I'm so sorry that this chapter is late, and that I didn't get review replies out last time. Life has been hectic lately. You are all so amazing though, and I was blown away by your responses.
LithiumReaper is my wonderful beta, yet again.
Demons is also being translated into French by SandJR. She's a wonderful person, and all my thanks go out to her.
Please excuse me if there are any inaccuracies with the lawyer and court information. I tried to do my research, but that can still always come up short. I hope you enjoy the chapter!
Bella:
Work dragged on. The monotony of it got under my skin more than usual. It was slow, which felt so strange, considering how quickly things were moving in my personal life, whizzing past me like a bullet trains as I stumbled to keep up.
Lucy wasn't very happy with me either. I was on the receiving end of frequent glares for the entire day. During a mid-morning lull she cornered me in the backroom, completely infuriated. I wasn't ready for what she was about to say.
"You're dating him, aren't you?" she demanded, shutting the door behind her as I grabbed another bag of coffee from the cabinet.
"What are you talking about?"
"Jasper!" Lucy growled. "I saw you with him, outside the police station. You fucking lying bitch."
I was completely thrown aback by this declaration. I couldn't find any coherent sentences in my mixed-up mind.
"Lucy…"
"Oh, don't Lucy me!" she shouted. "You're such a liar. All that shit you were saying about me having to be careful around Jasper and not get too attached. It was all shit! You just wanted him for yourself!"
"It's…it's not like that," I tried to explain.
"Oh, don't give me that shit! You're such a liar. You knew that I liked him, but you still went after him. I can't believe you would do that! You're such a crap friend."
I would be lying if I said that hearing that didn't hurt. I felt guilty. Terribly guilty. But my situation with Jasper was not as simple as she thought it was.
"It's not like that," I repeated. "I knew Jasper before –"
"Oh my gosh!" Lucy screamed, interrupting my floundering. "That day that you were in my building, and I invited you in, and I told you about him – you had just fucked him, hadn't you! You knew him back then and you never said a thing! I even asked you whether you liked him when he was working here and you said there was nothing there! You lying bitch."
That blew me away. Lucy certainly wasn't the innocent little puppy everyone thought she was. Her bark had bite.
"Lucy, it's complicated," I tried to say, wanting to calm the situation down and keep the peace. The last thing I wanted was to upset Lucy. She was a lovely girl.
"Bullshit! It's not bloody complicated! All you had to say was, 'Sorry, Lucy, but Jasper and I are together' and I wouldn't have cared! But no, you couldn't do that. You have to start a relationship with him anyway without even a breath of concern for how I felt about him!"
I was still completely shell-shocked by everything that was happening. She made my relationship with Jasper sound like something completely different than what it actually was, and yet, I still felt like shit for it.
"Lucy," I said, a little stronger then, "it's not like that. It's so much more complicated than that and –"
"Oh, save it, Bella!" Lucy snarled. "I don't want your fucking excuses. Screw you."
With that, she spun around on her heels and walked straight out of the room.
I didn't know what to do then. My feelings were a mixture of wanting to cry, wanting to scream, and wanting to punch something. I couldn't take any more emotional turmoil. Hurting Lucy like that felt absolutely terrible. The last thing I wanted was to hurt anyone. Yet I still managed to. Continuously. It felt like I could never do anything right.
The last few hours of work dragged on mercilessly. Lucy wouldn't talk to me at all. Once, she accidentally spilt frothed milk down my uniform. The rest of the time, I was the receiver of glares and cold shoulders. It was a terrible environment to be in. When I could finally leave to head out to meet the lawyer, I was actually relieved, even if a little frightened of what I was leaving to face.
I met Jasper, Angela and Garrett outside the lawyer's office. Angela and Garrett were talking quietly together, off to one side. I must have looked like complete shit, because as soon as I got out of the taxi, Jasper walked straight over and without a word, hugged me. His arms were warm and I could feel his heart beating evenly in his chest. It was exactly what I needed. It didn't take words for him to understand that.
