Happy's phone buzzed while they sat there waiting for the Italians to show up. Digging into his pocket, he checked the number before putting it to his ear. "Yeah?"

"Hap?" Chloe's voice crackled on the other line.

He shifted on his seat a bit, hoping this call wasn't about something stupid. He'd given her the number in case of emergencies. If she was calling to ask if he was coming home, he wasn't going to give her the number to his burner ever again. "This an emergency?"

"You know that thing we talked about last night?" she asked cryptically.

He did. She'd told him Angela was pregnant again in hopes he would help her make sure his little cousin followed all the rules that went along with her high risk pregnancy. "Yeah."

"It...isn't happening anymore."

Happy let out a long breath, rubbing a hand over his head. He'd been worried this would happen. "Shit. She okay?"

"No."

He looked around, debating whether or not he could leave and head back to Charming to be with his cousin. They had more than enough brothers there to cover Jax's back, but he was the only one who wore the Sergeant patch. It was his job to protect the rest of his brothers above all else. If he left now, he'd be forsaking that job, he'd be failing that title. "The idiot with her?"

"Yeah, but he's not okay either."

"She need me?" he asked, though he already knew the answer to that question.

He heard her sigh quietly. "Why do you think I called you?"

Hap sighed again, closing his eyes. It was a rare event he had to choose between his club and his blood family. He knew the pain Angela must be in, felt it in his gut. He knew she needed him, but so did his club. He'd given Angela to Juice on their wedding day. Had trusted him to be there for her when he couldn't be. This was one of those moments. Chloe had told him before to step back and let Angela and Juice be, and this time, he was going to do exactly that. He didn't really have a choice. "Be there as soon as I can, killer. Take care a her."

"No, she needs you now!" she insisted, her voice stronger in her resolve now. "She draws strength from you. She needs you here."

The fact she was right was really starting to piss him off, but he did his best not to snap at her. "Can't swing it right now."

"Hap, she just lost her baby. Don't do this now. Don't choose today to pick the club over her. She needs you!"

Happy didn't know why he was fighting with her. He should've hung up the phone the second she'd told him 'no', but for some reason, he couldn't do that to her. Probably because he knew she was right. "Ain't happening."

"Happy Lowman, you do this. You pick the club over Angela, your kid, and you are not the man I thought you were. Do not expect to be allowed back into my house ever again. This is your family. Your blood. Family always comes first."

And with that her line went dead. Happy growled to himself as he slammed his burner shut and threw it into the pocket of his cut. There was no way he could leave now. No way for him to desert his brothers and just head out. Guilt weighed heavy on his shoulders as he sighed, running a hand over his head. He had a bad feeling swirling around the pit of his stomach, but there was nothing he could do about it at this point. He'd made his decision, and he had to stick to it.

---------------------

Angela walked into the house first, Juice trailing behind with Evie in her carrier. The second they were inside, Evie started to cry. The sound of it made Angela's heart ache. She'd lost a baby. Lost Evie's brother or sister. Her eyes teared up as she shook her head. "I can't do this," she whispered, wiping at her eyes. "I need...I need to get out."

"Angel?" Juice asked, his eyes filled with concern and a little fear.

She swallowed hard, grabbing the keys he'd just set on the counter. "I can't...Juice, I gotta...I can't breathe."

"Baby, calm down," Juice said as he picked Evie up out of her carrier. Daddy's girl that she was, she quieted as soon as he had her in his arms. "It's okay."

Angela shook her head, suddenly feeling like the world was caving in on her. "Just..." she started, staring at the door.

"You're not s'posed to be driving, Angel," he told her, reaching out to take the keys from her hands.

She closed her fingers around them tightly. "Juice, please. I need to think, to breathe. Please."

Juice knew he should tell her no, that he should get her to stay, but he was helpless when it came to giving Angela what she wanted. He'd never been able to say 'no' to her. "Okay," he said, dropping his hand to his side. He swallowed hard as he watched her walk by. "You're coming back, though right?"

Angela turned from her place at the door, wiping at her eyes quickly. "Yeah. 'course. I just...need to clear my head."

