A Wolf's Purpose

•Chapter 68• Casual Threats

"Keep moving." The man barked at Ian from behind. Ian furrowed his eyebrows together for a brief second. He turned around. "Or what? Gonna spank me? Have I been a bad boy?" Ian said in a teasing tone while giving the man a suggestive look. The man shoved him harshly through the back door. "I'll shove the gun down your throat. Keep moving." As soon as they entered the house, Bill lifted his head. He clearly didn't expect anyone to burst in at this time. "Caught him outside, boss. He was lurking in the background."
"Good thing you caught him then," Bill responded. Ian put up a fake smile and greeted Bill with a small wave of his hand. "Good to see you too, old man. Didn't think you'd come here." He said. "Yeah, well, the little one needed a better place to stay. Since she's sick and all that." Bill spat back at him. Ian tried to hide his shocked expression but he wasn't sure if he had done it well enough. "Didn't even bother mentioning it to me," Bill added in his authoritative tone. "Don't work for you. Not anymore. I don't tell you shit and I don't have to." Ian replied trying his best to keep his composure. Bill knew about Jade's situation. She was here. He wouldn't let go of her now. This wasn't just going to be difficult. This was impossible. Not to mention that he probably had the whole place covered with people who do work for him.

"Louis send you?" Bill questioned. Ian shrugged without saying a word. "Don't make me pull out your fingernails again to get something out of you." Bill threatened him. Ian couldn't help himself. He swallowed the large lump in his throat. "Did he send you?" Bill asked again. "I was looking for her. I was worried sick about her since she disappeared off the earth after the accident." Ian replied. "That accident was not my fault. And I made the city a lot safer by shooting him dead." That sounded so casual. Like he didn't commit a murder, it was like he simply took out a spider or a cockroach. "You took her, though. Leaving the other kid to die, might I add."
"He's fine. He's in the hospital recovering. The little traitor is a tough one, you know." Bill chuckled to himself. "He's not a traitor. He was doing his job." Ian defended Casper without him being around. Casper felt like a little bother to him sometimes. He's a good kid. "His job? You know, sending a kid to do your dirty work is low, Ian. Very low. And see where it brought him, too. In a hospital. He's lucky my little one feels something for him otherwise he would've been six feet under already. Speaking of which, how would you feel to be stuck in a box six feet below ground?" Bill suggested. "Not a big fan." Ian kept his poker face. He knew better than to show Bill what he was feeling. "Then I'll just take you out before burying you underground. How does that sound huh? See? I can be a nice person. I'll do you a favor. I wanted to bury you alive and listen as you slowly go mad while the air is slipping out of your lungs. Now that's a movie I'd want to see." This man was a real psycho. Sick in his mind. Bill got closer to him. "Wouldn't you like that movie?"
"A bit too psychological for me." Ian responded, "Listen. I was checking in. I don't want any trouble. I know better than to get into trouble with you, Bill. You know me. I wouldn't do that." He said while holding up his hands in defense. "You'd think you know better than that, yes." Bill praised him. He patted Ian's arm gently. "You're not an idiot. But you do know how I get. I'm not letting shit like this slide. I don't know what you're here for. You could be lying to me. My lie detectors aren't the best. You know that."

Ian wanted to respond but Jade's footsteps stopped him. He glanced when she entered the room. She didn't waste another second and jumped at him. Ian took her in his arms and held her tightly against him. "Are you okay?" He asks her. She nodded her head quickly but didn't make a sound. "We've been looking for you everywhere. You just disappeared." Ian murmured to her, "But I'm so glad you're okay. I'm sorry I wasn't there to pick you up." He could see Bill rolling his eyes at him. Obviously, he wasn't happy about him being here or the way he was holding his daughter. "Is everyone else okay? I was worried something might've happened to the boys." Jade said to Ian. "They're fine." Ian shot a quick glance at Bill who suddenly seemed a bit more interested in Ian's words. Jade looked up at him. "Dad knows..."
"I know. He just told me." Ian replied and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "What are you doing here? I thought you were- you know you... Louis?" Ian smiles at her. Jade shut her mouth. It was all very confusing. Her father was here but she couldn't talk about her brothers or Louis. "I'm sure he's fine," Ian replied. He knew Louis was alright and that he was with the triplets. He couldn't let Bill know that. He definitely couldn't tell him anything about Leah. "Jade, would you mind going back to the living room, please? I want to talk with Ian a little longer." Jade glared at her father. "I don't need to leave. I can stay if I want."
"I don't want you to worry about it. You need to rest. You shouldn't even be walking around like this after your treatment." Bill tells her. He reached out his hand to her and tried to pull his daughter away from the man she was hugging. Ian kept a tight arm around her nonetheless. He knew what would happen if she left right now. A bullet. Right between his two eyes. That's what would happen. "Dad, I'm fine." She turned to look at Ian again. "Casper's okay too. Dad told me. You can take me to him." Great! Anything to get her out of here, Ian thought to himself. Bill grasped her wrist tightly. "Wha- ouch." He loosened his grip but didn't let go of her. "You're not leaving. And neither is he." Bill said. "So you can put a bullet in my head? No, thank you."
"What? A bullet? Dad!" Jade only stood closer to Ian now.

"Is he okay?" Liz asked as Andrew exited the room. "Yeah, it's just a minor infection. He'll be able to come home in three or four days. Some antibiotics and he should be fine." They couldn't do anything else at the moment, so they decided to visit Henry in the hospital. They saved him with a lot of effort, time, and patience. "Are you okay?" Liz questioned him. Andrew nodded his head and ran his hand through his hair. "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine." He answered, "It's just weird to see your brother like that. You know?" Liz smiled at him and linked their arms as they walked together. "But he's coming home. That's good, right? He's safe." She reminds him. Henry already spoke to them about helping them again. He wanted to do something. Liz admired his courage and Andrew had never seen his brother in such a heroic mood. "Thank you for being here with me. I would've asked Megan. I know he makes you a bit uncomfortable sometimes."
"Jerry is more uncomfortable than me, honestly. He changed. And you're here with me, so nothing bad can happen." She smiled back at him. Andrew felt comfortable with her. "Louis asked me if we wanted to visit them. It's a long drive but I wouldn't mind seeing them. I don't know if you- with Henry coming home. And the boys... Jade."
"Jade's not there." Andrew replied awkwardly, "I'll probably just stay here. I don't feel very- well, you know, welcome. They're still throwing daggers at me for the whole thing I had with Jade." He mumbled. "I'm sure they would be happy to see you. And I don't want to drive alone so it would make me feel better if you were there." Andrew told her he would think about it. They didn't have to leave in a few hours. They had some time. 

"How are you with the whole Jade situation?" She asked him. Andrew didn't want to talk about it. He was mourning, jealous, angry, depressed, but also happy to see her. He couldn't place his emotions in one category. "You don't have to answer." She assured him. Andew just hummed at her. "It's hard. I get that. But I know... at least I think you still feel something for her. You must be worried about her." She pointed out to him. "Can we just get something to eat and not talk about this, please?" He asked her. "Of course. You can't ignore it forever. You should talk to her." 
"She's in love with that Casper, guy." He replied. "You don't know that. But all that aside... you should talk to her." Liz tells him. "Yeah? When?" He spat at her, "She's always moving around. Like where is she now? I don't know. I never know. The girl I love is always gone and I can't even tell her that because I'm mad at her. She's messed up but I love her. Is that what you wanted to hear?" He shut his mouth tightly after his outburst and looked at her. "Sorry." He apologized. Liz just smiled at him. "You love her."