Bella MacLeod's Twilight Fanfiction

The Bodyguard

By BetterInTexas

Chapter 13:

Connolly POV

I looked over my assembled team. My family. At least those who were here. Of the twelve of us including me, assigned to “assist” Garrett, three were missing. Domingo Chavez and Toby Allen were currently in Florida protecting Bell’s family there and sending texts every 8 hours that not a damn thing was going on except Bella’s mother was definitely a weird chick. She is fond of sitting on her back porch at night in very skimpy lingerie so the complaints are slowing down. Rudi G, in addition to being one of us, was also our tech expert, so he was back at our underground headquarters under the Denver Airport monitoring our satellite feeds, watching our backs from overhead. That left the 7 guys seated around this borrowed abandoned home serving as our base of operations, looking to me for leadership. John Reid, our eighth guy was watching the Taylor house across the street at the window. Reid was a normal guy, boy next door all American type of guy who can shoot a flea off a dog from a thousand yards. If anyone in this world could possibly shoot a vampire in the head while said vampire is moving at full speed besides myself, it would be John.

I couldn’t help but admire my hand picked team, gung ho about saving the lives of fellow Americans and killing any creature human or otherwise who is considered an enemy to the lives of American citizens.

Dante Youngblood, part African American, part Comanche, explosives expert. He also had a knack for sniffing out ambushes before we walked in. Called it his second sense. It had saved our asses, especially from werewolves more than a few times.

Jack Webb, second in command and quite possibly as deadly as I am in a knife fight. My right hand guy. We went through BUDs together and have worked together ever since.

Dan Hawk. 6’4, 290 pounds of solid muscle. A genetic freak. He basically beats the shit out of people when the situation calls for it. He also handles heavy artillery when in battle including an XM214 Mini gun weighing sixty five pounds and holding one thousand rounds of ammunition. Not one army in the world actually uses this weapon as a hand held because of the difficulty in controlling the bursts. With some special mods by Garrett though, Hawk is able to. The gun is useful when you absolutely have to kill every living thing within your line of site in a hurry.

Sam Ryker. The Humvee he and four other Seals were in was hit by an IED in Afghanistan while driving through a narrow valley. Gunfire broke out over head from both sides. Despite having shrapnel imbedded in his shoulder and abdomen, he dragged the two Seals still alive between two boulders that could provide a bit of protection for the three from both sides. He then avoided fire and took a goat path, using small boulders along the way as cover. Taking out one side he used an enemy’s rifle and shot four others across the valley, forcing a retreat. When the Army arrived they found 12 of the enemy dead, including one stabbed in the heart. The day Sam Ryker was released from the hospital I took him to lunch.

Demond Turner. Raised in Compton. In addition to being an Army Ranger, he had managed to take advantage of the online educational benefits of the military and received a Bachelor’s degree at 21, a Masters at 23 and now at the age of 31 holds two PhD.s, one in quantum physics and the other in theoretical chemistry. If you have to blow something up and you don’t have any explosives, Demond is the guy you turn to. He was a bonafide fucking genius. Despite this he wanted to be in the field, while the Army wanted him in weapons development. It took a Presidential order for me to get him on the team. He worked with Garrett on the bullets that could kill a vampire. Garrett handled the metal and Demond handle the incendiary devices inside.

Charles ‘Chuck’ Britton. In addition to being a deadly motherfucker with small arms, he grew up in the Kentucky wilds with his father, who considered himself a bigfoot hunter. Chuck can track any creature, anywhere, especially bigfoots and werewolves.

And then there was Max Li. Max was… a ninja basically. He was a ghost. I recruited him straight out of Marine sniper school based on a progress report by his instructor, a legendary sniper himself, that he was the only student to never be found in any test scenarios. Only guy on the team who has been able to sneak up on a Lycan while changed and shove a silver sword through his heart from behind.

Garrett had pretty much undertaken missions alone since the Revolutionary War. President Rodriguez was the first President to decide he needed help. Garrett decided on the missions whether they be taking out chemical or biological weapons caches in the Middle East, stopping the development of dirty bombs by terrorist cells, or taking out vampires, werewolves and any other type of legendary creature the public thinks are myths before they can kill again.

