The next morning, Clove Knox awoke in Juan Carlos Ortiz's guest bedroom closet. She still clutched the pocket knife whilst her face snuggled into the plush pillow. Sleep overtook the woman quickly once she rested her head on the cushion, allowing her mind to rest. Slumber the only way to keep her terrible thoughts away.
With a low hum, Clove raised her head. The light within the room had been turned off. Juan must have snuck in to make sure she was alright during the late hours of the night.
Juan Carlos.
Why did she allow this random guy to have his way? He kept her from committing the most disastrous act and then, he gave her somewhere to sleep. Clove knew better to trust a stranger but if he was anyone out to get her, he would have just let her jump. In the back of her skull, Clove begged for his sympathy to be real. For once, someone giving a shit about her and not knowing of her tragic past.
Today, Clove found her heart heavy with satisfaction. She could smell the faint fragrance of freshly brewed coffee and fried bacon.
How long had it been since she sat down to have breakfast? Too damn long.
On her feet, Clove stretched out her arms and legs. Wiggling her toes on the plush carpet whilst cracking her neck. She had almost forgotten about the true fear, but only for a brief moment. The sound of Juan speaking in the living room caused Clove's ear to twitch. What caught her attention was the sound of another man's voice responding to him. The voice too familiar. With her pocket knife still in hand, she toed towards the bedroom door to place her right ear against the cool wood.
At first, she couldn't make out their exchange. Too muffled for Clove to fully understand, however, her eyes grew ten times their size once she recognized who the second voice belonged to. The happiness between her breasts no longer fluttered but deep-rooted uncertainty surged.
It can't be him. Not him. Anyone but him.
Hesitation took over Clove as her free hand gripped the doorknob and the hand holding the pocket knife swished it open to reveal a 3-inch blade. If she truly wanted to see who spoke to Juan, she had no choice but to make herself known.
Juan had his back turned away from the bedrooms, his laptop sat on his forearm as he attempted to scroll down the information he had built against an unexpected victim. Before Juan sat a handsome white man with slicked-back blonde hair going just past his ear lobes. His shocking blue eyes studied Juan with knitted brows. Invested with their conversation. The blonde wore a flannel white shirt, and on top of the flannel, rest a kutte similar to Clove's. He sat on the couch, rolling a cigarette between his fingers when Clove stepped out of the guest bedroom.
Her gaze immediately fell onto the blonde man. His kutte familiar, his jawline still perfect, the ridged lines on his forehead new. Everything about Jax Teller just the same, yet not the same. Something about him felt different. Nonetheless, that didn't stop Clove from glaring at the back of Juan's head. Then she examined the kutte the naive man also wore. The patch, Prospect, sewed across the back. This had to be a setup, a trick.
"You fuckin' piece of shit!" Clove blurts out, pointing her knife towards Juan.
Surprised, Juan spun around, a smile across his lips only for it to falter. Wide eyes gaze at the pocket knife attached to Clove's hand. She stood as if wild dogs were before her. Ready to tear her into pieces. Juan did not recognize Jax's reaction nor did he register the airy gasp coming from the young blondes' throat.
"Jinx?" Jax finally gulped after a moment to take in the image of a woman he once knew. Standing to his feet, Teller took one step closer and raised his hands before him once he too recognized the blade he had given her three birthdays ago.
Confused, Juan snapped his stunned expression onto Jax.
No matter who made their appearance, Clove no longer trusted Juan. All she could speculate; Juan Carlos knew who she was, extended a hand of compassion, and conned her to follow him into his apartment. This wasn't true, Juan wanted to help the woman because he felt if no one else would, he'd be the hero his mother taught him to be.
Clove, backing away, kept her teary eyes on Juan. Angry. Angry that she allowed this fool to manipulate her during a time of crisis.
"You lied to me!" Clove shouts.
"What?" Juan scoffed.
"I trusted you and for what?!" Clove shouts.
Jax took a chance to stare at Juan. His eyes were large and innocent. As if to be confused. Juan knew nothing of the stories of the Knox family; what tragically took place a few years back before Juan even knew samcro existed. With kindness in his heart, Ortiz decided to let this woman into his home without knowing the truth.
Clove Knox wasn't just some simple woman with mild PTSD and manic thoughts; This woman once belonged to the club's Sister Chapter and held the privilege of being the first woman in samcro history to join the brotherhood along with grabbing the title of Vice President. She had a knack for getting things done under pressure and never apologized for anything. Jax respected Clove for her driven personality and easy-going nature.
The problem wasn't that she stood wielding a knife like a madwoman. The real issue, Jax Teller thought his childhood friend died. She shouldn't be here. She shouldn't even be alive. For so long, the prince thought Knox to be dead. As their base in Essex, England had been found burnt down to a crisp with bodies inside - Clove's corpse wasn't amongst those bodies.
For the first year, there were attempts to find any trace of Clove. After the second year, everyone, including Jax, gave up.
All this time...
"Jesus, Jinx, put the knife down -" Jax began, however, the woman ran for the door before he could finish. She grabbed her boots and hurried out. Jax following closely behind. His hand catches the hood of Juan's hoodie, but Clove quickly spun around and sliced his hand with no remorse. With a hiss, Jax wrenched his grasp away. Completely dumbfounded as the two best friends stare at the other for only a moment. And in those seconds; Jax saw the fear, the anxiety, and the bitterness. This wasn't the Jinx he knew.
With blood pouring down his hand, Jax simply watched Clove spin on her heels and dart down the hall. Escaping the exit stairwell just at the end of the very corridor. Juan rushed to leave after Clove, but Jax yank at Juan's muscular arm and pulled his Prospect into his side with anger in his blue eyes.
"You better have a good excuse as to why my best friend is in your house, Juice. If not, I'm going to make sure you have one."
YOU ARE READING
Here I Stand √ Juice Ortiz.
Fanfiction" and the best stories are about the villains who believe they aren't evil. " Juan Carlos Ortiz always felt something odd about his life. Nothing made much sense. Not even his thoughts were bearable to process. His whole life, Juan Carlos ran away f...
