DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN TWILIGHT OR ANY OF

S. MEYER'S CHARACTERS… UNFORTUNATELY.

I JUST PLAY WITH THEM.

Blood In The Snow Chapter 3

JPOV

I couldn't believe what I was seeing on the news. I know that woman. She is, or was, a customer of Dad's. Angela Cheney was a hardworking widow with a five-year-old boy. Most of the time she managed, but when Ben, Jr. had one of his seizures, the hospital bills over ran her meager budget. That's when she would come to us. Dad always would give her however much she needed and let her repay it as she could. And she always did. Now, she's lying in the morgue and her boy has no one. Damn!

Demetri had said he was going to pay her a visit if she missed another week's payment. I tried to explain that she got special consideration, but Demetri insisted that no one got special treatment anymore. I never thought he'd kill her.

When Aro first came to the office to talk with Dad, he thought that Aro just wanted to buy in as a partner. Dad and I had talked about it and decided that we were doing just fine and did not need a partner. Imagine my surprise when they walked into my little office and Dad introduced me to his new partner. Shock is putting it mildly. Dad's face was strained and I could tell he was struggling to remain calm. After the chitchat and Aro left, I swiveled my chair around to face dad.

"What the hell is going on? I thought we agreed we didn't need him."

My dad rubbed his hands over his face. After a minute, he looked at me. "I know, I know." He shook his head. "He threatened your mother."

I gasped, in shock. "What?" I shouted. "I'll kill the …"

He raised his hands, waving for me to calm down. "Jasper! You don't know him. He's the head of the biggest crime family on the East Coast." He got up from his chair, pacing around the small office. "He never said he'd hurt your mother in so many words, but he made it clear that my family might find themselves the target of petty criminals if we didn't have the protection of a powerful family. He went on to tell stories of how other small businesses had lost family members, mostly their women, when they tried to stay independent." I gaped at him as he told me about their chat. "His words insinuated that it was some small time group causing all the trouble, but his eyes… they're so cold… and they said something entirely different." He slumped back into his chair, running his fingers through his hair and sighing heavily. "Jasper… I can't risk your mother or you. I just can't." Tears trickled slowly down his cheeks.

I was in shock. I'd never seen my dad cry… ever. I didn't know what to do. "Dad. It'll be okay. We'll deal with it." And we did, for a while. As time went by, the Volturi family took more and more control. They eventually 'retired' my Dad. Said it was time that he should 'relax, enjoy himself and let someone else do the work'. I, on the other hand, was expected to take over the 'figurehead' position for my dad. Oh, I still did the books… the ones the tax people saw. Aro had his own bookkeepers who kept the real books. Their office was right next door to mine and sometimes I had to see their books to get mine reconciled. All the books were kept in the safe in my office. They knew I had the combination for it, but I guess they thought I would never try anything that might put my parents in danger… and they were right.

I justified my actions by reminding myself that I couldn't bear to lose my only family. Not over money. I'd keep my mouth shut, try to get along with the Volturi and keep everyone alive and healthy. I kept to myself outside of work. I was afraid to get close to anyone for fear they would become a potential target. I was lonely and afraid. But there was no other choice. I didn't feel I could trust anyone. My days consisted of getting up, a cup of coffee as I headed out, keeping the books at work, the occasional meeting, going home to an empty apartment, a light dinner and bed. Sometimes I' try to watch TV, but it is so hard to find anything worth watching. My one guilty pleasure is books. I love Sci-Fi, Fantasy and Supernatural books. Recently, I discovered a new series about vampires that was so different from any other I'd read. I've read the first two multiple times and am anxiously awaiting the final in the trilogy. It's good escapism from this pathetic life.

I guess I would have gone on like this indefinitely… until Angela Cheney. She did not deserve to die. The night I watched the news account of her death, I knew what I had to do. This had to stop. Now. I had to be very careful to be sure my parents were protected before I could do anything.

I wanted to call and talk to my dad about it, but… I was pretty sure my phone was bugged. Aro's enforcers had on more than one occasion let drop things I had only said on the phone. For all I knew, my whole apartment was bugged. I knew my office was. I was there when the equipment was installed for 'my security' and they didn't even try to hide it. There are cameras and microphones in there. That's something else I'll have to figure out how to get around.

Tomorrow was Saturday. I always went to dinner at my parents' house on Saturdays. Sometimes I picked them up and we all went to a nice restaurant. That was the only time we felt we could speak freely. And even then, we were careful about who was around us. I just had to figure out how to tell them that I was gong to bring down Aro Volturi. We needed a plan. I felt sure the police would give me protection, but they would get nothing from me unless they agreed for the same protection for my parents.

