Waiting For My Real Life To Begin
by Laura Spudzmom
Chapter 31
“Shhh, he’s sleeping,” she whispered, her eyes vacant and lips curved in a gentle smile as the rocking chair creaked a steady rhythm. She resumed humming a lullaby, her eyes staring into nothing, and Damon swallowed thickly, his jaw clenching as he beat back a wave of sorrow.
She’d been in that chair since arriving back at the house, holding her dead son and rocking…always rocking.
“Bella,” Damon said, stilling the chair with a hand on the arm. He knelt and brushed a curl from her cheek, drawing her vacant gaze to his. “Sweetheart, let me take the baby now, all right?”
She smiled, adjusting her hold on the blood-soaked child in her arms. “No, I’ll hold him while he sleeps. He likes being held while he sleeps.”
Damon looked away, his hand clenching into a fist where it rested on his thigh. “Bella…I need to take him…he’s gone, baby. We need to prepare…”
“No,” she snapped, a frown marring her brow before smoothing out as she smiled and tilted her head. “He’s just…” She glanced down, carding her fingers through his downey curls. “He’s just sleeping,” she murmured. “He’ll wake up soon.” She looked into her father’s eyes. “He’ll be hungry soon and he’ll wake up, you’ll see.”
She pushed off the floor with a foot and Damon let his hand slip from the chair as she resumed rocking. Soon, the sound of her humming picked up again and he stood, staring at her for moments before joining Charles and Emily across the room.
“She’s been like that for a while now,” Charles said, his voice low as he glanced at Damon. “The whole time you were dealing with Mr. Jasper upstairs.”
Damon nodded. After returning to the house, he’d had to leave Bella in the butler’s care to deal with cleaning up Jasper’s body. He and Emily had washed him, dressed him and laid him out on the bed in a guest room, just in case he’d had enough blood to wake in a few hours. And if he hadn’t ingested the blood…well, he’d be ready to be laid to rest in the casket the undertaker had delivered just minutes earlier.
Rage filled him as he thought back on the single rifle shot that had taken out his son-in-law and grandson. From the looks of it, it had entered left of center of Jasper’s back and went straight through, striking the baby he’d held against his chest, killing both almost instantly.
“Mr. Jasper’s folks…?” Charles questioned. With a sigh, Damon glanced back at his daughter before answering.
“They’re upstairs saying their final good-byes, his sisters too.”
“They know about the baby?” Emily asked, reaching over to take Charles’s hand.
“Yeah,” Damon affirmed. “They do and they’ll probably be down here soon.”
Emily wiped a tear from her cheek. “If you can get the baby out of her arms, I’ll take Miss Bella and get her cleaned up and changed into fresh clothes.”
Damon frowned. “I doubt if you could handle her alone.”
“You think she’ll fight us?
“I’m worried she will, yes. She doesn’t want to give Jace up. She’s not in her right mind, not accepting his death. I may need to help you with her.”
Charles rubbed his brow, his head shaking slowly. “I can deal with the little one, while you two take care of Miss Bella if that will help.”
Damon nodded. “Yeah, that’ll be good, Charles, thank you. One other thing,” he said, glancing between the two. “I haven’t seen anyone, but I want to make sure… Has the nanny and all the extra staff been sent home?”
“Yes,” Emily said. “I did that as soon as I saw…”
He nodded, stopping her with a raised hand. “Good, that’s all I wanted to know. The last thing we need now is extra people hanging around. The next few days are going to be difficult enough as it is.”
He turned toward Bella and murmured, “All right Charles, I’m going to hold her while you take the baby. She might cooperate, but then again she might beg, cry or out-right fight. Be gentle, but be quick. Once you have Jace, get yourself out of the way, you hear? She’s strong. I’m stronger, but she’s still strong enough to hurt you if you get in the way. You too, Emily. Don’t approach until I give you the okay.”
He glanced at them, catching their nods before crossing the room. Circling around behind the rocking chair, he stilled Bella’s movement with a gentle grasp on her shoulders while leaning down to speak softly, “Bella, baby, Charles needs to take Jace now. He’s gonna put him down for the rest of his nap before dinner, all right?”
She stopped humming and blinked. “Charles?”
