Damned

by Bec Botefuhr

  I mean it Jade, don’t.

  Whatever, goodnight Jax.

  Jade, tell me you wont go out?

  I don’t reply; he can just stew. I am not his to order around, damn man does not even know if he wants me so why should I listen? I dress and walk down to Sam and Margys room. I knock gently and after a moment, Sam answers.

  “Jade…”

  “He has called, hasn’t he?”

  She smiles sheepishly. “He has. I am sorry darling; we can come to your room if you like?”

  “God damn him, he cant do this to me all the time. I am going out, call him if you want…tell him I didn’t listen.”

  I turn and storm off. Asshole. I walk out of the hotel and catch a cab, asking him to take me to a nearby museum. He wont think to look there. Mid way there, my phone rings. Jax. I hit the ignore button and put the phone on silent. Screw him. I feel the constant vibration through my pocket, when it stops I pull it out to check the horrible messages I know will be there.

  Where the fuck are you? I said don’t go out.

  Jade!

  Fucking answer the god damned fucking phone.

  I snort and shove it back into my pocket. Up your ass Jax Watts. I pay the taxi man twenty dollars, then enter the museum he has dropped me off at. I walk in and pay a small fee, then wander through. It is quiet and peaceful in here; it helps. I want to see Jack and my father again, needing to sort one issue out before leaving tomorrow. I text Jack and tell him where I am, promising serious abuse if he tells Jax. Half an hour later, they show up.

  “Hi.” Jack smiles, hugging me.

  “Hi, thanks for coming.”

  Mack smiles at me, but it is weary. “Hi Jade.”

  “Hi Mack, do you want to sit down? We need to talk.”

  We go to a nearby cafe and sit. When our coffee’s arrive; I begin speaking.

  “I want to ask you a few questions Mack, and I hope you will answer them honestly.”

  “Of course.”

  “First, how did you meet my mother and how did she fall pregnant with me?”

  Mack goes on to tell me how he met my mother one day when she had tripped over on the street, she had mud all over her dress. He had taken her to a nearby cafe to warm up and so the affair had started. When she found out she was pregnant, she had run back to Steffan. He had decided to keep me as his own and Mack was outcast. He tried to see me, but they refused to allow him, eventually he made them promise to take care of me, and he would leave them be.

  Mack explained his power and how he had become powerful from a curse. He has spent his life looking for a treasure, the treasure that cursed him. If he finds it, he can undo his curse, grow old and die like a normal man. He said the healing gift was put on me at birth; it is a gift he holds and can only pass onto his children. He thought it was the only thing he could give me; that would ensure my safety. Jack holds a similar gift, only so many people in the world were born with it. Jack had met Mack a long while ago, and they had discovered they shared the same power. They had remained close since.

  “Wow,” I say, taking it all in. “Ok, first question. How old are you?”

  Mack shifts nervously. “I am over…three hundred years old.”

  I spit my coffee over the table. “What?”

  “When I touched the treasure, I froze at the age I was and have never aged. I cant be killed or hurt. I am immortal basically, without all the perks.”

  “Like drinking blood or howling at a moon.” I snort.

  Mack laughs. “Something like that.”

  “And this healing gift, it comes from what?”

  “It is just a gift love, there is a handful of people that have it. Many have passed it onto their children, and so it goes.”

  “And Jack, how do you have it?”

  “My father had it.”

  “And you also touched this immortal treasure thing?”

  “Yeah.”

  Explains why Jack never ages. “How old are you Jack?”

  “I am over a hundred.”

  “Fuck.”

  Mack snorts out his coffee and promptly wipes his face. “I cant half tell you have been around pirates.”

  “Sorry Mack.”

  “Anything else?”

  “So you knew Jack, when you first met me?”

  “I knew you were gifted, and I would have assumed you were one of the few that had a passed down gift, but when I saw your face…it wasn’t hard to know whose gift you had. I didn’t tell you because it was not my right.”

  “I understand.”

  “I am sorry angel.”

  “I know Jack.” I smile squeezing his hand.

