A/N: I apologize for the very long delay. It took me awhile to figure out how I wanted to do the chapter. This chapter is entirely a flashback chapter. Next chapter will be in the present again.

Chapter Twenty Five

Can't Stop This Thing We've Started

Several hours earlier…

"I really wish I knew where that bastard was," Lucas exclaimed angrily. His brother and cousin just listened as Lucas vented out his frustration about Cooper. "How many times is he going to butt into our lives before he learns his lesson? Who the hell is he going to go after next? Haley?"

"He'd better not or I'm going to kick his ass," Nathan jumped in. "And you're right. This has gone on too far. We need to settle this once and for all. We need to tell him to stop harassing our family or we'll get the police involved."

Lucas gave him a look. "Do you really think that will work? The police didn't do anything to help us find Brooke. I doubt that they would arrest Cooper for harassing us."

Julian looked at him. "So what are you suggesting we do?" he asked. "Because I really don't think we have any other option." Lucas didn't answer as Julian noticed the silence. He immediately thought the worst. "I know you want to get revenge on him, but murdering him isn't the answer. I'm not helping you kill someone," he protested.

"Who ever said anything about killing him?" Lucas asked as Julian let out a relieved sigh. "I'm not that stupid, Julian."

Julian wasn't sure what his cousin was planning. "What other options we have besides getting the cops involved?"

"We are going to make sure that he doesn't bother our family again," Lucas declared. Julian and Nathan exchanged looks. It was a very vague answer and Julian wanted him to elaborate on it. Before he could, there was the sound of a faint ring. Checking their phones, they found out that it was Lucas's. However, Lucas had a confused look on his face. "I don't recognize the number."

"Answer it," Nathan insisted.

Lucas picked up his phone and put it to his ear. "Hello?" He froze as he heard a low threatening voice on the other end telling him that he'd better stay away from Brooke or else. Lucas immediately became angry. "Who is the hell is this?"

"You know who this is," the voice hissed as Lucas realized that it was Ian. Nathan and Julian anxiously listened to the conversation. "And I'm tired of you hanging around my girl."

"Brooke isn't your girl," Lucas protested. He didn't know how Ian had gotten his number, but he was going to set him straight. "She never was and she never will be. Now I want you to leave her alone or I will kick your ass."

"Why don't we settle this man to man?" Ian suggested. "I just happen to be out of jail again and I'm visiting a few old friends in Durham." Lucas wasn't sure if he believed that since he had lied before. "If you really think Brooke belongs to you, why don't you drive up here and prove it to me? I'll text you the address on where to meet."

Lucas raised his eyebrows. "You want me to fight you for Brooke? Dude, I'm not that stupid. Besides, Brooke isn't a prize to be won. She is a human being who needed someone to love her. And I know that's not you."

"Gee, she didn't say that when we were making love," Ian taunted him. Lucas began to hate him more and more. He did his best to control his anger as Ian continued with his taunting. "I suppose she didn't tell you about that, but that's the good thing about losing her memory. The charges against me won't stick. By the way, I hope she's pregnant with my child. That way, she can never get away from me."

Ian was hitting Lucas where it hurts and he knew it. The thought of the bastard putting his hands on Brooke drove him to the edge. "You sick son of a bitch! If you want Brooke back, you're going to have to go through me first! If you want a fight, you got it. Text me the address. I'll be there in a few hours." He didn't let Ian answer as he hung up.

Nathan stopped his brother as he was about to grab his car keys. He had heard everything and wasn't happy that his brother was making a rash, harsh and stupid decision. "Whoa, where the hell do you thinking you're going? Are you crazy? You know it's a trap. As soon as you step into that place, you'll get hurt; or worse."

Lucas was well aware of that possibility, but it didn't matter to him. "I don't care. I don't want him to harass Brooke anymore," Lucas replied. Nathan opened his mouth to speak, but his brother was faster. "I know fighting isn't the answer, but I don't know what else we should do with this psycho."

