Part 5: Decode

Jasper was quickly convinced it was time to leave the Quileutes to explain themselves.  After all, wasn’t it Sam that demanded to speak to his “chief”?  Now that Alice was back and had more information, Jasper wanted nothing more than to do her bidding.  So she wanted to talk to Edward and Bella?  Then so be it.

He didn’t ask any questions on the path to the cottage.  He could almost reach out and touch Alice’s tension.  The air around them felt even more electric.  She wasn’t trying to hide her emotions, she would never keep a secret from Jasper.  Alice merely wanted him to be patient, and the truth would come out in time.

“They aren’t there,” Jasper remarked as they arrived at the cottage, nestled in the heart of the woods.

“I know,” Alice confessed, continuing to walk under the pouring rain.  “Let’s go inside anyway.”

Without discussion and pushing all the questions to the back of his mind, Jasper fell in step behind her and went into his brother’s house.  Just as he had felt, the place was empty.  Closing the door behind him he followed Alice who sunken into the darkest corner of the darkest room.

“I knew they had already left,” Alice said in a small voice.

         “Then why are we here?”

“Jasper, they already know.  Jacob told them everything.”

Confused, Jasper approached Alice and stood over her.

“I don’t understand.”

“Me neither, I don’t understand anything anymore.  I’m so lost…”

“Come here,” he ordered in a whisper.  Tenderly, Jasper invited Alice to sit on the edge of the large bed.  He lightly rubbed the back of her damp neck, easing the stress that was held in her small body.  With his other hand he caressed her cheek, so pale and glistening with rain that it looked almost like a frozen lake under a full moon.  In an instant, a wave of softness came over Alice. Her hands unclenched, her eyelids drooped and she leaned into her husband’s hand.  “What would I do without him?” she wondered.

“That’s good, just relax,” Jasper encouraged, never letting his hand break contact with her satin skin.  “Don’t panic, I’m here.”

“Jasper…”

“Yes, tell me everything.  I’m listening.”

Alice opened her eyes and found his, full of love and compassion.

“After I left you at the reserve, I found myself head to head with two werewolves.  I didn’t think I’d be able to reason with them, but they believed me.  The girl, Leah, turned back into a human after she howled at the moon, she said it was a signal.  It was their way of letting the others know that Rosalie had been captured.  Whether or not the Quileutes had changed form or not, they would still know to stop looking for her.  She let me come back here to explain to everyone, she didn’t want me to be attacked.  Before they let me go, they assured me that they would do everything in their power to track down Rosalie.”

“So she’s still running with Renesmée,” Jasper said, mostly to himself, “What about your vision?”

“Apparently, Jacob wasn’t hurt nearly as badly as we thought when we saw him.  In my vision, he was lying in his own bed but he seemed to be in excellent condition.  He was talking with Bella and Edward.  What I saw came very quickly, I heard Bella thank him for calling them.  Then Jacob said that Rosalie had said to him before she attacked, “If Nessie cannot be my daughter, then she can be no one’s daughter.”  Edward seemed to be ready to destroy everything around him.  That’s what I saw.  That’s why I knew that no one would be here.  I don’t think Edward and Bella will be back, they’ll do everything they can to find Renesmée themselves as quickly as possible.”

“Alice, why did you let the others think…”

“Don’t you see?” she cut him off, “I didn’t want everyone to freak out.  I wanted to make them think that this new vision I had would help us all make sense of this mess.  What’s happened tonight, all these visions I’ve had, it’s all tied to Jacob and Renesmée.  Why am I suddenly able to see their futures?”

As he let his hand run down her back, Jasper let his hand slide around her waist and he felt the hole that had been ripped in Alice’s jacket.  He gritted his teeth realizing that one of those dirty, furry beasts had dared to touch his wife.

“Looks like you got a good swipe there,” he said, barely containing his rage, concentrating on her delicate features in an effort to stay calm.

A slight smile pulled at the edges of Alice’s lips.

“It could have been much worse if-”

She stopped suddenly.  That was it!  She made the connection quickly in her head, and now she understood.  Alice wanted so badly for the truth to be just as clear to Jasper.

She grabbed her soul mate’s hand and squeezed it.  Stone against stone can hold the greatest of fires, he once said to her.  She felt that heat in that very moment, burning like so many of their embraces.

“A vision?” Jasper inquired seeing her eyes widen.

“Better.  A revelation.  I think I’ve finally decoded these visions.”

“What do you mean?”

“I was positive that my visions made no sense but I was wrong.  Everything is connected- Rosalie who took Renesmée, Jacob who was hurt, Edward and Bella who were warned by Jacob.  You don’t think it’s strange that Jacob was injured so superficially?  It’s as if he let Rosalie leave with the girl, although we know that she is the one thing he loves the most in this world.  Jacob and Renesmée… Their love is just as important and essential as ours.  And now Jacob has left Edward to deal with the rest.  If someone took me from you, I know that you wouldn’t let anyone stand in your way of finding me.  And that phrase, ‘If Nessie cannot be my daughter, then she can be no one’s daughter.’  That sounds like a provocation, and Rosalie isn’t like that.  She would never hurt Renesmée.”

“Darlin', I’m not Edward, I can’t read your mind,” Jasper reminded her.

“Jazz, it’s obvious,” she said, squeezing his hand between her small fingers, “This was planned.  I can hardly believe it myself…Rosalie and Jacob are working together on this.  What’s happening now is real, but it’s a lie.  And because it’s a lie, I can see it in my visions.”

“Are you saying that both of them together planned kidnapping Renesmée?”

Jasper sincerely hoped he was wrong, but Alice's resolve assured him that he was right.

"Alice, why?  They hate each other.  Ever since they first met, Rosalie and Jacob have only wanted one thing: for the other to not exist.  I admit their attitude is strange, I admit that Rosalie would never harm a hair on her niece's head. I admit that if she and Jacob were fighting over Renesmée, they would kill each other.  Something's just not right, their behavior is so strange... But to suddenly start working together on such a hare-brained idea, why would they do something like that?’’

"That’s exactly what we are going to ask Jacob,” Alice responded.