  We talk for the next few hours about the gift and the treasure they are looking for. It is all extremely interesting. Who knew that stuff actually existed? Old ancient treasures with massive powers. I check my phone as we are standing to leave and sigh. Thirty missed calls. I pick up the phone and ring Jax before he has a mental breakdown.

  “Where the fuck are you?” He snarls.

  “I am with Mack, and Jack.”

  “Fucking hell Jade, I have been beside myself.”

  “Well, I needed answers.”

  “Where are you?”

  “They are taking me home now, keep your shirt on.”

  “Ring me when you are back safe, I am so fucking mad at you.”

  “Well ditto!” I snap, hanging up the phone. God that man knew how to push my buttons.

  When we arrive back at the hotel, the two men head back to Jacks room for a shower. They are going to come back later. I slide into my own shower, sinking into its warmth. I hear the door to the room open, and assume Jax has come back so I walk out with a flimsy towel wrapped around me. Its not Jax, but one of the crew members. I forget his name. He rarely speaks.

  “Hello.” He grins a sick little grin. Uh oh. “I was looking for Jax but…”

  “He isnt here.” I say, then curse myself. I should have said he was in the shower or something. Now he knows I am alone.

  “Well, isnt that too bad.”

  He takes a step forward, what is he doing?

  “What, go away please.”

  “You are a sexy girl, I can see why he groans so loudly when he fucks you. We have all heard it.”

  “What? Get out.”

  He steps quickly and grasps my hand, yanking me towards him. I kick out, but he is far too strong. He rips the towel off, and his hand falls over my breast. Oh god.

  “LET ME GO!” I scream.

  “Gorgeous, I wont be long. You tell him, and I will kill you.”

  “Let me go.”

  He squeezes my breast, and I scream. He slams a hand so harshly over my mouth; my lip splits.

  “Shut it, or I will kill you now. He wont ever know. Shut the fuck up.”

  The door swings open, and Rusty comes tearing in. He sees the pirate and the position we are in, then raises his gun.

  “Put her down!”

  “I was not doing anything, she was coming onto me.”

  “Bull fucking shit, put her fucking down.”

  Wow, I have never heard Rusty scream so loudly. The pirate drops me and I scramble for my towel. Margy, Sam, Jack and Mack have all come into the room now. Sam rushes over and pulls me into her arms.

  “Oh honey, did he…”

  “No, Rusty made it in time.” I whisper.

  “Call Jax, now.” Rusty orders Jack.

  I watch Jack pull out his phone. “Jax, Jade is in trouble. Get here now.” Then he hangs up.

  Rusty takes the pirate into his grips and puts him in a head lock. Jack holds a gun to his head.

  “Please, its just been so long since I had a woman. She came out all wet and hot…”

  “So you thought it would be ok to try and fucking rape her.” Rusty snarls.

  “I…I was just touching.”

  “Bullshit.”

  I sink further into Sams arms. I am trembling.

  “I swear.” The pirate wails.

&
nbsp; “Shut your fucking mouth Walter.”

  Walter, that is his name. Walter.

  “I didn’t..I wouldn't…”

  “What the fuck?”

  Jax steps through the door, looks down at me then back at Walter.

  “Cap…I heard her screaming. I came in, and he…well…he had his hand on her breast, and he was tackling her down.”

  Jax’s eyes flame red. Oh crap. He looks over at me; blood red is all I can see in his gaze.

  “Tell me what happened?” His voice is all demonic. Shit.

  “I…came out because I heard the door open. I thought it was you. He was in here, and he ripped my towel off and..said he would kill me if I told you.”

  Jax paces over to Walter and wraps his hands around his throat, Walter chokes and squirms.

  “You mother fucker, I am going to fucking kill you.”

  “Cap please, I didn’t mean to…”

  “You fucking touch my girl, and tell me you didn’t mean to.”

  Jax reaches around to his back pocket and pulls out his gun, then presses it to Walters head. I scream.

  “Jax, no. Not here mate. Not here. Don’t do that in front of her, look at her.”

  Jax swallows; trying hard to control his rage. He turns and glances down at me. He is panting, wild.