This led us here. Preparing for battle against a potential vampire army of unknown numbers intent on killing another vampire and human female all because of previous relationship issues. I had my doubts about this mission at first but Garrett convinced me. I didn’t have to worry about my guys though. They were absolutely loyal. If I said go they went without hesitation.

“May I ask a question?” Demond asked.

“You know you don’t have to ask me…”

“This is some bullshit.”

I looked at the other guys. A few heads nodding.

“Was that a question?” I asked.

“Not really. Just a general observation. We was just wondering why the hell we are here protecting this guy and his woman if they already got three vampires lookin out for them. Also wondering why the hell Garrett plans to trust these guys with our secrets. Also while I can appreciate the gravity of the situation, we don’t even know how many vampires are coming and we only have the word of some new vampire to the scene, that this Mexican Warlord is here. We have been lookin for her for years and not a trace. Just rumors. She probably isn’t alive any longer. Warlords tend to cause scenes. These are usually the kinds of things you bring up to Garrett. The kind of missions you really don’t like. Instead you seem locked on. Why?” Demond finished.

“Because Garrett asked me too. He asked as a favor, not an order. He has saved our asses as much as we have saved his. We are family. He considers the target family by association with old friends. It also gives us a chance to draw Maria out of hiding. If she is here this is an opportunity we can’t pass up.”

“So this has nothing to do with Tyrone Gavin?” Jack asked.

“Of course. He is a potential…”

“Connolly I think what Jack means to ask, is if Gavin was being drafted by say… The Lakers, you would still be gung ho?” Demond asked.

Fucking Lakers fan.

“Yes. I would.”

“Really?” Dan asked. He was a Celtics fan.

“Yeah. It has nothing to do with the fact that this kid is going to take over the NBA and make the Houston Rockets a dominant force for the next ten years. It’s about…”

“It’s probably because the girl is hot.” Dante commented.

“No shit. If this was some ugly chick and a guy who couldn’t hit a jumper he would be screaming at Garrett until we all got on a plane to a warzone.” Jack agreed.

“It’s not because the girl is hot. Garrett asked us…”

“She does have a great ass. I mean what’s more American than a hot girl with a great ass? I’ll take that over baseball and apple pie any day. Toby says her mother is a hot piece of work too. Level five Cougar. He’s got pics of her on her back porch at night in this white satin nightie. I’ll show you guys later.” Sam added. “Still Connolly you could have put up more of a fight. There is a possible werewolf pack near our Seal Teams monitoring the Russian situation.”

“And if Rudi says it looks like they are going to risk exposure by attacking then some of you will…”

“You want to split our forces?” Max asked. Max hardly ever spoke. I liked that about him.

“Do any of you motherfuckers know what the chain of command is? It’s the damn chain I go get and beat you with until you understand who is in charge around here. Got it?”

No one said a word. Just stared at me. Then they all burst out in laughter.

Fuckers.

“Sorry Jay. Just fuckin with you. You want to protect your sports hero and his hot ass girlfriend we got your back. What’s the plan?” Jack added when the laughing died down.

“I don’t know. Going to meet with Garrett and the four vampires now. I haven’t received word since he texted me that Maria was involved.”

“Have fun. We will be using the might of the US military to protect the postal worker and her kid across the street. Have fun at the club.”

Fuckers. I planned to have fun.

Jasper POV

I sat stunned by what Garrett had just told us. I wasn’t the only one. Even Ty shut up for longer than a minute. Of course he was the first one to speak.

“So if all these monsters and demons and werewolves on two feet and big foots and such exist, does that mean that ghosts are real?”

Garrett chuckled.

“I have never seen one personally but at this point I would believe anything. I suppose if demons exist, they have to come from somewhere. If there is hell there must be a Heaven. Who knows what is around that we can’t see?”

“Yeah but they can’t like hurt nobody. Just go boo and shit right?”

“I don’t know Ty. Again I’ve never seen one.” Garrett told him with a sly grin.

“You can walk in the sun and no one notices?” I asked, still in disbelief.

“Yep. The lotion was developed in the seventies when I had to provide intelligence to the CIA from Iran.”

“And you got bullet’s that can kill vampires? No shit? How?” Peter asked.

I was curious about this myself. If this was true, and I had no reason to doubt it, this was definitely a game changer. The Volturi could be destroyed easily. We all could. Humans could defend themselves.

