Shadows and Blood pt. 2

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"Jasper."

Her voice barely whispered his name, caught in her throat. It trembled, weak with disbelief, as though she couldn't quite process the reality of what had just happened.

He stood there, suspended in the harsh light of the headlights, a figure illuminated by an otherworldly glow. For a moment, he was everything—both a lifeline and an unspoken question. Jenna swallowed hard, her heart pounding as her wide, terrified eyes met his.

Jasper couldn't move. He couldn't even blink. He was frozen in place, staring into her brown eyes, his breath caught in his chest. He had lost control. When he saw those men closing in on her, when he felt their hunger, their lust—it had been too much. He had let the monster inside him take over. Their fear, their desire, it all pulsed through him. And when her scream had torn through the air, everything had snapped. All he had seen was red. The terror in their eyes as he obliterated them—it was all he could focus on as their bones shattered beneath his hands. Their bodies ripped to shreds.

The moment Alice's vision had flashed before him, when she warned him of what was about to happen, there had been no hesitation. He'd acted immediately, no thought, no second-guessing. He should never have come. He never should have interfered. But he had, and now, he had killed for her.

"Jenna." His voice was calm, detached, though the rawness in his chest threatened to break through. He remained frozen, as if any movement would shatter whatever fragile connection remained between them.

He had ruined everything. He felt it—the fear radiating off of her, thick in the air between them. She saw him now. She saw him for what he truly was. A monster. His very soul seemed to ache, the weight of it unbearable. His thoughts swirled, a tempest of regret and longing. Would she run? Could he stop her if she did? The question gnawed at him, but what frightened him even more was the monster inside him—the bloodlust still raging through his veins. The taste of fresh human blood lingered on his lips, the thrill of it still echoing in his body. After all, his monster enjoyed the hunt.

But Jasper could never have predicted what would happen next.

One moment, Jenna sat there, still and broken on the bloodstained ground. The next, she was pressed against him, her small body crushed against his stone-cold chest. Her arms wrapped around him tightly, as if he were her only anchor in the world, and the sound of her cries pierced through the night, raw and desperate.

Jasper froze, his body rigid, his mind racing. She clung to him, never letting go, and in that moment, his instincts wavered. He could feel the hunger burning in his throat—heat so intense it threatened to drown him. She felt like the sun in his arms—warm, inviting, her heartbeat a gentle rhythm against his chest. He wanted nothing more than to claim that light for himself, to take every single drop of blood from her, until there was nothing left. The desire pulsed through him, too familiar, too dangerous.

But he resisted.

Slowly, his stained hands, moved from his sides, carefully wrapping around her fragile waist. She felt so small, so breakable in his arms. He could feel the tension in her, her fear, her sadness, and her anger. He held her as she cried, her sobs shaking his very core. Neither of them spoke, the silence between them heavy and unspoken, filled only with the sound of her anguish.

Jasper sensed something else, too. Jenna's fear wasn't directed at him, but at something deeper, something more rooted in the chaos she had just survived. There was so much more than fear—there was sadness, a grief that weighed on her heart like an anchor, anger burning under the surface, and pain so deep he couldn't begin to fathom it.

Jasper focused on her, trying to block out his own chaotic emotions, concentrating on his gift, sending waves of calm toward her. He could feel her energy slipping away, the shock of the situation leaving her body. He ached for her, wanting to help her, but he couldn't undo what had been done to her.

Bloody Mary // J. HaleWhere stories live. Discover now