but her bed had someone in it this weekend." his gut told him it was Happy, but he wasn't sure. What he did know was his partner in crime wasn't ever too forthcoming on personal information, so he knew without a doubt Hap wouldn't be the one to answer his question.
***Wednesday morning***
Knock...Knock...Knock...
She didn't need to look at the clock to know what time it was. Eight forty five sharp, the knock on her door was confirmation enough. She had been up all night unable to close her eyes without seeing his face, full of anger and rage staring back at her. Walking toward the door, she stopped to check her appearance in the mirror. The hot shower she took at six thirty helped some, but she still looked rough. Seeing the hand print was even more prominent on her cheek and jaw line, she pulled her long hair over her shoulder to cover the mark. Deciding it was the best she could do at the moment, she opened the door.
"Hey guys." she said, forcing a smile across her face before motioning them inside.
Reed and Johnny stood at her door, both slightly stunned as she said hello to them. Not that she wasn't still hot as hell, because she was, but both men were just thrown seeing her wearing black lounge pants, a t-shirt and her pink waffle weave bath robe. Normally the woman standing before them would be totally put together with perfect hair, makeup and outfit, but this morning was a complete one eighty.
Noticing that the two prospects were looking at her weird, "I'm not feeling all to well this morning, so I'll be working from home today. No worries though, I'll be in my bedroom, so I won't disturb you." she said walking over to get her laptop. Giving them both a small smile, she turned, making sure to shield her face and walked back to her bedroom. Closing her door, she put her laptop on the chaise and climbed into bed.
It was now noon and they noticed she hadn't come out of her bedroom since they arrived. Looking over at Johnny, Reed was the first to speak up.
"You think we should check on her?" he asked, motioning his head toward the hall to her bedroom.
"Nah, she said she didn't feel well. I say we leave her alone."
Looking back toward her room, "Yeah maybe. Something seemed off though." he spoke turning his attention back to Johnny.
"Hey man. We need to focus on why we're here. Not worry about a bitch not feeling well." replied Johnny, now irritated that he was setting up the scopes without any help.
"Alright, alright. Stop your bitchin'."
***Ralph's Diner***
Thankful for an easy day, Happy sat back in the booth having just finished his lunch, smirking at how much food Tig could eat in one sitting. The diner was actually crowded today, and as usual Helen had everyone and everything under control.
"You two want anything else?" she asked as she made her way over, laughing as she heard Tig grunt.
"I think he needs Coke." Happy answered as Tig's mouth was overly full with a bacon cheeseburger.
Shaking her head at him, "I'll be right back."
"Damn Ralph can make a good cheeseburger."
"Surprised you even tasted it as fast as you ate it."
"Shit's too good man." he said wiping his mouth. "What time are we unloading the shipment?"
"Six."
"Let's head back. Told Bobby I'd look at his bike. Said he felt a vibration." pulling out some cash, "I got it brother." as he stood walking toward the door. Pulling his wallet out, Happy laid a few more bills down before leaving. Giving a wave to Ralph, he followed Tig outside and got on this bike.
***T-M***
Gemma loved it when business was this good. The shop was extremely profitable at the moment, allowing T-M to have a generous bank roll. Finishing the books, she looked over to the mountain of paperwork that needed to be filed. I need a damn assistant she said privately, knowing she'd never let just some random person have access to T-M business or would she be able to find someone she wouldn't want to kill within the first ten minutes of hiring them. She firmly believed that if you wanted something done right you have to do it yourself. Well, no time like the present she thought standing up to gather the three months of invoices that needed filing.
Taking a break from filing, she smiled as she watched some of her boys helping Bobby. To the outside world, these men were outlaws, heartless men who were thought of as thugs, but the Queen knew them differently. Her boys as different as they all were shared a brotherhood like no other. Loyal and protective to the end. She couldn't help the laugh that escaped her mouth as she watched Tig swat Juice on the back of his head. Yep, brotherly love! Hearing her phone beep, she reached into her purse,
Have a craving for Chinese. Jax is having some daddy/son time with Abel tonight. I'll pick u up at six thirty.
