Memory Lane

Chapter 2. Freedom

I sat on the chair in the Nurse's station as I watched sheriffs and deputies swarm around me. I had gone through a gross amount of questioning as my brain was probed for answers. Where have I been? What happened to me? Why was I kidnapped? All questions I couldn't answer in their entirety. Mostly because of the blowback, it would have on the club. But it was interesting to see all the people who doubted me turn their heads in shame. That felt good to the soul.

"Mrs. Teller, my name is Sheriff Eli Roosevelt," he extended his hand out to me and I gladly shook it. "I know this time may be overwhelming for you, so I am here to help you in any way that I could."

Tears welled up in my eyes because hearing those words made me so emotional and forced me to reflect on what I'd been through. "Just please, get me out of this building," my eyes pleaded with him and he nodded his head.

I didn't bother looking at anyone as he checked me out of the asylum. There was a crowd of reporters waiting outside and they swarmed around us when they saw me. Eli noticed how frightened I became and tucked me under his arms as he blocked me from all of the cameras. He opened the door of his police cruiser and slipped me in the backseat. As he began to drive, my eyes stayed glued to the window as I saw how different things had become in Charming.

"Sorry for putting you back there," Eli yelled back at me, "I hope you're not uncomfortable."

I smiled at him, "it's not like I haven't been held in confinement before." He chuckled softly at my humor and then drove us to the station. Upon entering the station I was greeted by a woman, "hello Mrs. Teller, my name is Tyne Patterson. I am the district attorney. Please come have a seat in my office." I hesitated as I looked at Roosevelt for confirmation, he ushered me inside and closed the door behind him.

"Firstly, I would like to welcome you back, I know the last couple of years have been hard on you, "she said sympathetically, "and I have filed on your behalf against your declaration of death. You will be receiving new copies of your documents after all of this is sorted out."

"So, I was really pronounced dead?" I said more to myself than to her.

"Yes, your husband declared it seven years after your disappearance, it was finally settled after his son was born."

"Son?" I can't say the information didn't hurt me; it was only natural that Jax had moved on. But hearing about it was something I could do without.

"Do you need a moment Mrs.-"

I cut Sheriff Roosevelt off, "just call me Desiree, it's becoming apparent that Mrs. Teller doesn't belong to me anymore."

The room fell silent for a moment and then Patterson pulled out a notebook. "Desiree, I know that today may be a lot for you, but if there is anything you would like to tell me about your disappearance, I would be more than happy to help you."

I looked at the empty notepad in front of her, and realization kicked in. I had barely been out for a day and I was already getting grilled about Samcro. "Nothing that comes to mind."

"Anything you may have written during your time at the asylum?" she pressed. I looked down at the worn-out notebook in my hand, knowing that she would kill to get her hands on it. "Unfortunately, I wrote a lot of poetry during my time there, nothing that could really help."

She inhaled deeply and I could see that she was frustrated, "well, if anything comes to mind, just know that you are free to contact me at any time." She then handed me her business card and then phoned someone.

"Is someone here to escort Mrs. Teller, I mean, Desiree back to her home?" Patterson nodded her head as she talked with the other person on the receiving end. "Okay, she's coming right now." I got up from the chair in anticipation, I had no idea who was here to pick me up. But any familiar face would be much appreciated.

Roosevelt opened the door for me and escorted me into the lobby. I looked around until my eyes landed on someone I recognized. "Opie?" he looked up from his phone and his eyes grew when he saw me. I didn't wait for him to react as I practically ran him down. He hardly budged as I came at him with full force, my eyes blurred with tears as he engulfed me in a hug.

"I missed you Turtle," hearing his nickname for me gave me that tight feeling in my chest.

"I missed you too," I pulled away to look at him, "my God, you grew a beard." That caused him to laugh and then he grabbed my hand and led me out of the building.

"Mr. Winston, please let Mr. Teller know that we are anticipating his surrender." Opie stiffened next to me and I watched his demeanor change, "will do," he said dryly. I was confused as to why this was said as Opie led me out of the station. Why would Jax need to surrender, what had he done wrong? What had happened since I was gone? Opie didn't say a word to me until we were out of the building.

"Opie, what's going on?" I stood in front of his bike. 

He handed me the extra helmet, "there is an APB out on Jax, Tig, and Chibs for murder." My mouth dropped and my heart started to pound, "Jesus, where are they now? What's going to happen?" Opie looked down, "for now, they're buying some time. I can take you to them to make sure you're safe. Everyone's on alert right now, it's not safe to be on your own."

I hesitated before getting on his bike and he took notice, "are you okay?" I bit my lip as my mind started to race. It's been so long since I had seen my family that I didn't know what to expect. I mean, it's been more than a decade and it didn't feel right to just pop back up again. How would they react when they saw me? I didn't want to be held responsible for flipping their lives upside down again. From what I'm hearing about this APB, they have enough on their plate.

Opie reached out his hand, "Desiree, please come with me. You have no idea how much they've missed you; it'll be okay."

I finally took Opie's hand as I got on the back of his bike. It felt weird to be on the machine again, to feel the purr of the motorcycle vibrate my entire body. It was the only thing that could distract me from the reality of my situation. I could only hope that Opie was right about all of this, that it would all be okay.