A Kiss To Send Us Off

Chapter 21

It wasn't hard to remove Raylan from the situation. Juice relayed the conversation, save for a few gnarly details, and the Marshal headed out to drum up the money.

"We can clean out the safe," Bobby explained with one eye on Juice. "But that drains us, completely."

"No, I can add like 20, I'm not taking the club's money. I don't think it's necessary, if Uncle Sam can pay the ransom we're better off." The club gave him a shocked look. No one expected Juice to have twenty thousand dollars just floating around. "What?" He shrugged. "I save a lot, I spend wisely. Now we just have one thing left to deal with."

"Yeah, killing Jacob Hale," Tig groaned. "Money might be easier."

Juice's head fell. "If it was Tara or Gemma, no one would blink an eye, I'll do it myself I don't care."

That was something Chibs knew would be almost impossibly difficult for Juice. He shook his head and stubbed his cigarette out. "Not alone, Juicy. I don't see the problem. He needs to die anyway, the shite he's pulled, it's time."

"Charming Heights would crumble," Jax added for Clay. "He agreed to drop out of the mayoral race but he clung to that fucking project. No Hale, no Heights, it's simple."

The room was silent, all eyes on Clay, as he thought over the club's next move. "We take him, alive, if Salazar wants him dead he can kill him himself."

Each member nodded, it was a fair compromise but even if it didn't work Juice and Chibs had no intention of not putting a bullet Hale's head.

"Why don't we talk to Alvarez?" Jax suggested. "Maybe there's some whispers between brown? If we can get to Salazar before the meet, we don't have to spend the cash at all and killing Hale will be on our own terms."

Juice was very interested in that, it seemed safer and if it ended up getting Amelia home sooner he wanted to try. "Let me go, if he can help us I want to do it. I gotta find her, I don't want to take this assholes orders."

"Alright," Clay gripped the gavel. "Hap, Tig and Chibs get on Hale while me Jax and Juice talk to Alvarez."

--

"Are you going to kill us?" Amelia asked as Hector sat across from her whispering in Spanish. "They'll get the money and they'll kill Hale, please just don't kill us."

"They hold up their end," he hissed as he looked up from the table at her. "I'll hold up mine but you got more than Hale wanting your head."

"What?" Her face scrunched up as she tried to imagine who would have it out for her.

"Oh mama, I'm bailing out of this because Hale is out. I don't need to get myself in more trouble." Grabbing a fist full of her hair he dragged her back up into the attic.

"Jesus," Lowen sighed as Salazar locked the door on his way out. "I thought he killed you."

"No, he had me call them. They planned to meet tonight to trade us for cash and a dead Jacob Hale but this guy is far from stable, I'm afraid he'll flip out."

"Him? Unstable?" Lowen asked with feigned disbelief. "We just keep quiet, do what he asks and hopefully we'll be home soon."

--

Tim dropped an impressively thick file on Hector Salazar in front of Raylan. "Petty shit, it's pathetic really. He's got no real estate in his name but there's a dead aunt whose house is up for sale and a cousin in Fresno."

"That aunt," Raylan started, "Where's the house?"

"Oakland. Guys not smart, she's gotta be there."

"I'm going." Raylan slammed the file shut and grabbed his keys. "You coming with?"

"I live for this shit." Tim said with a confident nod. "Let's go."

--

"I'm out, Max," Hale spoke firmly. "I don't understand. Your wife died, she's dead, and you're still playing this game with your niece."

Sniffling for Hale's benefit, Max rolled his eyes as he sighed off on the funeral plans for Helen. "That's why I need this to happen. She needs to see and I can't wait for them to screw up. I can control this, she'll be unharmed, and she'll leave Charming for good."

"I can't help you anymore. Hector Salazar is the man I hired, he has her, you coordinate with him, not me. I'm out."

The call ended abruptly after Hale gave Max the phone number. As angry as Max was, he saw an opportunity he never imagined would present itself.

"What?" Hector snapped as he answered the call on his way down from the attic.

"Mr. Salazar, I'm the man who is paying you for this job. Jacob Hale is a liability, I need for you to go off plan. Kill the lawyer, rough up the redhead and make sure she knows you're doing this because of the Sons of Anarchy."

The plan had been out the window for a while now but Salazar didn't admit that. He'd much rather take this information to the Sons and buy good faith with them than play with whoever this man was.

"Alright," he mumbled. "Where do you want her? Hospital?"

"Don't drop her at Saint Thomas, get a pen and take down this address."

Hector played along, he'd take the girls and head out while calling the club to negotiate a new deal. Hopefully it would be one that kept him safer than had he crossed them to begin with.

"Let's go." He burst into the attic and pulled his gun. "You're staying though." With a swift arm, Hector slammed he butt on his gun into Lowen's temple. "Don't worry, Reds. She's less important and I don't trust you two on this trip."

--

Will they find her?! If they do, who will get to her first?! Eek!

Votes and comments please! I love hearing from you guys. Thanks for reading! I started a Twitter account, @PBBWriter, so follow me! I thought it would be fun to have one just for this stuff! Xoxo