Jax finally steps up to the plate and neutralizes the threat that has unified his family, his brothers, and Sydney, as one. But in doing so he betrays the only blood that he's ever wanted to avenge; the blood the courses through his veins.
General trigger warnings for this story: Language, smut, mentions of rape, abuse, drug use/overdose, violence/death, racism/gang activity.
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CHAPTER 49: BLOOD BROTHERS
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"Jax!" Tara cried beneath the hand that was currently crushing her nose, tears streaming down her face as she heard the sound of the engine drowning out her desperate pleas. "No! Jax!"
"Shhh..." Kohn hissed as he pressed a floral-printed pillow over her face as he watched the door anxiously, half expecting Jax to burst back in even after the revving of the motorcycle had completely faded away. "Goodbye, Mr. Crow..." A grin lit up his face. Finally, she was his again.
;
"These ones won't work?" Tig scowled as he held up one of Sydney's floppy white sneakers that he'd dug out of the massive pile of shoes in the bottom of her closet.
"Softer, sweetheart." Gemma shook her head. "She ain't gonna be walking any time soon, and she's gonna need room for the swelling. See if she's got any slippers."
"Slippers..." Tig blinked cluelessly. He knew that she had some, where she kept them, however, was another question...
Gemma chuckled as she walked over and placed her hand on his shoulder that she could feel was tensing by the second. "Check up in those boxes." She nodded to the top of the closet. "I'll look in the guest room... I have a feeling that she keeps her sensible footwear tucked away for special occasions." She snorted.
Tig managed to smile for a second until he found himself alone again, sighing as he reached up and pulled down a white 'JIMMY CHOO' shoebox that he could already tell was empty. He tossed the cardboard to the ground, reaching for next one; a light brown one that was scrawled with white cursive, reading 'Louboutin', which at least felt like it contained something that could've been slippers. He lifted off the lid, sighing once again when he realized that it was just another pair of black shoes with red soles, only these ones were scuffed, and looked much cheaper than the ones that she usually wore. He replaced the box, reaching for the last one; a much nicer, much bigger box that was encased in a soft red leather. He lifted the ribbon-enforced lid, his eyes lighting up as he realized what he had just discovered.
"Find anything?" Gemma's voice startled him from where he had been captivated by the contents of the box, almost spilling it as he struggled to regain his grip on the treasure chest.
"Uh, no." He blinked, trying to appear as inconspicuous as possible as he did his best to place the sacred box back exactly as he'd found it. He may not have found the slippers, but he'd found exactly what he'd needed.
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"Are you okay?" Tara felt a gentle petting on her forehead as her spotty vision began to focus after the pillow had been removed from her face, gasping for air before she felt like her lungs were full enough to be able to scream again. "No screaming!" She immediately found herself back under his cupped hand, but this time there was a gun pressed to her temple. "You understand?" He lowered his voice, slowly lifting his hand where he tested her obedience, tucking the gun back into his waistband once he was satisfied.
"Y-you're hurting me..." She choked out from where he was straddling her chest.
"I'm sorry..." He nodded, tossing the pillow away before lifting her from the ground. "I'm sorry I had to do it this way, Tara. But I just- I needed five minutes." He dragged her to the bed. "And I knew there was no other way."
"You're in a lot of trouble, Josh..." She shook her head as he tried to hold it in his hands. "Please, just leave-"
"Five minutes-" He cut her off, wincing when she didn't immediately stop talking.
"I won't say anything-"
"I need five goddamn minutes!" He screamed.
"Okay!" Tara threw her hands up, scooting back as he turned and slammed the door. "Sure, five minutes..." She panted.
Kohn took a deep breath as he dropped his shoulders. "Let's start over." He nodded. "Okay?" He scanned her face, feeling a jolt of renewed energy when he saw what he believed to be excitement on her flushed cheeks, grabbing a chair from across the room and sliding up to where she was sitting. "Thank you for giving me this chance." He sighed, dramatically slapping his palms onto his knees before reaching for her hands. "I know that my behaviour has been less than chivalrous, and I apologize for that. Sometimes love, passion... They inspire a man's baser instincts, and he does things that he's not proud of... I am sorry for those things." Tara tried her best to nod along to yet another one of his rants that she had so naively thought that she'd been rid of. "I never meant to scare you... I mean, the restraining order? Come on... That was so..." He shook his head incredulously. "Out of the blue? And, it made me feel like some kind of psycho..."
Tara blinked as she tried to wrap her head around the possibility that somebody could hear those words coming out of their mouth, and truly not realize how delusional they sounded - realizing that he was expecting a response. "I'm sorry." She spit out a little too quickly, softening her eyes as much as possible as he studied every millimetre of her face.
"I heard you, um." He blinked as he tipped his head towards the door. "I heard you talking to Teller out there... Sounded kinda intimate." He raised his brows suggestively. "You and him... That can never happen, you know that..." Tara nodded along through the mind-numbingly confusing interaction as he tried to comfort her while he held her captive. "You know that's all wrong, don't you?"
