Harvey

He could not stop the thoughts whirring away in his head. How far along is she? How did I not notice she was pregnant? I'm going to be a father! Why didn't she tell me? How in the name of Yoba am I going to fix this?

Placing his hands on the tiles in front of him he allowed the hot shower water to pour over his head and watched as the mud dripped from his body; it swirled around his feet down the drain. He turned off the faucet and stepped out on to the cold bathroom tiles. The steam filled the small space and obscured his image in the mirror. He swiped his hand across the glass and leaned in close. He noticed the dark bags under his eyes. You are looking tired Harv... and old!.

He grabbed his bath towel from the peg and wrapped it around his shoulders. He welcomed the softness; the comfort of the soft delicate fibres against his aching body. He wondered if Jane might also be in the shower, and wished he could share the moment with her. He would wash the cold rain from her beautiful skin and plant kisses on her growing bump. Her bump; did she even have a bump? Perhaps she didn't have one, or perhaps she did and he had just not noticed? Stupid stupid Harvey! He slapped his palm against his forehead, which stung his skin.

In his living room he retrieved the photo from his wallet and slumped down on to the sofa; letting the cushions swallow him up. He stared at the picture, trying to see the detail in the blurred image. It was a side profile; he could easily make out the baby's head and stomach and possibly a hand - although that could be amniotic fluid. He wondered if Jane had found out the gender – he also wondered if she'd tell him if he asked her. He picked up his cell phone, his finger hovered over her number, but he couldn't bring himself to press call. She hated him and he knew he'd only make things worse if he called her. He'd give her some time, wasn't there a saying – 'Time heals all wounds?'

He had dreamed of becoming a father for a long time, and never thought it would actually happen. He was both excited and anxious. His mind was full of questions. Would he be a good father? He hoped so. Would he be able to provide for his child? Of course, things had been slow at the clinic but he had savings and he would never let his child go without. If the child needed anything, he would step up and provide. Would things get better between him and Jane? He couldn't answer that one.

He patted his skin dry with the towel and got dressed in to his joggers and a t-shirt. He had planned to mope about his apartment for the rest of the afternoon but he heard a noise downstairs. Someone was hammering his or her fist urgently against the front door. The sound resonated through his apartment like a thumping migraine. He quickly made his way down to the clinic, apprehensive about what he might face when he got to the door. Had someone come to protect Jane's honour... had they come to punch his lights out? At that thought he came to a halt in the unlit reception room, and took a puff from his inhaler. He closed his eyes and tried to calm his breathing. The hammering started again, which startled him in to action. He unlocked the door and held it open.

Pierre and Caroline pushed their way through the doorway, each with an arm around Pam's waist. Pam's head was bowed low and lolling from side to side. They were closely followed by Lewis, Marnie, Penny, and Shane.

'Bring her through to the back,' Harvey commanded, 'in to the hospital wing, put her on one of the beds.' He tried not to think about the mud that had been walked through his sterile clinic as he followed Pierre and Caroline through the double doors.

Doc is my mother going to be okay?' Penny asked nervously. He couldn't tell whether her cheeks were damp with tears or from rainwater. She looked distraught, and bit down on her lip to stop it from quivering. She was a slender bookish woman, who rarely visited the clinic apart from for her annual checkups. He always felt uncomfortable around her, which he thought was perhaps because of how timid she was.

'The truthful answer is – I won't know until I've examined her. Please take a seat in the waiting area,' he asked her with a weak smile and then to the other's, 'All of you please kindly take a seat.' They were all soaked to the bone and dripping rainwater from their clothing. 'Lewis, would you mind switching the lights on and perhaps someone could make some coffee?'

'I'll get the coffee... anyone for cookies?' Marnie offered.

Shane stepped forward, he was holding his arm tight against his chest and through gritted teeth he said, 'Doc, I'm hurt pretty bad too. Do you think you can take a look?' He reeked of alcohol which made Harvey's eyes water, and caused him to take a step back as Shane approached him.

Harvey couldn't wipe the grumpy expression from his face, he was still mad at him for the trouble he'd caused, so turned his back on Shane and growled, 'Come through to the hospital room.'

The lights were bright in the hospital wing compared to the reception so Harvey had to shield his eyes when he entered. 'Take a seat Shane,' he said grumpily and then smiled when he noticed Caroline had given him a funny look, reminding him that he was a medical professional and should be just that... professional. 'I'll see to you next Shane, yeah just take a seat in the corner over there.'

