Placing Killian down on their bed, Jasper set one of the pillows beneath his head and tucked a blanket around his body. Sitting on the edge of the mattress, he watched the rise and fall of his lover's chest, the even and calm breathing that soothed his own worries. Killian looked peaceful when he slept, sometimes he even smiled if he was having a good dream. Carefully, Jasper reached out to hold his partner's cheek in his hand. Right as he touched him, Killian pawed away at his hand and buried his face further into the pillow with furrowed brows and a grumpy frown.
Not being able to help but chuckle, Jasper did his best to keep it quiet as to not disturb the sleeping man. Killian had hidden his face behind his hand, which had curled up into a relaxed barrier between himself and whoever dared to bother him. Jasper was still tempted to pet the young man's hair and soothe him into a deeper sleep, but he knew better than to risk waking Killian up for his own longing. His partner had experienced a lot that day, there was no doubt he was exhausted.
Only after everybody had gone to sleep did Jasper carry Killian to bed. He knew the young man wasn't fond of people seeing him being looked after, even when he needed it. To Jasper, it seemed like nobody in the group would really care. Maybe they'd even be jealous of how close they were, if anything. But Killian had always been self-conscious about proving he was strong. Part of Jasper wondered how much of it was his partner thinking he was inadequate compared to others. Killian was much more efficient at surviving on his own than he gave himself credit for. The fear of other's judgment plagued his mind, which saddened Jasper. He didn't want Killian to be anything other than comfortable among his peers.
Just as Jasper was about to undress for bed, he heard the loud thud of the screen door in the kitchen shutting. His muscles stiffened and he paused, listening for anything else. There was nothing but the sound of Chris' snoring in the room right beside theirs. Everybody else in that house slept like a rock apparently, it was up to Jasper to figure out what was going on. There was no telling what was entering--or leaving--the farmhouse. The only thing that would be stirring outside that late at night were the biters. If one of them somehow broke into the house, there was no telling what chaos could ensue.
Slipping on the jacket Jasper had grown very fond of, he laced his boots up again and armed himself with his gun and crowbar. He wouldn't risk waking anybody else up if it was just a gust of wind, but if it really was something else, the others would be within the range of shouting distance. Pushing open the door as quietly as he could so he didn't wake up Killian, Jasper carefully stepped into the hallway and crept down the stairs, avoiding one specific step he knew was creaky. With his heart beating quick in his chest, he gripped his crowbar tight and prepared to swing it at whatever was in the house.
When Jasper turned the corner into the kitchen, he narrowed his brows. There was nothing, only the screen door bumping repeatedly opened and closed from the wind outside. Adjusting his grip to hold the metal bar even tighter, Jasper inched closer and closer to it. Nothing moved at the corners of his eyes, nothing quick enough to be alive at least. The only thing that caught his attention was a pen that had been dropped, presumably by accident on the floor. Bending down carefully, he picked it up and looked it over, turning it this way and that. He soon realized it was eerily similar to the one he'd found with Killian when they encountered the stranger in the barn all those weeks ago.
A chill ran through Jasper's whole body at the thought of such a dangerous and unhinged person coming into the farmhouse. But with the back door slamming open and closed, he had to assume they're left instead of broken in. Part of that was a relief, another part was dreadful. Because that meant somebody in the group was going off in the middle of the night for no reason whatsoever. Whatever they were doing couldn't have been smart, Jasper decided. One of his groupmates were in danger just from being outside.
Hesitantly stepping out into the cold night, Jasper was caught off guard by how chilling it was. It sent a shudder throughout his body so intense it felt as if it'd reached his bones. To make things even worse, freezing wind whistled against the side of the house. With the dampening air, he couldn't help but wonder if there was going to be snow just before the warm weather would return.
Heading down the back porch steps as quietly as possible, Jasper was able to catch a snatch of light in the distance, a flashlight or a lantern. Whoever it was had gone out looking for something. At first he began jogging over to them, until he heard small growls nearby. His heart pattered faster in his chest as he gripped his crowbar, forcing himself to slow down as to not draw too much attention to himself. Every sense was on high alert, nerves on end and prepared for a fight at any second.
At times the light in the distance would disappear, only to reappear again. Jasper could hear the soft grass crunching beneath his heavy boots as he walked, silently hoping that no biters were nearby. Very quickly, he noticed that whoever had gone out was headed towards...the barn. The barn was one of the most unpleasant places to be, especially with all of the bodies piling up from the dangerous stranger lurking about--another reason he had to catch up with them.
But as a few thoughts began to fall into place, Jasper once again forced himself to follow from a distance. The pen was similar to the same one he and Killian found in the barn, presumably dropped by the dangerous man they'd almost encountered. Now one of the people in the group were headed out towards the barn in the middle of the night? With the gears slowly turning, Jasper picked up his pace, not wanting to fall too far behind.
