Chapter 9 - Jasper

When I returned to the cabin, April was waiting for me. "I need to get some things from town," she said as I entered the room.

"No, I don't think so," I replied with a frown. "Make me a list of what you need, and I can get it for you soon."

"It will be much easier if I go with you. If you haven't noticed, I didn't exactly have time to pack before I came here," she pointed out.

"If all you need is clothes and toiletries, just write down your sizes and preferences. I'll get them," I insisted.

She cleared her throat self-consciously, and I looked at her with a puzzled expression. "What is it?" I asked warily.

"It's just…" she trailed off, looking at the floor to avoid making eye contact. She cleared her throat. "I do need clothes and things, but I also need some items of a more… personal nature. As a woman, you see, I need certain products to—"

"Got it!" I interrupted, holding my hand up to stop her from finishing her sentence. "You're right. It'll be better for you to come with me and pick out… what you need. Do you… um… need it right away?"

I was acutely aware of how hot my face was. Color had risen in my cheeks from my embarrassment at the topic. It wasn't that I didn't know that women had biological differences, but I had never been comfortable discussing it.

"No, but soon. It's better to have it before you need it," April said.

"Let's just go now," I decided. Best to get it out of the way.

I wasn't worried about April trying to escape, but I did have concerns about being out in public with her. I was doing the best I could to gain intel on the Pinedale wolf pack, and I hoped that her sudden appearance wouldn't raise any alarm bells if anyone had been watching me earlier today.

The trip to town was quick and quiet. We stopped at a general merchandise store, where April was sure to find whatever she needed. Unlike many women I'd observed, she was a well-organized shopper. She had already made a list of what she needed and made her selections without much fuss. After only fifteen minutes, we headed to the check-out to pay.

"Efficient," I commented as she began piling her purchases onto the conveyor belt.

"No reason to dilly-dally," she replied with a smile.

To my surprise, I found myself smiling back. The entire outing had felt comfortable, and I was slightly disappointed to be heading back to the cabin.

"Ninety-five dollars and sixteen cents," the cashier said as he finished placing the items in a bag. April reached for her wallet, but I waved it aside.

"It's okay," she protested. "I can get them."

"Don't be silly," I mumbled, swiping my card in the terminal. There was no explanation I could give for why I was offering to pay for her things, and I wanted to avoid a conversation about the gesture.

"Thank you, Jasper," she said quietly.

After taking the receipt, I turned around quickly, accidentally bumping into someone walking through the aisle.

"Pardon," he said. "Oh! I remember you! I was in the bar earlier, remember? I asked you about what you were working on?"

Shit , Storm growled.

It was one of the men I had spied on earlier—the one who had spoken of a wolf named Nile and the get-together he was planning. I felt my muscles tensing, and I narrowed my eyes at the man. His friendly expression faltered as he took in my reaction, and he took an involuntary step away.

"Hi, I'm April!" my mate interjected brightly. I shot a glance at her, wondering what she was up to.

"I'm Terry," the man said, turning his attention to her and extending a hand in greeting. She shook it and offered him a sweet smile.

"It's nice to meet you, Terry," she said. "This is my husband, Jasper."

"Hang on one second—hey, guys, over here," he waved his friends down, and I recognized the man and woman who had been sitting with him at the bar. "This is Mike and Ashley. Guys, this is Jasper and April. He was at the bar with us earlier, remember?"

"Oh, yeah! How's it going, man?" Mike asked, clapping me on the back.

The contact unsettled me. April seemed to notice, and she put a comforting hand on my arm.

"You guys aren't from around here, are you?" Ashley asked. "I don't think we've seen you before today."

"No, we're just visiting," April answered. "We got married a few days ago, so we've been doing some traveling."

"Honeymooners, eh?" Mike said. "You picked a good city for it! If you haven't been to it yet, there's this really nice scenic spot just east of here. I can show it to you on a map if you'd like."

"That would be fantastic, thank you," April responded sincerely.

For the next few minutes, April chatted with them, taking suggestions on everything from things to see to places to eat. I hadn't gotten to experience this side of her before. She was so genuine and kind that I would have thought she had known them for much longer than five minutes.

"It was really nice to meet you two," Terry said, smiling much more widely than before he had met April. "Maybe we'll see you around. Actually, there's a party on Saturday if you guys want to come."

"We might, thanks," I answered.

The three strangers waved at us and left, and we walked to my car in the parking lot.

"What in the world were you trying to accomplish with all of that?" I demanded as we placed the bags into the trunk.

"I was just making polite conversation," she said, frowning.

"And that was it?"

"What else would I be doing?" April asked.

"I don't know," I said. "That's why I'm asking you."

I wasn't even sure what I wanted her to say, but she had surprised me with how easily she had fallen into conversation with them. I wanted to find out more.

"You seemed unsettled by them," she said with a shrug. "I could sense the tension, and honestly, I was a little worried that you were about to start a fight or something. The middle of a store isn't the best place for that, so I did what I could to neutralize the situation."

"I didn't realize you had picked up on my mood," I said, taken aback.