Harvey examined Pam, whose breathing sounded shallow and raspy. He carefully lifted the torn strips of blouse material away from her skin to get a better view and grimaced – the lacerations on her chest were deep, and the evidence of how much blood she had lost was shown by the fact her clothes were drenched and her white bra was no longer white, but soaked red. He made a mental note of the green substance that oozed from her wounds, but didn't mention it to Caroline or Pierre.

He placed a mask over Pam's face and started the flow of oxygen. 'Tell me what happened,' he asked no one in particular. He went over sink and scrubbed his hands clean with antibacterial soap whilst he listened.

'We heard screams but by the time we got to her she was already unconscious. Shane was there, he saw most of it,' Caroline said, there was a tremble to her voice, and she nodded towards Shane who was hunched over gripping his arm tightly.

'Shane, what happened?' Harvey asked him begrudgingly. He gathered the necessary medical equipment as he waited for Shane to respond.

From the other side of the room Shane groaned from the pain. 'I was having a smoke outside the Stardrop Saloon when I heard a noise, then a woman started yelling – I couldn't make out what she was saying but she sounded frightened. I ran over to see what the commotion was about and that's when the thing grabbed hold of my arm with its massive jaw. I hit it in the face with my beer glass which seemed to stun it. I was sick from the pain, and pretty drunk from the beer. I went over to see if Pam was ok, and that's when Caroline and Pierre arrived.'

'What was it that attacked you Shane?' Harvey asked, becoming frustrated at not receiving the full story. 'You must have got a good look at it?'

'I don't know, but it had huge yellow eyes and it stunk like a garbage truck.'

Harvey sighed but gave up trying to get any further information out of Shane. He thanked Caroline and Pierre for their help and then kindly asked them to wait in the waiting room. He quickly examined Shane's injured arm and noticed the same green ooze seeping out from the bite marks. He deduced it must be the same creature that had attacked Marlon, and that Lewis would have to do something about it before anymore villagers' lives were put in danger. He returned his attention to Pam, and the hours passed by as he repaired the damage caused by the mysterious creature.

Maru

Maru hovered outside Sebastian's bedroom. The floorboards creaked beneath her feet as she paced, unable to make the decision to knock on his door.

'How long are you planning to stand out there?' Maru felt her breath catch in her throat. 'Look, I'm really busy so either come in or go away and bother someone else.'

Maru released the breath she was holding and pressed her palm down on the handle and let herself in to her brother's bedroom. Sebastian was working at his computer, his fingers click-clacked away on the keyboard. Maru saw lines of text on the monitor, she knew it must be coding for a video game Sebastian was working on but to her it just looked like gobbledegook.

'Umm... Hey Seb...' she tried but bit down on her bottom lip; she felt nervous being in his personal space. He had this way of making her feel uncomfortable... unwelcomed. They rarely interacted and she couldn't remember the last time she had stepped foot in to his bedroom. There was a foul smell, a mixture of stale air and body odour. There were clothes, mainly black in colour, strewn across his unmade bed. The walls were covered in gaming posters, but she didn't recognise any of the images so couldn't put a name to them. The blinds were closed and the only light in the room came from the computer monitor and dim desk lamp.

'What is it Maru?' He didn't bother to look up from his programming. She could tell from his tone of voice that he was irritated by the interruption.

'I just... I needed to talk to someone... someone who's not Mom.' She looked down at her feet and nudged a cellophane wrapper with the toe of her shoe. It was most likely from a cigarette carton, and Maru knew that if Demetrius found out that Sebastian had been smoking in the house he would hit the roof. She chose not to mention it. 'Look, I know we don't really talk much but you are my brother and I need your help.'

He pushed away from his cluttered desk and swivelled his chair around to face her, giving her his full attention. She instantly regretted coming to see him; he would most likely ridicule her because... wasn't that what older siblings did?

'Is this about the doc?' he asked flatly.

'What? No! Um... how did you guess?' She shoved her hands in to her overalls to stop herself from fidgeting, which was something she did when she was nervous.

'I heard your dad talking to my mom about it.' He shrugged and tried to hide his grin.

'She's our mom!' she corrected him. It annoyed her how he always acted like the black sheep of the family. 'Did dad sound pissed?'

Sebastian shrugged. 'Nah, not really... maybe at first but mom soon calmed him down.' He pulled a packet of mints from his jeans pocket and popped two in to his mouth. He didn't offer any to Maru, not that she would have ever expected him to. 'So umm... are you really gonna have his baby?'

Maru froze. What had he said? Baby? 'They... they think I'm pregnant? What the actual fuck?'

Sebastian grimaced and shrugged his shoulders again. 'Rumour has it the doc got you both pregnant, you and the farmer.'

