A/N: Thank you all for the reviews. Part two of the mega chapter that had to be broken down into three. Told ya I wouldn't make you wait too long for it!
Paradigm Shift Chapter 15
Jasper turned to Bella sharply. She could not be serious. "What did you just say?"
Bella's features were determined. "I said I am getting ready to pack."
"That is what I thought you said." Jasper replied dryly.
"Is there a problem?"
The immediate defensive tone to her voice clearly indicated that Bella knew there was. Jasper couldn't help but be surprised by Bella's decision. She had always been considered the most selfless one of the Cullen household. "Darlin', I don't think this is the wisest idea."
Pain crossed Bella's face for a split second before becoming composed again. "No, I think it is."
It was obvious to Jasper that Bella was not at all in the least bit comfortable with the choice she made. "You don't mean that Bella."
"I do. You heard what Talullah said, Jasper."
Jasper did hear it all. He understood the allure of what Talullah promised, the idea of the Cullen's believing them and getting Alice back. But as much as it all appealed to him, he couldn't bear to let Bella ask of the wolves what she was about to.
Bella stood straight in front of the blond vampire, attempting to give the illusion of confidence in her decision. It was a convincing performance; perhaps Emmett or even Alice would have believed it. But all Jasper saw in the moment was the insecurity that overwhelmed her, how terrified she was of the choice that she was making. "Darlin' you will never forgive yourself if you let Jacob or any of the other werewolves get injured. It's also not just the wolves; it is the other innocent lives within that Tribe."
Silence.
While the werewolves were their natural enemy, Jasper had gained respect for them during the newborn fight. He did not want to particularly see them killed or injured. But Jaspers main concern was for the woman in front of him; it would eat Bella up alive and very well destroy her. It would have been bad enough had the deaths been as a result of her actions unknowingly; but where she was now fully aware of the consequences involved, and still choosing to go forward... Bella would never recover.
When Bella finally did speak, her voice was softer but still firm. "Jasper, this could be our only chance to get them back."
He placed a hand on her shoulder. Perhaps logic would win out. "We have only met Talullah for a few minutes. We don't know who she is associated with or why. We can't even be sure that she is telling the truth."
"Jasper, you would know if she was lying. She was telling the truth!"
"There are sometimes way to get around that. There are some very good liars out there that can even fool me."
"You don't believe that is the case here, Jas. Admit it."
No, Jasper didn't. Everything about Talullah, her emotions, her body language, and her tone of voice all made him believe she was absolutely telling the truth. Jasper had known well enough when he was in Maria's army that he shouldn't rely just on his empathic gift. He had been blessed with another gift as a human, one that had made him a fantastic poker player against his brothers, fine tuning it in the confederate army, to give him the advantage. Jasper had been an expert at reading others and never lost the skill as a vampire, choosing to use it in addition to his gift. He had been glad for that; he had seen the trouble that Alice and Edward had both gotten into at relying on their abilities too much over the years. "No, I don't think she was lying. But it does not mean that something strange is not going on. I have a hard time believing that this is not somehow related to what happened back home and I don't feel comfortable relying on a strangers vision.
"Besides, there is still hope. We have Peter and Charlotte out there. We have Elise who will hopefully come through for us. There are options that do not involve killing others. Are you willing to risk other's lives for that?"
"I don't have a choice." She muttered, turning to the blank wall.
He spun her around to face him, letting a small amount of anger enter his voice to emphasize his point. "Bella. Let me make one thing clear. You always have a choice. We make choices every day that impact our lives. We chose not to go to school with our mates. We chose to skip Alice's shopping trip and go on to visit colleges together. We chose to leave our house when we found out about their changes and not try to convince them further. Every day we have to live with the choices that we make. The only difference is that we live with them for an eternity. And this is one choice that you will never forgive yourself for. Never."
Bella stiffened. "I need to go pack now. If you will excuse me."
She tried to step aside Jasper, his hand jutting out to touch the wall, effectively blocking Bella in. Jasper's eyes darkened, his voice becoming harsher. "No."
Bella huffed, her eyes darkening in return. "No?"
"You heard me. You are not thinking rationally. Even if you wanted to go, you cannot just go walking back into the Forks. The treaty is null and void, remember? Sam and Carlisle could not come to a full agreement after you turned. It was the reason we left while you were in Europe."
"They will understand why I came back."
"No. They won't. You are putting yourself in unnecessary danger by going there." Jasper hated how much he sounded like Edward at that moment, regardless of how true the comment was. He leaned in, closing the space between himself, Bella, and the wall. Jasper's body towered over hers, very aware of the way Bella was now pressed up against him, her hands on his chest, the faint trace of arousal that Bella usually had when in his presence, stronger. His eyes darkened further and his monster roared inside him to teach her a lesson she would never forget, a lesson that they would both enjoy immensely.
Bella hands pushed roughly against his chest, enough to get out of his trap. She stood on the first step to the upstairs and looking at him. "Well, as you said Jasper, we all have to make decisions we live with the rest of our lives."
Jasper hit his forehead against the wall, pounding his fist through the drywall in frustration. Turning his head to her, he voiced the fear he had. "Damn it, Bella! You could get yourself killed or worse!"
"What could be worse?"
The harshness in his voice quickly turned to nothing more than a plea. "You will hate yourself so much that I will lose you too. I can't lose you."
Bella's features softened, her eyes regaining a little of their amber tone. "I need to do this. End of conversation, Jasper."
Jasper watched in frustration as Bella began her ascent up the stairs. He wanted to follow her, argue his case further, but it would only make the situation worse. Instead Jasper walked out the door, pulling out his phone, dialing the number automatically without a second thought once he was no longer within hearing distance.
