Chapter Text
The dusk was settling outside as John settled himself in at his desk, preparing to put a dent in the stack of case files that had been calling his name since the beginning of his shift. He opted to watch the sunset out the window, finding it simpler than opening a file and contemplating which excuse he could write in the proper fields, to explain the latest in the longline of supernatural shitstorm’s to grace his town. It had already been a long day and, at the moment, he didn’t have the brain capacity to come up with a believable lie that would keep his son and friends out of prison. He wanted to go home, have dinner with Stiles, and pass out face first in his bed. The knock on his office door, however, told him he wouldn’t be going anywhere any time soon.
“Sheriff, there’s a woman here to see you.” Parrish announced from the newly opened door of his office.
“Who is it?” John asked as he rubbed a hand against his tired eyes.
“She won’t give me her name.” The deputy’s voice was laced with more than a little apprehension.
“She won’t give you her name?” He echoed back to the deputy with a raised eyebrow to complement his confusion.
“She said that you wouldn’t see her if you knew who she was.” That didn’t sound foreboding at all.
“Send her in.” Honestly, he didn’t have time or energy to deal with any visitors right now, but being the sheriff meant he couldn’t turn someone away.
“Hey.” The familiarity of that voice put him on edge the second it sounded through the room.
“Gemma.” Of all the women John Stilinski expected to walk into his office, Gemma Teller Morrow was not one of them.
She had aged since the last time he had seen her, gracefully, but time was still visible on her face. It was clear the years had not been kind to her. With her lifestyle that wasn’t much of a surprise.
“It’s been a long time, hasn’t it?” She mused, lowering herself into the chair on the opposite side of his desk.
“What are you doing here?” He knew the answer before she spoke. He knew there was only one reason she would show her face in Beacon Hills.
“I’m here for my son.”
Her son.
Stiles was never her son. She had treated Stiles like a thing renting space in her uterus throughout her entire pregnancy. After his birth, Stiles had received nothing but cool detachment from her. In fact, she had only claimed him as her son once before, and at the worst possible time, cementing Stiles hate for her forever.
“What do you want with Stiles?” He shuddered to think what she could actually want from his child.
“His family needs him.” John bit back the urge to slam his hands against his desk in frustration at her statement, instead choosing to stand and pace around the room while they had this out.
“I’m his family.” There were very few people that Stiles would call family and Gemma was not one of them.
“I let you have him.” She replied thickly, putting force behind each word, as if it wasn’t a bold-faced lie. “Don’t you ever forget that.”
“Don’t act like it was a hardship to give Stiles up. You gave Stiles to me the minute the paternity results showed that he was mine.” He spit back at her. “We both know Clay is the reason you didn’t fight me on custody. Clay didn’t want to take care of a baby that wasn’t his. You didn’t let me have him. You just wanted Clay more than you wanted another child.”
“Clay’s dead.”
“Yeah, I know.” He was sure it was huge loss for everyone, and that she and the club had absolutely nothing to do with it.
“Now I want…” Her words trailed off but her look told him everything.
“Now you want Stiles back.” As if, he was a possession that could be sold or traded.
“He’s my son.” She said it like it meant something, but Stiles had never meant anything to her before.
“No, he’s my son.” Stiles had, and would always be, his son. By blood and by bond, Stiles was his. “He was Claudia’s son.”
“His brother needs him right now.” Jax. Of course, she would use Jax as an excuse. Jax was the quickest way to get Stiles to Charming.
The bond Stiles and Jax shared was something John had never experienced, even with his own brother. Jax seemed to preen under the attention Stiles gave him; he would stand a little taller when playing his role as big bother. Stiles, in turn, seemed to calm the moment Jax walked into the room, but become sullen for hours when they had to separate.
“Jax knows how to find him. He’s never had any trouble with it before.”