"Mhmm." She nodded as genuinely as possible.
"It's okay." He lowered his voice as he winked. "Water under the bridge." She forced a smile as tears of pure horror bit at her eyes, she couldn't go through this... Not again. "All that matters, is this moment, right now... You and me, Tara. We have a chance to put it all out on the table; work it out, build the foundation that this relationship needs."
"Yes." She blinked, praying that it was the right answer. "Right."
"Why don't you-" He sprung to his feet, landing next to her on the edge of the bed. "Why don't you start?"
It was a test. She had already known that, but as the excitement drained from his eyes and a coldness took its place when she didn't jump at the opportunity, she was certain. "Okay." She nodded, taking a deep breath as she tried to steady her shaky voice. "I guess I should talk about, uh..." Her mind went blank. All she could think about was how the hell she could get out of her room, and to her purse that was sitting on the kitchen table. "What do you want me to-"
"No. no." He shook his head. "Sweetie, this is about what you want. This is your opportunity to clear the air - tell me everything that you think doesn't work in our relationship. Be straight with me - brutally honest."
His enthusiasm made Tara's stomach turn. "O-okay." She choked out. "Um, I guess, you know..." She knew that how she phrased what she knew he supposedly wanted to hear, would be crucial. "I was concerned... Back in Chicago, you-" Her voice was quivering. "You were very possessive."
"Yes!" He agreed. "That's true, yes."
"And I-" She shook her head. "I got..."
"Frightened, I know." He nodded. "Sometimes my energy can be very big. I'm an intense guy, and I own that."
"Yes, I got frightened." She nodded. Maybe she could talk her way out of this, after all. "That's why I filed the restraining order." She felt her voice hardening.
"But..." He widened his eyes. "You know now that there was nothing to be afraid of, right?" He smiled understandingly as she nodded. "You just, uh, you weren't used to being loved so deeply. I understand..." He whispered as he leaned into her lips, feeling his heart drop when she pulled away. "Oh, okay." He pulled away. "Okay, relax." He tried to laugh it off as his grip tightened around her shaking shoulders. "Tar-Tar, my little worrywart." He teased, licking his lips as his gaze dropped to the floor. "Is there anything else that you need to tell me?" His tone changed in an instant. "Get off your conscience?" His eyes fell closed when he was met with yet another one of her blank stares. "Our baby... You don't wanna mention that?"
"No, I-" She caught herself, grinding her teeth together. "I had an abortion at six weeks, it was never a baby."
"That's right..." He stood, pacing around the still relatively empty bedroom. "You had an abortion... Didn't bother to ask me how I felt about it. It was my baby, too."
"It was never a baby!" Tara shouted before a rough slap to the face shut her up.
"You never gave him a chance!" Kohn screamed, watching as she tried to scramble to her feet and run for the door, but it only took one giant step for him to catch her - snagging the hood of her sweater where he spun her around and threw her back against the wall, knocking her out. He caught her before she could hit the floor, carrying her limp body back over to the bed where he laid her across the ruffled bedding. "I know in my heart..." He whispered as he brushed her hair out of her face. "That this is the right thing." He nodded as he pulled out a lighter and began racing around the room, lighting the candles that he had set up. "What I feel for you is... It's deep, it's God-given." He reached for the remote and turned on the stereo, sending Can't Get Used to Losing You, cascading through the soft speakers as he pulled his shirt off, and unbuckled his belt. "This is our chance for a fresh start, Tara." He spoke to the unconscious woman. "To do it right this time."
Tara felt her eyes fluttering open, the fear not quite reaching her heart as he climbed onto the bed, because she could see his gun on the nightstand. "Let me..." He crawled on top of her and ripped her sweater open. "Let me give you that gift." She screamed, but it was breathy enough to sound like a moan.
"No!" She caught herself as he laid his full weight onto her. "No, wait! Josh, wait!" She pushed him away gently. "Please..." She slowed her breathing as she leaned up towards his lips. "Please, not this way..." She cradled his jaw. "It's... It's a fresh start... Make love to me, gentle... Like I know you can." She felt the pressure lessening on her exposed chest. "Please, baby... I know you don't wanna hurt me. I know you don't. I know you love me."
"I do love you..."
"Then love me." She nodded, forcing herself to meet his lips where a tear slid down her cheek.
"I'm sorry..." His voice shook against her lips as he sat up. "I'm sorry." He broke down, cradling her face. "I don't wanna hurt you... I just-" He began hyperventilating. "I'm in so much pain when I think about you... Do you have any idea how this feels?"
"Shh..." Tara stroked his jaw. "I know, baby. I know... But I'm with you now, right? It's just you and me... Just Joshy and Tar-Tar, together..." She kissed him again, slowly rolling him onto his back where she pressed her finger to his lips, and climbed off of him - holding his gaze as she slid her jeans down her legs.
"I love you so much..." He shook his head dreamily as she leaned down and began pressing kisses up his stomach, to his chest, and eventually to his neck, until suddenly her touch was gone altogether, and a loud bang filled the room.
