The Pits of Passion

by Amber Flame

  “So you think that goody-goody brother of mine will come to your rescue, do you?” he asked sardonically.

  “Of course,” she said firmly.

  “Well, he’ll have to find you first,” Franklin said.

  Elizabeth knitted her brows in consternation. “What do you mean, he’ll have to find me first? Aren’t you going to take me to him?”

  “Not hardly. As far as I’m concerned, he can sail around the world looking for you. I’ve got you now and I think I’ll keep you. That is, unless you begin to bore me.” He cocked a black eyebrow at her. “You aren’t boring, are you?’ he asked.

  “Why you vile, black-hearted, mealy-mouthed....”

  “No, I don’t think you’re very boring, after all,” Franklin said cheerfully. “Good. It should be an interesting voyage.”

  “Where are we going?” Elizabeth asked sourly.

  “To Egypt. Normally I would sell you there. They pay very well for white-skinned beauties like you. But now I don’t think I’ll do that. However, I still have business there, plus anything else that looks promising.”

  “What do you mean, anything that looks promising?”

  Franklin grinned devilishly. “You’ll find out.”

  “That’s what I’m afraid of.”

  Elizabeth had never taken an extended voyage, and found the rolling motion of the ship not unpleasant. What annoyed her was the constant shouting and shuffling on deck, the creaking and groaning of ropes and the slapping of the water. It was an awfully noisy place. She spent the first little while by herself locked in Franklin’s cabin since he had things to attend to. She watched out the tiny porthole for a while, but that was boring so she roamed about the cabin.

  She found herself drawn to the many chests that seemed to line the walls. At least a quarter of the cabin’s floor space was occupied by them. Keeping a wary eye on the door so she would not be surprised by Franklin, she opened one. What she saw made her gasp. The chest was filled to overflowing with bolts of the most beautiful cloth she had ever seen. There were satins and laces and silks and brocades, as many colors as the rainbow. With this cloth, she thought, she could make a wardrobe to rival a queen’s.

  Wiping the drool from her chin, she went to another chest and opened it. This one held an array of jewels that was staggering. There were emeralds and rubies and stones of colors she had never seen before. She held up a necklace, a bracelet, a brooch, each one more beautiful and stunning than the last. The light and color dazzled her.

  Overcome with awe, she rushed to another trunk and flung it open. Silver and gold chalices lay there, tableware, candelabra, and bowls. She ran to another trunk and found it full of odd silver--bridles, knives, sword hilts--so much that she could not comprehend it all.

  “It is a pretty sight, is it not?” Franklin said suddenly from behind her. She whirled to see him standing in the doorway, his eyes dancing with merriment. In her enchantment she had failed to hear him come in.

  “Oh, you!” she said angrily. She was irritated that he had seen her gaping like a fish over his possessions. “I suppose this is all your pirate booty?” she asked, regaining her composure.

  “Yes,” Franklin said unashamedly. “Would you like to see my pirate sockies, too?”

  “You’re insufferable!” she declared. She flounced away from him to the porthole and stared out at the endless ocean.

  Franklin moved about the cabin behind her. “This could all be yours, you know, “ he said. “If you decided to be friendly--and provided you didn’t bore me--I could give you wealth greater than anything Benjamin’s got. Just imagine--you could dress in fine eastern silks and have diamonds hanging between your marble breasts. Does that appeal to you?”

  “No,” she said immediately. “It does not. I’d rather die than be ‘friendly’ to you!”

  “Oh,” said Franklin. “So, it’s the high and mighty princess now, is it?” He came up behind her and put his hands on her shoulders. Elizabeth sucked in her breath at his touch. “I seem to remember a time when I had you moaning with passion, with little regard to station.” He pressed a burning kiss on her neck, sending shivers down her spine. “Have you forgotten?’

  She turned to face him, the anger she felt for him fighting with the desire rising within her. “No, I haven’t forgotten,” she said heatedly. “But I have been trying! You’re the one who got me into this mess to begin with.”