The visits between the brothers had died down over the last few years. With the supernatural dictating Stiles life, it made it hard to just get up and go visit Charming on a whim. John knew life in Charming had gotten increasingly dangerous, and that was before the brutal murder of Jax’s wife. Jax hadn’t felt comfortable with Stiles being in the heart of danger when he could so easily be kept out of it. So they’d kept some distance and met in the middle when they could.
“They are both adults now,” As much as it pained him to think of his boy as an adult. “If they need each other, if they want to see each other, that is their choice, not yours.”
“I guess you’re right.” Gemma admitted half-heartedly, before standing and collecting her purse from off the floor.
“I am.” He tried, and probably failed, to keep the disbelief out of his voice and off his face.
“I’ll just leave you alone then. You look like you have a lot of work to do.” Her eyes darted to the stack of files on his desk. “Best not tell Stiles I was here. We wouldn’t want to upset him.”
“Of course not.” He fought the urge to take a step back when she took a step toward him.
It wasn’t fear that made him want to recoil, it was that god awful perfume she still wore. It sweet and heady, and stuck in his sense memory. One whiff of it sent him back to time when he was a young and stupid deputy, having a drunken one-night stand with his childhood friends older sister. He would like the ability to regret it, but he could never regret the one night that gave him his son.
“You look tired, Johnny.” She brought a hand up to touch his cheek. “You should take it easy. Get some rest. You are the Sheriff of a town that has a high mortality rate. You need to be at the top of your game. It would be a shame if something happened to you. It would devastate Stiles.”
“Don’t threaten me, Gemma.” He wasn’t afraid of Gemma or her threats. He had faced down far more frightening things then her in the past year. Hell, his son had been one of those frightening things. Gemma Teller Morrow had nothing on his kid possessed by a Japanese fox spirit.
“That wasn’t a threat, sweetheart.” She flashed him a wide smile before she sauntered out of his office.
He watched from the window to see her exit the building. By the time she had climbed into her SUV and started the engine he had already texted Stiles to meet him. He didn’t tell him why. Gemma’s presence in what was supposed to be their sanctuary was not the kind of news you broke through a text message.
Gemma drove away from Beacon Hills knowing that soon enough Stiles would be joining her in Charming. All she had to do was plant the seed, the idea, that Jax needed him. His wife had just been viciously murdered, he was slipping, drowning, he needed someone to keep him afloat. He needed his baby brother. She knew that would be just enough to pull Stiles in. It wasn’t as if she was lying. Jax did need Stiles. He always had.
Stiles was the puzzle piece Jax had been missing. He fit perfectly in the space left vacant after Thomas’s death. He fit as neatly in Jax’s heart as he had in his arm the first time Jax held him. All brown hair and big eyes, one glance and the veil of grief Jax had been living in had wiped away and been replaced by hope.
Stiles wasn’t born with the same heart condition that Jax and Thomas had come into this world with. There was no chance of it slowly ripping him away like it had done to Thomas. Stiles was healthy and brand new and Jax looked at him like he was his second chance. The bond they shared formed almost instantly. Gemma swore she had seen it wrap around them like a red string of fate.
It was almost heartbreaking to watch that day. By then she had already told John that he could take Stiles and go. She didn’t know that he had seen Jax’s face too, or that he would offer Jax a permanent place in his younger brother’s life.
It was Stiles birth that brought Jax back to her after losing Thomas and JT. It was Stiles, the overly affectionate toddler, that got Jax moving again when Tara left him for college. Sometimes Gemma believed that the only reason Stiles even existed in this world was to bring Jax back to her. He had done it so many times in his short life he could always do it again.
John settled himself on the floor with boxes of unsolved cases after watching Gemma leave. A few were from his time as a deputy, others were from before his time at the department completely. The last time he had done this he was looking for links to the supernatural. This time it was to get out of his head.
Diving head first into cases he may never solve was easier than letting thoughts of Gemma roam through his mind. She had a been a mistake, he knew that, but during the short time they enjoyed each other’s company, he had been young enough not to care about making poor decisions.
