A Wolf's Purpose

•Chapter 93• Pretty Distraction

Jayden cupped Megan's face in his hands after she stepped toward him. He wanted to feel her and make sure she was safe. "Are you sure you're okay?" he questioned worriedly. Being back here, seeing her parents tied up like that, and Bill being that close while he looked like a maniac, she should be frightened.
Megan nodded her head and placed her hands over his. "Yeah, I'm okay, a little tired from all of this. I want to go home, lie in bed, and get up after three days." She admitted. "I think we could all use a weekend off. Or weeks." Megan laughed a little at that. She stepped even closer and wrapped her arms around his waist. Her head rested against his head. Jayden wrapped his arms around her shoulders and rested his chin on top of her head. He motioned for his brothers to come over. "Told you it would be over soon," Jack mumbled to her as he joined the hug. Megan nodded her head silently. "They'll take good care of you Meg," Jayden assured her.
She didn't want to leave them behind here. After everything they've done, the journey they've been on, she couldn't just leave them like this. "What about you?" She asked as she pulled away slightly. The triplets looked at each other. Would they go back to prison? Would they ever be able to show their faces outside again?
Megan got the hint as the boys stayed silent. "So much for our seventeenth, huh?" Jerry joked. This all started on their birthday. Bill thought they were old enough to know and follow in his footsteps. Jayden and Jack chuckled and ruffled their brother's hair. "Yeah, we're not doing anything like that ever again." Megan's eyes began to water when she looked at the three of them. "I'm so sorry." Jayden shook his head and held up his hand slightly. "It's not your fault. It's ours. Mostly our Dad's." 

He hated to talk about his father like this. People always claim that he's so much like Bill, does that mean people think the same way when they see him? Leah did the first days. He was not a bad person. Was he?
No, he wasn't. When he looked at his brothers - and Megan - he couldn't be a bad person. They wouldn't have stuck around if he was. "Blame the parents?" Jack suggested. Megan smiled a little and nodded again. The three pulled her in for another tight embrace. She stuck with them all this time, even after what they did. Megan is a good friend. A friend they never expected to make. "We'll be okay," Jayden assured her again and his brothers agreed. Megan wouldn't stop until things were back to normal. She wanted to go back to when they were able to be neighbors, not enemies, and not hunting each other down because of their parents' history.
"Hey, uh, could you do something for me?" Megan turned to Jerry, "I don't know how long it'll be before I see Liz again. When you see her, could you please tell her I love her?"
Usually, Jayden and Jack would tease their youngest brother for saying something as corny and cheesy as this. But they couldn't think of any kind of insult or joke to throw at him. They patted his back and shoulder. "She loves you too, man," Jayden told him. Jerry smiled at him before he looked at Megan again. "I will tell her. Don't worry."

"I'm not leaving until you promise me this will stop! We can't live like this!" Jade shouted at Bill, who became too stunned to speak. Jade pushed her father away. She didn't want him near her or touching her sweetly to try and win her trust. "Little one-"
"No! You listen to me!" She exclaimed while the tears welled in her eyes. "I wanted nothing more than to prove myself to you. I wanted you to know I was worthy of everything you saw in Jayden, Jack, and Jerry. You always seemed to prefer them over me with the important tasks. Why didn't you ask me? You never wanted to include me in anything!" She could never understand her father because of it. To this very day, it bothered her that he wanted to cut her out and let her brothers be involved instead of her. "Baby, I see that now. I wanted to protect you back then." Bill tried to reason with her but despite what he said, he could not take away her anger. "You always preferred them over me." 
"That is not true." Bill stated, "I love all of you more than I love my own life. I know that you might not think that, but it is true. I love you and your brothers. If anything, I loved you more. Have you ever thought of it like that?" Jade fell silent. Bill reached out to hold her face again but Jade stepped away. "They could take of themselves. Why would I throw my daughter - you - of all people into this world? And you've proven that you're more than worthy, little one, you have. But I never wanted you to get involved in case you got hurt. You're all I-" Bill cut himself off before he could finish his sentence. He didn't need to. "Because I'm all you have left of mom." Bill sighed and shut his eyes. When he looked at his daughter, he could see glimpses of Parker. He would not risk that. He had already lost Parker; he wouldn't lose Jade either. 

"I promised Mom I would keep you safe. All four of you. But you're my little girl, even if you don't want that anymore. I had to protect you." Bill explained to her. Jade could now see a part of him again she hadn't seen in a long time. His human side. "I should have told you everything. I should have. All four of you, together, okay? I thought that the boys could get my revenge for me. No one would suspect them."
"Well, they do! Because of me! Because I wanted to prove myself to you and because you told them to kidnap Megan and kill her!" Anger was boiling in Jade's veins. She was starting to get hot. She's never been this angry before. "All of this is your fault!" She screamed, her voice breaking. She even started panting because of it. Bill wasn't frightened, but he did take a small step back. "I know it is." He paused, "I need you to understand why I want them to get hurt so badly. What they did to Parker and what they did to you. They hurt my family." Bill protested. There was no convincing him. She could shout at him all she wanted but the message would not get through his skull. "Dad-"
"Every time I look at you, I see what they did to her and I relive every second of those days. Her days in pain. I found her crying in her bed because she couldn't even do your pigtails because she lost the strength in her fingers." Bill wiped a small tear away. A broken man was standing in front of her all of a sudden. "She tried so hard. I saw her every day. They should pay for what they did to her. What they robbed her of. What they robbed all of you from!" Bill's hand started shaking from the adrenaline rushing through his entire body. Jade shook her head. She was ready to plead and beg for him to stop. "Dad stop."

More tears rolled from Bill's eyes and for the first time in months, a small drop of blood trailed from his nose down to his lips. He quickly wiped it away. "It should have been me, baby. I know it should have. Listen to me. Everything will stop after this. Just let me do this one last thing. For Mom. For you. All four of you..." He wanted all of this to stop just as much as she did. "No. Dad, I can't let you do this." Jade cut him off again. But Bill wouldn't stop. He couldn't. "Little one... you're not going to stop me. Not this time." He said to her. Now, when she looked at him, she could see the psychopathic monster again, as well as the broken man. Maybe they were one and the same after all. "Dad, stop. Please." She begged. "I can't let them live their little perfect lives when they've ruined mine. She was all I cared about. Don't you get it!?" He shouted at her suddenly, causing her to flinch, "I hate myself. I know what I did. Don't you think I want to hang myself for all the pain I've caused her?! I didn't because you four needed me. And I was a bad parent. But if they never escaped, then Mom would have been alive today!" 
Jade took a step back and Bill took one toward her. "Killing them won't bring Mom back." She reminded him with tears in her eyes as well. The way Bill talked about her mother. He really loved her. He didn't know what else to do. "No, but they would pay for what they did to Parker. That's all I want. She died and no one cared. Do you know what they used to call her? No one treats a woman like that, let alone mine." His eyes said nothing but anger. He spit fire almost. "Mom wouldn't have wanted any of this." Jade squeaked out. "No, but I do." Bill replied, "No one, absolutely no one, gets away with something like this. Not him. Not her. So you're going to hand me that back and step aside. Got that?" He threatened.