Lost Paradise

Her muscles screamed in protest as she tried to shift her position on the floor of the ship's dungeon. As soon as they had boarded the ship, she had been thrust inside the dark, damp room with her hands and legs bound, the gag still in her mouth. She fought them as much as her body would allow until she went limp with exhaustion. She held the satisfaction she had broken a few noses and gave black eyes. However, she had also recieved her own fair share of the battle.

She was unable to see through her left eye for it was swollen and already turning black and purple with bruising. Her lip stung from being split open when the Captain had angrily back handed her to shut her up. A massive headache pounded inside of her head like an avalanche and her entire body ached.

She curled her knees to her chest to comfort herself, seem as small as possible if someone came to retrieve her. Tears slid down her cheeks in silence as she thought of her real home and how she had gotten into this mess in the first place. She thought of Amil and Honora, the kind people who had adopted her and her friend, Isola. Theo she missed the greatest; her little friend was all the way on the other island without her company and protection.

Her heart shot straight into her throat when she was startled from her daydreaming by the sound of footsteps heading to her door. When it burst open and three men piled inside, she was frozen like a deer caught in the headlights. When they grabbed her and yanked her to her feet, did she start to fight. With barely any energy left, she fought with all her might at least knowing if she was going to die, she was taking someone with her. She kicked, struggled and even headbutted one of the men straight in the face, breaking his nose with a roar.

A hand cuffed her, tossing her head to the side and stars danced in her vision before she recovered and continued her assault. Together they dragged her out of the cell up onto the deck and she squinted, blinded by the sunlight and squeezed her eyes shut tight. With a grunt, she was tossed into the sand straight off the ship and rolled onto her side, pain shooting through her knees and shoulders. She whimpered and curled up into a ball, wishing she could find someplace to hide away from the probing stares, crude gestures and nasty comments.

A hand fisted into her hair, yanking her head up as she cried out and found herself staring into the steel blue eyes she was growing hate more and more each time she looked into them.

Captain Xavier smiled. "My dear, welcome to my homeland. This island here I like to call Treasure Island. Those poor fools didn't realise that by sending me here, I discovered a great cave filled with treasure chests."

Her eyes spit fire as she glared up at him and he narrowed his eyes, examining the black eye that nearly shut her eye entirely and the split lip cracked with dry blood and frowned. He looked to the nearest woman who had gathered to see what the Captain had brought home. He helped Arrow to her feet and shoved her into the woman's arms.

"Get her cleaned up. I expect to see her for dinner," he said darkly and watched the bountiful woman with the painted face nod and lead the fiery redhead away. He watched them until they disappeared into the town and turned to his crew with a sly grin.

"Well done, men. We've captured ourselves a fine beauty indeed," he said with a glint in his eye and the men chuckled deviously with their Captain before turning to care for the ship to set sail the next time.

Xavier Blackheart gave a sigh and climbed the forest path leading to the town and gazed up at the tall wooden cottage that was his house. He slipped inside and removed his Captain's hat and set it aside in the usual place before plopping himself down in a chair and resting back. He rubbed his eyes tiredly and thought about the days work.

The guilt crept into his heart as it always did and he blew out a sigh, staring at the cieling. He thought back to his childhood on the island with the other villagers and his soul ached to be back home. Being exiled for something so petty was a blow to the heart and soul and since then he had hated them, especially Talon.

He was always good with the girls and all of the villagers liked him for his smile and dedication. Plus, he was the Chief's eldest son and the most promising one; he had never stood a chance against Talon. It didn't help that no one knew the Chief's wife was also his mother. He thought of his mother with her long black wavy hair and her kind eyes and warm, loving smile and closed his eyes. There were days he missed her so much, he wanted to kidnap her and bring her to his island to stay with him.

A knock roused him from his thoughts and he put his mask back on.

"What is it?" he snapped, angry that he was being disturbed from his thoughts.

"Captain, the lass is prepared and ready," Penelopy's voice said beyond the door and he pushed to his feet and grabbed his hat, settling it on his head before stepping out into the night. The plump woman led him down the cobbled streets to the local pub where currently everyone was.

Stepping inside, voices filled the room with laughter and chatter and everyone was having a merry time with their ale and women. Xavier ignored all of this and searched the room for the familiar and only redhead until he caught the hint of flames and fixated his gaze upon her. She was sitting in a corner surrounded by a group of men chuckling and bothering her. She jerked away from their touches, her green eyes filled with fear. He overlooked her face and didn't like the amount of makeup plastered on her already beautiful face. Her hair was washed and tamed in sleek flaming curls down her back and she wore a gaudy emerald green gown with black lace, putting her well endowed bosom on display for everyone to see.

