Hummingbird by Nathan L. Flamank

once and tossed the dress on to the floor.
    Jack exploded from serene calm to violent tempest and Selena was stunned; here was the Jack that men feared.
    ‘Stand the fuck up Selena and put your hands down on the table, and don’t even think about making me wait,’ Jack’s face had turned red and Selena felt something give way in her and tears sprang to her eyes.
    ‘I’m sorry Jack…’
    ‘Stand up!’ Jack screamed, spittle flying from his mouth. ‘Right this fucking instant you ungrateful bitch!’
    Selena dropped the glass of whiskey on to the table, its contents spilling across the cloth. ‘I’m sorry, I’m…’
    ‘Now!’ Jack roared and Selena quickly got to her feet and placed her hands palms down on the table.
    Selena felt tears spilling down her face and she couldn’t say whether she was crying from fear and shame or the fact that she had hurt the man whom was sat opposite her, her mind was a swirling mass of raging confusions and she raised her face and watched as Jack threw his chair back across the room where it crashed in to other tables. The noise of breaking furniture brought the waiter out from his place in the shadows and Selena watched as Jack pulled a large gun from the shoulder rig that he was wearing; she had forgotten all about the fact that Jack was armed and she felt her fear crank up another notch.
    ‘Get the fuck out of here,’ Jack roared at the waiter and the waiter decided to act on Jack’s words a lot quicker than Selena had so far and the man disappeared rapidly back from whence he had come.
    Selena followed Jack with wide eyes as he circled the table and then he was behind her and she had to look back over her left shoulder to keep him in sight.
    ‘Move your feet apart,’ Jack said, some of the rage gone from his voice and Selena quickly complied, she didn’t want to antagonise him, not now, not with the anger that was still evident on his face.
    ‘More, show me that cunt,’ Jack demanded and Selena sobbed, she’d never heard Jack speak this way before; the Jack she had known and loved wa s well spoken and graceful.
    H is words and the intonation in which he spoke them now shocked her more than anything she had endured since the Fat Man had appeared in her shop less than twenty four hours ago and Selena sobbed harder; the tears dripping from her chin to mingle with spilled whiskey but she complied with his demand and she moved her feet further apart.
    ‘ Push your ass up.’
    Again Selena instantly complied, she lowered her front so that her breasts touched the whiskey stained cloth and pushed her ass up towards the ceiling and she kept at it until she knew that she was as exposed as the position would allow her to be (her prone position now resembling an inverted archway) and she sniffed back her tears and snot and closed her eyes, she was resigned to what was about to happen.
    Despite her signing the contract Selena knew that what was about to happen to her was nothing short of rape; she didn’t want this, not now, not like this but she was terrified of what Jack would do to her if she refused.
    Would he shoot me ? Selena asked herself and then her insides twisted in to a deeper knot of terror as the next thought hit her .
    What if he tears the contract up and turns me out on the street ?
    Selena let out an involuntary yelp as she felt Jack’s hand on her back, she could feel his fingers as they ran the length of her spine and she tried to hold back her fear and she prepared herself for what was about to be done to her, she s queezed her eyes tightly shut and concentrated on not letting her fear show.
    But nothing happened.
    Jack’s hand went away and a half minute passed and she began to open her eyes when Jack’s voice snapped her eyelids open fully.
    Selena saw Jack standing next to her, the gun was now back in his shoulder rig and she blinked away her tears and for the first time she noticed that Jack had tears in his eyes too and then she saw what was in his