A Pirate's Curse (Legends of the Soaring Phoenix) (26 page)

Amadi
dropped Jacques’s unconscious body to the floor.

Kane glanced at
Hannah, her back pressed against the wall. Her naked breasts heaved up and down. He wanted to rip the blasted mallet out of her hands, reassure her, and wrap his arms around her, but his useless arms couldn’t hold a kitten let alone a furious Amazon.    

H
e nodded to Michael. “Go get her clothes.”

Michael grabbed her dress and
tossed them to her. She stared warily.

Kane sighed.
“Hannah, get dressed.”

She tilted her head and aimed the mallet at him.
“No.”

He narrowed his eyes.
“Would you rather stay here?” He tilted his head at Jacques. “With him.”

Hannah slowly lowered the mallet.
The light glowed on her womanly curves. He wanted to shield her from his men’s appreciative stares, but he was powerless. He nodded and the men moved back and lowered their gaze as she quickly dressed.

Looking down at Jacques,
Kane grumbled, “Strap him to the wheel.”

“With pleasure,” Amadi said.
Both he and Michael strapped D’Aubigne to the wheel and gagged his mouth. Spikes tore into his calves, but Kane didn’t draw any pleasure from it. This was a lesson, one Jacques would never forget. 

Fully clothed, Hannah picked up the mallet.
“Stay back.”

Her
coiffure was spoiled, the loose ringlets half up, half down dangled from the hair pins. The determination and fear in her eyes warned she’d bash their heads in if they came near her. How had his plans gone so badly? He wanted to save Hannah, rescue her from this madman, apologize for making a mistake in sending her away in the first place. But now, he’d lost her. Kane shook his head. “Let’s get out of here before we’re discovered.”

Michael kicked the wheel, spinning D’Aubigne around.
Jacques moaned. Michael smiled. “Aye, captain.”

Kane stood, pain shot through his left leg and he bit back a curse.
“I can’t walk,” Kane grumbled.

Hannah knotted her eyebrows.
“But you’re a vampire?”

“A broken one,” Kane mumbled.

She chewed
her lip. Did sympathy fill her eyes? Or was he imagining it? But she gripped the mallet, aiming it higher at him and his men. 

Sea
n hauled one of Jacque’s unconscious men over. “Here, Captain, drink. Or you’ll never heal.”

“Yes
, Captain, do drink,” Hannah mocked.

Kane winced.
Her sarcasm tore through him. Avoiding her eyes, Kane drank from the unconscious man, his blood running to his injuries, the shattered bones further healing and the sinew knitting together. Kane felt the man’s heartbeat slow and broke loose before he killed him, throwing his head back. He licked his lips and took a deep breath. “I can walk.”

“You need more,” Doc urged.

Sean dropped the other man, and he lay next to his counterpart.
Kane stood. His arms still hung useless at side, but in a few days, he’d heal. Doc held the other man. Kane wanted to hide, wishing Hannah hadn’t seen him succumb to the curse.

“Let’s move,” Kane ordered.
He glanced at Michael. “D’ye feed already?”

“Of course, Captain,
” Michael said.

Hannah snorted.
Kane bristled, but clamped his mouth shut.

Sean walked up the stairs first
. They followed his path. Kane kept close to Hannah. As they edged away from the foul smelling cellar, Hannah’s fresh scent of jasmine lingered in the air, easing his nerves. He wanted to bury himself in her hair and kiss her neck. A fragile hope swelled inside him that Hannah would be able to see past the monster within him and see the man. Each step, shot agony through his legs. His kneecaps had healed, but his legs were still weak. His arms pulsed with pain in his shoulders. Doc was right. But he refused to play monster one more time in front of Hannah. He’d deal with the blasted pain.

Sean
opened the dungeon door and led them into the kitchen’s pitch darkness. All was quiet in the house. The wooden floor creaked and Kane winced. Crickets chirped outside. Where were the guards? A door creaked open, moonlight streamed into the kitchen, and Kane held his breath. “This way,” Sean said.