“My team and I were investigating a Yeti that was harassing a research station in Antarctica. There was actually a nest of them inside a hollowed out glacier. After the battle I noticed the gunfire had broken off quite a few layers of ice inside the cave. I saw a large black rock approximately five feet in circumference forming a perfect circle. I broke through the ice to investigate and found a meteorite. Not a normal meteorite however. There were definite edges. When I attempted to move it I felt pain in my hands. Drawing back I saw a slight cut on my hand. My venom was on a sharp protrusion of rock. I attempted to break a piece off and was able to, however when I tried to ground the metal into dust I could not do it. Breakable but it had a limit. I carried the rock back on a super freighter due to its incredible weight. Under lab conditions I was able to discern along with one of Connolly’s team who holds a PhD in chemistry, that the meteorite was unlike any other found on earth before. Using the most powerful laser ever created, the two of us were able to carve and perfectly sculpt hollow bullets. A simple incendiary device was placed inside, set to ignite on impact. I knew the metal could pierce our skin. I had taken a sliver and slammed it through my hand. It hurt. Greatly. I was able to heal from it though. We made a few hundred rounds and tested them in the field. The first vampire I ever shot, a particularly sadistic bastard in Kansas, I struck in the chest. He lit up as I expected but was able to continue moving, being able to put out the flames. It definitely disabled him though and I was able to fire four more shots, effectively ending him. The next opportunity presented itself in Salem Massachusetts. This time I aimed for the head.

One shot was all that was needed.”

“Garrett how do you know your own government won’t turn on you one day?” I asked. No way would I ever give anyone the means to kill me.

“How do you know yours won’t turn on you Jasper?”

“I have no government.”

“Sure. So go to Italy and walk around in the sunlight. Explain to the Volturi that you have no government. Or perhaps a monarchy would be a better word. I am human. You are too. All of us are. We become infected and in turn are given gifts that make us more powerful than others but we are human. Vampires just tend to forget that. This is my Country and my home. It is threatened daily by those foreign, domestic and supernatural. I have the ability to defend it so I have chosen to do so. What do you four defend? What is important to you Peter? Charlotte? Esme? Ty and Bella you are also included. Every man and woman have to decide at some point in their lives what is worth dying for and what is worth living for. I have made my choice.”

I suppose the guy did have a point.

As for my answer, I didn’t have a clue.

“I will give you ten million dollars for one clip of those bullets, dog. Ten mil cash. You got nines? Cause if not give me the caliber and I’ll buy the fuckin gun.” I heard Ty say. Of course he was looking at me.

“I want to meet this human. This guy who has killed four vampires himself. Where is he?” Charlotte asked quietly.

“He is on his way. He was briefing his team. I let him know what dear Esme informed us in regards to Maria. She has been on our radar for a while. She has not been heard from in years but I am convinced she is partially responsible for a great percentage of the hundreds of females, some say thousands, who have gone missing since 1993 in Cuidad Juarez, Chihuahua.”

“That’s Mexico. Not the US. What do you care?” Peter asked in his somewhat normal sarcastic tone.

“Because like I said, I am human.” Garrett replied.

“Tell me about him. Connolly.” I said before Peter could take the conversation in another direction.

“I won’t tell you any personal information on him and his team and you would never be able to find it. These men do not exist. As I said, they answer to me and the President. One General on the Joint Chiefs is the only other man who knows and coordinates our activities with the Military however he is not in command. The President orders these men to assist me. I answer to know one but myself and my own conscience. I will tell you general details.

I have watched and participated in every war and conflict America has ever faced. I have never found a deadlier soldier. A master of all hand held weapons, including bladed weapons, black belt in four disciplines of martial arts. Has been able to infiltrate the most secure facilities in the world undetected. He even got into Fort Knox once in a test of that facilities security. One of the top three snipers in the world. Has been decorated for heroism in combat twenty three times. His parents died when he was twelve. He grew up in Galveston, not far from here so he knows the area. At 18 he joined the Marines, completed Sniper School at 20, fast tracked through Buds and became a Navy Seal at 22 and served 6 years with the teams. Now he works with me. He handpicked this team. He is reliable, courageous, deadly and slightly insane. The only member of the team to have successfully shot four vampires. Also the only one who has killed a demon in one on one combat.

