Nineteen

Chapter Nineteen - The Missing Swan
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Jasper

I was tired.  Utterly exhausted both mentally and physically.  I felt drained of everything other than my need to protect Bella.  I hadn’t slept last night, at all, and I was still wanting to pinch myself.  I couldn’t believe this was happen to me…to us…to her.
Bella had done nothing to these people other than being brought into this world.  She had done nothing to anger them and I couldn’t make the connection.  Carlisle and I had tried all night to find the missing link that would pull all the pieces together.   We wracked our brains to point of headaches and still came up with nothing.  

My only connecting point had been Edward but Carlisle quickly quashed that notion saying he was one-hundred percent sure Edward has nothing to do with this.  I did not question him.  His tone was confident and I was there to see the aftermath of Carlisle’s destruction of Edward.  Edward was barely able to walk when he was put back on the plane to Boston where he would stay until he was needed.

It was now over twenty-four hours since I received the call from Emmet.  Twenty-four hours and I was no closer to finding anything that would help or hurt our situation than I was when I started.  The only thing I had managed to do in this period of time was to thoroughly piss off my wife.  She had been upset with me in the airport and Bella being Bella shot her mouth of and emasculated me in front of my men.  I didn’t take it well.  Feeling weak was not an emotion I enjoyed.  

I felt terrible for it now, of course.  I shunned her when we arrived at the house.  Instead of reassuring her of my love and showing her security. I headed off without a word to Carlisle’s study.  Honestly, having still being pissed off about the airport outburst I wasn’t thinking clearly.

Esme informed that I was an asshole and the tone of which she used brought me back to days where I would be nervously searching the back yard for my switch.  Yeah, she made us pick our switches.  I think it was a way to insure we thought about what we’d done.  As it was Emmett and I who were out in the back yard the most we lean on each other for support but in the end we would just psyche each other out. 

I already knew I was acting childish earlier but Esme’s tone suggested that I was still missing something.  She filled me in on Bella’s freak out in the kitchen and how it was my fault that Bella felt the whole family had betrayed her.  What the rest of my family failed to realize was that I couldn’t go to Bella about her father until I had some answers.  It may not be the right thing to do but at this time it was my call to make.

Emmett and I decided to pay a visit to Alistair before finalizing any plans.

I went on the search for my wife to let her know I was going out for the night and probably wouldn’t be returning until the next evening.  I searched everywhere with no success.  It was Esme who finally told me where to find her.

It tore my heart apart to see Bella looking so frail curled up not in our bedroom but the guest room.  I could tell she had cried herself to sleep her face was stained with tears and her eyes were swollen, an angry shade of red. I covered her with a small throw that was placed on the back of a decorative chair beside the bed and kissed her sweet nose.  The dogs were growling and snapping at me but I didn’t even reprimand them I had hurt their mistress and they were in their right.  

Before leaving I had words with a few of the guards.  My orders: no one was to leave the house without conformation and without armed guards.  No one meaning Bella but I left that undisclosed.  There was no need to have anything leaked back to Bella.

Emmett and I left shortly after and arrived at the hospital in what seemed like no time.  The doctors and nurses were reluctant to let me into Alistair’s room.  With the severity of his condition and how he got that way, I couldn’t blame them.  It took some convincing but when a passing loyal doctor caught my name he instantly cowed.  

I was in for the shock of my life as I laid on my father-in-law for the first time since the wedding.  It seemed he had aged overnight and he was covered from head to foot in dark angry bruises.  I couldn’t believe this was the man I had spent the better part of my life looking up to.  He was thin and frail I could snap him like a twig if I was so inclined.

He smiled at us as we entered.  “Boy’s,”  he said through his thick accent.

“How are you?”  Emmett asked pulling up a chair.  I just stared at him like he was Ernest P. Whorrll.  Em shook his head and laughed.  “Sorry, stupid question.”

“Well, I have t’ say lads I’ve sure felt better.”  I knew he meant it as a joke but the way he wheezed for breath and grimaced from the effort let us know he was in a great deal of pain.

“What’s the verdict?”  I asked him never moving from just inside the door.

“Oh, a couple uh busted ribs, both me legs are broke and they say I ruptured me spleen tryin’ t’ fight back.”

That may not seem like a lot of damage but to a man of Alistair’s age those wounds could be fatal.  Infection seemed to be the worry of every doctor and I couldn’t help but worry myself.  If something happened to Alistair it would destroy my wife.  I couldn’t let that happen.

