What I Love Most

Chapter 9

A few days had passed, the weekend came and went and before anyone realized it was time for Wednesday night church. Amelia sat at the bar, swinging her legs with a bottle of water in her hands trying desperately to pull herself from whatever darkness was settling over her. It had begun to lift since talking to Gemma but she found herself thrust back into a downward spiral she was sorely familiar with and she became exhausted by it quicker than usual. In the back of her mind she tried to remember what Clay had said, she swore he'd moved church to Thursday but they were all locked in the room just like every other Wednesday night. Mae trotted in for a beer, leaving Kenny and Ellie on the swings, and smiled politely at Amelia as she took a seat by her.

"Hey," Mae thanked Chuckie as he handed her a cold beer. "How are you?"

Amelia shrugged and nodded, "Good."

"You sure?"

"No, I'm just confused is all. My memory's been shit."

Mae nodded and gave her a sympathetic smile. "I hate that, happens to me too. Usually I just need a night off from playing step-mommy and wife. There's this shitty bar I go to, have a drink, let the old drunks hit on me and chat with the bartender, she's this sixty year old lesbian, I love her. Just a few hours there does wonders."

"That is just… well it's weird. Ope know?"

Mae laughed and nodded. "He doesn't care; it's like some kind of senior citizen bar, old biker type guys. He cleared it," she said in a mocking tone. "Sometimes they can be extreme."

"It's good though," Amelia said quickly. "They just want to protect us."

"Yeah but really the world isn't exactly as out to get us as they think." Amelia was about to disagree when they heard a roar and some loud thumps from church. They both jumped and looked toward the door with concern clouding their eyes. "Jesus, I didn't think it was that kind of night. Did something happen?"

"Not that I know of, I hardly know what's going on up here," she tapped her temple. "So I'm not the best one to get the news from."

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"Stahl's back? In Charming?" Opie was furious, his body tensed as he began to shake in his seat. "What the fuck does she want?" The whole club reacted with palpable fury but only Opie shouted out and after a moment of trying to suppress it, jumped from his seat and flung the chair back against the wall before slamming his fist down on the table.

"Brother," Jax didn't move toward him but tried to pull him back to the present and out of the memory of what Stahl had done. "Unser just told us, she's been here for about a week but he wanted to wait to see what she was dong before getting us too hyped up."

"Well, I'm hyped." He said, still on his feet and pacing in front of the doors. "What is she here for?"

Clay and Jax both shook their heads. "She's not giving him anything so he finally came to us." With a kind of softness that was foreign to him, Clay asked Opie a very sensitive question. "Do you think you could have Mae talk to Hale, see if she can't get anything out of him?"

"No." Opie barked quickly. "No fucking way. I don't even want that bitch knowing Mae's around."

"She's the only in," Clay argued but with little force. "We can't get any early leads unless she helps. She's gone to bat for the club before, Ope. She's an old lady, she knows it's something she has to do."

Opie's eyebrows furrowed as he looked at Clay with contempt. "The last time she tried to help the club she ended up beaten with a goddamn arm full of heroin. I'm not putting her at risk. I said no and that's it."

Jax cut Clay off before he could push any more, Opie wouldn't take another question, that was clear. "Alright, we got other avenues to take. Juice, reach out to your city hall snitch, see if they got anything and Otto's sister in Lodi."

"Yeah, I got that." He stubbed out his cigarette and nodded positively, anything he could do something to put the brakes on Stahl and any ATF case, he would. Juice had more to stay out of prison for now. "I'll get on it tonight."

Opie sat down again, his hands folded in front of him as he leaned over the edge of the table. "I wanna take care of this."

"Ope, I know what she did but you shouldn't do this alone." Chibs said sagely, all eyes on Piney's empty seat at the far end of the table. Another drunken night at the cabin, it was far from unusual but they could really have used him during the discussion of Stahl. "We will find a way."

"She won't hurt your family again, Ope." Tig said sadly, never forgetting his massive role in the pain Opie and his family suffered. "We won't let her."

There were things after the Stahl news on the docket for church but Clay glossed over them as no one at the table was really paying much attention. The fear federal eyes brought on them tapped everyone out, the fact the agent had such a dirty history made it that much worse. Clay ended the meeting and everyone somberly walked back into the main room to find Amelia in tears in Mae's arms on the couch. Clay hid his smile as Juice sat by her side.

"I've been meaning to ask you about that." Clay said as Tig watched with sorrowful eyes. "Is she okay?"

He shook his head; Tig really thought she was doing well until seeing her with Mae. "I don't know."

"Here," Juice said as he took over for Mae. "I got her, thanks Mae." He stroked her hair as she sniffled into his chest. "Meely, what's wrong?"

"Nothing," she pulled away from him and wiped her face. "I'm fine."

"You said she was on medication." Clay asked as they slowly made their way to the couch. "Maybe she stopped taking it? Think it's something with Juice?" It was pushy but Tig was concerned enough to not notice. His head was being filled with ideas that couldn't have been further from the truth, just like Clay planned.

"I don't know. I'll have to ask her." Moving ahead without Clay Tig sat on the other side of his daughter while Mae and Opie headed toward the door.

"What happened?" She looked up at him with wide eyes. "Is everything okay?"

"We'll talk at home, I'll follow you three back okay?"

Mae and the kids turned right out of the lot with Opie behind them while Juice drove Amelia in her car, making a left, with Tig close on their tail. There were conversations that needed to happen and neither would be fun, they all knew that.

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Had to cut this chapter in half since the conversations will not be short ones! xoxo