Chapter Eighty Five
Jasper
This was it, Caius had made his move, he'd made the call to Aro and set the wheels in motion. I guess I could have left at this point but if I did that it would give the game away. As long as Caius thought his plan was a secret he would continue and we would finish him, his plan and any danger to Bella and Jay too. As long as Caius lived Bella, Jay and I would always be in danger, especially as Caius thought me dead. What I wanted to do was to start running and not stop until I was in Bella's arms but duty kept my feet fixed firmly where they were. As a soldier, a Major, I had known the consequences of duty and accepted them, now I had to do the same.
I found Caius watching me and wondered if something had made him suspicious but then he called me to take a walk with him while the other two were off hunting. Once away from the compound he stopped and put a hand on my arm,
"You have played your part exceptionally well Jasper Whitlock, I think you could fool anyone, except perhaps the Cullens."
"That's what you had Maria train me for. I'm just doing my job."
"Ah yes, your job. There is another task I have for you. You aren't finished quite yet."
"Oh? I thought my task was to draw the Romanians in."
"Oh that was part of it certainly, and a part you succeeded at admirably but my allies think that once we secure victory over my brother they will be sharing the throne of the Volturi with me."
"I thought that was the deal."
"It was…...as far as they were concerned, they didn't think I stood a chance of ousting Aro and set me a challenge. If I wanted their help then I had to secure yours. No one gives me an ultimatum Jasper, not and survives. So you see once this battle is over and I am victorious, as I shall be, I need you and a hand picked unit of your best men to capture and kill Stefan and Vladimir."
So Caius hadn't finished his killing spree even when he had defeated Aro. He waited for my answer but I stayed silent,
"Well? What are you waiting for? I suppose you want payment for this task? Very well. I will appoint you leader of the Volturi guard."
Still I didn't speak straight away, there really were no depths Caius wasn't willing to stoop to in order to get to his goal! He was far worse than Maria had ever been and she had waded in some murky depths at times.
"You want me to murder our allies? Just like that?"
He laughed,
"Please don't tell me you are developing scruples like your namesake? Remember, you are here because of me, I can help you rise in our world."
I was tempted to laugh in his face but instead I kept a straight face,
"Very well, but I do it my way, in my time."
He wasn't too happy, but then he wasn't used to being spoken to in this way. He had finally encountered someone almost as arrogant as himself.
"Maria taught you well Jasper."
"Yes she did Caius."
Caius
Maria had certainly done well with this doppelganger. The Major's friends would not oppose me with him at my side and I could see great things ahead for myself with him there. I had expected someone who could pass for The Major visually and even perhaps in fighting ability from a distance but Maria had outdone herself here, I had underestimated her abilities quite obviously but I wouldn't in the future. If I hadn't known the real Major was dead I would be willing to swear he stood before me now. Perhaps the charisma that the original possessed really did run in the family!
Stefan and Vladimir returning almost as I finished speaking were delighted to hear I had set the ball rolling and threw themselves into planning the details of our trap. Knowing Aro was nothing if not careful we couldn't close it too quickly. He would hold back to ensure this was a genuine battle between the Romanians and the "forces of good". Once he saw me at the head of my force fighting our enemies then he would commit his forces and as soon as he did that we had him. The Major and two of his best men would lie in wait for Aro. He was the only man who could incapacitate Renata and therefore reach my dear brother to deliver the killing blow. His two men would take on the small protective guard Aro always kept close. No more than two or three of the guard and possibly even less as he would be looking for Felix to join him as he arrived.
It would be Stefan and his units task to take down Alec before he could build up his deadly gift. Having taken care of him the rest of the guard would be easy, hand to hand fighting and my men were very good. I had sent word to Demetri via our secret messaging service that he was to keep the others in New York and ignore any orders Aro might send. It would be much easier if the likes of Jane and Felix were out of the way. Once the battle was over it would be too late for them to act and they would be left with a choice of following me or being put to death by The Major and my men. Felix might choose to fight, he had always been loyal to my dear brother but Jane? I hoped she might agree to work with me, especially if I could make it appear her brother had died at Aro's hand fighting for my corner.
We had two days to organize our men and get ready for Aro's appearance and after a few words about tactics that was won by The Major of course we sent a foraging party out to provide humans for the men. I wanted them at full strength for this fight, I had to win and even with the odds stacked so highly in my favor I wasn't taking any chances. That's why I decided to try contacting Demetri once more to make sure he had received my orders, I'd heard nothing since the goods news from Jane that The Major was dead. This wasn't unusual, he never contacted me unless it was something very important, we had to keep the semblance of our usual casual relationship.
Aro knew we were friends but he had no idea I had recruited Demetri many years ago for just such a time as this. Demetri was hardly ever in Volterra, his missions kept him away for months or even years at a time and as Aro had actually changed him he really thought Demetri was his man, one of very few he really trusted and therefore failed to question suspiciously as he did most others. The only others he trusted in this way were the twins and of course his faithful Felix.
I was unable to raise Demetri straight away and instead I had to be content with another message which miraculously went through the fourth time of sending and even more miraculously was returned almost immediately. A sign the gods were smiling on my enterprise. Demetri, never one to waste words merely stated they were "Out of the way until summoned." That was all I needed to hear and I was more determined to have him stand at my shoulder when this was all over, a loyal man. If anything should go wrong with the attempt on the Romanians I could depend on Demetri to track them down for they were sure to flee for safety, not that I expected The Major to fail. I had thought this out carefully and taken into consideration all eventualities, I couldn't fail and that brought a smile to my usually dour face.