I do not own any American Gothic characters, this is a work of fan fiction. This story is a continuation of my previous stories and follows on from The Family Business.

It was a bright Spring Friday afternoon in Trinity South Carolina. Children were scattered throughout the parks, excited that there was no more school until Monday and weekday work folk were preparing for the end of their shifts.

Lucas Buck sat patiently in his navy blue Crown Victoria, watching his town folk going on with their usual routines. He did not have the luxury of a simple life, especially now that he was no longer alone in this world and he had so many different characters to appease.

He reflected on the recent turn of events and the fact that his eldest had finally given in to his lineage. That would have provided him with so much pride and joy previously, had he not attempted to hurt his soul mate for the second time.

Now, had Gail have been the same person she was when she came to Trinity, there would be nothing to be concerned about. Lucas had always been able to turn woman to his favor, it was a gift he had been blessed with since birth. Although she would have taken a little more effort, due to her intelligence and morals, he would have been able to convince her that there was nothing wrong with Caleb; however, the Gail of today was different now, she was something from another time that they had both shared and although that excited him, it meant she was unpredictable.

It was obvious Gail was keeping her cards close to her chest, she was acting as if everything was normal; however, every now and again he would catch a conniving glint in her eyes, which got his back up. This was all part of the game and he never thought he would find someone who would play his adversary so well.

Harvard stepped up previously and their old exchanges had provided him with some entertainment. The man tried his best, which Lucas respected; however, he was ultimately taken down by his need to protect people. Angela had really done a number on him and the good Doctor has never been the same since.

Billy Peele was another challenger, he did not have the same fight in him as Matt and his problem was his need to be accepted, much like Selena. Lucas had him now and all it took was a little friendly attention. The thought amused him and he let out a small laugh, when he considered how alike Billy and Selena were with their need for compansionship.

Lucas had overlooked the other player on the board, seeing her as nothing more than a challenge to bed. The Emory's had always been around in the town, they were one of the founding families and had played a big part in making Trinity what it was. Throughout the generations they had gone from keeping to themselves, to outright challenging him. Peter was a thorn in his side for many years, the man was so consumed with his hatred for him that he allowed his wife to stray with Gage Temple.

When the opportunity came to wipe them out, Lucas was on hand to take it. Gage was easily led, anything to get his love Christine all to himself once and for all. It had been a bonus when she ended up trapped in that building too, not that Lucas had cared either way how her fate played out at the time. Had Christine have still been alive, things would have been different with her daughter and he could not have had that. Abe had taken it hard when Lucas had arranged for the girl to be placed into the care system out of state; however, it had been the right decision and his instincts never failed him.

Gail had to experience life on her own, it may have been traumatic and hard for her; however, her trials and tribulations had opened her up to discovering the dark side of herself, which had been buried deep down for so long. Without that mystery deep within her, she would never returned to Trinity and may have just accepted a mundane fate. Luckily for him his love had returned and not only did she turn out to be a fine carer for his eldest, which he was initially unwilling to accept, she had proven she was well worth the effort.

The problem he had now was that the real training for Caleb had begun and she would not like the test subject he had chosen. He had no doubt that if she found out, there would be hell to pay; however, he had to choose Caleb's development over her inevitable feelings of betrayal and he would not back down now.

The car door opened and Caleb quickly jumped into the front passenger side. He noticed Lucas appeared deep in thought and waited a few moments, to give his Father chance to come back to him.

'What did you find?' Lucas asked irritably, attempting to shake the strange feeling that had come over him when he thought of going behind Gail's back.

Caleb regarded Lucas curiously for a moment, then shrugged. 'She's sat at her desk just workin''

'Was Gail there?' Lucas asked, as he turned on the engine and pulled out into the road.

'Nah, but Merly was...I didn't want her to see me so I just came back'

'Good call, we don't want your sister gettin' involved in this' Lucas nodded and turned onto the main road.

'No sir...' Caleb shook his head and stared out of the window at the passing Stores, '...What do we do now?'

'We wait...' Lucas advised, then thought for a moment and let out a small laugh. '...You know the best pastime for waitin' don't you?'

Caleb turned towards his Father and smiled. 'You're takin' me fishin'?'

'Why not? It'll give us some alone time to consider our next move' he smiled, then headed towards Johnson's Bridge.