  “Funny about that,” he said huskily as he leaned down to kiss her neck and shoulders. She trembled under his searing lips. “Seems like Benjamin is always taking the rap for me. But actually,” he went on, “I’m willing to atone for what I’ve done. I told you, you can have any or all of the stuff you see here. That should pay the price of your virtue shouldn’t it?”

  Franklin’s hands had been slipping around her as he talked, locking her in a steel embrace before she was aware of it. When it was too late, she began to struggle, pushing against him and trying to twist away. Franklin laughed.

  “What’s the matter, little butterfly? Have you gotten too close to the spider’s web?”

  “Let me go!” she demanded. “I’m not your concubine to take whenever it pleases you!”

  “Oh, no?” Franklin grinned at her devilishly, a smirking smile on his handsome face. “Aboard this ship your choice of roles is very limited. You can either be my concubine or you can be a feast for my starving crew. Or perhaps a feast for starving sharks. Surely you would choose me over sharks?”

  “Never!” she gasped. His hands were hot on her, the heat penetrating her gown to her skin, and her breathing was heavy. “I’ll take the sharks! Let me go!”

  Franklin chuckled and brought one hand up to her throat, caressing the flushed skin that had begun to shine with a light sweat. He dipped his hand into her bodice, feeling the rounded swelling of her heaving breasts. With a surge of desperation, Elizabeth jerked away from him, hearing her gown rip with a sickening tear. Still not free of him, she saw his hand pull away the tattered shreds of her bodice, baring the thinly veiled lungwarts beneath her chemise.

  “You didn’t have to do that, pet,” Franklin said. “I would have unbuttoned you if you’d asked.” He pressed his hand to her thundering chest, kissing and licking her salty skin while his right hand went to the buttons in back. In a twinkling, he had her gown undone and down around her ankles. Her chemise presented no challenge to him, and he quickly slipped that from her also.

  “Ahh,” he said appraising her. “I had forgotten your rare beauty.” In one swift motion, he scooped her up and carried her to the bed. When he dropped her there, she lay as if mesmerized. Franklin quickly shed his own clothes and came to her.

  “I’ll make you remember me,” he said. He pressed his lips on her fevered flesh, stroking and caressing her with his hands. “I’ll see you forget Benjamin and think of nothing but me.”

  Fat chance, thought Elizabeth. She tried to struggle against him but her body was already turning traitor to her mind. It seemed like her skin tingled at the touch of his breath, her breasts stood up hard and firm to his hand and her feet still wouldn’t do anything she told them. Franklin nibbled on the soft flesh around her nipples and she felt fiery impulses blazing under her skin. Her mind began to reel and she knew she would not be able to refuse him. When he moved on top of her, she could only moan softly and allow him to gently pry her thighs apart.

  Expecting pain again, she was surprised that there was none. Instead, she felt curious, pleasant sensations radiating out over her whole body. Franklin began to move, massaging her, moving with and against her until she was synchronizing her own movements to his. The unfamiliar feelings incited her to the age-old dance of love and she found herself arching toward him through no conscious effort of her own. Her blood pounded in her head, her thoughts swam and her eyes crossed. She was enveloped in the throes of ecstasy.

  Suddenly Franklin moaned and shuddered above her, then dropped heavily on top of her. She felt his leg twitch spasmodically against he
rs, and then deep even breathing in her ear.

  “Franklin,” she said, tapping his shoulder. He didn’t move. “Franklin, wake up. Franklin!”

  “Huh?” he asked sleepily, raising his head. A contented smile was on his lips, his eyes half closed.

  “Is that all there is?” she asked sourly. “I said, is that all there is? Everything was going fine, but then you stopped and now I have this awful aching frustrating feeling inside. Am I supposed to feel like this?” Instinctively she knew she was not, and it piqued her that she did.

  “Wait a minute, “ Franklin said brusquely. “Wait until my legs stop shaking and I can get up.”

  He rolled off Elizabeth and lay still for a moment. Elizabeth felt bitter tears rising behind her eyes. She felt bitchy but did not know why. Refusing to lie so close to Franklin, she turned away from him.

