Jasper (20 page)

He
knew Jasper would understand the big guy he was referring to was Frey. Trevor
didn’t know if Theron could tap into his messages or not, but he didn’t want to
inadvertently offer the Goyle any help finding Trevor if he was searching for
him. Trevor made his way downstairs. Connor and Amelia were at the kitchen
table. Connor was drawing, and Amelia was talking non-stop about a turtle
they’d found down at the lake. Isabelle and Abbi were drinking a glass of wine.
Frey was nowhere to be seen, but Trevor had a feeling he was patrolling
outside, making sure there were no surprise visitors as well as keeping an eye
on Matthew and Travis.

Trevor
headed out the backdoor, following the path that led to the lake. When he got
close, voices from the end of the dock let him know where Matthew and Travis
were. He stopped when he heard Matthew say, “I didn’t like Trevor at first.
Jasper is so in love with Trevor, and he refuses to mate with Jas. I hate
seeing Jas so sad.” He explained how Trevor needed time to come to terms with
everything he’d learned. “It is a lot, learning about the Goyles and all. If I
had any harsh feelings toward Trevor, they all went away when he killed Troy.”

Oh
shit.

“He
what?” Travis barked.

“Oh,
shit. I thought he told you everything.”

“Matthew,
if you’d excuse us, please,” Trevor said. He didn’t need the teen sticking his
foot any farther down his throat than he already had.

“Yeah,
uh, sorry dude.” Matthew took off running up the dock, the faint beam from the
flashlight flickering up and down with each step. When the light was gone,
Trevor looked at Travis who was glaring at him.

Trevor
sat down beside his brother. “I told you that Theron followed me, and Dante
told me the truth of the Gargoyles. What I didn’t tell you was what else
happened that day.” Trevor recounted the phone call, the ride in the Aston
Martin, and standing next to Dane.

“Troy
Quinn was the human equivalent of Theron. He was a bully and a grade-A asshole.
He didn’t like me because I’m gay. To him, I was nothing more than scum to
scrape off the bottom of his shoe. When he was shooting at Matthew and Jasper,
my only thought was to protect them. The chief wasn’t doing anything, because
he realized Jasper had his wings around Matthew and they both were safe. My
brain wasn’t functioning enough to remember all Dante had told me only hours
earlier. All I knew was Jasper was being shot at. Instinct took over, and I
grabbed Dane’s gun and shot Quinn.”

“I
thought you didn’t like guns. I remember when Dad took us to the firing range,
you hated it. Where did you learn to shoot a gun well enough to fire one shot?”
Travis asked quietly, his gaze on the lake. Trevor’s flashlight was on the dock
between them, a steady beam reaching out across the water.

“You’ve
played Call of Duty with me.” Trevor didn’t need to explain further. He was
undefeated in that particular series, his shooting skills second to none.

“How
did it feel?”

“How
did what feel?”

“To
take a life,” his brother whispered.

“Like
something I never want to feel again. I see his body in my dreams. The way he
slumped over, the life leaving him. Dante wouldn’t let me anywhere near the
morgue until Quinn’s body was gone. He was afraid of how I would react, and he
was right. Everyone tells me they understand, that the mate bond took over, and
I was protecting Jasper. Travis, the reason doesn’t matter. I took a life, and
I don’t know if I’ll ever get over it.”

“Do
you ever stop and think that maybe being around the Gargoyles isn’t good for
you? For me? I mean, your life was pretty tame before you got mixed up with
them. You were a normal man who led a normal life. Nobody was shooting at your
boyfriend. Nobody was killing my girlfriend. We weren’t hiding out in the
middle of the woods from crazed monsters who were trying to kill us.”

“We’ve
always been around them; we just didn’t know it. Don’t blame this on them
because they aren’t human. Troy Quinn was human, and he was evil. Like I told
you before, there’s good and bad in every species. And to answer your question,
being around the Gargoyles might seem dangerous, but it is good for me. Before
I became entrenched in their lives, I had you. That’s it. I worked and went
home. Alone. Travis, my friends were dead bodies, and even they didn’t stay
around long. I know I can call you any time or come visit whenever I want, but
before I knew about the Gargoyles, I wasn’t living. I was merely going through
the motions. So yes, being around the Gargoyles is good for me. I now have a
family.”

Trevor’s
phone buzzed in his pocket. He prayed it was a text from Jasper. “I’m sorry
about Rachel. More than you’ll ever know. But I won’t distance myself from
them. Not even for you.”

“You’re
different. Not in a bad way, though. I can see how these last few weeks have
made you stronger. You’re more sure of yourself, even if you don’t realize how
incredible you are. I don’t blame you for wanting a family. It’s what I wanted
with Rachel. At least one of us will have it.”

“I
hope so. This thing with Theron could possibly start a war. I pray it doesn’t
come to that, though.”

“Me,
too. For your sake. Now, I’m tired, and I want to go to bed so I can cry myself
to sleep. It’s therapeutic, I hear.”

“Go
ahead; I’ll meet you at the house after I check my phone.” Trevor handed the
flashlight to Travis. He knew the path well enough to use the moonlight to find
his way back.

Even
though he wished it was from Jasper, Trevor was relieved to see the text was
from Dante and not an anonymous number.

I
need your help. Come to the crime scene.
 Dante gave him the address.

Normally
Dante called Trevor, but he was probably busy. Trevor made his way back to the
house and told Frey, “Dante needs me. Can you call for reinforcements?” He knew
Frey couldn’t leave the others alone.

“Lorenzo’s
close by. I’ll have him take you.”

