by Laura Day
JAX THE KILLER: Fighting Dirty Trilogy, Book 2
By Laura Day
I hurt people.
I lose myself in the sweat and blood and the sound of bones breaking.
Maple’s different.
She saved me, made me whole again.
Now, someone wants to hurt her.
And it’s my turn to save her.
Even if it means going back to jail
Even if it means killing again.
This is a work of fiction. Similarities to real people, places, or events are entirely coincidental.
JAX THE KILLER
First edition. November 10, 2017.
Copyright © 2017 Laura Day.
Written by Laura Day.
Also by Laura Day
Fighting Dirty Trilogy
Jax the Fighter
Jax the Killer
Jax the Dom
Iron Raiders MC
Blind Spot
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
Also By Laura Day
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
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Further Reading: Jax the Dom
Also By Laura Day
Chapter 1
Maple
With the lights turned off, the small apartment was filled with little crystals of light that danced around the room, changing shape with abandon. Maple lay in the sheets of Jax’s bed with her head pressed up against his broad chest. Their legs were entwined together, his hand was on her hip, moving in slow, caressing circles.
“Can I ask you a question?” Jax asked.
“Of course,” Maple replied, placing her hand on his chest and moving up and down the hard wall of his stomach muscles.
“Why do you choose to work in the gym?” Jax asked, his brow creased with curiosity. “It’s a shitty job, and it’s probably got even shittier pay.”
Maple sighed internally, as she pulled her head away from him so that she could see the entirety of his face a little clearer. His eyes were a brilliant and unadulterated blue; they had a way of catching the light and appearing even brighter as a result. He was looking at her with an expression that suggested affection, trust, and comfort. That was not something Maple wanted to change, but if she wanted whatever relationship they had to be real, she needed to be honest.
“There was a part of my past that I left out,” Maple said slowly.
Jax raised his eyebrows questioningly, but he didn’t ask the question, knowing Maple would tell him when she was ready.
“When I was with Ryan...it was impossible for me to find a job. I was an addict, and my appearance and behavior suggested exactly that. I didn’t want to be dependent on Ryan for money all the time though, and so I kept looking. I found this...place; they called it an erotic massage parlor.” Maple tried not to scrunch her nose up with distaste as she said the words. “Have you heard of them?”
“I have,” Jax nodded.
Maple tried to see if anything had changed, if Jax’s opinion of her had been altered, but there was no change in his expression, the brightness in his eyes remained when he looked at her. That alone gave her the courage she needed to go on.
“I had to beg a little,” Maple revealed. “But I managed to convince the woman in charge that I was a safe bet. I don’t know if she actually thought I would do ok, or if she just felt sorry for me, but she gave me a job.”
“How long did you work there?”
“Almost a year,” Maple answered.
“What made you stop?”
“After I weaned off the drugs and I left Ryan, my perspective changed,” Maple tried to explain. “It was like I had cleansed my life in a way. I had got rid of anything that was toxic to me, or I had at least left those things behind. Working at the parlor was just one of those things that I didn’t want to take with me.
“It was only after I was clean that I could see clearly. Once I was clean, it was as if a curtain had been lifted and I could finally see my own thoughts and feelings clearly. I realized that I wasn’t willing to do anything to survive. I wasn’t willing to barter away my pride for a couple of hundred dollars. I wanted to live the kind of life that I could be proud of.”
Jax smiled at her. He lifted his hand from her hip and placed it against the side of her face. His hand almost covered the length of her profile. Maple raised her hand and placed it over his.
“I tried to find other jobs, waitressing, cleaning, cooking...anything at all that didn’t require higher education, but it didn’t matter. I don’t think it would have mattered even if I had a college degree. What mattered was that I had the scar, and people didn’t want to touch me. I think they saw all my mistakes in that scar, just like I did, and they knew it was better to stay away.
“And then almost by chance I stumbled into the club over the gym, and I heard Evan talk to someone about wanting help around the gym. So I approached him and practically begged for the job. He was kinder to me than anyone had ever been in a long time. He didn’t even mention my scar.”
“Evan’s not the kind of man who cares about that kind of thing,” Jax said. “As long as you’re committed and hardworking, he’ll take a shot on you.”
“Is that what he did for you?” Maple asked.
Jax smiled. “That is exactly what he did for me...but sometimes I wonder if he miscalculated,” he said, as his smile faded.
“What do you mean?” Maple asked, spying the light dim in his eyes slightly.
“I just... have you ever seen me fight?”
“I see you fight every single day,” Maple told him. “I’ve even seen you fight in the ring surrounded by chanting crowds.”
“Then you’ve... seen my style?”
“It’s... you fight like... you’re not afraid to die,” Maple said softly.
Jax smiled, but it was a sad smile. “That’s what Evan’s been telling me lately.”
“And do you agree with him?” Maple asked.
