“You’d have to find us first.”
Louis burst into ferocious laughter. “I think I’ll have you bound in irons then force you to watch me tup the bonny lady before this nonsense goes much further.”
“Do it, and you’ll never see ye precious diamond again.” Jacque promised, venom oozing from his lips.
“You pompous fool! Do you plan to uproot your family? Think they’ll agree to flee the charges of treason?”
Jacque bridled the nagging instinct to snatch the guard’s sword and ram it through the man’s cold black heart. “I’m sure my family would be more than willing, given the alternative.”
“Enough! Tell me where you’ve hidden my diamond or I’ll have the lady brought in and raped by the entire guard before I slice her satiny throat.”
Jacque cocked his head to one side and studied Louis through narrow slits. “Do what you must.” Where the hell was all this bravado coming from? He knew better than to address the King of France in such a degrading manner. One thing was certain; he could never allow the king to reclaim the stone. As long as Jacque retained custody of the precious gem, he had bargaining power. Once he lost that…
Louis huffed. “Take him to the dungeon and have him flogged by Moses’ law! We’ll see if the rogue still sings the same sonnet once he’s brought back before my court. In the meantime, I’ve a sweet little tart awaiting the tupping of her life.” His Majesty’s wicked cackle chilled Jacque to the bone as he sauntered his way out a side door.
Merde! This isn’t how he imagined things would go at all. He couldn’t allow these men to lock him in the dungeon. He sized the men up as each took a hold of an arm and yanked him backward, out the way he’d come.
He’d traveled far more dangerous paths than this. Hell, he’d fought scores of heartless savages, all more fearsome, more bloodthirsty than these! He didn’t put up a fight as the guards ushered him through the Hall of Mirrors. Foolishly, their grip loosened under the false pretense that he’d lost his fight.
“I, I’m not feeling well, I…” Jacque fell to the floor as though he’d fainted.
“Merde! What’s happened?” The men bent over either side of him, rolling him onto his back. With a primitive growl, Jacque captured the head of one guard between his thighs and twisted the head of the other with his hands until he heard the morbid pop of the man’s neck bone.
Years of pirating had taught him to be swift and cunning as if to appear invisible to the enemy during an attack. Those skills had seen him the victor of many marauding battles.
As the guard betwixt his legs struggled violently to free himself, Jacque squeezed his leg muscle with all his strength and clasped his ankles together before spinning onto his side and rendering the second man unconscious.
The guard had confiscated Jacque’s weapons; however, he was now in possession of two fine Royal swords.
Now to find the depraved king, before he got to Esa…
~ * ~
It was hopeless. There was no way out, no matter how hard she tugged at the windows. Esa’s heart screamed when she heard the rattle of keys outside the door. Much to her dismay, the sapphired glistening swine had returned. He looked distraught, a true testimony to the fact that he had met with Jacque.
“Let me go, I don’t belong here!” she cried, secretly praying for another interruption. Had Jacque found the diamond? If so, had he turned it over to the king? Fear rose high in her chest. She was more terrified than the gullible teens in a Friday the 13th flick.
“Where you belong, my fine piece of woman-flesh is beneath the coverlets with your king.”
He advanced on her, removing his shirt once again and she screamed, unable to fathom such a horrendous suggestion. “Don’t touch me!” Fear choked her, caused the frigid blood to drain from her face and pool at her feet.
Louis laughed in the face of her anguish. “Why do you fight it, mademoiselle? I could offer you a life you’ve only ever dreamed of before. We both know it’s not a question of your maidenhood.” He snickered. “Besides, LaFleur knows you’re here. Indeed, he’s given his blessing. When he returned the diamond, we had a nice chat. The poor fool wants to mend his ways and start anew with his wife…and children.”
Esa’s hand shot out and gripped the back of a chair to steady herself when her knees buckled. It felt like the wind had been knocked out of her. “You lie,” she breathed. But did he? How could she be sure?
Did Jacque have children? Yet another veiled secret? Dear God, if that were true, he really could be her blood relative.
