by Sammy King
“Good as new” she smiled at him.
Mason shook his head and kissed her gently on the cheek. Mason went into the bedroom and stripped his shirt off. Chelsea saw his tattoo again it was the most beautiful phoenix rising from fire surrounded by brightly coloured hibiscus flowers and the name ‘Augustine’ in script under the picture.
“Who is Augustine?” she asked.
Mason looked up at her as he stripped off his jeans and flopped back on the bed completely naked.
“My Mum” he said.
Chelsea nodded, she had tried to ask Kelly about Mason’s Mum, they never spoke about her and she didn’t want to probe.
“Is she alive?” Chelsea asked.
Mason shook his head and reached into the second drawer on his bedside table. He pulled out a photo of a woman with the most piercing blue eyes she had ever seen. Her brown hair cropped around her face and on her hip she held a chubby black haired baby who Chelsea instantly recognised as Mason.
“She was beautiful Mason” Chelsea said not able to take her eyes off the stunning woman in the picture.
Mason nodded his head as he ran his hand through his hair and scratched at his chest. Chelsea leant over and kissed his shoulder as she placed the photo on his bedside table. Her breasts brushed his chest. She scolded her body for its reaction at the wrong time.
“Mason what happened to her?” Chelsea asked.
Mason closed his eyes and put his head against his headboard sighing deep into his chest.
“You don’t have to tell me. I’m sorry I shouldn’t have asked” she said realising how much pain it seemed to be causing him.
Mason shook his head and clasped her hand bringing her fingers up to his lips and lathering kisses over them.
“It’s alright. You told me your baggage it’s only right that I tell you mine” he said clearing his throat and closing his eyes against the tears that were forming.
Mason cleared his throat again and ran his free hand up through his hair.
“As you know my Dad is a bikie. They aren’t guys who just like to ride Harley’s and Choppers and catch up to drink every now and then. They are hardened guys. They have seen death, they have caused death” he said.
Chelsea nodded remembering Kelly’s story of Knox shooting the two club members in the face for raping her. Mason looked at her out the corner of her eye.
“As part of that world my Dad, the members, my family, well they have managed to piss a lot of people off. Bad people off. Some on purpose, some through just being bikies of a different patch” he explained clearing his throat again. “Well when I was twelve, it was school holidays, my Dad and the club members had gone to another chapter for the annual catch up”
Mason ran his hand through his hair again, and Chelsea recognised how difficult it was for him to let her in. She gently ran her finger nails up his leg and over his stomach, resting her head on his shoulder.
“Anyway they were all gone and it was just me and my Mum here. Kelly was out, staying at her friend’s house. Mum and I were sitting watching television when the glass door shattered and three guys burst in. Mum screamed at me to run, but the guys grabbed me and one held me” Mason said closing his eyes as a tear slipped down his cheek.
Chelsea frowned and reached out wiping the tear from his cheek with her thumb.
“They raped her, every hole, every place, they destroyed her. She didn’t cry, she didn’t say word, she just took it. I couldn’t do anything I was being held there, but I didn’t try to fight, I didn’t try to scream I just stood there peeing my pants and watching” he said as his voice broke and more tears slipped from his eyes.
Chelsea squeezed his hand and kissed his shoulder. She felt helpless and there was an anger boiling inside her that she realised was what Mason had felt when she had told him her story. She wanted to track down the men and kill them slowly and painfully. She squeezed her eyes shut to keep her own tears from falling.
“After they finally let her die, they left her just lying there in her own blood in the middle of the living room, her body torn open and her colour gone. I sat there beside her body until the next morning when Kelly came home and was able to contact my Dad” he said hiccupping a sob.
Chelsea shook her head.
“Oh Mason, no child should have had to go through that” she said swiping at her own tears that fell from her eyes onto his shoulder.
“That’s why we have the club meetings here now, because Dad won’t leave, he felt like it was his fault. He became an angry man. He never blamed me. I did enough blaming myself for both of us” Mason said shaking his head.
