Spark in the Dark

Chapter 192

"There must be some sort of misunderstanding," Shawn tried to reason with Jax. "There's no way. Gemma couldn't kill Tara."

"She can," Jax insisted. "She did."

"How could you possibly know that? Did she confess?"

"No-"

"Have you spoken to her at all?"

"No-"

"So maybe she didn't did do it," Shawn argued. She couldn't accept what Jax was telling her. That the woman who practically raised her, who nursed her back to health after she nearly starved herself to death, who had planned her wedding, had murdered her own daughter in law.

"I know this is hard to hear. Trust me, I do, but Gemma," Jax began to tell her, but had to stop to compose himself. "Gemma killed Tara."

"How do you know, though?" Shawn asked, again, still in denial of what Jax was saying.

"Abel cut himself a few days ago, deep scratches on his arm. Then he told his teacher Gemma did it. When I asked him why he would do that, he told me he overheard Gemma telling his little brother that she was sorry she had killed his Mommy."

"Jesus Christ," Shawn said to herself. She closed her eyes tightly and shook her head as her eyes began to fill with tears. It was starting to sink in.

"I tried to get a hold of Gemma, but she wasn't answering her phone, so I called Nero. I told him what Abel said and they took off. I don't know where," he told her.

"Why did Nero leave?"

"I think Nero may have gone looking for her when he heard I was planning on turning myself in to save Tara. He found her at my house and shot Eli before he could call in the murder," Jax said, his voice sounding thick. Shawn knew he had trusted Nero, even after all the fights they'd been in. Nero betraying him must have cut deep. "Why else would they run unless they're guilty?"

Shawn just shrugged. "Is that why you need me to watch the boys? So you can find Gemma? Question her?"

"That's part of it."

"What's the rest?"

Jax looked at her for a moment. "I got to make this right, Shawn."

Shawn was confused for a moment. How could Jax make Gemma killing Tara right? Suddenly, she realized what Jax was getting at. "You can't kill your own mother, Jax. You'll never come back from that. It'll destroy you."

"I know. That's the worst part of it all. Even with everything she did, all the lies and wreckage, I still love her, you know? She's my mom," Jax confessed before covering his eyes. His voice broke as he cried. "How could she do this to Tara?"

Shawn reached out to touch his arm. He looked up at her, his eyes were red and pleading with her for an answer she couldn't give him.

"Don't do it. Make her leave town. Don't let her see the boys ever again. That would destroy her enough. Or tell that new Sheriff. You don't need to kill her."

"This is who I am, Shawn. This is what I have to do."

Shawn scoffed. "That's such bullshit. What about your sons, Jax? What are you going to say to them after you kill their grandmother?"

"That's why I'm leaving them with you, Shawn," Jax explained. "You've always been honest with me, even when it hurt. Now, I need you to do that for my sons."

"You expect me to be the one to tell two little boys their father murdered their grandmother?"

"When they are old enough, yes."