Wolf of the West

19.

Will hadn't seen Rudy since the train station. Virgil had made him board the train while they put his friend in his own separate boxcar behind the passenger car, and all Will could do was sit and wonder what was happening to him. He had thought about going and hopping the gap to see him, but both Virgil and Chet were on the train with him, so he knew it would prove to be too difficult.
While the group stayed in the passenger car, Rudy was going through a personal hell of his own. His wrists were chained up in cuffs that were made of a mixture of silver and iron which burned his tender, freckled skin. His arms were outstretched from the short chains that had attached the cuffs to the walls of the boxcar. Not to mention that his ankles were also cuffed together to prevent mobility with the same iron-silver contraption. His face was locked up into a tight muzzle around his head, preventing him from opening his jaw all of the way which was still partially a muzzle. The werewolf could do nothing but sit there and attempt to yank at the silver chains which didn't give him any lead of escape. His eyes shut in defeat as he hung his head, letting out a huffed sigh through his nostrils.
Will couldn't do it. He couldn't stop his mind from racing and wondering if Rudy was okay. He was about to get out of his seat, before he paused as his father passed him on his way to Rudy's boxcar. It might have been because he was already paranoid, but it made Will even more nervous than before. Without a word, he stood up and followed behind him.
"Will, go sit down." Virgil ordered, without even having to look back at his son. "Pa, I just— I wanna see him. For a second. P-please, I need to see him." He pleaded humbly, fearful it would come off like he was talking back. He followed him right out to the gap between the cars. "Will, go sit down. Now." Virgil said as he opened the car to Rudy's door. He entered and quickly shut the heavy door behind him, before his son could follow. Will desperately tried to look inside, but he saw nothing but one of Rudy's chained hands before the door shut.