The
y followed Sean outside. Crickets stopped chirping, alerting their presence. The rest of his men and Hannah sprinted across the yard. Kane took off running, pain seared through him, and fell onto all fours. He bit back a ragged scream. A ruffled skirt brushed against his face. He raised his head. Hannah peered down at him, offering her hand. “Here let me help you,” she said.

“I can’t…”

Before he could finish, Hannah knelt down, slipped her arm under his and hugged him next to her trembling body. “Lean on me.”

She was trying to help him.
Why? He narrowed his eyes. “But…”

“Just do it, Kane.”
She held the mallet in her other hand and her face was still hard and cold, but her touch was gentle.

His men turned and Amadi hurried back.
Kane leaned against Hannah’s slender form. Her jasmine aroma filled his senses, diminishing the pain.

Amadi came up behind them.
“Let me.”

She tilted her chin.
“I was trying to help him.”

“I know,” Amadi answered, as he wrapped his arms around Kane’s waist and dragged him to his feet.
“But we’ve got to hurry. Now come on.”

Kane didn’t argue.
They needed to get out and get back on aboard the
Soaring Phoenix
. Would Hannah give him any trouble about returning to the ship? She’d little choice.

Doc and Sean drove a carriage. Michael was on the back end. Amadi half carried him to the carriage. Hannah climbed inside with her trusty mallet. Amadi helped him inside. Hannah glared and gripped her weapon. This was going to be a fun ride.

“Amadi, we need to be alone.”

Amadi glanced at Hannah. “Aye, aye, Captain.” He shut the door.

Hannah stared out the opposite window.
The horses clomped and the wheels creaked. The carriage jostled and he sucked in his breath, agony throbbed in his shoulders.

“Are you in pain?”

Her low voice hinted with concern, but he wasn’t sure. He wanted to see her eyes, but shadows covered her face. “Do you care if I am?”

Hannah sighed and rested the mallet next to her.
“Yes, Kane, I do.”

“But?”

“You brought back...” She hesitated and stared down at her lap. “Memories.”

“
You mean nightmares.”

“Yes
. You’ve killed innocent people, Kane.”

He leaned his head back.
She’d never forgive him. Hell, he hadn’t forgiven himself. Why would she? “I’ve not changed, Hannah. I’m still the same man. ’Tis a nightmare for me too.”

“Your eyes…they haunt me.”

He sighed. “I know I’m a monster.” He closed his eyes, trying to block out the pain. He didn’t know what hurt most—his shoulders or Hannah’s rejection. She was going to leave him anyway.

“I tried to resist the curse.
But after we drank from Zuto’s lake, the full moon came. Food turned to ash in our mouths and liquid scalded our throats. Our throats felt like they’d been scored by dagger blades, we couldn’t swallow. Our bellies constantly ached. I couldn’t ease the suffering of my crew.”

The horses
outside snorted. He turned his head and stared at the condemning moon. “For the next few days, our hunger grew. Our skin burned until bright red and turned thin and gaunt. Blisters formed on the backs of our throat.”

She gasp
ed. He couldn’t look at her and see the condemnation in her eyes. He didn’t want her sympathy, just for her to simply understand.

“A Spanish Galleon overtook us.
The crew boarded us, a deadly mistake. They thought we were devils and they were right, but the knowledge didn’t save them.”

“
What happened?”

He closed his eyes, reliving the horror again.
“A sailor whipped out his sword and engaged me in a duel. We were quite a sight. In my duel, I cut the sailor’s arm.”

The carriage bounced and pain jabbed Kane’s shoulder.
He sucked in his breath and his fingers dug into the leather cushion seat.

“Kane, are you well?”

Her voice fearful, he hoped she cared a little. “Aye,” he lied. Sweat poured down his face and he wished he had a bottle of rum to numb the pain.

“So, what happened when you cut the sailor’s arm?”