  He heaved himself up off the bed, and Elizabeth heard him padding about the cabin. She fought back the words that were playing on her tongue, words she knew she shouldn’t say. She felt angry and ashamed, but mostly betrayed.

  “You don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said suddenly behind her. “What do you know about making love, anyway?”

  “You’re right, I don’t know much, but I know it’s not supposed to feel like that! With Benjamin....”

  “I don’t want to hear about Benjamin!” Franklin roared. Elizabeth had turned to face him and now cringed on the bed. She had never seen any man so mad. His little dong shriveled up as if frightened by the bellowing.

  “Don’t say one more word about Benjamin,” he said with gritted teeth. He came close to the bed and his eyes bored into hers. “All I’ve ever heard is ‘Benjamin this’ and ‘Benjamin that’ and I won’t hear any more of it! I don’t give a damn about Benjamin! I’m me and I’ll do things my own way!”

  Now the tears that Elizabeth had fought so hard could not be held back, and they flooded her jade-green eyes and spilled out on her cheeks. She was angry and confused and miserable and all she wanted was to be back at Wildwood. Her whole life had turned crazy and she desperately wished it was the way it used to be.

  Franklin had watched her crying silently, his eyes betraying nothing of what he was feeling. Finally he turned and put his clothes on, then left the cabin without another word. He slammed the door behind him.

  Elizabeth found herself totally exhausted in the aftermath. The mental and physical exertions of the last few days finally caught up with her, and even while she was trying to figure out what to do next, she fell asleep.

  CHAPTER 4

  When Elizabeth awoke, the cabin was dark. She was disoriented at first, not knowing where she was. Then it all came back to her--her poverty, her kidnapping, her brutal violation and finally, her wet, sticky butt. Feeling defiled and dirty, she got up.

  She noticed right away that there was no bathtub. More than anything else, she wanted a bath, but that luxury was denied her. Finally she found a pitcher of water and took a corner of her ripped gown and washed herself as best she could. She wanted to wash all trace of Franklin from her skin, and she rubbed it until it blushed a rosy pink.

  Casting about for her clothes, she found them in a jumbled pile on the floor. Her chemise was still in one piece luckily, but her dress was a disaster. She put it on anyway, tucking the ripped pieces inside so although it was lower and puckered more than it should, it stayed up.

  Rummaging about in Franklin’s big roll top desk, she found a brush and proceeded to untangle her long golden hair. At first the wild disarray of it would not be tamed, but she had nothing better to do so she kept at it until it was a thick, long curtain of silk.

  That done, she roamed about the cabin. She paused to look out the porthole, but it was so dark outside, she could barely distinguish the ocean from the sky. Restless, she turned back to the cabin. She wondered when Franklin would come back, and what mood he would be in. The thought panicked her. She was so tired of all this nonsense! It seemed that she was nothing but a bit of dandelion fluff, blown this way and that by one wind or another, with no will of her own.

  She sat down on the bed and smoothed her skirt. Maybe when Franklin came back they could discuss their situation calmly. She would like to think that he wasn’t so keen on keeping her prisoner anymore, and perhaps would let her go. Maybe he’d set her free in France. She’d never been to France. That thought brightened her a little and she lay back on the bunk to pursue it further. Before she knew it she had fallen asleep again.

  When Elizabeth finally clawed her way up from the abyss of sleep, she was disoriented. Never being much of an oriental anyway, she had trouble realizing where she was. The strange round holes that the sunlight streamed through began to awaken things in her, and she looked about. Then she realized with horror that she was in Franklin’s bunk laying half sprawled across Franklin’s body.

  Her arm lay flung across his chest and the crisp mat of black hair tickled her tender flesh. One leg lay over his and she was appalled to find herself naked again. The intimacy of the scene shocked her, and she gasped involuntarily. Her sudden movement awakened Franklin and his frosty blue eyes stared down at her.

  “Good morning, pet,” he said lazily. His lips curled into a sensuous smile. “You make a perfect bed warmer.” He slipped one arm about her narrow waist.

  “Oh!” she said, suddenly angry, and she tried to turn away. She was brought up short by a tug on her hair and she realized it was caught under his shoulder. She was trapped like a fly in a spider’s web.