He knew she would come to lay claim to Stiles eventually. She had tried once before, when Stiles was little and vulnerable, and the only thing she got in return was his hatred.
John should have known she would use Jax as her excuse to try and take Stiles away. Family was a weakness for both Jax and Stiles. They would both burn the world down if it meant protecting someone they considered theirs. Stiles had died for him and he would do the same in a heartbeat for Jax and his nephews. Jax would return the favor tenfold.
“You only work on old case files when you’re stressed.” Was the first thing out of his son’s mouth when he entered the office.
“Yeah, I know.” He wondered what kind of picture he painted, sitting on the floor surrounded by the past.
“What’s going on, Dad?” Stiles questioned as he crouched down beside him, allowing John to take a good look at him.
If Gemma thought he had looked tired then she would be horrified to see how his son looked. The dark circles were prominent under his eyes, as they had been before, when the Nogitsune had a strong hold on him. His nightmares were back. He had been screaming himself awake since returning from Mexico. This time it wasn’t the Nogitsune taunting him, though, it was visions of Scott, as a berserker, killing his way through Beacon Hills.
Seeing the exhaustion so evident on his sons face made him regret calling him here. He did not want to tell him about Gemma’s visit. He didn’t want Stiles to have to deal with Gemma and the baggage that came with her. He did not want him to go running to Charming to take care of his brother when he was barely taking care of himself.
“Gemma’s in town.” He couldn’t keep that from Stiles, no matter how much he wanted to. He needed to be aware of her before she had the chance to surprise him.
“Why is she here?” The pure venom in Stiles voice told John that, no matter what the answer was, Stiles would not bend to Gemma’s will. “What does she want?”
“She wants to take you back to Charming.” His son’s eyes darkened at the omission. “She thinks Jax needs you.”
“Jax won’t talk to me.” The anger in his voice replaced by tired exasperation.
“Do you know if he’s out?” They knew Jax had been arrested after Tara’s murder. The club kept Stiles informed so he didn’t rush down to Charming himself looking for answers.
“Yeah.” He answered with a sad sigh. “Bobby called two days ago and said Jax had been released.”
“If you need to see him,” He knew Stiles would need to see him. They hadn’t spent this much time apart since Stiles was born. Even when Jax was in prison, he still got visitation. “I won’t stop you.”
“I’m not going anywhere with Gemma. I don’t want to see Gemma.”
Stiles hadn’t minded Gemma as a small child, back when she was just Jax’s mother. When the truth came out, that she his mother as well, that all changed. It was more the way the information found its way into Stiles head, than the information itself, that distorted his image of her. Gemma had damaged Stiles irrevocably, whether she meant to or not, when she had whispered that truth into his ear. She had labeled herself as an enemy in Stiles eyes before he even knew what the word meant.
“You don’t have to go with Gemma.” He was eighteen now. He had traveled out of Beacon Hills several times on his own. He had been taking himself to and from Charming since he had his jeep. “You can go on your own.”
“After what happened with Tara…” Stiles voice seemed to choke off with emotion. He knew how close Stiles had become with her since her reemergence in Jax’s life. “I need to see him. I need to see the boys, too. God knows what kind of crap Gemma’s filling their heads with.”
“It would do them some good to see you.” The kids wouldn’t be the only ones that could benefit from Stiles care, Jax would welcome it as well. “You’ll have to tell the pack that you’re going. You don’t want them to worry.”
“I know. I’ll tell them.” There was the weekly pack meeting tonight, if John wasn’t mistaken. The perfect setting for Stiles to let his friends know he would be gone.
“You could take Scott with you. I’m sure the kids would love him.” It would make him feel better if Stiles would take someone with him, but his son wouldn’t. Stiles liked to keep his worlds separate. “Or, I could take some time off work and come with you.”
“We can’t afford that.” He hated that Stiles knew that. He hated that he couldn’t take time off work if his son needed him. “I can go on my own. Maybe I can put in a few hours at TM and get a couple bucks to help with the bills.”