Jacque knew she was here, at the mercy of the demon King and didn’t care? Had he actually said those things to His Majesty? Did he want a reconciliation?
Louis stepped forward and she stepped back. This continued until she was flat against a wall. Breath coming hard and fast, she scanned her surroundings in search of a weapon. Her screams of protest, pleas of mercy seemed only to arouse him more. Le Sicko!
“I want to go home!” she screamed to the forces that be. But they seemed to pay her cries as much attention as Louis. He grabbed her around the waist and buried his face in her neck, placing clumsy kisses wherever his foul lips could reach. A hand moved up to fondle her breast.
“Get off of me!” She pushed against his hefty weight, tried desperately to lift a leg just enough to put his sex drive out of commission, but she was helpless, pinned against the wall.
The strong scent of peppermint invaded her nose. The overpowering aroma choked her into a coughing spell. King Louis wretched his head up as if insulted.
There! The tip of a knitting needle peeked at her from the table. Something his courtesans dabbled in to pass time as they awaited His Majesty…or the veiled secret of the candied king? If she could creep over another few inches, she might be able to reach it. She slid her foot slowly to the side as she feigned another coughing attack.
The animal shoved her into the wall and bile stung the back of her throat when he began licking the tops of her breasts. He fumbled with the stays on the back of her dress.
“I-If you’ll allow me, Your Majesty?” She had to buy time, get close enough to clutch the spiky needle.
Louis pulled back, a smug grin dancing behind his eyes. She wanted to scratch the mocking jaded beads form his eyes! “Ah my pet, I knew you’d come around. I seem to have that effect on women.”
Esa held back her laughter. With a seductive smile, she turned her back to him. “If you would be so kind?” She tempted, reaching for the knitting needle as his hands fumbled with the stays.
Damn. She still couldn’t reach it! This might be her only chance. She lunged for the needle and whirled to bury it in the thick swell of his neck. But she wasn’t fast enough. He caught her arm and twisted it behind her back. “You foolish bitch,” he spat and slapped her with such force that she toppled over the table and landed face down on the floor.
The furious king towered over her. “You’ll pay dearly for that one, mademoiselle. No one makes an attempt on the king’s life and lives to tell about it!”
~ * ~
Jacque heard the familiar screams from the opposite side of the courtyard. Esa! His heart shouted as he bolted across the gardens. After a few moments of silence, he faltered in his charge. Keep screaming lass, so I can find you!
The frightening shrieks began again, more desperate now. With the same speed and lethal intent of a raging bull, Jacque scaled the lofty trellis to the window where he was certain the screams originated. Peering through the sheer curtain, he could see the king standing just beyond the plush sofa, pawing his woman like a rabid carnivore! Blinded by rage, he crashed through the glass and tore a shocked Louis off Esa. The king had managed to get her petticoats up around her tiny waist, but thankfully, the pantaloons remained intact.
“King or no king, I warned ye about touching my woman!” Jacque head-butted a stone-faced Louis, something he’d seen Jean-Claude Van Dame do in a movie. To his surprise, the quarrelsome king dropped at his feet. He’d have to rem
ember that one.
Breathless, he turned to Esa, who looked just as stunned. ”Avast lass, we must make haste before we’re discovered.”
Esa didn’t argue. Horror had apparently taken control of her tongue, and had yet to release it. Both heads snapped toward the door at the sound of a light rap. “Your Majesty, is everything alright in there?”
Merde! If they were found here, with the king unconscious on the floor, they were both as good as dead.
He knelt beside Louis and slapped him lightly on the cheek. No use, he was out cold. Another rap at the door, this one a bit louder, more anxious in nature. “Your Majesty?”
Heaving the dead weight onto his shoulder, Jacque handed the extra sword to Esa. “Don’t be afraid to use it should the need present itself.”
“What are you going to do with him?” she asked in a throaty whisper, having found her voice.
“I’m afraid he’s going to have to come along with us.”
“Oh my god, are you crazy? You can’t mean to kidnap the King of France?” she screeched as four of the king’s men busted into the room on the tail of her sentence.
