Jax is sitting on the floor with a cigarette in one hand and a bottle of booze in the other. He snagged a couple police reports from Unser and is trying to piece together what happened with the very minimal details he has in front of him. His stomach twists as he looks over the pictures from the event that happened last week.

He shakes his head, hating himself for leaving the way he did. He never got to apologize to her and it's going to haunt him forever.

He rereads a report before something clicks. "Hey Opie!" He shouts. Said man joins him in his dorm, sitting next to him. "Where's Nick? I haven't seen him 'round for a while."

"Last I saw he was talking to Gemma but that was a couple weeks ago." He scratches his chin through his bushy beard. "Why? What're you thinking?"

Jax stands and peers down the hallway before shutting the door. "I think he has something to do with this."

"What? You think her brother had a fuckin hand in this? Jax-"

"Wait. Just fucking hear me out." He sits back down, screwing the top back onto the bottle of liquor. "L-look here." He pulls out Nick's record. "He's been arrested for attempted murder before." His brain is going a million miles an hour in a million different directions.

"So?"

"Drea and Gemma never got along. And Gemma knows everything about her and her life." Jax sighs, pulling out Alex's record. "Do you know what they were talking about?"

"I don't know but Nick was getting heated."

"Probably telling him fucking lies. Pouring poison into his ears." Jax stubs his cigarette out before lighting another. "Look here." He points at their doorway. "Doesn't look like, uh, forced entry. I mean, if it was Nick or- Gemma- she would've let them in." His eyes glaze over with tears as he looks at the pictures of her again. "Shot in the fuckin chest, Ope." He clears his throat. "Anthony- that kid doesn't have a mom anymore." Opie wraps his arm around his shoulders. "Gotta talk to mom. Gotta find Nick."

"I'll find Nick." Jax nods, clenching his jaw. "I'll find him."

"You better."

~

True to his word, Opie finds Nick at some shitty motel in Lodi and he's tweaking. Opie sighs at the abandoned needles and thumb bags scattered on the carpeted floor. He sees him twitching in the bathtub; sweating and freaking out. His head is resting against the side of the tub as he groans. "Shit man." He grabs his shoulder, jumping back when Nick suddenly stands, wielding a fucking knife at his intruder. "Woah! Woah!" Ope snags the weapon out of his clammy hand when it comes down towards him.

"F-F-Fuck. Why are you- What're you-"

"Nick, chill." Opie grabs him and drags him out of the tub then shoves him to the bed. "Chill the fuck out, Miller." Nick is visibly shaking, his head jerking to the side. "How's Alex doing? Have you seen her?"

Nick's body trembles as he struggles to keep his eyes open. "Alex- Alex- Alex..." He chants. "My sister." He digs his nails into the side of his arm so hard that he draws blood. "Little sister."

"When was the last time you talked to her, man?"

"A week." He forces out, his head jerking. "Week. Shit happened. Some bad shit, Ope." He starts picking at his skin. "Baby- she kept saying some- some- something 'bout a baby." He wheezes, curling in on himself on the bed. "T- T- Tony and another- and another baby- baby- just found out."

"What? Was she pregnant?" Nick twitches out a nod. "Holy shit."

"She's gone and- Opie- Opie, I did somethin' bad- real bad- bad shit."

"Holy fuck, Nick." Opie glares down at the last living Miller. "You did this?"

"Gem- Gemma said she was gonna-" He groans. "Alex was gonna snitch- snitch on me."

"You know she would never rat."

"It's- it's- it's too late." He sobs out. "She's gone and it's- it's- it's my f-fault." Opie shakes his head as he straightens up. "I just can't believe- I killed her." He whimpers. "My baby- baby sister."

"Hey-"

Nick's eyes zip down to the knife in his hand. "Do it. Do it, Opie!" He pants. "Fuckin- fuckin do it." He begs just like his Old Man did to Jax.

Opie grabs Nick by the front of his shirt then grabs his bag. "C'mon." He drags the tweaking man down to his truck. "We're getting you help." Nick lets out a sharp sob, pressing himself against the door with his knees pulled up to his chest. Opie's phone rings and he answers it. "Yeah?"

"You find him?" Jax asks quietly.

"Yeah. I'm taking care of it. You talk to Gemma?"

"Yeah." He answers as he sits on the floor against his bed at the clubhouse. "I gotta go, man." Jax quickly hangs up. He uses his sleeve to wipe his eyes. Gemma told him what happened without telling him what happened.

Opie parks his now passenger-less truck at the clubhouse. He's just dropped Nick off at the Samcro rehab place in South Charming. He slowly heads into the building to join Jax.

"Here." Ope hands Jax a beer.

"Thanks." He sighs heavily, running his hand through his too long hair. "What- uh- how was he?"

"Relapsed. He was tweaking so bad he was ripping into his skin, almost stabbed me." He stifles a laugh. "Told me everything, man."

"Like what?" Opie gives Jax a look that makes both of their hearts sink. "Shit. What?"

"He did it, killed her..." He takes a deep breath. "Gemma was spitting lies in his ear about Alex snitching on him and the club." His chest starts to feel heavy. "He told me Alex was- fuck, man." He wipes a stray tear from his face. "She was pregnant." Jax clenches his jaw, pressing his lips into a thin line. "Shit, Jax. I'm sorry."

He's speechless.

Jax suddenly stands, grabs his keys then heads out to his bike. "Jax, where're you going?" He shakes his head as he starts his bike. "Jax!" He silently rolls out of the lot, leaving Ope standing alone next to the empty spot.

~

Jax hasn't been back to the clubhouse since he left two days ago. Chibs has taken it upon himself to find him while Ope's at work at the mill. The Scotsman finds the blonde in the cemetery. He's leaning against Alex's headstone with what would've been her wedding ring in a small leather box in his dry hands. His eyes are dark and his white t-shirt has blood stained on it.

"You okay, Jackie Boy?"

"No." He responds honestly, looking down at the small silver band. "I'm not. Alex is gone. My fucking girlfriend- not even my fucking wife- is gone, forever." Chibs sits next to him, patting his knee. "She was pregnant, man." He whimpers. "Her fuckin' brother did it to her. My mother got to him." Chibs wraps his arm around the President's shoulders, letting him sob against him as the VP says nothing. "We never should've left Vidor. She never should've left Alabama in the first fucking place."

"Aye, don't be so hard on yourselves." Chibs whispers. "What're you gonna do 'bout Gemma and Nick?"

"Ope said he relapsed and was so far past gone because of what Gemma was tellin him." Jax shakes his head. "I still love her, y'know? I mean, she's my mom." A sob rips from his throat. "She knew exactly what she was doing. She didn't want me to be 'distracted' with a family." Jax shakes his head again. "I took care of it."

"Huh?"

"Gemma; I took care of her." Chibs nods as he fishes out his pack of cigarettes, offering one to the widower. He accepts one and lights up, leaning back against the headstone of his bride.

"Where's your boy at?"

"With Sig and Marge. They're gonna be watching him." He takes a deep drag in. "I got this." Jax mutters to himself as he gets to his feet. He presses a kiss to the top of the headstone then sets their wedding bands down. "I got this."

Jax sighs to himself as he makes his way to his bike, running his hands over his slicked back hair. He swings his leg over the seat before sitting and starting his bike up. He looks over at Chibs and gives him a nod with a small smile then speeds off.

~