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Tig paced back and forth around the Intensive Care Unit at St. Thomas. He'd kept his promise to Sydney; he was there, ready for her to wake up. "Sir?" His head snapped up and his bloodshot eyes landed on the admin who was summoning him to the desk. He walked over briskly, hoping that this woman would be much friendlier than the first one had been, and would let him go in to see her.
The dark-haired woman frowned when the biker approached so hopefully. "There's someone in the waiting room looking for you..." She held up the phone in her hand.
"Oh." His face fell. "Okay, thanks, darlin'." He tried his best to give a thankful smile as he turned away dismally.
"She should be up any minute." The woman called after him hesitantly, looking around the empty floor. "When you come back, I'll let you in to see her." She wasn't usually one to risk her job to ease the tortured minds of loved ones, but something about the tall biker being so distraught over the little blonde girl had shown her a potentially different side to the rough and tough motorcycle club that she'd been taught to fear. They were just as human as anybody else in that building, they deserved compassion through hardship, too.
"Thank you." Tig nodded, his smile coming a little easier this time before he exited through the heavy metal doors.
"She awake yet?" Clay stepped out from a connecting corridor, startling the exhausted Sergeant.
"Should be any minute." Tig caught his breath. "Nurse said she'd let me in when I get back."
"I talk to her first." Tig's brow creased, but he knew by the look of determination on Clay's face that it was best for him to keep his mouth shut - especially since he knew he would be taking a lengthy amount of time away from the club while they were in the thick of it. "Think you can distract the admin?"
"Yeah. Turn right, it's the first door on the left." Tig nodded half-heartedly, turning back around and pressing the button where he waited to be buzzed back in. Once he heard the lock on the door click, he pushed it open, letting it shut slowly behind him where Clay stopped it with the toe of his boot.
"Hey, doll." Tig smiled as he approached the desk again. "You, uh… You think you could help me with somethin' else?" A lazy smile pulled at his lips.
"Um-" The shy girl stammered, instantly regretting speaking to him in the first place. What had she been thinking? Putting herself in this position while nobody else was around. She willed herself to keep her eyes open, waiting for him to tell her to hide his drugs, or let him bring in guns, and that if she didn't comply he was going to rape her and have her entire family watch before he killed them all.
"Look, I know you're not a doctor…" His raspy voice continued, as did the awful scenarios that ran through her mind as he reached for his belt buckle, her hands trembling as she watched her worst nightmare playing out before her eyes. "But do you think that you could take a look at this?"
She blacked out, shaking her head as she came to the realization that she wasn't being strangled, or forced to the ground, she was staring at a bite wound on his ass. "Oh my God! How did that happen?" She exclaimed.
Clay chuckled as he slipped through the door, tiptoeing into Sydney's room where he shut the door quietly behind him. He felt his heart sink when he turned around, seeing her hooked up to all kinds of machines and I.V.s. He walked over to the side of the bed, brushing some stray hairs out of her face as he let his head fall. He stood completely still with his eyes closed, and his knuckles resting against her cheek, flinching when he felt her stirring against them.
"Hey..." He whispered, relief temporarily taking over his sorrow as he quickly sat himself in the chair at her bedside. "Hey, Princess." He smiled when he saw a sliver of forest green as her eyes cracked open, moving his hand down to hers where he ran his finger over Tig's ring that she'd placed on her thumb - the only digit that it wouldn't fall off of.
"Hi." She smiled sleepily after a few seconds of recollection, answering in a rasp barely above a whisper - her voice hoarse from the tubes that had been down her throat just minutes earlier.
He grabbed the cup of ice water from the tray behind him, bringing it up to her lips where she took a small sip. "Good?" He needed to be sure that she wouldn't be needing the immediate attention of a nurse."Good." He smiled softly as she blinked her heavy lids instead of nodding, placing the cup of water back on the tray table. "How you feeling?"
Sydney stared at him for a few seconds, trying to decipher how she did feel, when she realized that she couldn't feel anything. "I can see why my mom got addicted to this shit." She slurred with a chortle as she nodded towards the I.V. bag hanging above, revelling in the effects of the heavy drugs that were dancing through her veins.
Clay gave a watery laugh, feeling tears coming to his eyes. "Got the whole crew waiting to see ya… You gave us quite the scare." He looked over her again, needing more visual reassurance that she was okay as he found himself still stuck in the awful, guilt-fuelled mindset of what he would do if she wasn't. "Why'd you do that?" His voice cracked as he willed himself to ask the question. He'd been sitting all night, heavy with the weight of the fact that she'd taken a bullet for him, that Tig could've lost another old lady, that a brother's daughter could've died - and it would've been his fault.
She let her head roll towards him, a lazy smile gracing her perfectly angelic face - the face of a woman who didn't deserve to be lying in a hospital bed for a sleazy old biker. "That's what brothers do." She squeezed his hand lightly as she succumbed to the drowsiness.
