Las Vegas, a lot of years ago,
Jasper is running up to the house when he hears yelling. He stops, looks back down the street before sighing and opening the door. He enters the kitchen where the yelling is coming from and sees Earl throw a glass of some kind of alcohol at a woman's head. His eyes widen, but he stays silent.
"What do you want from me!" Cassandra asked angrily.
"I want you to stop protecting your son, I am going to start to use him for some of my cons and I don't need you to interfere!"
Jasper is watching, desperately hoping that his mother would stand up for him, but that isn't what happens.
"Fine!" Earl nods at that before looking at the opening in the kitchen. He sees Jasper and goes to him, he kneels down, "Jasper, it is a few days until Christmas, so we are getting you an elf costume." Jasper looks confused before nodding. His dad leaves and then he looks at his mother who shakes her head at him. He doesn't realize that day was the last time he would see his mother.
Las Vegas, 15 years ago.
"Jasper!" Jasper groans before getting up from the bed and opening the door, "What do you want?"
"It's time for the next job." Jasper groans again letting his head fall down to his chest. He shakes his head before sighing. He gets dressed and then goes outside and sees that his father looks a lot like a cliche loan shark with the gold chain necklace and old fashioned suit.
Jasper sighs, it was time for the daily con of getting money from gamblers in need of some money. They have a few bucks stashed away for when his father wants to do this kind of job. Jasper goes to put on his cheap suit for when he pretends to be a bouncer type to look like he is protecting his father. When he finished changing he looks at the application to go into the military. He folds it and puts it in his suit and then heads out to his father. They leave the trailer park area and head to one of the few casinos that his father and him are not blacklisted from.
They pull up to the casino and when they get out his father smiles and claps Jasper on the shoulder, "You have 15 minutes to do what you want and then you come and find me in the restaurant." Jasper nods before disappearing. His father looks at him, shaking his head, amazed at how quick Jasper is able to blend into the crowd, so well that even his father can't find him after a few seconds.
This is what Jasper wanted, he is outside and puts the piece of paper into an envelope and then puts it in the mail. He then heads back inside to continue the con with his father, that he hopefully won't have to continue once he gets a letter back.
The next day, after successfully ripping off a guy who needed the extra dough, his father yells at him, "Jasper!"
Jasper gets up and walks out of his room, "What, dad?" His father looks at him for a minute before shrugging, "I think I have a new con in mind for the next casino we go to."
Jasper nods his head, he looks around for a minute, "You continue to think on that and I will go for a drive, just to clear my head for the next con." His dad buys that and lets him leave without a second thought.
Jasper goes to the PO box that he and his dad own so none of the cons gone bad victims can find them. He opens the mailbox and doesn't find the letter that he has been waiting for.
He gets home and sees his dad leaning over some papers, he sighs, "So, what is this big plan of yours?"
"We are going to get to the Cook's and take their money." Jasper stares at him and then huffs a laugh, "They are mobsters and you want to take their money," Jasper snaps his fingers, "just like that?"
His father stares at him and then shrugs, "Well yeah."
Jasper huffs, "We could be shot or killed if we do that!"
Earl shrugs again.
"How is this going to work anyways?" Jasper is desperately trying to find a way for this plan to not work.
Earl explains the plan and that causes Jasper to shake his head while thinking that he hopes to get that letter before hand. The plan was to seduce the daughter and get in somehow. Jasper doesn't understand how that will get them money, but until he has the letter he is stuck where he is.
For weeks he went along with the plan even though he really disliked Samantha. She was just not a very good person and she always talked down at him. The next day he was getting ready when he got an alert on his phone about the plan about to go down. Jasper was now supposed to get the Cook's together for some reason to distract them while Earl steals the money. (This was a very stupid plan, but there was no other idea)
He tries to distract the Cook's but fails, he runs away while trying to call his father. The goons are following him with guns. He is outside in the parking lot when he turns around abruptly. The goons hold their guns on him, he starts stuttering when a bang is heard. Jasper feels a pain and looks down, there is a red spot growing on his shirt. The goons look confused and turn. Jasper follows that and blurringly sees Earl standing with his gun.
Jasper whispers, "Dad?" The goons look surprised that the father shot his son. Earl looks at Jasper before shrugging, "You were planning on leaving and I can't have that, not when I am getting a little to old to work every con with you." Jasper just looks incredulous as he falls to his knees and hears the sirens of the cops. Earl runs the other way after hearing the sirens. The goons look between Jasper and Earl before stepping closer to Jasper, they can't just leave him injured like that. Jasper is laughing a little, "Only my father would shoot me because he wants to retire and me to take his place."
The goons grimace at that before helping to staunch the bleeding. The ambulance arrives and takes him to the hospital where he is tended to. He makes it through the surgery and wakes up a few days later with a handcuff around the bed and his wrist. He looks around confused before seeing a cop standing outside his window. He then remembers what happened before he arrived at the hospital. He groans out loud and sees the cop speak into his walkie. The next hour passes with nothing happening and then his door opens. It is a detective. He walks down and sits in the chair next to the bed.