Now that he understood. He often did the same thing. "Be safe, baby."

She nodded, kissing him quickly, opening the door, and heading out to her car. Slipping into the driver's side, she rolled down all of the windows and turned up the music, hoping it would drown out her thoughts. Her inner demons were coming out to play, and she had no other way to drive them away. She was an unfit wife, an unfit mother. She'd killed Mel. Had taken a father away from his son and karma had come back to bite her by taking her baby away from her before she even got to meet it. She sped to the highway, unsure of where she was going but knowing she had to get the hell out of Charming.

That was how she ended up at the little cemetery in Oakland. She wandered among the graves, reading the names and dates she was so familiar with. When she was little, she'd made up stories about some of them, even going so far as to look some of them up in the county records when she was old enough. The sight of them was strangely comforting. Everything about her life had changed, yet they remained the same.

Then she came to the beautiful black headstone with her father's name on one side of it, the other left blank for her mother. "Hey Papi," she greeted, sinking down to her knees as a lump rose to her throat. She grabbed the dead red roses out of the built in vase and set them on the ground beside her, staring at the name that was written there: Victor Angelo Ruiz. She'd been named after him just as her daughter had been. "Sorry it's been awhile. I got married, though. Had a baby. Evangeline Victoria. Named her after you."

She sniffled, wiping at her eyes as she shook her head. "I lost a baby too, Papi. I'm so sorry. I hope she's up there with you, now. Take good care of her okay? She deserved better," she choked out before it all became too much. She was tired of being strong. Bowing her head, she let the sorrow and guilt take over and began to weep. "I'm so sorry, I let you down. I've done horrible, horrible things and I'm so sorry."

She didn't know how long she'd been crying when she felt a warm hand on her shoulder. The smell of a familiar cologne filled her nose, and she was brought back to her teenage years. Tilting her head back, she found none other than Marcus Alvarez standing over her. Without a word, he held out a hand to her, helping her to her feet before pulling her into a tight hug. "It's going to be okay, mija," he murmured to her, holding her close as she cried into his shoulder. "Dunno what happened, but its going to be okay."

Angela pulled away, taking deep breaths to try and compose herself. She reached out a hand and wiped a tearstain off of his cut. " 'm sorry, Marc," she said, trying for a smile. "Just had a-a really hard day."

" 's okay, mija. Not the first time I've gotten those tears on my cut," he reminded her with a small smile. "Que paso?" (What happened?)

"Oh um...nothing," she answered on a shrug. She didn't feel comfortable discussing what had happened with him. It felt wrong. "Just...a lot of things. What are you doing here?"

"Visitin' my son," he told her, nodding in the direction of a headstone that was loaded with fresh flowers.

She'd known Esai was buried there, but she had yet to visit his grave. Mentally, she calculated what day it was. "For his birthday," she stated on a frown.

"Yeah. Dia was here earlier pero I can't come with her no more. Always ends in a fight."

Angela could only guess it had to do with how Marcus willingly sacrificed his son. Diana was as devoted to the Mayans as Gemma was to the Sons, but losing Esai had to have hurt her. No one could be that okay with losing their son especially not the way she had. "I'm sorry to hear that."

Marcus shrugged a shoulder. "Would do her some good to see you. She made tamales last night to honor him. There's leftovers."

She sighed, running a hand through her hair. She knew she shouldn't. That she should say no and go home to her husband and daughter, but she needed someone to talk to. Someone who would understand. Diana knew her better than most people did, and she had a feeling that if anyone understood what she was going through, it'd be her. "Sounds good. Tell Dia I'll be over in a little while."

---------------------

Angela stood on the front step of the Alvarez house and rang the doorbell. She smiled when she heard little footsteps running towards the door, a high pitched scream accompanying it. Diana opened the door with little Tessa squirming on her hip. "Tia!" she exclaimed reaching her arms out to Angela. (Auntie!)

