Mr Collins rushed the last few minutes of his History lecture before waving the children out of the classroom, spotting their impatience whilst waiting for the end of School bell. He liked teaching and was not one to deviate from his planner no matter how restless his class were; however, it was Friday and even he could not wait for the working week to be over.
'Caleb!' Mr Collins called as the boy leisurely strolled towards the door with his classmates, then smiled when he did not rush out of the door pretending that he had not heard his name.
Caleb let out a long sigh and nodded his authority for his friends to leave, then walked back towards his Teacher and regarded him curiously. He could see the shock in Mr Collins' eyes when he willingly approached him and wondered why he was so surprised when he had beckoned him.
'You know, most children would run out that door if I hollered for them' Mr Collins advised as he pushed the exams he needed to grade to one side, spotting the boy's curiosity. He had been meaning to take Caleb to one side and talk previously; however, he had not wanted to embarrass the boy and chose to wait until he was settled.
'Most children ain't raised with manners it would appear' Caleb shrugged casually, perching on one of the desks at the front of the class.
Mr Collins smiled, Caleb was far different than he had expected. The boy's reputation was wildly known around these parts, yet his behaviour and manners contradicted popular belief.
'I guess that's why you shouldn't put any stock in gossip and you should make up your own mind' Caleb advised, reading the mans thoughts effortlessly.
Mr Collins eyes grew wide for a moment, assuming that he had spoken aloud when he had not intended to, then he relaxed when Caleb did not appear offended. 'You're a good student, pleasant and attentive, yet you waste your time with the Bobby Coleman...why is that?' he asked curiously, seeing great potential in this boy's future and not wanting him to screw up his chances due to the bad influences of other children.
Caleb could not contain his smile at Mr Collins' perception of him. Bobby was outwardly disruptive; however, he was not truly bad. The boy had bullied some children but that was more down to his Fathers toxic influence, that had all stopped when Caleb had given Bobby a piece of his own medicine and Gail had stepped in with the boy's Father. Bobby was not really bad, his behaviour was a cry for help and no-one had picked up on it until he had come along.
Caleb on the other hand had killed people, bad people who had deserved it but it was a sin all the same. He had no illusions of what he was, yet by showing a little pleasantness and charm he was deemed to be a good boy who was being led astray by the big bad bully. Peoples inability to truly see things for what they were amused him, and he was beginning to understand the importance of appearance like his Father had tried to teach him previously.
'Is somethin' funny?' Mr Collins asked, when the boy just smiled at him amused.
'I just never thought someone would see me for who I really am, after all the bad things that my Daddy did' Caleb lied, playing on the reputation of the man who raised him.
'Gage Temple doesn't define you Caleb, no-one can. All that mess happened when you were mid way through Primary School, this is a new chance for you to shine away from all of the baggage in your past. You're a bright boy, you need to be aware of who can help you and who will hinder you' Mr Collins explained, truly rooting for this boy after the trials of his childhood and the lack of a real upbringing that he must have missed out on.
Caleb had to hold in his laughter at this man's blatant incorrect assumption of his life. As hard as it was previously to admit, the incident on his tenth birthday was the best thing that could have happened to him. Gage Temple was an abuser, he had mentally tortured him and his Sister all over his own self pity. Merlyn in her past state would have held Caleb back, being dead had allowed her to regain her voice and being brought back had given her a new start away from all of the past curses which bound her to a damned existence.
He was a Buck and had all the support that he required from the only parents he now chosen to acknowledge, he did not need sympathy from a stranger; however, he understood from the teachings of his Father that you did not waste an opportunity to gain someone's favour. 'Thank you so much, I'll be mindful of who I spend my time with...It's nice to have someone watchin' my back' Caleb responded pleasantly, jumping off the desk and holding out his hand courteously to shake the mans hand.
Mr Collins was taken aback by the boys politeness, he knew that he was right about how special Caleb was and he was happy to assist the boy to ensure he was given the best opportunities whilst in his care. 'You're welcome Caleb, if you need anythin' you just give me a shout' he advised, then smiled as the boy left and returned his attention to the exams that he was required to grade.
