BPOV
THREE YEARS AGO
"It's just until we get these fuckers locked up," Jasper tells me on the ride… home from the hospital.
"Which could be never," I retort not liking the idea one bit.
The damn mafia. How did my husband get involved with the damn mafia? What they're coming up with, I don't believe, my mind not wrapping around the ideas as facts. That is until one of them bring up an affair… it's… well I mean I know I'm not everything to look at, but I know I'm not ugly by any means. We had been college sweethearts, falling head over heels for one another in the second year. I knew his reputation when we met, he got around, nobody ever claimed he had cheated though. Anything is possible I suppose.
"I'll be going with you," he informs me. "You're not going to be alone out there."
I can't help the feeling that happens in the pit of my stomach but even still, I can't keep the frown off my face. "But what about your job?" I question. "You have a life, a family, I'm sure. You can't just drop everything- "
"I'm doing my job," he cuts me off as we pull up to the driveway.
Everything is taped off with crime scene tape. My heart drops as I stare at the front door as tears well up automatically in my eyes. My palms are sweaty as I feel my body begin to quiver.
"You don't have anything to be afraid of, darlin," Jasper takes my hand in his. "I'm with you in there and nobody is going to get passed me."
I take comfort in his words for some reason. His whole presence brings me comfort that I didn't know I could feel in a time like this. Taking a deep breath… or five, I unbuckle myself from the seat and slowly open the truck door. He follows suit, meeting me around and guiding me up to the door where I open it to get hit with the familiar scent of home.
"Anything that isn't replaceable, pack," he tells me as he closes and locks the door behind us. "Pack only a couple days' worth of clothes. We can get what we need online."
Swallowing thickly, I make my way into the living room to grab a couple of pictures out of their frames. One of which is when we were in college at a party smiling brightly without a care in the world and another on our wedding day with our parent's before they passed away. Jasper trails behind slowly, keeping his distance but letting me know he isn't far. Making my way up the staircase, I slowly walk into Edwards office to see his computer smashed and blood on the desk. Is this why I didn't hear anything? He would've been too far away from the bedroom which is down the hall if both doors were closed.
"I know everything is…"
"Destroyed," I supply for him.
"But if there is anything you notice," he continues.
I nod my understanding as I take a good look around. Edward liked to keep money hidden in plain sight in his office just behind a couple of his father's old family portraits. Taking said portrait down carefully, I un-tape the sealed-up cash from behind of it and move onto the next one. I feel Jaspers eyes on me the whole time. I ignore them and continue to his desk but hesitate with all the blood.
"Do- do you have gloves?" I ask softly glancing at him.
He snorts. "Always," his voice is almost amused. "Here," he holds out a pair for me to take.
Slipping them on I begin to open his drawers to try to dig through what I need to find for important documents. I notice something odd in the very back of one of the side drawers, so I reach back to grab whatever it is. Pulling out a blood red folder with a cursive 'V' emblem on the front of it, I frown.
"Jasper," I call for him. "This is the emblem on the brief case from the coffee shop."
Automatically he is striding over to take the folder out of my hand carefully to open it up to inspect the details of said file. I keep digging for what I need and eventually find the files for the deed to the house and things comparable. I continue to shuffle things around looking for anything else I might need before going to the other drawers to look through those as well. Nothing of importance.
"I'm sorry, Bella," Jasper tells me softly causing me to look up.
"What is it?" I question just as he begins to show me a couple of items in the folder that I gave him. My heart sinks instantly. My husband completely wrapped up in a hideously gorgeous blonde at a restaurant. I nod. "Guess I didn't know him as well as I thought, huh?"
Walking out of the room and slowly towards the bedroom, I can't help the bile that threatens to rise in the back of my throat making me stop mid-stride. Swallowing down the lump, I take a deep breath to steady myself before continuing with the short torturous walk to the bedroom.
"I'm going to give my Captain a call, okay?" Jasper tells me and I'm not quite sure if I even respond to him as I have made it to the night of the living hell.
Blood. Blood on the bed and on the floor. Blood on the wall and even on the ceiling. Even bloody shoe prints I am surprised I hadn't seen sooner. My stomach churns. You can see where our bodies had been, they had left parts of our restraints. Glass is shattered every which way, books, a table and everything in between.
Suddenly I'm back with those monsters that night and they're touching me forcibly, hitting me so hard I can't breathe. The way I'm getting jerked around it feels like I would be ripped into two halves as easily as a rag doll. My knees hit the floor roughly as I struggle to control my breathing between what I know is reality and what is memory.
I am drug to the end of the bed at one point, I notice then all these men have the same matching tattoos on their shoulder blades. It's a cursive 'V'.
I'm gasping for air at this point and warm hands are wrapping around my upper arms causing me to shriek loudly.