“Yeah, baby girl, give the baby to Charles. He’ll take good care of him, you know that.”
She smiled, her eyes still staring at everything while seeing nothing. “Charles loves Jace.”
Damon glanced at the man who was drying his tears with his sleeve. “Yeah, sweetheart, he does. Will you let him take the baby for his nap now?”
She frowned. “I want to hold him,” she insisted, drawing his little body closer.
Damon moved his hands down to Bella’s upper arms. “Sweetheart, let Charles take him and change him and then he’ll bring him right back to you, okay? He hasn’t been changed in a while, right?”
Her frown deepened and she cupped Jace’s head in her hand before rising from the chair. “I’ll change him, it’s no trouble.” Damon’s hold tightened as he stepped around the chair, his head dipping down and voice low as he coaxed, “Bella, I need to speak with you, so give the baby to Charles and when we’re done speaking, he’ll bring him right back.”
She tried to shrug him off. “No, we’ll talk after I change him.”
Closing his eyes in dread at what he had to do, he finally met Charles’s gaze and nodded sharply while locking his arms around his daughter.
Charles rushed forward and took Jace from her just as she began thrashing and screaming. The butler’s eyes went wide as her instincts kicked in, causing her fangs to descend as Damon scooped her hissing form into his arms. “Go Charles!” he urged as Bella sank her teeth into her father’s shoulder. “Damn it!” he hissed, adjusting his hold on her while rushing from the room.
Emily followed, arriving in the master bedroom and closing the door as Damon murmured into Bella’s ear, trying his best to calm her. It seemed to be working, but now she was sobbing. “My baby…my baby…give him back…”
“Shh, sweetheart, it’ll be okay,” he soothed while easing down to sit on the edge of the bed. “Hush now, I’ve got you…I’m here, baby girl…I’ll always be here…hush now…” he whispered between kisses to her temple.
Tucking her head against his chest, she sobbed, “Jace, Daddy…I want my baby back…please…”
He clenched his eyes closed against the sting of tears and laid his cheek on the crown of her head. “I know,” he choked, his voice thick with suppressed tears, “and if I could bring him back for you, I would sweetheart, but…he’s gone.”
“Noooo,” she keened, breaking Damon’s heart even further as she clutched his shirt while wetting his neck with her tears. “No, he can’t be…he can’t be…”
Mustering every ounce of power and concentration he could, Damon cupped her face in his hands and stared deeply into her eyes. “Isabella, I want you to let everything else fall away as you focus on my eyes and concentrate on my voice.” She blinked slowly before becoming caught in his gaze.
“All right,” she intoned as her tears slowed. He wiped her cheeks with his thumbs, never losing eye contact.
“Good,” he said with a wan smile, hating himself for having to do this. “Now, everything that’s happened this past day has all been a bad dream, one that you remember, but when you do, you see it through a haze, do you understand? You feel nothing when you think of it. None of it touches you.”
She nodded woodenly against the palms of his hands, mechanically repeating, “None of it touches me.”
“That’s right baby girl, you feel nothing, no emotions, no pain.”
“No pain…” she repeated.
“You’ll remember with clarity only when I tell you to.”
“When you tell me…” she droned, her eyes glassy as she stared.
“Good,” he said, finally breaking eye contact to softly kiss her brow. “Now, Emily’s going to help you bathe and change, all right?”
With a nod, she climbed off his lap and shuffled toward Emily who, with a gentle arm placed around her shoulders, ushered her into the washroom and closed the door.
With elbows resting on knees, he dropped his face into his hands and scrubbed, muttering a choked, “Fuck” before rising and leaving the room. He figured it was time to deal with Jasper’s family, so with that thought in mind, he made his way to the guest room, knocked lightly and entered.
Steeling himself against the deep grief in the room, he met Thomas’s red-rimmed eyes with a nod. The man was standing by the bed where his son lay surrounded by his mother and two sisters, all of whom were crying unconsolably. “Thomas,” he greeted, his tone low and grave.
“Damon,” the man returned as they shook hands. “Any idea who did this?” the grieving father asked, his nostrils flaring as stricken rage flashed in his eyes.
