Page 9 of Nighted

Jasper stopped pacing, glaring at me. “Don’t start with me, Green.”

Not wanting to pick another fight, I gestured for him to continue. “And the less easy options?”

He pinched the bridge of his nose. “I don’t even want to say the name. It’s not right.”

Taking my chances with his eyes closed, I rolled my eyes. Really. A werewolf scared of something’s name. “Spit it out, Jasper. I have only your experience to rely on here.”

Jasper cringed. “An… evil spirit.”

I had to stop myself from bursting out laughing. But I didn’t think he’d take too kindly to my humour, all things considered. “Like, an evil ghost? A demon?”

“I know you think you’re immune to all of this shit, but don’t say any more than you have to. I’m serious. Their names have the power to release them and summon them, and it’s better to just play it safe and not say anything.” He looked and sounded serious, and I had nothing to say.

A demon. Haunting me? Seemed pretty implausible. Hell, a witch sounded more realistic. Jasper shifted and checked his phone. “Shit. We’re going to be late. I need to get dressed.”

I nodded silently, not knowing where we stood. On the same team, definitely. I was mad he couldn’t see my side of things, but we needed to be one hundred percent on the same page to get anything done.

Jasper seemed to notice my uncertainty and bent to kiss my forehead softly. “My love for you is never in question. Doesn’t mean I’m not angry. Grab your blades. I’ll be ready in five.”

I snagged my short swords from the backpack I had dumped them in the night before. Easily strapping them around my body, I knew I had the short drive to the pack lands to figure out how to make Jasper see things my way. I didn’t know what to tell him. He would tell the Alpha regardless, and I couldn’t stop him. But I could phrase my feelings in a manner that sounded like we had it under control. Could you have a demon under control? I groaned, rubbing my palms against my eyes.

Jasper cleared his throat behind me, and I composed myself. He had changed out of his sweats into a slim pair of jeans, a dark shirt emphasizing the thin lines telling his story across his body. “You ready?”

“Always. Let’s go.” I opened the door as he shrugged into the leather jacket I loved. I wanted to embrace him, to kiss him, but the tension was still heavy. We had things to figure out first.

Jasper led the way out to his bike, passing me the spare helmet. I straddled the bike behind him, knowing we were pressed for time. I needed to say something. Anything. Or for him to say something. But we were both silent.

Jasper sped along the still-quiet roads, the wind whipping through my hair. I had hated the bike when I first saw it. The speed terrified me. And then I began to see the thrill, and feel the adrenaline rushing through my body. The feeling was definitely an acquired taste, but one I had grown to love.

We pulled up outside the pack hall, and I ran a hand through my hair to try and make myself look presentable. After the absolute hell yesterday had been, I was pretty sure presentability was a lost cause.

Jasper caught my hand gently, getting my attention. He sighed heavily. “Look. I’m not going to pretend I’m not pissed, because I am. I think not using the pack is foolish and means taking unnecessary risks.” I opened my mouth to butt in, but he held his hand up. “Let me finish, Ava. Despite all of my misgivings, you’re right. It is your life. And if this is how you want to do it, then I’ll do my best to respect your wishes. Respect, baby, not agree with them.” He twisted his mouth into a crooked smile when I grinned.

I never said I wasn’t a little bit competitive. “Thank you. I couldn’t live with myself if anyone else got hurt because of me. Beau only stopped physical therapy a few weeks ago!” I felt like the weight on my shoulders was finally lifted.

Jasper grimaced, but thankfully didn’t disagree with me. “Regardless, we need to have a united front for the Alpha. Speaking of, we should get a move on. Don’t want to keep him waiting.” He took my hand, leading me past the receptionist who merely waved us through. We were a pretty common occurrence around here.

Alpha Dean was waiting for us in his office. As was his manner, he didn’t offer us any greetings or preliminary talk before diving into the reason he had asked to see us.

“I have a job for you.” As usual, I was impressed with his smooth voice, and the amount of power the casualness hid. In fact, I was so distracted by his voice, that I didn’t pick up on what he had said until a moment later.

“Um, a job for who? Jasper or myself?” Jasper squeezed my hand. Thank God we were talking again.

“Both of you, actually. Ava, I’ll need you to stay on pack lands this weekend. Most of our younger scouts are headed out for a training weekend, and I would feel more comfortable knowing we had an extra set of eyes and hands on deck. If you don’t mind.” The Alpha’s gaze was direct, and expectant. But I still looked toward Jasper, making sure he was cool with this change of plans.

“Of course, Alpha. Jasp, are you okay to stay here this weekend too?” But before Jasper could answer the Alpha cut him off.

“Actually, I have different plans for you, Jasper. I need you to go to Chicago this weekend and check a few things out. There’s an Eastern pack moving to the opposite side of Chicago, and with you living there half the time I figured you would be the best mediator to send to make sure the transition goes smoothly. Borders, rules, you know the drill.” His cool gaze focused on Jasper as I turned to him with wide eyes. What? We hadn’t spent a night apart in months. And now, with everything going on, we were supposed to spend a weekend away from each other. This whole situation wasn’t sitting right with me. Surely the Alpha knew how hard this weekend would be for us. He probably didn’t care though, as long as business was taken care of.

“Oh. Sure thing, Alpha.” It always astounded me how nervous Jasper seemed to get around the Alpha. The boy definitely had an authority issue. “But, does that need to be done this weekend? Meeting a new pack might go a bit easier if Ava came with me.”

Alpha Dean raised his eyebrows subtly. “This weekend works fine for me, Jasper. Ava will be fine without you for a few days.”

Jasper nodded. I knew he couldn’t refuse the Alpha’s quiet command.

The Alpha turned back to his paperwork, and our conversation was over. “Great. So, it’s settled then. Ava, we will see you Friday. Jasper, you can leave me a full report when you get back on Monday.”

Jasper met my eyes, and neither of us were happy. This was going to be a hell of a long weekend.

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