The light source Jasper had been trailing after disappeared behind the closing barn door. With nothing but the moonlight and the shadow of the barn to guide him, he continued onwards down the dirt trail, overgrown with grass and weeds. A biter cocked its head to the side at the corner of his eyes, but it was already hunched over some freshly killed prey--Jasper couldn't see what it was, he didn't really want to either. The biter appeared smart enough to focus on whatever it had rather than attack something new, but its head followed him as he lightly stepped past.
Reaching the barn doors, Jasper's brows narrowed. A familiar voice filled the barn, muttering about things he couldn't discern. Whatever they were saying was suddenly garbled and drowned out by a loud, hair-raising shriek. It sounded similar to the ones the strange biter that attacked Wilson made. Taking in a sharp breath, Jasper shouldered his way into the barn, then stopped dead in his tracks. "Cohen," He said, "What the fuck?"
The doctor stood over a biter, tied to one of the beams in the barn. The creature snapped its jaws at Cohen, but the man simply stepped out of reach with a quick glance, "Oh, hello Jasper. You startled me." He took off his rounded glasses and cleaned off a speck of blood--presumably flung by the tied up monster.
Despite everything the creatures put them and the rest of humanity through, Jasper could never imagine doing...whatever Cohen was doing to it. Before he could even begin to come up with any questions, the doctor picked up an axe nearby--the same one that went missing from the chopping block a few weeks prior to his gunshot recovery--then swung it in his hands experimentally. "Do you think, if their jaw is missing, that they'll still try to eat?"
Suddenly feeling a lot more cold, Jasper's hand tightened around his tire iron. He was ready to draw his gun at a moment's notice, taking a small step forwards. Whatever Cohen was doing, it was insane. Why put an already dead creature through more torture? Even if they didn't feel any pain, even if they had no emotion, it was still wrong. "What the hell are you talking about?" Jasper demanded. His voice raised, a snarl curling at his lips, "How did you even get one in here?"
Cohen raised a single brow, turning his back towards the biter. The creature lashed around in the ropes securing it to its post. Looking closer, Jasper could make out the basic features of the monster. It appeared to be female, but he couldn't be sure. Whatever was left of the hair on its head was a wiry mess, one of its eyes missing and several fingers from its left hand. The monster's clothes had rotted halfway into its flesh, the rest either missing or hanging in tattered rags.
"Do I need to repeat the question, or was your own question rhetoric? I'm guessing the latter." Cohen replied, his voice smooth as velvet and cold as ice. Jasper once again eyed the axe in the doctor's hand, reaching for his gun. Whatever Cohen was doing was definitely not something the group would be okay with--not something any sane person would be okay with. It didn't matter the reasoning behind the action, it was wrong, whether the creature was dead or alive.
"Getting it in here was the easiest part," The doctor added bluntly. Jasper's stomach twisted uneasily as he noticed the lack of empathy in the other man's voice. Surely he couldn't think this was right? "That 'dog' the twink of yours tracked," Jasper stiffened, a sickening anger burning in his chest. That term was enough to annoy him in the first place, but another man referring to Killian as it? That was pushing infinitely past the realm of disrespect and beyond. "Was easy enough to catch. Killed it, strung it up for bait, set a trap. Nothing too difficult."
"You're sick." Jasper spat, bristling at the very idea of this--what he hesitated to call doctor now--was telling him. "What are you running here? Some sort of experiment?" He demanded. Refusing to break eye contact with Cohen, he slowly made his way around the biter. Cohen stood up straighter, squaring his shoulders. Getting ready for a fight if he had to, it looked like. Jasper wasn't sure he wanted to take the risk just yet. A meager tire iron didn't compare to the amount of damage an axe could do.
In a split second it was as if a switch had flipped. Cohen's smile was almost too charming, even crinkling the corners of his eyes like any other grin. But there was something behind the man's eyes, something disingenuous. "That's precisely what it is," The doctor said. Jasper noted how Cohen moved his hand to get a better grasp on the axe handle. "Finding out the basic needs, instincts and overall cause of this disease...how it progresses, could be the start of a cure." Cohen nodded towards the direction of the farm house. "When I was patching up that boy you so kindly brought home, I took a few notes."
Much as Jasper disliked Jackson, he would have never wished any sort of odd note-taking on the poor man's condition. It was more than horrifying, what Cohen was doing. An act so sickening he couldn't even think of a word to describe it. "You know I can't just walk away from this." Jasper growled softly. The biter snarled again, snapping its teeth towards Cohen, who gave it a rather annoyed glance.
