Bella MacLeod's Twilight Fanfiction

Behind Steel Bars

By Midnight Dreamer

Chapter 33: Oh the things we do for love

Alice paced in front of the hospital. She had wanted to see Jasper again but when she entered the lobby, she noticed her picture on the board behind the Nurse’s Station. She quickly scrambled to get out before anyone saw her. She had been found out! And she knew only three people could have seen past her disguise: One was currently in a coma and the others? Her Mom and Dad.

She continued to pace until a tall, handsome man – who seemed to tower over everyone – came up to her.

“Ma’am, is there something wrong? Are you okay?”

“Oh, sorry – no, I’m fine. I just had some upsetting news is all…” she told him.

“Okay, as long as your alright…?”

“Yes, I’m fine.”

The man then left and headed into the hospital. After a few moments of thought, Alice decided that now was a good time to make her leave since there was no way she could ever see Jasper now. As she got into her car she thought about the reason she came to see Jasper again; she had to tell him what she found out: Edward had done this before! Jasper isn’t the only wealthy person that Edward tried to swindle out of money and from what she overheard, he and his wife had both done this several times – and succeeded. Alice felt even more used after this information came to light. She thought Edward loved her and that he only wanted to help her get what she deserved. But she was wrong! Edward was only looking out for himself and his family. She needed to let someone know what was going on… But how? Her mom and dad were angry with her and now she couldn’t get inside to tell Jasper… Who could she tell? Then it hit her: Jasper’s new sister-in-law! She was a state prosecutor – she could use the information and track down the other people he had used! This could help Jasper in the long run and start her revenge on Edward. No, she wasn’t finished with him yet – this was only the tip of the iceberg!

~BSB~

Jasper had been awake for two days now. He was being discharged and transported to the prison. He wasn’t all too upset about that like he should have been. The court official was there to oversee his transfer and Emmett was there to pick him up. Jasper quirked his eyebrow at Emmett but he just shook his head and nodded in the direction of the official. Jasper snorted and nodded in return. Emmett placed the cuffs on Jasper and escorted him to the prison van. The official took his seat in the front with Emmett. Once they were on the road the official started questioning Emmett:

“I was expecting the warden…”

“The warden has a prison to run and delegated me to pick up the prisoner. Are you questioning my ability to transport him to the facility?”

“No, you appear to be more then capable…”

“Then why question it?”

“We expected the warden since she fought so hard for this prisoner to stay here in Dallas.”

“His family is one of the wealthiest families in the state. They wanted him close to home and asked if she could make it so it happened. Plus, his sister-in-law is the state prosecutor… I guess a hefty donation to the prison switched hands in securing him a spot here.” Emmett spilled.

Jasper knew it was rehearsed but still snorted and shook his head; Emmett eyed him in the rear-view mirror.

“Something to add to that, Mr. Whitlock?”

“No, Sir.”

“Then keep it quiet!”

Jasper smirked and rolled his eyes. He could tell that Emmett was enjoying this way too much. He would be sure to let Isabella know all about it. As if Emmett could sense what Jasper was thinking he looked pleading at him through the rear view. Jasper chuckled to himself. This was gonna be more fun then he thought.

~BSB~

Charlotte arrived at work a little later then usual. Today Jasper was being transferred to the prison and she was all in a tizzy. She knew that Isabella would take care of him and Emmett was the guard on his cell block… but still, she worried. Arriving at her office, she sat behind her desk and began to go through all the emails that were awaiting her. It took several hours for her to clear everything off and then she started on the stack of mail on her desk. About mid-way through the pile, she came across and envelope addressed to her but it had no return address or post mark. Someone must have delivered it by hand to the office. After slowly pulling out the letter, she began to read:

Dear Mrs. Whitlock,

I know you have no reason to continue reading this as you have no idea who I am, but I assure you that it is imperative that you please finish this letter.

I have information that may help you with your brother-in-law’s case: The man known as Edward Masen is a career con-artist. He and his wife have both been doing this for several years and have successfully pulled off their scams against many other wealthy couples. I’m not sure of any of their victims’ names or where they reside but I’m positive that with your credentials and connections you can find out everything you need to know to help in getting your brother-in-law released and his record expunged. And, of course, this will be able to put one Mr. Masen behind bars where he belongs.

Please, do not try to find out who I am. I have told you all that I know and I just hope that it helps you with setting things right.

Truly,

A friend.

Charlotte was stunned. She wasn’t sure whether to believe what she was reading or just toss it in the trash, but the more she read it the more she got the feeling that it was true. She decided to call Peter and ask his advice. After dialing his number it rang three times before he picked up:

“Dr. Whitlock speaking.”

“Peter, it’s me.”

“Char, honey – to what do I owe this pleasure? Aren’t you at work?”

“Yes dear, I am – and that is one of the reasons I’m calling you.”

“Okay dear, spill it – your never this anxious.”

