Chapter Thirteen #3
“The news.” Kerry fumbled with the TV remote, flipping through channels until she found a local news station. “Someone leaked the story. It’s everywhere.”
The screen showed footage of Martinez’s team leading the five handcuffed hunters away, their faces clearly visible.
“—sources confirm that the arrested individuals are part of the hunters’ organization,” the anchor was saying.
“The operation tonight was reportedly a joint effort between law enforcement and private investigators, resulting in the capture of the five and the recovery of evidence linking them to multiple unsolved disappearances and assaults, as well as the raid on the illegal fighting ring from a few days ago.”
“Private investigators,” Braith repeated. “That’s us.”
The footage switched to an interview with a middle-aged woman standing on the sidewalk.
She was wearing a fluffy pink robe. “I saw the whole thing from my window. Those hunters were attacking that young man who works at the garage. He was just defending himself, and then all these people came out of nowhere to help him. It was like something out of a movie.”
“They’re not mentioning Jasper by name,” Corey observed.
“Maybe they don’t know it,” Jasper said.
The anchor continued, “Public response has been overwhelmingly positive, with many praising the action taken to apprehend these individuals. Monster rights advocates are calling this a major victory in the fight against hate crimes—”
“Wait, positive?” Cullen interrupted, leaning forward. “Public opinion is positive? About monsters?”
They all watched as the news station showed social media reactions scrolling across the screen. Most of them were supportive, calling the arrested hunters dangerous and praising the hunters’ organization for taking action.
“That’s...” Jasper trailed off, clearly stunned. “That doesn’t usually happen.”
“No,” Kerry agreed. “It doesn’t. Usually, they talk about dangerous monsters and how the hunters are the good guys. This is unexpected.”
Archie stared at the screen, thinking about what this meant. “It’s because they framed it as outliers, and people expect there to be some in a group like the hunters. Everyone knows they can’t all be angels put on this earth to protect humanity.”
The news switched to another interview, this time with a young man holding a little girl’s hand.
Her skin was light blue. “Every day I worry about my daughter’s safety,” he said.
“Knowing that there were people out there hunting monster children, and that someone finally stopped them? That means everything to us.”
Jasper made a soft sound. Archie tightened his arm around him.
“This is good,” Corey said firmly. “This is really good. It’ll make it harder for other rogue hunters to continue doing this or come up with something new.”
“It also makes Jasper a target,” Archie pointed out, even though he hated saying it. “Between this investigation and Sanctuary...”
“They already know he’s a monster,” Kerry interrupted. “It’s all over the organization by now.”
The news had moved on to expert commentary—a professor from the university talking about the history of human-monster relations and about how places like Sanctuary had tried to build bridges before being suppressed.
Archie cocked his head, surprised that they were talking about Sanctuary on the news like that.
“This could change a lot,” he murmured. Sanctuary had been public knowledge, but over the years, people had forgotten about it. They’d forgotten what it had meant for a lot of monsters and humans alike and what they’d been trying to do.
But people were talking about it now. It might jog the memories of the people who’d been there when Sanctuary had been dismantled. It might help Jasper find out more about his past and where he came from.
The coverage continued, and Archie found himself analyzing every word, hoping to hear something they didn’t already know. People were angry at the hunters and sympathetic to the victims, probably because some of them were children.
It was almost unprecedented, but he hoped it would continue.
“It won’t change what happened to my parents,” Jasper pointed out.
He didn’t sound sad or angry, more like he’d accepted what had happened to them, even though they had no way to know if what that hunter had said was true.
Martinez had promised he’d look into it, but it would take a while, and they still had to deal with Johnson.
“I’m so sorry,” Archie said, pulling him closer.
A tear slid down Jasper’s cheek. He jerkily wiped it off as if he didn’t want everyone to see him cry. “I don’t even remember them.”
“But other people do,” Cullen said softly. “Other survivors. When Martinez finds them, you can talk to them. You can find out what actually happened.”
“It sounds like they believed in something worth dying for,” Kerry added. “They believed monsters and humans could coexist peacefully. And look”—she gestured at the TV—”maybe they weren’t wrong. Maybe it’s finally starting to happen.”
Jasper wiped at his eyes again. “It’s a long way from a positive news cycle to actual peace.”
“It is,” Archie agreed. “But it’s a start.”
The news had moved on to other stories, and Kerry muted the TV. The apartment fell quiet except for the hum of the refrigerator and the distant sounds of the city outside.
“You should all stay here tonight,” Archie said. “It’s too late to go home, and we should stick together anyway. Just in case. Someone can take the couch, and I have an air mattress somewhere.”
“In case of what?” Cullen asked.
“In case Johnson decides to do something stupid. I don’t think he will because he didn’t get where he is by being an idiot, but there’s no way to know what those hunters will tell Martinez and what Johnson is willing to do to protect himself.”
“Overprotective much?” Braith teased. “But yeah, I’m staying. I’m not driving home at this hour.”
“I’ll take the couch,” Corey announced. “Kerry, you get the air mattress.”
“Why do I get the air mattress?”
“Because you’re smaller and it’ll fit you better.”
“That’s not how air mattresses work—”
Their bickering was familiar and comfortable, and Archie felt some of his tension ease. They were safe—for now. They were together. And despite everything, they’d won this fight.
Jasper shifted, tilting his head up to look at Archie. “Thank you,” he said quietly.
“Always,” Archie promised. He kissed Jasper’s forehead. “I told you, you’re stuck with me now. I’m annoyingly persistent.”
“I remember.” Jasper managed a real smile this time. “I’m glad you are.”
As the others settled in for what remained of the night—Corey and Kerry arguing about blankets, Braith and Cullen setting up the air mattress and looking like they had every intention of using it instead of leaving it to Kerry—Archie held Jasper close and thought about what came next.
These hunters were caught, but there were probably more. Johnson was still in a powerful position, although that wouldn’t be for long if Martinez had his way. He’d wanted to interrogate the hunters he’d captured before doing anything about Johnson, but Archie doubted he’d wait for long.
Whatever happened, Jasper was going to be at the center of all of it, whether he wanted to be or not. The thought terrified Archie, but he knew that Jasper was strong enough to handle it. He’d proven that.
“Hey,” Jasper murmured. “Stop thinking so loud. I can feel you worrying.”
“Sorry,” Archie said. “Occupational hazard of loving you.”
“We’ll figure it out.”
“Yeah,” Archie agreed, pressing a kiss to his hair. “We will.”
Archie let himself believe it. They would figure it out. Together.