The Jaxon Effect

by KC Michaels

  That was common with people who suffered severe emotional trauma, Kate thought.

  “The next morning after he beat me that first time he was still pretty aggressive, but he didn't hit me again. I was so afraid of him. By early afternoon remorse kicked in and he began to cry like a baby, apologizing for everything that had happened, he swore that he would never do anything like that to me again. He said he would kill himself if I left him…”

  She trailed off, struggling to continue. Kate waited for her to find the courage to speak again.

  “It was Kenny, my high school sweetheart,” she cried, tears were rolling down her face. “The fun loving sweet guy I grew up with. I couldn't bear to hurt him in that way, so I forgave him. He promised to get help and start looking for a new job. A few months went by and he seemed himself again. It was another year before he ever hit me again. He finally landed a job interview for a new company. He was optimistic, looking forward to the change. I thought things were finally going to be perfect again. I wanted to help, make sure everything went well so I ironed his shirt for him and left it hanging in the bedroom before I left for work, he was in the shower. Shortly after I left the house he called my cell phone. He flew off the handle, shouting that I was supposed to iron his blue shirt and not his grey one. He was so angry. I prayed the job interview went well.

  He didn’t arrive back home until really late that evening. He stumbled into the house, drunk and dishevelled, and I could see the anger in his eyes. I tried to lock myself in the bathroom, but he forced his way in. He had the blue shirt clutched in his hand and he screamed at me, asking me why I was so stupid and why I didn't know the difference between grey and blue. He said he didn’t get the job and I was to blame. He’d said, because of my mistake, he had been upset when he arrived at the interview and everything had gone downhill from there.

  I started to cry as he grabbed me by the hair and he dragged me into the bedroom. He threw me on the bed and he forced me to have sex with him. He was so rough and I was too scared to tell him to stop. When he was finished he called me a whore and walked out. The beatings and rapes became more frequent after that, but he was always careful not to mark me in places where people would see. Once he hit me in the face—it was a few months ago—and I told everyone I had the flu. I didn't leave the house for over a week.”

  “I remember,” Kate replied in a low, solemn voice. “I wanted to come check on you myself, but you asked me not to. You said that just wanted to sleep.”

  Jade nodded. “I knew that if you saw the bruise you would start asking questions about it and make me face things that I didn't want to face. It would have been too obvious for you to ignore…I knew Kenny was sick, but I thought I could help him, eventually. That was the last time he hit me up until now.”

  Kate hugged her friend. “I am so sorry Jade.”

  “Yeah, so am I,” she replied. “I guess I’m lucky to be alive.”

  “Do you want to talk about that night?” Kate asked cautiously.

  Jade shook her head. “No, it’s still too hard to relive it.”

  “It’s okay, I won’t push.”

  “I know you won't, Kate,” Jade said finally showing a hint of a smile. “I love you for that. If you were the type of person who pushed, we probably wouldn't be friends and I might have died.”

  Kate did not want to go there again. She still felt responsible but left it unsaid.

  “Why didn't you call 911?”

  “I don't know,” Jade said flatly. “I was in and out of consciousness and I wasn't even sure if he was still in the house or not. I was afraid, if Kenny caught me, he would finish the job by killing me."

  Kate’s tears threatened to fall.

  “Hey,” Jade said. “None of that, I will be okay.”

  “You shouldn't be the one trying to help me feel better, Jade. It should be the other way around.”

  “You have helped me. You saved my life.”

  “Barely,” Kate said, shaking her head defiantly. “I should have checked on you sooner.”

  “Kate, stop! Kenny did this to me, not you. I lied and kept things from you; I even told you I didn’t want to be friends any longer, but you didn't walk away. You found me and I owe you for that.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me when I called you? You knew Kenny was with me and he couldn’t get to you. Why didn’t you leave then or call 911?”

  Jade took a deep breath and gave Kate a solemn look. “He told me he would kill you if I made one bad move. I was afraid because I believed him. I couldn’t risk it.”