“Focus on your brother and the boys.” John urged his son. “Let me worry about the bills.”
Stiles headed over to the loft after leaving his father’s office. His dad was right; he needed to tell the pack he would be gone. Normally when he would leave for Charming a quick text to Scott would suffice, but since he didn’t know how long he would be away for, it was better to tell him in person.
No one besides Scott and Derek were in attendance when Stiles arrived. He was thankful for it. Honestly, he didn’t want to get into the Teller-Stilinski drama with the entire pack if he could help it.
“So, I’m going out of town for a while.” It was easier to get right down to it. No fuss, no muss. Just rip the band-aid off.
“Where are you going?” Scott didn’t look particularly surprised by Stiles announcement. The alpha had probably been expecting it to happen for a while.
“Charming. I have some family things to take care of.” He elaborated for Derek’s sake.
“Jax?” The McCall's were the only ones besides Stiles and his father that knew about that part of Stiles life.
“Yeah.”
“He finally called you back?” Scott had sat with Stiles after Tara’s death, offering moral support as he tried repeatedly to get in contact with his brother.
“No, Gemma showed up.”
“Gemma’s in Beacon Hills?”
“She was harassing my dad at the station.” She had gone to his dad, rather than coming to him directly, as a show of dominance. She wanted he and his father to know who was running the show. She was in for a rude awakening when he finally got to Charming.
“I thought I smelled biker whore in town.” Scott growled, earning a perplexed look from Derek, which probably had to do with the fact he had never heard Scott use such vulgar words in the time he had known them. Stiles could only huff in amusement at his friend’s words, Scott had the displeasure of meeting Gemma once upon a time, and she left lasting impression.
“Who are Gemma and Jax?” Derek inquired, taking Stiles by surprise with the question. The older man usually didn’t care to delve into anyone’s family dealings unless it directly affected the pack. Stiles made a point to never let his two lives intersect, therefore, the Gemma/Jax side of things would never touch the pack.
“Scott can explain everything to you and the pack while I’m gone.” He still had to go home and gather everything he would need for the trip. He didn’t have time to dillydally, or, in this case, get into a long and uncomfortable discussion about his father’s past affair with Gemma that resulted in his birth.
“Okay.” Derek nodded in agreement, accepting his answer, before gesturing toward the table by the loft windows. “Braeden left the file you asked her to get.”
“Tell her thanks for me.” He asked Braeden for that favor when they returned from Mexico. At the time, the only information he had about Tara's murder was what he had heard on the news. The club wasn’t talking and Jax had been imprisoned. He honestly didn’t think she would come through, but she did.
“Whatever it is that you’re doing, that involves a police file for a murder, is obviously dangerous. The pack won’t be with you in Charming to help.” The beta warned. “Be careful.”
“I will.” As careful as he could be in Charming.
“I know you have the club, but if you need us, we’re only a phone call away.” Scott reassured him before pulling him into a tight hug.
“Thanks.” He let himself linger in Scotts hold. He didn’t know when he would see his friend again and he needed this to last as long it could, for himself and for Scott. “Love you, man.”
“Love you too.”
They both knew the implications of those words. They didn’t normally vocalize that feeling, never really had. If they were said, it was usually because they were walking into a life or death situation. Stiles said them now because Scott was his brother, maybe not by blood like Jax was, but they were brothers nonetheless, and he needed him to know before he left, because he didn’t know when or if he would be coming back.
John watched his son pack from his place in the hallway. He watched Stiles alternate between tossing clothes haphazardly into a duffle and sitting on the bed, running a hand through his wild hair, staring at the bag with indifference in his eyes.
They both knew this trip was different from the others. Stiles was an adult now. He had college in the fall. He accepted a scholarship from Berkeley. It didn’t mean anything, though, when he went to Charming. He could so easily be sucked into Jax’s world, the way he was sucked into the wonderful world of the supernatural.
