Chapter Forty Three

Bella

I couldn't stop shivering and I was becoming more and more afraid the longer I was alone here in the darkness, but then I heard footsteps and saw a light in the distance. Was this The Major back or some of our pursuers who had somehow found us here? I froze stuffing my sleeve in my mouth to stop my chattering teeth from giving me away and shrank back against the damp stone wall of the cave praying I would be missed. When the torch light found me I was about to scream but then I heard his voice,

"It's OK Bella, it's me."

Sagging with relief I spat out my sleeve and called his name quietly. As he got closer I could see he was carrying a large bundle slung over one shoulder and another in the hand free of the torch. Seeing me he knelt down and took my icy hands.

"Sorry I took so long but I had to be careful, there are searchers all over the place but luckily no trackers, yet at least. Here strip off those wet clothes while I light the stove and get you something hot to drink."

I stood up and started stripping off my sodden clothes with my one good hand oblivious of the fact he could see me in the light cast by the small stove where a pan of water was slowly coming to the boil. I sensed his eyes on me from time to time, but it didn't feel like he was staring. It was more like he was just checking I was managing one handed, and once I was naked he handed me a thick sweater, and a pair of pants that were too big, but I put a belt around them to hold them up. Seeing me struggling with the buckle he reached over and fastened it for me.

Then he handed me some thick socks and as I finished dressing and lay my clothes out to dry, a forlorn hope probably, I went to sit with him at the stove feeling a little warmer and more comfortable than I had in awhile. The mug of hot chocolate he handed me next was like nectar and I clasped my good hand around the warm tin mug.

"How are you feeling now?"

I took a sip,

"Better, thank you."

"What about that wrist?"

Funnily enough it didn't hurt anywhere near as much although it was swollen and bruised,

"I'll live, jumping out of a helicopter isn't to be recommended, not for a human anyway."

"You shouldn't have done it, Bella."

I was about to interrupt when he put a cold finger to my lips,

"But I'm very glad you did. I wasn't sure I could bear to see you fly away from me."

I finished my drink and yawned, I was exhausted from lack of sleep and fear and he smiled pulling a blanket from the bundle and taking off his shirt which had almost dried now and folded it to make a pillow to save my head from the hard rock floor.

"Try to get some sleep, we're safe enough here for now."

I nodded and curled up close to him pulling the blanket close around me and laying my head on his shoulder. He chuckled quietly,

"You'll never sleep like that. Come here."

He put the bundled up shirt on his lap and curled an arm around me pulling me down so I rested my head on it. As I closed my eyes I felt his cold arm around me through the blanket and then a soft sensation as he stroked my hair,

"Sleep darlin'. You'll feel better when you wake and we have a lot to discuss."

I felt cold lips on my forehead as I tumbled down into velvet darkness and sleep.

The Major

I hadn't lied to Bella, we were safe enough here, at least for a while. Peter would know how to find us, but I was worried about keeping her healthy. A cave was no place for a human, especially a cold damp one, and I wasn't sure how much I could do to make it more comfortable, a fire I had decided, was out of the question, too many vampires around.

Food would be another problem as it meant another trip outside and possible discovery as a result. I had stolen food and clothing from a cabin that was shut up for the winter and found several empty bottles that I had filled with water from the outside pump. The food was packaged and tinned, but it would keep her alive for now. As for myself, my only concern now was to keep my mate safe.

For the first time I allowed myself to really study her and allow my own feelings to surface fully. If I had done that in the compound Maria would have seen how much Bella meant to me and she would have done everything in her power to kill the girl. Bella had a way of shielding herself which was a Godsend. But how powerful it really was, and how far she could control it, I had no idea and I didn't think she did either. It was something we could work on and worry about later.

First she had to understand exactly how much danger she was in and more importantly how much I loved her. Love, a word I had thought I would never utter again. This was something pure and wonderful, not to be confused with the lust I had felt for Maria all these years. A lust she had used against me, to hurt me, confuse me, and ultimately to try to destroy me.

We sat like this in peace for hours, I listened to her soft breathing, her slow regular heartbeat, and worried for her. She was so fragile, so very vulnerable., her skin so soft and warm, the scent of her body like the perfume I had loved as a boy when my mother cuddled me. A scent that soothed and calmed me. Now I was sure I could never be a danger to Bella, I would kill myself before hurting a hair on her head. As she began to stir I stretched out and lit the stove again so she wouldn't open her eyes to total darkness. As her eyes opened she looked up at me and smiled,

"I thought I'd been dreaming Major."

"Jasper, it's Jasper."

Her smile brightened,

"Jasper. It suits you. Jasper what?"

To my shame I had to think about that, I hadn't used either of my names for over a century,

"Whitlock, Jasper Whitlock."

"How did you get the nickname Major?"

"I was a Major in the Confederate army when Maria found and changed me. She thought The Major sounded more threatening so it's what I became."

"She changed you to fight for her?"

"To fight for her, change more humans and train them, to kill those who didn't please her. I was a monster, Bella. To most I still am, feared by everyone in my world. I'm no longer proud of that, but it might make you feel a little safer, no one will get by me to harm you."

Bella

I could see he was disgusted by what he was, as much for my sake as his own, and I wanted him to know that he didn't disgust me. I knew who and what he was to me.

"Alice told me what these feelings mean, she told me we were mates and I think I understand what that means."

"You sound about as sure as I am what it all means Bella. I know I would die for you, that I couldn't bear the thought of losing you. That I feel a different man in your presence, and I guess that's what real love is all about. I should tell you that once I thought I was in love with Maria. She gave my life purpose, she wanted me but not like you. I felt devoured, wanted only for what I could do for her, but I thought that was enough. I was wrong, so very wrong as it turns out. Love is a two-way thing, it has no conditions attached. How do you feel about having a vampire who loves you, Bella?"