The door flew open right as Clay began trying to process how simple of a decision it'd been for her; jumping in front of a bullet for him - scrambling to his feet and reaching for his gun. "Sorry man." Tig held out his hand. "She's running to get me antibiotics, you gotta get outta here..." He trailed off as his blue eyes fell to Sydney, a watery smile coming to his face.
"She awake yet?" Gemma ran up as soon as Clay emerged from the unit doors.
Clay glanced at Happy who was asleep in a chair across the room, his head resting against the wall behind him. "Yeah." He spoke quietly. "But she ain't allowed any visitors until tomorrow, let's get outta here. Got a long day ahead of us…"
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Tara paced around her living room with the gun still in hand, bolting to the door when she finally heard the knock that she'd been desperately waiting for.
"Holy shit..." Jax's eyes widened as they landed on her; battered, and barely clothed.
"I couldn't stop him. I tried to talk to-"
"It's okay." He shook his head as he pulled her into his arms. "Where is he?"
"The bedroom." She was hardly able to get the words out as he peeled himself from her grip.
Jax nodded, looking down at the gun in her hand. "Give me that." He took the firearm from her reluctant hands, practically dragging her down the hallway where she refused to let him go.
"Oh shit..." Kohn whispered from the ground where he was bleeding out from the bullet that she'd put in his stomach. "You stupid bitch..."
Tara yanked Jax back outside the door. "I didn't know what to do. I shot him, Jax. I had to. What do I- What do I do?" Her hyperventilating mumbled a majority of her words.
"Okay." He grabbed her arm to calm her down. "Okay, we call this in. You're not gonna get charged, he is. They're gonna patch him up, he'll do a few years for assault." He tried to reason with her, with himself. "But then he's gonna be out... Free to do this again..."
"No!" Tara screamed as she slammed her fists against his chest in frustration. "He can't do this again, Jax! Please..." She begged, wrapping her arms back around him.
Jax heard a medley of different voices, all repeating different things... His father, his mother, Stahl, Sydney, but one voice took over all - and it was the voice that was shouting obscene things into the horribly tense air between them.
"Teller's your solution?" Kohn continued to wail, cutting up Tara's muffled pleas. "You pathetic whore!" Jax felt his feet carrying him back into the bedroom. "Once a biker slut, always a biker slu-" He aimed the gun right at Kohn's head, and pulled the trigger, silencing everything but Tara's horrified screaming.
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Sydney felt herself beginning to wake up again, her consciousness not being nearly as clouded by the bliss of anesthesia this time. She vaguely recalled that Clay had been there, trying to gain enough strength to look around the dimly lit room for him, but her foggy brain and medicated body made that more of a challenge than she'd expected. All she could register was that she was laying in a hospital bed, alone, paralyzed - the exact same feeling that she'd experienced during the shootout - blinking rapidly and gasping for air as a panic began to fill her tightening chest.
Tig was woken abruptly from the hospital chair that he'd fallen asleep in next to Sydney's bed, by a group of nurses racing into the room as multiple machines began beeping loudly while Sydney thrashed against the mattress.
"Baby..." He whispered in horror, jumping to his feet where he looked down to see her wide-eyed and shaking violently. "What's going on?" He demanded as two women began trying to stabilize her.
"She's just panicked." An older woman with stringy brown hair assured him. "Morphine 'stops the pain but dulls the brain'. She's just confused, the sedation is wearing off and she's trying to figure out what's going on. It's perfectly normal, we just need to make sure that she doesn't disrupt the wound."
"Hey, hey hey hey." Tig placed his hands onto Sydney's cheeks lightly once he was sure that he could touch her without getting in the way. "It's okay, baby. It's okay." He nodded, his thumbs rubbing circles over her cheekbones.
Sydney stopped shaking, feeling some kind of coherence returning when her eyes locked onto his, being able to make out the feeling of his hands on her face. She made the decision to try to reach up, the first good breath of air laced with his scent filling her lungs as she felt her fingers make the contact that she'd been seeking. She squeezed his hands as the relief enveloped her, whimpering as the panic began to exit her body in the form of tears streaming down her cheeks.
"Tiggy..." She wailed, pulling him into her arms where she began to hyperventilate immediately. Her chest heaved as she clutched onto him, crying harder as his comfort overwhelmed her, sobbing into his shoulder hysterically from the narcotics that had hijacked her logical brain.
"I'm right here." He hugged her, stroking her hair as he kissed the top of her head. He repeated Gemma's words over and over in his head, needing something to ward off the guilt as she cried in his arms.
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Happy awoke to see that he was alone in the waiting room. He could tell that it was well into the morning now as nurses and doctors raced around him to get where they needed to be. He blinked, taking in a deep breath where he inhaled the distinct scent of bleach - remembering not only where he was, but why. He shot up out of the seat, his long and purposeful strides carrying him to the doors where he pressed the button, only waiting a few seconds before pressing it again, and again, and again - all to no avail. He huffed, resorting to pounding on the heavy metal door until it finally cracked open.
"Who are you here for, sir?" A blonde woman in purple scrubs asked him from the doorway, a tall security guard standing not far behind her.
