More than just illusions are shattered when Stahl takes the next step in her dastardly plan to disembowel SAMCRO—and everybody associated with them.

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 69: SHATTERED

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Tig trotted eagerly down the stairs as the smell of fresh coffee flooded his nostrils, making it much easier to get out of bed today, than it had been yesterday. He rounded the corner with a smile on his face, straightening his kutte over his wrinkled shirt as he approached Sydney where she stood at the island, filling their to-go mug and packing her bag for the day.

Sydney's lips curled up as Tig came into view, fiddling with his dark blue button-up. "Do you want me to iron it?" She giggled as she reached for his hands, pulling them away from the creased material that he was only making worse

"Nah, babe, it's okay. I don't got anyone I need to impress," he winked.

"You should hang it up next time."

"Hangin' it up would mean that you'd have to spare me some closet space," he scoffed, playfully nudging her in the ribs.

"There's always the hall closet..." She smirked as she unscrewed the cap on her antibiotics, tipping out one of the few remaining red pills, and dropping it into her mouth.

Tig chortled, rolling his eyes. "How many more you got?" He nodded to the bright orange prescription bottle.

"Two," she smiled as she tossed the container into her purse. "I cannot wait to get back to beating your ass on the road," a cheeky grin spread across her face as she grabbed her cup and headed to the door.

"Hey!" Tig scowled, feigning offense as he placed his hands on his hips.

"Friday," she called over her shoulder. "Be ready!"

Tig shook his head as he inhaled deeply, swiping his coffee and following after her with a smirk, glad to see that the distress she'd been in just hours ago, hadn't carried over into the new day.

;

Donna sat in the same spot that she'd been sitting in since she'd been brought into the government facility during the night, hollowly staring at the TV that blared the sound of screeching tires as Kenny took advantage of the expensive gaming system that the state-funded room had to offer. But finally there was a welcome change of scenery when she saw the door opening out of the corner of her eye, rushing to her feet where she stomped over to the tall, skinny woman—ignoring the dizziness that she felt after a sleepless night.

"Tell me what the hell is going on," she demanded.

Stahl licked her lips, sizing up for shorter woman before she turned over her shoulder to the Agent behind her. "Take the kids to get some breakfast?" She whispered.

"Sure." The strawberry-blonde woman gave Stahl a suggestive nod.

"If that's okay with you?" Stahl turned back to Donna, who was fighting the urge to ponder the undeniable tension between the two feds when she had much more pressing matters on her mind.

"Yeah," Donna agreed begrudgingly. She knew that her kids needed to eat, and she needed to find out why they had to eat there. "Kids, go with the lady," she nodded out the door, snapping her fingers when Kenny's attention remained fixed on the TV. Just like his father... "Hey! Kenny! Come on!" She yelled above the noise. "Go with the lady. She's gonna get you some breakfast." She did her best to sound chipper as her kids eyed her wearily. "It's okay," she nodded as they followed the other woman, turning back to Stahl the second that the door closed behind them.

"I hope you were able to get some sleep," Stahl looked around the less than comfortable room as she took a seat on the hard leather couch. "This room is only temporary," she smirked.

"I didn't get any damn sleep!" Donna stomped her foot. "Now tell me why the hell we're here!"

Stahl nodded slowly, placing a folder down onto the coffee table. "You recently, uh," she cleared her throat as she slowly opened the document. "You recently paid off three months of back mortgage on your house, in cash…" She narrowed her eyes. "Where did it come from?"

Donna looked away as her hands clasped in front of her, looking around for somewhere to sit down before she could pass out. She knew that she should have never accepted that damn money...

Stahl sighed as she watched Donna try to ignore the evidence that she had so stupidly left behind. "You spent it, you fed your kids on it. How was it earned?"

"I don't know," she growled. "I didn't ask."

"You know, Donna… Your family is falling apart. I want to help you, but—"

"Don't pretend that you give a shit about my family!"