She grinned as she grabbed Tessa, pressing a kiss to her chubby cheek. She and Diana had monthly lunches they kept secret from their Old Men, something they'd put into motion after they'd talked at the Race and Rally so long ago. They usually met up at Santana Row down in San Jose, a good hour or so away from both of their homes and a place neither of their outlaw families would ever think to visit. "Hola hermosa," she greeted, giving her a tight squeeze. "How are you?" (Hello, beautiful.)

"Good!" the almost five year old exclaimed before wriggling around until Angela put her down. "I got new toys! Wanna see?"

"Tessa," Diana said, her voice a warning. "Let her come in first, mija. Veni, Angelita. Got some tamales ready for you." (Come.)

Angela smiled as Diana pulled her into a warm hug. "Thanks Dia," she said, taking a step inside and breathing in the familiar smell of the Alvarez household. It hadn't changed much since she'd last been there save for the dolls and pink toys that littered the ground. Pictures of Esai still hung up on the walls, most of them had her in them too. She smiled at the one of his prom. They looked so young and happy. Esai in his white tux with a dark green tie, her in her matching dark green dress. She was only sixteen in that picture. So young, so naïve. She'd thought they'd be together forever back then.

"Angelita?" Dia's voice called from the kitchen. She shook herself from her thoughts and headed into the warm kitchen. Diana made her sit down and set a plate of food in front of her. "Eat. You're too skinny. Y? Que paso? Marcus said you were very upset when he ran into you." (And? What happened?)

She frowned at the plate of food, not all that hungry, but she grabbed her fork and took a bite anyway. The taste was comforting and almost made her start blubbering all over again. "These are good, Dia," she commented, swallowing the bite to keep the lump from rising in her throat.

"Por supuesto. Now, que paso? You don't cry easy, mijita." (Of course. Now what happened?)

She pushed the food around her plate for a moment before taking in a deep breath. "You-you ever have a...miscarriage, Dia?"

"Is that what happened?" Diana's hazel eyes grew sad as she sat down in the seat next to Angela. She reached out a hand to grab the younger woman's and give it a sympathetic squeeze. "Si, mi amor. Why do you think it took us so long to have Tessa?" (Yes, my love.)

Angela sniffled a bit as she nodded. "Yeah," she replied on a breath, hanging her head. "I...I got pregnant right after Eves and I just...I wasn't strong enough..."

"Strength has nothing to do with it," Dia said, reaching out a hand to lift Angela's chin. "Mira, I know it hurts. You feel like its your fault, pero its not. Aveces things like this happen y no puedes controlarlo. Entiendes? But that doesn't mean you weren't strong enough, mijita. Todo pasa for a reason. So it didn't work out this time? You're young, you have years to make another one. Do you know how hard it would be if it worked out? You'd have two tiny babies to take care of! Y ya sabes que dificil it is with only one! Think of having two!" (Look...but...sometimes...and you can't control them. Understand?...everything happens for a reason...And you already know how hard it is...)

Angela shook her head sadly. "He wanted a new baby so badly, Dia. He was so excited. I haven't seen him smile like that since...since we got married. I just wanted him to be happy again. I didn't mean to disappoint him."

"Did he say he was disappointed in you, mija?"

"Well...no," she replied feeling a little stupid. "But how could he not be? I lost his kid!"

"Not on purpose!" Dia pointed out on a laugh. "Angelita, he is your esposo. He loves you. I saw it. When we went to that wedding, I saw the way he looked at you. Te quiere tanto. If he's the good man you say he is, then he is probably more concerned about you than anything. Go home. Talk to him. Let him be there for you. Vas a ver. You'll find more comfort in him than anyone else. He knows what you're going through. Understands how you feel." (Husband...he loves you a lot...You'll see.)

"That how Marc was with you?"

She nodded solemnly. "There's a reason I've stayed with him all these years. When you get married, you take vows. For better or for worse. Right?" she asked, waiting for the younger girl to nod before squeezing her hand and continuing, "This is that 'worse'. He will love you through it as you will love him through it too. You both are hurting. What happened is devastating, but it will get better as long as you support each other. Love each other."