Eventually I pulled away and Jasper's hands dropped. The cold got me again, which felt terrible. I wanted to just crawl back into his arms and forget the world.
"Ready?" he asked.
"As ready as I ever will be," I nodded.
The next thing Jasper did was a surprise to me. I expected him to begin walking with me to the other two, but instead I felt his hand slip into mine and a slight tug on my arm. I looked up to Jasper, confused, and he leant down to kiss me. It was a soft kiss. Gentle. Loving, maybe. Not hungry or passionate or with any other connotations to it. It was coy and chaste, almost. It was delicate and comforting and considerate.
It was different from any of our other kisses. They were usually made in the heat of the moment, in secret, where no one else could see. But not this. This was out in a busy street, in front of our friends and the world. And I didn't want to break it.
Jasper's hand went to me cheek, cupping it lightly, his hands warm against my cold skin. One of my hands buried itself in his hair, not pulling him closer, but just holding him there. Jasper smiled when he felt it and kissed me some more. Playfully and almost unnoticeably. When his eyes fluttered open at the same time as mine, I smiled too.
"Thank you," I said when we pulled away.
"For what?"
I smiled and looked straight into his bright blue eyes. I felt my stomach churn with guilt after what Lucy had said, but my heart warmed because Jasper made me feel safe again. It was a dichotomy that I hated to face. Kissing him then made me feel like I was betraying a friend, but not being around him made me feel like I was out of place. It was a guilt trip if I ever faced one.
"I just needed it."
"Want to talk about it?" he offered.
I glanced over to Garrett and Angela, who were talking quietly together and watching us in the corner of their eyes. I shook my head at once.
"No."
"I'm here if you need to," Jasper said.
"Later," I replied.
Jasper nodded and slipped his hand into mine. When we walked up the stairs to the lawyer's office, towards our friends, we did it together. All the while, I felt torn, because I hated the thought that I had hurt Lucy, but happy, because that was how Jasper made me feel, and then guilty for feeling any of those things at all.
We were twenty minutes early for the appointment. Sitting in the waiting room, watching the time tick by, was torturous. Jasper was on the edge of his seat, his knees shaking, running hands through his hair. Garrett tried to give him a few reassuring words, but it didn't work. I felt the exact same way; like my nerves were crumbling me away.
When we were finally called into the lawyer's office Jasper jumped out of his seat and walked briskly towards it. Garrett, Angela and I exchanged worried glances as he walked wordlessly ahead of us. Although we were nervous, he was something else altogether.
Maria was a beautiful woman, with flowing black hair, dark brown eyes, and dark olive skin. She had a strangely musical voice and a small, delicate appearance.
"Afternoon," she greeted, standing up from behind her desk as we entered. Jasper and I approached her and shook her hand. "You must be Miss Swan."
"Bella," I said.
Maria nodded kindly. "And you must be Mister Whitlock."
"Jasper."
Maria smiled and looked towards Angela and Garrett. "Angela Weber," Angela introduced herself, stepping forward to shake Maria's hand. "One of the witnesses."
"Of course," Maria nodded, before turning to Garrett and shaking his hand.
"Garrett Jones. Another witness," Garrett said kindly.
"Hi," Maria grinned. "Please do take a seat, everyone."
"So," Jasper said. "Is there any news on what's happening?"
Maria smiled lightly and nodded. "I have talked to the opposing counsel. Both of your cases are very interlinked so I think it is best to predominantly discuss this together. The outcomes very much rely on each other. It is good, in this way, that I have both of you then."
"What did the counsel say?" I asked. Clearly there was something that she wasn't telling us. As soon as I asked it, her smile faded and she looked down to the paper in front of her. Something was terribly wrong.
"They have offered to cut a deal," Maria said carefully.
Even Garrett and Angela looked taken aback by this announcement. "What sort of a deal?" Jasper asked.
Maria was silent for a moment, pondering how to phrase it. Clearly, it was something that could cause strife. I couldn't say that I was exactly surprised about it when she revealed what it was. It was the most predictable route for Bret to take.
"Mister Sanderson – er, Bret – will be willing to drop the charges on Jasper, if you drop your assault charges on him, too, Bella."