"We may have only known each other for a little while, but I've gotten pretty good at reading your cues," April said. "What's the story with them, anyway? Did something happen when you were in town earlier today that upset you?"

I should have known the conversation was leading in this direction. There was no need for her to know about pack politics. Especially about my plan to take over the Pinedale Pack.

"Let's just drop it," I grumbled, shutting the trunk of the car and walking around to my door.

I opened my door, and April did the same, but before I could step inside, a sudden motion from the minivan parked in the adjacent spot sparked my attention.

My eyes widened with rage as I saw the woman sitting in the driver's seat raining blows down on the head and face of the girl seated next to her. The driver was holding the wrist of the girl, who was attempting to block the blows, but the woman was too strong for her. From their matching hair color and features, I could tell they were mother and daughter.

Without pausing to consider my actions, I ran around the car, opened the van door, and yanked the woman from her seat.

"Jasper!" April shouted behind me. "What are you doing?!"

Hate filled me as I looked into the terrified eyes of the perpetrator. I pinned her up against the van, bracing my forearm across her chest with one arm.

I was ten years old, and my mother told me to bury the body.

He was lying in a pool of blood, which was getting larger by the minute.

I told her that I couldn't do it alone. I should have known better than to talk back. She slapped my face so hard that the room spun.

"If you were any kind of man, you would be strong enough to carry him to the woods by now," she said dismissively as she wiped the blood from the dagger that had cut his throat.

"Make sure you dig the hole deep enough that the sheriff's dogs can't smell him," she added sharply. "If the police come knocking on my door because of you, the next dead body will be yours."

"You deserve to die for how you treated your child," I growled.

The woman's eyes widened with fear and shock. She had thought she could get away with assaulting the girl, but I wouldn't allow it.

"Jasper," April said hesitantly from behind me, but I could barely hear her.

I took the sheet from my bed—the only bedding I had been allowed—and wrapped the man in the cloth. I tied one end so that he wouldn't fall out and dragged him slowly and laboriously to the forest.

My back and legs screamed in agony at the exertion, but I kept going.

For hours, I dug in the light of the moon. My arms were on fire, burning with lactic acid as I ripped into the soil with my shovel. No matter how much it hurt, I knew I couldn't stop. Mother hadn't been kidding. If I didn't take care of this, she would kill me.

My fist connected with the woman's side, knocking the air from her lungs.

"You think you're so strong?" I asked. "Does it make you feel like you're worth something when you hit a child? Not so tough when you're the one who's trapped, though, huh?"

I was seven years old, and my mother had locked me in the attic.

"Your moaning and complaining is going to scare the customers away," she said.

I was sick, although I wasn't sure what the illness was. I had never been to a doctor before, and she wouldn't take me to see one now. If I had the energy to walk to a clinic, I would, but I could barely raise a glass of water to my lips.

"If you're still alive in the morning, you can come back downstairs to get some food," she said. She tried to make her tone sound loving and benevolent, but there was no warmth in it.

"No, please," the woman begged. "I didn't mean it, I was just angry! I won't do it again."

"There's only one way to make sure of that," I said menacingly. I hit her again, and the girl inside the car began to cry.

"I'm scared," I sobbed. "I don't want to die, Mama."

"I told you not to call me that," she hissed.

She didn't want to be my mother.

She didn't want me to live to see morning.

"Jasper," April said more sternly than before. "You're scaring the girl. We're in public. You need to let this woman go."

I turned my face toward April, who was now standing at my side. She placed one hand on my shoulder, and I shook my head as I tried to clear my thoughts. There was no pressure in her touch; she was merely letting me know that she was with me.

"It's okay," she said quietly, almost in a whisper. "Just let her go."

I was three years old, and my mother told me I was worthless.

"What good are you?" she said. "If you'd been born a girl, I could have made use of you when you grew up, but I have no use for boys."

The skin on my hands was red and raw from scrubbing the wooden floors of the brothel. I begged to be allowed to rest, but if I didn't work, I didn't eat. And I was so hungry.

"Finish your chores, and then maybe you can have whatever's left from dinner," my mother said. "You should be grateful, you know. I could always just feed you to the dogs. At least they stand guard at night and keep the scum away."

My arms dropped to my sides, releasing the woman, and I stepped away from her. "Go," I choked out.

She jumped into her car as quickly as she could and threw the van into reverse. The tires screeched as she peeled out of the parking space.

My tears mixed with the water on my dirty rag as I scoured the floor.

The tears that now streamed down my face were being wiped away by tender hands.

"April?" I asked, unsure of where I was.

"I'm right here," she assured me kindly. "Get in the car. I'll drive, alright?"

I nodded in assent, trying to piece together the last few moments in my mind. I remembered the woman and the girl, but it was like my mind had traveled back in time.

No one but Killian had ever been able to pull me out of a flashback before today. In fact, even my best friend had struggled to do what my mate had just done. My flashbacks from childhood usually left me incapacitated or sent me on a rampage, but April had used compassion and strength to bring me back from the brink in a way that I didn't think was possible.

I glanced over at her as she drove slowly out of the parking lot and began the short drive toward home. There was something about this woman that made her different. As soon as my mind fully recovered, I vowed to find out exactly what that was.