“Well when I got to work this morning I was running a little late, you know with today being Jasper moving day? Anyway, I went through my normal routine. I emptied my email and then started going through the mail on my desk. Well I got half way through and found the most peculiar letter. It was addressed to me but had no return address or post mark so I figured someone dropped it off. Well, I opened it and you won’t believe what it said…”

“Well, of course I won’t until you tell me…”

“Oh right, sorry. The letter said that this isn’t the first time that Edward Masen has tried to get money from a wealthy individual – that he and his wife had been doing this for years! Now they weren’t sure if the other people were here in Texas or elsewhere so I’m not sure what to believe. I don’t know if I should look into this or just toss it in the trash but my gut is telling me to follow it. What do you think dear?”

“Well, I think you should follow your gut since it has yet to lead you astray. And if this letter is legit then Jasper could be set free sooner, rather than later!”

“I know, that is what I was thinking… I’m gonna give Bella a call and let her know what is goin’ on. I know she is probably busy getting Jasper settled but she needs to know this – and so does he.”

“You’re right, sweetness – now go do what you do best and get our brother out of there! Even though I’m not sure he won’t fight you on this… His current situation is guaranteed alone time with Bella – without interruptions.”

“Yeah well, he can kiss my ass – he don’t need to be there. He can have alone time with her at home!”

“Yes, dear! Now get to work – I have patients to see to. Love you!”

“Love you, too!”

As the line disconnected, Charlotte hung up the phone and then immediately picked it back up again. She was serious about calling Bella and now was as good a time as any. The phone rang once before it was picked up.

“Swan Penitentiary, how may I direct your call?”

“Angela, it’s Charlotte Whitlock – is Bella in her office?”

“Oh, hello Charlotte! No, I believe she is down with Emmett helping to settle in the new inmate. He is a looker, by the way! Why can’t nice guys be that good looking…?”

“I assure you, Angela, that the man they are settling in is a nice guy! Just mixed up with the wrong people.”

“How can you know that?”

“That man is my brother-in-law.” Charlotte giggled.

“Oh my god, I’m so sorry Charlotte! I didn’t mean anything by it…” Charlotte cut her off.

“It’s okay, Angela! I know how it looks but that is why I’m calling Bella. I have some information about his case that might help us get him out of there. Is there anyway you can patch me through to her?”

“Yeah, sure – I’ll patch you through to Emmett’s office.”

“Thank you, Angela.”

Charlotte waited on the line while Angela patched her through to Cell block A. The music that played while waiting was horrible and Charlotte made a note to let Bella know that it need to be changed. After a few minutes, Emmett picked up the phone.

“Cell Block A, Swan Penitentiary – Emmett speaking.”

“Oh thank god, Emmett! Where is Bella?”

“With the new inmate – who is this?”

“Emmett, you lug head! It’s me, Char. I need to speak with Bella – it’s important.”

“Important you say? What could be so important that I have to interrupt her time with Jazzman?”

“I may have found a way to get him out of there sooner – and with a clean record. I just have to talk to Bella about it first.”

“Wow, that was fast! He only just got here…”

“I know, but I’m not getting my hopes up just yet. There is still a lot of checking out and research to do – all before I even attempt to put together a solid case…”

“Okay Char, breathe – I’ll go get her. I don’t think she’s gonna be happy about being interrupted – but it’s your head, not mine.”

“Just go get her!”

Charlotte waited once again listening to the horrible elevator music they had playing. It wasn’t but 5 minutes later that Isabella picked up the phone.

“Mrs. Swan, speaking.”

“Bella, it’s Char.”

“Oh hey Char! Callin’ to check up on Jasper?”

“No, I’m calling to let you know I may have found a break in the case! It will get Jasper out of jail and back home where he belongs – and put that ass-hat Masen behind bars!”

This peaked Isabella’s interest…

“Really? Please, do tell!”

“Well I received an anonymous letter. It said that Edward Masen and his wife had done this sort of thing many times over the last several years. They scam wealthy people out of their money but the writer isn’t sure if it was just here in Texas or other states… I wanna check into this but I wanted your opinion on it as well; I already called Peter and he said to follow my gut. What do you think?”

“I think you should listen to your husband! As much as I love having full access to Jasper all the time, I would much rather it not be in my prison. Find out what you can if you have problems let me know and I will make some calls. And if you need anything Char, you be sure to call me! I will let Jasper know what is goin’ on and keep him up to date as well.”

“Thank you, Bella. Give Jasper my love and I will see you later tonight for lunch at my place?”

“You can bet on it! Bring that letter, too – I wanna good look at it. We can all decided what to do from there.”

“Great! I will see you tonight then.”

Both girls hung up. Charlotte got right to work, first making the phone calls she needed before looking through court records from across the state for the name Edward Masen. What she found would have caused someone with a weak heart to die of a heart attack. Isabella was gonna be livid when Charlotte showed her all of this! She started making copies of everything she found: it was gonna be a long night…