"Sydney Harding."
"Are you immediate family?"
"Yes."
"I'm sorry, sir." Her brown eyes remained glued to the clipboard that she was holding, not daring to look at him while she delivered the news. "The only person that we have permitted at this time is an 'Alexander Trager'. Other visitors will have to wait until she's been cleared."
Happy didn't hear anything after 'Alexander Trager', staring past the woman as she ran through the hospital policy. He had a clear line of sight straight into the window of Sydney's room where he could see her laying on Tig's chest while they both slept, turning around and stomping blindly through the maze of hallways until he eventually reached the exit.
"What the hell are you doing here?" Yates scowled as he turned to see Sydney waltzing into the clubhouse. "You're supposed to be getting your hair done and shit."
"I told you I wasn't going." Her tone oozed duh as she looked to the dark-haired man with a raised brow, lifting the hatch to enter the area behind the bar.
"Eh, what's the matter Syd? No one wanted to take the princess to prom?" Tank teased from where he was sitting beside Yates, cracking a sunflower seed between his teeth before spitting the shell down onto the bartop now that she was there to clean it.
"That guy didn't ask you?" Yates didn't bother trying to recall the name of Sydney's latest lap dog.
"He did." She shrugged, pulling out an inventory sheet.
"I thought you bought a dress?" Cobra took a puff off of his cigarette, pushing his sunglasses further up his bald head where they'd begun to fall.
"Yeah, I wanted to see it!" Tank waved his beer around eagerly.
"Sweetheart…" James sighed, setting down his Alexander Keiths. "If you don't go, you'll look back and regret it."
"Dad." Sydney scoffed. "Look around here, look at what I do every day. You think that senior prom is what I would regret?" She wouldn't have been able to wipe the look of disgust off of her face even if she'd wanted to.
"You're really not going to go?" He asked, his pale blue-green eyes squinting sadly. He knew that she had a point, but despite everything, it was still important for him to know that he hadn't completely robbed his daughter of a normal life.
Sydney looked around the room of pathetically hopeful men. "No." She replied theatrically, rolling her eyes as she turned away from their disappointment. She never thought that a night of slow dancing with teenagers would be the bikers' idea of a good time.
Yates waited until Sydney disappeared around the cylindrical shelving unit of the bar in the middle of the clubhouse, to approach her. "What if I take you?" He whispered from behind her as she counted bottles. He figured that she didn't want to go because she didn't have a date - something that he truly couldn't believe, but it was the only thing that made sense.
Sydney scowled at his close proximity and low voice before turning around to face him. She didn't understand why they all thought it was so important, but she held back her eye roll. If they wanted to make a big deal out of something stupid, she would show them just how stupid it was.
"You wanna take me to prom, Yatesy?" She tilted her head, looking up at him innocently as she trailed her fingers up his chest.
"I will." He nodded, holding his composure - and his breath.
"Mmm, yeah?" She closed her eyes with a seductive hum. "You gonna deflower me at the end of the night? Give me the full experience?"
"Uh-" He stammered. He'd always been jealous that she flirted with Happy - the one man who didn't appreciate it, but now that he found himself in the trying predicament with the daughter of his superior, he understood why the Nomad had always chosen to deflect.
Sydney snorted, looking him up and down before leaning up on her tiptoes. "I'm gonna tell you the same thing that I told him." She spoke at his lips, moving her mouth to his ear. "No." She pulled away with a grin, smacking the front of his kutte before rounding the bar back to where everybody was sitting.
"Come on." She scowled as she was pulled up from where she had been counting beer cases on the floor in an attempt to drown out the hassling that she'd been enduring for the last half an hour, looking up to see Happy yanking her elbow.
She looked over the wrinkled white button-up that he was wearing under his kutte, her brows crinkling as he dragged her out from behind the bar. "We goin' to a funeral?" She laughed. She'd never seen him in a shirt that fit him, let alone a shirt that fit him, with buttons.
"No." He continued pulling her along.
"Well then where the hell are we goin'?"
"You need to get ready." Yates, Cobra, and Tank all watched in anticipation, eager to see what kind of explosive reaction Sydney would come out with.
"You're going to take me to prom?" She narrowed her eyes incredulously.
"Yes." His serious black stare bore a hole straight through her.
"Now that's more like it..." She cocked her brows and bit her lip, leading him out of the clubhouse so that she could get a start on her hair.
There was once a day where Happy was the only one that Sydney would've allowed on that visitor's list, and it was a day that he'd taken advantage of, his entire life.
;
Jax waited for the tense of his muscles with each tree root that he rolled over in Tara's car as he drove through the woods at the crack of dawn, but it never came. He felt his brows knit as he stopped the car in a clearing at the bottom of the hill that led into the valley, shaking it away as he pulled the keys out of the ignition, and popped the trunk.
He looked around a few times because that was what he thought he should do, but he knew deep down that he wasn't being followed, because the only person who would've followed him was wrapped up in a shower curtain.