"Jasper. Fucker. Long time no talk."
Jasper rolled his eyes. He was not in the mood right now. "Peter, it has been not even two damn days. Stop giving me shit. I need your help."
Peter's throaty laugh came over the line. "It seems to be a reoccurring theme."
"Peter… so help me God…"
Peter's voice turned serious, finally realizing that Jasper was not in the mood for his games. "Sorry. So what is going on now?"
"A fucking lot." Jasper explained to Peter the incident with Talullah and her vision.
Peter remained quiet, listening to all the details, before letting out a large whistle. "This just keeps getting stranger and stranger. Bella is absolutely insistent that she returns to Forks?"
"Yes."
"Jasper, purely from a strategic vampire point of view, it would not be a bad thing to have the wolves removed. It would also have the bonus feature of being reunited with Alice if what she said was true."
"Peter, the wolves do not deserve to die at the hands of the Volturi. Besides, Bella loves them. She has always had a strong affection for them and she will never forgive herself if she does this."
"What are you going to do then?"
Jasper sighed and ran his hand through his hair. "I will try to dissuade her. But I need you and Char to begin looking into this Talullah vampire immediately. I have a feeling that she might be a connection in all of this."
"How?"
"I don't know. But my instinct says that she is important. Maybe she is not involved with the Cullen situation, but I can't afford to leave any stone unturned."
"Well, I am always at your service, you know that. I'll have to contact Char though." Peter trailed off.
"Where is Charlotte?" Peter never left Charlottes side unless it was necessary.
"Char decided after our luck with finding Elise that it might be prudent to separate and branch out. I argued with her for hours, but she insisted that we could get more done separately than together in finding other vampires that can help us."
"She is right."
"Oh, I know she is. Char is always right, though I would never tell her that. I just like keeping her safe."
Jasper could respect that. "Where did she go?"
"She went to follow that lead that Bella found regarding the vampire in Norway."
"How long is she gone for?"
"Three weeks. But I will call her and touch base regarding this Talullah woman."
"Thank you." Jasper was already feeling calmer after talking to his brother. Jasper, of all people, understood that being overly emotional was not going to get him anywhere. "Peter, tell Char to be careful. I don't think I could take if anything happened to either one of you."
"Will do, Major."
"Peter…"
"Yes, Jasper?"
"What should I do?" The question was so incredibly vague, but so specific. And he would only ever ask it to Peter.
As always, Peter knew exactly what Jasper meant. "Jasper, I think you should follow your heart, not your head. It's not going to be easy, but I think once you do that, you will realize certain truths. Sometimes, you are your own greatest obstacle to your own happiness."
"Thank you, Peter."
"Anytime, my brother. Anytime."
Peter disconnected the call, understanding that there was no more that needed to be said. Jasper put the cell phone back in his pocket and ran up the stairs to the house, stopping just short of opening the door. Bella footfalls indicated that she was pacing back and forth in her bedroom, and he was overcome with her feelings of nervousness and worry. It was a rare moment that she had her shield down; it was obvious she was distracted on top of everything else.
It just reaffirmed that her decision was the wrong one. He thought about how to convince her to stay here with him, but he could also feel her determination and knew it was not going to work. He then realized that Bella needed to go through with this, travel to Forks.
Bella had always had faith in him; he need to have faith that she would make the right decision.
He opened the door to the house, Bella's emotions cutting off like a knife. He wished that she would not do that around him, but he understood. He had hated when Edward just delved into his thoughts without his permission and if he had the option, he would have done the same. Jasper found himself outside her bedroom.
Even though her door was open, Jasper still rapped on it. "May I come in?"
Bella stopped her pacing. "Of course, Jas."
Jasper sat on the edge of the bed, where the suitcase now sat, half full with clothes. "Listen, I am sorry about earlier."
She joined him on the bed. "I just don't understand. Don't you want Alice back?"
"Yes, I want Alice back. I love her. She is my wife."
But is she my mate? Jasper found himself pondering quietly at the brunette.
He realized that he now felt the pull that he felt for Alice with Bella. He had been around long enough to know there were different pulls that a vampire felt and they were not all created equal. Just as Maria's pull had been full of blind devotion and nothing else, Alice's had been carved from love, caring, and a friendship that he could not imagine could run any deeper. But Bella's…
Bella's pull came from deep within, the vampire recognizing Bella as something it desperately needed to claim; to have. Jasper felt he would not be fully satisfied until he had her and in return given her everything of him. Jasper now just needed to determine know which pull was the true one. Was Bella's pull simply lust and the vampire responded to that? Or was the need to claim her, the need of a real mate? The intensity of it was something he never had with Alice, something he knew he would never have with Alice.
Jasper had never talked to others about the pull. It was natural occurrence within the vampire society, but not readily talked about. Some vampires slept with hundreds, never meeting their mates, never desiring to be mated. Others found their one mate and were satisfied for eternity. But Jasper, well, Jasper always was different. Two different devoted lovers in his existence; and now he was looking to claim a third. All with pulls to him.
"But despite how much I love my wife, I don't think this is the right way to get them back."
"I do."
He knew that she didn't believe that. "Alright. But just know that I'm going with you."
She shook her head. "No. I need to do this on my own."
Jasper grabbed a shirt, helping her fold it, placing it in the suitcase. If she was going to do this, she was not going to have to bear this alone. He could not let her, his heart practically breaking at the thought. "No. I am going. If you want to risk your life, fine. If you want to risk others lives, so be it. But there is no room for further negotiation. I will be at your side no matter what. That is final."
A/N: So I hope you are all still liking this story so far. I originally thought this was only going to be a twenty chapter story, but it is so obviously not going to be that! Still, I hope I am still holding your interest!