Stahl pursed her lips, looking down at the contents of her folder as she got back to business. If Donna wanted the hard truth, she would give it to her. "We're arresting Bobby Elvis for murder. An eyewitness ID'd him, and this man," she slammed the composite sketch of Opie down onto the table in front of the trembling brunette. "Look familiar?" She watched as Donna's breath caught in her throat, softening her tone. "I don't think that Opie pulled the trigger, but he was there…"

Donna felt her lips beginning to quiver uncontrollably as she was forced to relive the same nightmare, all over again. She put her head down, sucking in a deep breath as she tried to compose herself. "Is he going back to jail?" She asked calmly.

"Not yet, no." Stahl told her softly before it was time to go in for the kill. "But the U.S. Attorney hasn't released the name of the witness, and as far as SAMCRO is concerned, only one person saw Bobby commit that murder." She watched as the damning realization flooded through the unintentional mob-wife—the realization that this wasn't about turning on her husband, it was about protecting him. "That's why you're here, Donna... For your own protection. Clay and his crew are going to think that Opie has turned. Do you have any idea what these guys do to a rat?"

"No!" Donna shook her head, unable to believe that this could possibly be any worse the second time around. "Jax would never let anything happen to Opie! They've known each other since they were kids!"

Stahl nodded attentively. "Well, I certainly hope that Jax has enough pull to make that happen. Because I can only keep Opie safe for forty-eight hours."Donna stared at the pile of evidence in the folder that Stahl had splayed out in front of her. "Without my help, this thing goes one of two ways," Stahl spoke the horrible words that she knew the poor woman was already thinking. "Opie in prison, or Opie dead. You need to make a decision about what kind of father you want for your kids."

;

Sydney stood at the bar with Gemma as she shared the exciting news that baby Abel was finally out of the woods and would soon be coming home if all went well over the next few days, gushing over all of the ways that they planned to decorate Jax's house for the party while Chibs, Bobby, and Tig played pool during their lunch break.

"Yeah," Clay spoke into his burner as he exited the chapel. "No, me too," he nodded. "Alright, thanks, Jason."

"Rosen?" Gemma asked once he snapped the phone shut.

"Yeah," Clay smiled, joining the small group. "Luann is in the clear, but Otto? Not so much…"

"Why? What happened?" Bobby scowled.

Clay began chuckling before he could even get the words out. "He shattered Stahl's face…"

"I love that man!" Tig grinned.

"Oy!" Chibs hollered, tapping his pool cue against the wooden table excitedly.

"Trying to prove to the club that he wasn't gonna give anything up," Clay nodded as he rounded the bar. "We're clear of the ATF, ladies and germs!"

But right as the uplifting words left the President's mouth in the jolly tone, the sound of glass shattering filled everyone's ears, followed by the order to get down as the clubhouse filled with SWAT members wearing bulletproof vests and holding machine guns, ready to shoot anybody who didn't comply.

Sydney looked around the room as she felt the panic of the familiar scene filling her chest; yelling, glass breaking, guns… She stood frozen as she watched Jax being slammed against the wall as Chibs was thrown down onto the pool table, looking to Clay as he got to his knees, giving her a nod of assurance that it was okay; that he was okay—this would not be a repeat of the night she was shot. A short breath of relief began to escape her nostrils as she began to crouch to the ground, but before she could finish it, she felt a rough hand on the back of her neck; a rough hand that violently slammed her face into the hardwood floor.

"Woah, easy there!" One of the SWAT members yelled across the room as he watched the brutal takedown of the innocent girl, looking frantically to his lead agent, but it seemed that she had no issue with what was taking place…

Stahl watched as Lemmings got their collective revenge, bouncing her pretty face off of the hard surface just as Otto had done to hers. If Sydney's boys wanted to play rough, she would return the favor. She wanted to see just how much pull the mischievous little gash had without her most precious asset.

Hale felt his eyes go wide when he saw Sydney go down, but his blood began to boil when he recognized the shiny bald head of the man who had severely overstepped his authority. He looked around for a solution; some way that he could help, when his eyes landed on Stahl where she watched with an evil smirk on her face, and that told him everything that he needed to know. This was no coincidence, this was a set up. Just like everything else that she did.

Tig watched as the horrible scene played out before his eyes in slow motion; abandoning any self control that he had left the second that he saw her face hit the floor, getting to his feet where he charged at the man standing over her, swinging his fists into his face as hard and as fast as he could before the bullets could start flying. He was going to die for this.

