I hadn't wanted to leave my Sugar on her own, but I didn't have a choice. I knew that there was no way that she was going to go home, and Garrett would have gotten his ass handed to him had I not gone with him. I knew that Iz didn't trust Jasper, but I figured that was more because she didn't remember him than him as a person. I however wouldn't have thought twice about putting my life in his hands, and I knew that once he found out how important she was to me, she would be that much more important to him, and he would protect her accordingly until I got things sorted out at the house.
It turned out that it wasn't even Jasper that she didn't like, it was the pixy, and he was guilty by association; that was proven when she consented to him coming with us. She would have flat out said 'no' if she had something against him personally. Jasper knew the bitch Garrett had detained at the house, knew the right questions to ask to get the answers that seems to elude us, and he knew more tactics to get them in a timely manner. The problem with this was, I didn't know the outcome that was going to come from this, and that was what made this a very dangerous situation. Izzy already wanted the bitch dead, and I wasn't fully convinced that even Jasper could get out of her what we needed before my baby girl got her hands on her.
However, it was a bridge that couldn't be crossed until we came to it. This is why I hate my intuition, if that is what you want to call it. It picks and chooses what, and when it wants to be involved and normally, it is never when I actually want it to. I knew she was going to be pissed off, no newborn likes their sire for obvious reasons, but I was completely unprepared for the level Iz's ire shot to upon seeing flaming red amidst the white of the snow.
It took both me AND Jasper to hold her back when she caught her first glimpse of the sight, and every ounce of power Jasper could summon to pump calmness, and chill the fuck out into her so she would stop struggling against our hold.
She was a strong little shit when she wanted to be.
After she stopped trying to get free, Jasper, still keeping physical contact with the baby, turned his head to look at her sire, a contemplative look in his eyes. While he was controlling Iz's emotions, he was cataloging and sorting through the red head's, figuring out exactly what he was up against, and how to break her.
It didn't take him long.
After a glance at me to let me know he was letting go, he stood and clasped his hands behind his back, face blank of all emotions and thoughts. When he was a few feet from her, his head tilted to the side before he spoke, "You fucked up, Vicky, more than you will ever know."
He then crouched down and got eye level with her and pointed over his shoulder, "See them? Both of them want you dead, and both of them are perfectly capable of making that happen. Currently, I am the only thing standing between you, and true death, and if you want that to continue, you are going to tell me everything I want to know."
She hissed at him and Jasper backhanded her, "I would suggest not spitting on me again. I don't condone violence against a lady by a man, but then again, you're not really a lady. A lady wouldn't have done what you did." I saw her eyes widen and heard Jasper chuckle, "Oh yes, I know everything you have done over the years, and none of it is conduct befitting a lady. If you want to act like a man, I have no issues treating you like one."
"Now, I am going to ask you a question and I want you to think long and hard about the answer, because I will know if you lie to me. I want you to think back to that day in the clearing when you had the misfortune of crossing paths with me and mine. I want you to remember the game that was played with the life of a human that was under MY protection. I want you to remember the day I killed that poor excuse of a vampire for taking the bitch's way out, and going after a human. Now, tell me, why did you think it was a good idea to pick up where he left off, knowing the fate of those that fuck with something that belonged to me?"
I was very hard pressed to swallow the possessive growl when he called my Sugar his, but I knew he was taking this somewhere, and I wanted to find out before I dealt with that.
The bitch's eyes darkened as they started to dart every which way, looking for a way out and NOT answering that. Jasper simply stayed there and waited, but my little lady wasn't having it. She renewed her struggle to free herself, and I was actually tempted to let her go this time. Jasper looked back at me and held up a finger and spoke to 'Vicky' without looking her way.
"This can go one of two ways, you answer me on your own, or Peter lets her go and she beats it out of you. Have you ever felt a newborn's teeth slice your skin, the force of their jaw as it locks down; the injection of their far more potent venom as it burns its way through your veins?"
He then turned back to the now nearly shaking vampire, "I have, many times I have known the anger of a baby vamp, and you'll be hard pressed to find something that comes close to that kind of pain. That little lady is nothing more than a demon; a demon you created and left to fend for herself in a world she has no understanding of.
