The Promise
by Laura Spudzmom
Chapter 22
Edward Cullen laid in the middle of his bedroom floor, staring at the ceiling as the sweet strains of classical music ebbed and flowed around him. Outwardly, he looked calm and serene. Inwardly, he was anything but, as his thoughts and emotions raged like an ocean beset with a mighty storm.
He simply couldn’t believe how drastically his life—his very psyche—had changed over the course of a few months, and for one of his kind—the eternally unchanging—such things were monumentally difficult to accept. Accept it he must however, since the source of his turmoil could be summed up in one being; a being he loved but now knew to be beyond his reach…
Isabella Swan.
His eyes closed and his fists clenched with the pain of merely thinking her name and he wondered if he would ever get beyond this feeling—if he would ever recover and feel again as he had felt with her in those almost magical days of blossoming love.
Feeling the ghostly sensation of tears behind his lids, he longed for the relief real tears would bring—longed for that emotional cleansing and release that would never come because of what he is, and he cursed, yet again, this unwanted, lonely existence.
He had loved her. She had brought a joy and lightness to his dead heart that he’d despaired of ever feeling. He had loved her enough to sacrifice the only bright spot in his existence so that she would not be cursed with such a half life and now he was bereft and forced to watch as she set herself on a course to become that which he despised anyway: Vampire.
He choked on a phantom sob as despair, heavy and all-consuming, gripped him and he curled onto his side with a quiet moan at the thought that there was no relief in sight to this pain, no comfort or solace to be had; not for him—never for him, and he gave himself over to despair.
She was out of his reach. She belonged to another, and that would never change.
~o0o~
Charlotte snuck back into the Cullen mansion, doing her best not to jostle her recently acquired box of liquid comfort as she made her way up the stairs, set as she was on finding a dark attic corner in which to seclude herself and drown her sorrows.
Put in simpler terms, she’d stolen an entire case of tequila from the local liquor store and was now hell-bent on getting as fucked up as she possibly could; more difficult for one of her kind than for a human, but as Pete had demonstrated many times through the years, not impossible with enough dedication.
When she reached the landing on the third floor however, the sounds coming from one of the rooms caught her attention and she froze as she listened, her heart clenching in sympathy at the sheer misery conveyed by the stifled moans and whimpers. This vampire sounded as miserable as she felt and she dropped her head as she contemplated just leaving him to it or whether she should join him.
She sighed and shook her head as she made her decision. ‘Misery loves company,’ or so she’d always heard. ‘Time to test that theory Char,’ she thought as she opened the door and slipped in quietly.
A lump rose in her throat as she stood for a moment, watching him rock on his side, curled into a fetal position, looking for all the world like he was desperately trying to hold himself together.
The ache in her own chest grew until she felt compelled to ease him somehow, her current thought being that he was just too… beautiful to be suffering so. It felt all wrong to her, and she just wanted to wrap him up and make it all better and perhaps, in the process, he could do the same for her.
She felt her resolve strengthen and she moved toward him and took a seat on the floor a foot or so in front of him as she set her box of stolen goods off to the side.
She reached out slowly and placed her hand on his cheek, her touch feather light as she didn’t want to spook him. Still he froze at the contact, his muscles tensing as he quietly questioned, “What…,” he swallowed thickly, “…what are you doing here?”
He’d heard her thoughts as she’d stood outside his door; her sorrow and sympathy, and he couldn’t say that he didn’t welcome her. Still, he needed to hear real words from her because it had always been his experience that a being’s thoughts didn’t always mesh with what they were actually willing to say aloud and so he waited for her answer as he took comfort from her gentle caress of his cheek.
“Your pain,” she whispered, “I feel it too and I couldn’t—I just couldn’t leave ya alone in it.”
He opened his eyes and stared into her’s for a moment, seeing all the hurt and sorrow and loss of things that might have been and he knew, in that moment, that she understood probably better than anyone else, what he felt.
Sitting up slowly, he took her hand and gave her a sad smile, his voice quiet and shy as he introduced himself. “I’m Edward.”
She covered his hands with her other and returned his sad smile with one of her own. “I’m Charlotte.”
~o0o~
Carlisle Cullen sat at his desk in his home study, just taking a moment to rest his weary mind. He’d just returned home from checking in on Charlie Swan and was quite pleased with his condition. As best he could tell, the minor heart attack had been brought on, not by heart disease, but by the shock of his brief encounter with Victoria; an encounter that he didn’t seem to recall probably due to the slight concussion he’d received when his car had struck the tree.
