Vengeance (The Pirate Series)

by Bec Botefuhr

  “What is it?” Jax asks, stepping beside me.

  I can’t move, I can’t even open my mouth to answer him. It is a trick. They stole her ring. I know better though because I know my mother’s hands. I lean over, and I throw up, heaving until my stomach is empty. I crumble to the floor and hear faint talking around me. I can’t make out the words; I can’t do anything but dry retch. I feel a cool cloth on my head; my eyes are fuzzy, but I can hear Jax’s voice.

  “Baby, come to…come on.”

  I blink at him, but he is so hazy. Why can’t I speak?

  “She is in shock Jax,” Rusty says. “We need to get her to a hospital.”

  “She will come too. Call Mack.”

  Jax wipes my face over and over, but I just can’t focus. I want to speak, to scream or even cry but my body has fallen into a dead hole. I feel as though my arms and legs are filled with tiny bugs, crawling all through my veins. I can’t breathe, not any more than a small pant. I can hear the voices around me, but I can’t respond to any of them.

  “Hey, baby, come on.”

  I blink and blink; until my husband clears in front of me. He takes my damp cheek and brings my face closer to his.

  “I got you, why did you get sick, Jade you need to tell me whose hand that is.”

  It takes a lot of effort, but I answer. “It…my mother.”

  “Holy shit, fuck. Call the cops and find out if Grace Casteah made it back to Russia. God Dammit, no.”

  Rusty disappears inside and Jax quickly wraps the package, but not before pulling out a small note. He reads it and curses.

  “W-w-what Jax?” I whisper.

  “Nothing.”

  “READ IT!” I scream.

  He tosses me the note, and I open it with trembling hands.

  I told you I would draw you out, one way or another.

  You didn’t listen. Silly pirates.

  If you had have given me the treasure, the woman wouldn’t have died.

  Next will be your daughter, or better yet, your wife.

  Give. Me. The. Treasure.

  I scream; finally it comes out in a loud, high pitched wail. It is so loud the neighbors come from their homes and people stop on the street. Jax takes me and shakes me slightly, but I can’t stop, it just comes out all horrified and hurt. Mack pulls up the car a moment later and rushes out, Sam close behind. He drops to his knees in front of me.

  “Hey, hey, Jade…”

  I am screaming so loudly it hurts, I grip his shirt and claw at his chest. Jax is behind me, crushing his body to his chest.

  “Jax, what the hell?”

  “Mack…fuck…it’s Grace.”

  Mack pales, I mean, pales. Jax shoves the box and note towards him, and he reads it, then wails, a loud, angry wail. Sam rushes over and drops by his side, but he is incoherent. Like me.

  “What is happening Jax?”

  “As far as I can tell, Grace is dead.”

  “W-w-what?”

  “Ben got her. Mailed her fucking hand, God Damn that filthy son of a bitch.”

  I lean over, and dry retch again, nothing comes out. Jax whispers soothing words in my ears and rubs my back. By now, the cops from over the road are here, and people have stopped and are surrounding the house.

  “Fuck, this isn’t good.” I hear Jax mumble.

  “Do you know what has happened?” The cop asks.

  “No.” Jax says, stony faced.

  “And this hand?”

  “As far as I know belongs to Grace, Queen of Russia.”

  “The queen? Why would her hand be here?”

  “That is her daughter, Jade. Someone left it for us.”

  “Do you know who?”

  “No.” Jax lies so well.

  “Any idea why someone would do this?”

  “People hate royalty, Jades story has been around the world and back. It wouldn’t take much.”

  “I am calling in back up.”

  “You need to call her husband and find out for sure this is her.”

  “Without a body, nothing is sure.”

  I wail again, and Jax takes me gently into his arms. Mack is sitting on the steps, staring, just staring.

  “Look, I can’t do this now. Come back later.”

  “Thanks sir, we have all we need for now.”