“Lust filled me. I never smelled anything so sweet, so spicy, so tantalizing. I dropped my sword and attacked him, grabbing his arm, sinking my teeth into his flesh. The poor bastard screamed and stabbed me in the heart with his sword. To my surprise, I didn’t die.”

“But he did?”
 

“Aye, he did.
I drained him.”

The moonlight peered through the carriage window onto Hannah’s face.
Her look of revulsion turned his stomach. He wanted to sink into the seat, but continued his story. She had to know. He didn’t want this anymore than she did. He wasn’t Palmer.

He lowered his gaze.
“I didn’t discover until later, I could feed without killing, but by then...”

Disgust shone
in her eyes. “You killed many?”

“Aye, I did.”
He slumped into the seat. The carriage turned and the shadows returned, but he could see into the darkness. Hannah turned away and stared out the carriage window, averting her eyes from him. From his face, from what he had become. A monster. Now that she knew the truth, he lost her.

Hannah
dug her nails into the carriage cushion and stared at Kane across the rocking carriage.

His eyes were scarlet, h
is teeth glistened and he was covered with Jacques’ blood.

She swallowed back the awful bile to keep from vomiting
.

He wiped his mouth and leaned his head back against the carriage seat
. His chest rising and falling in ragged gasps. The carriage jostled over a rut. Kane winced. He looked so utterly vulnerable.

Her heart squeezed.
She clenched her hands into fists in her lap, simultaneously wanting to pull him to her breasts and push him away. How could she feel both smitten and disgusted?

Kane’s face paled
and he groaned. She left her mallet on her seat and moved across the carriage to sit next to him. She clasped his chin, turned his head and peered into his glistening eyes. He blinked and the wetness vanished.

“You didn
’t kill Jacques or his men.”

“Aye,” he said.
“When I hear their beating heart, I stop. The victim will be tired, but they won’t die. I don’t kill, Hannah, unless I have to.”

His hair stuck to his face and
she pushed it behind his ears. She stared at his lips, remembering how he had kissed her, how much she wanted him. Vampire or not, she wanted this man. “You’re not a monster, Kane. I just don’t know how to cope with this.” 

She
lowered her gaze, put her hand on his chest and felt his beating heart. “Father always said monsters didn’t have hearts, but you do. It beats hard and strong like mine. You bleed like a man.”

She
tilted her head and captured his lips, her exploring tongue opening his mouth, savoring his masculine taste. His scent of sandalwood erased the memory of decaying oranges. He responded back, his kiss deepening, but he groaned. 

She jerked back.
“I’m sorry. Did I hurt you?”

“No, lass,” he panted
. “I wish I could hold you.”

She lowered her gaze.
“I know.” She ran her fingers down his chest. “You will.” Blood drenched his arms and his arms hung loose from his sockets. “What can I do to ease your pain?”

“Stay with me.”

She snuggled close to him, careful not to hurt him. Kane leaned his head on her shoulder and she ran her fingers through his hair. He fell asleep, his snores comforting her. A vampire? He’d told the truth. Jacques and his men were alive. Kane’s a pirate and a vampire. How could she have fallen for such a man?

Jacques was the real monster.
His tart scent permeated her clothes and she wanted to wrap herself in Kane’s shirts, forever stomping out the smell. Jacques’ mouth even tasted citric, sickly sweet, bombarding her mouth with over ripe oranges. She gritted her teeth. She wished Kane had ripped out his throat, bleeding him to death, but Kane was a man of honor.

Her breasts hurt
where Jacques bit her nipples. His long nails had scratched her inner thighs, violating her. Tears seeped down her cheeks.

The carriage slowly stopped.
Doc opened the door. He smirked. “’Tis asleep?”

Hannah nodded.

Doc and Amadi carried Kane out of the carriage.
Her shoulder went cold where his warm breath had brushed over her neck. She followed them down to the dock where a dinghy was tied to the dock, big enough for all of them. In the distance, the
Soaring Phoenix
was anchored off shore. Eagerness spread through her. She wanted off this bloody island.