I tossed and turned all night. I finally gave up trying to sleep and wandered into the living room, picking up my favorite vampire book, the one with the tortured vampire in love with a human. As I've said, good escapism.

The soft light of sunrise peeked through the drapes. Putting my book down, I was surprised when I glanced at the clock on the wall and saw that it was just after six am. I had read all night and was nearly finished with the book… again. This was going to be a long day and I needed coffee to get me through it. As I got the coffeepot going, I looked out the kitchen window at the city. I used to love living in a busy city, but lately Chicago was losing its charm. All I could see anymore was the grime and crime. Maybe, after I finish with the cops and the trial… surely they would put him away… maybe then, I could move out of the city. Maybe even out of the state. I'd love to live somewhere that had lots of trees and very few people. I sat and drank my coffee, musing on the joys of small town life. If they offered me the witness protection program, I'd make sure that we went to a small town. Oh yeah, they would have to include my parents in the program. I could never just leave them behind and disappear forever.

It was still too early to call my folks, so I headed for the bathroom to get a shower. I sometimes think the main reason I got this place was for the shower. I love it. It's big enough for three, has five showerheads to hit your body at nearly every angle and is enclosed with glass bricks.

Shedding my clothes, I toss them in the hamper, reach in and turn the water on in the shower, turn to the sink to brush my teeth and shave while I wait for the water to heat up. By the time I finish shaving, steam is starting to fill the room, so I step into the shower and just let the water beat on my muscles. Oh…lord… that feels so good. I grab my favorite shampoo off the shelf and pour some in my hand. The scent of sandalwood and cinnamon fills the room. Massaging my scalp with the shampoo, I realize I need to get a haircut. It's nearly to my shoulders now. Someone once told me that women like a man with long hair but, I chuckle to myself, I really don't care what women like. Now a good looking man… that's another story. There is a point when it's too much, though. My blond, wavy locks look best when cut right at chin length. Just enough to grab hold of, but not so long I look feminine. Washing my body, I brush my fingers across the taut muscles of my abdomen. No washboard, but nicely toned. I stroke my stomach, thinking of Peter… how he loved to trace the muscle definition down my chest, to my stomach to my iliac crest. I could almost feel his fingers… then he'd use his talented, warm tongue to taste me… My hand moved further down to my engorged cock. I loved it when he'd wrap his full lips around my straining cock, flicking it with the tip of his tongue, making my whole body shudder in delight. My hand glides down to wrap around my throbbing cock, tugging and stroking until my knees are weak and I am about to shoot my load. Trembling and screaming out 'Peter', I fall forward as my cock sprays out streams of cum all over the shower tiles. Slumping over, I rest my head on the tiles until I regain my strength and then shuffle out of the shower. Grabbing the towel from the warmer, I dry the water from my body, thinking about Peter.

We had been together for two years. We were happy, I thought… at least I was. He was a free lance sports reporter. We met at a baseball game he was covering and we just seemed to click. Seemed like we recognized each other's soul from the moment our eyes met. After that day, we were inseparable, except for the times he had to travel for a sporting event. Even then, we called, texted and skyped.

The last time I saw Peter was in New York City. He'd been on the road for two weeks and still had another week before he's be home. I managed to get a few extras days off, so I thought it was a good idea to fly up and surprise him. I caught a red eye flight and arrived in town at three am. I took a cab to his hotel; I knew which room was his, so I went up the elevator to his floor. As I stood outside the door, I was so excited to see him. Felt like it had been forever since we were together. Knocking on the door, I could hardly wait to see the joy on his face when he opened it. The door opened, but it wasn't Peter. An attractive young man stood in the doorway, with a towel just barely wrapped around him. He looked at me. "Yeah?"

"Oh… sorry… I must have the wrong room." I stumbled over my words. Had Peter left a day early? I heard movement in the room and then a familiar voice.

"Who is it, darling?" Peter came around the door. He stopped and just stared at me.

"Peter?" What? No. I stumbled backwards, shocked. What was he doing? He loved me. He had told me so.

"Jasper… what are you doing here?" His voice sounded accusing… like I had done something wrong.

Fighting back tears I looked at him. "I thought I'd surprise you. Looks like I'm the one surprised." I bit out.

"Peter, who is this guy?" The young man demanded. "Let me guess… he's one of your boy toys. I knew you had one in every town, even though you told me I was your one and only." He practically screamed at Peter as he darted back into the room, gathering his clothes, dressing. "That's it! We're through." He pushed Peter out of the way and ran out of the room, down the hallway to the elevators.

"Randall! Wait… I can explain." Peter cried out after him.