Caleb strolled casually out of the classroom, smiling to himself at gaining his first proper adult ally all by himself. Gail had been right, keep your head down and just focus to gain the respect of Teachers, all they want is to know that they are being heard.
'You're so proud of yourself aren't you? You think you'll be ruling this whole School soon don't you?' Miss Denby asked sarcastically, as she leaned against her open door with her arms folded across her chest sternly.
Caleb closed his eyes in irritation at himself for being too caught up in his own thoughts to spot his English Literature Teacher. 'I ain't tryin' to rule the School-' he started defensively.
'Yet you believe you're important enough to miss my class...You have Mr Collins wrapped around your little finger and I hear Mr Rigby is also quite fond of you too, I'm not surprised really as all it takes for the men in this Town to drop their guard is to be shown a little honey' Miss Denby sighed, then turned around and headed back into her classroom before he had a chance to respond, not caring for any excuses that he may come up with.
Caleb stared dumbfounded at the door as it closed slowly, cutting him off from Miss Denby. He was not used to such abrupt honesty from an adult who was not in his family and her comments had bothered him.
'Come on Caleb! If you take any longer all the bass will be gone!' Boone called down the quiet corridor, growing impatient at his best friends lack of urgency.
Caleb rolled his eyes at the statement and turned towards his friend. 'Oh all the bass in South Carolina will be gone due to me huh?' he asked sarcastically, trying to hide his concern over Miss Denby possibly seeing through his façade and forced himself to appear casual.
Boone tried to think of a witty retort which would not make him seem like a dramatic child, then just waved off the comment in frustration and ran back towards their group when Caleb began to stroll out of the School behind him.
Gail smoothed down the large picnic blanket on the grass, smiling as her Daughter tried to arrange the plates of food neatly. There were sandwiches, sausage rolls, small cakes and scones, all ready and waiting for their honoured guests to arrive.
'Do my eyes deceive me? Here I was thinkin' that we were walkin' into a trap from our lovely girls, but it appears that we're bein' rewarded Son' Lucas said sarcastically to Luke, nodding his authorisation for the boy to rush to his Sister happily so he could survey the area suspiciously.
Gail gave Luke a quick hug before pushing him gently towards Gail Jr, then standing up to greet her Husband. 'I realised that we may have gotten off on the wrong foot earlier when we should be enjoying some family time on the rare occasion that the day care is closed' she advised sweetly, smiling when Lucas took her hand in his and kissed it gentlemanly.
Lucas smiled amused at her attempt to fool him and did not trust her motive in the slightest; however, the setting was perfect for some peaceful family time and he would not spoil the moment, not when their children were giggling happily together. 'Play nice Love' he warned and placed a soft kiss on her lips.
'Unlike you, I always do Soulmate' Gail responded with a smile, then nipped at his lip and brushed her hands over his crotch teasingly.
Lucas inhaled deeply in an attempt to push down his urges and smacked her behind playfully, then pushed her gently towards the picnic blanket. The children had not bothered to wait for them to join them, they had stripped down to their underwear to run further away and began jumping in the Trinity River happily. 'Should we be concerned that they're unsupervised in the water?' he asked as he pulled her onto his knee and pushed his hand up her skirt gently, knowing any other parent would judge how much freedom they gave their children.
'Not unless my usual protective dweller in the river has been given something juicy to distract her from aiding us when required' Gail responded and let out a low moan when his hand stroked over her cotton panties. He was in a good mood, she hated that when he had disrupted her day; however, as usual her body betrayed her and she could not get enough of his touch.
Lucas' demeanour remained unchanged as he continued to tease her sweet spot gently with his fingers while the children's attention was not on them; however, he sensed a stir in the centre of the river and his guard remained firmly up. He would not admit to Gail that he had goaded Rosemary into taking Peter and Rosemary was keeping the interfering ass well hidden. What he had not accounted for was Gail sensing instantly that he had done something and for Rosemary to be hiding her presence from her out of guilt, his Wife was not stupid and no matter how much she pretended that everything was alright he knew that there was a retaliation coming. 'Are we not capable of lookin' after our own children?' he whispered into her ear finally, not rising to the bait and feeling in a mischievous mood.
