“This is a joke, isn’t it? You are leading them to me!”
“No, they have no idea I am helping you. I can get you out, but I will likely be killed for it.”
“W-w-w-what?”
“Sit down, I need to look at your leg.”
I sit, praying this man isn't playing games with me. He looks gentle, like Jax. He looms over me, and I realize he is huge. Taller than Jax and wider, the man is powerful. He kneels in front of me and takes my face in his hands.
“You thirsty?”
“Yes.” I croak.
His green eyes search my face, then he nods.
“You are very beautiful Jade, I am sorry this happened to you.”
I nod, it’s all I can do. I hear bikes in the distance and Maddox curses.
“Get behind those bushes, don’t even flinch.”
I duck behind the thick bushes and Maddox hides my spears then gets on his bike and starts it. When somebody pulls up beside him, I can hear them talking.
“You find her Mad?”
“No mate. Blood trail is gone from this area. I am guessing she has run through the night. How many k’s can one do on a sore leg?”
“I am guessing about fifty. I will go west; it’s where the forest gets thicker. She will likely look for cover.”
“Yeah. Don’t kill her, leave that to Ben.” Maddox says.
“Aye, but it will be fun to put another bullet in her. Try not to beat me to it.”
“I’ll try.” Maddox laughs.
The other bike speeds off, and after about ten minutes, Maddox appears again. I glare at him.
“You…why would you think it’s ok to hunt and torture somebody?” I cry.
“I don’t think It’s ok. Ben doesn’t usually operate like this.”
“How long have you been a pirate Maddox?”
“Same time as my brother. I just didn’t become a Captain. I joined Ben’s crew when he started one. Before that I was on land,
mamma
took me with Carol, I didn’t have what Jax had. I wasn’t made for that life back then, and neither was Mark. When we began living a normal life, and Mark married; I never saw Jax. Then he came back to visit and he caught Mark beating his wife. It was after that; I sought out Bill. Jax had run with him for a while, but he was more than willing to take me. I hated Bill; that ass was a prick so when Ben, his only son decided to start his own ship; I joined. Been there ever since. We ran different waters to Jax and Bill; everyone knew they were enemies, so we all stayed away.”
I swallow. “Jax killed your brother, he….hurts because of that.”
Maddox nods. “I hated him, swore I would make him pay for killing Mark. I was right in on taking you and killing you; then I saw you and…I realized I am not that mad at Jax. I couldn’t kill his wife. Mark beat Shayla, his wife, to the point that she nearly died. He deserved to die for that. Jax shouldn’t have killed him though.”
“Then who should have?”
“Me,” Maddox says in an icy tone. “It should have been me.”
“Why Maddox?”
“Because he failed me more than Jax. He betrayed me. Lied to me.”
I nod, seeing his point.
“Lets sort this leg. Sit down.”
I sit again, and Maddox unravels my shirt. He grimaces and shuffles through his bag and pulls out some strong antiseptic. I flinch.
“It’s going to hurt like hell. If you need to scream, use my shirt.”
He sits in front of me so I am slightly tilted but mainly in his lap. He pushes my head to his chest and puts my leg over his knee, so he can work freely with it. I grip his shirt and press my face to his extremely hard chest. He counts and then pours the antiseptic on my leg, I scream alright, but he presses my face harder into his chest so the sound is no more than a muffled cry.
“I know, I’m sorry.”
When the burn dies down, I am sobbing wildly. He strokes my hair and lets me continue to soak his shirt with my tears. When he is done, he wraps my leg in fresh bandages and then sits and rocks me for a while. He has a good heart; all Amber and Rusty’s kids do. I feel close to Maddox, though I don’t know him. Something inside me trusts him. He pulls back and hands me a flask of water; I drink it down greedily and accept the pain relief he hands me.
“We have to work quick, I have sent them off the trail for now, but I don’t know how I will get out of their security with you. Ben has the entire perimeter monitored. We have to be damned quick.”
He glances down at the camera in my chest and winces. It’s infected and sore.
“I’m going to get that out.”
I shake my head. “He can see me, hear me. I need him to know I am ok.”
Maddox looks down at the camera. “Jax, we are in the Yosemite national park. I don’t know where exactly but I am headed to the nearest entrance which is on the south side. I am guessing it will take me four hours, give or take, if we don’t get caught. Bring your crew, you are going to need it.”
Maddox turns me away and presses my back against his chest and takes hold of the camera, ripping it from my skin. His hand clamps over my mouth as I scream. It feels as though someone is driving a hot knife into my chest.
“Sorry mate, sorry.”
When my screaming subsides into sobbing again, he removes his hands and cleans up the tear in my chest. He patches it up and then helps me stand.
“Can you hold onto my bike?”
“Yes.” I whisper.
He gets on and starts it up; I slide on behind him and he kicks it into life. He zooms off quickly, and I send out a silent prayer that we make it out safely.
CHAPTER
16
We get two hours west when the sound of motorbikes stops us. Maddox is unable to hide me in time, and two pirates spot us. He speeds off through the trees so fast they are whizzing by, good lord we are going to die. I grip him tightly and hang on for dear life. Gun shots sound out and Maddox winces, blood pours from his arm.
“You’ve been shot!” I cry. “Stop Maddox!”
He skids the bike to a halt, pulls out two guns and hands me one. The two bikes near on us and more shots ring out. Maddox struggles to lift his arm, the pain in his face is visible to me, so I lift mine. You can do it Jade; you learnt from the best. I shoot, aiming at the tyre of the closest motorbike. The pirate is thrown off and lands harshly in the scrub. Maddox shoots him without hesitation, his lifeless body slumps on the ground.
