One month ago

Frantically, Happy searched Madison's apartment for any clue, anything that would help him find out where she was taken, who might have taken her in the first place. Since the prospect wasn't responsive when he and the guys arrived, he couldn't question anyone.

Tara had meanwhile taken the kids home and wanted to come back with Gemma to help, but Jax specifically told both women to stay home in case Madison escaped and went to one of their houses for help.

Meanwhile, Happy was secretly freaking out and was probably on the verge of losing his mind when he found absolutely nothing in the apartment that could indicate anything. Only Madison's phone and her gun, which he had given her some time ago, were on the floor. In his whole life he hadn't felt so much fear and at the same time an anger spread through him that he hadn't felt so strongly before and whoever had his Old Lady would feel all that anger.

Desperately he rubbed his bald head, then his face as he tried to maintain at least some control but his thoughts made it difficult for him to keep a clear head. What if she wasn't even alive anymore? That was his worst fear, which he didn't even want to think about.

“Happy, there's nothing here.” Juice put a hand on his shoulder, which Happy shook off with a grunt.

“There has to be something here”, he snarled and paced up and down the narrow hallway, close to losing his last nerve. “Is Rat responsive?”

Juice nodded, then he sighed as Happy stormed past him and outside, knowing full well that the SAA were about to lose his nerve and let his anger out on Rat. His gaze swept down the hallway again before following Happy, who had already pushed past Jax and Chibs and grabbed Rat by the collar of his kutte, his grip tight, almost aggressive.

“Who the hell took Madison? You were here to make sure nothing like that happens! You had one fucking job!”, he barked at the clearly intimidated younger one, who swallowed hard when Happy pushed him against one of the parked cars.

“I⸺I know and I⸺I'm sorry”, Rat stuttered dry-mouthed, still a bit dazed from the anesthetic Steve had injected into his throat.

“You're sorry, huh? That won't bring my Ol' Lady back”, Happy snarled angrily, letting go of the prospect's collar only to punch him in the face. Once, twice, again and again.

“Happy stop! He wasn't able to help!” Jax hollered, trying to get between the two men. But not even he and Chibs together could get Happy away from Rat, whose face was already bleeding excessively.

All the anger, desperation and fear, yes, he was fucking scared, flowed into the punches he threw and it didn't take long before Rat was almost unconscious again. But this time not through a substance, but through Happy's bare hands.

Only then the SAA backed away and wiped the sweat from his forehead with his bloody knuckles. Jax, Chibs and Juice all stood back, knowing that some space was exactly what Happy needed right now.

“He had one fuckin' job”, the SAA repeated grunting, his chest heaving at a rapid pace, his gaze shifting to Jax. “Why are you so calm, huh? Your sister is gone, kidnapped!”

“I'm not calm, Happy”, the blonde snorted, deciding to take a step closer to Happy while Chibs helped the prospect get back on his feet. "But I'm sure Rat would've done anything to protect Madison. He was drugged by whoever. The needle was in his throat faster than he could even react. I'm angry, Happy, and the person who kidnapped Madison is going to pay for it, but we all have to work together to find her, bro!”

“An' for tha' we need a clear head, as hard as it is right now”, Chibs chimed in, his Scottish accent thicker than usual as he laid a hand on Happy's shoulder. And this time the SAA even allowed someone to touch him. “We'll find her, Hap, together.”

⸺

One month later/present day

Happy brought the bottle of whiskey up to his lips and downed the quarter bottle in one big gulp after another long day without success. He began to doubt himself, his abilities. He hadn't been able to keep his promise to always look out for Madison and it ate him up and left nothing but a bitter aftertaste.

In the last month everyone had reached their limit when it came to finding Madison. Not only had they searched all of Charming for her, but also other towns in the area. Every search led to nowhere and another day passed where he had to go to bed without Madison. Sleep became a foreign word for him anyway, since he was either looking for his Old Lady or distracted himself with work at TM.

All other charters were also informed and were always on the lookout, looking for clues in the area they were located. The Sons even informed the charter in Ireland⸺ who knew where the brunette was taken. If she was even still alive.

