Caleb sat in the overly bright classroom waiting for Miss Coombs to return from lunch, like the rest of his classmates. He had noticed that she had been taking extended lunch breaks recently and she had become very irritable, he guessed this was due to Doctor Peele's incarceration.
His cousin had also been short tempered over the past few weeks, it appeared only Merlyn was happy these days and he had noticed she had been spending more time with Doctor Matt. He remembered how Doctor Matt always used to cheer him up and part of him wished they were as close as they used to be; however, he found it hard to be around the man now that he was aware of who his real father was.
Caleb was not ashamed of being Lucas' son, it was quite the opposite and although Matt attempted to hide his true feelings on the subject, he could sense the judgement radiating off him. Caleb could not blame Matt for struggling to come to terms with his true parentage, Caleb had been in denial himself; however, he had no desire to spend time with someone who could not accept his true father.
Caleb was taken out of his thoughts by Miss Coombs entering the classroom, looking irritated. He glanced around at his classmates and could see they all sensed her bad mood; therefore, he signaled his friends Boone and Josh to keep their heads down.
Selena slammed her bag on her desk harder than intended and turned her attention towards the class. She had not wanted to return to school today; however, Gail had found her after Lucas' intrusion and insisted she did not outwardly show her emotions, as she knew Lucas would thrive upon the torment. Selena did not require Gail to provide insight on Lucas' love of torture, she had been with him long enough to witness it first hand and knew her nemesis' suggestion was the correct move.
So here she was, staring at a classroom full of oblivious children and was expected to pretend she cared about what she was scheduled to teach them. She ran her hand through her hair and forced a smile, like a good professional would do and tried to disguise her irritation at the situation she found herself in. 'Right...I suppose I should apologize for being late, it's a shame I can't give myself detention' she said sarcastically and smiled when the children laughed.
Caleb smiled at Miss Coombs' attempt at humor but could sense her true feelings. He was becoming more attuned to other people's feelings after spending so much time with Lucas and could sense her worry and irritation. She hit her feelings well; however, he was not oblivious like the rest of the class.
Selena spotted Caleb watching her knowingly, she sensed he could see through her facade and was not impressed that he was displaying abilities which reminded her of his father. Selena could not punish Lucas, but she was in charge of Caleb while he was at school. 'OK class, we're going to move on from our current subject and focus on our reading...Caleb, would you like to come up here and read a passage out of your history homework?'
Caleb narrowed his eyes at his teacher, Lucas had explained to her that he had not completed his homework and she appeared to accept that; however, now she was going back on her word to Lucas. 'I ain't got my homework Miss Coombs, we told you this mornin' before class...'
'Oh that's correct...' Selena interrupted impatiently, '...I forgot you had been busying yourself with the Sheriff. Why don't you come up here anyway, you may not have had time to write anything down but surely you read the assignment and can tell the whole class what you learned?'
Caleb could feel all eyes on him and he did not like it. He had not even opened his homework book to check the assignment, as Lucas ensured him that he could smooth things over with his teacher. How was he supposed to stand up in front of the whole class and talk about something he had not even looked at?
Selena smiled cattily, she could see Caleb's face slowly begin to turn red with embarrassment and her smile grew wider. She should not enjoy belittling a small child; however, no part of the Buck line was innocent and she would not feel bad at all. 'We're waiting Caleb' she said sweetly, amused with herself.
'Well I guess you'll be waiting a little longer, seen as I have to get my cousin to an appointment' Gail said sternly, standing beside the open classroom door with her arms crossed over her chest. She had been driving past the school on her way to the hospital and sensed her cousins discomfort.
Caleb looked at Gail and let out a relieved sigh, then picked up his school bag and rushed towards her. He could not wait to get away from all the prying eyes in the classroom and was happy she had come to his rescue.
Selena glanced at Gail angrily and shook her head. 'All these unexpected engagements are going to affect his progress Miss Emory' she said with a hint of venom in her voice.
Gail gave an irritated smile and bit her lip to stop from saying something she would regret in front of a class full of children. 'The boy's smart enough Miss Coombs, I'm sure he'll catch up in no time' she said gently taking Caleb's hand, then led him out of the classroom.
'What was that about?' Caleb asked as they walked down the empty corridor to the exit.
'That was nothing to do with you, I'm sure you already guessed...Had you have completed your homework rather than allowing Lucas to make excuses for you, I wouldn't have to come out of my way to assist in this' she sighed.