“You were just a child. What could you have honestly done, they may have killed you too” Chelsea said.
“Sometimes I wish they had” he said lowering his head as his shoulders began to shake under the weight of his tears.
Chelsea knelt up, wincing at the pain in her thigh as the skin stretched over the muscles and took him in her arms. She sat holding Mason until his tears had dried. Just holding him, in silence, sharing nothing but love, Mason looked up at her and forced a smile.
“Thank you” he said.
Chelsea smiled and kissed him gently on the lips.
“Anytime” she said.
He smiled and stretched as he lifted the blanket for them both to climb underneath. Chelsea moved in close to his side and hooked her leg over his. She felt his thigh against her crotch and the urge to grind against him was strong, but she didn’t think it was a good time to do such things. They lay in silence until soon sleep took them both. For the first time in days Chelsea’s dreams were pleasant and were filled with the love that her and Mason shared rather than the torture she received from Carl. It did mean that by the time she woke up she was throbbing and sticky between her legs and was grateful to see Mason still in the bed and still with his thigh tucked deep between her legs. She couldn’t help but rock back and forth the feeling of pleasure overwhelming her she couldn’t hold back the little moan that escaped her lips.
“Oh I like waking up like that” he said with a smile.
Chelsea’s face reddened at being caught pleasuring herself on Mason’s thigh, but it didn’t stop her rocking back and forth.
“Would you like some help?” he asked with a crooked smile.
Chelsea nodded and rolled on her back, feeling Mason’s fingers begin to work over her button that throbbed with pleasure and working inside her. Suddenly he hooked his fingers inside her and with his thumb continued to work her clit. Chelsea’s eyes widened as the feeling intensified. She spread her legs wide and couldn’t control the shudders that rocked through her body.
“Oh my God” she screamed as she gave one last shudder.
Chelsea tried to slam her legs shut as she felt the juice spray from her down the bed. She was mortified that she just wet herself. Her face turned a bright red.
“You didn’t piss Chels” Mason said with a smile, reading her fear.
Chelsea formed an Oh with her mouth.
“What was it?” she asked.
“One very satisfied girl” he said with a laugh and kissing her mouth.
She couldn’t argue with that, she had never experienced something so intense, not that she was overly experienced in anything sexual. With Mason though she wanted to try everything, there was nothing she wanted to keep out of bounds for him. She wanted the healing that he alone seemed to bring.
Chapter Sixteen
Mason got up and went to the bathroom, she could feel a dull throbbing in her leg around the wound and looked down. The wound was beginning to weep again, so Chelsea took the gauze off to see the wound looking worse than the day before, it was redder and angrier and there was pus beginning to ooze. When Mason came back he stopped and frowned looking down at her leg.
“Chels, that doesn’t look good” he said.
Chelsea looked up and nodded.
“I’ll have a shower and wash it, then put some more antiseptic spray on it and wrap it again, it
should be alright” she said standing from the bed gingerly and wincing at the pain.
Mason nodded as he began to strip the juice soaked sheets from the bed. Her leg was hurting more and to say she was a little concerned was an understatement, she was starting to panic about it. Chelsea didn’t want to go and see a doctor, she didn’t want to have to explain that she caused the wound herself and she couldn’t go to Brenda because that would mean she would have to admit to breaking her promise. Chelsea closed her eyes and sighed before turning the shower on and stepping under the hot water, which just didn’t seem to be hot enough.
When Chelsea had dressed her wound and came back into the bedroom she saw that Mason had changed the bedding but wasn’t in the room. Chelsea looked at the bed and thought about how she could easily climb in and go back to sleep. She suddenly was exhausted. She pulled out some warm tracksuit pants and a hoodie, but yet still the chill caused her to shiver. Chelsea didn’t understand why suddenly she was so cold.