Happy slammed the bottle down onto the kitchen counter as one of those thoughts struck again, the whiskey bottle breaking in his grip and leaving a mess on the counter. He clenched his jaw as he pulled a shard of glass out of his palm, ignoring the blood and liquid that dripped from the counter onto the floor.

“Let me check.” Tara's sigh filled the kitchen in Madison's apartment. Like Gemma, he spent most of his time here in the young brunette's four walls to be somehow closer to her and Tara alongside with Nero stopped by regularly to check on both of them.

“I'm fine”, he grumbled before he started picking up the shards.

“No, you're not”, Tara retorted, her lips pressed together. “Now show me your hand.”

Reluctantly and just to silence the brunette, he held out his bleeding hand, which she carefully examined and then pulled out the first aid kit from one of the drawers. After silently taking care of the rather deep wound, she wrapped a bandage around his hand before looking at him briefly.

“You can still find her”, she began cautiously, knowing how sensitive everyone was to the subject. “Just because she's been gone a month doesn't mean she⸺”

“Don't say it”, Happy warned before she could say it, his piercing gaze making Tara only nod slightly as she grabbed a rag and wiped the whiskey off the counter.

There was a long silence and just as Tara was about to leave the kitchen, he stopped her for a moment and rubbed his face. The man looked ten years older than a few weeks ago because of all the stress and worries, and the slight beard he now had was adding to making him look older.

“You need something?”, Tara asked sympathetically, she herself also suffered from the fact that her sister in law was kidnapped and nobody knew where to look.

“How long can she go without her meds?”, he asked directly, expecting a direct answer. “The truth, Tara.”

The doctor scratched her temple with a sigh. It was really hard to tell as everyone's body reacted differently, but she still tried to think of a reasonable answer.

“Well, it depends. Some make it longer and some less long. Stress plays a huge factor in the whole thing. If she's under constant stress and doesn't get her pills, she may have...well...had a heart attack already”, she explained, and he could hear in her voice that she didn't want to think about that worst case scenario either.

“She's not dead. Even though she's not a Teller, she still inherited the fighter gene”, Gemma said firmly as she also walked into the kitchen after spending a few hours in Madison's bedroom earlier. “I just know she's still alive, I can feel it.”

The matriarch fished a cigarette out of the box lying on the table among many other empty boxes and lit it after putting it between her lips. Letting the smoke slide over her lips, she leaned against the wall next to the open window so the smoke wouldn't get stuck in the room.

“Did Jesse get in touch? Has she been spotted anywhere in Albuquerque?”, she asked Happy, desperation thick in her voice, but the SAA just dashed her hopes with a shake of the head.

“No, no sign of her. She didn't show up at Jesse's house or Adam's and Diane's house”, he grunted with a snort, crossing his arms. “He wants to come down here soon, help us look for her.”

“No! He has to stay there in case Madison shows up at his house”, hissed the biker queen.

“Gemma, if she shows up there someone will surely notice. Jesse has a right to come here and help the others. He's suffering, too”, Tara said seriously and crossed her arms as well. “You two look like absolute shit. Go home, shower and get some sleep. Like this you're no help to anyone. I'll clean this place up.”

“I'm not going anywhere”, Gemma murmured stubbornly after taking another drag of her cigarette.

“Gemma, she's right”, Happy muttered, who just needed some alone time. “Go home.”

“Abel and Thomas would also like to see you. They miss you, Gem”, Tara said before Gemma could start a discussion. The doctor knew that was the only thing that could change the matriarch's mind. “And Jax could use his mom right now, too.”

Which wasn't a lie. Tara noticed how much her husband suffered from the situation. The fact that his hands were tied and he didn't know what to do made him just as desperate as Happy and the others. And Tara didn't know what else to say to him anymore to comfort him.

“And you should go home, too”, Tara added, now addressing Happy.

“I'm home”, he just snorted and left the two women in the kitchen and disappeared into the bathroom, meanwhile he didn't care if they stayed here or not. He just wanted to take a shower and lie down.

Tara flinched slightly when the bathroom door was slammed shut. A moment later the water was running. She was at her wit's end and she just wanted to help, but Happy and Gemma were both hella stubborn and wouldn't let anyone help them.