Major Jasper Whitlock's POV
I had entered Colorado and was making my way down to where I left Peter and Garrett. Leaving Isabella had been harder than I expected. I was sure I would feel pain and her emotions when I left, but I didn't realize they would be so intense. Several times I stopped and turned around, I didn't get far before I gave up though. Isabella was not a part of my life, if she was I would have never left.
Isabella had her life with her dad and the golden eye vamps. There was no space for me there. Small towns and I did not get along. I was not domesticated. I would only be able to play good for a small amount of time before I snapped. My life was out in the open with my boys. My boys… I was getting closer, I could hear their bickering already and it made me smile.
"It's the throat, it's instinctual," Garrett said.
"I understand that, that's not my point. I'm just saying, if it's female, you go for the femoral artery, right in the leg. Fuck, now you got me hard."
"I did not get you hard, you got there all on your own, mate."
"Fuck, when is Jasper going to be back? I need my release," Peter growled.
"Soon I'm sure."
"Where do you think he went?"
"I don't know, but I'm sure if he wanted us to know then he would have told us… He's coming."
"Why can you always hear him before me?"
"Because I'm older," Garrett stated simply.
I broke through the mountains and came upon them. Those stupid fuckers truly were where I left them.
"Jasper, you're back," Peter said and their relief hit me like a freight train. "Where were you?"
"It's not important," I answered. "Let's go hunt. I haven't had a drink in a month."
"Yet you're covered in blood, human blood," Garrett said as he walked closer to me, smelling my shirt. "Mmm, that's some good blood. Didn't you feed on the person that soiled your shirt with their life force? Your eyes are blacker than when you left us."
"No, I did not drink from them. We hunt together as a group, you know this." It was a weak excuse and I knew it.
"Opportunity always trumps convention," Garrett told me smartly.
I ignored him.
"Can we hunt now?" Peter asked. "Garrett got me hard."
"I did not, stop saying it like that," Garrett protested.
Ah, it was good being back with my boys, it was a good distraction. Isabella was still in the back of my mind, but it was manageable.
"Where's your jacket?" Peter asked as we made our way out of the mountains and towards Boulder.
"I misplaced it," I answered, running through the trees. I really needed a feed.
"How do you misplace a jacket?" Garrett asked.
Stupid questions did not deserve a response from me.
"You'll need to get a new one," Garrett said. "The humans don't like to see us so underdressed in the cold."
What humans were we ever around other than the ones we killed? None… Expect maybe Isabella. Why was she always there in the back of my mind? No matter what I did, there she was. I pushed her to the back of my mind once again just willing myself to forget her completely.
"Why do you smell so good?" Peter asked as we hit the outskirts of Boulder.
Was he smelling the blood? I looked down, but I had hardly any blood on me.
"It's not the blood either," Peter said, "it's something sweeter. What is that? …Jasper, answer me."
I didn't answer him.
We slowed down and made our way into town, looking for an easy kill. It had been over a month since I had fed and I was due. We headed for downtown, searching for the perfect opportunity. It was nearing dusk, so we would be able to use the cover of darkness soon. We walked up and down the streets, but nothing took our fancy.
"How hungry are you?" I asked.
"Starved," Garrett answered and Peter agreed.
"A bus?" I questioned.
"Yes, I could eat a bus load," Peter answered, and so it was decided.
We found a bus stop and waited. The first bus pulled up and we got on. Unfortunately no one would be getting off this bus today. I waited until we hit a deserted spot before I signaled to my boys to get on with the plan.
"Please, please," Peter said frantically, "stop the bus. My friend, he's not breathing."
The bus driver pulled over and I made my way towards the back. There were seven people on this bus including the driver. Everyone crowded around Peter and Garrett and my boys put on a great show. I worked quickly before anyone could call 911. I walked forward and snapped everybody's necks one by one, until they were all dead. It was easy, too easy. Humans were too slow and very unobservant. They deserved to die.
I could feel Peter and Garrett's thirst, but they were smart boys. I was the leader and I got my choice first. I picked a young woman with blonde hair and an elderly woman, pulling them to the back of the bus with me, leaving the other five for Peter and Garrett to fight over. They looked at me for a beat, trying to decide if I was done, but I ignored them and they began fighting each other. Their fights were always pointless. Garrett was older, but I held Peter as my second in command. I did this wisely, it made them equals and they always realized this after their constant power battles.
I took my eyes off them and grabbed the young woman first. I brought her neck up to my mouth and sunk my teeth in. Her blood flowed into my mouth and I savored it. Because she was dead I didn't have her heart pumping her blood around her body, so I had to suck hard. Her blood flowed into my mouth and I let my mouth fill up with it before swallowing. Mmm, I had missed this. Seeing as we were not newborns I tried to limit our feedings to once a month, unless opportunity presented itself, or if Peter and Garrett were getting restless.
The flow of blood ended and I grabbed the elderly woman next. My teeth pierced the fragile skin on her neck and her rich blood filled my mouth, it was a delicacy. I savored every drop until she too was dry. When I was done I pushed her body away from me and looked up at my boys, they were done, of course. Thankfully this time they hadn't ripped the last person in half to make things even. That happened once and it was a bitch to cover up. I stole Peter and Garrett's dominant arms for a month for that fuck up. Thankfully they learned the lesson I was teaching them, which was, do not harm the humans in any way that can't be easily covered up.
