Take Me to Church

The next morning came way too fast.

I woke up, naked and sore in my own bed. Chibs was still asleep in the bed next to me. He looked so peaceful while he was sleeping, I wanted nothing more than to stay in bed with him all day. Unfortunately, I knew I couldn't.

Scooting closer to my husband, i began placing small kisses up and down his neck until he started to wake up. His arms snaked around me and pulled me against his body, he held me there without opening his eyes. "Well, good morning to you too. I could get used to waking up like this. " He chuckled softly. I rolled my eyes before looking over his facial features. "You need to get up sweet heart, we have church soon." I whispered softly in his ear.

Groaning, his eyes opened and he looked down at me. "Aye, I guess you're right. We should get up." He gave in rather quickly. Laughing, rather loudly at my husband, I rolled over and climbed out of the bed.

I heard his feet landing on the floor as he did the same.

Walking into the closet, I picked out something rather simple. A pair of ripped up black skinny jeans, a grey shirt with floral design on the sleeves, a choker around my neck, black combat boots on my feet, and my cut on my back.

Once we were both dressed and ready, we locked up the house, and left. Normally, I would feel bad for leaving Dyna at home by herself; but the large dog spends every day at the club, so she can survive a day at home. Especially since I would be returning home after attending church anyway. My stomach was definitely not happy with me this morning.

"I pressed Pope about these home invasions. He swears it ain't coming from him. He's gonna dig into the street to see if he can turn up any Intel." Jax started things off by getting right down to business. "Jax, you really believe this guy?" Tig questioned, looking to the club president, warily. "Look, we all know who this guy is; and what he's capable of. What he's doing now suggests he's telling the truth." Jax sighed, shaking his head.

"What's that, taking half our muling cut?" Happy scoffed. "Like offering to double it." JAx spoke, waving towards Bobby.

Bobby quickly pulled out a brown bad and dumped its contents out onto the table in front of him. Our eyes were met with a large sum of money. Something about the way it happened, immediately had Happy eating his words "Pope can push another thirty keys east through Reno. We talked to Luis, Galindo can easily up the supply. Now, what that means for us is, we'll haul sixty keys back from AZ. Pope gives us back the fifty he was going to take, and another hundred on top of it." Jax explained to us.

"This guy realizes he can make a lot more money if we're an ally." Bobby added, a smig look on his face. That's when Clay cleared his throat. "I've seen guys like Damon Pope. I know how they operate. They make offers too good to pass up, line your pockets with cash. Before you know it, you're wearing shackles." Clay spoke out some sort of warning.

"My club is never going to be anyone's boy." Jax glared at the older man. The tension between the two could be cut with a dull knife.

"Clay's right, man. This shit only gets us deeper." Juice pointed out to everyone sitting around the table. I was a bit shocked to hear Juice of all people backing Clay. Now, I'm not saying he was wrong, or that I fully agree with Jax- I just don't trust anything that Clay says or does. Why should I?

"We're getting out of the coke haul, that's a promise. But for now, for me, this is what makes the most sense." Jax said with a sigh.

Everyone around the table looked more than concerned by the situation in front of us. "Jax is just doing what he believes is best for the club. For this family." I had to force the words out of my lips. "Let's vote it. Everyone in favor?" Jax flashed me a sort of thankful expression as he spoke.

Seven to five, it passed and that was that.

We were dismissed after that. Chibs and I walked out of the chapel together, and I made my way out to the bar and got myself a bottle of water. "You feeling alright, sweetheart?" I felt Chibs' arm snake around my waist.

Turning around, my hands clutched the bottle as I smiled up at the man I was madly in love with. "I'm fine, the baby's just making my stomach do back flips, and I didn't get much sleep last night." I winked at him. I could faintly see the slight blush that began tinting his cheeks. I absolutely loved know that I was able to do that to him. Loved knowing what kind of effect I had on him.

"I think I may just go home and lay down. I'm so tired, I doubt I'd be very much help with what all has to be done today." I laughed ever so slightly. "You sure about that, love?" He asked, pushing my hair out of my face as he looked down at me. Reaching up, I placed my hand down over his own before pulling it away from my face. "Don't worry about me, you just worry about you." I ordered. He once more smiled down at me softly.

"Fine, but at least take Rat with you." He gave in. I could tell based off of his tone that this was not something I'd be able to talk my way out of. I can argue with him about it, but that won't get me anywhere.