Jax hesitated for a moment. “It’s not deliberate, and it’s not conscious,” he tried to explain. “It’s just that when I fight...something inside me snaps, and I can’t always control what happens after that.”
Maple looked at him with worry. “Jax—”
“You’re so brave, Maple,” Jax said, cutting her off. “You clawed yourself out of a very deep hole, and you’ve turned your life around all by yourself. It takes a very strong person to be able to pull that off.”
“It’s not over for me, Jax,” Maple said softly. “Every day I have to fight to be that person. I have to fight to stay away from drugs and to make the right decisions and to work hard. It’s not like once you’ve made up your mind it stops being hard work and it becomes second nature. I have to constantly keep myself in check. I have to constantly fight to stay on the straight and narrow. I have to make that decision every single day when I wake up. It never stops.”
Jax nodded as if he was taking it all in. “So even with the drugs—?”
“I did it myself... mostly because I didn’t have the money to seek professional help... but it’s still so hard sometimes. My life is still hard. I live out of my car, and on the bad days... well, sometimes it feels like a little pill or a long drag is all I need to make things better.”
“And what keeps you from taking a pill or a long drag?” Jax asked.
Maple sighed. “My mother,” she said. “If I go back to that life, th
ere will be no one left for her. But mostly, I remind myself of the life I was living before. I remember the worst moments with Ryan, the deterioration I put my body through, the hundreds of men I had to satisfy on that cursed massage table in order to earn a few dollars. I remember how all those choices made me feel about myself. And in the end, the need to dope myself up isn’t nearly so strong.”
“I suppose it’s not that easy, is it?” Jax said.
“It’s not at all,” Maple said. “People don’t always realize. It’s easy to make the right choices when you’re life is going the way you want it. It’s when things get really hard... that’s when the right choices matter the most.”
Jax nodded. He looked thoughtful, but he also looked preoccupied. Maple didn’t want to disturb his reverie. Instead, she placed her head down on the pillow and continued stroking his chest. She thought about how much her life had changed in the past year, and she felt a surge of pride rush through her. She was glad to have left so many things behind—the drugs, the dealers, and most of all, Ryan. All he had contributed to her life was pain, control, and violence—and Maple was not willing to go back to that ever.
“I’m glad you’re here, Maple,” Jax said, pulling her away from her thoughts.
Maple smiled back at him. “Me, too.”
Chapter 2
Jax
The light filtered in slowly, it cast small spotlights of dust along the apartment, throwing Maple’s sleeping face into high relief. Jax propped himself up on his elbow and looked down at her. Her head was tilted to one side, her eyelashes fluttered slightly, and her dark hair fell across her face, hiding her scar. Jax lifted his hand and brushed away the stray lock with his finger so that he could see the scar.
Somehow in his eyes, it had lost its prominence. It was no longer the first thing he noticed when he looked at her face. Now, the first thing he noticed was the brilliant beauty of her soft, brown eyes, and everything else seemed to pale in comparison. He could see more than just that however. He could see the strength in her delicate features; he could see the resilience and the courage there. She had pulled herself out of the abyss, and she had committed herself to a completely different life, one that was by no means easy. Jax wondered if he could have done the same in her shoes.
He thought of his own life. They had been through different things, but the similarities lay in the darkness that gripped at their pasts. Jax’s scars were all on the inside, ingrained so deep that he knew they would last a lifetime. He could feel it sometimes... the great ball of anger that sat inside his chest without ever fading. It was always with him, and no matter what he did, he couldn’t seem to shake it. Anger was an emotion that required an outlet, and that was what had led him to the fight in the first place. He wanted an excuse to hit at strangers. He wanted a reason to be violent. He wanted to justify releasing the animal he felt roaring inside him.
With Maple, Jax found it easier to ignore—at least for a little while—the ball of anger inside him. She softened his rough edges and made it seem like recovery was possible. He saw how hard she had struggled and how much progress she had made, and it inspired him. There was something inside him that responded to her almost instinctively. It was not something he had ever experienced before.
Slowly, Jax disentangled himself from the sheets, slipping out from underneath Maple’s embrace. He made sure she was resting comfortably as he walked as softly as he was able to his tiny little kitchen. He already knew that the cupboards were empty; he usually ate out and then made his way home. More often than not, he liked to crash at the gym to save time. Jax dressed quietly and found a stray bit of paper. He scribbled a short note, telling Maple he would be back in a half hour with some coffee and breakfast sandwiches and then slipped out of the apartment.
The staircase was encased in misty light. The bars on the window of each landing cast a grim shadow on the floor. For once, the sight didn’t depress Jax. He walked past it without a second glance. The air was cool and crisp as he stepped outside of the apartment building. It was very early, but there were a few bakeries that opened exceptionally early. The truth was, Jax wanted to be back before Maple woke up so that she would have no need of his note.
