I am very sorry for the wait for this chapter. I won't bother with excuses but I can promise that I'll be posting regularly and get this story finished and then will be working on my others.

It was a uniquely cloudy wet day in Stockton, as though the weather was mirroring her feelings. The rain wasn't pouring but was a steady drizzle. Not enough rain that you had to run for cover but enough to cause slick roadways and traffic. Juliet rested her head against the car window, the coolness of the glass feeling calming against her skin. Jax was driving her car, she knew he hated driving her "cage", even if the "cage" was top of the line, but he had made no qualms about driving it when she'd asked him to drive her to visit her father to tell him the news.

It'd been three days since she saw her mother's distorted body lying in the brush on the side of the road and she still couldn't get that image out of her head. Murdered. The words tormented her whether she was conscious or asleep, they echoed in her head. When she slept at night, she was surrounded by mangled limbs and the cries for help that she imagined her mother must have shouted. But there was nothing she could do. Juliet was helpless to save her mother's life. When she first woke up in the mornings following her mother's death, it seemed as if she awoke from the nightmare, but then she'd walk into the living room and be surrounded by flowers with notes baring condolences.

She hated all of them. The light pinks and purples, the bright yellows and oranges mocked her. Their beauty was tarnished by the fake sympathy sent by people who bullied her mother. Now they felt bad for the whore, but when Luann grocery shopped or got her hair done they had no problem whispering behind her back and spreading lies. No, they did not feel bad because she was alive and easy target. Now she was dead and it was "disrespectful" to speak against the dead. It was the flowers sent by Pastor Davis' wife that sent Juliet into a fury this morning. That disgusting overweight bitch had taunted and spat words of hate and hell to her mother for decades, but now the fat bitch had the audacity to say her mother was resting peacefully in heaven. She'd opened the box to reveal the bright mixed floral bouquet and seen the over the top religious card attached. Her conscience screamed at her not to read it, knowing it would only bring her anger but she went ahead and read it.

Twenty minutes later Jax found her on the living room floor surrounded by broken vases, ripped up cards and trampled flowers. She couldn't be surrounded by the sympathy anymore. It wasn't going to bring her mother back. Her hands had been cut by some of the glass but she hadn't cared. Jax didn't say anything about the mess, they both just stepped over the broken glass and gotten in her car. His silence about her tantrum was one of the things she loved about him, he knew when to leave her be. He knew when she needed to break and he was there to pick her up and move forward and that's just what they were doing, moving forward. But first she needed to tell her father that the woman he'd loved for the last 31 years was dead.

Juliet passed through security with ease, the guards' attention focused on their former inmate. She was pretty sure the guards were one step away from strip searching Jax, but eventually they let him through with her. Walking towards the visiting area felt as if she was walking towards her death. Her body was heavy, each step was dreaded and as hard as she tried she couldn't control her shaking hands. The smile on her father's face only made her stomach drop. Reaching her father his smile fell from his face, he could see that something was horribly wrong. Otto held out his arms to his daughter, but instead of pulling him into a hug she gripped on to his arms. Looking up at him with her bloodshot eyes, she didn't know how she could tell him about her mother's death. She took in a deep breath and let out the dreaded words,

"Daddy, Mo…" Her voice broke as fresh tears began to spring in her eyes. "Mom's dead."

Her control broke as her father pulled her into him. One hand rested on her head and the other wrapped around her waist as she cried into his chest.

As Otto held his daughter against him he allowed his eyes to wander to his Vice President. Their eyes locked on to each other as the same thought passed through their minds; was it the club's fault for death of Luann? Otto felt his daughter stir, breaking the staring contest between himself and Jax. Juliet pulls away from her father and looks up at him.

"I'm sorry Daddy."

Otto hushes Juliet and holds her by the shoulders.

"It's not your fault. Don't go blaming yourself,"

Juliet says nothing as more tears make their way down her face. She can't help but feel responsible. Jax and Tig had attacked Georgie because of her; maybe if she had kept them from revenge her mother would still be alive.

"This is not your fault. Do you understand me Juliet?"

He shook her shoulders. She nodded her head to appease her father, but in the back of her mind she knew she was the reason her mother was dead and her father was now almost completely blind.

After leaving her father the only thing Juliet wanted to do is lock herself up at home, but when it rained it poured. Juliet was needed at CaraCara and Jax had to check in on Chibs at the hospital. Jax pulled up to the Teller Morrow lot pulling it to a stop before the couple got out of the car. Juliet walked over to the driver's side taking the keys from Jax's hand, but before she could slide in the car he stopped her, placing his hands around her face.

"We're going to get through this." He said before kissing her.

She allowed her body to relax at his touch for the brief moment. Pulling away from him she climbed into the car.

"See you at home."

He bent down stealing another kiss before he shut the door of the car and jogged off towards his bike.

Juliet didn't know how she gathered up the strength to walk into CaraCara without breaking down in tears but she did it. Looking around the studio made her stomach was her mother's legacy, all her hard work through the years had paid off and she had become the queen of porn. But now her mother was dead because of porn, murdered by a jealous rival. In truth Juliet wanted to see this place burn down, this studio was the reason her mother was laying in the morgue. It would be easy to just leave CaraCara to SAMCRO, but even with her contempt towards the studio, she couldn't allow herself to let it fall. Luann had spent her entire adult life working for this, working to get off her knees and behind the camera. If Juliet allowed CaraCara to crash and burn she would be failing her mother's memory, she couldn't allow her mother's legacy to fade into the darkness. Her mother wouldn't be remembered as the murdered porn star, but as the founder of the great porn studio CaraCara.

