AUTHOR'S NOTE: I am so super sorry for the lack of updates! My laptop was literally hacked and majority of my files were held for ransom. I didn't pay the money by the selected date that the hacker(s) set so they corrupted all of my Word files and pictures – Basically, a lot of important things were lost, including the updates I had for this story. So I've been really upset and procrastinating on rewriting this chapter because once I write something, I can literally never write it the same again. But I hope this makes up for my absence. And in case any of you reading this are fans of Grey's Anatomy or Law and Order: SVU, I have a story for each of them on my Wattpad (BlacklistedMarissa). The link is in my about me if you're interested! Anyways, without further ado, here's the tenth chapter for Woman of Emerald.

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Chapter Ten: A Lifetime of Memories.

"Where are we at with that machine to save the boss?!" Johnny demanded. He couldn't stop pacing for the life of him. Every fiber of his being was worried about Monroe. Was she okay? Was she kicking ass? Was she even alive?

He wouldn't allow himself – nor anyone else – to even dare assume her dead. Mainly because he couldn't live with that outcome.

Monroe needed to be alive for him; he needed her. He didn't care if he had her as a lover or not. Just having her as a friend would be beyond good enough. She had saved his ass countless times and he had come to the conclusion that she was a much needed person in his life, otherwise things would feel… Off, so to speak.

Johnny ran a hand down his face as he looked over Matt's shoulder. Things looked just as they did the last time he looked two minutes ago. Had progress even been made? It didn't look like it. As a matter of fact, it looked like they weren't even doing anything – Just chatting amongst one another. He was far too worried to even try and listen to their conversation, so he couldn't rightfully be angry with them.

"Johnny." Shaundi said softly, putting her hand on his shoulder. It took a few seconds but he eventually turned his attention to her.

"What?" Was his brisk, hardened reply.

She quietly sighed. "I know you're worried about the boss but you can't hover over the people who are going to help us get to her. You need to give them space. Come on."

Johnny didn't even bother fighting her. He simply allowed her to drag him away from the brains of the group and to the pool room where Pierce was doing his best to relax and look nonchalant in a chair, but it was evident that he was just as anxious as everyone else was.

"She's gotta be okay, right?" Pierce asked Johnny, yet their eyes didn't mean.

"She's the boss. Of course she is." Johnny quietly replied. Even he sounded unsure. He just had to keep repeating positive words to try to make everyone feel better.

"It's just-… She saved all of us. More than once – She's put her ass on the line for every single one of us more than once. She's helped us when we needed it… She's been there for us. And I-I can't remember the last time I thanked her." Pierce admitted, letting his head fall into his hands. He had gone to a very dark place, mentally. "She's done some of the most ballsiest shit I have ever seen in my life for me, and I can't bring myself to remember the last time I told her 'thank you', if I ever have."

The atmosphere in the room turned into a very quiet and contemplative one. Shaundi slowly sat down on the edge of the pool table, letting Pierce's words sink into her. "Fuck…" She whispered. "I-I can't remember ever telling her 'thank you', either… But I can remember cussing her out a whole lot. I don't- I can't live with myself if those are the last impressions she has of me."

"She knows we appreciate her. She… She knows. At least I think she does. Otherwise, she wouldn't have saved our asses from Zinyak. If she thought we were some unappreciative assholes, I'm sure she would've let us rot in our hells on Zinyak's ship for the rest of our lives. But did she? No. The Boss cares for us. She knows we care for her, too, even if we mostly don't show it to her-"

"When we get her back, I'm going to show my appreciation for her. I'm gonna make sure she knows that I am thankful for every fucking thing she's ever done for my ass." Pierce said as he stood up, removing his hat and running his hand over his hair.

Shaundi looked up at him and nodded in agreement; Johnny noticed that they were both speaking as though she was still alive. As if they were definitely going to find her alive and well on Zinyak's ship. It made him smile – They were being positive and succeeding at it. But he was still trying to be positive himself.

Johnny quietly sighed as he sat back in the chair.

Monroe was okay. She had to be. He loved her – He needed her. For his sake and the sake of everyone on this ship, Monroe had to be okay.