"Don't you dare..." A young, newer member to the SWAT team heard in his ear as he raised his gun at the rampant dark-haired man pummelling the small town cop, turning to see his Deputy Chief narrowing his eyes at his weapon.

Stahl's felt her jaw clenching as her the anger refilling every cell in her body as Hale allowed the ruthless criminal to take down one of his own men, her face beginning to twitch when not a single member of the extensive crew she'd brought in, had the balls to intervene as Half-Sack joined Tig on the beating, and Juice and Gemma rushed to Sydney's aid. "What the hell are you doing?" She screamed to nobody in particular. "Control them!"

Hale held off as the two leather-adorned men got in a few more good punches before finally directing two SWAT members to break it up, watching as they used all of their strength to pull Tig off of the cowardly piece of shit that dared to wear a badge.

Even though Sydney had managed to turn her head quickly enough that her nose didn't break her fall, she still hit the ground hard enough that she was seeing stars as blood pooled below her, gasping for air as it filled her mouth; running down her throat and out of her nose. She blinked a few times, trying to gain her bearings as she looked up to see Tig and Half-Sack being yanked off of the man who had sought revenge on her, and the heinous woman who had allowed him to.

"Robert Munson," Everyone turned their attention away from the commotion to see Bobby being handcuffed. "You're under the arrest for the murder of Brenan Hefner."

"Who?" Bobby painted on a convincing scowl that only a lifetime of crime could've allowed.

Everybody felt their hearts sink even further as they listened to Bobby being read his rights. Just minutes ago they'd thought that they had managed to evade ATF, but they had been very wrong...

Hale felt his heart pounding in his chest as the seconds passed like minutes, making eye contact with Gemma who was visibly distraught as Stahl forced Sydney to lay face down in the pool of her own blood. He stretched his hand out softly, holding her off until Bobby, Tig, and Half-Sack had been escorted towards the door, finally giving her the nod, regardless of if Stahl was finished with her sadistic power trip.

Stahl felt a growl form in the back of her throat as Hale allowed Gemma to help Sydney get to her feet. "I'll call Rosen, Bobby! You just sit tight!" She heard, her hateful eyes darting towards the floor where Clay was calling after his friend, slamming her pointy-toed shoe into his thigh. The white-haired man looked up, where teeth bared and his nostrils flaring, but, as usual, before he could do something stupid, his wife had some to rescue him.

"Hey!" Gemma yelled, stomping over to the evil cunt. "You stupid bitch," she told her low, and threatening. "You really don't know who you're messing with…"

Stahl kicked Clay again, harder, and in the side this time. "Manners, darling," she smirked as she pulled her foot back to kick him again. "Mann—" But she was stopped by a spew of blood raining over her face. She squeezed her eyes shut on impact, cracking them open to see Sydney grinning at her with her still perfectly straight, blood-covered teeth. She inhaled sharply as she turned to follow her men out the door, reminding herself that she'd gotten exactly what she had come for, and then some.

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"Let them go." Hale told Gutierrez as he approached the squad car where the hispanic man had Tig and Half-Sack laid out across the hood.

"What?" He scowled.

"You heard me," Hale locked eyes with Tig, blinking slowly before turning back to his coworker. "Let them go."

Stahl inhaled deeply as she watched what was happening, her face contorting into a grimace and her hands curling into fists as she tried to compose herself. "Are you trying to blow my investigation?" She sneered as she stomped over to him.

"She has a fresh gunshot wound and you allowed a man three times her size to use excessive force. I was saving your investigation." If there was one thing that Hale had learned from growing up in a family of politicians, it was how to lie through his teeth while still telling every ounce of the truth.

"Please," Stahl scoffed.

"You still don't get it, do you?" He squinted. Apparently those knocks against the table hadn't been enough for her to understand that she wasn't dealing with amateurs. "These guys are smart. They will bait you into anything that they can if it means that they can use it against you later. And they will use it against you later."

"Is that what she did to you, David?" Stahl raised a brow. "Hmm? She bait you into something?"

"What?" He shook his head incredulously, but the sincerity of his truth-coated lie began to fade.

"You need to stop thinking with your dick, Deputy. Because you're right, somebody's going to get hurt." She nodded with an evil glint behind her eye as she turned away.