The first step into the studio as hard, but once all the workers' eyes were on her she knew that she could do this. Taking a deep breath she shared a shaky smile with the large group that had surrounded her. At first she felt like a lamb amongst lions as the gathered around her, but after the kept their distance and waited for her to speak she realized that they were the sheep and she the shepherd. Their jobs and future balanced in her hands, it was not just her mother's legacy she was in charge of, these people were also now at under her employment and she could not let them down either. Clearing her throat Juliet felt a small boost of courage shoot through her body.

"As you know my mo…" Her voice cracked, she couldn't bring herself to say it.

Juliet felt a small hand on her shoulder, looking up she saw that her source of comfort was Layla. She wasn't alone in her grief the petite blonde was giving her the strength to move through the speech she had been practicing in her head the entire ride to CaraCara.

"is no longer with us. I will be assuming control of CaraCara productions." She paused and watched as there was a collective sigh of relief amongst the crowd. "SAMCRO will continue to be presence to ensure our safety, as for directing Ryan you'll be taking control until things get settled and I can assist. If you have any questions feel free to stop by my office. Thank you all for your patience during this time."

She knew her little spiel sounded emotionless and professional but it was the only way she could get through it. It seemed that everyone understood and left her to resume business. As Juliet turned to her office she noticed that three girls were missing.

Glancing over at Layla her brow furrowed, "Where is Ima and her crew?"

"I wanted to talk to you about that…"

Juliet felt her body tensing; she could never catch a break.

"What happened?"

"They got picked up by PD."

"What the fuck for?" Juliet interrupted.

She could feel heat rising up inside of her; she couldn't deal with this right now.

"Prostitution, found them down at the motel off main."

"Goddamn it. Go over to Ryan and tell him to film your scenes today and Sugar's, then you can have the next few days off."

Layla nodded as Juliet began to walk off.

"Wait," Layla called. Juliet turned around to face her, "She called asking for bail."

"Let that bitch rot." Juliet growled as she stormed into the office and slammed the door shut.

She slumped in her chair and let her head fall into her hands. Closing her eyes, she questioned how her life would have been had she not returned to Charming and stayed in New York. It was her fault that her father was attacked, all because she couldn't contain her rage. Had she never shot at Westin, her dad wouldn't have almost bled to death and lost 80% of his vision in his remaining eye. She was the reason for his suffering, both from the attack and her mother's death. A choked sob escaped her mouth as she thought of her mom. Georgie or Westin was the cause of her murder. And both men she had pissed off. Both men had motive to kill Luann. If Juliet had never come back to Charming, Georgie would have never been attacked so viciously by Tig and Jax.

There wouldn't have been such a harsh retaliation by the Sons if she wasn't involved. Although, retaliation was dictated as Luann was an Old Lady, Juliet knew that her place in the club held more weight than her mother's. Juliet being the daughter of a top ranking member wasn't the reason retaliation was so vicious; it was her relationship with Gemma, the VP and SSgt A. that necessitated violent action. SAMCRO had risked their lives to save her when she had been kidnapped. They murdered men for her and even were wounded for her. SAMCRO's love for her was putting them in danger. Juliet couldn't stand the thought of losing more loved ones because of her. SAMCRO meant the world to her. They were her family, through blood and bonds; she loved them more than anything.

Her mother was gone, her father was locked up, and because of this in the eyes of the outside world she was practically an orphan with no real family. But in the Men of Mayhem circle she wasn't alone. She had uncles, brothers, even another mother. There was no Old Lady like Gemma Teller-Morrow, no one could replace her. Gemma had birthed the heir to SAMCRO and had ensured the proper training of the future Queen. Gemma had raised Juliet just as much if not more than her own mother. It was Gemma that had instilled such a sense of family and loyalty in Juliet. It was this sense of family and loyalty, that Juliet made her decision, she would stick by SAMCRO through thick and thin. While this time in her life would be difficult she knew that they would be there for her. She would doubt, she would struggle but they would help her through, especially Jax.

Thinking of Jax made Juliet's heart clench. If she had stayed in New York, she'd be miserable and he'd still be with that cowardly bitch Tara. No matter all the shit they had been through, Jackson Teller was the one for her. They had walked through the valley of shadows before and come out on top and they could do it again. A lesson from Gemma rang through her head; appear strong when you are weak. She needed to be strong and fearless, not only for herself but for Jax and SAMCRO. It was the woman that stood tall behind her man that made him, if she appeared weak and cracked, he would falter. In this dangerous time she could not allow herself to wallow in pity and lose the one stronghold she had left. She would not risk Jax's life for her weakness.

Picking her head up, Juliet looked around the office and sighed. She wasn't going to get anything done here today. Standing up, she quickly packed up her work laptop; she could make calls and emails from home. Staying in her mother's office would only bring her more distraction. Throwing the laptop bag over her shoulder and stuffing some files in her purse, Juliet stalked out of the door. With barely a wave and a hurried goodbye with instructions on where to reach her if she was needed. Her exit was rushed but she needed to get out of the place, she'd only be reminded that the last time she had seen her mother alive was in that office.

Walking into Jax's dining room Juliet expected to find Neeta feeding Abel, instead she was greeted by Gemma leaned back in a kitchen chair smoking a joint. Shrugging off her bags and setting down the files on the table, Juliet plopped down besides Gemma. Without any words being passed between the two women, Gemma handed her the joint. She allowed the smoke to fill her lungs and did not exhale till she felt the burning sensation creep up from her lungs. As she exhaled Gemma snaked one arm around her shoulders and took the joint in between her fingers with the other. Laying her head down on the older woman's shoulder, as they passed the joint in silence, Juliet let the tears pour down her cheeks. Gemma placed a light kiss on her forehead.

"Everything is going to be okay baby."

Appear strong when you are weak. It was the most important lesson Gemma had ever taught her.