Chapter Three: Danny Bears and Fake Smiles
"Got damn it!" screamed Haley as she did a complete three sixty in the center of her bedroom.
Her head hurt, she broke a finger nail and every time it seemed as if she was done packing she would discover that she forgotten yet another item. To top it off she was moments away from being stuck in an SUV for five hours with Dan of all people.
The man openly despised her and the fact that he had already threatened her life put her even more on edge. She knew that he was not going to make things easy for her on this trip so she had to be certain to stay in the sight of Nathan or Lucas at all times. It was however quite possible that she was overreacting a bit but it was better to be safe then sorry. She had learned a long time ago that Dan Scott was capable of anything and if pushed to his breaking point the man would have no problem committing murder, especially when it came to his sons.
In that moment she stopped all movement and held a hand to her chest.
What if he tried to kill her?
He did after all blame her for the tension filled relationship between him and the brothers and it wouldn't be totally impossible that the man saw her as a serious threat. What if this camping trip was just a cover up for some master plan Dan had to kill her? Was he planning to chop her up into itty bitty pieces and say that a bear attacked her? It was a lie that could easily be seen as true and in the end Dan would get exactly what he wanted, just like always.
Haley ran her hands through her hair and sighed.
She was so screwed.
"We're only going to be gone for two nights Hales we don't need to pack everything we own" said an amused Nathan as he entered the room drying off his still wet hair.
The sound of his voice brought the young woman out of her thoughts of Dan, death and destruction forcing her to focus on him.
"I know that Nathan. I just want to be prepared"
"For what?"
"Anything. You never know what could happen in the woods. A storm could come out of nowhere, our cars could breakdown or some psychopath could hold us hostage or hack us up into pieces or…"
"I don't think crazy psycho killers go camping Hales" Nathan replied through fits of laughter.
"Of course they do honey but you just call him Dad"
"Funny. Well at least if Dan goes all nuts I know that Luke and I will be just fine. Can you say the same?"
"Ouch! Did you have to remind me that your Dad hates my guts and wants my head on a sliver platter? Maybe I should bring some holy water in case he gets too close"
"Relax Hales. My Dad isn't going to come after you. I mean he did call you up and personally invite you and Brooke to come with ups on this trip. Didn't he?"
"Yeah but I'm sure it didn't come easy"
Her voice was somber yet snippy as she sat on the bed. A moment later she felt Nathan sit down beside her.
"Listen to me" he said pulling her onto his lap. "I promise you that I will never let anyone hurt you"
Haley smiled sweetly at the man she loved before resting her head on his shoulder.
"Not even big scary Dan bears"
Nathan laughed and kissed her on the head "Especially not those big scary Dan Bears"
"Good. That makes me feel much better"
"But…there is something I'm going to need you to do for me"
"Anything"
"You have to swear that you'll give my Dad a chance"
Haley shot up, startled by her husbands request.
"Nathan…"
"I mean it Hales. It took a lot for him to invite you and Brooke on this trip so please just be the better person, please, for me"
Staring back into those beautiful blue eyes Haley couldn't help but
melt. Nathan had lost so much over the past three months and was just starting to bet back to being his old self. It would kill her if she were to be the one that dimmed the sparkle in his eyes and if that meant playing nice with Dan, then that's exactly what she was going to do.
If only for his sake.
Giving her best fake smile she replied "Sure baby. Anything for you"
He smiled and instantly she knew that she had made the right decision.
"Thanks babe" his words were followed by a deep passionate kiss that took her breath away.
"Umm, being the good girl does have its perks" she smiled coyly.
"Yeah well being the bad boy does too"
"Really? How's that?"
"Because we always get the good girls who are cute, sexy and freaky in the bedroom"
"Oh my God Nathan" yelled Haley as she turn bright red.
"Ok that's something that I never want to hear again"
Both Nathan and Haley turned around to see Lucas standing in the door way.
Nathan laughed.
"What's up man?"
"Dad's here and we're all ready to go"
"Cool. Can you take those two bags out to the car for me?"
"What am I your butler?"
"Oh come on Lucas I still need to put my shirt and shoes on and Haley hasn't finished packing"
"Fine" replied the blond haired male as he slung on bag over his shoulder and picked up another. "But you better hurry up or next time you know who will be coming in to get you"
Lucas exchanged a knowing glance with Nathan before heading back outside.
"As much as I'm enjoying all this Luke's right. We need to get going before my Dad comes in here and goes all haywire on us. Lateness is an unforgivable sin in the Scott family" said Nathan as he stood and pulled his shirt over his head.
Haley followed suit putting her shoes on and zipping up the last bag.
"Ready"
"As I'll ever be" she replied with a smile before the two grabbed the last of their supplies and headed outside to meet the rest of the group.