It almost felt like a chill had settled over the room. Jasper's hands crunched into fists, his knuckles turning white. He looked like a flame had engulfed inside of him, burning him from the inside out. Anger. That's what he felt.
I didn't know what to think. Part of me would have taken it in a heartbeat. Part of me would say yes, just to get Jasper off. That part of me just wanted it over.
But the other part of me was angry. Furious. I felt like fire was coursing through my veins. It wasn't fair. It was unjust. It was disgusting. How could I let Bret get off a real charge by using a pathetic, fake excuse? How could I knowingly drop my charges on him and let him go free, and possibly hurt someone else, and this time really hurt them? How could I live with myself and let that happen?
Immediately, I was reminded of Carlisle. He twisted and meddled with everything and managed to slip through the cracks so as to not get hurt himself. He could turn other people against you and dodge the bullet and manipulate everything. He got away with it. He got away with everything he did. Carlisle got away with the drugs and Jacob and Embry and everything else. And it wasn't fair. How could I stand by and let another person manipulate and play the system and get away with something else? Hadn't I learnt my lesson? Hadn't I learnt that sometimes there was a time to risk it all and fight for what you think is right?
Bret was like Carlisle reincarnated in my mind, and I wanted to see him burn for what he did. I was sick of people playing games and getting away with it.
What was holding me back was Jasper. What if I refused the deal, and he went down for it? What if we lost? Jasper had gotten in trouble when defending me. How could I hang him out to dry like that?
"But…" I said weakly, my eyes on the floor, trying to find the right words, "if we cut…if we cut a deal, he walks free. And he could do it again, and worse, to someone else."
I felt like I was about to cry. That was when I felt a hand settle over mine. Jasper. His fingers curled in with mine and he squeezed it in support. He was telling me that he was there. Always there.
"Yes," Maria nodded. "If we cut a deal and drop the charges, he will go free."
Free. It wasn't fair. Carlisle went free, whilst so many others lost their own freedom. How could I let that happen again?
"Bella," Jasper said then, his voice soft. "Bella, I don't want you to take the deal just for me."
I looked up to him then. His electric blue eyes latched onto mine. I could see the understanding in them. He knew what I was thinking. He was thinking it to. We both understood what this meant.
"But what about you…" I whispered.
Jasper shook his head, his jaw stiff. "I don't care. I don't care about what happens to me. I only…I can't stand the thought of it, either. Someone else getting away."
I bit my bottom lip and nodded. It took me a few moments to control myself to look up at Maria. "What's the likelihood that Jasper will win his case?"
Maria shook her head apologetically. "I wouldn't know, Bella. I wouldn't be able to predict that."
"Just what is your opinion?" I insisted. "A roundabout guess? Does he have a shot?"
"The way I see it," Maria said, "is that you have a very good case. With the bruises, the witness statements and the evidence on hand, it would be hard for Bret to be found innocent. Laying charges on Jasper is an attempt to divert away from this. Jasper defended you, which was permissible. But…there are some grey areas…"
"Grey areas?" I repeated.
"Jasper's blood alcohol level was above the legal limit. Your relationship could also be brought into question – perhaps they will take the route of a jealous boyfriend. Also, Jasper's past history could be brought forward."
Jasper sat up then, thoroughly confused. "But my record was sealed when I turned eighteen. Surely a three misdemeanor charges of tagging, cannabis possession and underage drinking when you're a teenager can't be brought into an adult case. I did my community service, went to drug diversion classes and I paid the fines. It was years ago."
"The key here is that they will want to question your character, Jasper. Those charges will do that."
"I was sixteen!" Jasper insisted.
"And that is what we will argue," Maria agreed. "You are an independent adult with a steady job, home and income. No adult record. And if we win Bella's case, you are that much closer to being proven innocent. I am only stating all possible angles here. The truth is that we may not even go to trial."
"Why is that?" I asked.
"I will have preliminary hearings with the judge and prosecution. We have a number of viable options to go with here. The first is a plea bargain, for Jasper."