“A demon? Those things you said were large monsters with talons and wings, probably straight from hell? Flaming swords?How the hell did a human do that?” I asked, wondering if these things were as tough as Garrett made them out to be.

“I cut his fucking head off with his own flaming sword. Talking bout me Gar? My ears were burnin.”

Ty POV

So this was the cocky motherfucka makin untoward comments to the missus. He walked over and I prepared to stand up and kick his ass.

“Ty, damn glad to meet you. I’m a huge fan. Don’t worry about a thing sir. This vampire problem will be cleared up in no time and the two of you can go on with your happy lives. You have my word. Think I might be able to get a couple autographs later?”

Okay I guess he wasn’t that bad.

Dude sat next to Garrett and met Jasper’s eyes.

“You on board or you goin your own way?” he asked.

“I’m on board.” Jasper told him.

“No shit you better be.” I whispered.

“Somethin to say Ty?” Jethrow asked. Forgot he can hear everything.

“Nah I just don’t want you runnin off on your own. You guys are going to need protection as much as Bella. Better stick close to Garrett and this guy so they can protect you.”

“I don’t need no fucking protection Gavin.” Pete said getting a bit defensive quick like.

“Don’t act all crunk bitch. If it wasn’t for that venom runnin through yo veins your ass wouldn’t even deliver pizza in my neighborhood much less live there. All you damn guys act like bad asses, as if. If I was a vampire I would bitch slap every one of you. You were humans I’d beat your skinny asses. Stop actin like you are some great fuckin warrior.

That said, you fuckers are startin to grow on me. I almost can’t imagine a day without Jasper checkin out my girl’s ass with that lust filled intense gaze. Obviously you need protection from this Maria chick. I mean she turned Jasper and made him her whipping boy for a long time. Peter you had to “escape” from her with your woman. Then instead of just leavin her Jasper, you needed your boy and his woman to come rescue you.”

“I didn’t need a rescue. I could have left at any time.”

“Sure. Then why did you wait till Petey came back?”

“None of your damn business. I can handle Maria.”

“How tough is she Jasper? I need to know the truth.” Connolly said.

Jasper took a moment and then spoke.

“I’ve never seen a deadlier vampire than Maria. Ty is right. If Peter hadn’t come back and helped me sneak off by causing a distraction, I would probably still be there. She doesn’t just create newborn armies. She culls them to the strongest, most gifted vampires and burns the others. After I left I heard her army took a huge hit, but she has had plenty of time to build them back up. Mexico is the perfect feeding grounds for vampires in this day and age. The Cartel’s get blamed for everything. Garrett is right. Many of these serial killers roaming villages in Mexico is probably her work.

Still she is just a vampire. Incredibly strong and fast but not gifted. It is why she surrounds herself with others. If she had a chance to go after me and Victoria offered up my whereabouts she would take it. Esme, I am not telling you what to do. But Carlisle has no way of finding out you burned Edward instead of saving him. If you want to go back, or go off on your own, you should. This could get ugly but I am not running from this bitch.”

“I’m not going a damn place.” Esme told him. I recognized that look. Bella gave me that same damn look.

That redneck made her pussy tingle and the dumbass was clueless.

“Okay then. We are all one big happy family. First order of business, Ty and Bella you will not be returning to Arizona until after this has been settled. Two members of our team have been assigned to your mother in Florida. We can’t leave two more behind to watch Donna and Jeff. We need you all together. I am confident we can have this problem solved before the wedding and after your honeymoon you can return to your apartment and begin your semester.” Garrett told us as if discussin the weather.

This shit was not going to go well.

“You want to run that by me again motherfucker?” Bella asked.

Bella POV

He did not just say that.

“Bella we have to use you as bait. Being protected bait beats being an unprotected target. You understand that correct?” GI Joe asked.

“Yeah. Got no problem with that. But we are heading back tomorrow.”

“You want to leave Donna unprotected?” Garrett asked.

“No! But… just stay here and maybe Esme could come with us. She is like my favorite vampire ever at this moment. The rest of you can stay here and catch her since she and this Mexican chick are already here.” I suggested / demanded.

“Esme cannot handle Maria or Victoria.” Jasper said.

“Fuck you.” Esme said quickly. We all looked at her. Who the hell was this woman who was my new hero?

“Fine, she may be a bit much for me to handle at the moment. I need training. Probably not a good idea Bella.” She admitted.