When Chelsea left the room going in search for Mason she found him in the dining room eating some dinner Kelly had left for him. He looked up at her and frowned.
“There is some dinner in the fridge for you if you’re hungry. Are you cold?” he asked with a frown.
Chelsea nodded, she didn’t feel like eating she wasn’t hungry at all.
“Yeah I’m freezing” she said shivering as she sat down beside him.
Mason shook his head and frowned at her again.
“Do you feel alright, you’re really pale?” he said.
Chelsea nodded.
“I’m tired and cold but that’s about it. My leg hurts a bit.” she said hugging herself to get extra warmth.
Mason frowned again eating the rest of his dinner. After he had finished they sat on the couch for a while watching the football game on television. Chelsea didn’t remember drifting off but when she woke her body was covered in sweat, she was shivering and her leg felt like it was on fire. The morning sun was filtering in through the curtains of Mason’s bedroom and Mason wasn’t in the room. She pulled herself out of bed, which sent pain through her whole body and went to the bathroom. When she pulled her pants down to look at the wound, she saw that the pus was oozing through the gauze and it was starting to have an unpleasant smell that reminded her of really bad foot odour.
Chelsea took the gauze off the wound wincing in pain, all around the cut was red and hot to the touch. Sweat continued to drip off her. She was feeling light headed and sick to her stomach. Chelsea didn’t have any strength in her body anymore. She just wanted to climb back into bed and sleep. Chelsea knew she had to clean the wound again, but she just didn’t have the energy. As she stood in the bathroom darkness seemed to creep into the corners of her eyes. Her mind started to go fuzzy like she was watching the white noise on television, it crept in and began to take over. Her knee’s started to buckle and Chelsea felt herself falling but she couldn’t do anything to hold herself up. She felt the cold of the tiles on her back and the crunch of her skull as it hit the bathroom floor. She wanted to call out to Mason, but her voice didn’t work, all she could do was close her eyes and let the darkness envelope her.
When Chelsea woke again she was back in bed and she couldn’t move her arm without it hurting, she looked and realised she had a drip connected to her. Her leg was still aching and her head was still spinning. Chelsea closed her eyes and drifted back into sleep. She was surrounded by darkness, when suddenly a screen flickered to life. Chelsea watched herself walking through life, there was Carl, Maggie, Dylan, Mason and Maddison. It was like watching a movie of Chelsea’s life, some of it was a horror movie and other’s made her smile.
“Is she going to be alright?” Mason spoke.
Chelsea turned in the dark but couldn’t see him.
“I don’t know” she heard a voice reply that she didn’t recognise.
Chelsea tried to call out to Mason, to let him know she was fine she was watching a movie of her life, but no sound would come out of her mouth. In the distance she could see a small doorway that light shone from. Chelsea started to walk towards the door but every step she took made the door get further away.
“Sit child, rest” Chelsea heard from behind her.
Chelsea turned and looked into the face of Augustine. Chelsea shook her head.
“Am I dead?” she asked.
Augustine smiled a gentle smile and pushed Chelsea’s hair off her shoulders, cupping her face with her hands.
“No, you are very sick, but not dead” Augustine replied.
“Where am I?” Chelsea asked.
“In your head. You will be here for a little while until you heal enough to wake up” Augustine replied softly, her brown hair caressed her face and her eyes were gentle yet seemed to sparkle in the dark.
Chelsea nodded and sat down, she found herself sitting on the couch that she recognised from Mason’s living room. Augustine sat beside her and they held hands in the silence for some time just watching the movie replay itself over and over.
“Chelsea I love you” she heard Mason speak.
Chelsea turned to see where he was, however, nothing but darkness surrounded them, apart from the small light from the movie and the distant doorway. Chelsea turned to Augustine who watched the movie with tears that drowned her cheeks. Chelsea turned back to the screen and playing out was Augustine’s rape and death. Chelsea sucked in a sharp breath and she shook her head, closing her eyes. When she opened her eyes again the movie had changed and Mason and Chelsea were making love on the screen. Chelsea glanced at Augustine who suddenly had disappeared, Chelsea giggled to herself and thought Augustine probably didn’t want to see her son doing such things.
