Gail sat on the edge of Johnson's Bridge, dangling her legs over the side. She had wanted some privacy after hearing the news Matt had delivered to Selena and this was one of the few places where she could be alone these days. At this time of day there were usually some older men trying to get in some fishing before the school let out; however, today she was completely alone and she was thankful for the peace.
As if to prove otherwise, a strong gust of wind blew past her and knocked over her half full bottle of water. The bottle made a loud thud when it hit the wooden floor and this caused Gail to let out a long exasperated sigh, as she came to to terms that she was never truly alone in this town.
Gail had felt uncomfortable in her own skin all day and it was beginning to worry her. She thought it may just be sympathy over Selena's situation, although that conniving bitch deserved a fate worse than what she had; however, this feeling had been present on and off since the wedding and Selena's accident only increased the intensity.
Thoughts of her own lost child began to flow through her mind and she closed her eyes, trying to push down the pain. Her miscarriage had nothing to do with this situation; however, she had been revisiting the incident in her mind ever since she sensed what Matt needed to tell Selena. This town was cursed, she was cursed and she had willingly allowed herself to be caught in it's claws.
Her dark half Rosemary tried to pull her back into her subconscious, in an attempt to protect her from the sorrow she was experiencing; however, Gail pushed the interference back down, not allowing herself to be controlled. Something was terribly wrong, she could feel it and allowing herself to be split in two was not helping matters.
Christie approached her friend quietly, after spotting her red Mustang parked down the road and choosing to pull up beside it. Their relationship had been strained recently, Christie's memory loss had not helped that situation and she needed her friends help to understand what was happening to her. Gail had been distant, kept her at arms length and downright avoided her; however, there was nowhere foe her to run here and she was not leaving until she found out why Gail was pushing her away.
An intruding feeling came over Gail and she turned around to see Christie approaching her. Rosemary tried again to take control; however, she pushed that part of her deep down, burying it deep and then stared into the calm water when Christie sat down beside her.
Both woman sat in an awkward silence for a few minutes, then Christie chose to speak up. 'I read your article on the accident in this mornings paper, I expected more details. It's not like you to be so introverted in these matters, is there something wrong?' she asked concerned.
Gail let out a small laugh, but did not take her eyes off the water. The small waves were soothing and had a calming affect, she really did love this spot when no-one was around.
Christie felt herself become frustrated at Gail's lack of acknowledgement of her presence and picked up the small water bottle beside her friend, then threw it into the water in an attempt to gain some sort of reaction.
The crash of the bottle into the water caused a ripple in the calm waves and a strange hot feeling began to flow through Gail, as the soothing motions of the water had been taken away from her abruptly. She turned towards Christie and stared at her with no emotion in her eyes, that burning feeling was rising within her and it took over all of her senses.
Christie did not like the blank look in her friends eyes; however, she shrugged it off and was just happy to have her full attention. 'Something's not right here, I don't remember anything about getting hurt or of having Lucy. I remember some things that have happened here with you and Billy, but I don't feel right and I'm worried'
Gail continued to stare at Christie, unmoved by the woman's concerns. She was thinking about how she had lost her own child and how Selena now could not have any, due to a freak accident that Selena believe Lucas caused. Her thoughts turned to Matt and the tragedy he had to live through losing his daughter Claire, Matt who had overcome his ordeal in Juniper House and had now taken responsibility for looking after Lucy, as her own mother had somehow forgotten about her. That man was a saint and was a rock in her convoluted existence of late.
Christie watched Gail as she just stared blankly at her and let out a frustrated laugh. 'Gail I need to remember, I want my daughter and I need my life back!' she snapped.
Gail felt the heat flow through her veins and embraced the calm feeling of control it was providing. She took a deep breath and smiled warmly as she stroked her friends back reassuringly, then shoved her hard and watched as she fell into the river with a loud crash.