“Yes but we have a lot to do. I have… I can go myself. I will stay low. Look our clothes are there.”

“Being packed as we speak. You should have them all by tomorrow afternoon.” Garrett said.

“I have to buy our books for the semester.”

“We looked into the registry and have that taken care of. Free of charge. Your books will be waiting on you.” Connolly told me.

“I have a dog. She was only supposed to be kenneled for three days. I had to get a friend to pick her up. She hasn’t been with us in over a week. I need my dog.”

“Being picked up from Jennifer Prescott’s residence this evening. Feather will be here along with your clothes.”

“Momma ain’t gonna like that shit. She hates dogs.” Ty mentioned.

“See? Momma hates dogs. I have a dog. Feather needs me. Why don’t we pack up Donna and Jeff and bring them to Arizona? Maybe a nice hotel?”

“Donna won’t leave work and Jeff starts school next week.” Garret countered.

I had nothing else. Wait… no… shit…

“There is another option Bella.” Connolly said, causing my heart to race.

“Anything.”

“I can leave the team here to protect Donna and Jeff so they can’t be used against you, and Garrett, myself and the other four vampires can go to Forks. I think I can convince the wolves to work with us to take care of Victoria, Maria and anyone else they bring. So long as we make it obvious that we are leaving, Victoria should follow. You are good friends with Jacob Black correct? I’m sure he would welcome an opportunity to help.”

How the hell did he… he met my eyes and winked. That motherfucker.

“I guess Houston it is.” I said quietly, head hung in defeat. Fucking Holidays. Fucking Edward Cullen. I wonder if Esme can take me one day to his final resting place so my dog can piss on his ashes.

“Cool! That it? Let’s fuckin party!” Ty clapped his hands and stood up. Guess the meeting was over.

Garrett pulled Jasper away and the two went to a table in the corner. Esme, Charlotte and Peter each went to a separate corner. I suppose they didn’t want to socialize even though at the moment I would have held down someone and sliced there throat just so I could say I ought Esme a drink. I sat down at a large table Freddy walked us to and Ty went to the bar.

T-Bone and Dollar sat on either side of me in the booth.

“What up Bells? Why you havin secret meetins with white folk? Ya’ll join that freemason shit? Gonna start carryin a sword and wearin a cape?”

“No Dollar. Just catchin up with some family and friends who live here now.”

“Alright. Keep fibbin to Dollar. See what happens. That karma gonna hit you.”

“Dollar I have had karma hitting me my entire life. Trust me, you don’t want to know. T Bone how have you been?”

“Doin good Bella. Wish this place served food. I’m hungry.”

T-Bone was a large man. Larger than Ty. At 6’8 and 300 pounds he had been an offensive guard for Arizona State. Ty met him when he learned T Bone came from Houston. T Bone’s sophomore year, he blew his knee out. Destroyed every ligament. He would never play again. ASU pulled his scholarship and he couldn’t afford to keep going to school with out of state tuition. He was attending UH now taking classes as he could afford them. Ty offered him a job as soon as we signed. He would be head of our security. He would manage extra security when we felt we needed it and handle our protection himself. We didn’t feel we needed it but Ty wanted to do something for him. This way T Bone could go to school full time while working and finish his degree.

“Hey Bella, I still your guy right?” I was confused at first till I saw him looking at Connolly talking to Ty at the bar. His eyes then caught the other vampires in the room standing at the corners.

“Yeah T. Of course These guys… they are just…”

“Friends and family from around here right Bella?” Dollar asked with a grin.

I flipped him off.

Checkin on my man I saw something I didn’t like. Connolly had stepped back from the bar and Ty was talkin to some banger.

“Who the fuck is that?” I asked Dollar.

“Who… ah fuck. He done papered out. Son of a bitch.”

“Who?” I pressed.

“Day Tiggs.”

“Who the hell is that?”

“Josh Tiggs little brother. The guy Ty testified on for shooting Tim when they was 16. This playa was the driver. He was supposed to be locked up another few but I guess he rolled on somebody.”

Oh hell. Dollar wouldn’t move so I climbed over the table and forced my way through the drunks I was jealous of, to Ty’s side.