Stiles could choose a different path, one that led him away from Berkeley and closer to his brother. He could stay in Charming. He could join the Sons, though John hoped Jax would never let him. He could take care of Jax and make sure his nephews knew what love felt like without strings attached. John, unlike Stiles, realized that it was a real possibility. He knew that if Stiles saw the kids in danger his first instinct would be to step in and do something about it, even if it meant sacrificing his own future.
“I don’t have to go.” Stiles voice broke through John’s thoughts with the suggestion. “I don’t have to go if you don’t want me to.”
“You will drive yourself crazy with worry if you don’t.” It would start with the worry and stress, and then move on with insomnia, before John would end up driving Stiles to Charming himself.
“You are going to drive yourself crazy with worry if I do go.” His replied pointedly. “It’s not good for your blood pressure.”
“My blood pressure is fine. And I worry every time you leave the house, Stiles.” It was part of being a parent. “Just more so when I know you’re leaving for Charming.”
“It feels different this time.” Stiles admitted solemnly. “Final. Like something’s ending.”
“Something did end, Stiles. Tara’s life.” The younger man flinched at the statement. “It feels final because you’re going to her home, you are going to see her husband and children, and she won’t be there. You’ll have to say goodbye to her.”
“Yeah….” He knew it was hard for Stiles to let go of anyone. The kid had seen more than his fair share of death. “Do you think you could talk to Jax?”
“About Tara?”
“You know what it’s like to lose your wife.” Losing Claudia was a wound that would never heal.
“Gemma’s lost two husbands, I’m sure she can offer him the advice he needs.” The glare his son shot him was more than enough for him to retract that comment. “I’ll come down to Charming on my day off and check in on you. If Jax is willing to talk to me about Tara while I’m there, then I will give him whatever advice I can.”
“Thanks, Dad.”
“Where’s Stiles?” Was the first thing out of Malia's mouth when she and ther rest of the pack entered the loft for the scheduled meeting.
“He’s going to be out of town for a while.” The five sets of eyes staring at him in confusion told Scott he wouldn't be getting away with anything less than a lengthy explanation.
“Stiles wouldn’t leave without telling us.” Lydia interjected before he could elaborate futher.
“He came to tell us before the meeting.” Derek informed the group. “He said Scott would explain the situation for him when everyone got here.”
“Well, everyone’s here.”
“Stiles went to visit his older brother and nephews.” Scott declared almost enjoying the comical looks of bewilderment he got in return.
“Since when does Stiles have family outside of his father?” It was an innocent question, but the way Lydia said it suggested there was nothing she didn’t know about Stiles.
“Since birth.” He replied testily. “Actually, the nephews are relatively new.”
“How come we never knew about them?”
“Look, it’s not like Stiles was keeping it a secret. He just never mentioned them.” Stiles wasn’t the type of person to divulge everything about his life to just any one, pack or not. “His older brother is kind of notorious.”
“Is he famous or something?” Liam asked earnestly.
“He’s the president of the Sons of Anarchy.” He regretted saying that the minute the words left his mouth. That was information that he knew Stiles didn’t want his friends to be privy to.
“Stiles’ older brother is Jax Teller?” Braeden’s eyebrows rose in surprise.
“You know him?”
“I know of him." She shrugged her shoulders at the curious glances the pack shot her before continuing. "I was a U.S. Marshall and the Sons of Anarchy are a pretty big deal.”
Big deal might not be the right words to describe the club given how many times Stiles had visited Jax and the others in prison.
“So that file he asked me to get on the Tara Knowles murder…” Braeden trailed off, seemingly coming to her own conclusion about why Stiles wanted Tara’s file.
“She was his sister-in-law. They were pretty close.”
Tara had been murdered right before Kate had taken Scott on his joyride to Mexico. Stiles had to make the choice between going to Jax, who had been arrested, or saving Scott from the were-jaguar. Stiles had chosen to come for him, which he was thankful for, but he knew what it cost him.
“Hold on,” Lydia requested in a sharp tone. “The Sheriff has a son who’s the head of a biker gang? How does that work out?”
