A/N: Here's the next chapter. It's going to start getting slightly AU beginning with this chapter…well more so than it already has. After this chapter it's going to jump to Abel's homecoming.

Chapter 14: Hell Followed

Jax POV

It had been one hell of a night. Mayans had tried to kill Clay shooting the Irishman instead. I'd gone to get medical supplies from Tara because Chibs needed more than what he had. On my way back to the clubhouse Tara had called and said that Kohn had ambushed her in her house. Mother fucker was supposed to be on a plane back to Chicago. When I'd gotten back to her house, I'd found out that he'd tried to rape her and that she'd gotten his gun and shot him in the stomach. When I walked into her bedroom, he started spouting off shit about her. As if it was instinct, I walked over to him and shot him a couple more times… killing him.

The next morning, as I was leaving Tara's house with the medical supplies to head back to the clubhouse, Ma and Tig had ambushed me and Ma was trying to ambush Tara. She didn't need that shit right now. Tig was being a dick. Ever since we'd come back from Washington, he'd been treating everyone like crap. No doubt he was still pissed about the revelations that had come about in Washington, but he needed a reality check. When I'd made it back to the clubhouse, I'd found out that Chibs was going to need a surgeon and it was clear that we couldn't take him to the hospital. The man was wanted on 4 continents. We were gonna need Tara's help. Gemma and Clay had insisted that Ope ride with me to go get her.

When we made it back, Bells was there trying to help Chibs the best that she could. She'd taken over for Juice plugging the bullet hole in the Irishman's ass. I decided to take that time to shower and change.

Bella POV

"Thanks for helping." I said to Tara after we'd finished patching up the Irishman. I wasn't stupid. I knew that the Club was deep in with some bad stuff, but everyone just kept telling me that he was a friend. That may be…but I guess my inner Gemma was coming out and I needed to know if I could trust Tara around my family.

"It's not a problem. It's what I do." Tara said. I looked at her confused. "Saving lives." She said and I nodded.

"Right." I said, still unsure. "You know that Jax is my cousin right?" I asked her.

"Of course." She said.

"I'd do anything for my family. I know about the history with you and Jax. We talk. You planning on sticking around this time or are you gonna bail the minute that things get hard." I said.

She stared at me for a minute. "You're a lot like Gemma." Tara said.

"Yeah well she's my aunt. It's in my blood. You still didn't answer my question." I said. She didn't answer so I turned on my heel and walked out of the room closing the door behind me. I saw Ope and I walked over to him and hugged him.

"I'm okay." He said knowing that I was worried. I nodded. "Listen I need you to get cleaned up and take over the office today. Gemma's not in any condition to work. Pick ups only no drop offs. Got it?"

I nodded. "You gonna tell me what the hell is going on?" I asked him.

He ran a hand over his face. We walked back to his dorm room so that I could get cleaned up. "Mayans tried to kill Clay last night. While that was happening somebody was across town trying to kill Darby. The guy in the there… that's our Irish connection. Unser came and picked Clay up. They think that he was behind one of the shootings." Ope said.

"That's ridiculous. Clay wouldn't shoot the Nords. He would stab them." I said smirking.

Ope wrapped an arm around my waist and pulled me close to him. "That's kinda hot." He said, leaning down and kissing me.

Later that afternoon, I was working on some paperwork in the office for Gemma when I heard a bunch of motorcycles pulling into the lot. I stood up from my chair and walked outside. "What's going on?" I asked Gemma as she walked across the parking lot.

She walked over and hugged me. "You know what happened last night?" She asked me.

"Yeah Ope told me." I said.

"Clay's got the other charters coming in so that he can figure out how to handle it." She said.

I nodded. I knew what this meant. "Retaliation?" I asked and she nodded.

"Close up the office and come help me in the Clubhouse." She said and I nodded.

I walked back over to the garage. I told the guys that were in there that they were finished for the day. Then I walked into the office. I shut everything down and grabbed my bag. I was locking up the office when I heard my name. I turned around and saw my Dad. I crossed my arms and walked toward him. "Hey." I said.