  I don’t recall much of what happened in the next few hours. I know a lot of people were around, Jax, Jack, Layla, PJ, Jax’s parents, but I don’t speak to any of them. I curl in a ball on the bed, and I cry. My mother, my poor mother. This is all my fault, I did this. I involved my family with pirates, I should have listened all those years ago, and I should have never run away. This is on me.

  The next two days pass in a blur, my mother’s body is found, and a funeral is planned. Jax sends Lilly to the island, dropping her off himself. I am thankful for that. I refuse to go. I am going home, to be with my old family at this time of need. I need to say goodbye to my mother; I need to go and let go of my kingdom and my name. I made that choice the minute her body showed.

  Jax is coming with me, along with the crew and Mack. We are sailing just so we can keep the search up for Ben. Jax is onto me now more than ever to touch the treasure, he is terrified for me, for my life. He doesn’t leave my side, he doesn’t sleep. He is beyond guilt, just like me. The trip is slow as expected and it takes us a week to get home. When we do, I dread going back to the kingdom. To the home I left.

  When we arrive at the walls, old memories wash over me. The pub next door is still there and still empty. The people swarm the gates, awaiting my arrival. I stare at them as the car stop; I know I have to get out, to walk in and face them. I don’t know if I can. Jax squeezes my hand, Mack squeezes the other. I see Steffan, standing on the other side waiting. Just a few meters, that is all.

  “Come on, I got you.”

  Jax gets out of the car first and photographers go mad, asking questions and shoving cameras in his face. He ignores them, like a pro. Mack cops the same and when I get out, the crowd goes crazy.

  “Princess, you are home. Is it true you ran with pirates?”

  “Princess, how does it feel to return to your abandoned kingdom?”

  “Princess, is it true your mother died saving you?”

  I swallow and shove through the crowd behind my father and husband. When we get through the gates, they are slammed closed, and I finally breathe. Steffan greets me with a warm hug, he should hate me, God knows he should but he doesn’t. I melt into him, desperate for anything even close to my mother.

  “How are you Jade?”

  “I am dealing,” I whisper. “I am so sorry.”

  “No, it isn’t your fault. Bad people are bad people, and they do what they have to, to get what they want. You couldn’t have helped what happened.”

  “I could have never left all those years ago, never tangled myself with pirates.”

  Jax flinches beside me, but doesn’t say anything.

  “Life has a way of working Jade, it just goes how it is meant to, and things happen for a reason. Regardless of how you feel now, you were meant to leave back then, if you didn’t it would have been your funeral we attended. Life has a way, it isn’t always nice but it has a way.”

  Steffan turns to Jax and extends his hand. “Jax welcome, thank you for bringing her home. Grace would have wanted it.”

  “Thank you. Sorry for your loss.”

  “Thanks. Mack, nice to see you here too.”

  Mack shakes Steffan's hand stiffly. “Yeah, thanks.”

  “You are all welcome to our guest housing.”

  “Actually, I am going to stay next door. It’s been vacan’t a few months and is still clean. I have the key; I spoke to the current owner. He was happy to let me pay him to use it for a while. I could use the distraction.”

  I gape at Jax. “You are staying away from me?”

  He strokes my cheek. “No, you can come as much or as little as you want. Right now baby, you need this time. I will be here, any time
you need.”

  “Are you going to run it?”

  “Nah, just stay there.”

  “Ok.” I whisper.

  “Mack?”

  “I will stay with Jax.”

  “I guess it is just me then.” I say to Steffan.

  “Come on, your old room is just as it was.”

  “Thanks.”

  “We will go settle in, then come back. Have you got a key to the gate?”

  Steffan pulls out a keychain and hands Jax a key. He thanks him once more and then kisses me softly, with promises to be back once they have rested and freshened up. Mack doesn’t kiss me goodbye; in fact, Mack has hardly looked at me since my mother’s death.

  “Come on love.”

  I watch the two men leave, then follow Steffan in. I am bombarded by the maids and cooks, who hug and pull me, by the time I get to my room I am exhausted and emotionally drained. My room truly does look the same and I am overwhelmed with emotion. I don’t know what to think or feel. I touch everything, and let the tears flow down my cheeks. When Steffan enters a moment later and finds me on the floor sobbing, I am grateful for his arms that slide around me.