"Looks like you've lost it all." I ground out. "Like 'Randall' said… we're through." I whipped around and made my way back to the bank of elevators. The doors were standing open on the left-hand one and I stepped in, pressing the button for the main floor. I could hear Peter screaming at me. The sound of his bare feet slapping the tile floors as he tried to get to the elevator before it closed, had me punching the button, trying to hurry it up.

"Jasper! Wait! Please! Let me explain!"

The elevator doors closed just as he got there. I stood and watched as he disappeared behind them. I struggled not to fall apart. Reaching the ground floor, I left the building and wandered the streets of New York for hours. Finally I went back to the airport, changed my flight and went home. By the time we landed, my eyes were nearly swollen shut from crying.

Peter called constantly for the next week, but I refused to answer or listen to his messages. I packed up all his things and had them delivered to his office so I wouldn't need to see him again. I had the locks changed and also the entry code for my building. I haven't trusted anyone like that since.

Shaking my head, I wonder why I thought of him. Ah well, enough. Going to my closet, I pull a pair of cream-colored slacks and a dark blue button up shirt. Sitting on the edge of the bed, putting on my shoes, I look over at the clock. Ten-thirty. It will take me half an hour to get there. I'll call from the cab to tell them we're going out. My cell phone was a new one, so I knew it wasn't bugged.

Their phone rang three times before my dad answered. "Dad, don't say anything. Act like I'm calling to cancel because I'm ill."

"Okay." I could hear the questions in his voice, but he knew the reasoning behind my request.

"We're going out for lunch today. Tell Mom not to cook."

"Yes, I understand. I'm sorry you're not feeling well." Dad knew something was up and knew his home probably had microphones, too. "Your mother will be disappointed that you can't come today, maybe next week when you feel better."

"Good. Be there in about ten minutes. Meet you at the corner."

"Okay, Jasper. Feel better soon. Bye"

"Bye"

I had the cab driver drop me off at the corner down the block from my parent's house. I saw my Dad's car parked around the corner. With the heavy tint on the windows, I couldn't see either of them. Jogging over, I climb in the back seat. "Hi Mom, Dad." I reached forward, patting each of them on the shoulder.

My mom turned in her seat, looking back at me. "Jasper, honey, what's going on? Are you all right?"

"I'm fine, Mom. I just needed to talk to you two without having Aro's men listening in."

"Where to?" Dad looked at me in the rearview mirror.

"Let's go to the little diner outside of town. You know, the one out in the countryside that you and Mom like to go to sometimes."

We drove for about an hour outside Chicago. The diner was a small place. A local hangout that served some of the best food you could ever want. My parents came out here about once every month or so. It is so peaceful out here. Lots of trees and open fields. You can see for miles. The parking lot only had one other car in it, so dad parked close to the door. We all went in and sat at a table near the back with an unobstructed view of the front door. The other couple was a teenaged boy and his girlfriend. We looked at our menus and when the waitress came over, she remembered my parents and visited with them for a minute before taking our orders.

"Jasper… what's going on?" My Dad leaned forward across the table, looking me straight in the eye.

I looked at them both, trying to decide where to start. "You remember Angela Cheney?" They both nodded.

"Lovely woman, such a sweet little boy." My mother murmured.

"Well… have you seen the news this morning or last night?" Shaking their heads, they had a look of concern on their faces. "I don't know of an easy way to say this…"

"Just spit it out, son." My dad said.

"She's dead." My mother gasped in horror and my dad looked like he'd been hit in the gut. "The police found her body yesterday, said she'd been tortured and murdered."

Just then the waitress brought our food, so we sat quietly until she walked away. I looked up at my mother and she had tears running down her face. "Honey, do they know who…?"

"The police don't know, Mom, but I know." I said flatly. My dad raised his eyebrows at me in question, then shook his head. He knew, too. "Demetri had said he was going to pay her a visit because she was late on her payments. I tried to explain that we always gave her special treatment, but he said there would be no more."

We all sat there and picked at our food. None of us had an appetite anymore. I told dad how I planned to get both copies of our books and go to the police. I would insist on protection for all of us… somewhere out of Chicago. He and I discussed the safest ways to get copies of the books without me getting caught. Once we had it planned out, we paid the bill and headed back to the city. I had them drop me off at a shopping center and I called a cab to get home.

That night, as I lay in bed trying to sleep, I went over all we had talked about. Mom and Dad were going to let it be known that they were going to take a vacation to Mexico. However, they were really going to go up to Seattle and rent a house, under a different name, where they would stay until it was safe for them to come back. I would go to the police, with the books and demand protection in exchange for my testimony. When it was all over, I would fly to Seattle to bring them home. Now, if my plan for getting the books works…

A/N: Sorry for stopping here…. but this chapter was starting to get awfully long. I'll have the next one up shortly.