For that small reprieve, Carlisle was thankful. It meant that Chief Swan was still safe from the secret and could go on with his normal human life; or as normal as life ever could be here in Forks, WA. he thought to himself with a rueful smile.
The sound of his door opening brought him out of his thoughts and he smiled and held out a hand to his mate as she entered and closed the door behind her. They came together with a kiss and he closed his eyes and savored the feel of her silky cheek against his for a moment before she drew back. “Hello my handsome husband.”
He smiled brightly as he answered, “Hello my beautiful wife. How are you my dear?”
She perched herself on the edge of his desk and his brow pinched as she sighed. “Everyone seems to be doing well so far. Jasper accompanied Peter in looking for Victoria, as you know, and they’re still not back, though Alice says not to worry. She’s had nothing but visions of good outcomes from their ventures. Rosalie and Em are in seventh heaven at the moment. She’s looking after the baby while Bella gets some much needed sleep, and Em is holding both of them and basking in the happiness.” Carlisle laughed softly just picturing that scene in his mind and Esme continued with her impromptu report. “Young Charlotte went out for a walk some time ago and I haven’t seen or heard her return yet, but again, Alice says not to worry, that all is well.” She met her husband’s eyes then and he wondered at the look of consternation on his wife’s lovely face. She solved the slight mystery when she continued speaking. “It’s the strangest thing Carlisle—when Alice spoke of Charlotte, she got the most mischievous smile on her face, as if she knows a secret the rest of us don’t.”
He cocked a brow and smirked. “This is hardly new behavior with our dear Alice.”
She slapped at his shoulder playfully and rolled her eyes, a habit she’d picked up from the kids he was certain and he grinned at her. “Forgive me sweetheart, please, continue.”
“Well, I just find it peculiar due to poor Charlotte’s circumstances. I mean, Carlisle, the girl was just crushed emotionally, much the same way our poor Edward was. It was necessary and unfortunate and I pray they’ll both get over it, but what in the world is smile inducing in that?”
A sudden crashing noise from upstairs had them both glancing at the ceiling before making their way out the door and up the stairs in search of the cause.
Stopping at Edwards door on the third floor, they paused at the giggling and loud shushing noises coming from within.
Carlisle glanced at his perplexed looking wife, took a deep, bracing breath, and opened the door widely to the sight of two grinning, giggling and obviously very drunk teen vampires sprawled in the middle of the floor, each with a partial bottle of tequila in hand and several empty ones strewn about the room.
“Mom! Dad!” Edward enthused loudly. “Thish is Charlotte, my new friend! Isn’t she boo…uh, boo…uh, isn’t she lovely?”
Carlisle did his best to hide a smile, tucking his face against his silently shaking shoulder as his wife screeched, “Edward Anthony Cullen! Are you drunk?!”
Edward gave her a lopsided smile and a slight shrug as he answered, swaying a bit as he held up his index finger and thumb a fraction of an inch apart as he answered, “Maybe jusht a little?” His eyes squinted and crossed as he studied the fingers he held up before looking back at his mother with a proud grin.
Her mouth dropped open and she looked at her husband who cleared his throat and did his best to straighten his face. “Carlisle! What are we to do with them?!”
Just then, he noticed Edward doing his best to stand and he held up a hand. “You two stay seated on the floor until you both sober up. I don’t feel like undertaking a renovation project in the near future. Understood?” They both nodded emphatically as he stepped forward and grabbed the box that only had two more bottles in it. He also took the partial bottles from them and placed them in the box. “We’ll sit down and discuss this when you’ve sobered up. I’m sure you’ll both benefit from a hunt later, although maybe I should make you deal with the aftermath of this for a bit before I allow you out.”
They both looked contrite and he nodded. “Remember, stay seated and don’t leave this room. I mean it you two.”
They both murmured, “Yes sir,” and he escorted his livid wife from the room and closed the door as snickers and peals of quiet laughter drifted into the hallway from the inebriated teens.
~o0o~
Jasper watched from a high cliff as his nephew tracked the freshest trail they were able to find; one that hadn’t been tainted by the wolves as that seemed to be the most promising.
It was obvious to both Whitlock’s that the red-head was indeed toying with the shifters, but neither found any humor in the situation as they might have were the circumstances different. As it was, they were both all too aware of her ultimate goal and so their focus remained razor sharp. The female had to die and the sooner, the better, for all involved.