Jacque whipped a blade from his waist and leered at her. “Ye see any other way out of here…alive?”
The guardsmen went still when they saw the dagger just ready to pierce their king’s kidney. “Drop your weapons and move to the other side of the room.” Jacque ordered. When they made no move to follow his command, he applied a little more force to the blade. “Do it!” he added in a guttural tone.
Reluctantly, the guards disarmed themselves. Tossing their weapons into a heap on the floor, they moved to the opposite side of the room. Esa, Jacque and the limp bodied king backed slowly out of the parlor. “Should ye be foolish enough to follow, I will not hesitate to kill him. What have I got to lose, eh?”
“You will pay for this, LaFleur!” one of the men grumbled.
They fled down the winding corridors to the outer court and into the gardens. Other guardsmen they encountered in their plight surrendering immediately to Jacque’s authority so as not to inflict any harm on their king.
Twenty Four
“Ye should have listened to me, ye heartless bilge rat. You’ve left me no choice but to kill ye in order to protect my family from coming under your deceptive slaughter.” Jacque unfolded his arms and strolled to the door of his cabin, throwing over his shoulder, “You’ve a day or two left to mull over your miserable life. Once we’re far enough out, I’ll be feeding ye to the sharks.”
Bound and gagged to a wooden chair, Louis could only whimper and glare as as he closed the door behind him.
Once outside his cabin, Esa pulled Jacque aside. “Do you realize what you’ve done?”
His head ached. The last thing he needed was for her to scold him for his actions. She didn’t understand, couldn’t, having come from a fluffier time on the spectrum of life. He lowered his head and rubbed his eyes. “Aye, I know exactly what I’ve done. Tell me, was there any other way? You were there, what would you have done differently? Christ, this isn’t one of your damned movies, Esa! Think ye they’d let us walk out of there?” She just stared at him in astonishment, and he added, “Godsteeth! Would ye have rather I just left you to fend off the wanton lubber by yourself?”
“At least you wouldn’t be facing a death sentence!” Tears rolled down her cheeks and stabbed at his soul. “Why did you come back, Jacque? What about your beloved wife…your kids? You abandoned me, dammit! You’ve been with them the past few days, why come back now? Guilt?”
Arms of fury went rigid at her sides, her knuckles white balls of rage. Her chest rose and fell and the little irritated wrinkle marred her nose. “I can’t believe you lied to me. I thought I meant more to you than that! I’ve been nothing but one of your many mistresses! Another string in your sail.”
He’d never seen her more upset. So full of fire and vinegar. Tingles of resentment surfaced in tiny bumps, raised the small fine hairs along the back of his neck. A mistress?
Kids?
“I don’t know where you’ve obtained your theories but I don’t have any children, Esa. And as far as Sophia, ‘tis a rather long, complicated story. I’ll tell you about when we have time. As I seem to be short a crew, I’ve got to get this ship underway before the entire guard blows us out of the water with their muskets.”
“You should have told me before you attempted to woo me—before I fell in love with you! Had I known—”
“‘Tis exactly the reason I didn’t tell ye dammit! Had ye known, what chance would I have had to win ye?”
Her mouth fell open. “You’re married! Did you think being in another time made your vows null and void? As soon as you were back, you didn’t waste a second returning to her.”
“You just choose to see the bad in me, don’t ye? Whether you believe it or not, I’d have preferred never to lay eyes on the woman for the rest of me days. As it happened, I had to return to the house we once shared in order to find the stone. And after our spat the other night, I came here to think. I wasn’t here long before one of Leon’s thugs clubbed me over the head. The next thing I knew, I was hanging on a bloody wall with the bastard battering me about the king’s diamond!”
~ * ~
Guilt washed over Esa. Why hadn’t she seen it before? His face was scratched with dried blood, his eye bruised and swollen. He was telling her the truth. “How did Keats know about the diamond?”