He saw the flash of anger in those fiery green eyes when a man touched that plump bosom and watched as she kicked out her leg, knocking the chair over with him in it. The men laughed rauciously and helped their comrade up and continued to hound her. He didn't step in until he saw the exasperation in her eyes.

Moving through the room, the men and women fell silent as he passed. Parting like the red sea, the men surrounding her moved out of the way with wide eyes, not wanting to come head to head with the brutal Captain. He gazed down at her and tsked, shaking his head.

"You look like a whore," he said flatly as the men chuckled, though he had not truly meant that. He wanted to clear that beautiful pixie face of the mask she wore and find something pretty to dress her in. However, in front of the others he had no choice but to be crude and set his emotions aside.

He held out his hand, his steely eyes trained on hers and saw the fire in those eyes as she sat perfectly still with no intention of accepting his hand. Reaching down, he grabbed her arm in a vice grip and jerked her to her feet. She gave a startled gasp and stared up at him in surprise when he pulled her against his chest, cradling her arm between them.

"Come," he said simply and turned to the door, dragging her along with him while a few men chuckled evilly and the women glared because they had not been the one to spend time with the handsome devil himself.

Outside, the chatter and laughter echoed from the pub as Xavier led the terrified young woman down the path toward his house. As soon as it came into view, she planted her heels firmly in the ground and pulled against his hold.

"I am not going in there with the likes of you," she hissed, trying to jerk her arm free and he turned to her angrily.

"Do you not learned to watch your tongue?" he asked darkly as he lifted his free hand to brush it against the swelling around her eye and watched her flinch away from the tenderness and glare at him.

"If I am to die, be aware that I am taking you with me, you bastard," she said clearly in a warning tone and he could only smile in admiration and hated the shocking expression on her face at his simple smile.

"I have no intention of killing you," he said honestly with a smile and led the stunned woman into his cabin without a fight, closing the door behind him. He released his hold on her without a second thought and removed his hat, setting it aside. He stole a glance at her.

"Are you hungry?" he asked politely, moving to the small built kitchen while she stood there and could only stare, her mouth hanging open in astonishment.

"Why are you acting like this? Where is the brute of a man from the ship?" she demanded when she recovered herself and suspicion settled in. People lied and faked emotions all the time, and she was not letting her guard down for an instant.

Xavier rolled his eyes with a sigh as he placed a kettle over an open fire. He turned and folded his arms, leaning back against the countertop to regard her.

"I am really not that person you saw on the ship. You see, when I was exiled from my home to this island, the current Captain took me in and struck fear into my heart. He told me that if I was ever to survive, I would have to put my emotions aside and strike my own fear into their hearts. I have killed many a time without thought or remorse in front of my men...I had no choice if I wanted to live with a bunch of cut-throats like them," he said seriously with a wry expression while Arrow blinked.

Her eyes narrowed as she cupped her elbows. "You can understand why I don't believe you."

His steely eyes softened to that of sorrow, once again catching her by surprise as he turned his back to her. "Yes...I understand."

Unsure of what to do, Arrow stood where she was and watched his every move. She noted how he moved differently when he was alone than he did when he was with his men. Those steely eyes that could freeze a body grew dreamy and soft and his usual cold sneer was warm and light. Even his voice changed when he was away from his men, and all of this confused Arrow to no end.

"I don't trust you. If that island was your home and you had any emotions whatsoever, you wouldn't have destroyed it. Thankfully, you didn't kill anyone, but you gave it a good try," she said seriously as she showed him the fresh markings on her arms and back.

His eyes narrowed as he surveyed the red welts marring her pale skin.

She turned to glare at him, tossing her red hair from her face. "You almost killed the Chief's daughter, but I got in there just in time to pull her out before our home exploded."

The guilt gnawed away at his soul as he thought of his step sister, Rayne. "It is good that you have that special ability to see into the future than."

Frustrated, she turned away with a huff and folded her arms. "Why did you really kidnap me?"

He turned to the hissing kettle and removed it from the fire, ceasing the noise and pulled down two goblets.

"You have the ability," he said simply. He had no desire to explain the rest at the moment and hoped she wouldn't ask.

"Once again, I don't believe you," she said, scowling at him over her shoulder with narrowed eyes.

He sighed, feeling annoyed from the day's events and turned with two fresh mugs of herbal tea. He thrust one into her hands and turned to sit down in his chair, piercing her with a diamond stare.