When the reached the black SUV they saw Dan and Lucas loading their bags into the trunk while Brooke stood off to the side on her cell phone saying good bye to whomever was on the other end before slamming it shut.
"Hey, see there sweetie. Nathan and Haley don't look so pissed about you interrupting their quickie"
"Cute Brooke and by the way we were not having sex thank you very much" replied Haley as she watched her father in law tense up at the sound of her voice.
She took a deep breath and tried to keep calm as she continued "Hello Mr. Scott"
The man in question slammed the door shut before turning to face her. When their eyes made contact he gave her one of the fakest smiles she had ever seen in her life but unfortunately for her Lucas and Nathan didn't pick up on their father's scam and were smiling at them. The two brothers were probably thinking that they were both giving the other the benefit of the doubt.
They had no idea how wrong they were.
"Hey there Haley. Are you excited about the trip?" he questioned with that creepy grin she hated.
"Yeah, I can't wait"
"Good. I have so much planned for us. I just hope you enjoy it but if not there are other alternatives."
"Looks like you have this thing all planned out uh?" questioned Lucas with a smile.
"Of course I do son. Dan Scott always has a plan"
His green eyes were fixed on her, making the girl extremely uncomfortable. It was almost as if he was warning her not to make any trouble for him and if she did she had no doubt that he would make her regret it, big time.
"Now I thought that it would be best to take two cars. So Nathan and Lucas can come with me. Haley you drive with Brooke in her car"
Nathan eyed his father suspiciously.
"And before you two even start I'm telling you now that this is not about separating you from your little girl friends"
"Wife and fiancé Dad" corrected Lucas.
"Yeah whatever it's about father-son bonding. Anyway it's time for us to get going"
Lucas was about to say something else when Dan cut him off again.
"Oh yeah I was thinking that we should stop by and visit your Mom's before we go. We haven't been to the cemetery since the funeral and I think it's a nice day to go see them, together. Besides our lives are so busy and with you boys going into your second year of college next month we never know when the next time we'll be able to spend a full day together will be"
At this both boys nodded their heads and were grateful that Dan was putting them ahead of himself for once. Keeping up their mother's graves and visiting them on a regular basis was important to them once they were able to bring themselves to go back there and it was nice to see that their father was helping them through this.
"That actually sounds like a really good idea Nate. Me and Brooke will get a head start and meet you guys over there" Haley said before starting to walk away.
"Oh Haley I was hoping to spend this time alone with Nathan and Lucas. It's sort of a family thing. You can understand that right?"
"Dad Haley and Brooke are our family too. Gees it hasn't even been ten minutes yet and already you're morphing into an ass"
"No, Nathan. Its okay" said a sympathetic Haley. "Your Dad's right. You and Luke need to do with alone with him so we'll just head straight to the camping site. Right Brooke"
"Right honey and plus I already know the way to the camping grounds so it's not a big deal"
Lucas walked over to the raven haired girl and put his arms around her waist. "Are you sure about this Brooke?"
"Yes I'm sure baby. You need to be with your Dad and Nathan right now besides we have all weekend to play" she smiled, revealing her adorable dimples before giving him a kiss on the lips.
"How about you Hales?" asked Nathan as he pulled her in close.
"I'm perfectly fine with this and for once I don't think Dan is being evil so give him a break with this one"
Nathan gave Haley a kiss on the head before getting in the jeep.
"Okay so here's the deal. We'll meet you guys at the rest stop over near Henry road. You know where that is, right Brooke"
"I sure do"
"Great then we'll meet there in about an hour and a half"
"Ok Broody. See ya"
"Bye Brooke. Later Hales" replied Lucas as he climbed into the front seat next to Dan.
The whole exchange made Dan sick as he watched Haley and Brooke drive away. His sons were so wrapped up in these women that they couldn't see the truth that they were blind to the fact that these girls were trying to pull them away from their family, from him. Although Brooke wasn't too bad she still held way too much power over his older boy. But Haley was another story. The nerve of that bitch! To have the nerve to invite herself to visit Karen and Deb when special moment such as these were to be shared and felt between him and his children. He knew the second he invited her on this damn trip that she was going to make trouble for him, but that was fine by him because he had a plan. And Haley didn't stand a chance.
"Hey" a voice called out breaking into his thoughts.
"Yeah"
Lucas laughed "Where did you go just?"
"Just thinking about how much fun this is going to be. Hanging out with my two boys…"
"Watching Lucas get his ass kicked by Nathan playing basketball" added Nathan with a smirk.
"Keep dreaming little brother"
"Hey remember not too much basketball Lucas. I don't need you having a heart attack on me"
"Oh please Dad. I mean its Nathan. I probably won't even break a sweat"
"Keep talking trash kid. You won't be laughing when I slaughter you"
"Bring it on"
Umm, slaughter Dan thought to himself as Nathan and Lucas continued to barter. That's just what he had in mind for Haley.