  Kate felt tears stream down her face. Jade almost died to protect her. She would never forget that ever.

  “Why don't we talk about something else? Something less depressing,” Jade suggested.

  “Okay…like what?” Kate asked, clearing her tears with a tissue that miraculously appeared in her hand. Maybe Jade passed it to her she wasn’t sure.

  “Why don’t we talk about you and Jaxon Remington?"

  The colour drained from Kate's face. She had been depressed thinking about him all morning.

  “There really isn’t anything to tell. I barely know the guy."

  “Steven told me,” Jade replied, a cheeky grin on her face. “Don’t even try to deny something is going on between you two.”

  “Steven has no idea what he’s talking about.” Kate lied through her teeth. “Speaking of Steven…”

  “Nice try Kate,” Jade said. “Never mind Steven, I might be in a hospital bed, but I'm not blind. I can see there is something wrong; I could see it the moment you walked in, now spill it. Besides, I could use something else to take my mind off of things for a while.”

  “I see what you’re doing here,” Kate said bemused by her friends conniving way of forcing her to talk about it. “Do you have no shame?”

  “Nope, if I did, I wouldn't be a very good reporter now would I?”

  Kate caved under the pressure and told Jade everything that had happened since she had first met Jaxon—leaving out some of the exact details concerning the sex. The little she did give up, regarding the sex, left Jade gaping at her in surprise

  “Oh my God, Kate, that is the hottest story I ever heard.”

  “Really?” Kate was really surprised by that. She’d barely hit the tip of the iceberg when she’d spoken about the sex and even then Jade still thought it was hot. Kate wondered what she would think if she heard the whole story.

  “What do you mean, really?” Jade said laughing. “Yeah, really!”

  Kate shrugged. “Well, if you say so.”

  “I do say so,” Jade said adamantly. “God Kate, if Kenny and I had had even an ounce of the passion you and Jaxon share, I would probably have even forgiven him for stabbing me.”

  Kate's head snapped up and she glared at Jade. “Don’t even think that!”

  “Okay, bad joke,” she apologized swiftly, with a shrug.

  Kate relaxed realizing Jade was just being Jade; trying to make light of a bad situation. “God I wish I could be more like you. You are so strong.”

  “Like me? Kate, if I was strong I wouldn’t be in this hospital bed right now. I would have had the guts to leave Kenny’s sorry ass a long time ago. I envy you. You have your shit together.”

  “You give me too much credit. If I had my shit together I wouldn’t be struggling with what to do right now.”

  “What do you mean? Why would you do anything? From what Steven told me, Jaxon is into you. He said the guys were shocked when Jaxon called them the other night to say he wasn’t going in to work, he was spending the evening with you. Apparently that was a big deal. Is there trouble in paradise already?”

  Kate remembered that night clearly. It was the night she found out Jade had slipped in a coma. She remembered everything about that night. She thought about how gentle he was and his ability to take all of her pain away just by touching her and holding her.

  “Possibly, I’m not too sure,” Kate replied. “I just don't know…maybe I sh
ould end it.”

  “End it! Why would you…” She stopped mid-sentence. “Oh my God, Kate, you‘re in love with him, aren't you?”

  “No, don’t be crazy. I can't be in love with him. I barely know him.”

  Jade squeezed her hand. “Sometimes it doesn’t matter how long you have known someone. If you belong together, you belong together. Do you think he could feel the same way?”

  “No, definitely not,” Kate said, undoubtedly. “He's emotionally unavailable.”

  “Are you sure about that?” Jade asked.

  “Yes, positive. He said so, right from the beginning.”

  “So you’re worried that the longer you are with him the more attached you will become?”

  “No, I don’t know, maybe but I am not in love with him. I can’t be, that would be crazy but when I’m not with him I really miss him. Oh Jade, I don’t know what to do.”

  Kate held her head in her hands. She was so confused. This was precisely why she never should have slept with him in the first place.

