Love's Abyss (St. John Series) (3 page)

Chapter Four

Eight Months Earlier. . . September 1791

Maggie dressed hurriedly. She could see the sails of
The Abyss
coming into port. Alex would be to see her in a couple of hours, and she wanted to look her best. She donned the pale yellow dress that he brought to her on his last visit. It was the color of sunshine in the spring with a pale green sash. She turned to view herself in the mirror. She carefully took a delicate cross out of a box. It was a gift from Alex. She smiled as she latched the necklace around her neck. The cross was tiny and dainty with a small round opal behind it. She stepped back from the mirror and gave herself one more glance. “Perfect.”

The door burst open and a tall, thin blond-haired boy came running in. “He’s here!” he panted excitedly. “Alex is here!”

Maggie gazed at her son. He was the image of his father with his blond hair and blue eyes. “I know. I saw the sails of his ship. You better hurry down to the docks. Alex may need your help unloading.”

“Yes, Mother. Maybe I’ll have a present, too,” interjected the eager youngster as he ran out the door.

Ever since Samuel was born, Alex brought him presents every time he came to port. He had more toys and trinkets than any other child in Port Royal. She smiled as she looked across the room that Mr. Grimm had given her since she had Samuel. It was on the third floor of the tavern, off limits to patrons. There was a rocking horse in the corner as well as toy soldiers, boats, and pull toys of every shape and size. She smiled as tears filled her eyes.

She turned towards her reflection in the mirror. With a timid smile she thought aloud, “I’m going to tell him about Samuel today. He needs to know. No . . . It’s his right to know.” She took one more glance at her reflection again. She turned from the mirror and heard a commotion coming from downstairs through the door that Samuel left open.

As she headed down the stairs, she could hear a man yelling. Once at the second floor balcony landing, she heard a voice . . . 
his
voice. “Then I’ll guess
she’ll
just have to do,” came the cold evil voice of Commodore McClain.

Mr. Grimm turned to gaze up at Maggie. “It’s her day off. The other girls will be up in about an hour. Come back then.”

“No, I don’t think so,” said the Commodore slowly. His British accent slithered out evilly. “I will have to take my leave by then.” The Commodore’s eyes turned back to Maggie. “If I don’t have my way now, your establishment may not be here by the end of the night.”

Everyone knew what he was implying. The Commodore was known for always getting what he wanted, and if he didn’t, the taverns mysteriously burned down and their owner met a horrible demise.

Maggie slowly descended the stairs and looked at the Commodore. “I’ll be happy to wake Eleanor for you. Let me go get her.”

“No, I don’t think I want the company of that fat old bitch today. I want you,” he looked at her coldly. He walked quickly towards her and grabbed the upper part of her arm roughly.

Mr. Grimm started their way. “It’s okay, Mr. Grimm,” Maggie accepted fearfully. Maybe if she gave him what he wants, he would leave in time for her to straighten herself up before Alex got there.

McClain dragged Maggie roughly into the back room of the tavern. It was a room he liked because it was quiet and no one could hear what was going on due to its location. He threw Maggie on the bed, locked the door, and turned towards her. In one quick stride he was across the room. A vile sneer crossed his face. “You know what I want.”

Maggie gave a weak smile and stood up. “Eleanor is just right upstairs,” she reminded the sinister Commodore. “Really, it’s not a problem to go get her.”

“No,” the Commodore said with a chill to his voice. “I think I want a sample of what that damn pirate finds so appealing.” He shoved Maggie back down on the bed. She scurried to a sitting position with her back on the headboard. She curled her legs up under her and looked nervously towards Commodore McClain. He grabbed her by her shoulders and threw her onto her back. As he slithered on top of her, he unbuttoned his trousers.

“Please,” she pleaded, “let me go get . . . .”

Before she could complete her sentence she felt a sharp slap across her face. She looked at him in disbelief. He had a cold sinister look to his face. It was as if he wasn’t human, but some monster from her darkest nightmare.

“I said
no
!”