The force of the water had knocked the wind out of Christie and she screamed at her friend for help; however, Gail just continued to watch as the current became stronger and her friend was dragged towards the centre of the river. The water was freezing and was filling up in her lungs, she was finding it hard to breath and had to fight her way to the surface.
Christie flailed and screamed, pleading for help. She felt the strong current attempting to drag her deeper into the river and fought with all her strength to get back to the bridge; however, the power of the water was too strong. Suddenly she felt a hand grip her ankle and screamed in fright, all while Gail watched calmly from the edge of the bridge. As she felt her arms faltering and her body begin to be pulled deeper into the depths of the water, the last thing she saw was a malicious grin on her best friends face.
Lucas sat in his office holding his magic 8 ball, he had dropped Luke off with Abe earlier in the hopes of having some time alone to figure out which deal he wanted to cash in on; however, his senses were all over the place and he was finding it difficult to concentrate. Not only was this frustrating, he was beginning to think that something was going on behind his back and that just would not do in his town.
The door to his office opened wide and Gail walked in slowly, in the short cream dress he liked and her hazel brown hair draped loosely over her bare shoulders. Lucas disregarded his previous thoughts and placed the magic 8 ball down on his desk, then got up and moved towards his wife. 'I missed you this mornin' love. Not that I mind looking after our boys, but if this is gonna become a regular occurrence then we need to have a conversati...'
Gail stepped forward and placed her index finger softly on his lips, to silence him. She had not come here to talk and her urges were in overdrive.
Lucas narrowed his eyes at her suspiciously, then sensed the heat flowing through her veins and smiled seductively. 'Well hell Darlin', all you had to do was ask' he advised playfully, as he reached for her hips and pulled her to him.
Gail knocked the door closed with her foot, then pushed him hard towards the desk. 'Since when do I have to ask?' she said sarcastically and placed her hands on his shirt, ready to rip it open.
'Ah-ah' Lucas warned, as he took hold of her hands in his. 'This ain't the time or place for that type of behaviour, at least not while I'm on duty without a change of clothes'
Gail stared at him intently, then shook her head disapprovingly. 'You're no fun anymore' she said seriously, then turned to leave; however, Lucas grabbed her arms and shoved her hard against the wall.
Lucas did not appreciate the comment and did not know what had come over her; however, he was not above forcing it out of her. He stared deep into her eyes and caught a dark glint, when she smiled devilishly at him he let out a small laugh and shook his head in mock disapproval. This was not Rosemary, he would spot that part of his love instantly, this was Gail and there was something different about her.
A knock on the door came and Ben turned the handle of the door; however, the door locked instantly when Gail glanced at it. 'Lucas?' Ben called, as he tried to handle again. 'Lucas it's urgent!'
'It's urgent Lucas' Gail mirrored sarcastically, as she pulled her hands free of his grasp and scraped her long nails down his chest.
'Give me 10 Deputy' Lucas ordered, as he moved his hand under Gail's dress and ripped her panties off.
'10? You really know how to make a girl feel special' she mocked, then smiled as he unzipped his pants and picked her up.
Lucas thrust his manhood into her hard, then began pounding in and out of her. He had been attempting to be softer with her recently, trying to be the caring husband he suspected he should be; however, this change in her tapped right into his dark side and he wanted to rip her clothes off right her, then punish her.
Gail called out at each painful thrust and bit her lips in pleasure. She needed this pain, craved it and her Adonis did not disappoint. When he sank his teeth into her neck, not caring that it was a part of her that was not covered by clothes, she let out a small laugh and scraped her nails down his back. Her climax came within a few minutes of him entering her; however, she knew him well enough to know he would not stop there. She felt him explode within her and he gripped her buttocks tight, then turned around and smashed her back down onto his desk.