“Jax isn’t the Sheriff’s son.” Though, honestly, he looked more like John than Stiles did. “He’s Stiles half-brother through his biological mother.”
“Biological? Meaning his real mother?” Malia questioned.
“No. As in the woman who raised him, Claudia, wasn’t his mother by blood.” Until he met Gemma for the first time, Scott had only known Claudia as Stiles mother.
“Okay, so – “
“Look, I’m not getting into Stiles whole back story. It is his story to tell. I told you why he was gone, like he asked me to. If he wants you to know about that part of his life then he will tell you.” He would probably have to now, since they knew a small portion of it. He knew they would badger Stiles upon his return until he fessed up with the rest of the story.
Aside from the rescue mission to Mexico, the last time Stiles had left Beacon Hills was to see Tara. It was the only thing he could think about as he drove south down the highway. He met her at the park a few days before she died. Jax and Gemma had taken the boys from her by then. He had no idea what he was walking into at the time. He didn’t know about the secrets she would share or that he would never see her again. The only thing he knew was that she was fucking terrified.
“There are things you don’t know. Things Jax doesn’t know.”
“About?"
“Gemma.” Gemma’s secrets tended to promise a bloody ending. “JT’s death.”
Stiles had never met JT. The man had died a few years before his birth. He knew that Jax had loved him, worshipped him even. He had read the manuscript, at Jax’s insistence, that held the deceased mans past hopes and wishes for the club and his remaining son.
“What is this?” Stiles questioned, as she her shaking hands pushed a thick manila envelope to his side of the rickety table.
“Copies of letters from a woman named Maureen Ashby. She knew JT. They had an affair and a child together.” Tara seemed to study him for a minute, looking for something on his face, shock maybe. Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion when she didn’t find it.
Stiles didn’t have it in him to even feign surprise. He had known about Maureen and Trinity Ashby about as long as Jax had. The older man had needed someone to vent to and telling his half-brother about his secret half-sister had apparently seemed like a good idea.
“These prove Gemma’s involvement in JT’s death.” That… actually wasn’t shocking. Gemma had a hand in nearly everything that went down with SAMCRO. Why should her husband’s death be any different?
“You haven’t told Jax about these?”
“Jax isn’t ready to know and he will never believe the truth if it comes from me.” Jax would never believe her after the fake pregnancy and miscarriage debacle. “Gemma thinks she has all the copies. She gave some of the originals to Jax.”
“Some of them?”
“She only gave him the ones that implicated Clay.” Of course she had. Gemma would never implicate herself if she could easily pin it on someone else.
“Why are you giving these to me?”
“You are the only one, besides me, that knows what Gemma is.”
He did know Gemma. What was worse was that he understood Gemma. He did not look at her with love and adoration, not the way Jax did, because he knew what she was. She was a mother, yes. She loved her children fiercely, even him, whether he ever chose to accept that love or not. However, behind the loving mother was a ruthless killer who would burn the world to the ground to keep what was hers.
Stiles understood that.
He, Scott and Allison had said ‘fuck all’ to the consequences when they had died for their parents. They had opened themselves and Beacon Hills up to a darkness that none of them were prepared for. Every body that had dropped, evil or innocent, because of the Nemeton, was blood on their hands.
So yeah, Stiles knew Gemma. He knew what she was. He also knew that he could be just like her when the situation called for it.
“You are the only one who can give Jax the truth when he is finally ready to hear it.” He would also be the one with a target on his back when Gemma went looking for retaliation, but he was willing to do that for Tara.
“These letters aren’t the only reason you brought me here.” There was something else. He could see it written all over her face. She seemed to be having an internal battle on whether or not she wanted to tell him, though.
“I’ve been trying to get my children away from Charming. I’ve done things that I never thought I would do for that purpose.” Protecting your family could lead you down a dark path, could make you do things you would never have considered otherwise.
