Karen paced outside of the Trinity Guardian building, hoping to catch the Reporter Danielle who had previously taken an interest is her case. She had searched Trinity trying to locate Gail Buck initially, wanting to provide her with the few details that she had managed to find out about Stuarts disappearance; however, the woman was nowhere to be found.
Karen had wasted the whole afternoon searching for the woman she had once enjoyed the company of, then realised that this distraction had come from the very person who she had initially vowed to bring to justice in the name of her Mother. Caleb's presence at the Sheriff's Station had confused her, making her susceptible to Lucas Buck's suggestion and when she came to her senses, she decided to go back to her initial plan and bring him down her way. If she was unable to catch Danielle today she would put her plan on hold until tomorrow and wait here for Gail instead, knowing from the previous time she spent with Gail that she would return to her place of work before heading home, even if only to remind the people beneath her that she was monitoring them.
'You really think my Wife is that predictable? I wish she stuck to her planned routine, it would save me havin' to run around Town after her when I have a certain itch to be scratched' Lucas said sarcastically, as he leaned casually against the building and watched Karen pace.
Karen froze at the sound of his voice, not expecting to see him again after her visit to his office and she glanced around the area suspiciously, expecting to see Caleb up to something. 'Where's your little demon? Bored of playing Deputy already?' she asked cattily, not trusting the strange boy who always appeared to show up since she came to Trinity.
Lucas smiled at her attempt to rile him and approached her position. 'My Son is out with his friends, bored of listenin' to whinin' women. I on the other hand am more than happy to assist you in your time of need' he advised charmingly, closing the distance between them and staring down at her invitingly.
Karen took a deep intake of breath and tried to ignore their closeness, she hated how her body reacted when his attention was fixed on her and cursed herself for being taken with him. 'Since when do you care about helping people, especially me? You clearly want to wash your hands of Stuarts case, so why would you offer to get involved now?' she asked distrustfully, attempting to keep her composure.
Lucas did not like this woman, in fact he would have been rid of her long before now if his family had not chosen to get involved; however, he did not allow his true feelings for her to show. Lucas inhaled deeply, breathing in her scent and forced his body to relax, taking a final step towards her so their bodies were almost touching. 'We got off on the wrong foot you and I, mostly due to your incorrect judgement of me. Maybe I wanna show you who I really am...who your Mother really fell for' he whispered in her ear, smiling as he sensed her strong desire for him below her surface.
Karen was mesmerized by this Adonis and could not move. When her Mother had confided in her about her life that she had allowed to be ruined for a teenager, she had been sickened and could not comprehend what could cause the smartest woman she knew to throw away the life that she had worked so hard to build; however, after receiving the letter her Mother had sent her before she died and being this close to the object of her Mothers obsession, she was starting to understand the pull that her Mother felt.
'I'll help you with whatever you want no matter what it is, all you gotta do is ask nicely' Lucas continued quietly, sensing the familiar debate within her before she inevitably gave in to him, just like every other woman he had conquered.
'Or she could just ask me and remain unconquered, allowing her soul and self respect to remain intact' Gail stated sweetly from behind them, forcing her rage down at what she had stumbled across in front of her work place.
Karen felt her mind clear at the sound of Gail's voice and instinctively took a step back, creating some distance between them. She watched as Lucas turned his full attention towards his Wife; however, Gail just stared back challengingly and did not appear to be fazed by his intense glare. Suddenly, Danielle exited the Trinity Guardian building and Karen turned towards her, desperate for some public intervention.
'Make your choice now, there isn't going to be a second chance' Gail said to Karen flatly, not taking her eyes off of her Husband.
Lucas was infuriated by his Wife's interruption and sensed Karen's conflict, the conflict which he had been so close to removing.
'And where would the fun be in that Soulmate?' Gail whispered quietly, knowing full well that he heard her clearly in his mind and that he would not want the game to end so uneventfully.
Lucas felt his twin clawing to released to lash out at the challenge from his Wife; however, he sensed Danielle walking towards them and forced his demeanour to remain calm.
