Chapter 13

~Undercurrents~

In the background, I hear Rose asking Jimmy questions about Bella's health, something about a blood disorder. She's concerned about piercing her, but Jimmy smoothly assures her Bella's condition is under control and won't be an issue. They go back and forth a bit, and she finally relents.

Bella's face floats behind my eyes, her red-stained cheeks when she asked if I was going to be present for her piercing. The look in her eyes was an odd mix of fright and resignation. Or maybe I'm just remembering it wrong. Either way, I don't want to be in this building while she's getting pierced.

My car is here, but I don't want to be confined right now. I need to be in the open air, to fully inflate my lungs.

I leave by the back door. The sky is iron gray, and I can feel and smell the threat of rain in the air. I take off running, block by block flying by as I push myself harder and harder. I make it to Toga Park, changing directions halfway through the paved trails. I'm not sure where I'm going until I end up in the warehouse district. A cluster of buildings was converted into loft apartments; Alice and Jasper live in one.

I slow to a stop and bend over, hands resting on my knees. My heart pounds, and my breath makes little clouds in the chilly morning air.

Reluctant to disturb them, I shoot Jasper a text.

Are you home? ~E

Almost immediately, I receive a response from Jasper.

Yeah, what's up? ~J

Is Ali home? ~E

Nope ~J

Can I come up? I'm outside. ~E

Of course! Come in. ~J

I take the stairs to the second floor. The metal door to the loft is partway open, and I just walk in since I know my sister isn't home.

Jasper is in the kitchen, his wavy hair damp from the shower. "Coffee?" he asks, looking over at me.

"Please." I sigh, scrubbing a hand over my face and sit on a stool at the breakfast bar. They always keep a basket of protein bars on the counter. I snag one and unwrap it, taking a huge bite.

Jasper busies himself making the coffee. "So, what brings you by?"

"Do I need a reason?"

"No, but I think you have one." He turns and places a steaming mug of coffee in front of me. Grabbing his own, he leans on the counter across from me, looking expectant. "What's on your mind?"

"A few things. For one, somebody broke into the shop this morning." I take a sip of my coffee and cup the mug with both hands, warming them. Despite my run, I'm chilled.

"Wait . . . what?" Jasper is shocked.

"The monitoring company called me in the middle of the night. I rushed over and caught the fucker in the shop, but he knocked me down on his way out. The police are investigating. Oh, and Rose is pissed off at me because she's been telling me and telling me to get the cameras activated"—I hold my hands up before Jasper starts in on me too—"which they are now. A few of my binders were taken, the laptop from up front, and he made a huge mess of Rose's station, but I don't think he took anything from there. You know . . ." I tilt my head and drift off because something is bothering me about the break-in.

"Shit! It was stupid to go in without the cops, man."

I shrug. "I didn't even think about it."

"Do you know which binders were stolen?"

"No, but my older designs are in the binders. All the newer stuff is displayed on the walls." The missing piece clicks into place. "Wait—when I caught him, he didn't have anything in his hands! He punched me in the stomach, knocked me down, and ran away! That means either there were two of them or he put the binders and laptop somewhere and came back."

"But why?"

"Rose is convinced it's Volturi. She said he's been leaning on her to come back." I take another sip of scalding coffee, relishing the burn.

"Anything essential on that laptop?"

"Not really."

Jasper looks at me oddly. "That can't be it. You didn't come all the way over here just to tell me about the break-in."

I laugh, shaking my head. "You're right. Right after Rose showed up, Jimmy and Bella did too for a little before-hours piercing."

Jasper snorts. "What the hell is he piercing now?"

"Not him, Bella. He brought her to get her bellybutton pierced."

"Oh . . ." He's suddenly very interested in his coffee.

I stare at him. "What's that 'Oh' about?"

"You know . . ." He shrugs.

"What do I know?"

Jasper rolls his eyes and sighs. "Well, you know how I tend to hang back and observe when Ali's not around. Sometimes I'm almost invisible to people, and I learn a lot of stuff."

"Okay."

"Look, I've hesitated to say anything. I don't know them well, and I don't want to put my foot in anything."

"Jas, just say it."

"Okay. Bella pays a lot of attention to you."

"What? No, she—"

Jasper leans forward, pinning me with his pointed stare. "When you're not looking, she watches you. I could swear there was some jealousy there when Leah showed up and flirted with you." He sighs, looking down. "Look, I'm not trying to get up in your business, but you're walking a tightrope here."

"There's nothing between me and Jimmy's girl."

"Yet," Jasper answers quietly. He might as well have screamed it, and my stomach rolls because I sense a kernel of truth.

I rake shaking fingers through my hair. "I have no intention of going after Bella."

"I know."

"Good. So why are we talking about this?" I raise the mug, taking a gulp of coffee.

Jasper slaps a hand on the counter and turns his back to me. He digs both hands into his hair. "I swore I wasn't going to do this, but I can't seem to help myself."

"Do what?"

He spins back around and lets go of the grip on his hair, the blonde strands falling haphazardly around his face. The intensity in his eyes catches and holds me. "Look, I don't want to be that guy, but something is up with Jimmy. He's smooth and confident, but underneath . . . I can't put my finger on it, but there's a lot going on under the surface, and some of it's ugly. You can tell me to shut the fuck up if you want."

I stare back at Jasper. There have been times lately when I've seen glimpses of a disturbing energy behind Jimmy's facade. I've caught Bella staring at me strangely too. Above all, I've learned to trust Jasper's senses regarding the inner nature of others. And then there's Ali's warning about Jimmy. My sister seems downright psychic at times, and I trust her insight.

Fuck.

~oOo~

Edward is starting to pull his head out of his keister, but he's still in denial about Bella. Next chapter Edward will be thrown into a tailspin. Keep those thoughts and theories coming. I love reading them! See you next week!

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