THINGS HAD HAPPENED so fast after Happy had headed home. Nola hadn't answered any of his calls, and neither had Rat. The uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach had finally taken over his entire body, and instead of having another beer with the guys, he had made his way home, Bobby with him because the older man also had a bad feeling.

And the moment they found Rat unconscious outside, a needle in his throat that presumably held something to keep him knocked out longer, and a face covered in blood, both men knew something bad had happened. Whoever did this had planned this a long time already.

Happy had immediately rushed into the house while Bobby checked Rat's pulse, which was weak but definitely there. Nevertheless, he quickly called 911 before rushing into the house as well, gun firmly in his hands as he looked around the house. The broken glasses indicated a fight, yet it was deadly quiet downstairsᅳ that was never a good sign.

"Bobby, up here!"

The older man's stomach lurched, its contents ready to come out as he heard the horror in his son-in-law's booming voice. It took a lot to scare the shit out of Happy Lowman, so Bobby expected the worst.

And when he reached the top floor, out of breath and afraid for his daughter's and granddaughter's lives, he stumbled backward, hitting the wall with his back as the image before him burned itself into his mind.

Happy was on his knees and held Nola in his arms, still no idea if she was dead or just unconscious, his bristle palm brushing some blonde strands from her bloody face while Ruby sat beside him, whimpering and crying, her tiny arms clinging to him.

Her small body was shaking like crazy, her sniffles and sobs filled with fear, her eyes wide with horror as she reached for her mother.

"Is she alive?", was all Bobby needed to know, the pain in his chest growing stronger by the second, as if he were about to have a heart attack. "Happy! Is my daughter alive?"

"I don't fuckin' know", the SAA barked, none of that stoic, dangerously calm side left. Instead, his hand trembled, tears burning in his eyes as he brought his hand to Nola's neck. "She's alive, but her pulse is weak", the SAA exhaled in relief, quickly wiping his eyes. "Call an ambulance."

Happy had probably never felt so fuckin' anxious in his life. His wife didn't move, her face paler than ever, covered in blood spatter and her own blood, as well as her blonde hair, parts of it now a deep red.

Of course, Happy had noticed the dead fucker next to Nola, and while part of him was proud that Nola had killed him all by herself, he was afraid she would never truly recover from this. Even worse, though, was that his daughter witnessed all of this.

As he rocked Nola almost apathetically in his arms, just the slightest bit, he looked down at Ruby, his whole body shaking with a mixture of anger and self-hatred for not being here to protect them.

"Hey, look at me, bug", he croaked, the vulnerability evident in his tone as his crying daughter looked up at him. "Mommy's going to be okay, you hear me? She's just sleeping."

"He hurt her, daddy", the three-year-old sniffed, frightened and traumatized, her grip on Happy's arm tightening. "Mommy needs to wake up!"

Happy carefully placed Nola's head in his lap before pulling Ruby in his arms, turning her head and hiding her little face on his shoulder so she no longer had to look at Alden and the bloodbath. For the first time in his life, he couldn't hold back his tears as sobs tore through his daughter's body, the three-year-old clinging to him like a small, completely distraught monkey, her arms and legs wrapped around his torso.

Bobby slowly slipped down to the floor, and after gently patting Ruby's back, he squeezed Happy's shoulder, a sign that he was there even if he himself needed comfortᅳ and a drink. His hand came to rest against Nola's cheek, a look of disgust directed at Alden before, with a heavy heart, he looked down at his daughter.

"They're sending two ambulances. One for Rat and one for Nola", Bobby informed his son-in-law, who, like him, was staring down at Nola in complete shock, making sure her chest was still rising and falling. "The bastard's lucky he's dead. If he wasn'tᅳ"

"He'd wish he were already buried", Happy finished the sentence for Bobby, his gaze slowly sliding to Alden. His next words were a gravelly croak, only a whisper so wouldn't Ruby hear them. "I would've cut him to pieces while he was still breathing."

"And I would've helped you", Bobby said, a little bit sad about the fact he couldn't make this bastard suffer anymore. "He would've deserved the pain."