Maru gagged as vomit rose up in to her mouth. She didn't know what was worse... the fact her parents thought she was pregnant or the fact that the bitch of a farmer actually was! The tears flowed quickly, dampening her cheeks and neck. She sniffed and pinched the tears from her nose with her fingers. 'She's pregnant? She can't be! I love him Sebby, and he loves me!'

'Are you sure about that Maru?' Sebastian asked cautiously. He stood up and picked up the box of Kleenexes from his bedside cabinet and offered them to her. 'Did he actually tell you he loved you?'

She took a handful of tissues and blew her nose. 'No not in so many words...' She dabbed at her eyes. 'I feel used Sebby, I feel like he's grabbed my heart and ripped it out of my chest. How could he do this to me?'

Sebastian scratched the back of his head, clearly feeling uncomfortable. 'Ahh... Maru, I don't know why you are telling me all this... maybe it's best if you speak to Mom.'

Maru grabbed the neck of his hoody. 'Sebby you need to help me fix this!'

'I don't need to do anything; this is your mess!' He tried to remove her hands from his clothes but she clung on.

'Please Sebby! People are gonna think I've been sleeping around. You know what this town is like – how they talk; and you know I'm not like that.'

Sebastian sighed heavily. 'I don't know what you think I can do Maru, but I'll try.'

A tiny trace of a smile flickered across Maru's lips, she felt relieved... she knew he was going to help her.

Jane

She gripped the fence so tightly that her knuckles turned white; and clenched her jaw to stop herself from crying out. The pain was horrendous; her pelvis felt like it had broken in to a thousand pieces. She moved her right foot out to the side in an attempt to edge herself along; she wasn't far from home but she couldn't see herself getting there before it got dark. She cried out and whimpered as she moved her left foot closer to the meet the right. She held her head in her hands and then bit down on her hand; at that rate she wouldn't be home for hours. Bear's tail whipped lightly against the legs; both concerned and keen to get home for her next meal.

'Are you okay?' a female voice called to her. Jane looked over her shoulder to see a slender figure approaching. 'I'm Leah, we haven't met but I've heard so much about you from the other villagers.'

Jane offered her a weak smile and hesitantly placed her hand in to Leah's outstretched one. They shook hands and Jane cried out again and shook her head in frustration. 'Just suffering a bit, it's my pelvis... it came on overnight and I only wanted to see if I could catch a fish for my dinner. I haven't even made it to the river yet; I've been stuck like this for thirty minutes.' She bit down on her lip as another jolt of pain surged through her hips.

'I think you probably need to see the Doc.' Leah offered Jane her arm. 'Here, let me help you get there.'

Jane's face dropped. The Doctor was the last person she wanted to see. 'I'll be fine; but thanks for your offer. I'm just going to head back home and put my feet up.'

'Oh, well I'll help you home instead,' she leaned down and ruffled the fur on Bear's giant head before gathering up Jane's fishing supplies. 'Honestly, it's the least I can do.' Before Jane could protest, Leah had hooked her arm through Jane's and the pair were on their way to Jane's farm.

Inside the farmhouse Leah filled the kettle as Jane took down two cups from the kitchen cabinet. The cups clinked together as she set them down on the counter. Jane hissed through her teeth at the pain in her pelvis; it really wasn't letting up.

'Why don't you take a seat by the fire, and I'll make the tea,' Leah offered.

'Umm... if you are sure?' Jane responded, to which Leah nodded and began looking for teabags. 'The tea is in the cupboard near the sink.' She lowered herself in to an armchair and let out a groan as the cushions swallowed her up. It felt so good to be off her feet. She couldn't believe such a tiny little life was already having such an effect on her body so soon. The element inside the kettle popped indicating it had boiled, and steam rose up towards the ceiling from the spout.

Leah pressed a chipped mug in to Jane's hand and took a seat in the other armchair. Jane smiled and thanked her. She lifted the tea to her lips and took a sip; it was good – warm and milky just how she liked it.

'You are welcome,' Leah smiled and took a long drink from her own cup and stared in to the fire. 'It really is a lovely place you have here. I have a painting that would go perfectly above your fireplace.'

Jane smiled and shifted in her armchair; her hip pain was back and she no longer felt soothed by the cushions. 'I'll definitely consider your advice; the place probably could do with sprucing up a bit.' She suddenly thought about how unprepared she was, she didn't even have a nursery for the baby to sleep in. Her thoughts moved on to wondering how she was going to raise a baby on her own, she knew she would be fine – she was a strong independent farm girl. She had, however, envisioned having Harvey in her life. She felt tears at the corners of her eyes and swatted them away.