"I'm not pleading guilty," Jasper growled.
"I could argue for a plea bargain, which would give you a lesser charge. Perhaps you would only be required to pay a fine or do community service. It is an option."
"I'm not guilty," Jasper insisted.
Maria nodded once. "Of course, I could also argue defense. This rests a lot on Bella's case. In the preliminary hearings I can put forward the argument of defense. It is the burden of the prosecution to prove intent. That is that when you approached Bret, you intended to hurt him. Through your statement and statements of witnesses, this is not the case. Your intent was to protect Bella. This is what we can argue. What the prosecution may argue is that your defense was excessive."
"What does that mean?" Jasper asked.
"This involves questioning whether what you did to stop Bret from hurting Bella was excessive in the way that you injured him too much. I have a copy of the doctor's report here. Bret sustained a broken nose and two chipped teeth. Your statement says that you punched him four times. They may argue that this was an excessive means to an end. There is a lot of grey area in your trial – more so than Bella's."
"Could Bret take a plea bargain with the charges on him?" I asked.
"Yes," Maria answered. "If that is the case, we will be unlikely to go to trial for Jasper's case. A judge may dismiss it."
"So what does this all mean?" Jasper asked. "Could you maybe summarize it for us?"
Maria nodded kindly and took a deep breath. "I have strong hopes for Bella's case. Jasper's case is very dependent on this. I will have hearings with the judge and prosecution to outline whether it is able to be put to trial. Our best outcome is that the judge dismisses it. Our worst is that we go to trial, and from there we argue defense and try to counter argue the prosecution's points of excessive means, and questioning Jasper's character. Moving on from here, we must make a decision on the deal that has been offered. If it is declined, I will meet with the judge and prosecution next week to discuss where to go from here. Jasper, I take it that you refuse to make a plea bargain?"
"Yes," Jasper nodded.
"And the agreement which has been offered, about dropping the charges – our response is what?"
Jasper and I looked at each other briefly. He knew that I didn't want to hurt him, and that I wanted the charges on him gone. But he also knew that I couldn't let Bret walk free. I knew that he couldn't let Bret walk free, either. We had both had enough of people walking all over us and slipping through the cracks. We wouldn't be manipulated again.
"I'm not dropping my charges," I answered sternly.
Maria nodded, and for the next half hour we discussed the case further. We retold our stories of the night and heard Garrett and Angela's takes on it. Maria then outlined the next moves we would take to go forward. She would meet with the judge and prosecution the next week and then contact us on the progress and organize our next meeting. After the appointment, we all left the office, feeling a little overwhelmed.
When we walked outside Jasper pulled me to the side as Garrett and Angela headed into the bathroom.
"Bella," he said.
I looked up to him and tried to smile. "Yeah?"
"Don't feel bad about this, okay?"
Easy to say; hard to do. "I won't," I tried to promise.
"I can see it in your eyes," Jasper said. "Don't feel bad about keeping the charges against Bret. He deserves to reap the consequences of what he did to you."
"I know," I agreed. "I know he does. I just…I don't want you to suffer for my mistakes. It's not fair. Just because I wasn't strong enough to stand up for myself, you get all of this."
I despised myself for it. I couldn't help but look to the floor in shame. Jasper hated this and dragged my eyes back up to meet his.
"You did stand up for yourself," he said. "You fought and you said no and you refused him. None of this is your fault. Please don't think that you are at all to blame."
"I acted idiotically."
"Nothing gives anyone the excuse to treat someone how Bret treated you," Jasper insisted. "Please, tell me you believe that."
"I do," I said.
Jasper looked at me carefully. "But you're still beating yourself up about it."
"Because you're in trouble because of it, and that's my fault."
"No. It's Bret's fault," Jasper insisted.
I felt like crying again. That made me feel even more pathetic. Not only had I screwed everything up, but I didn't have the backbone to stand up and actually fix it. I just felt too broken; broken and dirty and like someone had torn my skin away from my bones. I felt bare and vulnerable and awful.
