Devotion, Jasper Hale

Chapter 26

June 12th, 2006, Forks
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Catherine was sitting on the leaves with her sisters and mother as they watched their husbands clean up after training. Bella was sitting a few feet away from them on the hood of the Jeep. The ladies happily chatted together, letting their husbands do all the heavy lifting. Catherine saw Jasper walk over to the car to place something in it when Bella started a conversation with him.

"Hey Jasper?" Bella asked as she fiddled with her hands. Catherine had excused herself and walked a little closer to them. Jasper stood still and looked at Bella in question. "Are you sure there isn't anything I can do to help?" The mortal asked. "Well, your precence alone, your scent, will distract the newborns." He reassured with a nod. "Their huntin' instinct will take over and drive em' crazy." He explained to her. Bella nodded and answered. "Good, I'm glad." Jasper gave her a reassuring nod before he tried to continue walking.

She stopped him by saying. "Hey, how do you know so much about this?" He stood still in his tracks and Catherine could hear him softly sigh before turning around. "I didn't have quite the same upbringin' as my adopted siblings and my wife." He quickly responded before rolling up his sleeves, revealing all the bite marks on his arms. He hated those scars, they reminded him off his past. Catherine liked to kiss all of the scars when they layed in bed together, to reassure him that she found them beautiful.

Bella jumped off the hood of the car and studied his arms. "Those bites are like mine." Her mouth hung slightly open at the sight. "Battle scars." He joked with a small smile.

"All the training the confederate army gave me, was useless against the newborns. Still, I never lost a fight." He gave Bella a half-hearted smile before he tried to continue walking, but she was persistent. She trailed after him and continued asking. "This happened during the Civil War?" She asked him. He proudly smiled and nodded.

"I was the youngest major in the Texas cavalry. All without having seen any real battle" He explained before his smile dissapeared. "Until?" Bella kept asking, she was getting on Catherine's nerves.

"Till I met a certain immortal. Maria."

Jasper was riding on a horse, it was the year 1863.

"I was driving back to Gavelston after evacuating a column of women and children. That's when I saw them." Jasper folded his arms as he stood still, he and Bella hadn't noticed Catherine yet. "I immediately offered them my aid." Jasper continued.

It was dark, major Jasper Whitlock was riding towards three women. They were lavishly dressed and they looked almost too perfect.

"Lovely." The blonde woman said. "And an officer." She smiled and turned towards the woman in the middle, Maria. Jasper jumped off his horse and took a step towards the three woman. He took off his hat and bowed for them.

"You'd better do it, Maria. I can never stop once I've started." The woman on the left whispered towards Maria, her hoop earrings moving along with the wind. "What's your name, soldier?" Maria asked Jasper as he approached them. "Major Jasper Whitlock, ma'am." He politely responded.

Maria grinned and her voice got louder. "I hope you survive. You may be of great use to me." She approached Jasper and placed her hands on his shoulders. He looked a little confused at her actions. She pulled him closer and sunk her teeth into his neck. He screamed in pain for a few minutes before falling on the ground.

"Maria was creating an army?" Bella asked with a frown. Jasper nodded his head. "They were very common in the South. There were constant brutal battles for territory." He grimaced at the thought. "Maria won them all." He stared off into distance. "She was smart, careful, and she had me."