When Sean arrived back at the house, he rushed up the porch steps and burst into the house.
"Michael!" Sean exclaimed, rushing over to him. Michael turned to look at him, wondering what was wrong.
"Someone shot Gregory" Sean told him. Michael's eyes widened.
"Where is he? Why isn't he with you then?" Michael asked.
"He told me to run" Sean answered. Michael quickly rushed out of the house, with Sean running behind him.
SOMEWHERE
Gregory woke up to a metallic taste in his mouth. As his eyes came into focus, he realised he was lying down on a dirt road. With someone standing a few feet in front of him, looking down at him. He tried to move but was met with unbearable pain in his shoulder. He looked at his shoulder, noticing it had been stitched up. Which was shocking to Gregory.
"You're finally awake" The masked person said in a familiar voice. A voice very familiar to Gregory. It was the same person that had attacked him.
"Who the hell are you!? Why did you bring me out here!? Gregory asked, demanding to have answers. The man slowly walked towards Gregory, kneeled down in front of him and removed his mask. Gregory's eyes widened in shock.
"You?" Gregory trembled.
"Yeah. Surprised to see me?" The man, now known as Mr Davies, smiled.
"W-why are you doing this?" Gregory asked. Mr Davies stood up, holding the gun in his hand and fiddling with it.
"Because for years, your family name has done nothing but affect mine. And when I found out you and your father had moved to Mason City, I knew that I would finally be able to get justice for what happened to my wife" Mr Davies answered.
"Michael is nothing like William! And neither am I! When are you ever going to get that through that stupid head of yours!?" Gregory asked, huffing a little. Mr Davies kicked Gregory in the gut out of anger. Causing Gregory to groan a little and cough.
"Michael's family took something away from me. So I am going to take something away from him" Mr Davies sneered. Gregory looked at him with fear in his eyes.
BACK AT THE AFTON HOUSE
Michael sat on the sofa, talking to some police officers as his knee bobbed nervously. A few other police officers were talking to Sean. Also trying to get some info from him about what happened.
As the officers talking to Michael asked him further about Gregory, there was something that was said that gave him an idea.
"Sean, did Gregory have his phone on him?" Michael asked, looking over at Sean.
"Yeah" Sean replied with a nod. Michael then rushed off to his office with the officers following him. As they entered the office, they were kinda impressed by the set up.
Michael logged into his computer and activated a program.
"Freddy!" Michael called out. Freddy came walking in a few minutes later. The officers looked at Freddy in shock.
"Can you hook yourself up to the program I'm running to try and locate Gregory?" Michael asked. Freddy nodded. He then put his hand on the PC and shut his eyes. When he opened them again, they were glowing blue. And in a few minutes, he spoke.
"Gregory's on a dirt road, just outside Mason City. By the freeway" Freddy said.
"There's one area near the freeway that has a dirt road" One of the officers said. The other officer nodded.
The officers then rushed out of the room with Freddy and Michael following them.
"Guys, we've located the kid" One of the police officers said to the officers talking with Sean.
"Where is he?" One of the officers talking to Sean, asked.
"Allen Road. Near Freeway 32" The first officer replied.
"Then let's get going" One of the other officers said, heading for the door. The rest of the officers and both Sean and Michael followed while Freddy stayed behind.
LATER, ALLEN ROAD, FREEWAY 32
Gregory rolled across the ground, grunting in pain. Blood dripped from his nose. He was then grabbed by the front of his shirt and hoisted up onto his feet. He was then punched in the face and let go. He fell to the ground, yelping in pain from his wounded and stitched-up shoulder. He looked up at Mr Davies after a few minutes and began trying to back away.
"Imagine how your father will feel when he realises that someone has taken the thing that is most precious away from him" Mr Davies sneered with a grin.
"Hey!" Michael suddenly yelled. Mr Davies looked up and Gregory turned around. A relieved expression appeared on Gregory's face.
"Stay the hell away from my son!" Michael demanded. Mr Davies then pulled Gregory to his feet again and wrapped his arm around Gregory's neck, choking him. Michael attempted to get to Gregory but the gun in Mr Davies hand was quickly pointed at him.
"You have no idea what it's like to lose something so precious to you. So, I am going to make sure you know!" Mr Davies growled, pulling his arm a little tighter on Gregory's neck. Causing him to cough more.
"I do know what it's like to lose something" Michael told him. Mr Davies just looked at him.