I didn't need to verbalize these feelings. Jasper could see it in my expression, despite the fact that I was looking down at the floor, my shoulders slumped, trying to stop myself from crumbling over completely. Soon, I felt Jasper's arms wrap around me, and I was surrounded in his warmth and fire. I accepted it gratefully, curling myself into him and never wanting to let go, surrounded in a smell which was uniquely Jasper; paint and lemons and freshly cut grass and wood and man. This was one of the things that were different about Edward and Jasper. With Edward, he could never tell what I was thinking and never took the time to understand. Jasper always knew what I was feeling, and responded to it without even having to breathe a word. Jasper was fire whereas Edward was ice. I needed some warmth in my life. I needed warmth after living in Forks, being sucked back up to Seattle, and feeling so cold and empty after Jacob and my father and my own weakness and then Bret. I just needed Jasper's heat and acceptance. Despite all of my flaws and fuck ups, he accepted me. I only wished that I could give him back the same gift, and felt like I never could.
I could have stayed wrapped in Jasper's arms for hours. Could have, but didn't, because mere seconds passed before a voice I had never wanted to hear again – a voice which haunted my dreams and sent chills coursing through my body and sucked away all the heat and happiness and vitality still left in me away – rang out beside us.
"Well, isn't this a new, fascinating development."
Jasper and I pulled away. Jasper had become just as rigid and cold as I had. I turned to face him, and there he was, with his ice blue eyes glaring at me, his icy blonde hair smoothed back with piles of grease and his deathly pale skin. He was striking, he was frightening, and I was stuck between wanting to punch him in the nose and cower in the corner.
"Carlisle." The name fell from Jasper's lips like venom. A fire sparked in Jasper's eyes. Hatred burned, like flame on fuel. "What the hell are you doing here?"
:::
Jasper:
Bella looked so broken. That was the only way to put it. From when she first arrived, to when she was talking to the lawyer and realizing how similar Bret was to Carlisle, to when we got outside. Bella was just broken. The events over the last couple of days were tearing her apart. I wanted to do nothing but help fix her and protect her from any further harm. She needed time to rebuild, and that's something she wasn't getting. She wasn't the girl who bit back at me and kissed me hard and was lost in her own world. She was just broken, and cold as ice, and heatless. I wanted to help her get back to the Bella she was.
When Carlisle turned up, I knew that it would be harder than ever to accomplish.
"Carlisle," I hissed. The name felt dirty. I had an insatiable need to run up to him, drag him out the door, and scream in his face. "What the hell are you doing here?"
Carlisle glanced down at Bella condescendingly, as if expecting me to excuse myself and get her to leave. As if I was going to do that. I response, I held her tighter and glared at him.
"I'm here for your meeting with your lawyer, of course," he said evenly before looking towards Bella. "Miss Swan, it's nice to see you again. It's a pity about the circumstances, and how you have been troubling my son, though."
Bella looked to the ground. I wanted to snap Carlisle's neck.
"Leave," I growled at him. "The meeting's over, and you wouldn't be coming even if it wasn't. I'm an adult, and this is none of your business."
Off to the side, I heard the bathroom doors open. Angela and Garrett came to stand beside us.
"Rent a crowd, is it?" Carlisle quipped at me.
"Leave," I reiterated. "We don't want you here."
"You don't have a choice," Carlisle insisted. "Now please, Jasper, step outside with me. We have some things to discuss."
"No."
Carlisle looked furious, but he had to keep his head cool, or else risk damaging his reputation. "Jasper, now," he insisted.
I was about to make a remark when someone else bet me to it. Bella. And I loved every word of what she said.
"Jasper said no, Carlisle. No doesn't mean that he can be convinced if you continue to badger him, nor is it a weak-willed answer that can be changed, especially by you. Move on, or we'll call security."
Carlisle narrowed his eyes. I wanted to kiss Bella and shout in encouragement. What he said next stopped me though.
"This is none of your concern, Miss Swan. I ask that you refrain from speaking to me in such a manner."
Fucking twat.
