The adrenalin rush was slow to work its way from Jax’s fighting instincts even as the soldiers stood with muskets aimed. Sweat dripped in his eyes and his breath was fast and shallow. He noted quickly that more men he knew were on their feet and ones he did not were spread across the now cluttered floor. His crew had won of that he was sure. Even more so when he turned to see the face of his Captain.

It was time to go. Through the chaos of the fight Jax remember he heard the command that he was to guard the rum. As the men struggled to their feet, the ones that could, Jax reached for a surprisingly full bottle of rum. He was going to need that. Tucking that one in under his arm he reached for another only to realize the fresh blood and unworking of his own hand. Something was wrong. He sort of remembered striking someone backhanded and hearing an unhealthy snap. It wasn’t him was it? Jax looked at his hand a little more carefully. His one finger, the one beside his little one, was bent wrong and there under the joint he could see his bone.

Jax struggled to hold the other bottle of rum and he poured it over his hand keeping his teeth clamped tight to stifle his own cries of pain. He mumbled the anguish trying hard to hide it. He moved closer to Thomas watching him kneel by the dead boatman. There on the bar was a only slightly used bar rag and Jax took that quickly trying to wrap it around his injured hand. He wasn’t sure he wanted the Captain to see his wound. If Jax could sneak out without his broken hand being noticed maybe he could fix it up before they sailed again. He wasn’t sure if Captain Thomas would allow him the wheel with any injury at all. Jax wanted to stay on Dusk Skate. So he circled his hand quickly with the rag and tucked it under his coat.

His eyes flashed over the crew as they began to leave the scene looking for the first mate and healer. He was sure he had to hide from her. Doctor or first mate he didn’t want either to know of his failure, of his shortcomings. Jax had coins in his pocket and he could find someone in this port to pull his finger right. Or maybe he could after he drank the bottle of rum. 

To cover things he grinned to the Captain as he passed him by, “Such distractions are a lucky thing for you sir, because I was getting ready to sit down and relieve you of your coins.” He glanced to the cards spread over the floor and then back to Thomas. “Another time.” He took a few steps away only to bump into the one he was supposed to avoid. 

To Doctor Beacuhamp he tipped his head as if there were some cap upon it even though there was not. He took her in first to see if she managed to avoid or dance away from the hardest of hits. His hand was tucked inside his coat. Keeping one hand hidden he lifted the edge of his coat with the other hand to show her the bottle of rum he had tucked under his arm. 

He smiled and winked thinking of her earlier offer. But Jax believed she would only give him a cold hard look and spin away leaving him the night to attend to his broken hand. He tried hard to keep his smile as he began to feel each heart beat in thumping pain through his fingers.