"Does it matter why I kidnapped you? All you need to remember is that your here and no longer there," he said with a raised eyebrow and sipped the hot brew in silence.

She thought of Theo. "Will I ever go back?" she murmured.

He lifted his gaze to her steadily. "No."

Dread fell over Arrow as she looked away, her heart aching for the island she had made her home. "I see..."

A commotion outside startled both of them as Xavier jumped to his feet and quickly put his hat on. He turned to her with a warning glare.

"Stay put, or you'll regret your actions," he threatened before he disappeared out the door to see what everybody was all about.

He strode down to the beach where he heard a loud roar and removed his sword from its sheath as he strode through the sand where the men had gathered.

"Captain, this little runt here followed us in the water!" a man shouted as he moved aside to reveal an awkward and wet snow leopard still young in age and he lifted his eyebrows.

"That's a long way to swim for such a little ball of fur," he murmured as he stepped closer and looked down into the glaring blue eyes of the leopard. The longer he gazed into those ocean blue eyes, into the deep intelligence, it dawned on him why it was here, why it had followed.

A greasy bald man grinned evilly and jabbed the tiny leopard with the tip of his sword, causing it to hiss wildly, his ears flat back and claws unsheathed and razor sharp. Spots of blood matted the white fur and somewhere inside of him, Xavier's pity for the animal swelled.

He lifted his hand, bringing everyone to a halt. "This creature followed the woman. It comes with me."

No one questioned his authority as he folded his arms and stared down at the injured, soaking wet cat and clenched his jaw.

"If you want to see her, you'll follow me without a fight. You do anything I don't like, and I'll kill you," he said dangerously and saw the flash of fear in the big blue eyes as its ears flattened and its belly touched the ground.

If you hurt her, I'll...I'll...

The voice he heard was quiet, a teenagish male voice that captured his attention. For the first time since he had lived on the island, he had heard. He quickly masked his surprise, but saw the recognition register in the blue eyes of the animal that belonged to Arrow.

"Come," he said, his voice oddly distant as he began to walk away and the leopard trotted behind him at a fair distance while keeping an eye on the men behind, staring after their captain through narrowed eyes of suspicion and dislike.

Xavier stomped through the forest, suddenly angry with himself and cursing the animal that followed. When he rounded the corner and saw the door open, he cursed out loud and rushed inside to see that Arrow was nowhere to be seen. He whirled and glared down at the leopard who cocked his ears and was staring into the bushes.

"Where is she?" he demanded, his hand on the handle of his sword and the blue eyes narrowed at his tone of voice.

She's sitting on the cliffs The voice was tight with a hint of fear and filled with dislike.

Blood turning to ice, Xavier broke into a run straight into the bushes pushing branches aside until he broke through to the clearing of the cliffs where she stood, her red hair blowing about her face. She just stood there staring out over the ocean with a forlorn expression, her eyes sad.

"What are you doing?" he growled, angry that she had obeyed his direct orders.

She ignored his question completely however when the little cat beside him gave a cry and bound forward, launching himself at the startled woman who caught him with wide eyes and began to laugh and hold him tight.

"Oh, Theo, what are you doing here?" she said softly as she ruffled his fur while he licked her hand and rubbed his face against hers lovingly, happy to be close to her again.

Xavier watched the reunion and sighed with sorrow. He thought back to his home in the village, back to his own friend and thought of the brutal way he had been taken by the sea. To protect himself and lock away long supressed emotions, his eyes hardened as he stepped forward.

"I specifically told you to stay inside, did I not?" he asked darkly, his voice low as the breeze washed over them and Arrow lifted her head to regard him.

"Yes, you did. Unless you are my father, which you are not, you have no control over my actions as much as you'd like to think," she said while she smiled down at Theo and ran her fingers through his fur much to his delight. He purred happily and gazed at her with love and devotion. It was clear to see if he had to, he would gladly give his life for her and she for him.

He grit his teeth. "Back inside. Now," he growled, pointing to the cabin and Arrow gave a sigh and straightened, Theo hovering beside her closely as he eyed Xavier suspiciously.

"Fine," she sighed as she walked past him with Theo beside her into the cottage and Xavier wiped a hand over his face with a low groan. It was bad enough he had his hands full with his men and now he had a spitfire and her little pussy cat.

He followed them inside, slamming the door behind him and tossed his hat aside before stomping into the kitchen.

"If your hungry, feed yourself," he mumbled with annoyance as he grabbed his goblet and disappeared into his office, slamming the door behind him.

Arrow lifted an eyebrow and exchanged a glance with Theo before laughing softly.

He was a dangerous, confusing and funny man for a Pirate.