Caleb looked down at his hands, 'Gail I'm sor...'
'Oh give it up...' she interrupted, '...I'm sick of hearing your empty apologies Caleb and I will not tolerate your lack of respect towards your schooling anymore...This is the last time I let you off for slacking, you understand?'
Caleb looked around hoping Lucas would be close by, as he was always here to bail him out when it came to his lack of interest in school; however, he was nowhere to be found.
Gail laughed, shook her head and pushed him gently towards her car. 'Lucas can't save you forever Caleb, you need to be your own man...I don't have time to be distracted by these menial things when a friend of mine is in serious trouble'
Caleb could sense her frustration and worry for Doctor Peele, he had not asked for Miss Coombs to turn on him or for Gail to step in; therefore, he was confused as to why he appeared to be getting the blame. 'I don't know what you want me to do Gail...I was just sat in there mindin' my own business when Miss Coombs started...'
'Miss Coombs is worried about her boyfriend, she has good reason to lash out...Had you not aligned yourself so closely to his captor then this may not have come down on you' she sighed in exasperation and ran her fingers through her hair. It was obvious Selena was trying to punish Caleb as she could not get to Lucas.
'You've aligned yourself with him and I don't see her doin' nothin' to you' he snapped defiantly.
Gail regarded her cousin suspiciously for a moment, then laughed. She did not appreciate his tone; however, Caleb was not to blame for any part of what was going on and she knew this should not be getting taken out on him. 'Selena knows better than to come at me...but I see your point'
Caleb smiled when he sensed his cousin soften, he knew the women were on edge and he had in fact tried to convince Lucas to let Doctor Peele go when he was spending time with him recently; however, Lucas had explained that he would not back down on such a serious matter. 'Is there anythin' I can do?' Caleb asked, wanting to help but not knowing how.
Gail smiled and opened the front passenger side door of the car. 'You can keep Uncle Abe and your sister out of trouble while I complete a few errands'
Caleb smiled and entered the car obediently, he liked spending time with Abe and looked forward to seeing the old man.
Lucas was sat across from Ben in the Sheriff's Stations main reception, completing a crossword puzzle from his morning paper. Ben had been uncharacteristically quiet since he returned from the arraignment with Billy and Lucas assumed he was sore over him continuing with his current line of action. He was choosing not to be distracted by the current mood of his Deputy, he had enough of that with the women in his life; therefore, he just sat back in his chair and continued to complete his puzzle.
Getting up from his seated position Ben let out a loud sigh and threw his paper down on the counter, then headed towards the cells. He could not sit back any longer and wanted to go check on his friend.
'Whoa there partner...I said there was to be no visitors back there' Lucas said, not taking his eyes off the puzzle.
Ben turned towards Lucas and regarded his suspiciously. 'I work here Lucas and I'm going to see if our prisoner needs anythin', it's part of my duty as a law enforcement officer' he said defiantly and turned back towards his intended destination.
Suddenly the office door slammed shut, nearly hitting Ben in the face and he jumped back.
'I won't repeat myself Deputy' Lucas sighed and continued trying to complete his puzzle.
Ben stared angrily at Lucas, he was getting sick of this game and for all he knew Billy could be dead in his cell like Gage Temple had been. He had attempted to keep out of this matter, respecting Billy's wishes; however, this had gone on for too long and he was really starting to get concerned for his friend.
'Aren't we all' Gail said as she entered the Sheriff's Station and the bell above the door rang.
Lucas glanced up from his puzzle to take in her beauty, then returned to the clue and disregarded her presence.
Ben shook his head at Lucas' blatant disrespect towards Gail and approached his friend. 'It's gettin' late, how come your not home with Caleb?' he asked, choosing not to pay attention to Lucas' presence in the room.
Gail smiled at Ben's attempt to distract her from Lucas' disrespectful manner, he was a welcome breath of fresh air after the dead ends she had been up against all day. 'I've been busy doing a bit of research, someone has to try and prevent the injustice that's going on around here'
Ben laughed, he could sense Gail's frustration and knew it was much like his own. 'Well, I hope your research turns up something good as I for one would not stand in your way if you found something concrete' Ben said defiantly.
Lucas smiled to himself, he was not fazed by this display and knew he had to keep his cool to ensure this current action he was taking continued to progress smoothly. He could sense the frustration and anger in both Ben and Gail; however, it was not his problem that they had chosen to align themselves with Billy-boy, or that the man had turned out to be so easily manipulated.