“Apparently, even in death, his turncoat allies remain loyal to him. Some of my crew sailed under his rule before we joined forces. Had it not been for you, for fear of your powers, I’ve no doubt they would have killed me to avenge his death. But seeing you wash up on the beach as ye did addled those that stood witness. They thought me to be under the protection of the sea witch—for having pleasured her.” The sexy grin appeared to taunt her. “Leon was amongst the count of men at one time. But it would seem blood wasn’t thicker than water in Emmanuel’s case. It was Leon that hired Max and his men to track down the Sainte-Anne.
“Max was surprised to see me. From what I’ve been able to piece together, Leon hired the attack in hopes his brother would be amongst the dead. Then the king would quit looking for the diamond, as it truly would appear to have been lost at sea. Max must have had plans of his own for your history books said Emmanuel was taken hostage and not killed by the goons.
“Where was the diamond?”
“Leon must have followed me after I hid it, and then sent Roberts back to find it later. As the stone was too extraordinary to seek a buyer for without raising a suspicious brow, ye crafty ancestor concocted a plan worthy of any of ye late night television shows.”
“Go on,” she encouraged, leaning her back against the cool wall.
“In sum, Leon used Sophia to get to me and my father’s vineyard. I always wondered what started the fire that night. It just seemed to spike from nothing. Now I know it came in the form of a blonde wind: the first step in Leon’s plot to keep the King’s stone for himself. Obviously, my family suffered a great loss after the blaze. And Louis,” he snorted, “The bastard still expected his share of what would have been a profitable crop. I didn’t find out until weeks after the fact that any of this had transpired. I’d returned to port to petition the king for a divorce when my father informed me of his outrageous debt to Louis.
He was given a short amount of time to come up with the payment, else be at the mercy of the bloodthirsty king.” A muscle twitched beneath his jaw as he continued, “That’s when I informed him of his lost diamond, unaware it had been plucked from beneath my nose. We had an agreement. I should have known better than to think to make a deal with the devil.”
Her heart broke for him. No wonder he seemed so callous and distant. A hard life made for a hard man. Yet, there was still a softness to him that told her the compassionate side of him was not lost. Had it been, he’d never have attempted to save his family and make the deal in the first place.
“Think he found a buyer in
America?” she asked.
Jacque shrugged, “I’m not sure. Looks like he didn’t survive long enough to enjoy his wealth. Ah fate, ‘tis a funny creature is it not?” He smiled and whipped the staggering blue diamond from his pocket and tossed it high in the air before catching it in his hand.
For a few moments, she was left speechless. She reached out to touch it and Jacque caught her hand in his, flipping it over and placing a scorching kiss that sent fire blazing up her arm in her palm before closing the smooth bulk of the icy stone inside.
She marveled at its shimmering beauty and then settled her gaze on a somber Jacque. “Go back to the part where you said you didn’t want to see your wife, please.”
He ran a hand through his tousled mane and after a long thoughtful sigh stated, “There was a time when I thought I loved Sophia. She was young and spirited and very easy on the eye. As my mother lay on her deathbed, she took my hand.” He paused and clenched his eyes shut. She didn’t miss the pain behind his gaze.
“Christ, I can still feel the wintry ice of her frail hands as it closed over my own. There’s nothing I wouldn’t have done, nothing I wouldn’t have said to see her leave this world with a peaceful smile on her face.”
Esa lifted his hand and cupped it in her warmth. His eyes slowly opened and a soft smile lit his eyes. Squeezing her hand gently, he added, “It was her wish to see me settle down and leave me pirating ways behind, start a family.” He walked with her a little ways across the deck, stopping when he reached an old trunk. He hoisted her up and then climbed up beside her.
“So, I married Sophia. It didn’t take long for things to take a sour turn. I never truly loved her. What we shared was lust. Ever aware of the promise I made to my mother, I decided I’d turn my life to privateering. The king granted me Letters of Marque, allowing me to remain abroad for long periods at a time. After one particular voyage, I returned home a few days early and walked into our house to find Leon tupping my wife. It didn’t bother me that she’d been having affairs with other men. Hell, I’d had my share.
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