Since he was suffering so much, the trek back to the ship was a painstaking
slow process, but eventually they got him onboard the ship. William and Doc draped Kane’s arms over their shoulders and dragged him to the cabin. Hannah trailed behind them.

Familiar scents of Kane, aged wood and the sea
warmed her heart. She wanted to be here.

Hannah helped
Kane lie down on the bed. Doc cut away the rest of his shredded shirt and pulled off his ragged breeches. “Christ.”

Hannah gasped.
Deep ragged pieces of torn flesh marred his biceps and his thighs. He had black and blue bruises on his torso where Jacques had beaten him with the mallet. She swallowed. How could he endure this?

Doc tended Kane’s
wounds with Hannah’s help, sewing his biceps and thighs. Kane blanched as Doc pulled the thread in his flesh snug. Hannah counted twenty stitches in each area.

Kane took deep breaths, but when Doc left, he opened his eyes.
“You’re still here.”

She stared into those emerald eyes
and pushed his thick locks away from his stitches in his temple.

He
squeezed her hand. “I’ve missed you.”

She smiled and rubbed her thumb over his hand.
He was so different from her father who’d never have risked his life for her. “I’ve never told you thank you for coming for me. I can’t imagine what would have happened if you hadn’t been there.”       

“You’re a survivor,
Hannah. You’d have found a way.”

His faith never failed to astound her.
His few words gave her strength to believe in herself. “Thank you.”

Kane
pulled her down on top of his chest. She wanted to kiss him, but Jacques’s leering face appeared in her mind. She turned her head and swallowed hard. Kane could force himself on her. Even wounded, he was stronger, more powerful than her. She held her breath and waited.

“Do you fear me
?” Kane asked.

A hint of sadness was embedded in his voice, but
he gave her an impassive look betraying no emotion. Had she imagined it?

“No,” she said.
Why was she thinking of Jacques? She couldn’t help it. She smelled of Jacques and her skin and lips were soiled from his touch. How could she tell Kane this? 

“Will you stay with me a little longer Hannah?
I promise I’ll behave.”

She nodded and snuggled next to him.
The clock ticked away and her fears lessened, but her skin crawled. She needed a bath to scrub away Jacques’ scent and horrors of the dungeon.

She sat up.
“Kane?”

“Mmmmm,” he said.

“Can I have a bath?”

His eye peered open.
“A bath?”

“Yes, please.”

“I’ll get up and have…”

“No, I’ll do it.”

Before she could move, he leaned over and kissed her lips. She tensed. He stopped and sighed. “I’ll order the bath. Stay here.” 

“Thank you.”

“Afterwards, we will sup.”

She nodded, not sure she could eat anything.

Kane rolled out of bed.
She was surprised on how he didn’t wobble, although his steps were slow. She sat on the bed and waited for the bath, hoping to wipe away the last stains of Jacques D’Aubigne.

Hannah soaked in a hot steamy bath and examined the ugly jagged red scratches on her breasts. Teeth marks outlined her right nipple. How could a man have such sharp teeth?

Sobs racked her body and tears splattered into the tub.
She slapped the water, sloshing water on to the floor, trying to forget his small hands roaming over her body. He slammed his knee into her tight legs, his bony knee forcing her thighs apart. She lifted her left leg out of the water and caressed the tender purple bruise, the size of Jacques’ bony knee.

Gingerly putting her leg back in the water, she closed her eyes, trying not to remember. But his hot breath and disgusting scent would not leave. She opened her eyes.
Rubbing her bruised nipple, she swallowed. She could still feel his sharp teeth biting, pulling and twisting her nipple. With each whimper, he had sucked harder, bit harder, twisted hard. Did he think he was pleasing her? Couldn’t tell when a woman experienced pleasure?

She shuddered as he laved his way down past her navel. His sloppy kisses staining her skin. Soaking in the water didn
’t erase the feel of his lips on her. He kissed his way down her body, panting and grunting like a hungry pig, leaving hot spit on her flesh. When he had wedged his head between her thighs, his tongue tasting her, she had wanted to squeeze his head like a melon.