"That's fortunate," Cohen uttered, almost so quiet Jasper couldn't hear him. "Because I can't let you either."
Jasper barely ducked in time to avoid the swing of the axe. He could feel it just barely graze past the top of his head. Adrenaline immediately flooding through his body, nothing else mattered, not even the biter tied to the post. It was him and an enemy. If somebody was going to go home alive, it was very well possible the other person couldn't.
The doctor was relentless, swinging again immediately. Rolling out of the way just as the axe buried itself in the floorboards, Jasper scrambled to his feet as fast as possible. Cohen was tugging at the weapon, it's blade stuck firmly in the floor. Lashing out with his crowbar, Jasper caught Cohen on the ribs. The man's shirt tore, scarlet blood lashing onto the ground and wall.
Raising the crowbar in his hand, Jasper swung down into a hard strike. Cohen ripped the axe out of the ground just in time and held the handle horizontally to block the blow, shoving Jasper backwards against the wall. Clenching his teeth, Jasper raised up a foot and slammed it into Cohen's stomach as hard as he could, sending the other man stumbling across the ground.
When the doctor looked up, Jasper's breath hitched in his chest. What he saw was nothing but grim calculation, no emotions, not even fear or pain. With his axe flown across the barn, Cohen had nothing left to defend himself with. Not willing to take any chances, Jasper pulled the gun from his waist and pointed it straight between Cohen's eyes, stalking over while trying to catch his breath. He never expected a fight like that from the doctor.
Cohen moved his back up against the wall, his expression blank and emotionless. That was possibly the most unnerving thing--the doctor felt no fear for his life. Only his experiments and studies. "Come on," Jasper snarled. "Let's get you back to the house for a nice little chat with the group."
"You first." Cohen snarled. To Jasper's shock, the doctor flashed forward and locked his teeth onto Jasper's upper arm, biting down as hard as possible. Somehow Jasper held back a cry of agony. He could feel the other man's teeth digging deeper and deeper into his flesh, the warm blood dripping down his skin.
Jasper ripped his arm away from Cohen, biting down on his own tongue to muffle the loud scream he barely managed to swallow back. Jasper still didn't drop his gun, but held his injured arm up close against his chest. "What the fuck is wrong with you?" He said shakily.
Cohen stood, licking Jasper's blood away from his teeth and lips, spitting it out to the side. "Oh nothing," He said smoothly, "But now, you're caught in a trap Jasper. Just like my dear friend over there," He gestured towards the biter. Jasper could feel the sting of tears behind his eyes. A white-hot pain continuously flashed through his nerves as he struggled to keep his breathing steady. "You see, if you kill me here, they'll only see you as a possible murderer. Considering we're both leaders in this group, they could assume you're looking for power."
"They wouldn't ever think that of me," Jasper rasped, clenching his own teeth. "You're an idiot if you think they would."
"Or," Cohen continued without acknowledging what Jasper said, as if he already knew Jasper really did believe that was a possibility. "If we both go back and you hold me as a hostage or vice versa, well, you've been bitten by...something human." A sickening smile crept slowly across Cohen's lips, tugging gradually at the corners. The way his expression changed were unnatural, as if he were copying it from somebody else. "But we can both go back alive and keep everything quiet." His eyes grew cold, "Of course, if anybody find out well...I'm sure they'd listen to a doctor's advice about a potential infection than the word of a traumatized soldier."
Jasper hesitated, his stomach twisting sickeningly. He wanted to throw up, but his body couldn't seem to move. The horror of the situation was beginning to creep up on him, the pain on his arm radiating throughout his shoulder and back. "You're sick," He spat shakily, "What's to stop me from telling others?"
"You think anybody else would believe this story?" Cohen tilted his head to the side, "I'm not sure they would, Jasper. You know, PTSD can make people a bit unhinged at times. Pair that with the symptom of paranoia from a biter's disease and that's just a recipe for disaster."
"You wouldn't."
"Oh, I would." Cohen said softly. "I would love to. As somebody who's stood in you and Tom's shadows for a bit too long, I think getting rid of a danger to the group would be a big boost in popularity, wouldn't you? But luckily, there's just one problem with that for you. As far as everybody knows, both of us were at home this whole time. So I wouldn't know about the bite. Not unless somebody were to accidentally slip up and expose it to the others."
Leaning heavily against the barn wall, Jasper could only listen helplessly to what Cohen was saying. Before he could come up with a response, the doctor was already giving him a word of farewell, "You should visit me tomorrow about that. The human mouth is just teeming with nasty bacteria, wouldn't want to get sick."
With that, the doctor was gone, leaving Jasper alone with the biter tied to the post. For the first time he felt something in common with the undead. They were both trapped.