Arrow Inferno
Chapter 44: Stanley ‘STAN’ Norris vs. Ian ‘WILL’ Williams ~ Grief & Anger!

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Will locked himself in his room and refused to come out or speak to Stan no matter how many times Stan knocked on his door and spoke to him through it. All the soldier did was pace. He felt on edge. And he was still angry. That was the only emotion he could allow himself to feel at that point because he knew he would completely break down if he allowed himself to feel all the emotions threatening to swallow him up. He'd tried to call his sister but her phone had been off anytime he tried. He'd tried calling his brother-in-law too but he wasn't picking up.

He'd called the hospital then. He didn't even know why he had. After having to speak to a lot of people, he was told he couldn't be given any information at that point. That only made him more agitated and frustrated. He knew that was the handiwork of the admiral. He always said it was best to give bad news face to face rather than on phone. Will felt as if he was a bomb about to explode. He was filled with sheer gloom. And as if that wasn't enough, every part of his body hurt especially, his neck thanks to Stan and his stupid bizarre actions. Will couldn't believe he'd pulled a gun on the man. For a split second, he wanted to shoot the idiot. And he thought he was actually going to do it too. That twat needed to thank his stars he had a change of mind.

"Come on, come on," he muttered when his eyes went to the clock. It was four p. m. He usually went for his run at half-past five. The need to see his wolf was overwhelming but time seemed to be crawling. Fucking hell!

An hour later, Will was pulling on his jogger pants when he heard the distant sound of a chopper. He didn't give it much thought. He tried Sharon again but her phone was still off. With a frustrated growl, he threw his phone on the bed. He just needed to speak to his sister for fuck's sake. Will heard some commotion outside his door just before a familiar voice called his name and asked him to open the damn door.

"What is he doing here?" Will muttered with a frown as he went to open the door.

"Locking doors now, are we?" Drawled the handsome dark-skinned soldier who was leaning against the door frame.

"What the fuck are you doing here?" Will growled as he reached out to pull Jackson, his fellow Arrowhead into his arms.

"Figured it out huh?" Lt. Bradley Jackson groaned with a worried frown when he felt Will shaking against him.

"Yes," Will murmured as he stepped back.

"I'm so sorry," Jackson said quietly.

Will could only nod. "I should have been there. I know it sounds selfish but I feel she's let me down."

"I wish I had the right words," Jackson sighed. They all knew how close Will was with his mother. "Just know I'm here for you. If there's anything I can do..." "Your offer means the world."

"So why have you locked yourself up?" Jackson raised an eyebrow. "Stan says..."

"Fuck Stan." Will cut him off. "When am I to leave?"

"Tonight or early in the morning. Your call."

"Tomorrow morning then. There's something I need to do tonight."

Jackson nodded. "Already packed, I see." He gestured towards Will's packed bag as he flopped onto the bed. "I'll stay in another room then since you'll leave in the morning."

"No need to. We can share this room tonight." It wasn't as if he planned on staying in the room that night anyway, he thought. "Tell them to bring your stuff here."

"Cool. What did Stan do to piss you off?"

Will went quiet for a moment. "Nothing important."

"You two fucking?"

"What?" Will gasped.

"No need to look so scandalized. I figured something was up from all the questions you called to ask when you got here initially. And the look on the guy's face back there," he jabbed a thumb in the direction of the door, "as he told me you'd locked yourself inside your room was just..." he shook his head. "Are you trying to kill him?"

Rather than answer his friend, Will pictured himself pointing a gun at Stan. He couldn't even bring himself to regret trying to kill the man that morning. Somehow he felt everything was Stan's fault which didn't even make sense. He couldn't help but feel it was Stan's responsibility to make everything better. That feeling was so weird and stupid it only made him even angrier at Stan. It was rather unfortunate the recruits got to see him pull a gun on the instructor. He didn't know how Stan had managed them after he left and frankly, didn't give a fuck. He had too much on his plate to care. Without giving Jackson an answer, Will sat on the chair and began to pull on his socks and trainers. "Going somewhere?" Jackson asked.

"Going for a run." He got to his feet and grabbed his gun and a bottle of water.

"Take care out there." Jackson watched his friend with worried eyes.

"Always do. Don't wait up."

"Don't wait up?" Jackson got up and followed his friend out of the room, a worried look on his face. "Where exactly are you going for that run, Williams?" he asked just as Stan came out of his room. "Don't worry, I'll be fine." Then he was gone, leaving a worried-looking Jackson staring after him.

Those worried eyes turned on Stan who also looked like he was going for a jog. "Are you..."

"I'll keep an eye on him," Stan said smoothly. "Why are you here to relieve him though?"

"Now that I've informed him, I can tell you," Jackson sighed. "His mother passed." "Shit! When?"

"Yesterday morning, around nine."

Stan did a quick calculation. Will had that dream about his mother around five p. m. the day before. Ghana was eight hours ahead of Los Angeles. Meaning the woman passed just around the time her son dreamt of her. "Fuck! Did you call to inform him this morning by any chance?" Stan began to connect the dots.

"Well, the admiral did call him to get ready to leave. He doesn't allow bad news to be delivered over the phone so he didn't tell him. Will is no fool though." He shrugged.

Stan had his answer. "Don't wait up." He started for the door.

"There's that phrase again." Jackson chuckled. "What's with you two and..." But Stan was already gone.