Not once had he tried to be gentle. Not once did he care for her pleasure.
Not once did he stop grunting. She wiped away an angry tear.

No matter how much she scrubbed she couldn
’t remove the feel of his tongue on her. She wanted to forget, forget how his fingernails scratched her. After he licked her core, he had jabbed his finger inside her, forcing her tense folds apart. She shuddered, remembering the pain as he explored her, violating her secrets. How could a man have such long fingernails? What damage would Jacques had done if he’d had raped her? 

She sniffed her skin and grimaced.
Why could she not get rid of Jacques’ foul smell? She’d never eat an orange again. Gripping the lavender soap, she scrubbed her skin and washed her hair squashing the sickly scent. 

Taking a deep breath, s
he pushed back her hair behind her ears and climbed out of the tub. She dried herself and rubbed lavender lotion all over, but still smelled oranges.

Damn.

She hurried over to
Kane’s closet, yanking out a shirt and inhaled. Sandalwood. She dressed in one of his shirts and pair of his trousers, wanting to drown in his scent. Safety and warmth bathed her, finally, defeating the scent of oranges.  

She combed her tangled hair with her fingers and let it fall loosely around her shoulders.

Hannah
opened the door to find Kane leaning against the wall. She blinked. “What are you doing? Are you in pain?”

“No,” He stood.
“I was waiting to take you to dinner.”

She
swallowed her fear and grinned. Kane would protect her. Jacques wasn’t aboard this ship and was stuck in Saint Kitts, strapped to a breaking wheel.  

He stuck out his elbow. “May I lassie?”

“Yes, Captain, you may.”

His
suave smile left her weak in the knees. She laid her hand on his bicep as he led her to the galley. Beneath her fingers, his sinew flexed, revealing his power and strength. Vampire or man, she trusted him.

He held her gaze.
“Hannah.”

His firm voice startled her.
“What?”

“Your father…”

Her heart quickened. “What about my father?”

“They’
ve got him.”

She swallowed.
“Palmer?”

“Aye.”

She gripped his shirt. “We have to go after him. Now.”

He squeezed her hand and wrapped his arm around her waist.
“We will, Hannah. I promise. You need to stay calm. Palmer’s counting on you losing control. Will you listen to me?”

She nodded and leaned her forehead against his chest.
“But they’ll hurt him.”

“I know.”

She wanted him to deny it, but Kane didn’t lie to her. He didn’t betray her.

He rubbed her back.
“Come on. We need to eat. Get our strength up.”

She gazed up at him and nodded.
How could she eat knowing her father was a prisoner and likely being tortured aboard the
Fiery Damsel
?

In
the galley, Michael, William, Sean, Doc and Amadi sat at table. Five men armed with swords, pistol and sheer determination. Doc was right. No one could hurt her while aboard this ship, but that wasn’t good enough. What would happen if they were not there again? She was tired of being the damsel in distress. Not anymore.

Kane dished up her food again.
She missed this, but she picked at her food, not fully eating. How could she eat her fill knowing her father was being tortured? She refused to let her father suffer and die. “I want to learn how to fight.”

Kane choked
. “You want to what?”

Jacques’ ugly face appeared in her mind.
She stuck out her chin. “I don’t want to be vulnerable again. I want to learn how to use a sword. Father always refused to teach me and look what happened.”

“But you’re a lass.” He lifted his eyebrow and laughed.
“You can’t learn how to fight in a couple of days.”

She jabbed her finger into his chest.
“I remember how some lass stabbed you in the back and you were laid up. With my power, I’m not helpless.”

Kane studied her.
She held her breath waiting for his answer.

“Kane, you’re not serious
ly thinking of letting her?” William demanded.

She scowled.
“You’re going after the
Fiery Damsel
, right?”

The men exchanged glances.
Kane drank his coffee and put it down before he answered. “Aye.”