“None,” Damon answered, with a glance at the bed, “but I damn sure intend to find out.”
“As do I,” the man ground out. “I spoke to the sheriff before coming here. They found a rifle abandoned in an alley, two blocks from where…” his voice cracked and he cleared his throat, “from where Jasper and Jace were shot, but no one knows who it belongs to and no other signs left in the area.”
“Where, exactly?” Damon demanded.
“The alley between the barber shop and milliner.”
Damon made a mental note of that info, determined to slip out at the first chance to check it out. With things the way they were at the moment though, he didn’t think that would be any time soon. At least not until Jasper’s family left.
A light knock sounded at the door, bringing him from his thoughts as Charles stepped in, Jace’s wrapped body held in the crook of his left arm.
His gaze met Damon’s who gave a nod, silently urging him to cross the room and lay the freshly changed and dressed baby next to his father. “Ma’am,” Charles murmured, as Eliza raised her teary gaze to him. Then her face crumpled and she covered her mouth with a hand as she focused on the baby.
Reaching over with a shaking hand, she moved the blanket away and keened at the sight of his pale little face. “Why?” she cried. “Why would someone kill a tiny child?!” Shaking fingers skimmed the cold skin of his cheek. “He looked so much like Jasper…” she whispered. “Why?”
Damon glanced at Thomas, whose eyes were fixed on the lifeless body of his grandson. The man’s jaw was tense, a muscle ticking there as he fought his emotions. “Why, indeed,” he murmured.
Both of Jasper’s sisters were still weeping and Eliza laid herself over Jasper’s chest, her broken sobs ringing through the room as her hand strayed to lie upon Jace. “Well,” Thomas began, “I believe we’ve been here long enough.” He looked at Damon. “You’ll be sure to let us know the final arrangements? I would offer…”
Damon held up a hand. “It’s not necessary. We’re already taking care of everything.” He had to shut down those notions quickly, just in case Jasper awoke; not exactly an easy thing to explain away should it happen…
“Well, if Isabella should need anything…” he trailed as Damon nodded.
“I’ll tell her and I’m sure, when she’s over the initial shock, she’ll appreciate your concern.”
Thomas’s frown deepened. “Poor girl,” he muttered while laying a hand on his wife’s shoulder. “Eliza, come, it’s time we went home, dear one.”
She sat up and dabbed a kerchief to her eyes while nodding. “I suppose you’re right. We can’t bring them back…” Her voice broke and she stood, tucking herself into her husband’s hold as he patted each daughter’s shoulder.
“Come girls, let’s go.”
Julia and Jane rose from their seats, each one giving Damon a quick curtsy before hurrying from the room while drying their tears.
He sighed. “I’ll see you out,” he said, ushering the couple from the room and down the stairs.
Charles was there, holding the door wide as they approached. “You’ll contact me if you hear anything about who did this?” Thomas asked as his wife and daughters made their way out to their carriage.
“Of course,” Damon agreed. “You’ll do the same?”
“Absolutely,” Thomas growled. “I want the bastard caught and publicly hanged,” he raged quietly. “I won’t rest until that happens.”
“Agreed,” Damon murmured with a nod. Privately, he had his doubts as to whether anyone would ever be caught for this, but he would keep them to himself for the time being. He needed to check out that alley first; see if there were any scents left behind.
When Thomas finally left and Charles had closed the door, Damon breathed a bit easier. “Lock that damn door, Charles and don’t allow anyone else entrance. If the Sheriff shows for some reason, come get me, but leave the man outside the door.”
Charles gave him a wary nod. “Is this because of Mr. Jasper, sir? Is he…is it possible…?”
Damon breathed deeply and blew it out while studying the butler. “You’ve spoken to Emily, then?”
Charles dipped his head, dark eyes locked on the vampire before him. “Yes sir, I have.”
“All right, then. Yes, this is because of Jasper. If he’s had enough of my blood, he’s going to wake up in a few hours and he’ll be looking to feed.”
The butler’s eyes widened and Damon smirked humorlessly. “I see you’re catching on. Yes, he’ll be thirsty and you need to stay well away from him until I say otherwise. I’m sure Emily has you protected somehow, but still, better safe than sorry.”