In the darkness of the old car, Rudy's pointed ears seemed to twitch forward as he heard someone enter the room, but kept his head low and eyes closed, guessing who it was.
   Giving a slight pull to the chains, he raised his head up to see Virgil standing at the front of the car. He didn't speak at first as his gaze locked onto him, but lowered his head once more and muttered, "What do you want?"
   "Relax, son, we ain't got trouble til' we get home. I just wanna ask you a few questions and talk to ya for a bit. Whether or not you cooperate is up to you, but dependin' on what you choose, I might just think about lettin' you and my boy chat a minute before we get home. I know he wants to." Virgil explained the stakes to him, crossing his arms where he stood as he awaited the response.
Rudy seemed to consider both sides, his eyes focusing on the hay he knelt on as he tried to pick his answer, if he were to even have one at all. He wasn't sure what questions were to be asked, but deep down he truly did want to see Will before they arrived at Fort Smith. After a beat of silence, he exhaled. "Fine." He muttered out through the muzzle, still avoiding eye contact.
"Good." Virgil replied, tapping his fingers on his arms as he found a place to start. "Now the questions might get rough, but stick with me. We'll start easy. How long were you and Will together while you were on your little trek through Missouri? You two seemed to be away from each other when we found ya." He asked simply.
"The entire time. The only time we separated was when we were in the woods back there." He explained quietly through his partially shut jaw, giving a small glance up at Virgil. "We've been inseparable." He commented as he continued to keep an eye on the man. "Good." Virgil nodded slowly studying his face to see if he were lying. But he believed him, and doubted he had any reason to lie. "Now answer honestly, because you know I'll find out if you lie to me, eventually. Have you scratched or bitten Will at all while you've been with him?" He asked, monotone voice unchanging as he asked it.
Rudy felt a twinge of offense as he heard this, biting back a guttural growl that resided deep inside of him. "No. I haven't." He stated flatly but his tone remained soft and broken, continuing to look at him with an unwavering stare.
Virgil nodded once more, again believing him. "Alright. That's all I'll ask ya about Will. And I still got some things to ask ya, but first I wanna talk to you about some other things." He informed him, uncrossing his arms to hold his hands on his hips. "Now I don't want you to get feisty or play dumb with me, but I'm not gonna be dishonest with you. I don't very well like the influence you have on my boy. He's a real fragile thing—you know that. And I know he looks up to you a great deal."
Rudy felt his blood begin to boil at his words, but suppressed the anger as best he could to respond. "With all due respect sir, I don't know what influence I'd have on him. I ain't never done anything that was out of line, even back in Fort Smith." He stated with slightly furrowed brows.
"I think you know what influence you've had on him. You make him softer. I mean honestly, Rudy. Even at home, any time he ain't at home or church, he's on your arm like a sick puppy." Virgil said, trying not to grow irritable at the teen before him. "You know as well as I do Will's scared of anything that makes a loud noise or moves too fast. So why would he leave the only home he's ever known just for you? He could've very well got you on that train and made sure you were just fine, but he hopped on with you. He even had the nerve to yell in my face for the likes of you. He spends time with you that he should be spendin' makin' friends with the girls your age."
Rudy's nose gave a slight wrinkle but he soon returned to his defeated, tired nature. "I asked him why he jumped on that damn train myself. I hoped he wouldn't had and I told him that the entire time. I don't control him. What do you expect me to do now? Take it all back?" He asked softly as he looked back up at him, asking his questions with authenticity.
"No, of course I don't. I ain't that unreasonable. I just wanted to see if you agreed with me." Virgil said seriously, crossing his arms once again once the conversation started going where he wanted it to. "I don't think whatever's wrong with Will is one sided. I know you care a whole lot about him, too. And I know you want the best for him. Is that right?"
"Yes. Of course." He stated, wanting to dig his metaphorical nails into the point in the conversation and stop so it wouldn't go any further. His stomach was already turning from Virgil speaking to him, but now it was doing flips. "Then I want you to let him go and let things play out however they need to when we get home." Virgil deadpanned, "Will needs to come home and finish growin' up. He deserves to grow up comfortably and settle down with a pretty girl that's gonna treat him right. He deserves to be happy and carefree, and he can't have that when he's with you. He couldn't before, and he damn well can't have that now. You understand that, son?"
Rudy felt his eyes flood with tears as he heard this, wanting to just scream and spit about how wrong he was. But he thought back to the bloody corpse of Dakota and Will's words and gave a small nod, knowing that if he opened his mouth, it would come out in a sob with an abundance of tears. His entire frame seemed to slump in defeat, knowing that he'd burst out into a fit if he was able.
"Good. I know that's not what you wanna hear, but it's important that you understand why I gotta do what I gotta do when we get home. I'm sure you're well aware of what that is, so I ain't gonna bother you no longer." Virgil told him, turning around and opening the door to the boxcar to head back, but then he stopped and glanced over his shoulder. "But that bein' said, I think it's best that you and Will spend some time apart. I'll tell 'im you said you're doin' fine." Rudy's blue eyes widened as he heard his words, "Wh—What?? No!" He screamed out as he tugged at the chains, "Let me say goodbye to him! Please!" He howled at him, feeling hot tears spill down his cheeks as he lunged his body forward in an attempt to run after him. "I need to say goodbye!" He wailed as he felt his body begin to crack and shift.
"You can say goodbye when we're in Fort Smith. He'll be there." Virgil said as he shut the door behind him, cutting the conversation off from continuing further.
Rudy caught his breath when he watched the door close. His eyebrows furrowed angrily as the tears continued to spill, letting out an angry, despair-filled roar of a howl as his body yanked and pulled at the chains, growing desperate. His teeth gnashed and he threw his head back as the anguish from the boy fueled the anger of the beast inside of his head. He didn't have much time left, and what time he did have wouldn't include Will.

     Upon seeing the passenger car door open, Will quickly stood and met his father. "Is he alright? What'd you say to him?" He asked worriedly, to which Virgil promptly pushed him to the side of the aisle to return to his seat. "He told me to tell ya he's doin' just fine, Will." Chet, sitting across from them, simply turned his head in thought and looked out the window. It appeared that he looked frustrated and upset, but it was hard tell what was truly going on in his head. After that, everyone returned to their seats and went quiet, though Will continued to stare at the car door in shallow hopes that he'd get a chance to go though and see his companion.