"It's called putting him in a mental institution," Julian said, finally speaking up. He too wasn't very keen on Lucas's plan to confront Ian. "We all know he's unstable. I'm sure Deb knows a doctor who is willing to examine him. He needs help and beating him to a pulp won't solve anything. Nor it will help if you're dead. That's why we're coming with you."

Nathan looked at him flabbergasted. "What we? There is no 'we'." Julian gave him a pleading look. Nathan shook his head. "There's no way I'm going after a psycho with a vengeance against my brother." He turned to Lucas. "And you really shouldn't be going either. Besides, I thought we were going after Cooper, not Ian."

"Maybe Cooper was the one who helped him out," Lucas suggested. "After all, they worked together before to kidnap Brooke. So I wouldn't be surprised if he was waiting with Ian. If that is true, then it's good for us. We would be hitting two birds with one stone. It's the perfect plan." He could see that his brother didn't want to do the plan. "If you want to stay here, that's fine. But I'm going to meet up with that bastard and give him a piece of my mind."

"We don't know if Cooper is with him, but we do know that Ian wants Brooke," Nathan replied. "So we know that he has something planned for you and it's probably not good. Why don't we just call the police and tell them where he is?"

"Why are you not backing me up on this?" Lucas exclaimed. "You would be doing the same thing if Ian was harassing Haley."

Nathan shook his head. "No, I would have a plan before I go and meet Ian. Because it would be stupid to do otherwise. And you know it. But you haven't planned anything rationally because you'd rather jump in without thinking about the consequences."

With his twin telepathy, Lucas knew exactly what he was talking about. "You're talking about Lindsey, aren't you?" he asked. "What else was I supposed to do after finding out that she might be pregnant? I was willing to take responsibility for my mistake."

"Your mistake was rushing into that relationship in the first place," Nathan snapped.

Lucas glared at his brother as Julian interrupted the argument and separated the brothers. "Whoa, that's enough. We're supposed to be working together." He turned to Lucas. "Now I think Nathan's right. We don't know what we're walking into. We should have a plan before we go to this location."

"You two can do what you want. I'm not going to take any part in this," Nathan announced before he left the two.

There was silence between the two cousins before Lucas went after Nathan. He ran outside and caught up with him as he was about to get into his car. However, he stopped to listen to what his brother had to say. "Nathan, you know I'm just trying to protect our family. Brooke and Haley are my friends and I don't want them to get hurt by this guy again. Because I know he won't stop until he gets what he wants."

Nathan was silent before he finally answered him. "It'd better be a really good plan or it will blow up in our faces."

Before they could start planning, they heard a knock at the door. Julian went to answer it and was surprised to see his wife, who was holding a few bags. She gave him a smile as she walked into the foyer. "I knew you boys would still be awake. So I brought you some midnight snacks."

Julian tried his best to smile. "Thanks, but the guys and I are going to head out for awhile."

"Really? Where are you going?" Rachel asked him curiously as the three men headed to the door. They thanked her for the snacks as Lucas and Nathan grabbed the bags. The twins said good-bye before they walked out of the door. However, she didn't let her husband pass. "Where are you going?" she demanded.

Julian didn't know how to answer that. "We're going out," he told her. Rachel wasn't buying it, but her husband gave her a comforting smile. "That's all. We'll be back in a few hours." He gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Don't wait up for me." Rachel just watched them leave with a worried look on her face. Julian waited until he was in the car before speaking. "I really hope that this isn't all for nothing. Because if Ian doesn't kill me, I know Rachel will."

"Don't worry. We'll take care of Ian and then we'll get back to normal," Nathan said who was in the driver's seat. "We just need to stop by somewhere first. Then we'll be on our way."

For protection, they brought along a baseball bat. It wasn't enough for Lucas, but it would have to do. Julian and Nathan didn't want to sink to Ian's level and bring guns. The baseball bat was there only for back up. They had no intention on using it unless they had to.

The long drive to Durham was quiet and anxious. Lucas couldn't stop thinking about Ian's words about him and Brooke. From the way Ian was speaking to him, he could tell that Ian was serious. He had had forced himself onto Brooke and now she could possibly be pregnant with his child. It made him sick and the only thing that kept him calm was his wish that she wasn't going to end up pregnant.

