The Final Ride

Chapter 9

"He came through beautifully."

The surgeon spoke proudly as he spoke with Rory and Happy and not twelve hours later Knox was awake although not completely with it. There were still hurdles and the child would not yet be released but he was through the worst of it.

Happy smiled to himself, watching Rory and Knox, as he slipped out of the room to call Jax. It was still relatively early in the morning but Happy was sure Jax would already be awake and he was correct.

"Hey Hap," Jax sighed as he looked at the two dead prospects who had been stationed at the warehouse overnight. "Knox out of surgery?" They weren't even protecting anything, just waiting for Galindo and the first coke haul, but that didn't seem to matter.

"Yeah," his smile came through clearly in his voice. "There's still some issues but he's alive, he's gonna be alright."

"That's great," Jax was thrilled for Happy, and Tig, but the blood pooling at his feet was much stronger than the more positive news. "Look, if you can manage to ge-"

Jax wasn't cut off at first, he was drowned out by the explosive blast behind him. The phone went dead as he hit the ground and Happy bolted down the hall without a second of hesitation.

Rory didn't know or care where Happy was. She held Knox's hand as he dozed in and out, the pain medication hazing his consciousness, and simply smiled as she gazed at him.

When the door opened again it was Mrs. Whittle hesitant to enter until she saw Rory wave her forward. "I got your message. I'm so glad he's going to be okay."

"I honestly didn't think he was going to be," Rory admitted.

"With what happened," she trailed off. "I can't say I blame you but it's done, he's here and he's not going anywhere."

Rory nodded. "How are Ash and Emma?"

"They're fine," she assured Rory. "Emma was, troubled, I guess you could say, she wasn't optimistic but she's alright now. Ash just missed his brother, he's got no idea."

"Good," Rory sighed. "Emma saw so much, she suffered more than anyone should have to, we were so stupid when she was little."

"You learn," Mrs. Whittle said in a soft tone. "Every parent has to find their rhythm, their parenting style."

"How do you find a parenting style when you have dead men's blood on your hands too? Murderers coming after your family? I just wish we knew then what we know now, my poor Emma."

"She's better off than you think," Mrs. Whittle smiled, "And stronger than you realize."

"Thank you," Rory sniffled. "I don't know what I'd do without you."

"Don't get too attached, honey, I'm old remember?"

Not wanting to discuss the topic any further, Rory excused herself to grab a coffee and stop at the vending machines. She wasn't entirely with it, exhaustion clouding her brain, as she stirred the creamer into her paper cup.

"Good news about Knox," Tig's dealer popped up beside her but Rory had no idea who he was.

"Excuse me?" She drew her head back, the surprise and suspicion waking her up instantly. "Who are you?"

"I'm a friend of Tig's," he smiled. "It's great that he's okay. I just came by as a show of support." The dealer had been given the green light to continue his harassment, the more serious the better, and he jumped in excitedly.

"Please don't come by again," she said forcefully. "I don't need strange men lingering around my son's hospital room, especially if you're friendly with Tig."

The dealer smiled and nodded, his eyes locked with hers for a long moment before he headed back toward the elevators.

"Fucking dick," Rory sighed, dragging her feet back to Knox's room.

--

Happy rolled by the clubhouse to find two prospects among the mechanics and crow eaters, apparently everyone else had been with Jax. Furious with himself, Happy took off toward the warehouse and arrived in record time. There was no need to search. Jax was slumped over, sitting in the gravel against his bike, the warehouse ablaze behind him, while the others discussed the situation in varying degrees of panic.

"What the fuck happened?" Happy asked as he tossed his helmet aside and joined them. "You alright, Prez?"

"I'm fine," he groaned. "We lost V-Lin and Phil, I found em' right before the warehouse went up while we were on the phone."

"That's all we know." Bobby sighed heavily. "Galindo is gonna be here is twelve hours and we got nowhere else to put the coke."

"Hap," Tig scurried away from the group. "How's Knox?"

"He's fine," Happy said with disdain. "We'll talk about the kid later."

"What are we thinking?" Jax asked as he slowly clambered to his feet. "Who are we thinking?"

"I'd bet my left nut this is Galindo's shit blowing back on us." Kozik crossed his arms as he leaned back against a tree. "We good with everyone else."

"Is there any way we can put this shit out?" Ope suggested but even he knew it was impossible. "It's gonna spread."

"No, we gotta let it burn," Jax said sadly. "There's nothing in there to tie it to us so we gotta take the loss."

"I'll make the call," Bobby said as they walked back to their bikes. "Anonymous tip," he grumbled holding the phone to his ear.

"Romeo is gonna be pissed," Happy mumbled to Jax. "I'm with you when you talk to him, Prez."

"How's your family?" Jax asked quietly as V-Lin and Phil were loaded into the van.

Happy nodded. "We're fine, I can do this."

"There's no one else I'd want having my back, brother."

"I got you," Happy promised as they got back on their bikes and sped away before the firefighters and police arrived.

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Sorry for the wait and length! Life has been insane! Sadly, chapters may not be posted as quickly as before. Hope that's okay! Comments and votes are always appreciated. Thanks for reading guys! Xoxo