"Actually," I said, "it is Bella's concern. As my girlfriend, she has a lot of say. And I ask you to kindly back off. You have no say in these proceedings or in my life. We're leaving. I ask that you do the same."
I grabbed Bella's hand and stepped forwards, trusting that the others would be behind me, and that we would be a united front. I didn't look back as I brushed past Carlisle. If he thought that he was going to get involved in Bella's life again, he had another thing coming.
"It really is a shame, Jasper," Carlisle said as I walked past him. "Your mother and sister would be so disgraced in how you have acted lately. I suppose I have no choice but to tell them how far you have fallen again. Best it be before the baby comes, too. That way you won't have time to get attached."
I froze, steps in front of him, anger coursing through my veins. I didn't have time to react before Carlisle smacked me on the back and departed before us.
"Jasper –" Bella started to say.
That was it, wasn't it? That was what he was always holding over me. My fucking family. That was what he had control over, and what made me keep going back. It was about time that I stopped letting Carlisle fuck everything up for me.
I had to regain some of that control. At least for Bella, if I was ever going to stay with her. And even though my mother was too far gone, I could still get to Rosalie.
"We have to get back," I said immediately.
"Jasper," Bella said again.
"Come stay at Garrett's place tonight?" I asked. I didn't know why I did. It just came out. Being apart from Bella seemed like the most terrifying thing in the world at that moment.
Bella nodded once. "Of course."
With a few more words, we were in a cab, and after dropping Angela off and picking up some of Bella's things, on our way home.
:::
Back at Garrett's place I still didn't want to let go of Bella's hand. Garrett and Bella stayed in the living room whilst I headed into Garrett's bedroom to call Rosalie. Bella didn't say a word to me. She already knew what I was doing. There was some sort of strange, unspoken understanding between us. She always knew what I was feeling. So she also knew that all I needed was a soft kiss and an encouraging nod.
Rosalie answered on the fifth ring. It felt so good to hear her voice again. Every time I did, it was a reassurance that she was safe. Even though I had seen her in the weekend, it felt like I hadn't spoken to her in years. She sounded brighter, too. Having Emmett home lifted her spirits.
"Hello?"
"Hey, Rosie."
"Jay!" Rosalie squealed. I couldn't help but smile. Knowing she was happy calmed me. "It's so good to hear from you! How are you?"
"Fine, Rosie. How's the baby?"
"Great," Rosalie said. "Kicking away."
"That's awesome."
There was a pause. Rosalie knew something was wrong immediately. "Jay, what's going on? Are you okay?"
It took me a while to gather the right words. I didn't want to trouble Rosalie with this, but I knew I had to. She had to know the truth.
"I have something to tell you, Rosie. And it won't be easy to hear."
There was a pause on Rosalie's end. I could imagine her sitting down slowly, preparing herself. "What's going on?"
I took a deep breath, and I let it all out. I told her the entire story. I told her how I had met Bella again on New Years, and how we had slept together, and what had happened at the club and with the police and how Bella and I were officially together and what was going on with Carlisle and how he was trying to use her and mom to garner control of me with the lawyers and the court case and how I had to tell her so that she knew what was going on and so that she could hear it from me and couldn't be twisted and manipulated by Carlisle anymore because I couldn't lose her.
When I was done, Rosalie was deathly quiet. I could hear her shallow breathing on the other line, but that was it. I surely hoped that I hadn't lost her.
"Rosie…" I prodded. "Rosie, are you there?"
"I'm…here," she said.
I nodded awkwardly. "Do you…have anything to say?"
"That's a lot to take in, Jay."
I felt terribly guilty for it. "I know. I'm sorry."
"I can't believe Carlisle would do that," she breathed.
"Really?"
"It's just…he's Emmett's father. It's…"
She didn't need to finish her sentence. I knew that it was hard for her. She had to put up with him. "I just wanted you to know. I can't lose you, Rosie."
I could imagine her smiling. I wanted to see her smile. She was my best friend and my sister. We needed each other to keep the other sane. "You won't lose me, Jay."
"Do you have anything to say about it?"