"You're safe!" say's the voice sternly, yet softly. "You're safe, darlin," the voice continues as I continue clawing at my skin. "It's just me, you're safe with me remember. It's me, I won't let nothing hurt ya, darlin." Why do I know this voice and why do I feel calmer? "That's it, Bella, come back to me," it continues just as I register that the hands had been Jasper and the voice this whole time had been Jasper as well.
He's rocking me gently on the floor, keeping my hands away from my body but still allowing me to move if I wish. "They have matching tattoo's," I rasp out making him pause in his movement and shift slightly before I hear his phone.
"Of what and where?" he then asks.
"Shoulder blades left hand side of the cursive 'V'," I tell him.
"Are you okay to get up now?"
I nod almost numbly so Jasper shifts to stand up before helping me to my feet carefully. My hand doesn't release his, something I've noticed happens right after I have an episode, but he doesn't seem to mind.
"Jasper?" I suddenly ask remembering something.
"What is it?" he asks looking around as if something is going to pop out.
I force myself to unglue my hand from his own before I ask my uncomfortable question. I clear my throat. "Did they- did they find anything in Edwards system? I mean- they run people's blood, right?"
"I don't know if it'll make you feel better or not but yes, they did find an abnormal amount of a certain drug in his system," Jasper tells me cautiously. "Any normal person wouldn't have been able to do what he did without that drug, Bella."
"They were talking about it," I tell him. "They were almost smug as if they had done what they did to me was purely out of boredom waiting for it to take effect."
"I imagine that to them; it was all a game to bring him more pain one way or another. It's going to hard not to do but try not to think about the why because it'll drive you to insanity," he says in a voice of all knowing.
I can't hold back a noise of dissatisfaction. "Aren't I already there?"
"Not if I can help it, darlin," he murmurs taking my hand in his. "Tell me what I can grab for you."
"Um… suitcase," I point to the smaller closet to the left of us that we keep- kept our luggage in along with some holiday decorations.
I walk over to the bathroom where I opt to take out my brand-new bottles of shampoo and conditioner along with body wash, toothpaste, and toothbrush. Grabbing my zip-up toiletry bag, I shove everything inside along with my hairbrush and hair ties before coming back out.
"I'll take that," he offers holding out his hands. "You go grab a couple changes of clothes."
Handing over the bag, I make my way to the closet where I pull out a couple casual outfits, nothing fancy, along with a couple baggie outfits to sleep in. Grabbing several changes of underwear, a few comfortable bras, and socks, I fold everything up neatly before realizing Jasper is bound to see my undergarments if I walk out to pack them. I decide quickly to go out and bring the suitcase inside. He doesn't question me. Remembering the extra photo albums that we keep stored in here, I grab a couple of those as well to toss in before zipping up the suitcase and walking out of the closet.
"Ready?" Jasper pushes himself off the door frame.
I nod. "I just need to grab the folders from the office and I'm done."
Taking the suitcase from my hands, Jasper motions for me to leave the room so I do and walk slowly back to the office to pick up the folders where I shove them in my big, oversized purse. The couple of stacks of cash I had still sit where I left them and shove those in my purse as well.
"Ready," I say aloud turning back to Jasper.
"We'll go to my place so I can get a few things and then we'll head over to the air strip," I pause to give him a confused look. "We're flying private. No record of you even stepping foot on an airplane so there isn't a trail left from where we leave you."
I nod understanding and begin walking once more allowing him to guide me back out to his truck where he loads up the suitcase. It's shocking to find out that we had lived only fifteen minutes across town from one another. Parking in his condos parking space, he motions for me to get out when I don't move. I follow his direction and carefully get out, walking behind him to the front door where he has me walk in first and secures the door behind us.
"You can sit if you'd like," Jasper murmurs motioning to the beige couch.
Even as I take a seat at the edge of the couch, my eyes continuously scan the room as if someone is going to pop out. He doesn't have much to give himself away up on his walls, however there are a couple of picture frames on his coffee table of what looks like a younger version of himself and someone else that looks vaguely familiar. Their hair are the same lengths and even the same shade of blonde hair, the only thing that differs is the smiles on their faces and the color of their eyes. They must be brothers.
"Could you take those three pictures out for me?" Jasper's voice startles me, my heart jumping into my throat. I give a slight nod in confirmation. "I just need a few more things and we can get out of here," he tells me setting down his suitcase.
I carefully slip out the first photo I was looking at before moving onto the next to which picture an older couple along with the same younger boys from the previous photo. They all look so happy together. The very last one is another family looking photo, none of them posed- none of them seeming to even realize the picture is getting taken. I pile the pictures up as I stand to my feet and wait for Jasper to come back.
"Okay, I'm ready. Let's get going, shall we?" he grabs the pictures carefully from my hands and once more leads me out to the truck.
A/N: Next up will be when they get to their new home for the time being! Things will get to rolling between the two of these characters here soon. I quite like the back and forth between present day and three years ago. Up until the point of the trial beginning, I think I'm going to keep bouncing like I am. As always, let me know what you guys think!
-bellacullen166