The next few minutes were just a blur. Apparently, Nola's oxygen levels were so poor that the paramedics didn't want to waste another second. Happy was allowed to come along, while Bobby stayed behind with Ruby to answer the police's questions, who were called by the paramedics before they had left.

Besides, someone had to stay with Ruby. Gemma and Ginny had set off immediately; the former had taken Ruby home with her, while Ginny and Bobby had rushed to the hospital. First, to find out how Nola was doing, and second, to comfort Happyᅳ although everyone needed comfort right now.

ᅳ

WHILE BOBBY AND HAPPY paced the depressing hospital hallways, unable to sit still while Nola was in surgery, Ginny sat alone in the waiting room, a now-cold coffee clutched in her hands.

The blonde lifted her head when she heard heavy footsteps, immediately recognizing the white Nikes. Her bloodshot eyes met Jax' blue ones, his gaze filled with nothing but compassion as he took a seat next to her.

"I came right after my Mom told me what had happened", he explained, and without thinking twice, even though he shouldn't have since he still had a wife at home, he placed a comforting hand on Ginny's leg. "What about Nola? You know anything yet?"

Ginny swallowed softly, but his hand, gently squeezing her leg, gave her some strength back. "They'll have to do an emergency C-section because Nola's oxygen levels were too low, otherwise there could be serious consequences for the little guy."

"Jesus Christ, that bad?" Jax let out a deep sigh, pushing his slightly messy hair back. It was clear he'd already been in bed before he came here. "But she'll be okay?"

"The doctors couldn't promise us anything, but they think Nola and the baby will be okay", she told him, her voice cracking as new tears rolling down her cheeks. Sniffling, she let her head fall against Jax' shoulder. "Thank you for coming."

For a moment, Jax closed his eyes, his arm now draped over Ginny's petite figure. It felt right, and at the same time, he knew he shouldn't be feeling what he was feeling. "You know I'm always here for you, darlin'."

Over the past few months, actually since Ginny moved to Charming, a bond had formed between the two that was hard to describe. There was definitely a pull between them, both longing for more than was allowed. They'd almost gotten closer more than once, but Ginny wasn't someone who'd get involved with a taken manᅳ and Jax didn't want to use Ginny to fill the emptiness inside him that Tara hadn't been able to fill in ages.

Maybe it was finally time to move on, file for divorce, and find happiness.

But first, he just wanted to be there for Ginny.

ᅳ

HOURS HAD PASSED, the morning sun slowly rose in the sky, bathing the room where Nola lay in a soft orange glow as she slowly woke up, her whole body aching. Barely able to move, she blinked several times until she looked directly into Happy's face, her husband leaning over her with concern in his eyes, his hands firmly planted in the mattress.

"Hey, slow down", he croaked, his tone as soft as ever. "You're in St.Thomas. You remember anything?"

"Alden", panic filled her eyes, the beeping of the monitor rising along with her heartbeat. "Oh God, Ruby! Where's Ruby?"

"Ruby's okay, she's with Gemma", Happy replied firmly as he gently pushed Nola back into the mattress after the woman had shot up "You need to take it easy, I mean it, little girl."

The last thing he wanted was for the c-section wound to rip open and Nola to have to undergo another surgery. He was lucky that she was still here with him. Half an hour later, and Nola and their son could've been dead, at least that's what the doctors had told him earlier.

"Iᅳ I couldn't call you anymore, and I didn't know what else to do", she began, crying bitterly as the images from before resurfaced in her mind. "He would've killed me to get to Ruby, Hap. Jᅳjust to hurt us, to hurt me for leaving him back then."

She knew what a bad person Alden was, and yet the shock sat so deep that the man she had once loved would have cold-bloodedly killed her. That was something that would stay with her for quite some time.

"I know, little girl. But it's over, he's gone, and this time he's not coming back. You did good, you hear?" Happy croaked, his own voice laced with vulnerability as he sat down next to his wife and placed a hand against her cheek, wiping away some tears. "I'm so sorry I wasn't there, that I couldn't protect you."