“Jax will forgive you.” If he could forgive Wendy for nearly killing his oldest child, then he could forgive Tara for creating and destroying an imaginary one. “It’s going to take time, but he’ll get there.”
“I don’t want his forgiveness. I just want my children to be safe. I tried so hard to get them out of this.” The tears streaming down her face and the raw emotion in her voice told Stiles just how defeated she felt. No matter how hard she tried, she did not believe she would be the one to save her children. “If I can’t get them out, if something happens me, I need you to do it.”
“Tara, nothing is going to happen to you.” He put as much force, as much belief, as he could behind the words, hoping she would believe and hoping he could believe them himself.
“You’re the only one who could possibly understand what I’m trying to do.” He did understand, he just couldn't see why she thought he was the only option left on the table. “You’ve always been on the outskirts of the club, but you’ve seen the damage it’s caused.”
The death. The destruction. He had seen the weight that wore Jax and Tara both down more and more. He saw the toll it took on them, what toll it would eventually take on his nephews.
“I’m not asking you to turn on Jax. I would never ask that of you. I know how close you are with him.” They both knew Stiles would never betray Jax. Not like that.
Stiles was the outlet that Jax needed when he had to get his head out of the club and out of Charming. Jax was who Stiles needed when the supernatural had run him ragged and he had worried himself crazy over his father’s wellbeing. They kept each other sane, though they hadn’t been doing a very good job of it as of late.
“I’m just asking you to take care of my boys if I’m not around to do it anymore.” Stiles entire body froze at the implication.
This wasn’t a question for a last will and testament. She didn’t bring Stiles here to sign anything. It wasn’t some quirky ‘well if something happens to either us, we just want you to take care of our babies’ conversation that normal families had. It wasn’t going to be followed by hugs and kisses or ‘I can’t believe you would trust me with your precious children.’ Tara was not talking about if something happened to her, she was talking about when, as if it was already set in stone.
“I know I shouldn’t ask that of you. I know that you’re only… Jesus, you’re only eighteen. I know I shouldn’t be putting this on you. But, you, Stiles, you are the only one I can trust. I know you love your brother and I’ve seen how much you love my children.”
“What do you need me to do?” If there were any way that he could help, he would do it in a heartbeat.
“If they stay in Charming, if they grow up in that life, it only ends one way. It only ends in blood and violence. It ends with my children becoming killers or being killed before they even have a chance to live their lives. It means they live in fear. I don’t want that for them.”
“I don’t want that for them either.” It was the last thing he wanted for those boys. “I know Jax doesn’t want that life, not for his boys. He was talking about getting them out – “
“After we lost Opie, after he took his place at the head of the table…” Becoming President of not only the charter, but of the entirety of the Sons of Anarchy, came with more than power, it came with a burden that Jax and his family weren’t ready to take on. “Things changed. He won’t get out. I know what I’m asking you to do is dangerous. I know it will make Gemma see you as an adversary – “
“I’ve been at war with Gemma since I pinged positive on her pregnancy test.” Stiles pointed out humorlessly. “I’m not afraid of Gemma.”
“That’s why you are the one who has to do this. I tried getting Wendy’s help but Gemma got to her.” Wendy had always been weak, even before the drugs took control of her life. “You would put yourself in Gemma’s line of fire for my kids.”
“I would put myself in anyone’s line of fire for those kids,” He would give anything for them. “And for you or Jax.”
“I know you would. I know that.” He had told her before, more than once, that if she and the boys ever needed a safe place to go that Beacon Hill was only a two-hour drive. “I need you to take them. If I am injured or killed, take them out of Charming. Take them somewhere safe.
“I will.” He assured her, hoping that he would never have to make good on that.
“Save my boys, Stiles.” The heart wrenching sob that tore out of Tara made Stiles flinch.”Promise me.”
“I promise.”
“I promise.” Stiles echoed from his memory into his empty jeep.
As he passed the wooden sign welcoming him to Charming, he hoped that Tara, wherever she was, knew that he would never break that promise.