;
"Where is he?" Gemma sat at a table in the clubhouse with a cup of coffee warming her shaking hands. Jax had never returned with Tara, and despite how she felt about the little gash, she would've given anything to see that they were both safe.
"Relax." Clay sat at the bar with a beer.
"Don't tell me to relax." She snapped, her voice cutting through the atmosphere that was thick with a lack of sleep, an abundance of worry, and an anxious anticipation.
"I called his cellphone a dozen times, Tara's house, no answer." Opie took a swig of beer, setting the bottle down next to the multiple empty ones at the table that he was occupying.
"I can't just sit here." She sighed, pushing herself up from the table. The agony of sitting around was eating her alive. Gemma wasn't a 'waiter', she was a 'get to the bottom of things at once-er'.
"Hey." Clay grabbed her arm lightly as she passed by his stool. "Until we see where this lands, you stay put. Understand?"
"What if they got to him?"
"Jax can take care of himself." Piney tried to reassure her.
"I'll take a ride to the hospital, see if he's there." Opie offered, kissing her on the cheek in hopes of mitigating the drama. He had enough drama at home, and he knew that this would only cause more.
"I'll go with you." Piney nodded.
"You take care of my boys." She ordered the older man.
"Always." He nodded with a sincere smile.
;
Sydney felt herself regaining consciousness properly after being in and out all morning, feeling much more like herself as she squinted, trying to adjust her eyes to the fluorescent bulbs that lit her hospital room.
"Morning." Tig smiled when he saw that she was finally waking, getting up from the uncomfortable chair and moving to sit beside her on the bed. "You sleep a little better?" He asked tenderly as he brushed her hair out of her face. He'd been worried that sleeping in the bed with her would've caused discomfort that she would be feeling now, but trying to tell her that when she'd been delirious and needing his closeness, had been no use.
"Better with you." She nodded lazily, brushing her thumb over his knuckles where she felt the empty space where her favorite ring usually was, looking down with a creased forehead before she remembered that he'd given it to her before her surgery.
"You remember saying yes?" He nodded to the cross ring that sat proudly around her thumb.
"What?" Her head snapped up and her eyes doubled in size.
"I'm just kidding." He laughed.
She let out the breath that had caught in her throat, laughing nervously before she shook her head with a discerning smile. "No fair, you wouldn't terrorize an injured woman…"
"Had to get you back." He winked, leaning down where he pulled her into his arms. "How do you feel?" He asked with his lips against her cheek.
"Mmm, good." She hummed, bringing her arms above her head as she stretched with her eyes closed, and a smile on her face - happily coming to the realization that she didn't feel any pain. The sedation was fully out of her system now, and she was left with the blissful euphoria of morphine. "Jesus." She blinked when she finally opened her eyes back up, only just noticing the vases of flowers that lined the entire length of the windowsill. "It's like a florist's wet dream in here."
"Sure is." Tig chuckled. "You sure you don't got any boyfriend's that I don't know about?" He raised a brow as he eyed the multiple bouquets around the room.
"Guess you'll have to keep an eye on me." She grinned, tilting her head up to where he kissed her lips sweetly before the door opened.
"Um, sorry…" The same admin looked away bashfully before she was able to work up the courage to look back up. "There are some of your guys in the waiting room for you." She squeaked to Tig before scurrying away.
"You sure that you aren't the one that I need to keep an eye on?" Sydney looked at him with a raised brow and a playful smile of her own.
"Don't worry, babe. It was only second base." He winked, kissing her cheek as he got to his feet and waltzed out to the waiting room. He was feeling much better now that she was in her usual high spirits - it made things much easier for him to deal with.
"Hey." Opie greeted Tig with a nod.
"Hey." Tig hugged the father and son duo.
"How is she?" Piney asked.
"She's gonna be fine… Already giving me a hard time." He chuckled as he stuffed his hands into his pockets. "What's up?"
"Can't find Jax... Gemma's freaking out, Clay's stressed." Opie explained in what should've been a sigh, but it wasn't - not in his monotonous voice, and stoic face. "You seen him around here?"
"Nah... " Tig looked around. "You check with Tara?"
"Can't track her down, either." Opie shook his head. "Jax went to grab her last night, they never made it back."
"Shit, okay... I'll get the nurse to let me know if she gets here. Good luck." Tig nodded awkwardly. He knew that as the Sergeant, this kind of job landed in his department, but he also knew that as an old man, his job was to be here with his old lady.
"What was that?" Sydney asked as Tig returned, plopping down in the chair next to her where he began fidgetting almost instantly.
"Ope and Piney, can't find Jax..."
"They think he was hit too?"
"Don't know." He looked up at the TV that the nurse had turned on for her during his short absence. "What are we watching?"
"Real Housewives." She chuckled.
He nodded, his crawling skin making it impossible to focus on the skimpy blonde women that paraded across the television screen - something that he never thought he would have issues paying attention to. "You thinking about eating yet?" He asked as he picked at his cuticles, looking for another purposeful distraction when he realized that his first method wasn't working.