“Look it man. I hear you got your white girl knocked up. Gonna be makin millions. Think you good now huh? My brother is…”

“Fuck your brother! If he wasn’t in fo life I’d have iced his ass already. I’ll take you out you skinny little…”

“That right?” Day asked pulling his jacket back. I saw the pistol in his waistband. He hadn’t noticed me yet. I simply reached over while he held his jacket open for Ty and took the gun.

“Hey bitch!”

The rest of his complaint was cut off by Ty who had the guy by his throat. I briefly considered pistol whipping him but wasn’t sure of this gun. Last thing I needed was a gun accidentally going off in a crowded club. That would be hard to spin to the media. I mean I could do it but I really didn’t have the time.

“You best get the hell out of my city. I’m gonna bring hell down on you. I blame you for my boy’s death as much as your brotha. How the hell you get out? Won’t be hard to find who you rolled on.” Ty told him. He was close to losing it. Josh was something he did not like to talk about often.

A crowd was gathering. I needed to… shit the gun!

Connolly winked at me and placed it in his waist band. How the hell did he get it out of… forget it. I watched him pull out a badge and show it to the little shit Ty was holding by his throat.

“Houston PD. Let the man down sir, I can take it from here.”

Ty dropped the bitch but he took off running. I half expected Connolly to run after him. Instead he slapped Ty on the back and led him to the bar. Ty grabbed my hand and I followed.

“Man that guy…”

“I know who he is. I read the work up on you in preparation for this. Don’t worry about him.”

“Listen bro, he got friends. I can’t have him…”

“Ty. Don’t worry about it.” Something in his tone told me we would indeed not have to worry about it. I sat on a bar stool and noticed the crowd that had gathered had gone back to drinking and dancing.

“So I can appreciate this is a lot to take in. I have to say you two are handling it pretty well. Course with knowing bout vampires ahead of time, I guess it was a bit easier.” Jason said.

“Yeah. It still is kind of surreal. A bit strange too, I mean the circumstances.” Ty commented.

“How so?”

“It’s just weird. I mean I’m from Houston, you from thirty miles up the road, Jasper and Peter are from Houston, Garrett was running around Houston when he met my Mom. Now here we are stuck in Houston.”

I could see his point.

“That is a lot of coincidences.” I admitted. Ty agreed.

“Right boo? It’s like our life is some story written by a hack writer who is too damn lazy to research linguistics, colloquialisms, demographics and the local cultures of other regions and keeps writing about his own safe little corner of redneck heaven.”

---

Jasper POV

Satisfied that Bella would not have to shoot the man whose gun she deftly took from him while the idiot was acting tough, I turned back to Garrett.

“Jasper I honestly have debated killing you over the last few days to protect Bella. But I don’t beelive now that you will change her against her will. I also believe that you have an empty space in your life. You need purpose Jasper. I am not sure about peter and Charlotte. You would be a better judge of this than I. But you, Jasper, belong with me. Helping me. Making a difference in the world.”

Did I? I wasn’t sure.

“Garrett right now I want to kill the lady after the woman I love and move far away where I don’t have to see her happiness and can simply hear about it from afar.”

“I understand Jasper. Believe me I do but…”

“You understand? How the hell could you understand?” I asked a bit angrily as Bella’s hands started caressing Ty’s back.

“I’ve been there. I told you how I met Donna tonight.”

“Yeah what about it?”

“Jasper that night in an alley I saw a beautiful young woman look death in the eye. When given a chance to run, she responded with a simple phrase. When she said that she wasn’t going anywhere, Jasper I fell in love.”

“Love? You mean…”

“Yes.”

“The big lady in the house Ty and Bella are stayin at?”

“Jasper you should have seen her. Beautiful, courageous, fierce, brave. I spent the night by her side as we waited for Richard to wake. After that night I ran as far as possible. Because I did want her. I wanted to turn her. The pair we would have made Jasper.”

“Do you regret it? Leaving? Never taking the chance?” I asked.

“No. Because look on that dance floor Jasper. What do you see?”

I turned back and I saw Bella pressed against Ty swaying back and forth while he used his hands to cup her ass cheeks and whispered in her ear.

“What about them?”

“Because I left, that amazing man was born. Because you didn’t take Bella, he has the other half of his soul. Those two will start charities that will help countless. Together they will make a positive difference in this world. They will have children, grandchildren, great grandchildren who can change the world. That is life. That is what we must use our gift to protect Jasper. You talk about the large lady who is Ty’s mother. All I see when I look in her eyes is the woman I fell in love with. A woman ready to give her life for a stranger. But this does not mean our lives are over Jasper. I still have hope that one day I will find love. You my friend should not look past the opportunities that present themselves to you.”