"I am doing nothing here except what I was hired to do!" He growled as he grabbed her arm, pulling her back to him. "I am doing my job!"

"Is that what you were doing the other night?" She asked as she stroked his face. "Hmm?" She no longer had any concerns about the loyalty of her lapdog, she knew exactly where it lied.

;

"Stay here. I'll call Tara." Gemma ordered as she sat Sydney down on the edge of Tig's bed, rushing into the bathroom where she pulled a clean towel off of the rack—a sight that she was surprised to see.

Sydney flinched when Gemma pressed the scratchy material against her nose, still trying to shake the off stun that had taken her prisoner. "Is it broken?" Gemma asked as she recoiled.

"No it's not fucking broken." Sydney choked out as the anger began to take over the shock. "I'm not a fucking idiot, I know how to take a hit." She grabbed the towel from Gemma's hands, finding a position where she could hold it comfortably herself.

Gemma's heart broke for the young girl, she'd been there before many years ago; hurt, embarrassed, and without her man to comfort her. "I'm going to call Rosen right now." She nodded, rubbing her exposed back. "I promise that he will get Tig out tonight."

Sydney felt her heart drop to her stomach. Tig. "Okay." She squeaked as her throat locked up with the realization that he would be going to jail for this, and there was no way that his charges for assaulting a police officer were going to be dropped the way that hers had been. She didn't have a guardian angel that strong.

Gemma squeezed her hand before getting to her feet, leaning down and pressing a kiss to the top of her head. She didn't want to leave Sydney alone, but she knew that she would be helping her the most by finding out what the hell had just happened.

As soon as the door closed, Sydney broke down. Even through the veil of painkillers she was able to feel the nagging throbs emanating from multiple parts of her body as she began hyperventilating, choking on blood and tears. Her vision eventually became too muddied to see anything, and her sinuses closed with the abundance of fluids, leaving the only way to breathe through her mouth where she was sobbing violently. She got to her feet, running to the bathroom where she coughed up as much of the blood blocking her throat as she could, gripping the edge of the sink where she blinked rapidly until she finally gathered enough courage to look in the mirror. She slowly lifted her head, but her own reflection wasn't what startled her, it was the surprise of seeing Tig standing behind her.

"Baby…" Tig whispered painfully once she looked up, getting a full view of the damage that had been done.

Sydney gasped, spinning around in shock as he stalked up to her and pulled her into his arms where she felt herself breaking all over again as his warmth enveloped her; a feeling that she'd thought had been taken from her.

Tig fought back his own tears as she shook in his grip, pulling away when her watery breathing became labored. "Hey," he took her face into his hands gently, wiping her tears. "I'm so sorry…" His voice cracked as he looked into her pain-filled eyes where the blood vessels had been broken in one of them; the hemorrhaging tainting the soft, beautiful green with an angry, hateful red. "I'm so sorry," he shook his head.

Even though seeing that somehow Tig was standing there holding her instead of being carted off to a jail cell had flooded Sydney with relief, the pain on his face as he laid his eyes on hers only made her feel ten times worse. "I—" She pulled away from him, clearing her throat as best she could. "Go, I'm gonna get cleaned up." She looked down at her combat boots, taking his place and wiping her own tears now.

"No, baby, I—"

"Please," she kept her head down and out of his gaze, her voice dropping to a pitiful whisper. "I don't want you to see me like this..."

"I don't give a shit about that."

"I do." She choked out as her voice strained against the overwhelming mixture of emotions. "It's not nice to look at..."

"Hey, hey, hey," Tig lifted her face, looking into her eyes deeply—something that he would always do no matter how much it hurt him. "Enough, okay? I don't wanna hear any of that 'fair fight' bullshit. I just wanna help you."

"You can help me by leaving me alone." She lowered her eyes, avoiding the sincerity in his as she felt herself beginning to shake.

"What's this really about, huh?" He coaxed her gently, rubbing his thumbs over her cheekbones. He didn't understand why she was so reluctant to accept his help in times like these.

"Nothing." She sighed impatiently, pulling her face out of his grip.

"Sydney… Please, just—"

"I'm fucking embarrassed, okay?" Her frustration boiled over as her eyes welled up. "Is that what you want me to say?" She cringed as her voice quivered.