Nodding her head in agreement, Sounds good. I'll be at the shop in filing hell.
With the garage now closed, the guys got comfortable in the club house. Walking in, Gemma saw Clay sitting with Bobby and Chibs. Gently sitting down on his lap, she leaned over kissing him softly on his lips.
"What was that for?" Clay asked, suspicious of his wife's sweet gesture, earning a glare from the queen.
"What, can't a wife be nice to her old man?" she replied.
"Yeah, but it normally means you want something or need help getting out of shit."
Punching him in the shoulder, "You ass. For your information I don't need anything. Waitin' on Tara to pick me up. Going for Chinese, so you're on your own til I get home."
Rubbing her lower back, "you going to bring me something back?" he asked hoping to not have to fend for himself.
"Nope." she said, with a straight face giving nothing away.
"You leavin' me high and dry, are ya?" Just as the words left his mouth, there was a knock at the clubhouse door. Quick to his feet, Chibs made his way over, cautiously and curiously opening the door, smiling at the visitor on the other side. Stepping aside to let the man in, the smell of pizza and chicken wings quickly made their way into the clubhouse.
"Well, how about that. Looks like dinner is served." Gemma said smirking at her husband. "And to think you thought I wouldn't take care of ya."
Smiling at the woman who he loved more than anything, "Have I ever told you you're the best fuckin' old lady that ever lived?"
Acting like she had to think, "Maybe a time or two. And don't you forget it." she said leaning down to kiss him again. "I ordered plenty, so you let Reed and Johnny eat too."
Seeing Tara walk through the door, Gemma got up telling her she was going to grab her purse. Walking over to the guys, she sat down beside Clay.
"Doc, you're lookin' lovely as ever." spoke Chibs as he tore into the first chicken wing.
"Always nice to hear. How's the hand?" she asked Clay, wondering if the steroids were helping.
Making a fist with his hand, "Not too bad. Meds seem to be working. Thank you."
"You're welcome. Be sure to keep squeezing that tennis ball. It'll help keep mobility."
Johnny and Reed had finally finished cleaning the kitchen and made their way back into the main room. Immediately eying the pizza, both prospects hunger grew instantly. Taking the inititive, Johnny grabbed some beers from behind the bar and made his way over.
"Well boys, it's your lucky day. My lovely wife has ordered us dinner. Pull up a chair and join us." Clay said, enjoying the first taste of a cold one.
No one had to tell them twice. Both pulled up chairs and grabbed a slice each. Finishing the mouth full of food, "Is Olivia feeling better?" Reed asked looking at Tara.
"Olivia's sick?" she questioned not knowing her friend was ill.
Looking around the table seeing everyone's eyes now on him, "yeah when we got there this morning, she told us she wasn't feeling well and worked from home today." he replied. "she didn't come out of her bedroom all day."
With her phone already out, she quickly sent a text.
Heard you're sick...are you okay?
After five minutes, she got a reply.
Yes, I'm okay.
"Everything okay?" Gemma asked.
Looking up from her phone, "yeah, Olivia's not feeling well. Said she's okay though. You ready?"
***Olivia's Condo***
She had been standing at the window staring down at the cigar store for at least an hour, now noticing that her ice pack was no longer cold. She gently touched her cheek, feeling that it was still extremely tender. Deciding to trade her ice pack for an ice cold glass of vodka, she put the warm pack back in the freezer and retrieved the now half empty bottle of Grey Goose. Refilling her glass, she downed the first swallow, slowly forgetting that her cheek hurt. For the past twenty four hours, she had locked herself away in the safety of her condo and did absolutely nothing. The only thing her mind allowed her to focus on was the confirmation that Anthony Weston had raped Tristan. Curling her legs under her, she settled back into her spot in the corner of the couch. It was completely silent, and for that she was grateful. She had enough noise in her head at the moment. All she wanted to do was sleep, but every time she closed her eyes, he was there. Those cold, empty, angry eyes. The same eyes that Tristan had so violently met. She refused to let her mind wonder, for fear that if she even tried to imagine what Tristan had suffered, she would break. Taking another long drink, she sat it down on her lap, realizing that at the exact same time twenty four hours ago, she was face to face with a rapist.