  “I don’t know, Kate. I might not be the best person to give advice on relationships. As you know, I’ve made some pretty stupid choices myself, but I think maybe you should talk to him before you decide to end things completely. Tell him how you feel; maybe he would be willing to give a real relationship a try.”

  “And if he isn't willing?”

  “Well that's up to you, but I think you know the answer to that yourself.”

  “I know but, honestly, I don’t really know how I feel.” She let out a sigh of frustration.

  “I think you do know how you feel so stop trying to fight it,” Jade responded.

  Kate unhooked her pager from her waistband to check it, grateful for the interruption.

  “Sorry, Dr. Richards is looking for me so I better go.” She leaned and gave Jade a feather light kiss on the cheek. “Get some rest I’ll come back on my next break.”

  “Thanks Kate, by the way this conversation isn’t over.” Kate rolled her eyes but she was happy to have her nosey best friend back.

  Kate was waiting for the elevator when she spotted Dr. Richards walking toward her.

  “Kate, just the person I was looking for.”

  “Dr. Richards I was just coming to find you. I was visiting with Jade when I received your page, what’s up?"

  “How is she doing anyway?” he asked. “I heard she’s awake now.”

  “The cognitive tests came back good. There are no signs of permanent damage to her brain. The surgery they did to repair her liver was also a success. As far as everything else goes, it’ll take time, but I would say she’s handling it pretty well considering all that she has been through."

  “And how are you handling it?” he asked with genuine concern.

  “Probably not as well as Jade,” she answered honestly. “But I’m sure this isn’t why you paged me doctor.”

  “No, I almost forgot,” he replied. “I wanted to give you this.” He handed her an envelope.

  “What's this?”

  “It’s the itinerary for the conference, if you decide to go. No pressure, you still have time to decide.”

  “Yes, of course. Thank You.”

  Time away to clear her head was probably not a bad idea. She made a split second decision. “You know what Dr. Richards, I am going to go.”

  A large smile washed over his face in response. “Excellent, I will finalize everything for you.”

  Kate smiled back in return, sort of wishing the conference was tomorrow. The sooner she could get away the better.

  ***

  CHAPTER 14

  Kate wandered into the hotel lounge area of the Bancroft Hotel’s restaurant. She had taken an early morning flight to Chicago and spent the entire day participating in medical workshops. She recognized several faces from earlier in the day, most of who were eating and chatting in the main dining room. Not feeling very sociable, she chose a stool at the empty bar.

  She made eye contact with the young, female twenty-something bartender, who was polishing a wine glass within an inch of its life.

  “Red wine please.”

  “Sure thing, Cab or Merlot?”

  “Excuse me?”

  “Would you like a Cabernet or a Merlot?”

  “Oh umm…” Kate didn’t know much about wine. She still wasn’t sure if she actually liked it; it was an inconsistent experience for her. Sometimes she liked it and sometimes she found it repulsive.

  “You pick,” she suggested, hoping this time she would approve.

  “Cab it is,” the bartender said as she picked up a bottle from the back bar and poured the dark liquid into the glass she had just finished polishing.

  “I'm Sarah,” she said. “If you need anything else, just yell.”

  “Thanks, Sarah.”

  Kate took a hesitant sip and, surprisingly enough, it was good. It wasn’t the best thing she had ever tasted, but it wasn’t the worst either.

  Fingering the stem of her wine glass, Kate thought about Jaxon. She really missed him. She pulled out her cell phone to see if she had missed any calls, but there was nothing. She hadn't heard from him since the night at the Italian restaurant. He wasn’t going to call and she knew it. She took another drink of the velvety smooth Cabernet; the second sip was tastier than the first. Before she knew it, she was staring at the bottom of an empty glass.

  “Excuse me, Sarah,” she said, attracting the bartender’s attention. “I would like another.”

  “Coming up.”

  Sarah picked up the wine bottle and brought it to Kate’s glass. “So are you here for that medical conference?”

  “Yes,” Kate nodded.

  “Are you a doctor? You look so young.”

