Chapter 144 - Trusting Ian

"I want to see my daughters and my wife." Oliver declared, with determination in his voice. He had sensed that there was something weird going on around him. When he had gone to take the tests, he had noticed that the place looked nothing like a hospital. There were no patients or doctors. In fact, he had not seen anybody else other than the two male nurses and four men who had been present when he had opened his eyes. He immediately deduced that he was being kept isolated and for what reasons he did not know.

Also, he felt that Ian was trustworthy. If he had any ulterior motives, he could have executed his plan and killed him when he was asleep. Or if he wanted to threaten him, he would have done it as soon as he had woken up. But, nothing of that sort happened. Ian had shown him concern just like how a doctor would. So, he decided to put his faith in him.​​

His words struck the other men hard. They did not know what to do. Oliver asking for his daughters was quite normal. But how could they tell him that his wife was dead and his daughters did not even know where he was right now? Moreover, he had also missed three years of his life. They were unsure if he could take in all the details at once. Things might get complicated if he fell ill again. But, they did know how to conceal the truth either. Oliver had great observational skills. He might find out things before anybody even spoke to him.

"Mr. West that...." Ian paused taking a glance at Noah and Joshua. Ronnie was standing near the door. He didn't want to put pressure on the man when there were already three highly oppressing men before him. He could still see and hear everything from where he was. 

"Is anything the matter?" Oliver stared at Ian, his eyes not moving away from him. Since the time the three men had entered the room, he had not looked at Noah and Joshua or even Ronnie.

"Yes. But I think it would be better if you don't hear it right now. You are weak and your body cannot handle any more stress."

"What happened to me?" Oliver fired his next question rendering Ian speechless. Noah observed the man for some time and concluded that nothing could stop him if he wanted to know the truth. Not having any choice, he stepped forward.

"Mr. West, we have something to tell you. We want you to stay calm and not get agitated. It might be a little hard for you at first. But remember we are here for you and we will never hurt you."

"Why do you look so familiar? Have we met before?" Oliver studied Noah and the more he looked, the more he found him to be familiar.

"I don't think so," Noah answered immediately. He did not remember meeting Oliver before. He had heard about him and had seen him on the TV. But he had never had the opportunity to meet him in person.

"May I know your name?"

"Yeah. I am Noah Allen Carter."

Oliver's eyes widened in realization. "Are you Jonathan Carter's grandson?"

"Yes," Noah answered. The whole world knew about it, it was not a secret. Why was Oliver behaving weird on hearing his name? Was something wrong?

"Was your mentor Theo Willaims?" Oliver's question sent Noah and Joshua on overdrive. Not many people knew about Theo, especially when he changed his name every few days. The surprising part was Oliver had called the name their mentor had last taken when he had died.

"Yes. Did you know him? Have you met him?" Joshua asked frantically, his eyes as wide as saucers.

"Yes, I had met him. Come here, child." Oliver gestured Noah to come closer and patted the space towards his right on the bed. When Noah did as he was told, Oliver engulfed him a hug. "I am so sorry child. I couldn't save your mentor, I couldn't save Theo." Oliver started crying, his tears running down his cheeks.

Noah stiffened immediately when Oliver whispered the words as he hugged him. Joshua too was stupefied. However, Ian looked at them in confusion. He did not know who Oliver was talking about.

"Who is Theo Willaims?" He voiced the question, looking forth between the three people.

"That was our mentor's name when we last saw him," Joshua answered him honestly. In their excitement, Noah and Joshua had forgotten to tell him about their mentor's death when they had met him.

Ian nodded. But the next second, Oliver's words rang in his mind and he looked at them in shock. "What do you mean by you couldn't save him? What happened to him?"

Oliver had calmed down a little and had released Noah from his hug. He glanced at Ian and took a deep breath. Before he could speak, Noah beat him to it. "Ian, our mentor was murdered."

Ian was appalled, his mouth widened his disbelief. "Noah, you are joking, right? Jo, he is joking, right? Nothing could happen to our mentor. Nothing. He is the strongest person we ever knew. He cannot die. No." Ian looked at Noah and Joshua as he spoke the words. He was unable to accept the truth. His mentor could not have died, no. Noah and Joshua must have been kidding. He was sure of it. Their mentor must be hiding somewhere and when everything returned to normal, he would come and give them a surprise, like he always did. His mentor was alive.

"I am sorry, child. I couldn't save your mentor. I am really sorry." Oliver apologized looking at Ian panic. He couldn't stop himself from apologizing though he was not the one who had killed Theo.

"No, you are lying," Ian shouted and got up. He was not ready to believe the truth. "Noah, you tell me. You are playing a prank on me, right? This is not true. Nothing you are saying is true."

"Ian." Noah stood up and held Ian's shoulder. "Listen to me, Ian. Our mentor is gone. We are not lying. He was killed three years ago."

Ian stared at him stunned, he did not blink even once. Tears started to form in his eyes.

"Ian, he is gone." Noah hugged him as he said the words and everything snapped. Ian started to cry. Looking at him cry, Noah and Joshua too could not stop themselves. They knew Ian was the closest to their mentor among the three. 

Oliver's sniffled and he recalled something Noah had just said. 'Did he just say that Thoe was killed three years back? How is that possible? I saw him getting killed with my own eyes.' But he did not ask the question right away. The three men looked devastated right now and they needed some time to deal with it.

It took them a lot of time for the three friends to calm down. This was the first time they had ever cried. Nothing had ever broken them before. They were as strong as the Great Wall, withstanding and overcoming anything that came in their way. However, their mentor's death snapped something in them, breaking them completely. 

"Are you alright?" Noah looked at Ian in concern and Ian nodded.

Noah turned towards Oliver and his eyes fixed on him. "Did you know our mentor?"

"Before I answer that, tell me what you meant when you said that Theo was killed three years back."