EVIL PAST

***JAX***

The back door of the small lakeside house suddenly opened, the quiet squeak cutting through the tense silence like a knife. I spun around, my body instantly tensing in readiness for the unexpected. But when I saw the familiar figure, I relaxed for a moment – and felt confusion and surprise spread through me.

“Marie?“ I asked, while she approached me with quick, confident steps. Her eyes wandered briefly to Damian and Celine before they focused entirely on me.

“Sorry,” she said in her usual firm but warm voice. “I just wanted to make sure everything was all right.” Her hand found my arm, a light, reassuring pressure that soothed my nerves almost immediately.

But before I could answer, Damian interrupted the silence with a harsh tone. “Marie?” he asked, and his expression was a mixture of astonishment and anger. “What are you doing here?”

I looked back and forth between the two of them, confused by the sudden tension that filled the room. “You know each other?” I asked, the words coming involuntarily before I could hold them back.

Marie frowned, a shadow of unease flitting across her face before she regained her composure. “Yes, Damian and I...” She paused as if searching for the right words, and her gaze suddenly softened. ‘We have a history together.”

“Wait a minute,’ Damian interrupted, his voice sounding sharper, almost reproachful. ”This is the Marie you were talking about, Jax?”

I nodded slowly, still too perplexed to understand what exactly was happening here. “Yes, that's her. But now I want to know... what's going on here? Damian? Marie?” My voice was calm but firm, my eyes flicked back and forth between the two of them, searching for answers.

Marie crossed her arms over her chest as if she was bracing herself. “Damian and I... we know each other from the past. It was a long time ago, Jax.”

Damian snorted, his gaze flicked to me, then back to her. “A long time ago? That's all you have to say?” He took a step towards her, his posture erect, his voice louder. “You left me standing, Marie. Just like that. No explanation, no apology. Nothing.”

I felt my chest tighten, the words hit me like an unexpected blow. I looked at Marie, looking for a reaction, but she remained surprisingly calm. Her eyes flicked to me, then back to Damian.

“I had my reasons,” she finally said, her voice soft but unwavering. ”And you know that. I couldn't stay, Damian.”

“Couldn't or wouldn't?“ he interrupted, his voice full of anger but also pain.

“Damian!” I interrupted sharply, my patience was beginning to wane. “Whatever happened between you two is in the past. But now... now I want to hear the truth. Both sides.”

Marie looked at me, her eyes seeking mine before she nodded. “Okay, Jax. But you have to know that it's complicated. Very complicated.”

“Complicated or not,” I said firmly, my voice leaving no room for excuses. “I want to know what's going on.”

Damian remained silent, his eyes fixed on Marie as she took a deep breath, as if preparing for something big. And in that moment, I knew that what she was about to say could change everything.

Marie looked down as if she was searching for the right words, her hands trembled slightly, but her voice remained firm, if quiet. “He... I was at your club with some friends, Jax,” she began, her eyes searching mine before wandering to the side again. “That was five years ago. I was 20. We had drunk a lot, too much, to be honest.”

I felt my heartbeat accelerate as she continued. Each of her words pulled me deeper into a memory that was not mine, but still felt dangerously familiar.

“The others...” She paused briefly, as if she had to sort out her thoughts. “The others took the car. I didn't want to get in. Too dangerous. It was late, and I was standing outside alone.” Her voice trailed off, almost a whisper. “A car pulled up next to me. The driver... he... he was refreshing, kind. Different. We talked for a moment, and then he offered me a ride.”

Damian had leaned back slightly, his arms crossed, but I could see his jaw muscles working as he tried to control himself. Marie, on the other hand, remained calm, although I saw a hint of insecurity in her eyes.

“We went to his place,” she continued, her voice now trembling slightly. ”We drank, talked, laughed. It was... it was exciting. Something new. Something I didn't know like that.“ She paused, her gaze flicking to Damian before returning to me.

“He took me to that room,” she said softly, almost reverently, as if the memory still captivated her. “It felt different. It was exciting, yes, but also... strangely familiar.”

“No, stop!“ My voice broke, louder than I had intended. I raised my hand as if I could physically stop the words before they drew us all deeper into this labyrinth. My eyes shot to Damian, who was now motionless, his eyes fixed on Marie.

“Damian...” My voice was quieter, but full of meaning. “That was you, wasn't it?”

The silence that followed was deafening. Damian remained seated, his hands slowly clenching into fists on the armrests of the chair. His gaze flicked to me briefly, then back to Marie. “Yes,” he finally said, his voice hoarse and quiet, little more than a whisper. “It was me.”

I felt my breath catch, the words hit me like a blow. “What happened then?” I asked, my voice now dangerously calm as I stared at Damian with burning eyes.

He took a deep breath, his shoulders rising and falling heavily. “Nothing, Jax. Nothing at all. I didn't touch her. Not like you're thinking now.” His eyes wandered to Marie, and his eyes pleaded for something – forgiveness, understanding, or perhaps both. “We talked and drank that night. She slept on my couch, and the next morning...” He paused, his voice breaking. “The next morning she was gone. No goodbye, no explanation. She had just vanished.”

Marie looked at him, her eyes shining with unspoken emotions. “I left because I was afraid,” she said softly. “It was too much, too fast. You were... different, Damian. And I didn't know how to deal with it.”

The tension in the room was almost unbearable. My hands clenched into fists, and I had to force myself to remain calm. “So there really was... nothing?“ I asked, my voice slightly trembling.

“No,” Damian said firmly, his eyes fixed on mine. “I didn't touch her, Jax. I swear to you.”