I sighed running a hand through my tangled hair.  “Do you know who it was?”  I asked him giving up and tying my hair back to its original position.  

“No, boy, I didn’t know about the rest of dat mess until I was brought here.  Randell filled me in.  I do remember a dark skin lad though.  Looked like an ingin t’ me.”

That had me perking right up.  Indian.  There was only one Indian I knew that had any connection with the Volturi; Jacob Black.

I knew of course Emmett and I had the best chance of finding him as very few trusted  police were involved.  Randell had been the one to find Alistair and brought him in as a sidewalk mugging.  Worked like a charm.

I have to say when I saw the message written in blood which was later determined to belong to one Renee Swan I flipped my shit.  The message was clear in its entirety.  Someone wanted my wife dead.  But why was the question. 

Emmett’s eyes shot to mine the minute Alistair had mentioned the word “Indian”.  We were both thinking the same thing.  We would hunt down Black and do what I thought should have been done to him in the first place.

“How’s me girl.”  Alistair asked me shaking me from the million ways I could make Black suffer.

“Um…”  I really didn’t know how to answer that.  What could I say?  That she was depressed and hurt because her jackass of a husband refuses to put anymore stress on her.  Yeah, I can the headlines now.  “Man dies in hospital shooting.”  Alistair may not be packin’ but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t have Randell shoot me where I stand.

Emmett’s guff echoed through the small room.  “Bella’s so pissed at him it’ll be a wonder if he makes it to twenty-nine.”

Well fuck you very much, Emmett.  Way to throw me under a double-decker bus.

To my surprise Alistair just laughed.  “Oh, lad, don’t worry about it.  Dat one had always had spirit.”

Yeah, but if he knew the details I doubt he’d be so forgiving.

“Does she know?”  Alistair asked and I swear that man could read my mind.

“No.”  I replied flatly.  There was nothing more I could say.  My call had been made and now I had to wait to see if it was the right one.

Alistair looked at me funny and for a moment I was kicking myself for not wearing my vest in. 

“Good,” he told me sternly shocking me for the umpteenth time today. 

Nothing more was said beyond slight pleasantries and we didn’t stay much longer than that.  I had a job to do and Emmett was going back to see to my woman.  Hopefully bailing me out of the doghouse at the same time.  Two birds and all that.

I sighed when I realized this was Emmett I was talking about and the more I thought the less inclined I was to hold my breath.  With Emmett involved I might as well count sleeping outside for the next of forever.  Emmett had voiced his displeasure over hiding things from his sister.  He thought she had a right to know.  I wasn’t sure anymore.

Spending the rest of the night and well into the early morning on a stakeout of Black’s apartment was not what I would consider fun.  It was a daunting task and a slow one at that.  And I can’t believe I’m admitting this but I missed Em at least if he were here it would be this boring.  The silence was maddening.  The twins Conner and Alec were in one vehicle on the north side of the street while myself and one other occupied the other.  There was no way to get passed with out one of us seeing it.

It was near one in the afternoon when I received a tip from one of the officers that Black had been pulled over for reckless driving two days ago in Boston.  Black had been released of his own recognizance as there was nothing they could do but serve him with a traffic violation.  The traffic officer had not wanted to let him go but he was said to have received a mysterious phone call, half an hour later and Jacob Black was free to go.  Officer Newton reported strange finding in the trunk.  Chloroform was on the top of the red flag list but it was no where near the end of it.  He also had things like duck tape, plastic lining and a case of water. 

All these items were used in a kidnapping situation.

I would think about that later. Right now we had the fucker and time was a wastin’.

As I was scrolling through the contact list on my phone I noticed I had an excessive amount of missed calls from Bella.

Shit!

I really stepped in this time.

I had just hit the call back button when a tap to my window startled the shit out of me.  I looked in disbelief at Conner waving sheepishly at me.  

I rolled down my window with a growl.  “Are you fuckin’ crazy?  What if someone made us?”  I asked him hitting the steering wheel for emphases.

“Eh, boss, yer da called.  Asked that I have ya call ‘em.”

I’m sure I was looking at him like he was stupid but what he was saying just wasn’t computing.  My father had called him.  Carlisle had called him.  Why would Carlisle call him and not me?