  “It’s ok. It will be ok.”

  “I loved her so much, this is all my fault.”

  “No, you can’t do this to yourself. You picked the life you picked, but you never asked for her to be involved. It was a horrible thing to happen, but it wasn’t your fault.”

  “It was my fault, I live a dangerous life, and she told me before she died that one day it would take someone I loved. It was her.”

  “Then maybe it is time to change that life, but you can’t blame yourself for the choice you made. You have a beautiful family and a loving husband. I know this ended tragically, but you have to stop blaming yourself.”

  “I don’t know if I can. My own father can’t even look at me.”

  “Well, while he is doing that, I am here. I did a lot wrong to you Jade, and you aren’t my daughter, but you grew up around me, and it wasn’t until you left I realized how much I missed you. How much I missed your attitude and your constant defiance. You made things amusing, and I treated you badly. I owe you a heartfelt apology for that. I made mistakes, then and now. I was having an affair; I know your mother knew, I knew you knew but I did it anyway. I was lonely and knew your mother still loved Mack. She wasn’t the same after she saw him again and I knew it. I felt alone; no child, no wife, both lost to one man. I don’t hate him for that, or you, or her, but I am sorry.”

  I hug him tighter. “For what it’s worth, I still loved you, even when you treated me badly.”

  He smiles and stands. “How about some tea?”

  “Thank you, that would be nice.”

  “Get some rest, please.”

  I nod, and when he is gone, I slip into the shower. I spend a good half hour in there, trying to wash away the guilt and loss for my mother. I miss her; God do I miss her. I feel sick at how she died, and I can’t shake the pain in my chest. I have cried so many times, I couldn’t begin to count them, and my father isn’t speaking to me. He blames me. I know he does.

  I get out and dress, then slip into bed. It is late afternoon, and I just need some time alone. I miss Jax already, but know he needs time too. He knows I am safe here, and I know he will be resting. I pull out my phone and hesitate. I want to talk to Mack, I just don’t know how. He won’t even look at me. Maybe if I ask him to meet me, we can sort it out. I punch in his number.

  Daddy can we talk?

  He doesn’t reply for a long moment.

  I am tired.

  Please?

  Jade, I am tired.

  Fine don’t bother.

  Fine, I am coming.

  I sip my tea and wait, an hour later Mack walks through my door with the maid behind him. He watches her leave, and then shuts the door and stands, staring at me. It is the first time he has looked at me for a good few days.

  “What is it?”

  His tone, it is impatient, but most of all, it is hurt. He is angry and hurt, I can see it.

  “Why can’t you look at me?”

  “I am looking at you right now.”

  “Mack…”

  “Don’t call me Mack.” He hisses, so angrily it shocks me.

  “Don’t ignore me then! You are treating me like you can’t stand me; I don’t understand why. I miss her too, I am hurting too.”

  “Yeah well you wouldn’t be if you just…”

  “What?” I whisper, trembling. “What?”

  “If you just stayed the fuck away from Jax all those years ago.”

  If he had slapped me, it would have hurt less.

  “How dare you, I love him and my family. I made a mistake! You made a mistake too, a long time ago. You left your child, but I am not blaming you.”

  “Aren’t you?” He growls. “You have blamed me for years, and this has always been tense. It isn’t about my mistake; it is about yours. You didn’t listen when you should have.”

  “I NEVER RAN FROM HER, I RAN BECAUSE I WAS BEING PLOTTED AGAINST. I NEVER MEANT TO FIND JAX AGAIN, AND I NEVER MEANT TO FALL IN LOVE. HOW DARE YOU? JUST SAY IT, GO ON, SAY WHAT YOU HAVE WANTED TO SAY FOR DAYS.”

  His eyes are wild; he is irrational.

  “This is all your fault. Your mother is dead because of you and your God Damned pirates.”

  I make a horrible choking sound and fall to my knees. I can’t breathe, I am dying. I hear voices, Jax maybe.