I exhaled heavily, my mind racing. But deep down I knew there was more to this story – something that had yet to be said. And I wouldn't stop until I knew everything.

The air in the room seemed to have frozen, the words Marie had just spoken seemed to have frozen everything around us. I felt my chest tighten, every breath was heavy, as if the world were crushing me. My gaze flicked back and forth between Marie and Damian, desperately searching for an answer, for some truth that would make this moment less horrible.

“No,” I finally said, my voice trembling, rough with unsaid emotions. ‘That's a lie. You're both lying to me.’ I turned to Marie, my eyes burning with desperation and anger. ”Marie, I've put my trust in you. Don't break it. Tell me the truth. What happened?”

Marie looked at me, her eyes shining with tears, her lips quivering slightly before she finally spoke. “He took what he wanted.” Her voice was quiet, but each of her words cut me like a knife. “He tied me up... he played with me. At first it was... incredible. Different. But then... then he became unpredictable.”

I stared at her, unable to speak, as she continued, her words dripping with pain and bitterness. “He inserted knives into me,” she whispered, her voice almost breaking. “He put on gloves with studs... pushed his fingers into me as if I were... nothing.”

My throat was dry, my head was spinning, but the worst was yet to come.

“He...” She paused, closed her eyes as if to chase the images out of her mind, but the words came anyway. ‘He used his weapon... to fuck me with it.’ Her body trembled as she said it, and I felt my world crumble around me.

I slowly turned to Damian, my hands shaking, my chest rising and falling heavily. “No,” I said, my voice barely more than a whisper. “Tell me that's not true, Damian. Tell me you didn't do that.”

Damian sat frozen, his face pale, his eyes wide open. He looked as if he had lost the ground under his feet, but he said nothing. Not a word. No explanation. Just silence.

“Say something!” I suddenly shouted, my voice exploding in the room. ”Damn it, Damian, defend yourself! Tell me she's lying!”

He looked at me, his lips opened, but nothing came. No sound, no words, just silence. And in that moment I knew. The truth was unavoidable.

“No...” I whispered, my legs feeling like they would give out at any moment. ”You really did it.”

“Jax...“ Damian started, his voice cracking, but I raised a hand to silence him.

“Don't say a word,” I said softly, but dangerously. “Not a damn word.” I turned to Marie, who was still shaking, her hands wrapped around her own body as if to protect herself. “Why didn't you tell me? Why now? Why here?”

Marie looked at me, her eyes full of pain and guilt. “Because I suppressed it,” she said softly. “Because I didn't know how to tell you. But now... now I couldn't keep quiet anymore.”

The silence that followed was deafening; the weight of the truth crushed us all. I knew that nothing would ever be the same again. And I knew that I would never be able to look Damian in the eye again without seeing those images in front of me.

The air in the room was like poison, thick and unbearable. Just now I had thought that maybe I really had a family, something that had been missing for so long. But now? Now the hatred, the anger, was even greater than before, burning like an open wound.

“It was five years ago, Jax!” Damian shouted, his voice piercing, almost pleading, but full of defiance.

I turned to him, my body trembling with pent-up rage. ‘I don't give a shit!’ I spat. ”Did you really think she'd stay with you? After everything?”

Damian shrugged, a wry smile on his lips that showed more provocation than remorse. “Yes,” he said softly, his voice rough, full of bitterness. “She enjoyed it, Jax. She moaned, she wanted it. She's not as innocent as she pretends to be around here.”

My eyes shot to Marie, who was pale, her eyes wide open, but Damian continued, unstoppable. “You have no idea what makes her tick. Of course you believe her – I'm the depraved brother, aren't I, Jax?” He laughed dryly, an ugly, desperate sound that got under my skin.

“Shut up, Damian!” I snarled, my voice a dangerous whisper that trembled with rage. ”Stop dragging her through the mud!”

But Damian ignored me, his eyes wandering back to Marie, who visibly winced when he spoke. “Tell him everything, Marie,” he demanded, his voice a cold knife cutting through the silence. “Tell him the whole truth. Tell Jax how it really was. I won't be made out to be the bad guy.”

He stood up, his body tensed, his fist slammed on the table, the wood trembled under the force. “Tell me, Marie!” he roared, his voice exploded in the room, making us all freeze. “If you don't, I will!”

Marie trembled, her hands clasped her own arms as if to protect herself. Her gaze flicked back and forth between me and Damian, tears shimmering in her eyes. “Jax...” she began, her voice soft and fragile. “It's complicated.”

“Complicated?” I shouted, my patience finally exhausted. “Damn it, Marie! Tell me what happened! I want the truth, and I want it now!”

She swallowed hard, her shoulders sank, and for a moment it looked like she was going to collapse. But then she raised her head, her eyes met mine, and I could read the unspoken truth in them – a truth she was trying to suppress.

“Damian is right,” she finally said, her voice barely more than a whisper. ‘I enjoyed it. At first. It was exciting, different, yes. But...’ She paused, her voice breaking. ”But then it became too much. Too dark. Too... fake.”

Damian snorted, a sneer curling his lips. “You see, Jax? She enjoyed it. She wanted it.”

“Shut the hell up, Damian!” I shouted, my body shaking with suppressed rage. “She might have wanted it in the beginning, but that doesn't give you the right to turn it against her!”

Marie looked at me, her eyes full of tears, and I could see how much she was struggling with herself. “I didn't know how to stop it,” she whispered. “I was afraid. Afraid of him. Afraid of myself. And in the end... I just left.”

The words hung in the air, heavy and oppressive, and I didn't know what to believe. But one thing was clear – the truth, no matter how ugly it was, lay somewhere between her words and Damian's darkness. And I would find it, whatever the cost.