"Fine, he can hang out with Dyna while I take a nap." I gave in with a sigh. A smile immediately appeared on my husband's face as he looked at me. After a few moments, he even started to laugh. "I can't believe you caved so easily. Normally you would've started a huge argument over this." He continued to laugh. I thought over my words carefully before responding to his taunt. "Well, normally, we don't spend six hours having sex nonstop. So you'll forgive me if I'm a bit tired."

Hearing someone choke, I turned my head to see Tig standing there with a glass to his lips and his eyes had gone wide. Obviously he had heard my words. "Just go home, call if you need anything." He kissed the top of my head before walking away.

That's when Tig took a step towards me.

"Six hours, really? Or are you exaggerating?" Tig was brave enough to ask me. Though his tone was hushed. I laughed at the man as I crossed my arms over my chest. "Yes, Tiggy, six hours." I laughed lighly. Immediately, he turned his body so that he was now facing me completely.

"So how are you, uh, I mean aren't you, well, hurting? Geez, no wonder you guy finally got pregnant. Congrats by the way." Tig began speaking rapidly, causing me to laugh at him. Loudly. Shaking my head, I pushed myself away from the bar. "Rat, let's go!" I shouted at the skinny man who was standing across the room. The boy nodded his head before moving to follow me outside.

Climbing on our bikes, we left the club and headed for home.

Dyna was more than happy when she saw us walking through the door. She jumped up on her hind legs and put her front paws on my shoulders. "Hiya baby! Did you miss mommy while she was gone?" I cooed at the large puppy.

"Getting kind of big, ain't she?" Rat laughed softly as Dyna turned her attention to the man standing behind me. "Nah, she's still just a baby." I waved off his comment. Kicking my shoes off by the door, I turned to face the man that was standing there. "I'm gonna go take a shower. Will you take Dyna for a walk and keep her entertained for a bit?" I breathed out, leaning against the wall by the stairs.

"Yeah, no problem. You go rest." Have waved at me slightly as he moved to grab Dyna's leash off of the wall. Waving back, I said nothing as I disappeared up the stairs.

Making my way into the bathroom, I shut and locked the door behind myself. Pulling my phone out of my pocket, I set it on the counter before pulling the cut off of my shoulders. Pushing my hair out of my face, I turned around and turned the water on so it could heat up.

I unstrapped the holster from my leg and set it on the counter next to my phone before I continued to get undressed. Then, I jumped into the shower. My body relaxed almost completely under the spray of hot water. As much as I loved the way Chibs made me feel, especially when he touches me; but I cannot stand feeling dirty or sweaty. This shower was definitely something I desperately needed.

I would be able to fall asleep easily after my shower. I would be able to catch up on the sleep I missed out on last night. No that is not me complaining about the events of last night; but growing another human was rather tiring.

After washing myself off, I climbed out of the shower and wrapped myself in a towel.

The bathroom was absolutely freezing as I stood there. Hearing a loud bang come from down the stairs, I just figured it was Dyna running around with Rat. Shaking my head ever so slightly, I grabbed another towel and used it to dry off my face before ringing out my hair.

When I heard another violent sounding crash, I decided it couldn't have been Dyna- she doesn't play like that. Worry flooded my body as I thought over what all could possibly be about to happen. "Rat, is that you?" I shouted through the closed door. If there was someone in the house, I didn't want them know exactly where I was. The closed door would at least muffle my voice somewhat.

Reaching down, I picked my phone up off of the counter and dialed the first speed dial number saved to the phone. Using my free hand as the phone rang, I reached down and took my gun out of the holster.

"Everything alright, love?" Chibs was breathing heavy as he answered the phone. I could hear footsteps coming down the hallway, "Filip, there's someone in the house. I don't know where Rat is but I'm pretty sure it's not him." I breathed out, already knowing that he was going to be angry. "What the hell do you mean you don't know where he is?" He shouted.

"I asked him to take Dyna for a walk while I showered, but I know this isn't him. The foot steps are far too heavy." The footsteps were even closer now. I sucked in a deep breath.

Suddenly, the door burst open. My body jumped and a startled yelp escaped from between my lips. I froze upon seeing who was standing there. I could heard Chibs' voice shouting through the phone, but I couldn't hear what was being said as the device slipped out of my hand. He rushed towards me, but I couldn't bring myself to move. My body slammed back against the wall, my head hitting hard and gun slipping out of my hand.