Knock...Knock...Knock...
She felt herself jump on the couch. Turning her head toward the door, she felt immediate fear. Carefully sitting the glass down on the table, she eased herself up and slowly walked over to the door. Standing on her tip toes, she looked through the peep hole to see Tara standing on the other side. Shit! Quickly checking her appearance in the mirror, she pulled her hair around to the side, took a deep breath and opened the door.
"Hey. Thought you might like some Wonton soup." said Tara with Gemma standing next to her.
Motioning the women inside, "Thanks, I may have some later." she said closing the door, silently praying they wouldn't stay long. Careful to keep her injured cheek covered, she saw Gemma now sitting down on the couch.
"I need to use the restroom. Way too much tea tonight." Tara said walking toward her powder room just down the hall. "By the way, you would love the tea at the restaurant."
This is not good she thought now alone in a room with a woman who had the keenest senses she had ever met. "Gemma, can I get you anything?" she asked hoping the queen of SAMCRO didn't want something.
"No, but thank you." she replied, noticing the normally calm brunette looked anything but as she walked into the kitchen. "Are you feeling any better?"
Pretending to be looking for something, "A little. Just tired." she said truthfully. Truthfully she was exhausted but she had given up on sleep this time last night.
Picking the glass up from the coffee table, Gemma knew immediately it wasn't water, "So is the vodka helping you?" she asked, seeing Olivia tense up.
Damn it! Doing her best to keep her composure, she slowly turned around hoping she'd have a response once she was facing Gemma. Nope, nothing she thought as she walked over and sat down on the chair across from the couch.
"That glass has been there." Yes it was a lie, but she had no choice.
"Try again. It's still cold." Gemma said, sitting the glass back down but not breaking eye contact with Olivia.
Thankful to see Tara walk back into the room, she actually hoped her friend would hurry up and leave. Acting as if she was combing through her hair, she gave her best friend a small smile.
"How are you feeling?" she asked, now sensing something was different about her.
"Better. Not a hundred percent yet, but better."
"Maybe lay off the vodka and you'll feel even better." commented Gemma, causing Olivia to turn her head.
"What happened to your face?" Tara yelled, seeing the bruise on her cheek.
She instantly tried to cover her cheek with her hand, only to have Tara pull her hand away. "Olivia, what happened to you?" Tara asked again, demanding an answer. Gemma had moved to sit directly in front of her on the coffee table. Turning her face more toward her, "I'd say that someone slapped you, hard in fact." she said.
This was not what she wanted. She was unable to process what had happened last night and the last thing she wanted was to have to answer questions about it now. "It's nothing." she finally responded, to see two sets of eyes grow wide and one set turn angry.
"Nothing!" Tara yelled, causing Olivia to flinch. Sitting back down in front of her, "Liv, what happened? You have to tell me." she said softly, tears threatening to form in her own eyes.
She knew Tara wasn't going to let this go. She knew that if it was Tara, she wouldn't either. How did she explain this? She was so mentally exhausted she didn't believe she could. Slowing standing up, she made her way into her bedroom to get her laptop. Walking back into the room, she saw Gemma and Tara standing exactly where they had been. Sitting back down on the couch, she grabbed the glass of vodka and finished what was left. Licking her lips, she briefly closed her eyes feeling the intense burn in her stomach.
"Olivia, what in the hell happened?" Tara asked again, knowing that whatever it was, was bad.
Looking at the two women, "has Tristan ever told either of you about the man who raped her?"
Tara and Gemma just looked at each other, both not understanding why Olivia was asking about Tristan's rape. "No, she's never talked about it to anyone that we know of." said Tara watching her friend closely.
"What does this have to do with Tristan, Olivia?" Gemma asked, starting to get worried about her god daughter.