“What opportunities?” I laughed.

“I heard another woman tonight say that she isn’t running from anything. She certainly wasn’t looking at me when she said it. Something caused Esme to have a breakthrough. She is coming into her own, apart from her Coven. Dropping the torch on Edward was the final break. I will be asking her to join me. She will accept. I have known her for decades but never seen her like this. She will not go back to Carlisle. I doubt she has wanted Carlisle for a very long time. She is not the same as she was. Perhaps you should give some thought to seeing her as she is now.

Think about my offer, discuss it with Peter and Charlotte. They are welcome of course. I should go. I need to speak to Esme. Enjoy the rest of the night.”

I watched him walk to Esme. I also noticed Esme’s eyes were not on Bella. I winked at her and she smiled.

Damn she looked good in leather.

Connolly POV

Nice night. Had a drink or three, danced with a Cuban girl with amazing legs. Got to know Ty Gavin and Bella a bit more. Got to see Bella grab a gun from a gangbanger and contemplate pistol whipping him before making the correct decision not to. Still I felt it better when I took the weapon from her. No reason to take chances. Stress is probably bad for the baby.

“Connolly we got him two blocks down. Looks like he has four guys, all armed, one with an AR 15. Do you want us to call the police or handle in house?”

“You have audio?” I asked the voice in my ear.

“Yep. They are preparing to park outside of club and gun Gavin and Bella down as they exit. They plan to leave in ten minutes. If you want police now would…”

“Give me records. I know Tiggs. Who does he have with him?”

“All Crips, couple low level movers and an enforcer. All got records for violence dating back to when they were 14. All been in the Penn.”

“Okay. Thank you.”

“You want police?”

“Nah. I think I will handle it. Two blocks west or east?”

“West.”

“Thanks. Standby.”

I strolled silently a block away and ducked into an alley. Climbing a fence and going behind a burnt out building I was able to sneak back over the fence undetected by the idiots finding liquid courage in forty ounce bottle of lager beside a car in the front of this alley. One of them did have an AR 15. How cute.

“Howdy boys.”

I’m pretty sure at least one of them pissed himself.

“You are that fuckin cop from the club.” Tiggs observed.

“Actually I’m not a cop.” I said walking up to him. The other three were behind me now.

“If you ain’t a cop, I guess that means we can ice yo ass and nobody gonna give a fuck.”

“Your brother is getting cornholed for life in the State Penn right? How many ass rapings did you take? Or was your speciality sucking cocks?”

The guy with the AR 15 put the nozzle to the back of my head. Tiggs pulled a cheap dimestore 38.

“You got a death wish boy? This some kinda set up? We blow you down and 5.0 hits us?”

“I got no idea what you mean friend. I just came out here to resolve a problem. You got a grudge agasint a friend of mine. You are planning on gunning him and his pregnant fiancée down. I don’t think that’s going to happen.”

“You can’t arrest us for something you think is gonna go down bitch. Sides you are a bit outgunned.”

“Oh yeah, that reminds me. I have your gun the woman took from you. Here you go.”

I pulled the gun from my back with my left hand and handed it over to Tiggs. Despite his surprise he took it. As soon as it left my hand it hit the ground along with his hand.

The pain didn’t register but the fear did as he brought his bloody stump up. He looked down at the Bowie knife in my hand.

“Ooops.” I chuckled.

“What the fuck?” I heard behind me. Moving to my side I swatted the AR away and gutted the bastard holding it in one motion. Moving towards the two other motherfuckers holding guns and just standin there not moving, I stabbed them both in the hearts. They stood unmoving as their hearts beat the last bit of blood out of them. Tiggs took off screaming towards the street. I didn’t feel like chasing so I tossed the knife into the back of his neck severing his spinal column.

Walking up to retrieve my knife I could see he was dead. No drive byes for you anymore son.

“Jason you done playing around yet?”

“Affirmative Jack, gonna need clean up on aisle four. These guys just became milk carton decorations. Any police give a shit to start lookin shut it down. Bella doesn’t need the aggravation. Stress is bad for the baby.”