Calamity || Jasper Hale [2]

chapter six

witch twin
word count: 1,098

"darling, first it hurts, then it changes you."

Allie and Vidar talked constantly now.  Their old lives, their families, who they once were, who they wanted to be.

Vidar informed her that she reminded him of Petra, they both shared undying loyalty and a natural ability to lead.  This warmed her heart.  It made her fight seem not so hopeless.

When Alec stood in front of her cell door she was surprised.  His sister left not an hour ago, leaving her panting from the torture.  Vidar was silent, knowing he couldn't do anything but comfort her after the fact.

"What brings you to my humble abode?"  Allie sneered but she was truly curious.

"The Cullens have committed a crime.  Your cousin, in fact."  Alec stated and Allie leaped to her feet, skinny hands wrapping around the bars as she strained to poke her face through.

"I don't believe you."  Allie hissed, spittle flying from her chapped lips as he looked at her dirtiness in disdain.  She bared her teeth like an animal. "Aro put you up to this."

"Aro has no idea I'm here.  If he knew I would be in deep trouble."  Alec snapped, taking a deep breath to regain himself, something Allie did as well to not give Aro the satisfaction of irritating her.  "Do you want to know what they did or not?"

"Why are you telling me this?"  Allie demanded, leaning back so her face wasn't so close.  "Especially when it could get you in trouble.  You've been here a long time, you should know better."

He ran a hand through his messy hair, glancing nervously down the hall to ensure there was no guard coming.  She had never seen him so disheveled.  "I don't like this.  What he's doing to you.  I've noticed more and more how much I don't.  Jane enjoys it but he's never had us torture someone so often, especially someone so close to human.  It's not right."  Alec admitted, so quiet Allie could barely hear him.  His voice was trembling and his eyes revealed that he was terrified.

"You're just seeing that now?"  Allie questioned but she stopped short of berating him more, after all, he was just a child, even if he was over a thousand years old he stopped aging around fifteen.  "How do I know this isn't a trick?"

He seemed exasperated, fumbling to think of something to make her trust him.  After a moment of silence, his eyes lit up with an idea and his hand delved deep into the pocket of his pants, fishing something from the bottom.

It was her ring, gifted to her from Jasper, glittering in the dull light of the flickering candles lining the walls.  He placed his hand through the bars tentatively, watching as Allie stared at it.

She scooped it up tenderly and swiftly, hands trembling as she clenched her fist and cradled it to her chest.  Alec placed his hand through again, a long leather cord in his hand.

"Hide it in your shirt, no one will find it."  He advised and she quickly looped it through and slid it over her head.

"I trust you, tentatively,"  Allie said finally, her hands still around the ring, unwilling to let go.  "Don't make me regret it."  She warned and Alec stayed stoic.  "What does Aro think my cousin did?"

"Created an immortal child.  Aro saw it in the blonde, Irina's thoughts."  Alec whispered and Allie's eyes widened and she immediately protested.

"Bella's never expressed any desire for children.  It makes no sense."  Allie breathed, raking her brain for another explanation.

"It's the only explanation,"  Alec said and a door slammed shut, startling from their thoughts.  "I have to go."

With that he was gone, moving as fast as lightning as her fingers brushed the ring once more.  Allie retreated the corner of her cell and called out for Vidar.

"Did you hear that?"  Allie asked, her head resting on the stone.  "There's no way she'd do that.  They know the laws.  They know the price."

"From what you told me they're newly married.  Are you sure they wouldn't?  They might have wanted a baby enough to make a mistake."  Vidar said and Allie was protesting immediately.

"They wouldn't.  There has to be another explanation."  Allie insisted and Vidar hummed thoughtfully.

"I've heard of legends of a half-breed child but I doubt they truly exist.  I think the bigger question here is why did one of the witch twins just betray his family."  Vidar said, quickly and easily distracting Allie from her cousin, but the question gnawed at her mind regardless.

"I don't know.  He's truly just a young boy.  Centuries of emotional abuse stunted the minimal emotional development he's capable of.  Maybe he has finally discovered he has a choice."  Allie rationalized and Vidar sighed.

"Regardless of the reason, our little witch twin seems to have strayed from the beaten path.  You need to utilize it if we ever have any hope of escaping."  Vidar said, telling her nothing she didn't already know.

All she could think about was her home.  And this time it wasn't about the Cullens or her New Orleans family, she fought to not think about them any longer so she could focus on escaping and surviving instead of guilt.  She was thinking of Charlie.  Bella was turned and it was most likely that Charlie already thought his only daughter was dead and all he had was his niece who was missing.

She wondered what Aro told the Cullens.  Did they pretend to be her and tell them she was off somewhere?  Did they leave clues pointing to another source?

Her chest ached for Charlie, the last human family she had left anymore.  Her chest ached for Jasper, the man she loved with every fiber of her being and would do anything for.  Her chest ached for Bella, a newborn who finally had the life she deserved and wanted and was soon to be convicted of a crime she couldn't have committed.  Her chest ached for Sam and Jared and Paul and Quil and Embry and Jake and Emily and the family she found in them, she'd probably never see them again.  Her chest ached for everyone she ever loved and held dear because she just wanted them to forget her and save them the pain of her never returning.

Her chest ached for herself.  Because if she couldn't escape, if she didn't die, if she had to rot in the dungeons of the Volturi, she'd do anything to get out even if it included joining their ranks.