Lucas was taken over by his desire and did not care how much he was hurting her, he sensed her desire to have him this way and he would give her what she needed. He nipped roughly at her neck and shoulder, as he pounded in and out of her. She bit his neck hard enough to draw blood and Lucas knew this was her way of showing acceptance. As their second climax rose together, he forced his lips onto hers to stifle their calls and erupted inside of her once again.
They kissed forcefully for a few moments and then Gail held him to her chest affectionately, before pushing him off of her and grabbing a tissue to clean herself up with.
A bang on the door came and Ben called for Lucas again, his voice more urgent now.
Gail did not wait to see if Lucas had finished re-dressing and opened the door when she had straightened up her dress, then smiled warmly at Ben. 'He's all yours' she advised, then turned towards Lucas. 'Better hurry love, I believe your presence is needed at Johnson's Bridge' she smiled knowingly, then headed out of the Sheriff's Station.
Lucas stood staring at the body in disbelief, luckily he had suspected something was out of place with Gail's behaviour and had ordered Ben to wait in the car.
'This is how I found her Sheriff, I finished work early and decided to go fishin' before the wife hounded me to come home...she just washed up over there' Chester explained, as he pointed further down the riverbank.
Lucas shook his head as he stared down at Christie's lifeless body, bloated with the amount of water it had taken in. This would not do, not so soon after the previous incident on his wedding day and certainly not behind his back. He knelt down and placed his hands on both sides of her face, then closed his eyes and opened up his minds eye. He allowed his subconscious to merge with her last position and watched curiously as he heard her last conversation play out with Gail.
He felt some push back, as though something was attempting to prevent him from seeing the truth; therefore, he dug deeper inside himself and unleashed his twin, to provide further clarity. The vision became clearer and he focused hard on Gail's subconscious, he could hear her thoughts just moments before the incident and the last thing she thought about before pushing Christie off the bridge was Matt Crower.
Lucas let out a small laugh and released his minds hold on the dead woman, without another thought he focused his power on her core and envisioned a seed maturing into a full grown plant. He envisioned a rose bush and the stages of it's development, then released his hold on Christie fully and watched as she began coughing up the water she had ingested.
'Jesus Christ!' Chester cursed and jumped back in horror.
Lucas let out a loud sigh, then got up and went to Chester. Placing his hands firmly on the man's shoulder, he stared deep into his eyes to force all focus on him and put on his best southern drawl. 'You remember when you knocked that kid over on Lancton Avenue a few years back?' he asked casually.
Chester stared at Lucas confused, he did not know what was happening and his mind was all over the place. 'I...I don't...'
'Ah hell of course you do' Lucas interrupted. 'That poor young boy on his way home from baseball practice. You mowed him down like a bat outta hell after one too many beers, just before graduation day if I'm not mistakin'...It was a tragedy'
A flash back of the incident burned through Chester's brain and he tried to back up; however, Lucas' grip did not falter on his shoulders and he was not letting go. 'I remember Sheriff' he nodded shaking.
'And you remember what I did for you?' Lucas asked in a calm tone, while continuing to stare deep into Chester's eyes.
'How could I forget? I wouldn't be out here free if it weren't for you'
'Good' Lucas nodded and released his grip on Chester. 'Now you're gonna go straight up to my Deputy and give him your statement, of how you dove into the cold river to save our girl over there...It looks like you got to her in the nick of time, you're a hero' he smiled, as he patted Chester on the back reassuringly.
Chester stared blankly at Lucas, unable to comprehend what the man was saying. 'But she was dead Sheriff' he said in disbelief.
'Have you been on those beer's again friend?' Lucas laughed, but the darkness in his eyes remained. 'She's alive and kickin' over there. Now go on and give your statement'
Chester nodded obediently and walked over to the navy Crown Victoria where Deputy Ben Healy was sat, knowing better than to go against Lucas Buck.
Lucas let out a long exasperated sigh and shook his head when he looked at Christie, shivering on the grass beside him. 'The thing's I do for my people' he said unimpressed, then bent down to help her up.
-To be continued-