There wasn't a single person on the ship, as a matter of fact, who could imagine living the rest of their days without the boss. She had such a large influence in everyone's life – Whether it be the stupid jokes she told to try to brighten someone's day or how everyone joined in on the laughter when she was clumsy and tripped.

Monroe was just the light in everyone's life. It couldn't be phrased any other way.

So, in order for them to all function correctly and continue through life one step at a time, she had to be alive. She had to be kicking and joking and cursing just like she usually did.

"I remember when the boss recruited me." Pierce eventually broke the agonizing silence. "I told her in order to recruit me to the Saints, she had to impress me and shoot up some Ronin. We rode on a motorcycle and she shot up at least twenty Ronin without missing a fucking beat."

Shaundi smiled softly as she remembered her own recruitment. "I had her show me some badass jumps. I think it was like three or four. When I saw that she could handle herself in a car, I knew I had to get behind her and her movement. I remember thinking that there wasn't anyone else as ballsy as she was. I still think that."

They both turned to look at Johnny. They knew he had a much longer history with the boss – One that they had only heard small details of. "What about you?" Pierce asked. "She's your best friend. Tell us about… Everything."

A soft smile crossed Johnny's face. "When I first met her, a guy named Julius was the head of the gang. He turned out to be an asshole. But anyways, she was silent – Didn't talk or anything. She was a bad bitch with a gun, though. Fought off the entire gang for her initiation. And then when I heard about her going onto that yacht that exploded the next morning, I went to Julius but he was gone. I had the feeling he meant for me to die and not her, but she must've taken my place, you know?" He sighed quietly and looked down. "So I went on with my life, thinking she was dead because that's what the word was on the news and around the town for so long. Then when I got locked up, the rumor changed to her being in a coma. And I overheard some cops talking about it so I got a little hopeful, but not too much. Weeks passed after that and I was at my court hearing. I remember talking shit to the judge and then there was a gunshot outside in the hall. The boss busted down the door and saved my ass from execution. We shot up the courthouse and she drove until we lost the cops. I remember talking to her and she was just so behind on everything." He laughed quietly, his eyes glancing back up at Pierce and Shaundi who were both smiling.

"I like this." Shaundi said softly. "Talking about the boss – All the memories we had. It makes me feel… More at ease."

"Me, too." Johnny smiled some as he looked down at his hands, his eyes tracing over the creases on his palm. The room grew quiet once again; each individual reminiscing on the times that they had spent together with Monroe, replaying each second of the memory over and over again – Trying to get the feel of the moment back again.

Shaundi couldn't help but to think of the times that the boss had rescued her from her countless ex-boyfriends. Each time, the boss had to go through a set of extraordinary tasks to retrieve her. Shaundi always knew that the boss could just simply leave her and not do anything about it. But the fact that the boss never let that happen – That she always went out of her way to retrieve Shaundi and bring her back in one piece… It warmed her heart. It made her smile. It made her feel important and loved.

Pierce, on the other hand, recalled the time that the boss had encouraged him to go forward with his love for the spotlight. There was a point in time where he was far too afraid to get in front of a camera that would record a commercial to air in front of millions. That, alone, made him nervous to his very bones. But the boss stood right beside him and gave him the most encouraging words – And because of those words, Pierce developed into the brave and cocky individual he was today. The boss had molded him into the person he was proud to be. She had made him feel treasured and valued.

Finally, there was Johnny – Whom was focused on the talks he and Monroe had. They would go out to bars, sit around at the Saints crib, drive around pointlessly, or just walk around the neighborhood. Their topics would vary, at first, but as the conversations carried on, they always turned to something deeper. Most of the time, it was Johnny venting about Aisha – How he loved her but they argued constantly. Then, when she died, it was about how he blamed himself. When he got over her death, finally, the conversation took on a subject of how he would never find anyone again. It was strange for Johnny to open up to anyone like that, but the words flowed so easily when he was talking to Monroe. And she would constantly pull him out of his dark place. She would reassure him that life was a rollercoaster and he was currently at the bottom, so if he held out long enough, he'd be at the top in the clouds and light soon. Even though her words were incredibly cheesy, they never failed to make Johnny see the bright side of whatever situation he was in. She had given Johnny hope. She had given him feelings. She had given him a softer side. She had made him feel like an actual human being.

