Jasper the Bugbear: Part Three (special preview)

My last post was much nicer than this one. The view was better, the people were nicer. Here, I had a brick wall over a piss soaked alleyway to look at. I wasn’t even in walking distance of anything good, just some seedy bars that even I wouldn’t dare set foot into. The last place was small, but at least I was close to good food. And of course I was close to the bookstore.

How long has it been since I was last there? Basking in the warmth of the place where the scent of the pages was just as strong as the tea being brewed in the back. I sighed heavily, imagining the well dressed owner of the store behind the counter. His gruff appearance softened by a fine waistcoat and shimmering gold glasses.

I fogged up the glass as I sighed heavily. “Who knows how long this job is going to take,” I pouted. I turned, seeing a letter had been slid under the door. I had been so lost in thought, I never even noticed it arrived.

“Let’s see what we have here,” I muttered as I picked it up. It was unusually heavy. But then again, this job itself was a bit more hefty than normal.

Corruption amongst the peacekeepers was running amok. It was seeping slowly into all corners, as agents were going around to small towns and villages where their unscrupulousness wouldn’t be noticed right away. From there they could reach out to bigger towns, even large cities, furthering their wicked ways.

I could remember the look on Jasper’s face when I told him I had to go. Things had been peaceful for a while. Working together we had extorted a lot of money and information from the rich politicians and bigwigs of the town. But my mission had to change.

“What you’re doing is a noble cause,” Jasper replied as he poured tea. “And I will be here, so should you ever need-”

“I know,” I muttered. “I’m not used to getting comfortable somewhere. So this is all a bit new for me.”

“I suppose it's the same for me,” he chuckled softly. He set down the kettle and looked back at me, his eyes were gentle, almost sad. “I know how to reach you at least.”

“There is that.” I forced myself to smile, despite my displeasure in doing so. “I’ll at least be able to read your handwriting.”

Jasper came to me, putting his arms around me until I was squeezed tight against his large chest. His strong arms pressed against me and I relaxed for the first time since I got the letter of my new mission.

Had I the time, I would have taken Jasper there in the store. Unfortunately, I had to leave quite urgently.

Jasper’s letters were the only thing worth this new mission for the time being. Like I said, the new post sucked, and I was growing ever more irritated at the shouting constantly going on beyond my window. But I have dealt with worse. At least I had something of a roof over my head.

I opened the letter, seeing there was another one inside, wrapped up with pages from my superiors.

“Dear Carina,”

My brows raised up in surprise. “Oh wow, they actually got it right this time.” I flicked the pages and continued reading.

“It has come to our attention that a sect of the corrupt peacekeepers has been spotted in the Bog of Recoil.”

I pursed my brow, glancing over to my maps where I had been keeping tabs on the movements on the crooked peacekeepers. I then found the Bog of Recoil, making a small mark. I frowned even more. “There’s a witch in that territory. How are they managing to maintain a presence there?”

“We’ve lost contact with our informant who had been working with the sect. He had been looking into their locations, and was even digging into how they were keeping a base in the bog. When we no longer heard from him, we went to investigate, only to find his property ransacked, possibly for what information he was holding, we aren’t sure. We did manage to find the letter he intended to be sent to you-”

My blood went cold and a sinking pit began to drop in my stomach. I had to take a breath for a moment, looking away from the letter before I saw anything more. “It can’t be-” I whispered over and over to myself. “It’s not. It’s-” My hand brushed against the envelope still on the table and I placed my palm over the top of it. I could recognize the feel of the paper, the almost fabric like texture of it. Expensive, very fine.

“No.” I looked back at the pages before me.

“You have worked with Jasper Synclayr Humbleclaw before-” I stopped again one i received my answer.