Maggie tried to push the Commodore off her, but her struggles were pointless. The Commodore was just too strong for her. He grabbed both her hands and held them above her head with one hand. She could feel his other cold hand on her legs. She kicked her legs frantically. “Get off me!” she yelled.

“I
always
get what I want, whore.” The tone in his voice sent chills down her spine. Maggie struggled more. She managed to free one of her hands and slapped the cruel man, her nails clawing at his cheek.

The Commodore contemptuously smiled as he gazed upon her. He took his free hand and touched the area on his cheek, now bleeding from the scratch she inflicted with her long nails. He looked at his bloody fingers. In one quick move, he punched her in the face. She saw stars. What happened the next hour was a blur to her. She barely remembered him ripping off her stockings and raping her several times, all the while slapping and beating her face and body.

Once he was finished, he looked at her battered face. She was almost unrecognizable. Her face was bloody, her lips slit in several areas, and the telltale signs of bruises were beginning to color the welts on her face. Her eyes were so swollen McClain could barely see the hatred in them.

“He’ll kill you for this,” she uttered weakly.

The wicked man sneered at the mangled woman in front of him. “Oh, I think not. You see,” he replied while pulling on his trousers, “you won’t say a thing.”

He turned towards Maggie and walked to her battered body. She caught a glimpse of a shiny object from her swollen eyes, and then suddenly felt a sharp searing pain in her side. Again, again, and again the pain came. It became difficult to breathe. Bending down and placing his warm lips close to her ear, he whispered, “You see, dead men, or should I say whores, tell no tales.” He slowly stood up and spotted the necklace around Maggie’s neck. Reaching down, he wrapped his bloodstained fingers around the charm and gave a quick yank. He looked at the opal-backed cross, placed it in his pocket, tossed the knife to the floor, and headed out the back of the tavern.

* * * *

As the ship pulled into the dock, Alex’s eyes scanned Port Royal. It was an unusually diverse port city. Everyone from pirates to Navy officers, to merchants, to the aristocratic elite frequented the port. It was a hubbub of activity. If you needed something, it could always be found at Port Royal. Traders and merchants from all over the globe frequented the large port town. His eyes watched another ship pulling out of the dock. The deck was busy as the oriental crew made ready to leave port. Port Royal was a mixing pot of classes and cultures.

Alex looked down the dock. He could see a skinny, blond boyish figure running up the dock. He smiled as he watched Samuel wave towards the ship. “Alex! Down here!” he heard the boy shout.

“Hello, Samuel!” replied Alex. The phrase was repeated several times by the crew of
The Abyss
. They all had grown accustomed to seeing the cheerful youngster whenever they came to dock at Port Royal. The young boy scurried to the edge of the pier and waited for the crew to get off the ship.

Max slid down the ropes. His boot-clad feet hit the pier with a thud. “Max!” stated the boy with excitement painted all over his face.

“Are you here to help unload some of the cargo?” Max questioned the boy.

Samuel smiled a huge grin. “Yes, sir,” answered the boy eagerly.

“Hold up, not yet,” came a voice to the right of them. Samuel turned towards the voice. He tried to hide his delight, but his eyes smiled. He held back the urge to run towards Captain Alex and give him a hug. He was becoming a man, and they refrained from those types of things.

Alex looked at the boy in front of him. Samuel was tall and lanky for his age. His hand-me-down trousers were too short for his thin long legs. His sun-kissed face was framed by short blond hair and blue eyes. “Did you do the job you promised me you would?” questioned the pirate.

“Yes sir! Mom is well taken care of.”

“Good,” stated the Captain. “Mr. Hart?”

“Aye, Capt’n,” Max answered.

“Do you have a job for the youngster?”

“Aye, I believe I do.”

“Well, put him to work,” commanded Alex. He stepped to the end of the pier to pay the dock clerk. Walking past Samuel, his large strong hands ruffled the boy’s hair. He stopped just past Samuel and turned. “Oh, I have a surprise for you, too.”

“Where? What?” questioned the boy eagerly. Alex smiled and looked towards the cargo hull of the ship. One of the crew was unloading a very skittish sable mare.

