Finding Abel

Chapter 3.

Erin

I stared at Wendy in disbelief as she debriefed me on what she told Tara Knowles. I was currently standing in her kitchen while Shrek played in the background. The boys and I had made the trip to Charming as soon as I was able to bring them. Wendy had suggested that I stayed with her while I was here trying to resolve the situation with Jackson.

"You did what?" I knew that Wendy was planning on prepping Abel's other family, but I didn't think that she would be coming at them so hot. It was imperative that I handled the situation delicately, not only for my son but for everyone else as well. A bad meeting could cause a lot of damage, and I didn't need that right now.

"Look, I know you're worried, but it's fine. Once Tara calms down she'll tell Jax and then he'll know." I gave Wendy a look, "okay, and what if she never calms down? What if she just amps him up and he wants revenge. Then what?"

Wendy remained silent and the quieter she became the more I understood. "Wendy, that is completely out of the question!" I looked over at the boys before lowering my voice, "no has to die about this, it doesn't have to come to that."

"Erin, you were a fed, you see how cases like this end. What I did is going to be seen as betrayal, and I am completely prepared for the heat on that. Jax can't hurt me anymore than I've hurt Abel, and as long as I know that you are with him, then I will always be at peace."

"Wendy, you are a part of this family. Abel loves you and without you, I probably wouldn't even have him. It takes a village to raise a child, and you are in my village. I'm not just going to let you just offer yourself up like this."

She gave a heavy sigh before looking in the direction of Abel and Henry. Henry had learned early on how to get out of his playpen and didn't hesitate to get out now. I watched in admiration as he hoisted himself out of the contraption and went to go settle himself next to his brother. They were close like that and it was the cutest thing I had ever seen. They were kind to each other and were nothing short of best friends. "You've done such a good job with them; how can I not repay that?"

"Because you don't have to, I have never seen them for anything less than my kids. It was never about doing you a favor; you don't have a debt with me and neither does Cherry."

"Okay, so what do you want to do? How do you want to go about this?"

"Well, I did some digging on Tara Knowles and you are right she was the best person to go to. But now that she's most likely out," I gave Wendy a side eye that didn't go unnoticed, "we have to find a different route. You said when you saw her that her hand was in a cast right?"

"Yeah, she said that she got hit by a door," Wendy muttered.

"Sound legit?"

Wendy scoffed, "nothing with that family is legit."

"Can you prove that?"

Wendy looked at me for a moment before shaking her head, "that's the fed in you talking. Going to court or accusing them of anything will definitely start a fire."

"It isn't my first option, but I feel like a sitting duck waiting for that man to come to take my son! I have run every possible outcome out in my head and I'm coming up empty. This could go in so many different directions."

"The court would never allow Jax to have Abel, he's a felon!"

"Felons are granted custody all of the time, it won't mean anything. All he needs is a good lawyer and the talking point of illegal adoption. And if he can prove that he has a stable home and family for Abel, I may lose my son."

"Are you really considering this possibility?" Wendy was baffled.

"I have to, I have to be prepared for anything they throw at me. They can use every trick in the book! They can talk about his adoption, my relationship status, they can even use race if they were losing."

"That's bull and you know it."

"Well let's just hope that we don't come to that." I didn't want to sound like I was fear-mongering, but I've been living with fear ever since Jackson Teller was released. I didn't know what kind of man stepped out of that prison but I was hoping for my sake that it was a good one. I would lose my mind without my kids and I wasn't open to just giving him back and walking away. He was my child, blood or not, and I wasn't ever going to turn my back on him.

I was hoping that Jackson wouldn't see me as the enemy here. I have tried to do everything right with Abel. I have even tried to keep his father's image alive with a picture that Wendy gave me. I did the same for Henry with photos I got from Cherry. I never wanted them to question who they were or what their biological parents looked like. It didn't matter to them now because they were content with me, but at least they know and that's what matters.

"I need to speak with him," I groaned.

"Make sure it's somewhere public," Wendy muttered under her breath, "were you planning on taking the kids?"

"Not right now, I want to speak with him first before that."

"I can't guarantee that he will listen, if you're right about Tara, he probably has a sniper waiting outside for me."

"Why don't I come with you to work tomorrow? Tara is still in pretty bad shape and should still be there right?"

"I don't think-"

"Wendy, I don't have time for this. Will she still be there or not?"

"Probably with more security, but yes she will be there. Jax will probably be there too or worse, his mother."

"Doesn't matter," I said shaking my head. I could care less about a grandmother's argument in all of this. "You sure? She's one evil bi-"

"Language. And I am sure, this is bigger than her. I don't care about who I have to go through to protect my boy."

Wendy let out a sigh and turned around to pull a bottle of sparkling cider out of her fridge. I fought the urge to smile at her dedication to staying clean. She grabbed two shot glasses out of her cabinet and filled them with the bubbly cider. I gave her a look, "what? I left the vodka at the liquor store."

I rolled my eyes as she held the small glass in her hand. "To Abel, may we know him, may we love him, and may you keep him." I gave in to her silly toast and downed the liquid with her.

"You know if you focus hard enough, it almost tastes like vodka," she said smacking her lips.

I snorted while shoving her playfully, "please stop talking. I think you've done enough talking today."