  “I’ll take that as a compliment,” Kate replied as she tipped the glass to her lips, noting how much she was still enjoying the wine.

  “So what type of doctor are you?” Sarah probed with genuine interest.

  “I work at an emergency room in Manhattan.”

  “Wow, that's really impressive! Is it as exciting as they make it look on TV?”

  Kate shrugged. “Sometimes, although most days it's more busy than exciting.”

  “Are the doctors at your hospital as hot as George Clooney?” Sarah asked, grinning.

  Kate chuckled. “Some.”

  “I thought so. You must have a lot of great stories, working in a place like that.”

  Kate nodded. There was one story in particular that stood out in her mind; she really didn’t want to think any more about him tonight.

  She picked up her wine and finished off the contents before asking for another. An influx of diners began to gather around the bar and, to Kate’s relief; Sarah became so preoccupied with serving them that she was prevented from asking anymore invasive questions. After her third glass was empty, Kate decided to call it a night. She climbed off the stool, only then did she realize the effect the three glasses of wine had had on her, when she tried to walk. She felt an arm come out of nowhere and grab her around the waist, preventing her from falling. Barely keeping her balance, she jerked her head around to see who it was.

  “Dr. Richards!”

  “I'm sorry if I startled you, Kate,” he apologized. “It appeared to me that you were a little wobbly there for a minute.”

  Kate blushed. “No, I'm fine,” she lied. She wasn't feeling fine at all. In fact, the longer she stood there, the worse she felt.

  “I…I stood up too fast,” she stammered because she knew that wasn’t the only reason. “I think I’m going to call it a night.”

  “In that case, I'll walk with you,” he offered. “I'm heading upstairs myself and I think we are on the same floor.”

  She shook her head. “You don’t have to do that, Doctor Richards. I’m sure it’s just a case of jet lag. Don’t let me keep you from what you were doing.”

  “Actually I was going to my room anyway,” he said, not the least bit bothered. “We can share the elevator."

&nbs
p; “Sure, okay,” Kate said, praying to God that the awful feeling she had in her stomach would go away soon.

  Kate stumbled into the elevator, sparing a quick glance over at Dr. Richards, hoping he hadn’t noticed her current lack of co-ordination, otherwise he might have concluded that she was intoxicated. He seemed not to notice and she was grateful. The air in the elevator was warm and the stench of a recent pizza delivery was too much for her fragile stomach. Maybe the elevator hadn’t been such a good idea.

  “If you don’t mind, I think I will go outside for some air.”

  She quickly stepped back out the elevator, aiming directly for the automatic sliding glass doors to the outside garden. It wasn't until she had made it into the cooler night air that she noticed Dr. Richards was still following closely behind her.

  “Dr. Richards, you don't have to worry about me,” she said, self-consciously. “I just plan on spending a minute or two out here.”

  “It's a beautiful evening,” he said, brushing aside her concerns, “I wouldn’t mind some air, myself.”

  “Sure, okay,” she agreed deciding she wouldn’t want to offend him by demanding that he leave her alone.

  At first, the welcomed fresh air made her feel so much better, but after a few minutes; she started to break out in a sweat.

  “You don’t look well at all, Kate,” Dr. Richards suggested, sounding more concerned than accusing.

  “I don’t think I am,” she replied, unable to keep up the facade. “Maybe I better go to my room after all.”

  “Come on,” he said, leading her back into the lobby; back to the dreaded elevators.

  She decided if she didn't actually breathe, she might make it to her room without an embarrassing incident. Unfortunately, the elevator car was crowded and she had to endure two agonizing stops—to let people off—before reaching her floor. Don't vomit. Don't vomit! She continued to hold her breath as she watched the digital numbers climb closer and closer to her floor.

  The elevator door finally opened on her floor and Kate bolted down the hall, digging the key card out of her bag as she went. She had to get into her room fast; she was definitely going to be sick. She inserted the magnetic strip into the card reader and the door unlocked.