Unsure of exactly how to say this, she just said it, "I know who raped Tristan." Olivia said, a single tear falling down her bruised cheek.
"What...how...what do you mean you know who raped her?" spoke Gemma, her voice more demanding than ever.
She didn't say anything. Opening her laptop bag, she pulled out the three drawings that she had found in Tristan's art book, handing them to Gemma. "Right after I moved here, I asked Tristan if she'd like to help me decorate the model home. Asked her to sketch some ideas for model. She had left her art book in my office one afternoon. I was flipping through the pages and found these. At the time I didn't know who the man was or why on earth she had sketched him, but it bothered me that she had them, so I made these copies." she stopped talking, taking a moment to gather her nerve, noticing both women seemed as disturbed as she was. "He actually came to the office wanting me to help him decorate his new home. He told me his name was Anthony Weston, but I had a weird feeling about him, so I referred him to a co-worker to work with." it was becoming even harder to get the words out. "I didn't think anything of it, he had on a long sleeve shirt, so I never saw his tattoos...until last night."
Gemma felt sick. "What happened last night Olivia?" she asked again.
Taking a deep breath, "As I was leaving yesterday morning for work I overheard Johnny talk about needing info on Anthony Weston. I kept trying to place the name and sitting at the office I realized it was the man that I had met. I had actually seen him standing outside the cigar store back entrance but couldn't place his face until yesterday."
"Olivia, what happened?" Tara begged, fearing what she was about to hear.
"After I realized that the man in Tristan's drawings was Anthony Weston, I knew she had to have seen him without a shirt to have known he had tattoos." she said, wiping the tears from her eyes. "I got his number from Mark, saying that I had some extra time to take on a client, so I called him and set up a meeting last night at the office after hours."
"Then what?"
She opened her laptop, clicking on the video player, and hit play. She couldn't watch it again. She had lost count at how many times she had watched the video of her meeting with Anthony Weston, finding out with one hundred percent certainty that he was Tristan's rapist. She focused on Gemma and Tara's faces, both women shocked and horrified at what they were seeing. Both women jumped as they watched Weston grab her upper arms and violently throw her against the wall, furious that she spilled coffee on him. They jumped a second time seeing him backhand her across the face, immediately realizing his rage was out of control. They watched her apologize, then leave the room to find him a clean shirt. She walked back in a minute or so later, handed him the shirt and walked out to let him change. Gemma and Tara couldn't believe their eyes. There on the video was Anthony Weston shirtless, his tattoos uncovered and exactly how Tristan had drew them.
"Oh my God."
Olivia sat motionless on the couch, her face buried in her hands. Tara was almost too afraid to touch her, but she had to comfort her. "I can't believe this." she said looking over to Gemma. "He's been right here the whole time."
It was very rare that Gemma Teller Morrow was speechless, but tonight was one of those rare times. Moving the laptop over to the coffee table, she moved to sit on the opposite side of Olivia. The savvy woman she was getting to know was completely shattered at the moment. "Go get her some water." she said to Tara. Once Tara stood up, Gemma's arms replaced Tara's, offering as much comfort as she could. "That son of a bitch." she bitterly said, not thinking it was possible to hate a human as much as she now hated Anthony Weston. Tara walked back over handing a bottle of water to Olivia.
Looking up, Olivia saw Tara dialing, "who are you calling?" she asked not wanting anyone else to know. She immediately knew, hearing her say Jax's name.
"Tara!" she said, her voice pleading with her not to say anything.
"Sweetheart, this has to be done." spoke Gemma, doing her best to keep Olivia calm. Seeing Tara walk back over, "Clay coming?"
"Yeah, told him to get Clay and come here. I'd explain things when they got here." Tara said softly praying her best friend would understand. "Liv, we have to tell them."
Sitting back on the couch, she couldn't lie to herself and believe that somehow SAMCRO wouldn't be involved. In her talks with Elliott, she knew that he was hoping that the club could find his daughter's attacker and permanently rid the world of the scum. She just never realized that she would have a hand in it.
