Wake of the Dead | Two

Chapter Fifty | Jasper & Killian

On the outside, Jasper was holding up a brave façade for the sake the group. On the inside, he was panicking. The adrenaline rushing to his head made him dizzy, the pounding of his own pulse thumping in his ears like a drum. A cold sweat broke out across his forehead, his brows narrowing. What was he supposed to do? There was nowhere to go, nowhere to run. These people relied on him, but in such a big group there would be attention drawn to them whether they moved or not. If they stayed in one place they'd me mowed down like cattle. If they ran they'd be hunted down and slaughtered. So what the hell was he supposed to tell them?

Alongside being hunted down, Jasper knew there was no way any of them would be able to outrun The Silence. The massive military-esque group had trucks and horses, radio communication and a seemingly endless supply of weapons along with ammunition. Although they were smaller whenever he'd been a part of them, he wouldn't be surprised if they'd expanded since he'd escaped. A shudder ran down his spine once Jasper realized--if they were caught, it was likely he'd be either executed, beaten to death or taken away to be tortured. But as he looked down at the young man beside him--the beautiful, perfect man that was Killian--he knew he'd go through anything and everything if it meant keeping him safe.

On impulse, Jasper pulled Killian closer to him and closed his eyes, kissing the younger man's soft lips. Jasper lingered for as long as possible, before reluctantly pulling away. He set a hand on Killian's cheek, wishing that he could feel Killian's safe, loving touch forever. He knew deep down there was no way they could escape without discourse, but he sure as hell would try. Breathing in Killian's familiar scent he murmured, "I love you."

There was a look of confusion on Killian's face, a silent question. Why was Jasper suddenly speaking as if they were parting ways? The only way he could answer that question was carefully pulling his dog tags over Killian's head, slipping it around his own neck. Killian's frown deepened, until he gradually began to understand. The younger man shook his head vehemently, at a loss for words that got caught in his throat. Killian wrapped his arms around Jasper, pressing his face against his leader's chest. Jasper tangled his fingers in those soft brunette curls, wiping away one of the tears that fell onto Killian's cheek with his thumb. "Keep my jacket, love." He whispered. "And I'll keep these."

Killian's breaths came in small, quick gasps as he spluttered, "But you can't. You can't take them, because you'll get through this. We'll both be okay, yea? Promise me."

"Killian," Jasper did his best not to let his voice waver, but to no avail. He forced himself to talk through the emotional lump in his throat, his heart aching with every word he said. "I've never lied to you. I won't start now," He brought in a shuddering, anxious breath. "But that's one thing I can't promise this time." As he noticed Killian's shoulders shake with a quiet sob, he desperately lifted the younger man's chin. "Hey, look at me. You'll be alright, okay? I won't let anything happen to you."

"No," Killian shook, "No. I won't be okay. Not if you..." His sentence trailed off, seemingly not even able to continue it.

To Jasper, it felt as if somebody had rammed a knife into his chest and ripped it out again repeatedly. His stomach twisted, just the thought of leaving Killian gave him the urge to vomit. Taking a few deep breaths to steady himself, Jasper forced down whatever nausea he was feeling. Turning to address the group he said, "If anything happens to me, Tom will be your new leader."

After exchanging a few confused glances with Harley and Chris, Samantha spoke up. "First you send away almost half of our group, then you assign another person to take your place. What exactly are you planning, Jasper?"

Refusing to answer her, Jasper watched the figures silhouetted in the raising flames of the farmhouse. Clenching his fist so hard that his nails dug into his palms, he squashed down whatever fear began to make its way through to his mind. Then, chaos erupted. A man on the back of a horse that had been riding towards them ever since Jasper began talking--one he'd noticed but not told the group about--nearly reached them. "The gunshot is going to alert the rest of them. The moment I shoot them, you all need to run. Follow Tom to the edge of the woods, but do everything you can to avoid being tracked. Understand?"