Trevor
was surprised that Travis and Matthew were playing a video game. He didn’t want
to interrupt, so he asked Isabelle to tell his brother he’d gone to work. She
assured him Travis would be in good hands. As soon as Lorenzo arrived, Trevor
got in his car, and they headed out.

Jasper
should have called first. He arrived in Athens only to find Trevor was back in
New Atlanta safe at Frey’s. Instead of sending a text, he called his mate. The
call went to voicemail. “Trev, I’m in Athens. I should have called, but I
needed to see you. I’m on my way back now. I’ll be there as soon as I can.” He
hung up and called Frey.

“Hey,
Brother. Everything okay?” the big guy asked.

“It
will be as soon as I lay eyes on Trevor. He didn’t answer his phone. Is he
around?”

“No,
he’s at the morgue. He probably has his music up too loud to hear the phone.”

“Of
course he is. Okay, I’m headed there now. If you talk to him, tell him to stay
put until I get there.”

“Will
do.”

Jasper
filled his tank and headed west toward home. When he was about halfway there,
his phone buzzed in his pocket. He flipped on the cruise control and dug his
phone out. He had a missed call from Julian as well as a text. He opened the
message.

Located
Kallisto. Still no sign of Theron.

I’m
40 miles out. Headed to morgue. Keep me posted.

When
a chill ran up Jasper’s spine, he considered pulling over to call Trevor.
Instead, he flipped off the cruise control and cranked down on the throttle,
praying the troopers were on a different highway. Jasper arrived at the
hospital twenty minutes later. He parked at the back door that led to the
morgue. Neither Trevor nor Dante’s cars were there. As he walked down the hall,
he reached out with his senses. He didn’t get a feel for his mate, and there
was only a dim light coming from inside. Jasper tried the doorknob, finding it
unlocked. He made his way into the room where his mate should be working. “Trev?”

When
Jasper stepped into the examination room, he froze. There on the table was a
body with a note attached. “No. No!” he roared. When he saw the slashes across
the face of the victim, he died inside. He lifted the note from the man’s
chest.

You couldn’t keep him alive

Jasper
realized too late he was not alone.
Fuck!
He had dropped his guard. His
fangs elongated, but before he could get his claws out, pain shot through his
neck. He turned to find Theron holding a syringe. Instead of fighting him Goyle
to Goyle, the bastard had poisoned him. “You fucking coward,” was all Jasper
could get out before his body began seizing up.

 Theron
walked around the table, never taking his eyes off Jasper. “It’s a shame,
really. You and I had something special, but you lowered yourself to the likes
of… this,” he pointed, indicating the body on the table. Jasper fell to the
floor, unable to look upon the face of his mate one last time. He was aware of
Theron standing over him, but he couldn’t move. Couldn’t release the note still
in his hand. Couldn’t make his eyes stay open. Jasper felt a shadow fall across
his face. In his waning lucidity he felt a brush of lips across his own.
Trevor. His beautiful mate was telling him goodbye. Trev…

Trevor
had a bad feeling. He chalked it up to the talk he had with Travis, but deep in
his soul he knew it was much more than that.

“You
okay over there? You’re putting off some pretty nasty vibes,” Lorenzo told him.

“No,
I’m not. Have you ever had a possum run over your grave?”

“A
possum what?”

“A
possum run… a chill run down your spine?”

“Oh,
of course. I call it Gargoyle intuition, or a gut feeling. You got one of
those?”

“Yeah.
I’m calling Jasper.” When Trevor pulled out his phone, he saw the voice mail.
“What the hell?” He pushed play and Jasper’s voice sounded on the other end.
When the message ended, he looked at the time stamp. “That’s weird. Jasper
called, but I didn’t hear it ring. Did you hear it ring?”

“No.
Is everything okay?”

“He
went to Athens thinking I was still there. Now, he’s on his way back here.”

“That’s
a good thing, right?”

“I
guess, but I still think something’s off.”

A
few minutes later, they arrived at the crime scene. “Now I know something’s
wrong.” Trevor got out of the car.

“Trevor,
wait.” Lorenzo grabbed him by the arm before closing his eyes. Trevor knew he
was scanning the area. “I don’t sense anyone.”

Trevor
looked around, using the lights from Lorenzo’s car to study the house. It was
unlike any of the other crime scenes. This was not where someone had lived. The
house appeared ready to collapse. The foliage was so overgrown, it covered most
of the first floor windows. “I’m going in,” he told the Goyle.

“Do
you have a flashlight?”

“No,
do you?”

“I
don’t need one. You aren’t going to be able to see anything inside. I’ll go
with you and tell you what I see.”

“I
could just stay out here.”

“Jasper
would kill me if I left you alone. Come on.”

Trevor
followed Lorenzo into the dark house. He stopped right inside the door as the
Gargoyle moved a little farther inside. Of course he was unprepared, because he
fully expected Dante to be there with the CSU crew. “Oh, fuck.” The bad feeling
intensified. He remembered the last time he got a text telling him to be
somewhere. “Lorenzo,” he yelled, not caring if the Goyle was only feet from him.

“I’m
right here, Trevor. Come on, let’s go outside.” As soon as they were on the
porch, Lor held out a note. “I’m confused,” he said.

Trevor
read the note. He wasn’t confused at all. Motherfucking Theron had sent the
text, not Dante. “I’m going to kill that fucking Gargoyle!” he yelled.

“Trevor,
you want to enlighten a Goyle? Who is Phelam?”

“Jasper.
Phelam is Jasper, and Theron has him. Let’s go.”

“Where
are we going?” Lorenzo asked, as they headed to his truck.

“To
the morgue.” Trevor called Dante as they raced toward the hospital.

“Trevor,
what’s wrong?” Dante asked. Somehow he knew when things were askew.