'Oh I'm more than capable of protecting our children, in fact I now have more time to ponder over ways to eliminate any threats' Gail panted and bit her bottom lip in an attempt to control her volume, as Lucas discreetly starting bringing her to her climax with his strategic movements beneath her sckirt. She sensed Malcom's presence close by spying on them and she revelled in his hatred of her. It was good that he had been tempted out of his hiding hole, he should be present for the surprise.
'Yes, that's right. You quit your job to become a full time housewife and now the children will be in your protection 24/7' Lucas smirked as his fingers moved more intently and vigorously, then forced his lips on hers as her climax hit to stifle her call and ensure that the children were still unaware of their actions.
'Wait, what?' Gail panted, abruptly pulling out of the kiss and staring at him confused as she came down from her high and he words sunk in.
'You said it yourself Love, you now have more time to eliminate threats and what better way to ensure the safety of our children than you spending every wakin' hour with them' Lucas responded casually, as he sucked her moisture off of his fingers and picked up a ham sandwich, happy that he had managed to give her a good release before breaking the news of what he expected of her now that she had quit her highly ranked position.
Gail stared at him in disbelief for a moment, having no intention of taking the children on full time and not accepting his proposal.
'Oh this ain't a proposal, it's an order Darlin'' Lucas advised sternly, taking hold of her arm tight and pulling her back to him so not to alert the children to their intense conversation. 'You wanna play and spit your dummy out just because I instruct someone to keep you focussed on your job rather than doin' somethin' unwise then that's fine, but don't expect to shirk your real responsibilities and your role as my Wife...You will take care of our children full time and there will be no more palmin' them off on your Cousin just so you can act irresponsibly and pretend that you ain't a Mother'
Gail stared deep into his eyes and felt her darkness flowing through her veins. She wanted so much to lash out at the disrespectful way that he was addressing her, especially as she sensed the amusement of Malcolm close by; however, she forced herself to remain calm and just smiled. 'Alright Sheriff, let's play' she said calmly as she released her darkness ahead of schedule, her smile growing wider when a loud bang crashed through the peaceful sky and she saw her Husbands head shoot to the right in shock.
'What the hell?' Lucas asked confused, spotting the large cloud of smoke beginning to rise across the river in the distance.
'Oh will you look at that, someone managed to get your order to save the Wheats Estate Rec Centre deleted from the demolition companies database and wired the funds to the demolition group personally to bring the destruction date forward. Looks like your Daddy's sacred men's group haunt has been erased from Trinity's history, I wonder what other landmarks personal to my Father in Law are on the list to help rejuvenate our sleepy little Town?...Your move Soulmate' Gail answered smugly, standing up and dusting off her skirt before joining her children in the river, to stop any response from her Husband.
Lucas inhaled deeply in an attempt to push down his rage and cursed himself for being too distracted with her quitting her job to sense her going behind his back on the cease and desist order. As she played in the water happily with their children and disregarded the seriousness of what she had just done, he felt himself becoming more enraged at her unauthorised action and chose to remove himself before he lost control.
Lucas headed to his car and left the area in search of the fool who had gone against his orders, needing to punish someone to distract himself from the desire to lash out at his Wife. As he drove onto the road heading back towards the centre of Town, a call came over the radio informing him of a man found at the bottom of scaffolding and Lucas gave off a small laugh. Before the full report came in, he shook shook his head and picturing the decapitated man with his arm and feet missing which could not have been caused by a simple fall.
'Really Love, this is how you wanna play?' Lucas asked out loud, projecting his words to his Wife and hearing his Daughter's sweet voice chanting Luke's favourite Nursery rhyme Humpty Dumpty while they were playing in the river. 'I thought I was supposed to be the heavy handed one...I guess the gloves are off now' he advised, sensing Gail's amusement at blindsiding him and continued to drive to the scene of the crime to fully evaluate what his Daughter had been allowed to contribute to.
-The End-