"Tiggy…" Sydney sighed as she turned off the TV, swinging her head to look at him. "Go." She nodded out the door.
"No way." He shook his head, reaching for the remote and turning the TV back on.
"They need you right now." She looked at him sincerely. "I'll be in and out of sleep all day, you won't be missing anything."
"Yeah? And what if the same thing happens? You wake up scared and I'm not here."
"That was from the sedation." She rolled her eyes, grateful for the drugs because any other day, having to be reminded of such a big display of weakness would've been a much bigger piss-off. "They're keeping me on morphine all day. Go - while I'm high on this shit and won't get upset."
"Nope. Not taking that risk." He shook his head.
"I'll be fine." Her tone was stern, yet soft. "Hale's coming to take my statement soon, which you can't be here for anyways."
"Come on, Syd... Don't make me choose." He shook his head painfully.
"I'm not making you choose. I'm giving you your only option, now get the hell out of here before I buzz in security and tell them that you were the one who shot me." Her lips began to curl up.
Tig rolled his eyes with a smile, leaning down where he took her face in his hands. "I fucking love you, you know that?"
She smiled as she arched her back off of the stiff hospital bed and brought her hands up to rest over his. "You have five seconds..." She warned teasingly at his lips.
"I'll take the risk." He husked as he pressed his lips to hers in a passionate kiss. She yanked him closer, opening her mouth wider to let his tongue in.
"Time's running out." She told him breathlessly, but made no effort to stop her movements - the high of the drugs and the taste of his tongue had her on a wave that she wanted to ride for as long as possible.
"I ain't goin' anywhere if you keep kissin' me all nasty like this…" He grinned, speaking his words into her waiting mouth as he hovered over her.
"You need to have more self control." She licked at his lips as she tilted her head up further, leaning in and capturing his bottom lip between her teeth.
"This is me having self control…" His hand rested on her neck, his thumb under her chin to hold her in place as he continued to devour her mouth.
"Oh yeah?" She grinned. "What do you wanna do to me, Sergeant?" Her voice fell to a raspy coo.
"Princess…" He growled. "Don't get me started." His lips were on hers again before he pulled away, leaving her waiting with each sentence that he spoke. "Because I won't be able to stop."
"I guess I'll need to be the one to stop then." She looked up at him as she smoothed her hands up his chest.
"You couldn't stop even if you tried." He moved his lips to her neck where he lightly sucked on a spot below her ear.
"Hmm…" She sighed as her eyes fluttered closed. "Maybe you would challenge an injured woman..." She chortled.
"Two to one…" His grip tightened on the back of her neck.
"That just means that you owe me." She moaned out, the heat between her legs getting strong enough that she could feel it even over the body-numbing pain medication.
Tig smirked as he watched her writhe under the sheets. "I'll be back for you later." He whispered into her ear, nipping lightly at her neck before he stalked out the door.
Sydney bit her lip as her face flushed, watching him walk away; strong, and with purpose. She felt the blush move down her body, shaking it off as she turned her glossy eyes towards the TV, and laid back.
;
Tara blinked hollowly at the foggy bathroom mirror as she stood in a fluffy blue robe while her wet hair dripped onto the floor. She reached for her toothbrush, absently coating the purple bristles in whatever had leaked out of the toothpaste tube from the morning before. She sighed as she began brushing her teeth, reaching over the sink where she wiped the mirror with her sleeve, revealing a reflection that made her stomach turn; the bloodstain on the carpet behind her.
She dropped to her knees as she expelled whatever was left in her stomach, into the toilet bowl before slumping back against the muted green walls of her parent's old bathroom. She didn't understand it, how she could feel so much relief, yet so much fear - almost as much fear as she'd felt when she had worried about exactly what had happened. She'd gotten what she'd wanted; Kohn was dead, and Jax had been the one to kill him. So why did she still feel like something was missing?
;
"What's going on?" Tig entered the clubhouse, scanning the room to see everybody but Jax.
Clay sighed as he shook his head, looking towards Gemma who was practically bouncing in the barstool next to him. He didn't have the energy to deal with her worry, or her paranoia, or her over-protectiveness of her fully grown son, and Tig was the only one that he trusted to keep her safe.
Gemma pursed her lips as she watched them exchange what she recognized as their 'she's crazy' glances. "I know that he's with her!" She could feel her frustration beginning to boil over, knowing that if she was just able to tell Clay what she knew about Tara and A.T.F., he would side with her.
Clay gave Tig the nod. The worry of something happening to her under Tig's watch was far less than the worry of having to deal with her for the rest of the day.
"Come on, darlin'." Tig nodded out the door. "We'll find him." He placed his hand on her shoulder as he led her outside. The sooner that he could calm her down, the sooner he could get back to Sydney.
;
Jax stepped out onto the stoop of Tara's house with his head hung. Even though it was well past noon, he was exhausted. Physically exhausted, emotionally exhausted, and mentally exhausted. But the main source of his exhaustion was the uncertainty that he continued to find himself drowning in; uncertainty about the club, uncertainty about Tara, and uncertainty about the man that he thought he was. The only thing that he could now be certain of, was that Kohn was gone for good.