Leah placed her cup down. 'Are you ok Jane?' Jane sniffed back the moisture in her nose and wiped more tears away from her cheeks. 'Do you want to talk about it?' Leah leaned forward and put her hand on Jane's knee.

Jane placed her cup next to Leah's. 'I'm fine... it's just the pregnancy hormones.' Before she could say anymore Leah got up from her chair and put her arm around Jane's shoulders. Jane gave in and began to sob; the tears flowed down her face and she wailed. 'I'm sorry – you should probably go, I'm not really good company at the moment.' She dropped her hands in to her lap and gazed at at her palms; her eyes flicked from callous to scar and back to callous again and tried to compose herself.

Leah moved to the bottom of the armchair and knelt in front of Jane. She took Jane's calloused hands in her soft and delicate ones and gave them a squeeze. 'Whatever it is, I'm sure it's not that bad and I'm a good listener.'

Jane's voice was thick from crying. 'I wouldn't want to burden you with my problems,' Jane smiled, 'but I appreciate you offer. Thank you.' She pulled her hands free.

'Honestly, I don't mind at all.'

Jane gave in more easily than she normally would have. She guessed she must have really needed a friend. She cleared her throat before speaking. 'It's Harvey.' She coughed and sniffed back fresh tears. 'I'm pregnant with his child, and I found out from Shane that Harvey has been unfaithful.'

Leah pulled a face. 'Oh, that's... really awful. Wow, I never thought the Doc was that type.' She pinched her chin between her thumb and forefinger. 'Are you sure Shane was telling the truth?'

It was Jane's turn to pull a face. She looked confused. 'What reason would he have to lie?'

Leah scooped the cups up and stood up. 'I just mean, I wouldn't necessarily take the word of the town drunk as gospel.' She took a sharp intake of breath. 'I probably shouldn't have said that. Shane is an okay guy when you get to know him; he's just got a lot of issues and what he told you may not be one hundred percent accurate.'

Jane scrunched up her face. 'He seemed pretty certain to me.'

Leah put the cups in the sink. 'It just doesn't sound like the Doc to me... from what I've heard anyway. When he falls in love he falls fast and hard, so I just can't see him doing the dirty on you.'

Jane blinked to clear her eyes, her eyelashes felt heavy from crying. Had Shane been telling her the truth? There's one way to get to the bottom of this – I've got to confront Maru!

Sebastian

Alex was playing with a soccer ball outside his grandparent's house when Sebastian saw him. 'Over here,' Sebastian called to him with his hand raised above his head. Alex kicked the ball towards him. Sebastian stopped the ball with his foot then flicked it in to the air with his toes; he volleyed the ball a few times before heading it back to Alex who caught it with both hands.

'How's it going bro?' Alex asked and pair bumped fists.

'Yeah, yeah – cool' Sebastian replied and shoved both hands in to the pockets of his hoody. 'Just had to get out of the house, Maru was bugging the shit out of me.'

Alex snorted a laugh. 'You still giving her shit? You know it's not her fault your mom remarried – right? I mean, she wasn't even born when they got together.'

Sebastian shrugged and took out his cigarette carton from his pocket. He offered Alex one but he knew he would refuse, he didn't smoke. He lit a cigarette and look a long drag on it, and then released a plume of smoke in to the air. 'I know – I just... uhh dude, I probably should ease up off her.' He returned the cigarette to his lips.

'So what's she done this time? Don't tell me she found your porn stash?' Alex laughed and Sebastian blew the smoke at him. 'Hey! Don't fucking do that you ass!'

Sebastian laughed but then sighed as he remembered the awkward conversation with Maru in his bedroom. 'It's not that,' he flicked the cigarette butt in the direction of Pam's trailer. He doubted she'd notice... her lawn was covered in beer bottles and cigarette ends. 'She's got herself in to some trouble with Doc Harvey, and I think she might be pregnant with his kid.'

Alex laughed loudly, 'Shiiitttt... man that's fucked up!'

'That's not all... the asshole has broken her heart and gone and gotten that farmer pregnant too.'

'Seriously?' Alex shook his head in disbelief. 'So what are you gonna do about it?'

Sebastian returned his hands to his pockets and shrugged. 'Me? It's not my problem.'

'Seb... the guy fucked your sister, got her pregnant, and you aren't gonna do anything about it?'

Sebastian felt anxious and kicked at a rusty beer can. 'I don't know... what do you suggest?'

'Okay, okay – leave it with me. I'll sort it.' Alex grinned. Sebastian felt relieved, Maru may have fucked her life up but at least he didn't have to fuck his life up too. His plan had worked; he knew how much Alex hated the Doc... Sebastian wouldn't need to get his hands dirty.