"I know that what you did was in protection of Bella, and I know that Bella is a nice girl who has had a tough hand in life, what with Charlie and the entire situation with him and Carlisle and everything that happened with Edward and Charlie dying. I know the truth. You don't have a thing to worry about."
Back in high school, when everything with Carlisle and Charlie was playing out, Rosalie and Emmett and Edward and Alice had stuck by Carlisle's side. I never properly understood it. Charlie and Bella were ostracized for something that they were right about. But slowly I came to figure it out why they stuck around. Family. That was what it was all about. Family. Family stuck together, no matter what. And I wasn't the only person Carlisle knew how to control back then.
Edward was a father's pet. My mother was weak-willed and felt like she owed him for keeping our heads above water when she was struggling so much after my father's death. Emmett was all about family; something that had been ingrained into him when his mother died of cancer when they were young. Alice was her father's princess, naïve to what else was out there, shut in a world that Carlisle created for her, almost like her own personal snow globe. And Rosalie…Rosalie was the worst. Carlisle replaced the father figure she had lost when my father died, which was something that she desperately wanted and needed. Carlisle had Emmett, who she loved with all of her heart. Carlisle had a family like one that she desperately wanted, because as much as mom and I were her family, we were broken after my father's death. I was off the rails and my mother was floating aimlessly, giving up. Rosalie was the only constant thing in our lives. She was the only strong one, the one who had to hold us together, keep my mother going and calm me down. Carlisle's family took that pressure off her. She didn't have to grow up so fast.
So they had stuck by him. They didn't know Charlie like I did. They most certainly didn't know the cruel side of Carlisle – the dark one he liked to hide under a façade of false pretenses and gifts – like I did. They didn't see it, and if they did, they pushed it away from their minds. So Rosalie hearing this from me, understanding it, and accepting it, was a big thing. It was something I was scared to risk because of just how much she felt like she owed him. But I had to tell her the truth. I was just as bad as Carlisle in some ways. We both kept her in the dark.
"I'm sorry, Rosie," I said. "I just had to tell you the truth."
"I know," Rosalie said. "You did the right thing. Is there anything Emmett and I can do? Do you need any help?"
"No," I swore. "Just look after yourself and that baby. My lawyer thinks I have a pretty good shot at getting off. I'll keep you updated though."
"Come up and see me this weekend," she said. "I feel like we need to talk about this more."
"Okay," I agreed.
"And bring Bella."
That threw me a little bit. "Why?"
"I need to meet any girl who means that much to my brother. I haven't seen her in five years. You're with her, so I want to get to know her. That is as long as she is comfortable with it."
"I'll ask her," I nodded.
"Thanks for telling me, Jay."
"Love you."
"Love you too."
Once I hung up from Rosalie I took a few moments to gather my thoughts before dialing the next number. Charlotte answered on the fourth ring.
"Hello?"
"Char, it's me."
There was a pause of disbelief and then a shout. "Jasper! Oh my gosh, it's you! Where are you? Are you okay? We've been so worried!"
"I'm okay, Char," I said. I didn't want to tell them about the court case. Not yet, anyway. But I needed to touch bases with them and let them know I was still breathing. "I'm staying at a friend's house."
"Are you coming home soon?"
"I don't know," I admitted. "I have some things I need to sort out."
"You can sort them out here," Charlotte offered.
"I really can't, Char. I'm sorry. I just…I'll keep in touch, okay? I just needed to let you know that I'm safe. Give Peter my best, will you?"
"Sure," Charlotte said. "And…Jasper?"
"Yeah?"
"I'm sorry."
"For what?"
"For the way I acted. It was a bitch of a thing to do. I…I shouldn't butt into your life like that. I have no right. And I'm sorry. I should never have said those things to you. I'm so sorry. I don't want to lose you."
"You won't," I assured her. "You'd have to try pretty hard to do that."
I could imagine her smiling, which helped. Charlotte may have had a lot of opinions and an unruly tongue, but she was a good friend who had done so much for me over the years.
"Don't be a stranger, now," she said.
"I'll keep in touch," I promised before hanging up.