Angela wiped at her eyes as she stood slowly. "Okay, Dia. Gracias por todo. I needed that," she said, hugging Dia tightly once more before she said bye to Tessa and headed out. She got into the car feeling like an enormous weight was lifted off of her shoulders. She wasn't alone in this. She still had Juice. They could pull through this together. They had to.

---------------------

Juice checked his computer screen again, staring at the little red dot that told him where his wife was. Oakland. First the cemetery, then a little house he knew was the Alvarez's. The dot was moving now, heading back to Charming at an alarming rate thanks to Angela's lead foot. She'd scared the shit out of him earlier. He'd never seen her like that, never thought she'd have such a break down. But that was because Happy had always been there to calm her down. To straighten out her head, but he hadn't come this time. Hadn't been there to be the tough one. To tell her to be strong and stop crying. Juice couldn't be harsh with her like that. It didn't feel right to him to be so callous. He wasn't sure why Happy hadn't shown. Maybe he didn't know she was pregnant in the first place...or maybe the Triads had taken him before he could find out. He was willing to bet it was the second one.

That was another thing that worried him. How the hell was he supposed to tell Angela that her cousin had been taken as a hostage? She was already freaked out as it was. That was the last thing she needed. "Your Mama's gonna be okay, Monk," Juice told his daughter who was cradled in his arms staring up at him with those big dark eyes of hers focused on his mouth. "She's sad now, but she'll get better. 'n' we'll give you a brother or sister in a couple years, okay? Not now. You don't want a stinky sister anyway. Do ya?"

She gurgled back at him, and he smiled. He couldn't help it. Angela had mentioned Evie had started to respond to her when she talked, but he'd thought it was just her wishful thinking. He had yet to experience it on his own until now. "No, you don't, huh baby girl? No stinky siblings for you!"

To his surprise, Evie smiled at him. Not one of those gassy smiles but a real smile. Another thing he'd thought Angela had been exaggerating. She'd been convinced she'd gotten one of those smiles a few days before, but he hadn't believed there'd be a noticeable difference. Now, he understood. "Jesus Christ, Monk. You got a gorgeous smile!" he cooed to her kissing her cheek. He got to his feet and walked with her to her room, ready to put her down for a nap. "Daddy's gonna have to hide you from all the boys! You're never leavin' the house!"

The front door opened and Angela walked in looking a hell of a lot better than she had when she'd left. Without a word, she dropped down onto the couch next to him. Juice moved his arm around her as she cuddled into his side. He turned to press a kiss to her forehead but didn't say a single word or ask a single question. If there was something she wanted to tell him, she would. Otherwise, he was fine just sitting there with her close to him.

"Thank you," she said softly, breaking the silence. He shrugged in response, reaching out a hand to grab the remote and turn off the TV. He had a feeling there was more she wanted to talk about, and it was going to take a while for her to get there. Her dark eyes fell on his computer that was open on the coffee table, staring at the live feed from the camera in Evie's room. Evie was fast asleep, looking particularly angelic with her hair a complete mess. There was a map with a GPS dot flashing over their house on the other half of the screen. "Tracking device on my phone?"

"Yup," he said, not at all ashamed to admit it. "Just in case."

She closed her eyes and sighed again. Clearly the fact he had a tracking device on her phone didn't bother her in the slightest. "I went to visit my dad and...Alvarez was there. Visiting Esai. Today is E's birthday. Marc told me to go visit with his wife because she made tamales. Me and Dia had a...really nice talk. And I know you're uncomfortable with that whole relationship, but I needed that. She...she's been through all of this shit before."

He nodded, a little thankful for Alvarez's Old Lady. The change in Angela's attitude from when she'd left was a total one eighty, and he was so glad to see it. Glad that she'd come back to him with her head somewhat sorted out. "What'd she say?"

"She told me that it wasn't my fault. That everything happens for a reason, and that I should talk to you because you are the only person who understands what I'm feeling at this exact moment because you're feeling it too," she explained, her voice thick with sadness.

Juice lifted his hand off of her hip and tangled it into her hair, playing with the soft tresses. "She's right. About everything."