A quiet hiss and a sudden shot of concern had Jasper’s immediate attention drawn back from surveying the outlying areas to his nephew as he whispered just loud enough for him to hear, “The bitch has friends with her now. At least two more; male. Keep an eye out.”
He continued following the trail and Jasper followed at a safe distance, doing his best to remain undetected. They both figured that dealing with a lone vampire might make Red a bit braver and draw her out. Jasper figured that strategy would work especially well now that she had help. Vampires such as this female were never looking for a fair fight, after all. She had but one agenda; rage driven revenge, and while, in their experience, that made a vampire tenacious, it also tended to make them careless. They were banking on it being so this time as well.
He watched as Pete traveled deeper into a tight copse of trees and he cursed lowly as his visibility was reduced drastically. He would have to get closer, there was just no other alternative.
Scenting the trees, he took to a tall one that was free of any other vampire traces and gave a mental sigh of relief when he could see into the copse clearly.
Now, the only real concern he had was the fact that the copse was located just over the treaty line, on Quileute land. The treaty was still in force even though Pete was on their land simply because he wasn’t part of the Cullen Coven, but if he was forced to cross over to help his nephew, all bets were off and they could have a potential war with the shifters on their hands. He was fully prepared for that though because there was no way he’d leave Pete hanging. He would help his nephew and make damn sure he got back to his wife and baby son safely. Damn the consequences.
As he watched, Pete moved even further onto the reservation and Jasper cursed as he saw a flash of bright red in the tree above Pete a split second before the bitch dropped onto his nephew. They began fighting and Pete was doing a damn fine job of it when two more males joined the fray and Jasper knew then, he had to join in.
‘Here goes nothin,’ he thought as he raced through the tree-tops and dropped silently onto one of the males whose head he removed in the next few seconds. He hopped down off the flailing, headless body and made short work of tearing it up as he kept Pete in his sights. The male he’d just destroyed had been an inexperienced newborn; easy to kill, but it was clear to him that the female had many years behind her and much more fighting prowess, making her a tougher opponent. Still, he watched with a certain amount of pride as Pete took her apart, piece by painful piece, with a malicious smile on his face.
Knowing that Pete was doing just fine, he spun and located the second overly-large male who was readying himself to charge in and save his she-devil maker.
Jasper crouched with a grin. “Not today son,” he said lowly, startling the hyper-focused newborn with his presence. “Wouldn’t be a fair fight if I let ya gang up on Pete, now would it?” He held out a hand and gestured toward himself. “Come on over here boy and let the Major school ya a bit, not that it’ll benefit ya all that much seein’ as how you’ll be dead at the end of it.”
His grin widened as the enraged newborn charged with a roar, rushing at him like the unskilled bull he was and Jasper flowed gracefully around him, deadly poetry in motion as he removed both arms from the hulk in a single pass with a foot planted in the middle of the brute’s back. “Damn, I’ve sure missed this,” he chuckled as he tossed the twitching limbs off to the side, once again addressing the insane newborn as he huffed where he lay on the ground. “Well come on son! Ya still got legs and teeth haven’t ya? Let’s see how interestin’ ya can make this.”
While the wide-eyed newborn took a second to evaluate his situation, Jasper glanced over just in time to watch Pete end the lunatic female by removing her madly-grinning head, looking fully unruffled as he tossed the gruesome flame-haired lump into the pile waiting to be burned. “Well come on Major,” he grumbled. “Quit fuckin’ around and finish this. The stench of piss and wet dog is gettin’ stronger and I have a feelin’ we’re about to have some company right quick and they ain’t bringin’ refreshments.”
“Well shit,” Jasper complained, “it was just gettin’ good too.” Walking over to the still prone male, he removed his head with a quick twist and a jerk and tossed everything into the pile just as Pete lit the whole thing up.
As soon as the pile was fully engulfed in flames, they both heard the growls and yips of the wolves and Pete couldn’t help but grin at Jasper. “To the trees Major, before they take a bite outta both our asses!”
Jasper let out a ‘whoop’ reminiscent of the infamous rebel yell of the Confederacy and they jumped into the branches just as the snarling wolves encircled the copse of trees they were in.
They both looked at each other as they perched for a moment in the highest boughs, wide grins eventually overtaking their faces from the thrill of the fight and victory. “Damn,” Jasper said as he shook his head. “We still got it boy.”
Pete nodded and punched his Uncle in his arm, nearly knocking him from the branch he was on. “Yeah, we sure as hell do Major,” he scowled and pointed a finger at Jasper. “…but call me ‘boy’ one—more—time and I’ll kick your ass up between your shoulder blades.”