Bella was very quiet that night. I decided on asking her about heading up to Forks the next day. She didn't need any more emotional stress. For the moment, I left her alone with her thoughts, and she seemed to want that. Despite the fact that I still felt like we were being attacked from all sides, wrapped in Bella's arms that night on Garrett's fold down couch, we were safe for a little while.
:::
Bella:
I first noticed it when Carlisle was in the lawyer's office with us. When Jasper went to walk away, walking ahead of us, Carlisle wasn't watching him. His eyes were on Garrett, honed in and critical, waiting for Garrett to look at him. But Garrett wouldn't. Carlisle looked furious at that, and on the cab ride home, Garrett didn't say a word.
When Jasper went into the other room to call Rosalie, I noticed it again. Only this time, it was with a phone call. As soon as Garrett saw the caller ID he excused himself to the bathroom. But even in there, I could hear parts of the conversation. Snippets, but it was enough. Things like, "I am doing it" and "It's under control" and "Yes, sir" and "I'll keep you updated" and "It has just been busy" and "I have my eye on him, okay?" It wasn't hard to piece together.
Garrett was the one who was watching Jasper. Or at least he was one of them. Carlisle clearly knew him, just by the way he looked at him. It made sense, too. Jasper worked with Garrett. Who better to get a look into Jasper's life? Of course, I didn't doubt that Garrett wasn't the only one, but he had to be one.
It hurt to think about it. Garrett was such a good guy. Or at least I thought he was. I didn't know what to do. Telling Jasper seemed necessary, but too risky at this point. So I decided to wait, and get more proof. Getting more proof involved talking to Garrett the next morning.
Jasper was in the shower when I approached Garrett, who was in the kitchen, texting someone and looking rather haggard. I popped on the coffee machine, watching him. Garrett had large bags under his eyes, as if he hadn't slept for weeks. I wondered what was wrong.
"Garrett," I said quietly.
Garrett looked up, typing out the last few numbers before sending the text. "Yeah?" he asked distantly, turning around to get a mug out of the cabinet.
I took a deep breath and said it, like ripping off a band aid. "Garrett, what's going on with you and Carlisle?"
Garrett's reaction was completely unexpected. He dropped the mug, which shattered on the counter and scattered over the floor.
Garrett bent down and began furiously picking up the pieces of ceramic. He did this took fast, because after swiping at a particularly sharp piece, blood started to seep from a wound on his finger.
"Fuck!" he swore.
I bent down with a hand towel and grabbed his hand, stopping the blood flow. It was a nasty gash. Garrett seemed to shrink away from my touch, which was understandable, after the question I had just asked.
Garrett stayed quiet as we continued to pick up the pieces of the mug. I watched him carefully. He looked lost. Lost and frightened and broken, almost like a little boy.
"Garrett," I said again, "what's going on with you and Carlisle?"
Garrett looked up to me. He seemed almost about to cry. He was clearly torn apart by this.
"I'm sorry," was all he could manage. "I'm…I'm sorry."
"Sorry about what, Garrett?" I asked softly, trying to understand. Trying to understand how someone could do what I suspected him of doing to a friend. It didn't make any sense. It was repulsive.
"I'm…I'm sorry. I…I didn't have a choice," he managed to choke out.
I didn't have a chance to reply to that. The hallway door was thrown open to reveal Jasper standing there in a towel, his cell phone grasped in his hand. He looked absolutely distraught, too, as if his entire world was falling apart. He didn't even notice the broken bits of the mug on the floor.
"Jasper," I breathed, "what's wrong?"
Jasper took a deep breath, as if he was about to cry or scream or punch something or all three.
"It's Rosalie," he said.
"What's happened?"
"She has gone into labor," he explained. "She's in the hospital. They're treating her. Stopping it."
That couldn't be right. It couldn't. Jasper had told me about her being pregnant the night before, at my apartment. Her going into labor just couldn't be right. It was too early.
"But…she's only just over seven months along," I said.
Jasper nodded, tears springing to his eyes. "I need to go up there. Now."
Thoughts?