"You okay?" He asked me. Dad knew that Ope and I had a full disclosure policy despite how much he thought that I should know.

"I'm fine. I gotta go help Gem in the clubhouse." I said trying to walk around him.

"Bells." He said causing me to turn around.

"What Dad? Ever since we came back from Washington, you seem to be making it clear that you don't wanna be around me so what is it?" I asked him.

He ran a hand over his face. "It's not that I don't wanna be around you kid. I just don't want you to end up getting hurt because of shit that we do around here." Dad said.

"You don't give me enough credit Dad. I can handle this shit." I told him before I make my way over to the clubhouse. When I walked in, a couple of the guys were carrying the Irishman back to a dorm room. I walked over to the Chapel knowing it was gonna need to be cleaned. I saw Gemma and Tara talking. It actually looked kind of peaceful. "Gem." She looked over at me. "You want me to clean in here?" I asked her.

She walked over to me and patted my cheek. "You're a good one baby." She said kissing me on my cheek.

After I got the Chapel cleaned up, I walked out to the barroom. "I gotta go pick up the kids." I told Gemma.

"I got Neeta to do it. She's gonna sit with them at my house for a bit. I need you to hang around here." She said.

"Everything okay?" I asked.

She looked over at the Chapel doors. "It will be." She said looking back at me.

Opie POV

Clay had made a deal with Alvarez. I wasn't sure how this was gonna play out. Now we were selling to the Mayans and the Niners. Bells wasn't going to like this. But it's not exactly like we had a choice. We needed the money to keep the Irish Pipeline going. The thing that made me really uneasy was now we had to get rid of the Port Commissioner. Bobby and Jax and Tig were handling the Port Commissioner. Clay had wanted me to go but Tig knew that Bells needed me right now so he'd volunteered to go instead.

Bells POV

I'd been helping Gemma around the Clubhouse, trying to get things cleaned up. We both knew that with ATF hanging around that it was a possibility that they might show up. I'd noticed that Tara had decided to hang around as well. There was something going on with her and Jax and one way or another I knew that Aunt Gem was going to try and find out. I knew that she'd been stalked by one of the ATF agents that had been hanging around but as far as anyone knew he'd headed back to Chicago.

That night, Opie and I had picked the kids up from Gemma's and headed home. After we'd finished with dinner and the kids were in bed, we were laying on the couch and I was snuggled into his side. "So, I noticed that Tara hung around today." I mentioned.

He was rubbing his hand up and down my back. "Yeah, I'm not sure what's going on there. Jax isn't saying much. I just hope that it doesn't end up like last time." Ope said.

I knew a little about Tara from my conversations with Jax and Gem but my biggest concern was whether or not we could trust her. I knew that when Tara had graduated that she'd left Charming leaving Jax broken hearted. "Do you think we can trust her?" I asked him, looking up at him.

"I don't know babe. I think the only thing that we can do is just be there for him." Ope said. I nodded against his chest.

The next morning, I was working in the TM office when there was a knock on the office door. I looked and saw a woman in a suit. She looked like a cop. I leaned back in my chair and crossed my arms. "Can I help you?" I asked.

"I'm looking for Bella Trager." She said.

"You found her." I said.

"I'm June Stahl, ATF. I was hoping that I could ask you a couple of questions." She said.

"Depends." I said. Aunt Gem had warned me that the ATF didn't have anything on the Club so there was a chance that they would start questioning the women that were close to the club.

She walked over and stood in front of my desk. "Your father is Alexander Trager, your aunt is the Queen of SAMCRO and your dating Opie Winston." She said.

"What's your point?" I asked.

"Do you have any idea about any illegal activities that the club might be up to?" She asked me.

I stood up from my desk and walked around. With my arms still crossed I stood right in front of her. "I work here in the office. As far I know the club is made up of mechanics and Harley enthusiasts. If you want to know anything about the club, ask the club." I said.