"I lo-"

"It's ready!" Kinzie exclaimed. Her words brought everyone to their feet and they quickly rushed over.

Johnny had to breathe; She had interrupted him just as he was about to confess his love for Monroe to Pierce and Shaundi. It was a close one, sure to say. "It's ready? It's working? We can-"

Matt cut off Johnny's rambling, as it was beginning to take on a very anxious tone which would spread the feeling through everyone else. "We are ready to save the boss." He smiled at him, hoping his words and meaningful facial expression were enough to calm down Johnny. They had all appointed him to be the temporary boss, because they didn't believe they couldn't function without someone ordering them around to an extent. They needed Johnny to be calm and confident, not worrisome and second guessing.

"Let's fucking go- Asha, Ben, Pierce." He had to remember his plan; Four souls, including his, would board this pod and save Monroe. The rest would stay here and monitor them. "The rest of you will stay by Kinzie and Matt. Do what they tell you, they're in charge until the boss gets back. Monitor us and tell us where to go. We'll need all eyes and ears with us or we fail. We cannot afford to argue, to disagree, or to be pissed off – Now is not the time. The boss needs us. We've all needed her and she was always there for us within a heartbeat. Keep your hearts focused on the primary reason: The boss. If we all keep her in our minds, we'll succeed. Push your personal shit to the side – Your disliking of other members, your jealousy – Those don't matter until we get the boss back on this ship. Is that understood?"

His words had touched all of them. They all put aside their differences with one another and smiled softly, nodding in response. "Kick some alien ass." Keith David spoke up as the selected four boarded the pod.

But it was Shaundi's words that struck a chord in their hearts and pushed their determination even further: "Bring the boss back home."

Matt closed the pod door for them and Kinzie began the countdown. Johnny looked at the four individuals he had chosen to take with him and he couldn't be anymore happy with his choice. Asha had the stealth. Ben had the brains. Pierce had the physical combat. Johnny had the strength.

"Is there a plan, Gat?" Pierce asked.

"There can't be a plan. Zinyak would be aware of our presence before we even got to his ship. We just have to go in there and take everything on as it comes. One thing is for sure, though: We gotta stick together. We can't fucking get cocky and confident. It doesn't matter if you're a KGB agent, a well acclaimed author, the face of the Saints, or second lieutenant. In this situation, we are just gang members and we need to have each other's back. We need to stick together and look out for one another in order to successfully save the boss."

They were all jolted as they were launched, being too far caught up in Johnny's words to pay attention to Kinzie's countdown.

"Here we go." Asha quietly breathed, rubbing her hands up and down on her calves. Johnny knew that action. She was nervous. Hell, they all were.

"We've got this. The boss needs us. We're gonna be there for her." Ben spoke softly, glancing up at Gat. "We all make a good team. Johnny knew what he was doing when he picked the three of us. As long as we hone in on our abilities and keep ourselves mentally grounded, we got this. There is no room for failure as long as we just stick to each other."

A comfortable silence overcame the pod for a long few seconds until Kinzie's voice came on their headsets. "You guys are coming up on the Zin ship now. Get ready to disembark. The trajectory path the pod took is perfectly exact. It'll enter in the Zin cargo bay where you can get out and take the back route to the boss. I'm not picking up anything on the boss, so you might be on your own but I can direct you to the pod rooms. Knowing Zinyak, he will have high security on her so checking out the most populated and guarded areas are our best bet."

Not even a few seconds later were they all jerked around yet again.

"Landed." Asha spoke as Pierce kicked out the door.

Johnny was the last one out; He was surrounded by his three comrades. "Kinzie?" He spoke. "Where's a pod room at?"

"There's one nearby. You shouldn't have any trouble finding it. Every pod room is through large double doors that need a Zin handprint to access."

"Let's fucking do this shit." Johnny clapped Ben and Pierce on their backs, giving a smirk to Asha. "Stick to one another. No cocky shit. The boss is our priority. She needs to come home."