Edward Cullen laid in the middle of his bedroom floor, staring at the ceiling as the sweet strains of classical music ebbed and flowed around him. Outwardly, he looked calm and serene. Inwardly, he was anything but, as his thoughts and emotions raged like an ocean beset with a mighty storm.
He simply couldn’t believe how drastically his life—his very psyche—had changed over the course of a few months, and for one of his kind—the eternally unchanging—such things were monumentally difficult to accept. Accept it he must however, since the source of his turmoil could be summed up in one being; a being he loved but now knew to be beyond his reach…
Isabella Swan.
His eyes closed and his fists clenched with the pain of merely thinking her name and he wondered if he would ever get beyond this feeling—if he would ever recover and feel again as he had felt with her in those almost magical days of blossoming love.
Feeling the ghostly sensation of tears behind his lids, he longed for the relief real tears would bring—longed for that emotional cleansing and release that would never come because of what he is, and he cursed, yet again, this unwanted, lonely existence.
He had loved her. She had brought a joy and lightness to his dead heart that he’d despaired of ever feeling. He had loved her enough to sacrifice the only bright spot in his existence so that she would not be cursed with such a half life and now he was bereft and forced to watch as she set herself on a course to become that which he despised anyway: Vampire.
He choked on a phantom sob as despair, heavy and all-consuming, gripped him and he curled onto his side with a quiet moan at the thought that there was no relief in sight to this pain, no comfort or solace to be had; not for him—never for him, and he gave himself over to despair.
She was out of his reach. She belonged to another, and that would never change.
~o0o~
Charlotte snuck back into the Cullen mansion, doing her best not to jostle her recently acquired box of liquid comfort as she made her way up the stairs, set as she was on finding a dark attic corner in which to seclude herself and drown her sorrows.
Put in simpler terms, she’d stolen an entire case of tequila from the local liquor store and was now hell-bent on getting as fucked up as she possibly could; more difficult for one of her kind than for a human, but as Pete had demonstrated many times through the years, not impossible with enough dedication.
When she reached the landing on the third floor however, the sounds coming from one of the rooms caught her attention and she froze as she listened, her heart clenching in sympathy at the sheer misery conveyed by the stifled moans and whimpers. This vampire sounded as miserable as she felt and she dropped her head as she contemplated just leaving him to it or whether she should join him.
She sighed and shook her head as she made her decision. ‘Misery loves company,’ or so she’d always heard. ‘Time to test that theory Char,’ she thought as she opened the door and slipped in quietly.
A lump rose in her throat as she stood for a moment, watching him rock on his side, curled into a fetal position, looking for all the world like he was desperately trying to hold himself together.
The ache in her own chest grew until she felt compelled to ease him somehow, her current thought being that he was just too… beautiful to be suffering so. It felt all wrong to her, and she just wanted to wrap him up and make it all better and perhaps, in the process, he could do the same for her.
She felt her resolve strengthen and she moved toward him and took a seat on the floor a foot or so in front of him as she set her box of stolen goods off to the side.
She reached out slowly and placed her hand on his cheek, her touch feather light as she didn’t want to spook him. Still he froze at the contact, his muscles tensing as he quietly questioned, “What…,” he swallowed thickly, “…what are you doing here?”
He’d heard her thoughts as she’d stood outside his door; her sorrow and sympathy, and he couldn’t say that he didn’t welcome her. Still, he needed to hear real words from her because it had always been his experience that a being’s thoughts didn’t always mesh with what they were actually willing to say aloud and so he waited for her answer as he took comfort from her gentle caress of his cheek.
“Your pain,” she whispered, “I feel it too and I couldn’t—I just couldn’t leave ya alone in it.”
He opened his eyes and stared into her’s for a moment, seeing all the hurt and sorrow and loss of things that might have been and he knew, in that moment, that she understood probably better than anyone else, what he felt.
Sitting up slowly, he took her hand and gave her a sad smile, his voice quiet and shy as he introduced himself. “I’m Edward.”
She covered his hands with her other and returned his sad smile with one of her own. “I’m Charlotte.”
~o0o~
Carlisle Cullen sat at his desk in his home study, just taking a moment to rest his weary mind. He’d just returned home from checking in on Charlie Swan and was quite pleased with his condition. As best he could tell, the minor heart attack had been brought on, not by heart disease, but by the shock of his brief encounter with Victoria; an encounter that he didn’t seem to recall probably due to the slight concussion he’d received when his car had struck the tree.