"I wonder though, if you knew that in leaving that youngin on her own like you did, if you can comprehend the magnitude of that mistake. That guy, the one holding your child back from ending you like you did her, is the ACTUAL male that young lady belongs to."
She went to look away, and Jasper grabbed her by the chin and turned her face back and Garrett, who had been silent as he held her still, grabbed her by the hair to keep her facing where Jasper wanted.
"Does he look familiar to you? Do the scars he carries remind you of anything you have heard of over your life? Every bite mark on him represents a vampire that died for going after something that was his. Thousands of marks for the thousands of vampires that found their end by his hands; his BARE hands. I raised him to be a monster, to kill or be killed, and he learned very well. Either you answer my question, or you get to find out just how dangerous the son of a bitch really is, and just how sharp you made her teeth.
"Why did you continue to go after her when she was a human and not just walk away? Your mate for a mate claim is bogus for two reasons. Edward didn't kill James, I did; and she was never his mate. You have ten seconds to answer before I allow Isabella the justice she deserves."
Vicky looked back and forth between me and Jasper a few times before looking at the pissed off baby that was inching out of my hold. That ten seconds Jasper gave her was a generous time frame. Finally, right before I let go and let Iz get in her licks, she looked at Jasper, "I wasn't ever James' mate. We fucked, sure, but that was it, and since he was the head of our little band, I never said no. But, it was never about him; it was about the huge load of cash we were paid to kill a human that was in our world." Then she shrugged, "The mate bullshit was Laurent's idea to give me a reason to continue with the job we were hired to do when she survived in Arizona. After a while, it just became second nature to call it that. Everything I did would have been seen as the crazed actions of a grieving female after the death of the male."
She paused a little before continuing with a growl in her voice, "Every time I thought I had finally gotten the job done, somehow she survived, every fucking time. It amazed me that a human could live through it. Three months ago I found her in London, completely alone and unprotected by anything that could have saved her. I planned it out and waited for the perfect opportunity to strike. When that time came, she got a plane, once again fucking up my attempt to kill her. So, I stowed away in the underbelly and waited again for us to be in the middle of nowhere. I killed the pilot and destroyed the board so even if there was someone that could fly the stupid thing, it wouldn't matter and then I bailed out before the crash.
"Imagine my fucking surprise when she survived, AGAIN. It was that point that there was no other options. Since she refused to die as a human, I figured that making her part of the world she knew about was good enough. So I bit her, telling her what everyone already thought so if she was questioned, my actions would have been seen as justified and no one would have been the wiser."
During the dialog, Izzy went still as she listened to her final moments as a human, her eyes black and angry. I really couldn't blame her, that shit was way worse than I had thought it was going to be. Jasper looked at Izzy a moment before turning back to Vicky.
"Who paid you for this?"
It was then that a smile curled her lips, a satisfaction coloring her every pore and filling her voice, "who sent you to make sure she was dead? Final payment upon confirmation."
It was then Jasper's turn to smirk at her, "too bad you'll never get to see it."
Both he and Garrett leapt out of the way as soon as Izzy snarled. I let her go and shot faster than a bullet straight at the bitch. The look of surprise on her face would give me decades of pleasure in my memory. She actually thought that Jasper was going to let her go after she answered him; not a chance.
Izzy beat the ever living shit out of her too. Body parts and chunks of skin and bone flew every which way turning my yard into a warzone. It was fucking hot. Once Izzy ran out of steam, she stood breathing hard, the tip of her tongue hanging out of her mouth as she panted for unneeded breath. She was covered with venom and the blood from the bitch's last meal; flesh between her teeth and under her nails. Her clothing was ripped and torn from Victoria's feeble attempt to defend herself against the demon she created, and that I had just fed. The only loss that she sustained was a couple of fingers, a few gashes across her chest and stomach, and a few bite marks. The muscles in her arms were twitching from the foreign venom and one arm was folded over the biggest gash on her stomach.
She was my definition of perfection. What can I say, I'm a sick fuck, but I like my woman fresh from battle.