  “Rusty, get him out, we are going for a ride.”

  Rusty and Jack take a squirming Walter. Jax turns and hits him so hard in the face; he is instantly knocked out. Then he turns and walks to me. He kneels down and takes my face in his hands.

  “I will be back ok? You stay here.”

  “I…I…”

  “Shhh, its ok baby. I will be back. Don’t you scare me like that again.”

  He kisses my head and hugs me close.

  “Jax, what if you get hurt.”

  “I wont. It wont take long.”

  “What are you going to do?” I whimper.

  His eyes meet mine. “I am going to kill him.”

  I make a choking sound as Jax stands and follows Rusty and Jack out. His eyes meet mine once more before he turns and walks out the door. I crumble into Sams arms, and she helps me to the bed, I curl up there and don’t move. Sam and Mack come backwards and forwards to check on me. Jax returns about four hours later, when I see him, I leap from the bed and run into his arms. He pulls me close and holds me tight.

  “Oh baby, I fucked up. I’m sorry.”

  “I…no…god Jax.”

  “Its ok, its all ok.”

  “I feel guilty!” I wail. “His life was taken because of me.”

  Rusty steps in then and pulls me out of Jax’s arms. He grips my face and holds it close.

  “We are pirates Jade, we trust each other for a lifetime out on that water. It wouldn’t have mattered if he merely slapped you. He dies. We made a pact, signed an agreement, we all know the rules. If Jax let him go, then everybody will think they can do the same thing. If I didn’t come in, he would have raped you, that is that harsh truth. Dont you ever, EVER think it is your fault.”

  I am crying again, Rusty sighs and pulls me into his arms.

  “Now now, don’t cry.”

  “Thank you Rusty, without you…”

  “Its ok, your like my daughter, I would never let anything happen to you and neither would Jax.”

  “Thank you.” I croak again.

  I pull back, and Rusty wipes a small tear from my face. “You need to sleep, come on crew, lets get out of here.”

  Rusty shakes Jaxs hand. “Later Cap.”

  “Thanks mate, for saving my girl.”

  “Anytime.”

  Jack comes over and hugs me tightly, kissing my head and stroking my hair. “You going to be ok now angel.”

  “Thanks Jack.”

  Mack walks over, looking dazed and confused. “Well, this has been an eye opener. Your happy here?”

  “I am da..um…”

  “You can call me whatever you like baby girl.”

  Baby girl? I melt. “Thanks dad. I am glad we found each other. I am going to stay with Jax though. Here is my number, you can call me anytime.”

  I hand him my phone number, and he smiles. “Thank you, I will keep in touch, and hopefully one day soon, we will see each other again.”

  I smile and hug him; it is gratifying to know I have somebody who loves me as much as my father does. I can feel it; it radiates off him. He pulls back and gathers himself, before turning to Jax.

  “Take care of her.”

  “Yeah mate, always.”

  They shake hands and then, we are alone. I glance at Jax who is watching me intently.

  “You scared the crap outta me today.” He says.

  “I’m sorry.”

  He shrugs. “Its done. Come here.”

  I step forward and sink into his arms. Thank god for Jax Watts. He lays me on the bed and holds me until I fall asleep. I do not hear him leave. I toss and turn most of the night, and when I wake it is to the sound of Jax’s pained cries. I sit up; the room is dark. I can see his silhouette, but that is about as far as it goes. He is thrashing in the bed, his body twisting and turning. I flick on the small lamp.

  Sweat lines his face, his arms and his chest. He is groaning and gripping the sheets; his knuckles are white. He is having a nightmare, a bad one. He growls and screams, twisting and thrashing. Should I wake him? No, it would be dangerous. I begin calling out his name softly; I get nowhere. He is panting, and his breathing is ragged.

  “No,” He roars. “You have to die.”

  I blink, what is he talking about?

  “Don’t scream, don’t scream. You have to die for this. No mamma, don’t scream, he has to die.”

  Oh god, is this nightmare real?

  “So much blood, fuck, fuck!”

  “JAX!” I scream loudly, and he bolts upright.

