Merlyn lay peacefully in her bed, giving off a small smile as the warm sun danced across her cheek. It had been a while since she was awoken by the sun, recently it had been the torrential rain hammering on her window which disturbed her slumber and the sun stirred a pleasant feeling within her.
Merlyn reached over to stroke Billy's hair, feeling particularly adventurous as he had not been home early enough to satisfy her needs the previous night; however, when her hand brushed over a small ponytail, she jumped up in surprise and pulled her quilt over her body instinctively.
'Shush!' Luke snapped tiredly, as he snuggled deeper into Billy's chest and held on to his Sisters hand tight.
Merlyn stared wide eyed at the Buck children who were situated on both sides of her boyfriend, then shot Billy an unimpressed look when she spotted him forcing his eyes closed and feigning slumber to shield himself from her reaction.
'It's ok' Gail Jr said sweetly, as she rolled over to Merlyn and wrapped her small arms around her neck affectionately.
'It is not ok and if your Father finds you both here without his permission, then we're all in for a world of hurt' Merlyn responded, trying to sound stern and ignore the many kisses Gail Jr was placing on her shoulder.
'Daddy's too busy to care' Luke smirked, sensing where his Father had stayed the night and climbed over Billy to get to Merlyn, following his Sisters lead and kissing her skin softly.
Billy cautiously opened his eyes and could not contain his smile when he realised that the children had decided to handle his girlfriend on his behalf. When he turned towards her, he could see that she was attempting to hold on to her anger at the their surprise appearance in her bed; however, the children's smothering was relentless and her anger was replaced by laughter.
'Honestly, I don't know how anyone's supposed to teach you two anythin'!' Merlyn snapped in mock exasperation.
'I don't think they need to be taught anythin', they seem to have the art of persuasion down perfectly' Billy advised, then leaned over Merlyn and began tickling her, much to the children's amusement.
'Stop it right now!' Merlyn yelled through laughter, attempting to pull out of the trap she was in. 'I swear I'm gonna get you all for this!' she warned, accepting her bad position and shook her head when the Buck children burst out into fits of laughter and began jumping on her.
'Nice to see y'all forgettin' about me. I've been at home alone worryin' all damn night!' Caleb snapped moodily, as he stood by the open bedroom door and watched the display bitterly.
Gail Jr froze at the sudden appearance of her Brother and clung to Merlyn tight, her eyes darting around the room in search of her Mother. She sense the dark man who spoke to her Brother was close, he was like an acrid smell which filled the air. She was suddenly aware that she was not in the sanctuary where her Mother had kept her recently and her small body began to shake.
Merlyn stared down concerned at Gail Jr when her nails dug into her skin and she began to shake. She was about to attempt to comfort the girl when Gideon appeared out of nowhere and jumped up on the bed, growling until Merlyn allowed Gail Jr to crawl close to him.
Luke watched his Brother closely, being aware of his Sisters worries due to their strong connection and although he did not believe Caleb would ever hurt them, he reached out his mind to his friend in the Trinity River in case any assistance was required.
'Well this turned weird quick' Billy broke the silence and got out of bed to reach for a T Shirt.
Merlyn sensed the tension rising in the room and chose to go to her Brother, noticing the children's behaviour had changed due to his appearance. 'No-ones forgotten about you silly...I didn't know they were even here, let alone that you were on your own last night' she reassured him, not wanting him to feel left out.
Caleb's eyes did not move from him siblings and he continued to stare at them, sensing their suspicion of him. 'You should go, leave me with my kin' he advised Merlyn, feeling a sudden urge to converse with his siblings while his parents appeared to be busy elsewhere.
'And why would she need to do that?' Lucas asked casually, appearing behind Caleb and shooting Merlyn a playful wink when she instinctively pulled her short nightdress down in an attempt cover herself.
Gail Jr risked a glance over her shoulder when she heard her Fathers strong voice and smiled happily as he nodded affectionately towards her. She squeezed Luke's hand reassuringly, as he held her hand protectively and felt a wave of relief come over her at the realisation of how much protection she had.
'Where's Momma?' Luke asked blunt, still watching Caleb cautiously and unable to shake the uneasy feeling that his Brother had caused to stir within him.
'I ain't her keeper Son and you'll do well to remember who you're addressin'' Lucas warned, not happy with Luke's frank attitude towards him, then turned his attention to Billy and Merlyn. 'I appreciate you good people steppin' up last night, your loyalty won't go unnoticed' he said gratefully, then peeled his Daughter away from Gideon and signalled for Caleb to get Luke.
Caleb stared unimpressed at his Father for the way he was regarding him; however, he obeyed the unspoken order and was thankful that Luke also decided to adhere to his Fathers wishes without making a scene.
Merlyn watched concerned as they all exited and she was left alone with Billy. 'I hate bein' on the outside' she sighed finally, running her fingers through her hair in agitation.
'Think of it this way, we've done a good deed and now we get to revel in all the good karma' Billy advised, reaching for her hips and pulling her back into him as he kissed her neck seductively.
Merlyn let out an aroused moan and reached back to tangle her finders in his hair, happy to accept his take on things. 'I suppose you're right, I've been held back long enough by my family and now it's time for some real fun' she smiled, turning around and pushing him onto the bed roughly, then straddled him and found it was not so hard to put her Brother's drama out of her mind.
Caleb sat moodily beside Luke, not believing that his Father had relegated him to the backseat of the car. He had not done anything wrong yesterday and he did not know why everyone was turning against him.
'Firstly, no-one has turned against you Son and secondly, do you really expect me to believe that you didn't ride down to that ol' farmhouse in search of your pet project before the weather stopped you?' Lucas asked calmly, knowing full well what Caleb had been up to the previous day.
