Mind Reader

Chapter 12

                        Bella is standing pm a deserted yard of the school, this confused Isla to her core. Why is bella...
                       Where is he? Bella mentally asks when Isla focuses in on her. I need to confront him about what I found out last night.
                       "No," Isla whispers and the family turns to face her. "What did he do?" She growls and looks at Rosalie. "You're about to be very angry with what I'm about to tell you, Rose, but you cannot act on it until you get home."
                        Rosalie grows but wary and suspicious. "What was Bella thinking? I saw you staring, or focusing."
                        Isla sighs and she glances at Bella again. A vampire. "She knows. Bella knows about... you guys. She's confronting Edward today."
                          "Edward," Rosalie says as Edward goes to Bella, heading Isla. "Don't go."
                              Alice grabs her hand and pulls it from Edward's arm. "He's already there."
                             Isla watches Edward walk over to Bella, and the venture into the woods. "She was bound to find out but it sucks she knows. I sometimes wish I didn't."
                            "I agree with you," Rosalie sighs. "Let's get to class before we're late and Esme has our heads."
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                               Isla is thrown onto Jasper's back after school and she closes her eyes as instructed, and he takes off running in his abnormal speed. Isla squeals at first and when Jasper leaps up suddenly, Isla tightens her already super tight hold, and Jasper climbs up a tree rather quickly.
                                  Jasper doesn't stop climbing until he is at the very top branch of the tallest tree in the forest. Isla looks around as she stands and her eyes light up with awe, and Jasper feels the feeling of amazement radiating off of Isla. He's relieved she isn't scared of heights or she'd be freaking out right now. Jasper watches as Isla sits down and dangles her legs off the tree limb, and she looks across the rest of the woods.
                                   "What do you think?" Jasper asks as he sits down beside her.
                            "This is beyond amazing," Isla breathes as she looks at him, she is happy. "It's beautiful, Jas."
                              "I often come up here after school because I'm always overwhelmed by the scent of the blood," Jasper admits. "Can I show you something?"
                                When Isla nods, Jasper rolls up his sleeves and shows his arms, they're filled with bite marks that Isla didn't see when he had on his T-shirt and tank top. But she was always looking at his face and in his beautiful dark eyes. Only today, his eyes...
                          "Your eyes are bright and bronze today," Isla notices. "That's a first."
                            "I'm calm and I'm not hungry," Jasper says in a calm and gentle voice. "I was born in Houston, Texas in the year 1844 as Jasper Whitlock. When I..."
                      "Jasper. You don't have to tell me your story," Isla says softly.
                       "I know, but I want to," Jasper says and Isla nods. "When I was seventeen, I went off and joined the confederate army. I was good, I just have been because two years later at nineteen, I was promoted to mayor. I was the youngest man to become major in Texas. Before the war, I evacuated the women and the children of the town."
                            "I was riding on my horse back from Galveston one day and I came across three woman... Maria, Lucy, and Nettie. But they weren't your normal women, they were vampires, but I lacked that knowledge then. I didn't know until Maria changed me. I should have known something was off because of her red eyes. She turned me for her own selfish reasons."
                           "Maria was building an army of newborn vampires; that is when we are at our strongest within our first several months of this life, our human blood still lingers in our veins. Marie wanted me to help train her newborns, and help reclaim her territory. Lucy and Nettie got their own territories. Due to my empathic ability,  I felt their malevolent emotions and I teamed with Maria to defeat and kill them."
                                 "Maria and i..." Jasper pauses, hesitant. "We were romantic for a while but she was never over her true mate who had died. She was using me; my emphatic ability was very useful to help train the newborns." Jasper smiles at one memory. "While I was in the newbirn army, I befriended a newborn named Peter. I convinced Maria to keep him because of his kindered spirit and combat skills. I had let Peter escape, he ran off wirh his mate... Charlotte."
                              "Maria's feelings toward me changed after that. I felt her fearful and mistrust then, she knew it was I who let Peter and Charlotte escape. I just knew she was going to plot to destroy me. I had nearly became a savage in my years working for her, it nearly destroyed me." Jasper looks up at the sky, the sun is setting and the full moon is rising. "In 1938, Peter came back."
                                "He told me that vampires could coexist in the north and he told me how. He helped me get away from Maria and her army. Even though that happened, I did not find peace. With every human victim I chose, I felt their emotions. So I left Peter and Charlotte. I tried not to kill as often."
                    "In 1948,  I met Alice in a diner in Philadelphia. She was so... happy. It confused me," Jasper admits and Isla grins.
                       "Alice is always happy," Isla comments. "Okay, Sorry, continue."
                       "She was waiting for me. She had seen me before and she waited for me at that diner. Alice held out her hand and I took or, then I felt something I hadn't in a while... hope. She told me about the ability to survive off of animal blood and in 1950, we met Carlisle. I always felt weak because I never had the same restraint as the rest of them. And I haven't, until I met you."
                             Jasper takes Isla's hand. "I did have to leave on your first day because I thought I would hurt you. But the more I was around you, the easier it got. Isla," Jasper looks at her, "you gave me back my life."
                             Isla wipes a tear from her eyes and face. "I mean that much to you? So much to give you your life back?"
                              "That and so much more," Jasper replies as he cradled Isla's face in his hands. "I love you, Isla Sofia Masen."
                             Isla leans in and she gives Jasper a peck on the lips. "I love you, too, Jasper Whitlock Hale."
                            Jasper leans his back agaisnt the trunk of the tree and Isla lays back agaisnt him. They watch the sun set from where they sit on top of the highest tree in the forest while the family worries.