"I don't want you to say anything," he grabbed her hands instead, squeezing them until he could feel her muscles begin to relax. "Not if you don't want to." I just want you to let me take care of you..." He whispered as he rested his forehead against hers.

Sydney exhaled a shaky breath, squeezing his hands in return as she pushed herself to accept his help, no matter how badly she wanted to deny it. She stayed silent the entire time that she allowed him to meticulously dab her face clean with a washcloth, gently rinsing her cuts with rubbing alcohol once the excess blood had been washed away. Once he was satisfied that she would be okay until Tara arrived to tend to her wounds properly, he turned towards the bathtub where he began running the water.

"I don't want a bath." He heard behind him, looking over his shoulder where Sydney was staring hollowly into the mirror.

"Okay," he nodded, pulling the stopper on the tap where the water began raining down out of the shower head. "Tara will be here after her shift, Clay's calling Rosen to figure out what the fuck just happened," he told her as he walked over to her, placing a hand on her arm. "Did he hurt your leg?"

Sydney shook her head, not meeting his eyes in the mirror. She only knew that her leg hadn't been damaged any further because she'd been sure to keep it from hitting the floor when she landed, but she was more concerned with examining the multiple sites on her face where she did land; the side of her nose and edge of her forehead that would require butterfly bandages to heal, as well as the bruising that was already forming under her eyes that she knew would be black by morning.

"Do you need anything for the pain?" Tig brought his hand up to her face, rubbing his thumb over the cut on her lip that was caked in dry blood—the only thing that was holding it together.

Sydney flinched when the words left his mouth. "No, I'm fine." She turned to face him, still avoiding his eyes. She hadn't been thinking about the pain, but even if she had, she knew that she had more than enough pills left to manage it.

"Okay," Tig couldn't tell if she was just being stubborn, or if she was actually just the toughest person that he'd ever met. "Well, you tell me if you change your mind. I'm gonna go get you some water."

Sydney nodded slowly as the perfect opportunity passed in front of her… The opportunity to get what she had been getting behind his back this whole time, and to get it without the fear that had crippled her nervous system, or the guilt that had plagued her with nightmares, but her ego wouldn't let her take it.

"Stronger than water." She sighed as she turned back to the mirror.

"What do you want?"

"I don't care." She stared deeply into the reflection of her lifeless eyes, her hard voice sounding foreign in the echo of the tiled room. "Just stronger than water."

;

Happy sat in the driver's seat of the cargo truck as he headed back to the Tacoma clubhouse after safely delivering Cameron and Cherry to the air hangar where Cameron's men would get them safely to Ireland. He nodded gently to the slow rhythm of the music coming across the radio as he chewed on a toothpick, glad to be in his own company again. His two passengers hadn't been particularly talkative, in fact, they had barely spoken at all, but he had always enjoyed the peacefulness of solitude over even the quietest of companions.

The mind of the Tacoma Killer was often blank when it was just him and the open road, but today it was sporadic; dotted with thoughts of Sydney, thoughts of Maya. He wasn't used to having obligations to women in his life—except for his mother, of course—not obligations that crossed his mind on the road, at least. He had always trusted that Sydney could handle herself, but that was when he knew what was going on in her life, now, he had no idea, and that was nobody's fault but his own.

;

"I don't know if this is gonna come out…" Tig shook his head wearily as he rubbed his thumb over the blood stains on the khaki coloured cargo pants that she'd been wearing.

"Cold water and hydrogen peroxide. I'm surprised that you don't know that one." She managed a chuckle as she brought the glass of whiskey to her lips, ignoring the sting as it glazed over the open wound.

"I'm more of a 'strip and burn' kinda guy." He smirked, peeking at her through his eyelashes to see the small smile on her face where she sat naked on the counter.

"Just how I like 'em." She smirked back.

"Uh, should I wash this separately? On fragile or something…" He asked cluelessly as he held up her lacy black shirt—but he would've considered it to be more of a bra with the minimal amount of skin that it covered.

"It's fine together." She shook her head as she zoned back out, staring mindlessly at the white tiles on the bathroom floor as she listened to the water raining down into the floor of the bathtub.