Caleb crossed his arms in defiance of the question and stared out of the window to avoid his Fathers knowing eyes. 'He's a bully-' he started in his defence.
'-So are you' Luke interrupted casually, then slapped his hand over his mouth in shock when he realised that he had spoken aloud.
Gail Jr smiled at her Brothers slip of the tongue, knowing that her Mother had sensed Caleb's intentions and it had impacted her mood all day yesterday. She did not understand why Caleb could not just let the boy go, he had been punished enough and he was taking this all too far.
'I say when he's been punished enough. You're all soft!' Caleb spat out, then closed his eyes in annoyance at himself when he realised that they were Malcolm's words and not his own.
'And there it is, good ol' Daddy stakin' his claim...I don't know why I bother sometimes' Lucas sighed disappointedly, sensing Malcolm's influence within his first born.
'Then don't, just run to her and be her lap dog. She always knows how to tame you' Caleb responded vindictively, unable to hide his hurt at being pushed out.
Lucas slammed his foot down hard on the breaks, reaching to his left to ensure that his Daughter was not hurt in the front seat, then unclipped her seatbelt and leaned over to open the front passenger door.
Gail Jr looked up at her Father confused, not understanding his decision when she noticed where they were, then climbed out of the car obediently without saying a word and walked towards the large iron gate which began to open for her.
'No!' Luke called defiantly, not wanting to be split from his Sister any longer.
'It's alright Son, she's where she needs to be right and so are we' Lucas advised forcing a calm down, pushing down his anger when he sensed his Daughter's upset and signalled for Caleb to get into the front passenger seat.
Caleb could not believe that his Father had chosen him above his Sister and rushed to the front passenger seat without argument. 'This don't need to happen, you've got nothin' to worry about' he said quietly, not wanting to be the reason for his family to split up and still confused at his Mothers choice to separate them.
Lucas sensed the honesty in his words, but he knew his Fathers cursed beliefs well and Caleb had already proven Gail right in reciting some of them without realising. Lucas had wanted to believe that Gail was being her usual chaotic self, overreacting without thinking through her actions properly; however, all it would take was for Caleb to give in to his primal urges for a second and Malcolm may be able to take advantage, putting his Daughter in danger. Lucas could not allow that no matter how much his Daughters look of betrayal had impacted him.
'Let me out!' Luke exclaimed as he pulled at his seatbelt frantically, seeing the gates close engulfing his Sister and wanting to go with her to his Mother.
'Calm now Son, you're one of us and you will stay loyal' Lucas said sternly as he kept his demeanour calm, then started up the car and drove away, knowing that now was not the time to let his control over his boys slip.
Gail drove through the quiet streets and glanced at her Daughter in her car seat, staring sadly out of the window. She had been grateful for the oblivion her Husband had provided when she got lost in him, if only for one night; however, that was short lived and she had awoken right back in their current hell, even worse off than before with both her and Gail Jr's love's being snatched away abruptly. There had been a small discussion of their current predicament last night, but Lucas had refused to allow her to deal with Malcolm her way without removing her Father in an equally disturbing manner, which meant that they were right back to square one.
'Are you going to stay with me today Angel? I could really use the company' Gail smiled at her Daughter wearily, the weight of the situation getting to her.
Gail Jr looked sadly at her Mother, then forced a smile in an attempt to make her feel better. She did not feel like doing anything today after she had been discarded by her Father; however, she sensed that her Mother was experiencing the same emotions which she was and she did not want to leave her side.
'He hasn't discarded you, it's all just so complicated and he's better suited to the boys rights now than we are' Gail explained in defence of her Husband, knowing from the time she spent with him last night that this was also taking it's toll on him.
'Oh poor Master, how hard done by he is when you two are the ones who've been uprooted from your home' Joshua advised sarcastically, appearing beside Gail in the front passenger seat of her Mustang.
Gail swerved slightly in shock, then straightened up the car and shot Joshua a look of warning. 'This doesn't involve you and unless you want my understanding with Rosemary to change, you better keep your opinions to yourself' she said coldly, forcing a reassuring smile at her Daughter when she sensed her tense.
A small smile crept over Joshua's lips and he stared at Gail admiringly. Despite her best efforts, Caleb was a lose cannon and she would never be able to fully trust him, not with the influence of the Buck line. In spite of all that, Gail continued to perform the tasks required of her to not show outsiders that there was an issue with the Buck family and her lack of fear set her aside from any Buck Wife who had gone before her.
'I should hope so, I'd hate to think that I'm predictable like all the little sheep before me who bowed down without a fight' Gail advised sarcastically, reading his thoughts and amused at his opinion of her.
'Why are you so determined to continue on like nothin' is goin' on? Do you really think all the other Buck Wives haven't done the exact same thing?' Joshua asked curiously, part of him hoping that Gail would snap and speak out about the true identity of her family.
Gail laughed and shook her head, she was far apart from the previous woman of this lineage and she was not quite tired enough to fall into this trap. 'My reputation is my own, I don't need any busybodies digging into my business and unlike the previous Buck women, I actually have a job that I care for and will continue to do no matter what' she responded frankly, turning down the deserted long road towards to the dusty patch of land which housed her acquired target.
Joshua recognised the old farmhouse and smiled, surprised that she continued to push forward with this. 'You're as bad as Caleb for not lettin' this go Gail' he advised, seeing a similarity between them both.
'The difference with me is I don't have a demon pulling my strings and never will' Gail responded sweetly, then got out of the car without a further word and released her Daughter, holding her protectively to her chest as she walked towards the beaten in front door of the house.
-To be continued-
