A Wolf's Purpose

•Chapter 22• Tough Guys

It was three against one. He looked up at the boys, hatred still burning in his eyes. The blood under his nose was now dry. His skin was bruised and sensitive. "What are we gonna do with him?" Jack questions. Jayden looks at his younger brother. "Can't let him go," Jerry tells him. Jayden looked at his neighbor again. He tilted his head slightly and narrowed his eyes a little. "Can't kill him either," Jerry added. "He ain't exactly the dog I was hoping for either." Jack shrugged. His two brothers gave him a slightly disappointed look. The eldest triplet turned his head again. He stepped forward. "The police will come back for you boys. They know you're here." Eric mumbled. "They're not gonna bust the house," Jayden tells him. Eric looked at the teenager towering over him.
He never saw Jayden as very intimidating. Just a poor copy of his father. Even now, tied to a chair, and nowhere to go. He didn't feel any fear for the boy. "You think you have the power, don't you, boy?" Eric asks him. The man leaned back in his chair some more. "You boys tied up the big bad man. The cops are gone for now. You're back in your house." The man summed up. Jayden's body language shifted a bit. He tensed up, more than before. "Jay," Jack said quietly. "You forget one thing. I took everything from you. Your mommy, your daddy." Eric reminds him. The boy tried not to think about it. Both of his parents' faces were in his mind now. Gone forever. He felt tears starting to burn behind his eyes. "Almost took your baby sister too," Eric added.

Their eyes darkened at the mention of her. But not because they were mad at her. "Jayden," Jack repeated. His brother couldn't hold it in. He grasped the man's shirt. He rose his other hand in the air and balded it into a fist. Blood splatter flew through the air. Eric cursed under his breath. Jack squeezed his eyes shut tightly. He turned his head away from the scene. "Don't be a pussy," Jayden tells his brother. He grabbed the man's face. "Wanna say that again?" He asks. Eric spits at the boy. A mix of saliva and blood hit him. He punched the man again before wiping it off. "You can keep wasting your energy on me, boy. It won't get you anywhere." Eric tells him. "This isn't going to work," Jerry spoke up. His jaw clenched as he looked at their neighbor from across the street. He narrowed his eyes slightly and glared at him as he folded his arms over his chest. Eric's eyes were watering. Jayden had hit his nose harshly.
Maybe broke it in one punch. Blood was slowly trailing down to his lips again. "Are you sure you're your daddy's boy?" He chuckled. "I'm going easy on you," Jayden tells him. "Jayden," Megan's voice appeared behind them. The boys turned to her. She approached him, placing her hand on his shoulder, and looked at her father. "I'll talk to him," she says. "You're not," Jayden replies sternly. "You're my boss now? I must've missed that memo." Megan tells him, "I can handle him," She said. Jayden looked at his brothers. "Scream if you need us," Jack tells her. She nodded and watched as he left. Jerry followed close behind. But Jayden stayed with her. "Go," She said. "No," Jayden replied, "Not leaving him." He added whilst shaking his head slightly. "You don't trust me?" She asks him. He narrowed his eyes at him. "Go," Megan repeated. 

"Honey, what are you doing?" Eric asks her. She gently dabbed the wet cloth onto his face, cleaning the blood off his skin. She didn't look him in the eyes. "You have no idea what you've done, sweetie." He continued. "Quiet." She tells him. Her tone was cold and dark. As if she didn't care for him at all. Of course, she did. "They belong behind bars. Lock them away and throw away the key." Eric says. "They didn't do anything." She states. For a brief second, she locked eyes with her father. "They took you away. Tried to drain your blood from your body. To kill you. On their father's behalf." He sums up. Megan said silently.
"Do you know why they went after you specifically?" He questioned. She furrowed her eyebrows. "What?" She replied. Eric let out a low chuckle. "Now she listens." He mumbled under his breath. Megan waited for her father to continue. "They could've gone after any girl out there. And they went after you." He started. "Because of Mom." Megan filled in. But her father let out another low chuckle. "If he truly wanted to get back at your mother and me, he would've killed you. But he wanted your blood." He continued. Megan didn't trust it. She shook her head. "You're trying to get in my head. It's not gonna work." She tells him. She sounded so confident. Just like her mother once. A small smirk appeared on his lips. "They didn't tell you, did they?" He questions. 

Megan glared at her father. "I know what you're doing." She starts, "You're making up lies and stories just to get into my head. To make me turn against them. That's what you want. Dad, I'm not doing that. You put them behind bars when they didn't even do anything. They never hurt me. They're good guys." She stated. "They're not good boys, Megan. They might have you think that. But they're not." Eric said. "So what they're not like their father while being like their father?" She questioned, "How does that work?" She added. "They're not who they say they are, sweetie," Eric tells her. "They are my friends." She snapped at him. "They will kill you!" He barked back. Megan stood up, ignoring her father, and walks out. The triplets and Liz snapped their heads up when she joined them again. "Everything okay?" Liz asks her friend. Megan nodded. Jack looked a bit concerned. She stood beside him and gave him a sweet look. "He's just trying to get in my head. That's all." She assures him. "So, what do we do now?" Jack asks. "Punch him to death," Jayden mumbled under his breath.
"That's exactly what we shouldn't do," Jerry replies. "Well, what else are we supposed to do? We can hide the body somewhere. No one would know." Jack joined in. "Except for the entire Greenwood family and the police." Jerry reminds his brother. "At least he'd be gone," Jack said. "I agree," Jayden says. "You agree with everything violent. Especially against him." Jerry argued. "Sometimes I wonder how you boys are still breathing," Liz admitted. "I am actually on the edge of punching your face in right now," Jerry tells his brother. "Why don't you take that anger, and take it out on him?" Jayden suggested. 

A loud slam of the door cut their conversation short. Everyone turned their head, their eyes widening. Was it the police? Was this the moment they would get caught? No one came storming in with any weapons or anything like that. But there was someone here. They all heard the door slam shut. Everyone heard it. "Someone should check that out," Jack says. "You two are the tough ones, right? Throwing punches and all?" Jerry replied. "Shut up, knucklehead," Jayden tells his brother. A familiar someone stepped in very carefully.
Her eyes were already filled with tears and disbelief. She looked as if she was about to break. Megan and Liz turned their heads to the three boys. Before she could realize it, the triplets rushed towards her, embracing their baby sister tightly. She broke down crying in their arms. She squeezed her eyes shut tightly as she rested her head on their shoulders. "You're here," She whispered, "You're all here," She sobbed.