"Gemma trained you well didn't she?" She said and I smirked at her. She started to walk towards the door but then she turned back and looked back at me. "How do you feel about Opie's ex-wife being back in town?" She asked me. I felt my face fall. "Yeah that's what I thought. I'll be seeing you Ms. Trager." She said before she walked out.

I sat back down at my desk and watched Half-Sack walk in. "You okay Bells?" He asked me.

"No. Just get out and shut the door." I said.

"Yeah sure." He said walking out closing the door behind him.

Opie POV

Jax and I had ridden to St Thomas because Tara had called completely freaked out. I waited in the hallway while he talked to her. ATF was trying to get information on the women that were close to the club. So that meant Gemma, Tara, Bells, Luann and Cherry. They'd already arrested Luann on possession and they had Cherry on arson charges. We knew that we didn't have anything to worry about with Gemma or Bells. We knew they wouldn't say anything. My biggest fear was that Stahl would tell Bells that Donna was back in town. I hadn't had a chance to talk to her since Jax and I had run into her this morning at the diner. While I was waiting on Jax, my cell rang. Half-Sack. I quickly flipped my phone open. "Yeah." I said.

"Hey man. You might wanna head back to TM." Sack said.

"Why? What's going on?" I asked.

"Feds were here and Bells looks pissed off." He said.

I sighed and ran my hand over my face. "Yeah ok. I'll be there as soon as I can. Keep an eye on her for me, will ya?" I said.

"Sure thing. She's locked herself in the office." He said.

I hung up. I stuck my phone back in my pocket as Jax walked back out into the hallway to join me. "Everything okay?" He asked me.

"Feds showed up at TM to question Bells." I told him. "I think they might have told her about Donna." I said.

He nodded knowing that we'd been busy so I hadn't had a chance to tell her. "Let's go." He said.

When we got back to TM, Jax headed into the clubhouse to fill Clay in on everything while I made my way over to the office. I slowly opened the office door, walking in and shutting it behind me. She looked up at me for a second before looking back down at the paperwork that she was working on. "Not now, Ope." She said.

I walked over to the couch and sat down. I pulled my smokes out and lit one. "I was gonna tell you. It's just been a crazy day." I said. She didn't say anything. "I ran into her this morning at the diner." I told her.

"She back for good?" She asked me.

"I honestly don't know. She didn't ask about me and she didn't ask about the kids. I honestly don't know why she's here." I told her.

She looked up and turned to face me. "I shouldn't have been blindsided." She said.

"I know babe." I said and she nodded. "We okay?" I asked.

She nodded. "Yeah we're okay. Go deal with shit." She said. I knew that she wasn't completely okay but I hoped that she was okay enough until we at least got home and then she could take it out on me in the comfort of our home.

Bella POV

"Sack, I'm going out for a bit." I said poking my head into the office.

"Sure thing Bells. I got the office." He said and I nodded.

I walked over to my car and hopped in. I drove the familiar streets through Charming to the diner that SAMCRO frequented. There had to be a reason that she was back, I just had to find out what it was. If she was back for Ope, I needed to remind of the fact that she left Ope and that I was with him now.

When I walked into the diner, I saw Gloria, the older woman who ran it. "Hey Bells." She greeted me.

I smiled at her. "Hey Gloria, how's it going?" I said.

She leaned against the counter. "It's good. How's the family?" She asked.

"Their good. Kids are ready for summer that's for sure." I told her.

She nodded. She leaned closer to me. "You here to see Donna?" She asked me quietly. I nodded. "I'll grab her." She said. "Hey Don, you got a visitor." Gloria called to the back.

A few minutes later, a brunette woman walked out. I gave her a tight smile. "I think you and I should have a talk." I said, calmly.

"Perhaps we should." She said. "Outside?" I nodded. I turned around and walked outside. I leaned up against my car. I pulled my smokes out of my back pocket and lit one. A minute later, Donna walked outside. "So I guess it's safe to say that you're the one that Opie's with now?" She asked me.

I took a hit of my cigarette and blew the smoke out. "You'd be correct." I said. "Why are you here?" I asked her.

"Charming is my home." She said.