For that small reprieve, Carlisle was thankful. It meant that Chief Swan was still safe from the secret and could go on with his normal human life; or as normal as life ever could be here in Forks, WA. he thought to himself with a rueful smile.
The sound of his door opening brought him out of his thoughts and he smiled and held out a hand to his mate as she entered and closed the door behind her. They came together with a kiss and he closed his eyes and savored the feel of her silky cheek against his for a moment before she drew back. “Hello my handsome husband.”
He smiled brightly as he answered, “Hello my beautiful wife. How are you my dear?”
She perched herself on the edge of his desk and his brow pinched as she sighed. “Everyone seems to be doing well so far. Jasper accompanied Peter in looking for Victoria, as you know, and they’re still not back, though Alice says not to worry. She’s had nothing but visions of good outcomes from their ventures. Rosalie and Em are in seventh heaven at the moment. She’s looking after the baby while Bella gets some much needed sleep, and Em is holding both of them and basking in the happiness.” Carlisle laughed softly just picturing that scene in his mind and Esme continued with her impromptu report. “Young Charlotte went out for a walk some time ago and I haven’t seen or heard her return yet, but again, Alice says not to worry, that all is well.” She met her husband’s eyes then and he wondered at the look of consternation on his wife’s lovely face. She solved the slight mystery when she continued speaking. “It’s the strangest thing Carlisle—when Alice spoke of Charlotte, she got the most mischievous smile on her face, as if she knows a secret the rest of us don’t.”
He cocked a brow and smirked. “This is hardly new behavior with our dear Alice.”
She slapped at his shoulder playfully and rolled her eyes, a habit she’d picked up from the kids he was certain and he grinned at her. “Forgive me sweetheart, please, continue.”
“Well, I just find it peculiar due to poor Charlotte’s circumstances. I mean, Carlisle, the girl was just crushed emotionally, much the same way our poor Edward was. It was necessary and unfortunate and I pray they’ll both get over it, but what in the world is smile inducing in that?”
A sudden crashing noise from upstairs had them both glancing at the ceiling before making their way out the door and up the stairs in search of the cause.
Stopping at Edwards door on the third floor, they paused at the giggling and loud shushing noises coming from within.
Carlisle glanced at his perplexed looking wife, took a deep, bracing breath, and opened the door widely to the sight of two grinning, giggling and obviously very drunk teen vampires sprawled in the middle of the floor, each with a partial bottle of tequila in hand and several empty ones strewn about the room.
“Mom! Dad!” Edward enthused loudly. “Thish is Charlotte, my new friend! Isn’t she boo…uh, boo…uh, isn’t she lovely?”
Carlisle did his best to hide a smile, tucking his face against his silently shaking shoulder as his wife screeched, “Edward Anthony Cullen! Are you drunk?!”
Edward gave her a lopsided smile and a slight shrug as he answered, swaying a bit as he held up his index finger and thumb a fraction of an inch apart as he answered, “Maybe jusht a little?” His eyes squinted and crossed as he studied the fingers he held up before looking back at his mother with a proud grin.
Her mouth dropped open and she looked at her husband who cleared his throat and did his best to straighten his face. “Carlisle! What are we to do with them?!”
Just then, he noticed Edward doing his best to stand and he held up a hand. “You two stay seated on the floor until you both sober up. I don’t feel like undertaking a renovation project in the near future. Understood?” They both nodded emphatically as he stepped forward and grabbed the box that only had two more bottles in it. He also took the partial bottles from them and placed them in the box. “We’ll sit down and discuss this when you’ve sobered up. I’m sure you’ll both benefit from a hunt later, although maybe I should make you deal with the aftermath of this for a bit before I allow you out.”
They both looked contrite and he nodded. “Remember, stay seated and don’t leave this room. I mean it you two.”
They both murmured, “Yes sir,” and he escorted his livid wife from the room and closed the door as snickers and peals of quiet laughter drifted into the hallway from the inebriated teens.
~o0o~
Jasper watched from a high cliff as his nephew tracked the freshest trail they were able to find; one that hadn’t been tainted by the wolves as that seemed to be the most promising.
It was obvious to both Whitlock’s that the red-head was indeed toying with the shifters, but neither found any humor in the situation as they might have were the circumstances different. As it was, they were both all too aware of her ultimate goal and so their focus remained razor sharp. The female had to die and the sooner, the better, for all involved.
A quiet hiss and a sudden shot of concern had Jasper’s immediate attention drawn back from surveying the outlying areas to his nephew as he whispered just loud enough for him to hear, “The bitch has friends with her now. At least two more; male. Keep an eye out.”