I aim for the second, repeating the process, only I hit his fuel tank, and the bike explodes before my eyes. Oh, god. Bits of man fly about everywhere; I scream so loudly it hurts my own ears. Maddox crushes his hand across my eyes, but it’s too late, I have seen enough. Maddox doesn’t move his hand from my eyes; instead he shoves the bike into gear and holds me in front of him, pressed to his chest until he is far enough away from the gore. When we come to a stop, I finally look up.
“I am sorry you had to see that.”
“I’ve seen worse.” I croak.
“I imagine. Are you a pirate or just Jax’s wife?”
“Both.” I say, showing him the tattoo on my hip.
He nods. “I need to clean up my arm.”
“Did the bullet go in?”
“Nah, just grazed it.”
He quickly fixes his arm when we hear the sound of four wheel drives. I panic and fumble for the gun.
“That’s not Ben.” He says, squinting into the distance.
I peer over and follow his gaze; there are about four huge four wheel drives headed our way on a nearby dirt road. When I see the first; a big shiny F-Truck, I yelp.
“That’s Jax.”
The truck pulls over, and Jax leaps out, I am running towards him before his feet even hit the floor. I fly at him and leap onto him, wrapping my legs around his waist. He slams me into his chest holding me so hard I am hardly able to breathe, but I don’t care. I don’t care about anything but him.
“Oh Jax.” I sob.
“You, brave…brave girl,” He whispers into my hair. “God Dammit, don’t you ever scare me like that again. Nothing in the world can explain the hell I have felt for the last twenty four hours.”
I let him release me, and stand in front of him. He looks down at me, inspecting every part of me.
“You need a hospital.”
“I’m ok. Maddox…he was really good to me.”
Jax looks over at his brother and so many unspoken words flow between them, in their gazes alone. Jax let’s me go and I am pulled into another set of arms. Rusty. I hug him tightly and let him conduct the same check Jax had.
“You scared us Lass, watching you on that tape. I think we all cried.”
I smile weakly at him. “I was so afraid Rusty.”
“You are safe now.”
I peer around Rusty, and the entire crew are standing on full alert, guns loaded. I look back towards Jax, and he has stopped in front of Maddox. I walk over, taking his hand in mine.
“Don’t be mad at each other anymore,” I whisper. “Please.”
“Maddox, you saved my wife. I am grateful to you for that.”
Maddox nods.
“If you wish to punch me, get it over with.” Jax says.
“You grew up little brother, strong, tough, like I knew you would. I hated you for so many years but what you did was right. He didn’t deserve to live.”
“I shouldn’t have done it.” Jax says simply.
“No, I should have. I saved your wife because she is amazing and didn’t deserve Ben’s treatment.”
“Thank you.”
“I won’t hold anymore of your time, I will go and face the music now.”
Maddox nods at me and I shake my head. “Maddox, they will kill you!”
“She’s right, they will. Stay with my crew and I.”
Maddox looks shocked. “Why?”
“Because you are my brother, does there need to be another reason?”
“You don’t trust me.”
Jax shrugs. “Trust takes time, I have time, if you do.”
Jax holds out his hand, and Maddox slowly stretches his out to take it. They shake then hug, and relief washes over me. I know we have yet to get out of here, and I dread it. I shiver beside Jax, and he hugs me close.
“Maddox, I want you to get her out of here. We don’t have long. Take my truck, get her to safety. We will finish up here.”
Maddox nods but I grip Jax. “No Jax, if something happens to you…”
“You are going Jade, I will be ok.”
“No please!”
Maddox takes me, and Jax throws him the keys, I grip Jax’s shirt and refuse to budge.
“Baby, let me go. I will be ok; I have my crew. Please, you don’t need to see this.”
“JAX!”
Maddox drags me to the car and puts me in; I am screaming out to Jax, begging him to change his mind. If something happens to him, I will never forgive myself. Maddox throws the car into gear and speeds off down the road; I watch my husband disappear in the rearview mirror, he is watching us, watching me. I wonder if I will see him again; the thought turns my stomach and I double over. Maddox pats my shoulder.
“Jax is the most feared pirate on those waters, you now that don’t you?”
I look up at him. “No.”
“He’s deadly Jade, he always has been. He will be fine; Ben is a minor compared to Jax.”
I look back down at my feet and keep my head between my knees until I hear that we are on bitumen.
“Don’t look up.” Maddox mutters.
“Why?”
“Your husband made a mess on his way in.”
I didn’t need an explanation to know what that meant; Jax had slaughtered his way in. When I know we are far enough away, I sit back up..
“Where do you live?”
I give Maddox the address, and he punches it into Jax’s GPS. I close my eyes for the rest of the trip, when we pull up home, Lilly hurries outside followed by Layla and Jax’s parents. Maddox freezes and I can see his eyes are set on Amber and Rusty.
“Oh…Maddox. Are you ok?”
He nods swiftly and stiffly. His jaw is clenched. I pat his arm before sliding out of the car and hobble towards my daughter, I scoop her into my arms, kissing her hair and her face.
“Mummy, I was so scared.” She cries.
“Oh baby girl, we are all ok now.”
“Where’s daddy?”
“He will be here soon.”
Layla takes me into her arms when I stand, and she is crying.
“I never want to see anything so awful again in my life. Oh Jade, you scared the hell out of us.”
Maddox gets out of the car and Amber freezes. Rusty stops and stares at his son, his expression unreadable.
“Maddox?” Amber stammers.
“Mamma.”
She yelps and bounds forward, throwing her arms around his neck. He takes her and lifts her off the ground, with his height and size, he looks huge next to her. When he puts her down, they are both crying. I smile at the reunion. Rusty walks over and reaches his hand out to his son.
“Son.”
“Dad.”
They shake hands, and I hear a squeal of delight come from the house and turn to see Carol bounding out. She runs towards Maddox and throws herself into his arms.