He looked up when he heard the sound of a Harley, cursing under his breath as Tig pulled into the wide driveway alongside Gemma. "Jesus Christ! You scared the shit out of me!" She jumped out of the car and ran over, throwing her arms around her baby boy. "Where have you been?" She sighed.
"I'm sorry." He bit out. "I got caught up."
She ran her hands through his hair, scowling when she felt that it was wet. "You've been here? This whole time?" She pulled back to see the awful expression of guilt on his face. Once again, Tara was pulling Jax from what was most important. She'd seen it from the very beginning, and no one had listened to her.
"We've been worrying, man. Trying to call you." Tig approached with a shake of his head.
"I know." He didn't have the strength to come up with an excuse for what he'd really done last night.
"That's it? You know?" Gemma scoffed. "Someone tries to kill Clay, shoots Sydney, and you decide that it's a good time to get laid?"
"It's not like that, mom." He growled.
"If you wanna resurrect old trauma with this bitch, you do it on your own goddamn time!" Jax nodded, stepping away as Gemma turned and stalked up to the front door.
"She's not there." He called as he put his helmet on. "Don't go looking for her, either." He held back his wince once he realized what a poor excuse it had been, because her car was sitting in the driveway. "Mom!" He yelled when she realized the same thing, the frustration easily seeping through the haze that he'd entered at the crossroads. "Leave her alone."
Gemma chewed her lip as she stood on the stoop, wondering if she should break the door down and teach that little bitch the same lesson that she'd tried to teach her years ago, or cut her losses and get her son away from her while she could. With everything going on, she chose the latter - for now.
Tig placed his boot on Jax's footrest as the VP mounted his bike, which went ignored. "Don't ever forget your first priority." He sneered to the complacent little prince. He'd been able to curb his feelings about what had happened to Sydney, but he hadn't been able to do the same for Jax's attitude - especially in a time like this.
"I didn't." Jax wasn't lying. He'd taken out one of their biggest threats, but his defensiveness made it impossible for Tig to know that. "Now get your foot off of my bike." He ordered, but instead Tig gripped his handlebars, challenging the younger man before Gemma walked up, looking between the two of them as he refused to let up - only giving in when she gave him a nod that told him that it was time to go. He glared at the light-haired man a little longer before finally pushing off, and letting him go where he shared in the Matriarch's stare of concern as he rode off.
Jax finally sauntered into the clubhouse, feeling the air thicken around him the second that he crossed the threshold. The atmosphere was dreary, and uncertain, and they couldn't have that - he knew that now.
"Jackie Boy… Where've you been?" Chibs sighed, holding out his arms.
"I'm here now." Jax shook his head, accepting the Scotsman's embrace. "Let's sit down."
Clay gave Jax a look that let him know that his absence wouldn't be forgotten, summoning everybody into the chapel where he sat down and hung his head. "I know shit's heavy right now…" He began as the table filled up. "But until we know what's going on, we lay low. Nobody rides alone, nobody rides unarmed."
"No retaliation?" Jax scowled.
"We kill them. Now." Happy slammed his fist down on the table.
"You were ready to start a war yesterday, what changed?" After weeks of pushing against Clay's brute force, Jax was finally ready to bend, and now they were falling back.
"And you were ready to curl up and let the Mayans kill us off, what changed?" Tig retorted.
Jax ground his teeth as his eyes darkened. Everything had changed.
"Other charter's are gonna start headin' down. After Indian Hills, we've seen that the Mayans aren't afraid to expand the blowback. I wanna bounce it off of them before we decide on retaliation."
"Okay." Jax nodded along with his brothers.
"I'm inviting Indian Hills down... They deserve some clarity after that shit last week." It was the perfect solution. Clay needed bodies, and he needed to build trust with the new charter - this would give him both.
"That makes sense." Jax nodded, grateful for the opportunity to finally patch up any damage that had been done with his uncle.
"So when's this going down?" Juice asked from where he bounced in his seat, far too chipper for the dark aura of the conversation.
"Sometime in the next few days." Clay shrugged.
"Not sooner?" Jax scowled. He didn't want to be locked down, anxiously awaiting another attack the way that he had for months, he wanted to get this over with while he was fired up.
"We don't do anything until Sydney gets back." Clay lowered his voice as sorrow laced his tone.
"Brother…" Chibs sighed. "I don't know if it's a good idea that she comes back…"
"Look…" Clay sighed. "I know what you're all thinking…" He'd thought the same thing, too. "But that ain't the case here." He shook his head. "We wait until she's back at the table."
"Why?" Jax's face scrunched up yet again. "She ain't a member."
Clay took a deep breath as he rested his elbows on the table, leaning his forehead against his folded hands. He didn't want to have to say it out loud, but he knew that it was the only way to make his crew understand.
"Because that bullet was for me..."
;
Song for this chapter
Can't Get Used to Losing You - Andy Williams