When they finally arrived at the location, it was revealed to be a factory that looked abandoned. Nathan parked the car in front of the building before the three men climbed out and looked around at their surroundings. "Luke, are you sure that this is the right place?" Nate asked as Lucas checked his phone for the address that Ian had sent him. "It doesn't seem like anyone's around, even Ian."

"This is the address that I was sent," Lucas replied as he began to get suspicious. "He's probably waiting inside for me. You two should stay out here." Nathan was about to protest when his brother didn't allow him to interrupt. "I'm supposed to show up alone."

"I have a really bad feeling about this," Nathan said nervously. "Be careful in there. And yell if you need help."

Lucas didn't answer as he went up to the factory door and opened it. Walking through the quiet and dark hall made him cautious. He kept looking over his shoulder to make sure that Ian wasn't behind him. Peeking into the huge room, he saw tons of heavy machinery that was old and worn. It was clear that the factory was no longer in use and hadn't been for quite some time.

"Ok, I'm here, you bastard. Why don't you show yourself?" Lucas called out. "Or are you too scared to face me?" There was still no answer. Lucas tried not to show his frustration. "Come on, Ian. I drove all this way. At least you can show yourself."

Lucas heard footsteps behind him and turned around to see Ian who had a gun pointing at him. He tried not to show his surprise as he spoke. "I thought we were going to settle this without weapons," he said. "Can't we just talk about this?"

"I thought you were going to come alone," Ian replied, keeping the gun pointed at him. Lucas wondered how he knew that since he had been in the building before realizing that Ian didn't come alone either. "Besides, I don't want to talk. I want to take care of you so I am free to be with Brooke and our baby."

"I don't think she's pregnant," Lucas replied. Of course, he really had no clue if she really was or not. "And even if she was, I don't think she would be willing to keep your baby." Lucas knew that would piss Ian off, but he didn't care about this son of a bitch. He just wanted to make sure Brooke and Haley were safe from him. Ian glared at him as he cocked the gun and fired at him.

Lucas jumped behind machinery as the gunfire stopped for a moment. However, he didn't move from his spot as he heard a chuckle. "If you really want to play this cat and mouse game, then I'm all for it. But in the end, only one will win. And that will be me."

Lucas began to realize that it had been a foolish mistake to meet Ian. He had no intention on talking to Lucas. He just wanted to kill him so he could eliminate the competition. Lucas had to think of a plan and fast. He could hear Ian's footsteps coming towards him. Running didn't seem like the best option since Ian could always shoot him in the back. Lucas decided to try and grab the gun from him. However, Ian saw him first and pointed the gun at him once again.

Lucas positioned himself to run right as Ian was pushed to the ground by Julian. The gun went off as it hit the ground, but it missed Lucas again. Nathan helped him up as there was a struggle for the gun. Luckily, Lucas was able to pick it up before Ian could reach it. Julian released Ian from his grip as Lucas looked at the gun. It was weird holding the weapon. He had never held one before, but it felt good to be in control. He pointed it at Ian and got ready to shoot him.

Ian let out another chuckle as he got up from the ground, not even fazed that he had a gun pointed at him. "You know, I may be man enough to try and kill you, but you don't have the guts to do it to me."

Lucas glared at him as he kept the gun pointed at him. He wanted to do it. He wanted to punish this bastard for what he had done to Brooke. He wanted to make sure that he would never do anything to harm her or anybody else ever again. Who would ever know? There were two witnesses and they sure wouldn't tell anybody.

Looking at his brother's pleading eyes made him realize what he was doing. He knew that this wasn't the right way to seek justice. This would be stooping to Ian's level and Lucas didn't want to be that type of person. He was taught better than that. If he wanted justice, he had to let the police handle this.

With a heavy sigh, he put the gun down. Before anybody could move, there was a loud pop and Ian fell down backwards onto the ground. Looking closely at him made the three men realize that he had been shot in the head. Julian turned to Lucas shocked. "I thought you weren't going to shoot him."