He started at a brisk pace, enjoying the day, feeling brighter and more optimistic than was natural for him. He walked a few blocks in search of a good bakery that would be open, but he had no luck near his own neighborhood. He walked in the direction of the city’s hub, knowing that there were always a few places there that were open for business. As he walked, Jax kept flashing back to the night before and the way Maple had moaned beneath him. He felt his penis stiffen in response, and he quickly changed his line of thought.
Finally, he got to long road that was paved with little stores and cafés. There was a bakery squeezed in between an alley and a coffee shop. He went in and bought a dozen pastries and some steaming hot coffee. He was walking back home when he spotted the men. There were three of them, and they were all leaning against the doors of a beaten up looking car. Their eyes were trained on him with purpose, and Jax’s senses were instantly on alert.
“What are you staring at?” Jax demanded, unable to keep himself from engaging them.
Immediately, they straightened out in a manner that was intended to be intimidating. The guy in the middle was the tallest of the three. He had on a leather jacket and bandana wrapped around his head. He was sporting a wispy beard, and his teeth were yellowing despite the fact that he looked no older than twenty-five. The man to his right was slightly shorter, slightly more muscled, with a large, baldhead and ears that stuck out prominently. The man to his left was about the same height, but he was skinny in the extreme, and his hair was yellow and long.
“You Jax?” the bandana wearer asked.
“I am yeah,” Jax replied. “Who’s asking?”
“We’re friends of Ryan.”
Jax resisted the urge to roll his eyes. “Then my sympathies to you.”
“You really did him in,” the short muscly one said. “Did a lot of damage.”
“That was my intention,” Jax said unapologetically. The bandana wearer scowled at him, but Jax continued with a shrug. “Didn’t your good old buddy ever learn to pick on people his own size?”
“Some women just need to be taught a lesson,” the bandana wearer sneered. “Especially greedy little whores like Maple.”
The bubble of anger inside Jax burst through him. His muscles tightened, and his jaw squared, but he didn’t move a muscle. He stood where he was and stared them down. “Say that again.”
“She’s nothing but a no good, drug-addled whore—”
Jax dropped the bag of pastries in his right hand, and at the same time, he hurled the hot coffee in his left hand at the bald, burly one. He keeled over screaming in pain, but before the other two had any time to react, Jax lunged forward and grabbed a hold of the bandana wearer around the neck. He swung him forward into the wall adjoining the narrow alley. Then he turned to face the skinny, blond guy.
He was looking at Jax through narrow eyes that were full of calculation. From the corner of his eye, Jax noticed the penknife glint in his hand. “Do you really need the extra help?” Jax taunted.
“Fighting fair never got me anywhere,” he said in a low wispy voice.
“Fair enough,” Jax said, as he came at him in contained rage.
He whirled around, avoiding the blade, as the blond man slashed at the air with a speed that might have impressed Jax had he not been so infuriated. He jumped back as the blade almost made contact with his stomach and grabbed the blond guy’s hand. Jax saw his eyes go wide as he realized that he was trapped. Then Jax laid a powerful head-butt on him, and the blond guy was down and out.
The other two were raising to their feet. Jax noticed a brilliant emblazoned bruise on the bandana wearer’s forehead. He threw a backhand kick to the burly guy, sending him flying into the car they had been leaning against before he advanced on the bandana wearer. People were beginning to
notice the fight, some were moving fast in the opposite direction and a few were getting out their phones. Jax ignored them all and focused his attention on the snarling man standing in front of him.
“Never insult a woman in my presence,” Jax said, enunciating his words. “Especially not Maple.”
“The truth hurts,” he spat. “And the truth is that Maple is—”
Jax didn’t let him finish. He sent a punch straight for his nose, and he had the satisfaction of hearing the crunch of breaking bone and the squeak of pain. Right on its heels came the sound of a police siren, and Jax looked up in alarm. It was close by, and Jax knew exactly where they were headed. He didn’t stick around; he ran through the narrow alleyway until he had reached the other side. Then he made detours until he was back in his own rundown neighborhood and the sound of sirens was just an echo ringing in his ears.
Panting, he leaned against a graffiti-riddled wall with his palms placed firmly on his knees. The moment his breathing had evened out however, Jax became conscious of a nagging feeling in his heart. It didn’t seem to matter where he went; violence seemed to follow him everywhere. No matter what he did, he couldn’t seem to escape the need to fight, and he wasn’t sure he was the kind of guy who was capable of walking away from one.
Jax thought of Maple, lying tangled in his sheets on his bed. He thought of the life she had lived and what she had done to escape it. She had mentioned that violence followed Ryan everywhere, and Jax had to admit that he was no different in that regard.
“I should have walked away,” Jax said softly to himself.
Despite his words, Jax wondered if that were possible for him. He wondered if he was capable of simply walking away and leaving his anger behind. He wondered if he had the capacity to change, or if he was destined to make bad choices until everyone in his life had left him.
Chapter 3