Charles nodded. “What will he…I mean, who…?”
Damon raised a brow as Charles struggled with what he wanted to ask, finally raising a hand to cut him off. “I’ll bring in a first meal, and have it here before he wakes…if he wakes…” he trailed off gravely.
Charles shook his head. “And the baby? He was part what you are…like Miss Bella…is there a chance…?”
Pain flashed through Damon’s blue eyes as he shook his head. “The bullet got his heart and he was only one quarter vampire. I don’t think he’s coming back from this. If he hasn’t in a few more hours, he won’t.”
“So, what now, sir?”
Damon rubbed his eyes before looking at the man. “Now, I need you and Emily to get everything ready for our group to leave after the funeral. I’m going to head out and check out where the gun was found, then I’m going to round up a meal, just in case Jasper wakes. Both of you, please, keep a close eye on Bella. She shouldn’t be a problem, but keep her out of that guest room.”
Charles nodded. “Yes, sir, Mr. Salvatore, we’ll take care of everything.”
Damon clapped a hand on his shoulder, ignoring how the man tensed as he smiled wanly. “Thank you Charles. I appreciate it. Now,” he said as he walked to the door, “lock this behind me. When I return, it’ll be from the back and I won’t need your help.”
“Yes, sir,” Charles said as Damon slipped out into the night. With a sigh, he locked the door, turned and headed out to find Emily.
~o0o~
The sound of skidding tires on gravel wrenched Stefan from his restless sleep and he carefully moved Elena off of him before hopping out of bed to grab his jeans. Quickly stepping into them, he yanked them up and fastened them just as he heard rubber shrieking on pavement as whoever it was wasted no time leaving just as quickly as they’d arrived. “What the hell…?” he muttered while taking the stairs as fast as he could, When he got to the door, he yanked it open, his brow creasing at the sight of a sobbing heap lying in his driveway in the scant moonlight. When he caught the scent of the person, his eyes widened in shock and concern. “Bonnie?”
They’d searched for any sign of her for over two days, with no luck. Outside of her car, keys and phone in the parking lot of the Grill, and the lingering scent of the cold one, they’d had no luck. The girl had simply vanished, leaving them with little hope of ever seeing her again.
Running to her, he knelt and lifted her in his arms, his concern and confusion mounting at her continued sobs, but also the dress she wore. It was very like the ones they’d procured for his niece when they’d prepared her to go back in time, and a chill crawled up his spine at the thought of what the cold one had been up to.
Taking her into the living room, he set her on the sofa before reaching over to switch on a lamp. “Bonnie?” he tried again while kneeling in front of her. Grabbing a box of tissues, he plucked two from the box, handing them to the crying girl and watched as she dried her tears and wiped her nose before meeting his gaze.
“Stefan,” she croaked. “Oh god, Stefan, I’m sorry…I’m sorry…”
His brows drew down. “For what? You were taken, Bonnie, that’s not your fault…”
Her head shook vehemently. “He…he…oh god, if only I’d refused…but he threatened…” She mopped at more tears and met his eyes again. “He killed them. He shot them and I…I took him there and it’s my fault. It’s because of me they’re dead.”
Dread settled in his stomach at her hollow tone. “Edward Cullen?” he questioned lowly. Her chin quivered as she nodded. “Who, Bonnie? Who did he kill?”
He watched as her face began to crumple, but she held his gaze as fresh tears coursed down her cheeks, her voice trembling and cracking as she answered, “Bella’s husband and ba—baby.” It came out in barely a whisper as she dissolved into sobs, her face dropping into her hands as her shoulders shook.
He sucked in a breath. “Baby…” he breathed as the gravity of what had happened hit him.
Pain, sharp and unexpected lanced through him as he turned his head, his eyes unseeing as he stared through the window. Bella, Damon’s daughter, his niece, had a child. A child he would never get to see or know because Edward Cullen had killed him or her. His hand clenched into a fist at the surprisingly strong emotions that thought evoked; first pain and loss and now rage…
He was a Salvatore… Bella was a Salvatore and no matter the child’s surname, in his mind, that baby had been a Salvatore too…
“I’ll kill the fucker…” he seethed. “When I find him, he’s gonna be praying for death by the time I’m through with him.”