"Feels shitty, huh?"

"Yeah. It does," he agreed softly. He knew better than to try and make light of the situation. It was only going to drive her farther away. It was better to be honest with her, to share in her pain so they could carry that burden together. "But we'll be okay, okay? You 'n' me. We got Eves, we got Rigs, and one day, we'll have another little Ortiz runnin' around."

Angela nodded, taking in a shaky breath. "I know."

"I'm not disappointed, Angel," he told her. "You keep sayin' we've got time and I'm not goin' anywhere, so I'm gonna roll with that. We got time. Hopefully, plenty of it. I'm not...it hurts me that you're in pain, and I hate to see you so sad, but I'm not disappointed in you for what happened. Not at all."

"I know," she repeated, a relieved sigh escaping her lips. She moved to straddle him, her knees on either side of his hips. Her dark eyes scanned his face for a brief moment. "You don't blame yourself, do you?"

He blinked at her, wondering how she could possible know. That's when the concern flooded into her eyes. Gone was the sadness he'd seen there before, and it was now replaced with worry. He sighed sadly, his hands smoothing up her thighs before settling on her hips. "Ang..."

"No," she cut him off quickly. "No, you do not get to blame this on yourself. If this had nothing to do with me, then it had nothing to do with you either."

"It's karma, Angel. I killed that innocent girl 'n' now..."

"I killed Mel," she argued with a scowl. "This could easily be my own karma."

"He deserved it."

"Maybe she did too," she suggested, though her tone said she was really just trying to make him feel better.

Juice gave her a doubtful look. "So we both got shit karma," he gave in after a moment. He reached up a hand to tuck a stray hair behind her ear. "But we also have each other. And a gorgeous kid."

"Must've done something right to get Eves, huh?" she asked, looking over her shoulder at his laptop to check on Evie.

"I must've done something right to get you," he corrected with a small smile as he gave her hips a squeeze. She rolled her eyes at his cheesiness, but smiled back at him anyway. He moved is hand to her neck, gently pulling her face down to his so he could give her a soft, sweet kiss. "I love you, Angel. We're gonna pull through this together, promise."

Angela was quiet for a minute, just studying his face before she nodded slowly. "I hope so."

Juice was about to say something more when her phone rang, the sound coming from the back pocket of her jeans. He could feel the vibration of it against his thigh and groaned. Angela sat up a little bit to grab the phone, putting her cleavage right in his face. He took advantage and nuzzled his nose into her cleavage. She let him, answering the phone despite him being nose deep in her breasts. "Hey Chlo," she greeted, running her free hand over the side of Juice's head. "What's goin' on?"

"Nothin'. Just checkin' in. How are you feeling?"

She bit back a gasp as Juice turned his face and sunk his teeth into the soft skin of her breast. "Shit. Um...I'm fine," she said, letting her husband continue what he was doing despite how distracting it was. "How are you?"

"Good," she said shortly. "Have you...have you heard from Hap at all?"

"Nope. Why?" she asked, confused. There was no reason for her to have talked to Happy. He wasn't supposed to know about her pregnancy, therefore he wouldn't know to call to see if she was okay. Unless... "Jesus Christ, Chlo! Did you tell him?"

Chloe sighed softly. "He's your cousin, Ang."

That pissed her off. It was something Kozik would've done if he were still alive, and she would've hated him for it. "You've got to be kidding me!"

"You needed the support!" she justified.

"That's what I have Juice for!" she exclaimed, making him look up at her with that adorable confused look she loved.

An exasperated sigh left Chloe's lips. "Well, whatever. I'm sorry, I guess. Have you heard from him?"

"No," she said, shortly.

"Has Juice?"

"Why does it matter?" she asked. Juice, figuring that whatever the girls were talking about didn't involve him anymore, was slowly popping open the snaps of her shirt for better access to her chest. He grinned when he saw she was wearing one of her nursing bras, his fingers deftly unbuttoning the little flap that covered her nipple.

"I just...he should've called you. It's weird that he hasn't yet," Chloe pointed out.