Gail knelt down in Abe's backyard, pulling out the weeds threatening his rose bushes. She had been experiencing a wave of unease over the past week, which caused her to suspect something was going on with Caleb and Lucas. When she was ready, she would find out what they were up; however, she had chosen to take a step back and bide her time, providing them with a false sense of security.

Right now Gail was focused on Abe, his mood appeared to be low recently and he seemed more tired than he used to be. She wanted to ensure that he was alright; therefore, she had been making excuses to visit him here more often, knowing that seeing her and Luke always brightened him up.

'You really shouldn't be down there on your knees Rosie, you'll be a Buck soon and you'll be expected to act in a certain way' Abe informed her, as he rocked Luke gently in his arms.

'You mean getting servants to perform my daily tasks? I couldn't think of anything worse than having someone hang off my every order' Gail laughed and continued to pull at the weeds.

Abe smiled, then laughed when he saw Luke mirror him. He had to admit that he had been sceptical about how this little boy would turn out, being Lucas' son and all; however, so far he appeared to be the vision of pureness and Abe was happy he had not caused his Rosie much bother. 'Say what you will now but when the inevitable happens, all eyes will be on you each minute of every day' he warned.

Gail did not want to talk about this right now. She knew her freedom would be gone as soon as she uttered those vows; therefore, she was attempting to stall the wedding, until she could figure a way out of this. Having Abe state her fears out loud was not helping the situation and she was beginning to feel frustrated. 'You think I need you to state the obvious Uncle? I'm fully aware of what it all means and I'm working on it, now be quiet and keep your attention on Luke' she ordered, in a harsher tone than she had intended.

Abe narrowed his eyes at her, then looked down at Luke sourly. He was only trying to help and he did not appreciate her tone.

Gail continued pulling at the weeds for a few moments, then got up when Abe's silence became too much. 'I didn't mean to snap at you, I know you're only looking out for me' she smiled warmly, as she approached and knelt down in front of Abe.

Abe stared at her irritably for a moment, then his smile returned. 'I don't wanna upset you, but you have to be aware of what you agreed to...I don't want you goin' in to this with your eyes closed'

Gail let out a long sigh and placed her hands tenderly on his knees. 'I'm fully aware of what I agreed to, just like I'm aware that you know exactly what he's done over the years and have condoned it'

Abe turned away from her judgemental stare and looked at his roses. 'You're doin' a good job with them, you should let me make it up to you' he advised, then smiled down at Luke.

Gail let out a small laugh and shook her head. 'You can make it up to me by giving me something to go on' she smiled sweetly.

Abe looked into her eyes confused. 'I thought you'd given up on all that stuff...You're the Mother of his child'

'I'm still me and if I was to find evidence of something untoward, that may benefit me with my upcoming situation' she advised.

Abe knew Gail and that being tied down to Lucas or any other man was not her version of a happy ending. It was her natural instinct to attempt to find something to get her out of being trapped and he could not blame her for trying. 'You know I won't betray my oldest living friend Gail. You made your choice here' he sighed.

Gail rolled her eyes and stood up, she knew by the fact that he used her actual name that he was serious and could not help her; therefore, she returned to her spot by the bushes. 'Well alright then, but you have no right to comment on my situation when you're choosing his side over mine' she called back to him and started to pull at the weeds again.

Lucas sat with Caleb and watched as he focused on his fishing line. He had expected to go over what the boy wanted to do next with the Christie situation; however, Caleb's attention was fixed firmly on fishing. This did not bother Lucas, it was nice to see his boy relaxed for a change. Caleb had been so concerned with Christie and the darkness within him that he had stopped having fun.

'Whatcha lookin' at me for? Have I got somethin' on my back?' Caleb asked, sensing Lucas' eyes on him.

'Not at all...' Lucas laughed, '...I was just thinkin' about how comfortable you are in this pastime'

Caleb smiled and glanced at Lucas over his shoulder. 'I ain't got no-one botherin' me here, so why wouldn't I be?'

Before Lucas had a chance to answer, Ben approached with Ben Jr and Billy by his side. 'The quiet may not last much longer son' he advised, then stood up to meet the group. 'You decide to spend your free time with this reprobate when I give you the day off Benji?' Lucas asked sarcastically, as he glanced towards Billy.

'Beats him spending the time with a sociopath like you' Billy smiled, then pulled a chair up beside Lucas'.

Ben watched the pair for a moment, it was strange that they were friends and the insulting banter they had with each other always made him uncomfortable.