“Yer weren’t answerin’ ya phone.”  Conner replied to my unasked question.  Or maybe I did ask it.

I didn’t know anymore.  I was running on little sleep and no food.

I nodded and he walked away saying something to his brother in Irish.  I was to tired to try and decipher it.

I quickly scrolled through my contacts yet again and made a myself a mental note to call Bella afterward.  I didn’t want to be in anymore trouble than I already was with my little Hell Cat.

 The phone rang once and was immediately picked up by my distressed father.  “Son?”

“Carlisle, what’s goin’ on.  Conner just blew my cover to-”

“Jasper you need to come home.”  Carlisle cut in.

“Why?”  I asked him.  That feeling of dread taking over my heart.  Something was up.

“You just need to come home.  Now.”  He parroted.
I could hear crying in the background and my heart ceased beating for a moment.  Horrible scenarios started to play through my mine.  All of them revolving around Alistair’s death and Bella finding out.

She would never forgive me.

“Carlisle, I just got a serious lead in Boston, I really need-”

“Fuck that, Jasper.  Get your ass home.”  He barked at me.  There were a lot of times in my life where I’ve had to have Carlisle discipline me but it had been a long time since he raised his voice at me.  He knew better than to do it know.  My temper was already on a short leash.

“What the fuck is going on?”  I demanded with no room for arguments.

The line went silent and for a spit second I thought maybe he had hung up on me.

“It’s Bella.”  He finally said in a whisper.

My heart sunk at his words.

Bella.

“What about Bella?”  I asked him with a tight, choked voice.

“Son,”  Carlisle sighed.  “You need to come home.”

I new he would give me no more no matter how much I raged. 

~~~

The drive home was more like Nascar on Ice and I had to keep telling myself that no matter what I was no good to my wife dead.  The streets of Chicago flew past me in blurs of muted grays and whites.  The could have been made of gold for all I cared. Nothing mattered but getting home.

I made it home in record timing.  I threw my car in park not really looking around as I flew up the porch stairs and through the front door.

I did however, noticed the guard I had placed there was not at him post.  Fired.

I never really liked Sam Uley anyways.

I was flying through the house yelling for Bella when I skidded to a stop just in front of the kitchen.  The whole family was there even Alice.  When did she get home?  And more importantly, why did the whole family looked like someone died.

Carlisle approached me hesitantly like he wasn’t sure how I’d might react.  I had seen this maneuver before with tamed tigers and lions.  “Esme,”  he spoke cautiously his eyes never leaving mine.  “I kneed you to step out of the room for a moment.  Take the girls with you.”  he ordered calmly.

Esme I noticed was red and blotchy like she hadn’t cried so hard in her life.  Rosalie and Alice didn’t look much better.  She sniffled wiping her eyes with a tissue and nodded to his request.   Rosalie and Alice wouldn’t even look at me.

It took about two seconds after they left before I lost my temper.  “Well, now that you pulled me away from the best lead I was ever gonna get on Alistair’s attacker-”

“Jasper, Bella’s been taken.”

My ears felt clogged.  “What?”  I asked hoping it was just some misunderstanding.

“Bella was taken from Northbridge around 2:45 P.M.  Sam Uley was killed-”

I don’t know if Carlisle had stopped talking or if I just couldn’t hear him over the ringing in my ears.  It was the dinning room all over again.

“Bella?”  I called.

“Bella!”  I yelled moving from the kitchen to the foyer.

“BELLA!”  I bellowed.  I was moving up the stairs now.

She couldn’t be gone.  She had to be here.  I left her here.

“BELLA!”  I yelled once more before I found myself being restrained my brother.

“WHERE IS SHE?  BELLA!”  

“Bella…”  I sobbed.  I didn’t care anymore if it made me weak.  The girl was everything to me.  My life didn’t matter without her around to share it with.

I couldn’t process thought or sound.  My chest was heaving and I was shaking.  I vaguely recall sliding to the floor in a state of shock.  

I have no idea how long I sat there rocking myself but slowly the voices started to come back.  

“Jazz…” my brother called.  “It’s gonna’ be alright, man.”  Emmett knelt down beside me.  “Well get her back, bro. I promise.”

Something inside me snapped.

I jerked myself off the floor.  This was no time to be impotent.

I looked to the eyes of my family.  “Jacob Black.  I want him.”  I said as I paced.  “Bring that motherfucker to me.”  I barked.