  “Shit Mack, what the fuck is wrong with you. That is your daughter you heartless piece of shit. Why don’t you kick her while she is down too? Get out, go on, fuck off. You don’t deserve her.”

  “I…”

  “Get out.”

  I hear the door shut and Jax is by my side in minutes, rocking me in his arms. I wail until finally, there is nothing left. Jax puts me in bed and stays with me until I fall into a weak, exhausted sleep. I don’t know that the next day will change everything. If I knew, I might have done things differently.

  CHAPTER 11

  I decide to take a walk in the morning; I need to. I climb from my bed and see that Jax has gone. I am not sure if that is a good or bad thing. I pull on some shoes and make my way out of the house and into the gardens. I am sitting, enjoying the fresh morning when someone comes into view. I haven’t seen him for years, but there he is, standing in front of me. It is James.

  “James?” I say, standing.

  “Well well, I heard you came back, some nerve you have.”

  “What do you want?”

  “What do I want? You actually have to ask. Do you know how many years I have waited for this moment? You fucked up my life, I now work here as a mere guard. I have nothing. You took it all. Then you married that scum bag pirate as if to rub it in.”

  “You were trying to kill me!”

  “Yes, and I should have done it when I first thought it.”

  He is scaring me, the way his blue eyes look. He is not stable.

  “Go away, Jax will be here any moment.”

  “Oh, I am so scared. I only need a moment.”

  I take a step back. “Get away James.”

  “I bet you feel awful don’t you? I mean, not many people are responsible for their own mothers death. How did it feel to know it was your fault? I hope her eyes rot into your mind; you deserve it.”

  “James, enough.” I say, stepping further back.

  “It is never, NEVER enough.”

  “I am sorry ok? I will give you money, just leave me alone.”

  He snorts. “Wow, some things never change. I don’t want money; I want revenge. You fucked my life.”

  “I said sorry.”

  “Celeste left me you know, when she knew I wasn’t going to be king. It was all your fault. Now, I will make you pay.”

  It is only then I notice he has his hands behind his back. He moves forward, and I see the glint of silver. The man has a Damned gun. He aims it and I lunge forward, knocking him backwards. He goes stumbling
down onto the ground, and I land on top of him. The gun goes off, missing us both. He rolls and I kick out, connecting with his shins. He grips my hands, then fumbles for the gun and aims it. I slam my head into his, causing temporary blindness.

  I take the chance and move, rolling to catch the gun that tumbles from his hand. He is too quick and kicks me in the side, sending me back down to the floor. I can see boots running towards us, just have to hold him off for a second. I get up on my knees as he reaches for the gun and punch out; he spins around and lashes out, hitting me so hard I stumble backwards. I try to catch my gripping, but there is nothing to grip onto. I fall into the nearby concrete seat, hitting it with such force it knocks me out cold.

  “How long doc?”

  “Days, months, I don’t know. She doesn’t want to wake.”

  “Is she brain dead?”

  “No, her brain is showing normal activity. It is her that doesn’t want to wake.”

  “Why?”

  “I don’t know son, I really don’t. Sometimes the brain shuts down to protect too much emotional trauma.”

  Trauma? What is he talking about? Why can’t I open my eyes? Where am I? What has happened? I phase back out.

  “It has been two weeks, she needs to wake.”

  “She moved about this morning, she is waking.”

  “Jade, wake up.”

  I think it is Jax, why is Jax here? What has happened? I want to open my eyes, so why can’t I? Maybe I am just too tired; I do feel so weak. Just a few more hours…

  “Jade, hey…”

  I hear my name and I force my eyes open. They don’t go as far as I want and so I try again. They open further, and the air burns them. Wincing, I close them again.

  “Doc, she is awake!”

  I feel myself being prod and poked. I open my eyes again, it still burns. Someone tips drops in, oh yes, that helps. When I open them for a third time, it doesn’t hurt so much. My vision is blurry, like a film has been placed over my eyes. I blink rapidly, trying to focus. I see outlines mostly, with fuzzy insides.