"My siblings and my mom. They died when I was a kid. Right in front of me" Michael continued. Mr Davies continued to look at him.
"And for years, I have struggled with the loss. Could've I done something more to help them? Could've I chosen to spend more time with them? But, eventually something…someone made me realise that there's more to think about. More to live for" Michael said, looking at Gregory, who was struggling.
"Well, that's about to be taken away from you!" Mr Davies sneered before being whacked in the nose by Gregory's elbow. Dazing him.
"Shut….up!" Gregory growled, trying to catch his breath. He then rushed over to Sean and Michael and hugged them. Soon after, the police arrived.
Mr Davies took his hand away from his nose and noticed blood on the palm of his hand. He then looked back at Gregory, Sean and Michael. His gun pointing at Michael again.
"I should've killed you when I had the chance back in that alley!" Mr Davies growled, looking at Gregory. Michael's and Sean's eyes widened in horror over that revelation.
"Dad…..you attacked Gregory!?" Sean asked in shock, standing next to Michael and Gregory and looking at his father in horror as he held the gun tightly in his hand, still pointing it at Michael.
"I wasn't going to let his family destroy ours. Not again. You saw what it did to your mother. And I wanted payback" Mr Davies sneered.
"Like I told you before, I am nothing like him. If he was standing right here, I'd kill him myself. He was a horrible person. A horrible father and a horrible friend to everyone he knew. He never cared about anyone but himself. He was selfish and cruel. And he took that out not only on other people around him but me, my brother and my sister. And they're dead because of him. He almost killed me a few years ago when he was resurrected and attacked Gregory. Luckily, Gregory stopped him. And that proves that Gregory is nothing like my father. And I am nothing like my father either. I am better than him. And I am making sure that Gregory grows up in a safe environment. Away from the tragedies and crimes of my family" Michael said.
"Still…..it doesn't change the fact that my wife is still dead. She killed herself because of what your father did to her sister that day at the pizzeria. I will never see her again because of what your father did to Susie" Mr Davies said, becoming angrily tearful.
"Dad. It's not Michael's fault or Gregory's fault for what happened to Mom! She missed her sister. Every day. The grief from that day destroyed her. And you know that. We took her to countless psychiatrists. And every time, her depression got worse. She was struggling to stay here. What happened to aunt Susie, is not on Michael or Gregory. If you want to blame someone, blame Michael's father. He's not here to be hurt by it so, be as angry as you want towards him. But don't take it out on Michael and Gregory. They're….my friends!" Sean told his father. His father looked at him.
"You're friends with them? After what their family did to ours!?" Mr Davies asked, raising his voice.
"Yeah. Because turns out, being around you, was how I was losing friends. After mom died, you treated me like shit! You didn't care about me at all. You started drinking and getting into fights at the bar. And that behaviour…was thrown onto me. I became a bully. I hurt people I used to be friends with. Including Grace. She was a good person and I hurt her. And so is Gregory. I hurt him. So yeah! I am friends with them. Because I would rather be around them than being around your abusive ass all the time!" Sean said, raising his voice as well.
"Well, if you want to be with them, so be it!" Mr Davies said, pointing the gun at his own son.
"No!" Michael yelled, jumping in front of Sean just as the gun went off. The bullet shot out of the barrel and hit Michael in the right side.
"MIKE!" Gregory yelled, running to Michael's side.
Sean looked down at Michael in shock. Seeing how much blood was now on him and how much he was losing. He then looked back at his father. Then before he could take a shot at Sean, he was shot three times. The force of those shots sent him to the ground and he died instantly. Sean stood there in shock before looking behind him. The police that had arrived there earlier had been the ones to shoot him.
*GRUNTS AND GASPING NOISES*
"Mike, just….just stay with me alright!" Gregory told Michael as he held his hand with one hand while holding the other on the wound.
"I w-wasn't going to let another kid get hurt because of my father" Michael said, coughing weakly. Sean looked down at Michael and then kneeled down on the opposite side of where Gregory was.
"Why did you do that?" Sean asked.
"I've had enough of abusive pricks hurting kids. I thought it was about time that I stopped it" Michael said, laughing a little and then wincing shortly afterwards.
Soon paramedics arrived and began assessing Michael's wound. While that happened, Police officers gently pulled Sean and Gregory away so the paramedics could do what they could to help Michael.