"Clay put you up to this didn't he? That's why he brought all of you to Charming." I spoke in a strained voice. Rushing forward, Gogo reached around the back of my head and grabbed a fistful of my hair. In the process, I could hear him step on the discarded phone in the floor and the device shattered. I cursed myself for not realizing it sooner. The home invasions only ever started after Clay recruited the three Nomads. Why wasn't it more obvious? "You know, I'm getting real tired of you running that mouth of yours. I think it's about time I shut you up." He growled.

Moving quickly, my knee shot up between his legs- causing him to release my hair and go crashing down to the floor. I used it as my moment to make a mad dash out of the bathroom. Only, I didn't get far. As I moved, he grabbed my ankle, causing me to go crashing down to the floor face first.

Stars appeared in front of my eyes, as he grabbed my shoulder and forced me to roll over onto my back. His fingers were wrapped tightly around my neck, cutting off my air supply. My arms struggled, and my legs kicked, I would not let him harm my child. A wild pain suddenly appearing in my stomach.

"Maybe you were right, maybe Chibs really has found some quality pussy. I say it's time I find out for myself." His laugh echoed in my ear. He thought he had me trapped. From the corner of my eye, I saw the gun laying discarded up under the counter, just barely out of reach. Gogo was distracted, so I took that as my chance to reach for the weapon. It was the only chance I was going to get, and I sure as hell was not going to waste it.

My ears rang as the sound of the shot echoed off of the walls. Gogo's grip around my neck disappeared and almost immediately after, my ears were filled with the sound of him screaming. He pushed himself away from my, and leaned back against the wall. His hand was pressed up against the wound that blood was gushing out of. I climbed to my feet, gasping for breath as I still held the gun in my hand.

"You stupid bitch, I'll get you for this you know!" He growled out, looking up at me. Hearing more footsteps through the house, I suddenly felt safer than before- my fingers gripped the gun thighter than before. Something told me that a set of those footsteps belonged to my husband.

Crouching down in front of a bleeding Gogo, my blood began to boil. "No, you won't." I spoke, feeling completely numb. Bringing the gun up, I fired two more shots. One hit his chest, while the other went for his shoulder. The footsteps in the house began moving faster, coming towards the bathroom I was in. Part of me worried it might not actually be Chibs, I lifted my arm once more and pointed the gun at the doorway. I wouldn't be caught off guard this time.

"Christ, lass. Put that thing down would you?" Chibs breathed out, standing in the doorway. Jax stood behind him, looking over the body that was laying in the floor. Chibs' eyes flashed over to it as well before his arms wrapped around me and he began looking me over. "I'm fine, no harm done." I attempted to wave him off. Now, Jax stepped towards the two of us, and I was suddenly very aware that I was only wearing a towel. "Kaela, you're bleeding." Jax pointed out.

His words caused both Chibs and I to look down immediately. There was a cut in the towel, and blood was seeping through- staining the white fabric. On the floor next to Gogo's body was a discaarded knife that I hadn't noticed before.

"I-I didn't even feel it." I mumbled, not really believing it. Though, now that I was aware of the injury I was definitely started to feel it. It stung. "Adrenaline will do that for you. Jax, can you give the doc a call, I'll be needing some supplies to stitch Kaela up." As he spoke, Chibs reached down and lifted me into his arms. He carried me out of the bathroom and into the bedroom where he lay me down on the bed. I couldn't help but wince as my body twisted against the wound.

Tara go to the house within minutes. Chibs very quickly got to work stitching up the wound, while Tara sat up by my head and gave me some pain killers. Jax busied himself with taking care of Gogo's body. "She got lucky, the cut wasn't deep enough to do any damage, just needed a stitch or two." Chibs breathed out, looking at Jax who had just approached us.

The world turned fuzzy, and my ears struggled to comprehend what all was being said. A few more moments passes, and the whole world went black- I could only assume due to side effects of the pain medicine Tara had given me.

When I woke, hours later, I was no longer in the bed in my home. I had been moved. I was now laying in the bed at our apartment in the club. Whatever pain killers Tara had given me had long since wore off, and my side was absolutely killing me. I could hear movement outside, and the sun was shining down through the window.