Suddenly Chelsea was surrounded in a bright light. She shut her eyes tight unable to look at the light without pain. When she opened her eyes again, she was back in Mason’s bed with the drip connected to her arm and Mason asleep beside her. Chelsea moved her head and reached out with her free hand clasping his. Mason’s eyes shot open as he sat up and looked at her.
“Oh thank God Chels” he said with tears in his eyes leaning forward and kissing her softly all over the face.
Chelsea tried to push herself up in the bed, her leg was no longer hurting but her head felt a little light and fuzzy. Mason stood and helped her to sit, before going out of the room and calling for his Dad and someone called Brady. Soon the three of them were bustling in through the room. The man who Chelsea worked out was Brady looked down at her and smiled warmly.
“Well you gave us a right scare there” he said with a friendly smile.
Chelsea weakly smiled back up to him.
“What happened?” she asked.
“I found you on the bathroom floor, you had whacked your head and was out cold” Mason said.
Chelsea reached up and touched the back of her head where she felt some small stitches under her head.
“You’ve got five stitches there, I’ll take them out in a couple of days.” he said.
Chelsea frowned and nodded her head.
“You had a massive infection in your leg and I’d say you passed out in the bathroom and knocked yourself out when you fainted” Brady said.
“I don’t even remember” Chelsea said shaking her head.
She didn’t really remember anything at all. Except for Augustine sitting next to her while she was in the dark. Chelsea looked up at Mason.
“When I was in the dark, your Mum was there, she was sitting on a couch next to me watching a movie. I can’t remember what it was we were watching” Chelsea said to Mason.
Mason smiled and looked at Knox who blinked back some tears and dropped his head. He reached out to Chelsea’s hand and gave it a squeeze.
“Did she look happy?” Knox asked blinking back more tears.
Chelsea couldn’t remember so she smiled and nodded her head. Knox returned her smile and took her hand up to his lips giving it a kiss.
“I’m glad you’re back with us kid” Knox said ge
ntly.
Suddenly there was a bustle at the bedroom door and Chelsea looked over to see Kelly and Lincoln come bowling into the room.
“Oh my God Chelsea you’re awake” Kelly cried as she pushed Mason out of the way and sat on the bed, giving Chelsea a hug.
“I was so fucking scared. I thought we were going to lose you” she cried.
Chelsea reached up and stroked Kelly’s head.
“It takes more than a little infection and a bump on the head to take me out” Chelsea said with a weak smile.
Chelsea still felt so weak and tired from the infection. Brady was checking the drip and pulled back the blanket to check her wound which had also been stitched and was starting to heal. It didn’t look red and angry anymore, it wasn’t oozing with the yellowing pus like it was before. Chelsea looked up at Brady and smiled.
“Thank you for looking after me. Are you a doctor?” she asked.
Brady glanced over his shoulder at Knox and back to Chelsea before he nodded.
“Knox rang me to help, I’m part of the club, here mostly for my medical assistance. They thought you probably wouldn’t want to go to a hospital” he said with a smile.
Chelsea nodded her head, they at least knew her well enough to know that she wanted to keep it quiet.
“Well thank you for coming and helping me” she said.
Brady smiled and nodded, before looking around the room that was crowded with people.
“Alright everyone, I think she is going to need some more rest, the infection hasn’t completely left her body” Brady said.
Knox, Kelly and Lincoln all nodded and filed out of the room. Mason laid down on the bed beside her and gently put his arm across her waist, Brady stayed behind.
“Rest some more. You’re out of the worst of the infection, but it won’t take much to flare it back it up, so rest for a few more days.” he said as he pointed to Mason “And no sex”
Mason groaned and Chelsea laughed.