The Final Ride

Chapter 15

"Mom you have to come with us," Emma stomped as they arrived at the clubhouse. "Where are you going to go?"

"I'll be fine," Rory assured her daughter. Mrs. Whittle moved by them with Asher on her hip. "I'm going to stay at Saint Thomas with Knox, okay?"

Jax and Happy suspected Tara had something to do with Knox's delayed release but neither could prove it and neither wanted to question it without evidence. It was more peaceful that way.

"Please stay," Emma pleaded. "Mom, please."

"Emma, I can take care of myself." Rory promised.

"Who's gonna take care of us though?" She whispered. "Dad's gonna be busy with club stuff and, I love Mrs. Whittle but I'm scared and I want you here."

Rory inhaled sharply, the revelation hitting her right in the chest, and felt her eyes start to burn with tears. "I didn't know," she said quickly. "I'm sorry, Ems, I didn't think you were scared."

"I'm old enough to know now," she shrugged. "Before I was oblivious, like Ash," Emma pointed to the boy as he played happily with the other kids.

"I'll see if I can get your brother out and I'll be back here as soon as possible." Rory hugged Emma tight. "I'm sorry, Em. I'll be here as soon as I can get Knox out. I can't leave him there alone."

"I know," Emma hugged her mother with all her strength. "I just want us all here."

--

"Tomorrow morning," Tara said apologetically. "I already lied about his temp so I can't release him before the twenty four hour observation is done."

"Okay." Rory didn't like the answer but she had no choice and it was her fault anyway, she accepted that. "Yeah, we'll leave in the morning."

"If it makes you feel any better I'll be here," she said with a little smile.

"It does actually," Rory smiled and felt the tightness in her chest ease up a bit. "I know what you must think," Rory started but Tara interrupted quickly.

"I don't think anything," Tara assured her. "Especially after...what happened. You don't have to worry, I'm not judging you."

"But you did," Rory said quietly. "Right? I judged you when you left Charming back in the day."

Tara laughed. "Yeah, I did," she admitted. "But I've learned a lot and, I don't think bad of you, at all."

"Thanks, you have no idea how much that means," Rory sighed.  "You think we'll all come outta this?"

Tara shrugged. "Jax says we will, he says we'll be fine. I have to believe that. If I don't, I have to leave and that's not an option."

--

It wasn't until almost dinner that Knox was discharged. Paperwork and roadblocks seemed to pop up every few minutes after an original delay due to questionable blood work.

"Going home, Mommy?" He asked from the backseat, bright eyes and excited, a bandage still wrapped around his head.

Looking in the rearview, Rory shook her head. "Sorry baby, we're not. We're going to Daddy and Happy's clubhouse for a big family sleepover."

"Daddy is sick," he said sadly. "But Happy and Emma and Asher and Gramma will be there?"

Smiling at his sweet demeanor and innocence, Rory nodded as she turned the corner off Main. "And all your uncles and cousins, baby."

Knox clapped his hands and kicked his feet excitedly, the horror of it hidden away, and Rory felt suddenly better about staying there.

"Mama?"

"Yes baby?"

"Is the man coming back?"

Stopping short, Rory turned and looked at Knox. "What man?"

"The man from Daddy's?" He pouted a little. "Daddy was mad and that's how I got my boo boo." His little finger pointed to his head and Rory held in a sob.

"Daddy gave you the boo boo or the man?"

"The man," Knox had no idea the weight of his words. "Daddy was mad though."

"He wasn't mad at you, baby," Rory used every iota of her considerable strength to keep from sobbing. "Can you remember anything about the man?"

"Not really," he shrugged, gazing out the window as they pulled into the lot.

"If you do you let me or Happy know, okay?"

"Okay, mama."

Outside the clubhouse Happy, Emma, Abel and Jax tossed around a basketball, a rusted old hoop was set up by the boxing ring, while Asher was swinging joyfully on the play set.

"Hap," Rory jumped out of the car as Tara pulled Knox out of the backseat.

"I'll get him settled in the apartment," Tara assured Rory.

"Thanks," Rory jogged past her toward Happy. "We have to talk, Emma give us a second." Emma didn't mind, she tossed the ball to Abel and the three of them continued their pickup game.

"You okay?"

"I'm fine, but Tig lied about what happened to Knox."

"What the fuck really happened?"

"Someone else was in the house," she hissed. "Knox asked if the man was going to be here, he said the man hurt him and Tig was angry."

"Who the fuck is the man?"

"I don't know," she couldn't hold her em' tears back any longer. "It's either his personal shit or it's got to do with this."

"Or his personal shit and this fucking hooked up," Happy growled.

"I've gotta go talk to him, he should be more lucid by now, right?"

"Maybe," he shrugged. "But I don't think you should go, Ror."

"He's my son," she snapped. "We don't know if this has shit to do with SAMCRO so right now, I'm going. If he wanted to talk to the club he would have, Hap."

"You're the worst," he groaned. "I love you, be fucking careful."

"I will," she leaned up and kissed him. "I love you too. Watch the kids, please."

"I got it," he promised as she jogged back to her car.

--

When Rory arrived Tig was unconscious, just like he was the past few times she had come by, but this was important. She raced down to the nurses' station and asked to speak with his doctor but they claimed he wasn't available.

"Okay," Rory snapped. "Then can someone talk to me about him? I'm concerned."

"Are you family?" The nurse asked as she reached for her laptop.

"I am," Rory shrugged. "Closest thing he's got to it really."

"He's sedated," she sighed. "Had a bit of a freak out earlier, kept trying to pull out the IVs. Dr. Garner thinks it's some kind of panic attack from a mix of the concussion and maybe some memory loss. It's very hard to tell when they're in such a state."

"Oh," Rory was taken aback by the news. "Wow. Okay."

"I'm sorry I don't have better news for you."

"Thank you," Rory forced a smile. "I can sit with him a while?"

"As long as you'd like," the nurse said with a smile.

Rory dragged her feet back to Tig's room and threw herself down in the visitor's chair. "What did you do, Alex?" She ran her fingers up and down his fingers slowly, examining the bruises and other minor injuries from his meltdown. "We all need you. You're a fucking dick but please wake the fuck up. I need to know what happened and Knox needs a father. I'm so sorry I was so awful, Alex. You were trying to protect our baby. I'm so sorry."

Resting her head on the edge of the mattress, her fingers gently laced with his, she closed her eyes before she began to cry.