"I didn't do it," Lucas protested as he showed him the gun. "Someone else must be in here with us."

"You're right," an unfamiliar voice answered. "I did." The three Scott men looked around to see where the voice was coming from. A man appeared in the shadows before coming into the light. Nobody had a chance to ask about the man before he spoke. "There's no need to be alarmed. My name is Daunte Jones. I was sent here by Dan Scott to eliminate a couple of threats who was planning to hurt his family. This man was one of them. Do you happen to know where the other one is?"

Lucas, Nathan and Julian exchanged three way glances. They didn't know who this guy was and didn't know whether to trust him or not. Lucas managed to find his voice. "Dan was the one who sent you? How the hell did he do that from jail?"

"I don't blame you for not believing me or trusting me," Daunte replied. "But I did just save you the trouble of trying to bring Mr. Banks back with you to Tree Hill. Now are you going to help me find Mr. Lee or not?"

"What do you want to do with the body?" Nathan asked, doing his best not to look at it. It made his stomach twist and turn at the sight. "You're not suggesting we leave him here."

"Why not? Nobody is going to come looking for him," Lucas reminded him. "We'll just make it look like a suicide. I just need to wipe my fingerprints off of the gun." Nathan couldn't believe how calm he was, considering the situation. Lucas cleaned the gun the best he could before he put the gun next to the dead body. He turned to Daunte. "Thanks for your help, but I think it's time for us to head back home. If this was what Ian had in mind for us, I can't imagine what Cooper's plan is."

"Are you sure?" Daunte asked as the three Scott men began to walk towards the exit. "Because I'm sure it would be a lot easier to find him if you guys came along. After all, you know him better than I do."

"I think we'll pass," Julian called behind his shoulder before he followed his cousins out the door. He shook his head in disbelief. "Can you believe that guy? I know Dan knows some powerful people, but I really doubt he would send someone to murder Cooper and Ian."

Lucas and Nathan didn't know what to believe. They just wanted to get back home and rest before the show. They climbed back in the car and got settled as Nathan began to back the car out of the parking lot.

As they drove out of Durham, they didn't even notice that a car was following them. They were too focused on the events that had happened at the factory. It wasn't until Nathan stopped at a gas station for gas that something was off about that vehicle. He didn't want to worry his brother or cousin, but he had a feeling that they were in danger. And he knew that they had to get away from this car. Nathan waited until he was back in the driver's seat before speaking. "How do you guys feel if we took a different way home?"

"Are you kidding? Rachel is going to get pissed at me if we don't make it back for breakfast," Julian said. "We should have been home already, but you didn't think that we would make it with a quarter of a tank of gas."

Nathan wasn't in the mood for Julian's complaining. "I know, but we have a problem." Julian and Lucas gave him confused looks. He gestured to the car that was parked near the store. "I think that car has been following us since we left the factory."

Lucas looked at his brother. "I think that encounter with Ian made you a little paranoid. Why don't you let me drive the rest of the way home? That way, you can get some rest."

Nathan wasn't going to let go of his theory. "So it's just a coincidence that the car arrived at the gas station right after we did? I didn't see that person get out of his car once while I was getting gas."

Now that made Lucas and Julian suspicious and began to believe that Nathan was right. "Let's just get out of here," Lucas said. His brother and cousin instantly agreed and Nathan pulled the car away from the gas pump.

As Nathan got the car out on the road, Lucas and Julian kept looking over their shoulders to check to see if the car was following them. To their horror, it was and the mysterious driver seemed to speed up once the car was out on the road. Nathan tried to speed up, but the car was right on their tail. The car was soon right by Nathan's side. The men felt themselves jolt as the other vehicle hit their car. Nathan tried to manage control of the car as the other car kept trying to push their car off the road.

"What the hell is that fucking driver trying to do? Get us killed?" Julian exclaimed angrily from the backseat.

"I think that's exactly what this bastard trying to do," Lucas replied as Nathan continued to try and move away from this crazy driver.