  “Now,” said Franklin when he was satisfied she couldn’t get away. He slid his other arm around her and pulled her close to him, her tender flesh bruising against his more muscular body. His passion quickly aroused, along with other things, he kissed her long and deep, his tongue penetrating all the sweet, secret places of her mouth. Elizabeth felt the now familiar flame of desire spreading through her, much as she tried to deny it. She was ripe and ready for Franklin to pluck her, and she knew by now that struggling would only make her more helpless.

  Suddenly Franklin released her, and in one quick movement was out of bed. Elizabeth lay still, not understanding why he had stopped kindling the fire in her.

  “Turn your head,” he said.

  “What?” she asked incredulously.

  “Turn your head,” he repeated commandingly. Elizabeth obeyed, turning to the wall. She could hear him rummaging about but still did not understand.

  Then he was slipping back in bed and turning her toward him. She felt his hard hands moving over her body, sparking her to passion, pressing and probing and caressing until she was aflame with it. Involuntarily, she pressed herself closer to him, allowing him to kiss her open mouth and taut breasts. She arched against him, her body demanding more of his attention until she felt him probing her thighs. Without conscious thoughts, she opened to him and he entered her. Confident that she was past any painfulness, she

  was surprised when it hurt again.

  “Jesus Christ!” she said under her breath. Then the pain was gone and all she felt was a myriad tingling like hundreds of nerve endings being stimulated at one time. The weight of Franklin’s body on hers drove her to more exciting gyrations, and they began to

  move together in the singular act. Elizabeth felt the uncontrollable passion rising in her like a geyser, the pressure building, the force becoming unbearable until she clutched at Franklin and gouged him with her nails. Her breath came in short pants, like bloomers, and her voice caught in her throat. As she reached the height of her passion, she pressed back into one magnificent arch, accepted Franklin to the hilt, then lay still.

  Elizabeth felt as if all her strength had drained out of her. She opened her eyes but the cabin spun around her, so she closed them again. Her breath came in great gushes, her lungs clutching at the air. Franklin lay quiet on top of her, apparently as tired and drawn as she.

  Finally he eased off her and lay beside her. She was half wondering why he had evoked such a different feeling in her
this time when she finally opened her eyes and looked down.

  “Eeeeehh!” she screamed, scrambling away from him. “What’s that?” she pointed down to the thing she had never seen before. Franklin didn’t even bother to look.

  “Nice, huh?” he asked.

  “What is it?” she asked. Her eyes were wide.

  “It’s a handy little gadget I picked up in France.” Elizabeth looked closer. It was at least as big as Benjamin, if not bigger, and had funny little knobs all over it. She realized that Franklin had somehow attached it to himself and it had been that--thing--that had given her such pleasure.

  “That’s disgusting!” she said finally. She busied herself with pulling the blankets up over her flushed body. Her eyes involuntarily drifted back to the thing she was trying to avoid.

  “You didn’t think so ten minutes ago,” he said mockingly.

  “Oh, you!” she exclaimed. “Don’t you have some captain’s business to be about?”

  “I thought that was what I was just about,” he answered lazily.

  “You’re insufferable!”

  “Yes, so you’ve said before. Well, pet,” he said, patting her stomach, “I must be about. There are captain’s duties.” He got up and dressed with his back turned so Elizabeth did not see what happened to the French gadget. Franklin came and stood over her. “I’ll have some breakfast sent to you, pet. Have a nice day.” With a bow and a flourish, he left.

  Elizabeth relaxed back against the cushions and wondered about her captor. He had her at his mercy and yet he seemed concerned with her pleasure as much, if not more, than his. He was a very strange man. And she realized with a flow surprise that he actually was making her forget Benjamin.

  Suddenly the cabin door opened and a small thin man backed in. He carried a tray of steaming repast and Elizabeth’s mouth watered. Then the little man turned around and she gave a start of surprise.

  “Mr. Pramburg!” she said incredulously. The watery blue eyes passed over her with a look of disgust mixed with contempt, the thin, blue lips curled into a sneer.