'Don't be so sensitive Ben and grab a chair' Lucas said, as he sat back down and winked at Ben Jr.

Ben took a seat on the other side of Lucas, when Caleb moved over. He nodded to Ben Jr to join Caleb and leaned back in the chair, enjoying the warm weather. 'I appreciate you letting me finish early to see my boy Lucas'

Lucas smiled and nodded knowingly, then turned his attention towards Billy. 'What's gotten you outta work early?' he asked curiously.

Billy reached into the cooler he had brought along and opened a beer, then handed it to Lucas. 'I'm bored and girlfriend free for a few hours, thought I'd tag along with Ben for some entertainment' he shrugged, then routed in the cooler for a beer.

Lucas laughed and shook his head. 'If you're lookin' for entertainment friend, Ben ain't gonna give you that'

Billy smiled, sensing Lucas' mischievous side was close to showing itself. 'Well since my other friend got himself a family, he certainly ain't up for anything anymore...At least Ben ain't under the thumb' he mocked and laughed at the look of irritation he got.

'You think that's what I am friend?...' Lucas said getting up, '...Caleb, you alright with Ben for a few hours?'

Caleb turned towards Lucas and nodded. 'I got Ben Jr and a fishin' rod, I'll be just fine' he smiled.

Lucas smiled appreciatively at his son, then turned his attention towards Billy. 'Alright Billy-boy, let's get outta here and I'll show you how under the thumb I really am'

Billy did not hesitate and jumped up from his seated position, then followed Lucas down the pier. He knew he should not goad this man; however, it had been a while since they had been out together and their nights out always ended up with a surprise.

Selena sat on the Pier with a cup of coffee, staring into the calm water before her. She was not usually a fan of being on her own, which had been the case since she had helped Gail screw over her best friend; however, she was enjoying the calmness of the water and it reminded her of a better time, when her Father used to sit with her by the River when she was a little girl.

Although she had accepted long ago that her past actions had destroyed any chance of her ever being close to her Father, she missed him dearly now that he was gone and it was hard knowing she would never have a chance to make amends with him. She was not naive and suspected his death had been part of Lucas' game, she did not think he had done anything directly; however, she believed the blame lay with him.

She loved Lucas, there was no denying that. Her devotion and loyalty had been unwavering, until he discarded her for Gail. She was still bitter over how that all played out and if she had the opportunity to remove the object of his affection she would take it without hesitation; however, she knew that time had passed and now she had been discarded completed by the both of them.

Selena took a long sip of her coffee, then let out a small laugh at the way her life had turned out. She had Billy, but he was not worth having these days. She wondered if this was her punishment for going against her Father and his beliefs, to be damned to go through this life on her own. Selena craved companionship and direction, she did not know how she would go on if she had to carry on this way.

'Oh please...' Gail laughed as she approached Selena's position, '...there's children completely abandoned by their parents and elderly left to rot on their own, but you're so hard done by because you're left for a few weeks?'

Selena sighed, then got up to meet her nemesis. 'Shouldn't you be cooking Lucas Buck's dinner, or cleaning his mansion right now?' she said cattily.

Gail narrowed her eyes at the woman before her and inhaled deeply, to push down her irritation. 'Unlike you, I don't hang off his every order...Maybe you'd like to complete the chores, he may even let you lick his boots when you're down on your knees' Gail mocked.

Selena was not in the mood for games, she had been pleasantly enjoying a peaceful moment here and she did not appreciate being disturbed. 'What do you want Gail? You only come find me when you want something'

Gail rolled her eyes at Selena's comment and linked her arm around hers. 'Who said I want anything? I'm just sick of wedding planning...' she said as she turned and began walking them down the Pier, '...Rita's too busy with Izzy and Christie's being infuriating, so I thought we could head somewhere while I'm child free for the moment'

Selena did not trust this nice act and let out a small laugh. 'Why would I want to hang out with you, especially when you're now engaged to my ex'

'You mean the love of your life?...' Gail asked knowingly, '...Maybe you want to punish him by getting his fiance drunk and convincing her to do unspeakable things. Or maybe you just want to spend some time with the only woman who will give you the time of day in this town'

Selena let out a long sigh, then shook her head. 'I'm going to regret this aren't I?' she asked in a defeated tone.

'Isn't that the best type of night?' Gail asked mischievously and led her towards her car.

-To be continued-