He continued following the trail and Jasper followed at a safe distance, doing his best to remain undetected. They both figured that dealing with a lone vampire might make Red a bit braver and draw her out. Jasper figured that strategy would work especially well now that she had help. Vampires such as this female were never looking for a fair fight, after all. She had but one agenda; rage driven revenge, and while, in their experience, that made a vampire tenacious, it also tended to make them careless. They were banking on it being so this time as well.
He watched as Pete traveled deeper into a tight copse of trees and he cursed lowly as his visibility was reduced drastically. He would have to get closer, there was just no other alternative.
Scenting the trees, he took to a tall one that was free of any other vampire traces and gave a mental sigh of relief when he could see into the copse clearly.
Now, the only real concern he had was the fact that the copse was located just over the treaty line, on Quileute land. The treaty was still in force even though Pete was on their land simply because he wasn’t part of the Cullen Coven, but if he was forced to cross over to help his nephew, all bets were off and they could have a potential war with the shifters on their hands. He was fully prepared for that though because there was no way he’d leave Pete hanging. He would help his nephew and make damn sure he got back to his wife and baby son safely. Damn the consequences.
As he watched, Pete moved even further onto the reservation and Jasper cursed as he saw a flash of bright red in the tree above Pete a split second before the bitch dropped onto his nephew. They began fighting and Pete was doing a damn fine job of it when two more males joined the fray and Jasper knew then, he had to join in.
‘Here goes nothin,’ he thought as he raced through the tree-tops and dropped silently onto one of the males whose head he removed in the next few seconds. He hopped down off the flailing, headless body and made short work of tearing it up as he kept Pete in his sights. The male he’d just destroyed had been an inexperienced newborn; easy to kill, but it was clear to him that the female had many years behind her and much more fighting prowess, making her a tougher opponent. Still, he watched with a certain amount of pride as Pete took her apart, piece by painful piece, with a malicious smile on his face.
Knowing that Pete was doing just fine, he spun and located the second overly-large male who was readying himself to charge in and save his she-devil maker.
Jasper crouched with a grin. “Not today son,” he said lowly, startling the hyper-focused newborn with his presence. “Wouldn’t be a fair fight if I let ya gang up on Pete, now would it?” He held out a hand and gestured toward himself. “Come on over here boy and let the Major school ya a bit, not that it’ll benefit ya all that much seein’ as how you’ll be dead at the end of it.”
His grin widened as the enraged newborn charged with a roar, rushing at him like the unskilled bull he was and Jasper flowed gracefully around him, deadly poetry in motion as he removed both arms from the hulk in a single pass with a foot planted in the middle of the brute’s back. “Damn, I’ve sure missed this,” he chuckled as he tossed the twitching limbs off to the side, once again addressing the insane newborn as he huffed where he lay on the ground. “Well come on son! Ya still got legs and teeth haven’t ya? Let’s see how interestin’ ya can make this.”
While the wide-eyed newborn took a second to evaluate his situation, Jasper glanced over just in time to watch Pete end the lunatic female by removing her madly-grinning head, looking fully unruffled as he tossed the gruesome flame-haired lump into the pile waiting to be burned. “Well come on Major,” he grumbled. “Quit fuckin’ around and finish this. The stench of piss and wet dog is gettin’ stronger and I have a feelin’ we’re about to have some company right quick and they ain’t bringin’ refreshments.”
“Well shit,” Jasper complained, “it was just gettin’ good too.” Walking over to the still prone male, he removed his head with a quick twist and a jerk and tossed everything into the pile just as Pete lit the whole thing up.
As soon as the pile was fully engulfed in flames, they both heard the growls and yips of the wolves and Pete couldn’t help but grin at Jasper. “To the trees Major, before they take a bite outta both our asses!”
Jasper let out a ‘whoop’ reminiscent of the infamous rebel yell of the Confederacy and they jumped into the branches just as the snarling wolves encircled the copse of trees they were in.
They both looked at each other as they perched for a moment in the highest boughs, wide grins eventually overtaking their faces from the thrill of the fight and victory. “Damn,” Jasper said as he shook his head. “We still got it boy.”
Pete nodded and punched his Uncle in his arm, nearly knocking him from the branch he was on. “Yeah, we sure as hell do Major,” he scowled and pointed a finger at Jasper. “…but call me ‘boy’ one—more—time and I’ll kick your ass up between your shoulder blades.”
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