“A horse? Really?” Samuel kept looking back and forth between the Captain and his present.

“Only if it’s okay with your mother,” replied Alex. “We can’t have you walking everywhere you go, now that you’re getting older. Oh, and don’t worry about the boarding fee. I’ll make arrangements for that, too.” The boy could hardly control his excitement. “Get to work!”

“Aye, aye, Captain,” the boy stated. Alex smiled to himself as he watched Max and Samuel board
The Abyss
.

It took Alex a little over an hour to finish his business at the docks, which was quicker than normal. It had been several months since he last saw Maggie and was ready for her company. As he was leaving the docks he caught sight of Commodore McClain a few yards away. He was holding a handkerchief up to his face. McClain looked his way and gave a malicious sneer. “I hate that man,” Alex mumbled to himself.

When Alex entered the front of the tavern he looked around but didn’t see Maggie. Grimm was at the bar polishing glasses. “Where is she?” Grimm looked up uneasily but did not answer.  “Mr. Grimm?”

“She went into the back room about an hour ago with a customer,” answered the short fat bar owner.

As Alex was heading towards the back room he could hear Mr. Grimm. “The man hasn’t come out . . .” His words fell on deaf ears.

Alex came to the backroom and noticed the door was cracked. There was an eerie silence to the room. He placed his hand on the pistol in his belt and cautiously pushed open the door. The sight before him was that of nightmares. There on the floor laid Maggie in a puddle of her own pooled blood. He rushed to her side and gently gathered her in his arms.

“Maggie!” he shouted. “Maggie!” Mr. Grimm heard the commotion and entered the room. “Quick! Go get the doctor!”

Mr. Grimm ran out of the room quickly.

“Alex . . . ,” Maggie said weakly. “I’m . . . I’m . . . so sorry.”

“Shhh, don’t talk. The doctor is coming,” he stated in a quivering voice.

I have to tell him before it’s too late.
“Samuel . . . ,”

“He’s safe. He’s with Max unloading . . . ,” she slowly placed her long, thin, bloody finger over his mouth.

“Samuel . . . he’s . . . he’s . . . your . . .”

“Save your strength,” Alex insisted.

Maggie gave a weak smile and let out a slow breath. With tears rolling down her cheeks she knew she would never get to see her son or Alex again. Her mind was becoming fuzzy, but she focused on what she had to make known.  She had to let Alex know the truth. “Son. He’s . . . your . . . son,” she muttered with her last breath. She slowly closed her eyes and went limp in the arms of the man she loved.

“Maggie. Maggie!” Alex said loudly and gave her a gentle shake. Alex looked at her lifeless body and held back his tears. He gazed at her beaten body and a slow boiling rage steamed up deep down inside him. He let out a loud “NOOOOO!” The mournful yell came from a place within that he didn’t know existed. It consumed his entire being.

He slowly stood up with Maggie’s limp body in his arms, gently laid her on the bed, and studied her. She had been beaten fiercely. As he scanned her body, he noticed the multiple holes around the bodice and the torn fabric of her dress. He noticed the blood running down her legs. As his gaze slowly traveled back up her body, he noticed something was missing. Her necklace! The one he gave her many years ago for her birthday. He could see the red welt forming from where it was ripped from her neck.

Alex heard a noise coming from the door and quickly turned towards it. “Mom,” he heard a quiet voice say. “MOM!” Alex crossed the room quickly to Samuel and turned the child’s head before he saw her tortured body. “Let me see her!” shouted Samuel. Alex looked down at the boy’s face. Samuel could see the words in Alex’s eyes and tears rolled down his face.

Alex wrapped his arms around the boy. “It’s okay Samuel. Let it out.”

“Noooo,” cried the boy as his fists pounded on Alex’s chest.

Mr. Grimm returned with the doctor, but it was too late. Maggie had passed on. Grimm’s Tavern closed for the first time since opening its doors for business. Alex had Samuel stay with him aboard
The Abyss
that night. Maggie’s last words echoed in his head. “Samuel, he’s your son.” The words kept repeating themselves over and over again.