Juice's mouth closed around her nipple, his teeth grazing the sensitive flesh. "Juice!" she exclaimed, finally pushing his head away.

He gave her a Cheshire cat grin, his light brown eyes sparkling devilishly. "What?"

"You're the worst!" she said closing the little flap before leaning forward to kiss his nose.

"You know you're still on the phone, right?" Chloe reminded her. "And that you can't have sex!"

Juice chuckled; he could clearly hear her shouting on the other line. "We're not, Chlo!"

"He just discovered the flap on my bra is not just for nursing," she told Chloe on a laugh.

"I didn't need to know that," the nurse shot back on a sigh. "Can you ask him about Hap?"

Angela let out a frustrated sigh, slapping away Juice's hands as they went for the little flap again. "Sure. Why are you so worried, though? You guys get into a fight?"

"Don't worry about it. Ask him, and I'll let you two get back to whatever the hell it is you two are doing. As long as it's not sex."

"Ugh, fine," she said, pushing Juice's face out of her cleavage again. "Baby, do you know anything about Hap?"

Juice's head fell back against the couch as he let out a sigh. "Shit. Um. Tell Chlo you'll call her back," he told her on a frown. At her look, he tacked on, "Please."

She did what he said, hanging up on her friend despite her protests. Juice grabbed the phone from her and tossed it on the other side of the couch. She looked at the phone and sighed. "Okay. What happened to Hap?"

"The Chinese are kind of...holding him as collateral."

Angela blinked at him. There was no way she'd heard him right. "I'm sorry. What?"

Juice sighed again. "Shit went down with the Triads so to smooth things over, Jax made them some promises, and they took Happy as collateral."

"Meaning that if Jax doesn't pull through, they're going to kill him!" she exclaimed, her eyes wide with fear. "Are you fucking kidding me?"

He shook his head slowly. "But Jax'll get him back, baby. It's going to be okay."

Angela climbed off of him, sitting down next to him and raking her hands through her hair. Her mind was reeling. She felt like she couldn't breathe. Happy's life was in Jax Teller's hands. The same Jax Teller who was toying with her husband's life was now toying with Happy's. She had no confidence in the club's president. No trust that he would keep her cousin safe. She hated him for using Juice and letting them take Hap. Hated Chibs for alienating Juice. Hated Tig for killing Donna, for taking away Kenny and Ellie's mother. Hated Clay for sending Koz into the minefield. Hated Bobby for trying to make the club stronger, for not just letting it die already. Hated the club in general for constantly hurting the people she loved most.

Juice's warm hand on her shoulder made her tense. "Hey, he's going to be okay."

"How do you know that?" she snapped back at him. He recoiled a bit at the venom in her tone, and she instantly felt bad for taking it out on him. "Sorry. I just...I can't lose him. I already lost Kozik, I can't..."

"You're not going to lose him, Angel. You know your cousin. You think he's gonna let them just kill him like that? It ain't happenin'," he assured her, moving closer to her. She didn't lean into him like she usually did. Instead she let her head fall into her hands, her elbows propped on her knees. He could practically feel the anger coming off of her in waves.

She let out a tired sigh, closing her eyes and trying to calm down. "I hate this."

His fingers traced over the tattoos on her back that he could see through her thin white shirt. "I'm sorry, Angel."

Angela shook her head slowly. That helpless feeling came over her. Her cousin was in trouble and there was nothing she could do about it. No way she could fix it. She was useless. Frustrated tears clouded her vision, and she tried in vain to keep them from falling. She glanced at the laptop screen, a little relieved when she saw Evie start to wake up. "I gotta go get Evie," she rasped, wiping at her eyes and getting off of the couch.

Juice grabbed her wrist, pulling her into him as he stood. He put a hand on her cheek, wiping away a stray tear with his thumb. "Everything's going to be okay, Angel."

She didn't believe him. Not for a minute. Nothing felt okay. Her life felt like it was slowly spinning out of control, and it was all the club's fault. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, doing her best not to take the way she was feeling out on Juice. She gave him the best smile she could muster and nodded, "If you say so."