A Wolf's Purpose

•Chapter 18• Drive Home

Jade glared at the young man sitting beside her in the driver's seat. He gripped the wheel tightly with his hands. Veins popping out. There had been silence ever since they got into the car. They both hated it. She glanced outside the window as they passed the houses through the city. Casper looked at her briefly. "We're going to sit in silence now?" He asks. "You were able to keep quiet about my father being alive. A couple more hours won't hurt." She snapped at him. Casper let out a sigh. "I'm sorry about that." He tells her quietly. She looked at him, tucking her hair behind her ear. "You're sorry?" She paused briefly. She inhaled deeply, not wanting to get too angry with him. "You kept this from me for months. This could've changed everything." She continued. "Yeah, and look what you have accomplished without him." He added. Jade looked at him quietly. He shot small glances at her while also trying to keep his eyes on the road. "Your dad would've kept you from all of this. And we wouldn't have come this far without you. I wouldn't have come this far." He tells her. He groaned as the red light appeared instead of the green one. He stopped the car gently.

"Listen," He started. "You should have told me." She interrupted him. "But I didn't, okay?" He snapped at her. He removed one of his hands from the steering wheel and held it out slightly. "I wanted to, but I didn't. Not just because he asked me, okay? You're so much better off without him. He's bossing you around. You're not a little girl anymore. I mean, look at what you've done. You've outgrown something that your father could barely stop from falling apart." He tells her. Then why would he send her home? After everything she has done. She's proven time and time again that she's worthy, that she can handle it. Apparently, none of it was good enough for Bill. Jade turned away slightly. "He doesn't care." She said, "It's never enough for him." She continued. "He's scared." Casper started. Jade looked at him briefly. "He's scared of being forgotten," Casper informs her. "And I'm not?" Jade asks him, "He always asked for my brothers, except for when he needed to be bathed or fed. He made me feel like I was his nurse. Not his daughter. I wasn't worthy enough of carrying his name. Not even in the house. The name was a burden both inside and outside of my house for... well, my whole life. Everyone always talked about my brothers or my father. I was never important enough." Jade tells him. Casper listened to her carefully, not taking his eyes off her. "When my father died I thought that that shadow had finally disappeared. But then there were my brothers. And even after I turned them in..." She let out a sigh, "I was still living in their shadows. But what we did here, what we built, it is so much more than that. It made me feel like so much more. I've barely felt that throughout my life." She informs him.

After taking another pause she gave him a look, a little angry one. "And here he is, swooping right back in, and you didn't even bother to give me a heads up," Jade says. The young man let out a sigh. He felt guilty, of course, for keeping this from her. Even more now. "You lied to me, Cas. You kept secrets from me." Jade reminds him. Casper looks up to see the light turn green again. He started driving out of the city again. "I know." He said. He turned his head to her again. "I'm sorry." He apologized again, "I know you want to prove yourself to him. You still do." He continued. He gave her a sweet smile and shook his head slightly. "You don't have to." He assured her. "It doesn't matter anyway. You're driving me home while he arises from the dead to the outside world and finally gets his revenge." Jade mumbled. "That just sounds incredibly dark," Casper says. "It's what's going to happen. He would do anything to get back at Greenwood." She replies. 

Suddenly, the car stopped in an almost empty parking lot. Jade furrowed her eyebrows together. "What are you doing?" She said. Casper pointed outside the window. There was another car standing still not too far away from them. The windows were blacked out so you couldn't see anything through them. "Who's that?" She asks. The door of the car opened carefully and Ian stepped out. "I thought we could use some help," Casper tells her. Jade looks at him again. "For what?" She questions. "Did you really think I was going to take you back home? Just like that?" Casper replies. Jade looked at Ian who was approaching their vehicle. "Did you tell him about my dad?" She asks. He shook his head. "No, I told him we had a little hiccup along the way and we need some help. If you want to tell him, you should." He says. He placed his hand on her arm briefly. Jade locked eyes with the young man again. "He can't cast you out like this." He says. A small smile appeared on her lips. "And I really am sorry for keeping this a secret from you, boss." He added. Her grin grew wider and she laughed quietly. "Are we good?" He asks her. The girl nods and embraced the young man. "Thank you." She whispered.

They both got out of the car and met with Ian. "You kids had fun?" He questions. Jade rolls her eyes at him slightly. "I told you, you shouldn't have gone there. Did you find anything? No, you didn't." Ian said, trying to be a smart ass. On the inside, Jade was debating whether or not to tell him. He would most likely get aggressive and protective in a way over the Pack. Almost in a similar way that Jayden would. Jade's thoughts wandered off to her brothers. She could see them, in separate rooms, isolated from the world. Jack would be losing his mind. Jayden would start a fight with one of the inmates. And Jerry... he would be consumed by his loneliness. Her stomach twisted as the images went through her mind. A hand touched her shoulder, pulling her out of her thoughts. She glanced up to see Casper standing behind her. "You okay?" He asks. It took a few seconds before she nodded her head yes. Ian eyed her up and down. "Are you sure?" He questioned. Jade nodded again and looked at the taller man. "You were saying." She said. "There's a hotel nearby. I have a room there. You, kids, look like you could use some sleep and a meal." He replies. "I could also use a bath." Jade joked. Ian gave her a smile. He reached out his hand and gave Casper a keycard. "Seventh floor." He tells the boy. "Wait, I thought you were coming with us," Casper says. "And I thought you were with three," Ian replied. Casper gulped quietly, not knowing how to explain Louis' absence. "He will meet with us later." Jade interrupts. 

Ian looked at her. "I think I should still go look for him." He says. "No need to." Jade assures him, "He's fine. He probably snuck off to the tramp we almost ran over." She lied. Louis had been hitting on her, so it wasn't a complete lie. Ian frowned at the two and narrowed his eyes at them slightly. "Ian, he's fine," Jade assures him. He gave her a little nod. "I'm right behind you two." He tells the two. Casper turned around and made his way back to their car. "Hey," Jade called out to Ian. The man turned to her. "Thank you." She says. He put his hands in his pockets and tried to keep himself from smiling. He was happy to see her, alive and well. "Anytime, boss." He said. A grin appeared on her lips again. They both turned to their vehicle and got in. Casper looked at her again. "Dibs on the bathtub," Jade tells him. He chuckled and started the car. Suddenly, Jade's eyes started to become heavy again. She squeezed them shut tightly for a second or two. "You good?" He asks. "Tired." She answered.