Chapter One-Hundred and Sixty-Three

"Holy shit!" Bobby raised a brow at Markus's pile of baggage. "Do you think you'll survive without the kitchen sink?" He smirked, trying to lighten John's mood as his brother-in-blue glared at the pile and his eye began to twitch.

"How… much… shit… do you need?" John growled, clenching his fists at his sides. "I have four daughters… this looks like a goddamn trip to fucking school…" He ground his teeth together. "And it takes all god fucking damn four of them to get this much shit in my truck."

"Well, with a mouth like that, you shouldn't even have kids." Markus snapped. "Not to mention your past…"

"Oh that's it!" John raised his fist. "We're both out of uniform here man, there's nothing stopping me from throwing your ass into that wall."

Bobby and Levi grabbed John's arms, forcing him back against the truck.

"Markus, only take what you need." Levi motioned to Joey to help Markus take some of his stuff back into his apartment. "John, cool it."

John pushed Levi away from him. "I'm not going to become Jacob!" John barked. "I won't become that pissant! I won't put my kids through that shit."

Bobby patted John's shoulder. "You won't, man."


Claire watched out the window of her bedroom, waiting for John's truck to appear in the driveway. "Please come home…" She whispered, tucking her nose into one of his t-shirts.

Reya fussed in her crib, causing Claire to flinch. Why do I react like this? She's my daughter…


John and Bobby pitched the first tent for the night. They'd been riding on horseback for five hours now, and it was nearly dark. "I can't believe Markus said that shit…" John hissed, tying the tent off to a tent stake. "Saying I'll be like that asshole…" He continued to mutter under his breath as he finished the tent.

"Let it go." Bobby spread his sleeping bag out inside of the tent. "You're nothing like him. And you know that."

"Jacob's an asshole. And if I ever become like him… just… blow my brains out."

Bobby bit his lip, knowing that John would only become abusive if he were using or drinking again. "Sure thing, man." He hated to agree to John's request, but he knew that there might come a day… where John couldn't stop himself… or the demons inside of him.