Hearing a knock on the door, I couldn't help the groan that left my lips as I forced myself to stand. I was a bit surprised to see Tara standing on the other side of the door. "How're you feeling?" She asked, a smile on her face. "Fine, fine, my body's just hates me right now. How long was I out?" There was a slight scoff in my voice as I spoke. I stepped back and sat down on the edge of the bed, so she stepped further into the room.

"All night, and most of the day. You mind if I check your stitches?" She questioned, stepping towards me. Nodding my head, I lay back on the bed and pulled my shirt up enough so that she could inspect the wound. She looked me over momentarily, before stepping back once more.

"Seems to be healing already. How's the pain? I can get you some more pain killers." She offered like it was nothing. Used to she hated the idea of doing what she was doing in this exact moment. "No thanks, I don't want to take anything that could possibly mess with the baby." I was quick to refuse her offer. "You're sure? Jax and I are going to the cabin for a while, so this is the only time I can offer." She informed me.

"No, thanks. You guys have a nice time, try to relax some." Hearing bikes pulling into the lot, I waved the girl off. Offering me her hand, she helped me to my feet and we made our way out of the apartment and down the hallway.

Chibs must have dressed me last night, because I was now wearing one of his large white shirts, and pajama pants. No bra, no underwear. When I passed out, I had been stark naked, in front of Jax and Tara. And there had been a body in the bathroom, and blood everywhere. I had killed a man. It had been self defense, but none the less- I had killed someone. Was the body still there, or had it already been taken care of? Did his blood stain my home?

Walking outside, the familiar smell of cigarettes filled my nose. How I craved the nicotine, the smoke filling my lungs.

But instead of giving into the temptation, my eyes instead landed on my husband. He was sitting at the picnic table, rocking Thomas back and forth in his car seat while making funny faces at the boy. It was incredibly heart warming.

Stepping over to him, I wrapped my arms around his shoulders. He put his hand over top of my own, and leaned his head back to smile up at me. "How you feeling, darling?" He asked, sounding very concerned. "I'll survive." I shrugged my shoulders. He rolled his eyes ever so slightly before moving to stand up. Towering over my, he reached out and cupped my cheeks. "Think you'll be alright here for a bit? Gotta make a quick run with Jax." He said with a sigh.

Reaching out, I placed my hands on his waist underneath his cut. "Yeah, I'll be fine. You just be safe." I ordered, smiling up at him. Saying nothing, he leaned down and pressed his lips against my own.

I watched in silence as he slipped his cut off, handed it to me, and walked away. He and Jax walked over to their bikes and left while the rest of us stood there. Neither of them were wearing their cuts. "Tig and I are going to go ahead up to the cabin. Could you look after Phil, he's watching the boys until Gemma gets here to pick them up." Tara questioned, standing next to me. I could understand she was wary about leaving Phil watching the boys, as she had never done so before. But Phil adored those boys. He would never let anything bad happen to them, at least not willingly.

"Yeah, no problem. I'll keep an eye out for them." I nodded my head, slowly sitting down on picnic table. Saying nothing else, Tara got Tig's attention and the two of them left together.

I stay at the picnic table, watching as Phil played with Abel over at the play ground, while Thomas was now asleep in his car seat next to me. Any other time, I would have offered to take Abel from Phil, but with the stitches on my side, there was no way I'd be able to keep up with the young boy.

I sat there, watching the two play until Gemma showed up. The sun was going down as Gemma loaded the boys into the car. Phil watched her carefully as she did so; but something about his intense gaze was unsettling. "Is something wrong?" I decided to ask only once Gemma was in the car, and they were pulling away. "I'm not sure. Did Gemma seem a bit off to you?" He questioned me.

"No. She seemed fine to me. Now, help me inside would you?" I smiled. Shaking his head, Phil allowed me to lean on him as we began walking across the lot. He got my inside the building, before I went the rest of the way on my own. I made it down the hallway by leaning against the wall when I needed to. I sat on the edge of the bed, my side throbbing harshly. I was starting to regret refusing Tara's offer for pain pills.

I was about to change my clothes, when my phone began ringing loudly on the night stand.

"Hello?" I breathed out, trying to mask the pain in my voice.

"Kaela, I need you." It was Tara. I could hear she had been crying, and the painful tone in her voice. Maybe she was having a panic attack or something. "I need you to go to St. Thomas, there's been and accident."