“Shhh, he’s sleeping,” she whispered, her eyes vacant and lips curved in a gentle smile as the rocking chair creaked a steady rhythm. She resumed humming a lullaby, her eyes staring into nothing, and Damon swallowed thickly, his jaw clenching as he beat back a wave of sorrow.
She’d been in that chair since arriving back at the house, holding her dead son and rocking…always rocking.
“Bella,” Damon said, stilling the chair with a hand on the arm. He knelt and brushed a curl from her cheek, drawing her vacant gaze to his. “Sweetheart, let me take the baby now, all right?”
She smiled, adjusting her hold on the blood-soaked child in her arms. “No, I’ll hold him while he sleeps. He likes being held while he sleeps.”
Damon looked away, his hand clenching into a fist where it rested on his thigh. “Bella…I need to take him…he’s gone, baby. We need to prepare…”
“No,” she snapped, a frown marring her brow before smoothing out as she smiled and tilted her head. “He’s just…” She glanced down, carding her fingers through his downey curls. “He’s just sleeping,” she murmured. “He’ll wake up soon.” She looked into her father’s eyes. “He’ll be hungry soon and he’ll wake up, you’ll see.”
She pushed off the floor with a foot and Damon let his hand slip from the chair as she resumed rocking. Soon, the sound of her humming picked up again and he stood, staring at her for moments before joining Charles and Emily across the room.
“She’s been like that for a while now,” Charles said, his voice low as he glanced at Damon. “The whole time you were dealing with Mr. Jasper upstairs.”
Damon nodded. After returning to the house, he’d had to leave Bella in the butler’s care to deal with cleaning up Jasper’s body. He and Emily had washed him, dressed him and laid him out on the bed in a guest room, just in case he’d had enough blood to wake in a few hours. And if he hadn’t ingested the blood…well, he’d be ready to be laid to rest in the casket the undertaker had delivered just minutes earlier.
Rage filled him as he thought back on the single rifle shot that had taken out his son-in-law and grandson. From the looks of it, it had entered left of center of Jasper’s back and went straight through, striking the baby he’d held against his chest, killing both almost instantly.
“Mr. Jasper’s folks…?” Charles questioned. With a sigh, Damon glanced back at his daughter before answering.
“They’re upstairs saying their final good-byes, his sisters too.”
“They know about the baby?” Emily asked, reaching over to take Charles’s hand.
“Yeah,” Damon affirmed. “They do and they’ll probably be down here soon.”
Emily wiped a tear from her cheek. “If you can get the baby out of her arms, I’ll take Miss Bella and get her cleaned up and changed into fresh clothes.”
Damon frowned. “I doubt if you could handle her alone.”
“You think she’ll fight us?
“I’m worried she will, yes. She doesn’t want to give Jace up. She’s not in her right mind, not accepting his death. I may need to help you with her.”
Charles rubbed his brow, his head shaking slowly. “I can deal with the little one, while you two take care of Miss Bella if that will help.”
Damon nodded. “Yeah, that’ll be good, Charles, thank you. One other thing,” he said, glancing between the two. “I haven’t seen anyone, but I want to make sure… Has the nanny and all the extra staff been sent home?”
“Yes,” Emily said. “I did that as soon as I saw…”
He nodded, stopping her with a raised hand. “Good, that’s all I wanted to know. The last thing we need now is extra people hanging around. The next few days are going to be difficult enough as it is.”
He turned toward Bella and murmured, “All right Charles, I’m going to hold her while you take the baby. She might cooperate, but then again she might beg, cry or out-right fight. Be gentle, but be quick. Once you have Jace, get yourself out of the way, you hear? She’s strong. I’m stronger, but she’s still strong enough to hurt you if you get in the way. You too, Emily. Don’t approach until I give you the okay.”
He glanced at them, catching their nods before crossing the room. Circling around behind the rocking chair, he stilled Bella’s movement with a gentle grasp on her shoulders while leaning down to speak softly, “Bella, baby, Charles needs to take Jace now. He’s gonna put him down for the rest of his nap before dinner, all right?”
She stopped humming and blinked. “Charles?”