As Garrett and Jasper began to pick up the mess she made, locating her fingers and giving them to me, I walked up behind her, wrapping my arms around her waist and set my chin on her shoulder, joining her in staring at the only thing of her sire still intact; the head.
Nuzzling my nose into her neck, "Feel better Sugar?"
She shook her head, "No."
I tsked at that, knowing where it was going but wanting to make sure, "What is it you want, Sugar?"
She growling deep in her throat as she turned to look at me, "I want them to suffer."
I smirked at her before leaning in and giving her a kiss. "You wish is my command."
She smiled a little at me before looking down her nose at the head that was staring at her, "What now?"
I hummed in my throat and glanced off to the side, "Now, we get you cleaned up. I gotta have a chat with Jasper, and some arrangements need to be made." Turning her to face me, I lifted her chin with the side of my finger, "You remember what I told you back at the city don't ya?" She smiled a little and nodded. I set my forehead against hers and nuzzled noses with her, "You'll learn one very important lesson here real soon Sugar. When it comes to something that belongs to me, I have no morals, no care for others, no give a damn 'bout consequences, none of that. By the time I'm done with them, they will wish they were never fucking reborn." Then I smirked a little, "and by the time I'm done with you, you ain't gonna be able to walk for a week."
She giggled at that before lifting up to her tiptoes and pressed her lips to mine in a light and hesitant kiss. She was a shy little thing, but that shit was gonna change, and right soon too. Growling a little, I pressed my lips harder against hers before tightening my grip on her waist and lifting her feet from the ground. Her arms went around my neck and her legs around my hips. She squeezed her thighs tighter making my growl grow in volume, and in turn, that made her moan a little purr.
Just as fast as I was filled to the brim with lust, that shit was gone making my growl go from lusty too pissed off real quick. Pulling away from my very soon to be mate, I glared at Jasper, "You're an asshole."
He just smirked and crossed his arms, "We are running on limited time to deal with this ourselves, and if you get going, you ain't ever gonna finish in time. Deal with it."
I narrowed my eyes at him, but more or less knew he was right. Not putting Izzy down, I kicked the head that was still right by my foot over to him, "I'm gonna help her get cleaned up and put back together. Since you won't let me do that the fun way, you get to deal with this part."
He caught the head with one hand and nodded, "Seems fair. I'll take care of the calls while you do that."
Nodding to that, I carried Izzy inside and upstairs to the bathroom, sitting her down on the counter and knelt in front of her to get a better look at the damage done to her stomach. Moving her shirt out of the way, I cocked my head to the side in consideration. I could let it close on its own but that could take a while so I decided to close it myself. Pushing against her chest so she would lean back, I smiled at her, "This is gonna sting a little." When she nodded and closed her eyes, I pinched the stone skin back together and after a quick look to her, I let my venom fill my mouth and then ran my tongue across the gash in one fast action. I was done and inspecting my work by the time she reacted to the pain it caused her. I expected a scream, but all she did was grunt and squeeze the counter top, crumbling it under her fingers. Well, that's a bitch.
After that was done and over, I reattached her fingers and got her in the shower, helping her scrub the bite scars to get the last of the bitch's venom out. This wasn't the first time I have seen her naked, but it was the first since I accepted the fact that she was going to be my mate when we had the time to make that happen. I wonder if I was quick about it… that mother fucker. As soon as I started to get a stiffy, that piece of shit I call my brother takes it away. This is not gonna work for me. I cannot wait until the chick he decides to make his mate comes along. I am totally telling her he's gay. I wonder where I put those pictures of Woodstock from 78. Once she sees those, she won't even question it. He wants to play cockblocker, well, he picked the wrong cock to block.
Once Iz was cleaned up, I wrapped her in a towel and handed her a sewing needle to get the skin out of her teeth, and went to get her something to wear. There was no way she was leaving the bathroom with two males in the house, in nothing but a towel. I don't think I could stop myself from hurting one, or both of them. When I was in the hall I heard Jasper on the phone with the airstrip that housed my favorite toy, to get it ready for immediate departure and to get the flight plan in order. I don't do human infested flights if I don't have to, and with a newborn that wasn't going to happen anyways.