"Sorry about this." Jasper just sighs and raises his eyebrows.
"Okay, here is how this is going to go. We have evidence from the cameras and from the Cook's that you and an accomplice were trying to steal from them. We are willing to offer a deal if you give up your accomplice."
Jasper laughs in pain. The detective looks confused, "What?"
"I am the accomplice, I never wanted to do the job." The detective looks surprised, "Then why did you do it."
Jasper sighs again, "I did it because I haven't gotten the letter from the military that I have been waiting for and because the other guy is my dad." The detective looks even more surprised. He sits back, "Wow, your father."
"Yep, and my own father shot me," a pause, "What is the offer?"
"Well the offer was prison time, but if you are the accomplice not the mastermind and your father shot you I think we need to come up with a different offer."
"How about this, I give you some of the worst things that my father has done and if I have gotten into the military you let me go into the military." The detective looks pensive, "I will have to talk to the lawyers, but if they find that okay so do I. We will get your mail for you."
Jasper nodded before going to sleep. He wakes up the next day and sees a pile of mail set on the table next to him. He groans as he sits up, but he gets the mail. He looks through most of it bored until he gets to the one that he wants. He frantically opens the mail and reads it. He is smiling when the detective comes back in.
"What are you smiling at?"
"I got into the military."
"Congratulations. I guess that means that the offer that we made yesterday is still on the table?"
Jasper nods before telling the detective the worst of his fathers cons. He is watching the TV when there is an announcement that there has been an arrest for an attempted theft from the Cook's. He smiles slightly at the payback to his father. He closes his eyes still smiling because once he is healed he is headed to the military academy.
A few years later,
Jasper is sitting at a table going over intelligence reports when he hears a know on his door. He opens it and finds his commanding officer standing on the other side. Jasper is surprised, but also confused.
"Sir? What are you doing here?"
"I am here with an opportunity for you."
"What is that offer?"
"Well, you have been doing excellent work and people high up are starting to notice."
"How high up?" Jasper asks suspiciously.
"CIA, high up." Jasper raises his eyebrows, "Wow."
"Yep, the opportunity is to join the CIA and go work for them." Jasper nods before saying, "Can I have a day to think about it?"
His boss nods before leaving. Jasper shuts the door before laying down on the bed and thinking hard about the offer. The next day he decides to accept the offer.
5 years later,
He has come a long way since the military academy. He can do a lot more damage and infiltration when he needs to because of his training in the CIA. He is on downtime right now because of a previous fight in Hong Kong against a General Shrieve who was intent on unleashing a virus across Hong Kong. He did a lot of stuff in Hong Kong that would be considered bad, but he did that because he lost a little kid who had become a friend or even a little sister to the virus.
He is sitting on his bed looking at the ashes of his friend when there is a knock on the door. He clears his throat and rubs his face, "Come in."
It is one of his teammates, Aaron Cross, who trained him although Aaron is in a different sector than him and isn't supposed to exist at all. Aaron looks at him, "Are you okay."
Jasper huffs, "Yeah, I'm getting there." Aaron nods before tilting his head, "You have orders to appear before someone."
Jasper looks confused, but stands up. He goes up to his bosses office. His boss looks up and tries to smile, but it comes out as a grimace. Jasper raises an eyebrow. "You wanted to see me sir?"
The boss clears his throat, "Yes I did," he stands though, "But we are going somewhere else to talk about this."
They walk to a conference room where there are people that Jasper recognizes and some that he doesn't he sits down and notices that his boss goes to sit on the other side of the table with the others.
One of them starts speaking, "This is sort of a tribunal based on your actions in Hong Kong."
Jasper swallows hard thinking back at that.
"You were considered insubordinate and that can be costly to your career."
Jasper sighs and looks down, "Yes, I know, but I can't say that I regret it. I mean that general was killing little kids for no reason other than to spread the virus."
His boss nods, "That is why we are going to be discussing what to do with you now."
Jasper nods and sits in silence while the people across from him start whispering to each other. The discussion ends and one of them stands up.
"You will be coming with me after this meeting." Jasper looks confused, both at the order and that the man is speaking in an English accent.
"Where is that?" Jasper asks. The man smiles, "England, and I am part of the MI-5 and 6 department, it is a British version of the CIA sort of, we are more public though.
Jasper looks to his boss who smiles and nods agreeing that this is a good option. "Okay then when do we leave?"
"As soon as you pack up your stuff."
Jasper nods and leaves the room, he packs his stuff and when he is done is goes to the main office with his duffle bag. He goes to one of the secretaries who knows what is happening and is his boss's secretary.
"Hi, Nancy." Nancy smiles at him.
"I am leaving for an overseas job, but I want to be careful with this." He lifts the ashes onto the desk. Nancy smiles sympathetically before nodding her head. "Where do you want this delivered?"
"I don't know yet, but when I figure that out I will let you know and you can send it to me."
Nancy nods before shaking his hand, "It has been an honor knowing you Jasper. Good luck."
He smiles back before heading out. When he leaves the building a car pulls up and the man from before rolls down his window, "Get in."
Jasper gets in and they are off to the airport for England.