  “Jade?” He pants.

  I scurry over and climb onto his bed; I take his trembling hand. He is drenched in sweat; his chest is rising and falling rapidly.

  “Oh fuck.”

  “Its ok, I am here.”

  I take his head and press it against my chest; he wraps his arms around me, and we fall back in that position. I wrap my arms around his head, pressing him closer to my chest. I stroke his damp hair and whisper soothing words to him. I have never seen Jax so upset, so afraid. His breathing begins to slow, so I continue to stroke his hair and whisper useless words out loud. When his breathing is back to normal, I stop talking.

  “Sorry.” He croaks.

  “Hey, no…don’t be sorry.”

  “It was just a dream.”

  “Yeah, I know.”

  I am not going to push the issue, if he wants to tell me about it, he will. Right now, he just needs me and a little comfort.

  “Is that why you don’t sleep with women?” I ask gently.

  “Yeah.”

  I continue to stroke his hair; it feels nice to be the one giving comfort. He pulls back after a moment and looks up at me, I glance down at his pained green eyes. Poor man.

  “You are an angel.” He whispers, taking my fingers into his hand and kissing each of them.

  “Are you ok?”

  He nods. “Yep, I am all good. Thanks Jade…you made a difference.”

  I smile at him and touch his damp forehead. “You want a shower?”

  He shakes his head. “No, I only want one thing.”

  “Oh?”

  “You.”

  He leans forward and takes my nipple into his mouth. Oh. He lowers me onto the bed, not taking his mouth off me. He draws me deeper into his mouth, making me whimper. He slowly slides his tongue up my skin until he meets my lips; he then takes me into one of those deep, intense kisses that leaves one breathless. I moan as he drags his mouth over to my earlobe and suckles on it.

  “Jax, please.”

  “Hush.”

  He slides down my body slowly, causing me to twitch and turn beneath him. When he reaches the apex of my thighs, I tense. God, the man is d
riving me crazy. He slowly slides his tongue into me, and I gasp. Oh, wow. With painfully slow licks, he brings me to the brink, then; he thrusts his fingers inside me and I scream. I erupt around him with a fierce explosion, my screams echo through the room. He slides back up my body and takes my hips; I expect him to thrust in but instead he turns me over.

  “Whaaaat?” I pant.

  “Shhh, it wont hurt.”

  He lays me on my side and pressed himself against my back. I can feel his breath on my neck, his hard chest on my back and his erection against my bottom. He moves my hips, grips my leg and pulls it backwards over his hip, then, thrusts deep inside me. I let out a strangled sound, wow, who knew it could be done like this? He slides out, then slowly pushes back in with a growl.

  “You feel so good.”

  “Oh Jax, please.”

  He continues slowly in and out, not picking up the pace. I grip the sheets as my release builds higher and higher. Jax’s breathing is intense as he tenses around me. Fuck. It is all I can say. I am climbing higher and higher; my body is sweating, ready for release.

  “God Jax, fuck!” I scream.

  “Come now!” He roars, and we both erupt together with strangled screams and groans.

  When his hips finally stop thrusting, he slowly pulls away and rolls onto his back. I follow suit until we are both laying side by side, panting.

  “Shit, you swearing during sex, it's hot.” He breathes.

  “That was…wow. I didn’t know we could do it like that.”

  “There are many ways we can do it darlin, that is just one of them.”

  “I thought…”

  “No, I don’t play in that playground baby.”

  “Thank god, I thought that is what you were going to do.”

  “Nope. I don’t do anal, its wrong.”

  I sigh with relief. “I agree, god, thank god.”

  He laughs. “Poor thing, why didn’t you say something?”

  “I felt you moving, so I figured I was just reading it wrong.”

  “You can say anything to me, you know that right?”

  “I know.”

  “Hey thanks…for sticking around though my shit.”

  “I love you Jax, I don’t plan on going anywhere.”

  He rolls and pulls me into his arms. “Say that again.”

  “I love you.”

  He holds me in that position for a long while; I don’t want to move. It's not fair.

  “I guess I should go back to my bed.”