“Yeah, baby girl, give the baby to Charles. He’ll take good care of him, you know that.”
She smiled, her eyes still staring at everything while seeing nothing. “Charles loves Jace.”
Damon glanced at the man who was drying his tears with his sleeve. “Yeah, sweetheart, he does. Will you let him take the baby for his nap now?”
She frowned. “I want to hold him,” she insisted, drawing his little body closer.
Damon moved his hands down to Bella’s upper arms. “Sweetheart, let Charles take him and change him and then he’ll bring him right back to you, okay? He hasn’t been changed in a while, right?”
Her frown deepened and she cupped Jace’s head in her hand before rising from the chair. “I’ll change him, it’s no trouble.” Damon’s hold tightened as he stepped around the chair, his head dipping down and voice low as he coaxed, “Bella, I need to speak with you, so give the baby to Charles and when we’re done speaking, he’ll bring him right back.”
She tried to shrug him off. “No, we’ll talk after I change him.”
Closing his eyes in dread at what he had to do, he finally met Charles’s gaze and nodded sharply while locking his arms around his daughter.
Charles rushed forward and took Jace from her just as she began thrashing and screaming. The butler’s eyes went wide as her instincts kicked in, causing her fangs to descend as Damon scooped her hissing form into his arms. “Go Charles!” he urged as Bella sank her teeth into her father’s shoulder. “Damn it!” he hissed, adjusting his hold on her while rushing from the room.
Emily followed, arriving in the master bedroom and closing the door as Damon murmured into Bella’s ear, trying his best to calm her. It seemed to be working, but now she was sobbing. “My baby…my baby…give him back…”
“Shh, sweetheart, it’ll be okay,” he soothed while easing down to sit on the edge of the bed. “Hush now, I’ve got you…I’m here, baby girl…I’ll always be here…hush now…” he whispered between kisses to her temple.
Tucking her head against his chest, she sobbed, “Jace, Daddy…I want my baby back…please…”
He clenched his eyes closed against the sting of tears and laid his cheek on the crown of her head. “I know,” he choked, his voice thick with suppressed tears, “and if I could bring him back for you, I would sweetheart, but…he’s gone.”
“Noooo,” she keened, breaking Damon’s heart even further as she clutched his shirt while wetting his neck with her tears. “No, he can’t be…he can’t be…”
Mustering every ounce of power and concentration he could, Damon cupped her face in his hands and stared deeply into her eyes. “Isabella, I want you to let everything else fall away as you focus on my eyes and concentrate on my voice.” She blinked slowly before becoming caught in his gaze.
“All right,” she intoned as her tears slowed. He wiped her cheeks with his thumbs, never losing eye contact.
“Good,” he said with a wan smile, hating himself for having to do this. “Now, everything that’s happened this past day has all been a bad dream, one that you remember, but when you do, you see it through a haze, do you understand? You feel nothing when you think of it. None of it touches you.”
She nodded woodenly against the palms of his hands, mechanically repeating, “None of it touches me.”
“That’s right baby girl, you feel nothing, no emotions, no pain.”
“No pain…” she repeated.
“You’ll remember with clarity only when I tell you to.”
“When you tell me…” she droned, her eyes glassy as she stared.
“Good,” he said, finally breaking eye contact to softly kiss her brow. “Now, Emily’s going to help you bathe and change, all right?”
With a nod, she climbed off his lap and shuffled toward Emily who, with a gentle arm placed around her shoulders, ushered her into the washroom and closed the door.
With elbows resting on knees, he dropped his face into his hands and scrubbed, muttering a choked, “Fuck” before rising and leaving the room. He figured it was time to deal with Jasper’s family, so with that thought in mind, he made his way to the guest room, knocked lightly and entered.
Steeling himself against the deep grief in the room, he met Thomas’s red-rimmed eyes with a nod. The man was standing by the bed where his son lay surrounded by his mother and two sisters, all of whom were crying unconsolably. “Thomas,” he greeted, his tone low and grave.
“Damon,” the man returned as they shook hands. “Any idea who did this?” the grieving father asked, his nostrils flaring as stricken rage flashed in his eyes.
“None,” Damon answered, with a glance at the bed, “but I damn sure intend to find out.”