Gail was annoyed that Lucas was still not reacting to their conversation and decided to step it up. 'Once I find some concrete evidence I'll come straight to you Deputy, in the meantime I think I'm going to dump the children off with Matt for the night and visit Selena...The poor girl is at her wits end and I'm sure she could use a distraction'
Ben stared at Gail suspiciously, then smiled when she winked at him. 'Well that sounds nice, are you gonna head to Jimmy's bar?'
Gail smiled and shook her head. 'Nah, I'm in the mood for a more intimate setting seen as my prior night time engagements are cancelled for the foreseeable future...I'm thinking a quiet picnic by the river just the two of us and seeing where the night leads'
Lucas folded the paper and placed it on the counter as he got up, Gail had been displaying the good girlfriend facade that she believed fooled him recently and this was the first he heard of her stopping their time together. He had actually been looking forward to surprising her later with a dinner date, as they had not made it out of his house as of late but this threw a spanner in the works. 'That sounds cozy Darlin', I wasn't aware you could stand our little school teacher long enough for an outing like that'
Gail regarded Lucas irritably, then smiled defiantly. 'You'd be surprised what a crisis can push a woman to tolerate Sheriff...I'm sure I can find a way to comfort our little school teacher'
Lucas approached the pair and signaled for Ben to leave them alone, Ben attempted to stand his ground; however, when he caught sight of the warning look on Lucas' face he made his excuses to exit the building. Lucas had expected Gail to find a reason to follow Ben but she remained standing defiantly in front of him, he could sense that she was still furious with him and cupped her chin gently in his hand when Ben had finally left. 'There's no need to act like this Gail, I'm only doin' my job here'
Gail let out a small laugh and pulled free of his grasp. 'Had you left Billy alone and not locked him up previously in your jealous rage then I'd have to respect your professional duties, but you and I both know that this is not just down to your job Lucas...You've made it clear that you won't stand down and that's fine, but neither will I'
'So you're gonna cut me off as usual Miss Emory...How predictable of you' Lucas goaded.
Gail smiled sweetly and shook her head. 'This isn't me cutting you off sweetheart...' she said with a hint of venom in her voice, '...this is you pushing me too far and me beginning to realize that I really don't want to waste my time with you anymore. You just keep doing what you're doing, it's exactly what I need to finally come to my senses'
Lucas inhaled deeply and pushed down his rage, there was something about the way she was being that made him realize there was truth in her words. 'Now, now love...you don't wanna make a rash decision and shut me out like this. I'd hate to think what poor soul would take the grunt of my anger at such a thing...Besides, you go on at me about your professional integrity all the time, so you don't get to disregard mine just because the situation doesn't suit you'
Gail laughed at the audacity of the man and tried to push down her darkness, with the stress of this situation it was taking all of her strength not to let it take over and allow her to sit back to take in some peace. 'Like I said before Lucas, this has got nothing to do with your job. This is you inserting your dominance as usual and I will ensure the town is aware of it when I write my article' she said angrily and turned to leave.
Lucas grabbed her by the arm and pushed her roughly against the wall. 'You need to open your ears Gail and listen to what I'm telling you, before you publish something that makes you look like an idiot'
Gail could feel the familiar sensation stir between her legs, which was a sign that her body was about to betray her and willed herself to stay in control. He appeared genuinely annoyed at her accusations and she stared at him suspiciously, trying to ignore how close his lips were to hers. 'What are you talking about Lucas, it's obvious what your play is here and Billy did nothing wrong!' she snapped.
Lucas smiled smugly, then inhaled her scent. He could sense she wanted him and if he played his cards right he may be able to pierce through the barrier she had put up. 'If Billy-boy did nothin' wrong, then why did he plead guilty love?' he asked and his smile grew wider at the shocked look on her face.
Gail shook her head in disbelief, 'You're lying'
Lucas laughed, then reached down and stroked the inside of her thigh tenderly. 'I wouldn't lie to you Gail, not now with all that we have'
Gail pushed him away from her, ignoring the yearning she felt for him deep down. She had been hounding the staff at Juniper in an attempt to help her incarcerated friend and could not believe he had entered a plea of guilty. She could see by the look on Lucas' face that he was telling the truth and her resolve to dismiss him began to falter; therefore, she made the safest choice and stormed out of the Sheriff's Station.
Lucas watched as Gail left him alone and shook his head, he had no doubt that the news of Billy's plea would soften her to his advances once again and looked forward to her coming to him.
-To be continued-