I got up and made my way to the front of the bus, stepping over the bodies. I got to the front and smashed the onboard camera in my hands, no evidence would be left when we were done. "Garrett, you're up," I told him. I stepped off the bus and Peter followed. Garrett was our fire man, he knew how to create a fire and make it look like an accident. I watched on as he did his work, tinkering with the engine, setting everything up for it to go 'boom', as he liked to call it. He was a bit of a pyromaniac, but he knew I was only happy if he used his power for good.
Once he was done, he grabbed the bodies and shoved them into their seats. He grabbed the driver and put him up front, sitting on top of him as he started the bus and took off. Garrett sped up and found his target. He swerved and hit the brakes and just before the bus hit the brick building he jumped out and did a perfect barrel rolled even though it wasn't necessary. The bus hit the wall and it was a loud crash. Garrett sat on the ground and just watched. The smoke started and then the flames came and then…
"Boom!" Garrett said, jumping up and clapping his hands together. He stood there for a moment, enjoying his handy work, just looking at the flames. Garrett had a serious problem, but I wasn't stupid enough to confront him about it because vampires and fire did not go hand in hand at all, unless your name was Garrett.
We stayed nearby and watched the fire burn, covering up our feeding session until nothing was left. When it was all said and done we headed back into the mountains.
"Where are we going now?" Peter asked. "Are we still heading north?"
"No, let's head east." I wanted to get as far away from Isabella as I could. A big part of me wanted to run back to her, but I couldn't have that.
"East?" Garrett asked excitedly. "Can we visit New England, Boston maybe?"
Garrett had grown up around the Boston area in the mid-1700's, so every time we were in the area he wanted to visit. It was just like Peter and I were fond of Texas, it was our home. I allowed him every so often. This would be a good distraction for me.
"Sure, Garrett."
"Yes!"
"And then we head back down to Texas?" Peter asked.
"We just left Texas," Garrett said.
"Yeah, two months ago," Peter argued.
"That's monkey change. We should go international. I love America, but I love the idea of toying with the Volturi right under their noses." Ah, good old Garrett, no fear in that boy.
Undoubtedly this trip would bring back a lot of Garrett's stories. He had fought in every American war, except the war in Iraq, I didn't allow him to. I explained that it was not his fight and it took him a while, but he soon came around to my way of thinking. And because Garrett had been very active he had made a lot of friends and comrades, but he was loyal to me and that's all I cared about… Shit. Fuck, fuck, fuck. My vampire memory was catching up to me and it began playing a conversation I had long forgotten between Garrett and me.
"There's this guy, Carlisle Cullen, he lives a different way, Jasper."
"Not now, Garret."
"But, Jasper, it helps them blend in with others, they're domesticated."
"Garrett, not now!"
Not now. Well now was a completely different time. Garrett knew the good doctor and I bet he knew about their golden eyes.
"Garrett," I spoke. "Please indulge us with one of your stories on our trip across the country. Perhaps the one about the domesticated vamp you once tried to tell me about."
"Carlisle Cullen?" Garrett questioned.
"That sounds like the right name."
"Who's Carlisle Cullen?" Peter asked and then Garrett began his story.
Garrett went into much detail about his first meeting with the good doctor. All about his compassionate nature and how he had lived in this world alone from the start, his struggle with his human beliefs and his thirst, his quest to find another way to live. The fact that he found out that animal blood could satiate him and gave him amber colored eyes allowing him to blend back in with the humans and become a doctor, giving back to the people for all the bad things the vampires were doing with them. Once his story was complete I was sure of one thing, Isabella was safest with this man and his coven.
With this thought fresh in my mind the pain lessened. Knowing that Isabella was in safe hands put my mind at ease. We eventually made it to Boston and we were there for a month. Thoughts of Isabella were still present, but they were just there, there was no pain or no emotions, she was just a memory, and I liked that, I could smile at that. She was just a part of my memories now, or so I thought.
"The people here are weird," Peter said. Our eyes were now black again, so it was almost time for another feed. "Please, let's leave."
"Okay," I accepted. We had spent enough time in one place. "Where to?" I graciously asked. This was rare and both Garrett and Peter knew it and with a feeding coming up they would choose an appropriate place for sure.
"Niagara Falls," they both said at the same time.
Niagara Falls? Why there?
"Okay," I accepted, they could have their fun, whatever that may be.
The journey was to be a short one, so we took our time. We were halfway through New York state before I felt it. It was a sharp pain and it struck right through me. My head, my left leg, and my chest all compressed with pain. Thankfully I was bringing up the rear, so when my left leg collapsed underneath me and I fell down, bouncing along the ground, Peter and Garrett didn't seem to notice. I picked myself up and just stood there. What was going on? Why was I in so much pain? I look up confused, but Peter and Garrett were still running.
The pain increased and I began to feel woozy. Why they fuck was I woozy? I wasn't a fucking human, I was a vampire. Then it hit me… A human. Who was the only one who had affected me this way before? Isabella Swan. Isabella Fucking Swan. Something was terribly wrong. I didn't think, I didn't stop. I just headed back west, leaving my boys alone again. I was sure they would notice I was missing soon, so I sent them a message telling them to keep course and stay at Niagara Falls until they heard from me. I couldn't stop to explain or to give them instructions. Isabella was in pain, she was hurt, but how badly? I willed my legs to move faster. Why had I gone so far away from her?