I laughed. "From what I've heard, the second Ope got out of Chino you couldn't bail fast enough." I said.

"You don't know anything about me." She said.

"I know your type. My mother was just like you." I said, taking a hit from my cigarette. "So what'd you come back for?" I asked. She looked down at the ground. "Ope? The kids? Both?" I asked.

"Not that I really have to explain anything to you but yes. I came back for your family." She said.

I took another hit. "Ope won't stop you from seeing the kids if that what they want. And no… no one has brainwashed them against you. But as far as Ope… keep your distance. I'm not a girly girl. Gemma's my aunt. I fight dirty." I said, right as my phone rang. I pulled it out of my back pocket. Looking at the caller ID, I smiled. "Yeah. Be right there." I said and hung up. "I'll be seeing you Donna." I said, before climbing back in my car, heading back to TM.

When I pulled back up at TM, Gemma was in the office. I walked in and closed the door behind me. She looked up at me. "You okay?" She asked me. I nodded with a wicked smile on my face. "Oh no. What'd you do?" She asked.

I sat on the couch. "Guess who's back in Charming?" I asked her. She shrugged. "Donna." I said.

She rolled her eyes. "Why? She hates it here. She hates the club. She was miserable in her marriage to Ope." Gem said.

"Claims she's back for her family." I said.

Gem leaned back in her chair. "How'd that go?" She asked me.

"Nipped it in the bud." I said, smiling.

"Good girl." She smiled at me. "Go on home. I'm sure Neeta is tired. You off tomorrow?" She asked and I nodded.

When I walked in the front door, I sat my stuff down before I relieved Neeta. After she left, I walked towards the back of the house. Kenny was engrossed in some video game that Dad had gotten him. I walked into Ellie's room. "Hey kiddo." I said sitting down on her bed. She looked up at me and she had tears in her eyes. "What's wrong?" I asked.

"My mom came by." Ellie said.

I was shocked. "What?" I said.

Ellie nodded. "Why does she do this? I mean Kenny, Dad and I are happy." She asked me.

"I don't know, Elle. What I do know though, is that your Dad and I are gonna talk about this. Do you want to see her?" I said.

Ellie shook her head. "No. She hurt all of us when she left. Kenny doesn't wanna see her either." She said.

I pulled her in for a hug. "Okay. I'll talk to your dad, okay?" I said.

"Thanks Bells."

Opie POV

It had been a long day. When I was getting ready to leave the clubhouse, Tig had pulled me aside. He was worried about Bells with Donna being back. I told him that he had nothing to worry about because I loved Bells and the kids and I were so much happier with her than we ever were with Donna. He nodded, knowing that everything was okay as long as Bells was safe and happy.

When I walked through the front door of my house, it was quiet. Normally Bells would have been waiting for me on the couch, however tonight she wasn't. I took my Kutte off and hung it up before slipping my boots off and making my way through the house. When I walked into the bedroom, she was sitting up in bed with her laptop open on the bed. "Hey babe." I said.

She looked up at me. "Hey baby." She said.

"Rest of your day okay?" I asked her while I grabbed clothes to take a shower.

"Promise not to get mad?" She asked me.

I turned around and leaned against the dresser. I ran my hand over my face knowing that this was going to be bad. "What happened?" I asked.

"I met Donna today." She said and I nodded. She told me about how she went over to the diner to talk to Donna and find out her motives about why she was back. I guess I was kind of surprised when she told me that Donna wanted her family back. It made me happy that Bells said that I wouldn't stop her from seeing the kids. Bells completed me in every way. She was my perfect match. "However, when I got home, Ellie was upset. Donna came by the house at some point. Ellie said that neither her nor Kenny want to see her." She told me.

I ran my hand over my face again. "I can't say that I'm surprised. We were so lost when she left." I said. Bells got up from the bed and walked over to me, wrapping her arms around my waist. I wrapped my around her back. "And then you came along and it was like everything made sense, you know what I mean?" I said.

She nodded. "I know exactly what you mean baby." She said, leaning up and kissing me.