“As do I,” the man ground out. “I spoke to the sheriff before coming here. They found a rifle abandoned in an alley, two blocks from where…” his voice cracked and he cleared his throat, “from where Jasper and Jace were shot, but no one knows who it belongs to and no other signs left in the area.”
“Where, exactly?” Damon demanded.
“The alley between the barber shop and milliner.”
Damon made a mental note of that info, determined to slip out at the first chance to check it out. With things the way they were at the moment though, he didn’t think that would be any time soon. At least not until Jasper’s family left.
A light knock sounded at the door, bringing him from his thoughts as Charles stepped in, Jace’s wrapped body held in the crook of his left arm.
His gaze met Damon’s who gave a nod, silently urging him to cross the room and lay the freshly changed and dressed baby next to his father. “Ma’am,” Charles murmured, as Eliza raised her teary gaze to him. Then her face crumpled and she covered her mouth with a hand as she focused on the baby.
Reaching over with a shaking hand, she moved the blanket away and keened at the sight of his pale little face. “Why?” she cried. “Why would someone kill a tiny child?!” Shaking fingers skimmed the cold skin of his cheek. “He looked so much like Jasper…” she whispered. “Why?”
Damon glanced at Thomas, whose eyes were fixed on the lifeless body of his grandson. The man’s jaw was tense, a muscle ticking there as he fought his emotions. “Why, indeed,” he murmured.
Both of Jasper’s sisters were still weeping and Eliza laid herself over Jasper’s chest, her broken sobs ringing through the room as her hand strayed to lie upon Jace. “Well,” Thomas began, “I believe we’ve been here long enough.” He looked at Damon. “You’ll be sure to let us know the final arrangements? I would offer…”
Damon held up a hand. “It’s not necessary. We’re already taking care of everything.” He had to shut down those notions quickly, just in case Jasper awoke; not exactly an easy thing to explain away should it happen…
“Well, if Isabella should need anything…” he trailed as Damon nodded.
“I’ll tell her and I’m sure, when she’s over the initial shock, she’ll appreciate your concern.”
Thomas’s frown deepened. “Poor girl,” he muttered while laying a hand on his wife’s shoulder. “Eliza, come, it’s time we went home, dear one.”
She sat up and dabbed a kerchief to her eyes while nodding. “I suppose you’re right. We can’t bring them back…” Her voice broke and she stood, tucking herself into her husband’s hold as he patted each daughter’s shoulder.
“Come girls, let’s go.”
Julia and Jane rose from their seats, each one giving Damon a quick curtsy before hurrying from the room while drying their tears.
He sighed. “I’ll see you out,” he said, ushering the couple from the room and down the stairs.
Charles was there, holding the door wide as they approached. “You’ll contact me if you hear anything about who did this?” Thomas asked as his wife and daughters made their way out to their carriage.
“Of course,” Damon agreed. “You’ll do the same?”
“Absolutely,” Thomas growled. “I want the bastard caught and publicly hanged,” he raged quietly. “I won’t rest until that happens.”
“Agreed,” Damon murmured with a nod. Privately, he had his doubts as to whether anyone would ever be caught for this, but he would keep them to himself for the time being. He needed to check out that alley first; see if there were any scents left behind.
When Thomas finally left and Charles had closed the door, Damon breathed a bit easier. “Lock that damn door, Charles and don’t allow anyone else entrance. If the Sheriff shows for some reason, come get me, but leave the man outside the door.”
Charles gave him a wary nod. “Is this because of Mr. Jasper, sir? Is he…is it possible…?”
Damon breathed deeply and blew it out while studying the butler. “You’ve spoken to Emily, then?”
Charles dipped his head, dark eyes locked on the vampire before him. “Yes sir, I have.”
“All right, then. Yes, this is because of Jasper. If he’s had enough of my blood, he’s going to wake up in a few hours and he’ll be looking to feed.”
The butler’s eyes widened and Damon smirked humorlessly. “I see you’re catching on. Yes, he’ll be thirsty and you need to stay well away from him until I say otherwise. I’m sure Emily has you protected somehow, but still, better safe than sorry.”
Charles nodded. “What will he…I mean, who…?”