After gathering something for her to wear, I threw some clothes in a bag for later. Izzy wouldn't be ready for any kind of sightseeing, but she was such a messy eater that she was gonna need 'em.
Once she was dressed, I took her back downstairs so we could find out the arrangements Jasper set up. Sitting her on the couch to BS with Garrett, Jasper and I went to the kitchen to pack a lunch for the plane ride and have that little talk. I didn't even let him say a word before I rounded on him, "I had better not find out you had even the smallest idea that that shit went down like that."
He leaned against the counter and crossed his arms, "If I had, do you really think I would have allowed it to happen? And for the record, I understand your connection to her and all that, but I am really getting tired of the attitude from you about this. You just…"
"Dude, shut the fuck up. You honestly expect me to believe that if the situation was reversed and it was me that knew your mate as a human and I allowed someone to forbid me from what I knew needed to be done, and your girl was hurt, hunted and turned, you wouldn't be pissed off and more than a little ready to beat my ass? You might be able to fool yourself, Jasper, but I know you and I know that ever since you took up with them, you changed and not at all for the better. The Jasper I know wouldn't allow someone else to tell him what to do, and you did. The Jasper I know wouldn't go against his own instincts and you did. Honestly, nothing you do or don't do rather, surprises me anymore. So before you spout anything about how I didn't know her then, think long and hard about what you would do to me if you found out that the people I surrounded myself with, paid someone to try and kill your girl BEFORE you found her.
"She is entitled to justice, and by fucking God I am going to make sure she gets it, against ANYONE that had a hand in this bullshit. This isn't me defending my mate, not yet anyways. This is me doing what I do best, what you taught me to do, so really, nothing that I am about to do should surprise you. I'm making my list, so consider me fucking Santa because I will give her the head of everyone who wronged her."
He bared his teeth a little at the direct challenge. He narrowed his eyes and growled a little when he spoke again, "You really are fucking with the wrong guy, Captain. You should be more careful when you talk to me."
I snorted, "Or what? You gonna use your gift so I can't fight back? That's the difference between us. I can win a fight on my own merit, while you take that merit away from your opponent. In a fair fight, one on one with no gift to help you, I would kick the shit out of you. What's more than that, you know it."
He pushed himself off the counter and got nose to nose with me, "Maybe we should test that theory."
I cocked a brow at him, "Then throw the first punch you little bitch. Let's just see how much
of the Major is left, how much of the feared warlord still exists inside the shell of his former glory, because all I see is a pussy-ass has-been that is ashamed of his past, instead of owning it. No matter what you think, you're still the monster you always were, still the cold hearted son of bitch that doesn't care about nothing, and raised me to be the same way. I know who I am, the question is, who the fuck are you?"
He grabbed the front of my shirt and got right in my face, "I'm the fucking Major, and your god damn sire."
I snapped my teeth at his nose before shoving him across the room, "Then fucking act like it, and man the fuck up. We goin' knee deep into shit, and I ain't about to watch the back of candy ass. The very first lesson you ever taught me was that pussies and pansies have no right to their unlife. If my Major really is still in there somewhere, it's about time for his ass to wake the fuck up so your balls drop, because if you don't stop acting like a little bitch, I will rip your dick off so you actually have a reason to act like a girl, Mr. HALE."
Turning away from him, I opened the fridge and grabbed the cooler from the blood bank. Once I turned back to him I smirked, "one more thing. You stop me from claiming my mate again and I will make it so you never can." Walking out of the room, I stopped and patted his chest a little, "Think about what I said. I'm proud to be a Whitlock because I got that name from someone that I respect with everything I have. Would be kinda nice to have him back."
Walking back into the living room, I caught the very worried eye of Izzy. She got up and walked over to me, her bottom lip between her teeth as her eyes darted between me and Jasper, "Everything alright?"
I smiled at her and slung my arm over her shoulders, "Peachy keen, Little Lady." Looking over my shoulder at Jasper I smirked, "Ain't that right, Jazz?" He glared at me a little, but nodded nonetheless. Looking back at Izzy I grinned, "See? Now, go grab your bag Sugar, we got a plane to catch."