Within just a few minutes, another knock at the door produced the President and VP, both on edge as to why they were called over to Olivia's. Walking through the door Jax immediately scanned the room, his eyes locking in on his mother sitting beside Olivia who sat emotionless on the couch.
"I'll be right back." Gemma said as she stood to walk over to her husband and son. For the next few minutes the two women proceeded to tell Jax and Clay of what they themselves had just learned. Running a hand over his face, Jax was unsure of what to say. Looking over at Clay who was angrily staring at Olivia, he spoke up.
"Where's she at on this?" he asked looking between his old lady and his mother.
Glancing over her shoulder, "She's completely numb." Tara said. "She has the encounter recorded on video."
"Show it to me!" yelled Clay, causing Tara to step back.
"Clay, " Gemma started to say.
"Don't fuckin' Clay me, Gemma." he said moving around his wife to stand directly in front of Olivia. "You want to tell me what the fuck you think you're doing? SAMCRO will handle this shit. I don't need some nosy ass bitch getting involved in club matters. You need to learn to keep your damn nose out of what doesn't concern you." he said, his words feeling like venom. "You hear me, Olivia?"
Closing her eyes briefly to calm her nerves after just being attacked again by Clay Morrow, she raised her head and looked him directly in the eye, "Yes, I heard you. But what you need to understand is that me finding out that Anthony Weston is Tristan's rapist has not a damn thing to do with your club." she stated, gaining the courage to stand and face him. "And just so you know, I'm not nor have I ever put my nosy ass into club matters. I believe you've forgotten that YOU insisted your club use my home to gather intel on Ethan Zobelle, and if I recall correctly, you didn't give me an option. So just so we're clear, I didn't stick my damn nose anywhere near your club's business. I just happen to put the pieces together. So if you're going to continue to scream and insult me in my own home, I suggest you leave now and don't come back." she stated, removing the dvd from her laptop and holding it out to him.
Clay Morrow was stunned. No woman ever spoke to him like that and got away with it. He stood silently before her, clenching both his fists, ready to hit someone. Feeling even more courage, "Hit me. I dare you." she said challenging the man standing before her.
Tara, Gemma and Jax stood there watching. Tara moved to help defend Olivia, to feel Jax and Gemma pull her back. Jax realized seeing Tara's face that Clay had crossed a line, and she was furious.
Jerking the dvd from her hand, "You listen carefully to me. This shit didn't happen, you got it? Did you make copies of this?" he asked, waving the dvd in front of her face.
"No. I didn't. That's the only copy." looking over toward Tara. "Now if you all don't mind, I'd like to try and get some rest."
Tilting her head to the side, Tara was about to speak, "Alone Tara." Olivia said knowing Tara was going to suggest she stay with her. "I appreciate the thought, but I'm sure it's best that you leave."
Rubbing his hand over his jaw, Jax Teller knew that the shit had hit the fan and his old lady was going to explode at any minute. He had dealt with her angry before, but the look on her face as she turned and opened the door, made him want to shoot his own step father where he stood. Looking over at Olivia, he realized it was best to not say anything and just leave. Turning toward the door, he saw Gemma to start to make her way out as well. Stepping aside to let his mom pass, he looked back at Clay who still looked speechless.
"Clay."
Hearing his name, Clay looked toward Jax at the door.
"Lets' go."
Turning to look at Olivia one last time, he noticed for the first time since he got to her condo that the woman standing before him looked completely empty. She returned his gaze, but showed nothing in her eyes, just emptiness. Glancing down at the dvd, he turned and walked out the door.
The past hour of reliving what she had learned and the encounter with Anthony Weston had left her in an even darker place than she had already been in. He hadn't come out and said it, but Clay Morrow now looked at her as a threat to his club. Sinking down onto the floor, she now hated that she had moved to Charming, California.
He saw the look of disappointment on his wife's face immediately, "Not now Gemma." he said walking passed her toward the elevator. "Jax. Call everyone now. Church in thirty!"