Damon raised a brow as Charles struggled with what he wanted to ask, finally raising a hand to cut him off. “I’ll bring in a first meal, and have it here before he wakes…if he wakes…” he trailed off gravely.
Charles shook his head. “And the baby? He was part what you are…like Miss Bella…is there a chance…?”
Pain flashed through Damon’s blue eyes as he shook his head. “The bullet got his heart and he was only one quarter vampire. I don’t think he’s coming back from this. If he hasn’t in a few more hours, he won’t.”
“So, what now, sir?”
Damon rubbed his eyes before looking at the man. “Now, I need you and Emily to get everything ready for our group to leave after the funeral. I’m going to head out and check out where the gun was found, then I’m going to round up a meal, just in case Jasper wakes. Both of you, please, keep a close eye on Bella. She shouldn’t be a problem, but keep her out of that guest room.”
Charles nodded. “Yes, sir, Mr. Salvatore, we’ll take care of everything.”
Damon clapped a hand on his shoulder, ignoring how the man tensed as he smiled wanly. “Thank you Charles. I appreciate it. Now,” he said as he walked to the door, “lock this behind me. When I return, it’ll be from the back and I won’t need your help.”
“Yes, sir,” Charles said as Damon slipped out into the night. With a sigh, he locked the door, turned and headed out to find Emily.
~o0o~
The sound of skidding tires on gravel wrenched Stefan from his restless sleep and he carefully moved Elena off of him before hopping out of bed to grab his jeans. Quickly stepping into them, he yanked them up and fastened them just as he heard rubber shrieking on pavement as whoever it was wasted no time leaving just as quickly as they’d arrived. “What the hell…?” he muttered while taking the stairs as fast as he could, When he got to the door, he yanked it open, his brow creasing at the sight of a sobbing heap lying in his driveway in the scant moonlight. When he caught the scent of the person, his eyes widened in shock and concern. “Bonnie?”
They’d searched for any sign of her for over two days, with no luck. Outside of her car, keys and phone in the parking lot of the Grill, and the lingering scent of the cold one, they’d had no luck. The girl had simply vanished, leaving them with little hope of ever seeing her again.
Running to her, he knelt and lifted her in his arms, his concern and confusion mounting at her continued sobs, but also the dress she wore. It was very like the ones they’d procured for his niece when they’d prepared her to go back in time, and a chill crawled up his spine at the thought of what the cold one had been up to.
Taking her into the living room, he set her on the sofa before reaching over to switch on a lamp. “Bonnie?” he tried again while kneeling in front of her. Grabbing a box of tissues, he plucked two from the box, handing them to the crying girl and watched as she dried her tears and wiped her nose before meeting his gaze.
“Stefan,” she croaked. “Oh god, Stefan, I’m sorry…I’m sorry…”
His brows drew down. “For what? You were taken, Bonnie, that’s not your fault…”
Her head shook vehemently. “He…he…oh god, if only I’d refused…but he threatened…” She mopped at more tears and met his eyes again. “He killed them. He shot them and I…I took him there and it’s my fault. It’s because of me they’re dead.”
Dread settled in his stomach at her hollow tone. “Edward Cullen?” he questioned lowly. Her chin quivered as she nodded. “Who, Bonnie? Who did he kill?”
He watched as her face began to crumple, but she held his gaze as fresh tears coursed down her cheeks, her voice trembling and cracking as she answered, “Bella’s husband and ba—baby.” It came out in barely a whisper as she dissolved into sobs, her face dropping into her hands as her shoulders shook.
He sucked in a breath. “Baby…” he breathed as the gravity of what had happened hit him.
Pain, sharp and unexpected lanced through him as he turned his head, his eyes unseeing as he stared through the window. Bella, Damon’s daughter, his niece, had a child. A child he would never get to see or know because Edward Cullen had killed him or her. His hand clenched into a fist at the surprisingly strong emotions that thought evoked; first pain and loss and now rage…
He was a Salvatore… Bella was a Salvatore and no matter the child’s surname, in his mind, that baby had been a Salvatore too…
“I’ll kill the fucker…” he seethed. “When I find him, he’s gonna be praying for death by the time I’m through with him.”
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