"So he's really dead?", the blonde asked with a sniffle, even though she knew the answer; after all, she'd seen the life drain from his eyes. "Wᅳwhat? Hap, stop it, you couldn't have known what was happening, no one could."

Happy snorted a bitter laugh, sniffling angrily. "Doesn't matter, I still should've been there."

Despite the fact that her limbs still felt as heavy as lead, she lifted her hand and placed it on top of his. Through the emotional pain she felt, all the trauma, she smiled anyway. "It's not your fault, you hear me? Not your fault."

Even though Happy disagreed, he nodded curtly, not wanting Nola to have to worry about him as well. To distract her from all the horrible things that had happened and to finally introduce her to someone special, he parted his lips, but before he could say anything, a soft cry cut him off.

Nola jolted up in her bed, immediately regretting her action as a sharp pain shot through her body and had her head spinning. But when her wide, blue eyes landed on the small crib next to her, a tiny bundle of joy lying in it, everything else was forgotten.

In pure disbelief, not yet fully realizing what was going on, she stared at the baby, then at Happy, then tore off her blanket to stare at her belly. While it wasn't flat yet, it was nowhere near as big as it had been a few hours ago.

"That'sᅳ that's our..baby?", she stammered while pointing at the crib, still completely shocked. "Is that why I had surgery? Wᅳwhat happened?"

"Yeah, that's our son. He's healthy, all tests were fine, even if he was a little premature." Happy's lips curled into the smallest smile as he stood up and walked around the bed to scoop the small bundle into his arms. "They had to perform an emergency C-section because your oxygen levels weren't good, and that could've been dangerous for him."

"Oh my God..", the blonde breathed, her gaze focused on the small, fussing baby in Happy's arms. "Iᅳ can I hold him, please?"

"Lie back", Happy lovingly ordered his wife, after all, she had only woken up after being anesthetized. "I already fed him earlier, but maybe he's hungry again", the SAA shrugged as he placed the bundle in Nola's arms.

Suddenly the crying stopped, only soft noises coming from the newborn now that he was in Nola's arms. Happy sat back on the bed with a smile, gently rubbing his wife's leg. "Or he just wanted his mom."

"He's so perfect", Nola whispered with the brightest smile, shaking her head as she ran the inside of her index finger over Henry's cheek. "Just like Ruby. I can't believe we have two kids now."

"He is, and he looks just like you", a chuckle vibrated in Happy's chest as he looked at his son's head full of blonde hair. "I can get Ruby if you want. She's in the waiting room with Bobby, Ginny, and Jax."

"Yes please, that would be nice. Has she met him yet?", she asked, more than happy as she kept staring down at her son with unconditional love, unable to tear her gaze away from those tiny chubby cheeks. However, she lifted an eyebrow and looked up. "Jax is here? Did he bring Ruby?"

"No, Gemma just brought Ruby over", Happy explained before shaking his head with a small grin. "As soon as he heard what happened he came here to be there for Ginny. Hasn't left her side since."

"Jesus, those two need to get together, it's becoming painful to watch", the blonde chuckled before letting out a soft hum as Henry closed his tiny fist around her finger. "Hi baby, I'm your mommy, by the way. I can't wait to cuddle you for the next ten years until you want me to stop because it's not cool anymore."

Happy smiled to himself as he watched his wife talking to their son, the small bundle tilting his head up ever so slightly as if he realized someone was talking to him.

"I'll get Ruby, are you okay on your own for a minute?", he asked, better safe than sorry. "I can put the little guy back in his crib until I'm back."

"No, I'm fine. I just want to hold him", Nola smiled happily, despite the terrifying events that had happened. "Baby, how's Ruby really doing?"

"She'll be fine, I promise you", was all he said, placing another kiss on the top of Nola's head before leaving the room to get Ruby and let the others know that Nola was awake.

One thing he knew: after the events of last night, he would make sure his family never had to go through anything like that againᅳ and with Alden gone now, they could all start to process things.

Nola just needed to make a statement to the Cops once she was out of here, and then they could finally enjoy their lives in peace.

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