"Okay." Tig nodded skeptically, hoping that she was right because he was not trying to add ruining her clothes onto the ever-growing list of things to worry about. "Get in," he nodded to the shower. "Before it gets cold."

Sydney let her head fall as he left to start her laundry, feeling the tears pricking at her eyes again as she focused on each bit of pain that she could feel. She took a deep breath, tilting her head up towards the ceiling where she drained the glass, setting it down next to her as she slowly eased herself to the ground.

Tig returned quickly, surprised that Sydney's hydrogen peroxide trick had worked—something he would have to remember. He re-entered the room, glad to see through the bathroom door that Sydney was no longer sitting on the counter, but the relief was quickly replaced with sadness as he crossed the threshold to see her sitting on the floor of the bathtub with her knees pulled up to her chest, staring distantly down the drain as the water rained down onto her head.

"I thought you were against sitting in the shower?" Sydney heard his soft voice as he settled in behind her, a small smile tugging at her lips.

"I made an exception." She turned her head towards him slightly, but not enough to actually be able to see him. "Besides, this is a bathtub so it doesn't count."

Tig smirked, closing his legs around her as he rubbed his hands down her arms comfortingly. "Is this one okay?" He asked as he reached for the white shampoo bottle where he hoped he could free her blonde hair of the red stains.

Sydney nodded, feeling her chest tighten as his hands found their way into her hair, rubbing it gently between his fingers as he cleaned each and every strand. She let the tears flow down her cheeks where she couldn't see or feel them under the water, but they weren't tears of sadness, they were tears that were fuelled by the one emotion that she still couldn't get a handle, on even if her life depended on it; love.

;

Hale drove straight to the Department of Justice as soon as he'd heard that the witness had been brought in, a scowl coming to his face as he rounded the corner to see a small girl sitting in one of the holding rooms where Stahl was showing her how to work the TV.

"Is she the girl who saw Bobby kill the port commissioner?" He asked out of the side of his mouth as Stahl exited the room.

"Yeah," she nodded as she guided him down the hall. "Eviqua Michaels. We're transferring her to a safehouse until the trial. Then, Eviqua Michaels becomes Jane Doe." She narrowed her eyes mischievously.

Hale's face contorted as anger took over him once again. "You can't do that!" He shook his head incredulously. "Burying evidence to get the outcome that you want… To get somebody hurt!"

"Well, I just figured I'd take a page from your book." She shrugged, looking over her shoulder where Bill was approaching. "I'll see you later," she squeezed his elbow with a smirk.

Hale stood more confused than ever, blinking as he tried to figure out what she had meant by that. Take a page from your book... "Deputy Chief Hale," he looked up. "I've been instructed to escort you from the building." Bill gave him a formal nod as two security guards approached behind him.

"What are you talking about?" His forehead creased even deeper.

"Agent Stahl's request." Bill smirked.

Hale looked over his shoulder, down the hall where he saw that same devious smirk on her face that she'd worn this morning, and suddenly her words made sense. His cover had been blown. She'd found out about him burying Sydney's records, that was why she'd allowed Lemmings to do what he did. She had waited for the perfect moment to cut him loose.

"Come with me, sir." He heard one of the guards over his shoulder.

"I don't need an escort." He sneered. He had no problem walking out of this place; a place where people played dirty to get what they wanted, not to keep the peace—no matter who got hurt, or how badly. He shook his head in disappointment as he passed the golden Liberty Bell that sat above the fountain in the lobby. There was no justice here.

;

Tig felt his brows knit when he heard a drawer slamming behind him from where he stood in front of his closet with a towel wrapped around his waist, turning to see Sydney quickly getting dressed in one of his t-shirts, and the only clean pair of pants that she had in his dorm at the moment.

"What are you doing?" He asked as she yanked the shirt over her head and tucked it up under her bra.

"Getting dressed for church." She replied matter-of-factly as she continued her angry movements, the only way that she could force herself to push through the crippling embarrassment at the thought of facing everybody after they watched what had been done to her.

"You don't wanna stay here while I wash your clothes?"

"No." She told him as she tied the drawstring on the black sweatpants, walking past him in her bare feet. She had cowered last time, and after freezing up during the takedown, she couldn't cower again.

;

Song for this chapter

Oh No! - grandson