'Hey Sheriff, didn't expect to see you around these parts at this time of day. I thought you'd wanna avoid the rabble so you could head home without bein' interrogated for a story' Danielle said pleasantly, curious of the group that had gathered outside of the building.
Karen felt a strong urge to run to Danielle, hoping that the woman would report unbiased on what she wanted to say; however, she was not stupid and she saw how Gail was purposely keeping Lucas' attention, providing her with time to think away from his enchanting presence.
'Afternoon Danielle, I'm just here ensurin' my Love is focussin' on work and not digressin' to other less important things' Lucas responded, turning towards Danielle and putting on his most charming smile to take her attention away from Karen.
'Oh I'm not losing focus on what's important Sweetheart, in fact I've been good and left my colleagues to work in peace without the pressure of me breathing down their necks today. I'm taking from your early departure that you've something newsworthy waiting on my desk?' Gail asked Danielle, smiling as she sensed Karen's trust in her increase at the sight of her standing up to her Husband.
'I would've had something more newsworthy than what's waitin' had you not have stolen my story, but you are the Editor' Danielle advised bitterly, then smiled pleasantly at Karen and Lucas as she continued on past the group to head to the parking lot.
A part of Karen wanted to call Danielle back, needing someone outside of the Buck family to be on her side; however, when she saw the coveting look in Danielle's eyes as she regarded the Sheriff admiringly, she knew that her initial plan would not be as easy to complete as she had initially thought.
With Danielle gone Gail turned her full attention towards Karen, knowing that Lucas would have to leave Karen alone if she came to a deal with her due to his respect for his sacred rules. This may be the answer to allowing her to take control of the situation herself, silence Karen and stop Caleb from getting buried deeper in this matter; therefore, she disregarded her Husbands fury with her and started to address Karen.
'Mom! Come meet my new friend!' Caleb called from across the street, sensing his Fathers anger when it had begun to rise and rushed his plan along.
Both Gail and Karen turned towards the sound of his voice, then Karen gasped in horror when she saw her Step Son stood next Caleb and his friends. 'Kyle? What the hell is this?!' Karen snapped in horror, then ran to her Step Son and pulled him roughly away from Caleb.
Gail felt a knot form in her stomach at the sight of the older boy with Caleb and placed her hand over her mouth in shock at what she had not seen coming.
'Our eldest is talented, I'll give him that...Thanks for prolonging the distraction Love' Lucas whispered in her ear, as he placed his hands on her hips and pulled her back into him, kissing her neck softly.
Gail watched as Karen dragged her Step Son away from the other children, then threw him in the passenger side of her car and drove off quickly. She had no words at the sight of another innocent party being brought into this; however, the fact that Caleb was staring at her with such a proud look on his face made her feel sick. 'I can't cope with this...this is just too much' she said finally and handed Lucas her car keys, indicating for him to see to their other children, then just walked away from them all needing time to think.
'What's wrong with her?' Caleb asked confused, as he watched his Mother leave the area without acknowledging him.
Lucas watched irritated as Gail left, then turned his attention towards Caleb and smiled proudly. 'You did good Son, your plan is comin' along nicely. She just needs a minute to herself, bein' stuck with our little devils all day can take it's toll' he lied, not wanting Caleb to feel bad about what he had accomplished and turned towards Gail's car when he heard his other children calling for him.
The sun shone brightly through the large open window and Gail stirred on the hard mattress, not used to her current surroundings. Although the bed was hard and uncomfortably compared to her usual standards, she was happy for the peace and smiled at the sound of the birds which trailed through the open window.
After wandering around Town aimlessly for 3 hours yesterday evening, she had returned to her office and submitted her article, then called a taxi to bring her here. She could not stand to face her family right now, not after finding out what they had done and continued to do behind her back.
She felt on edge and her darkness was close to the surface, ready to take control should things become too much. Not only had an innocent man been disposed of in god knows what fashion by using a property in her name, now an innocent boy had been brought into the firing line and it was taking all of Gail's self control not to just run and be done with it all.
Gail smiled at Gideon as he crawled out from under the bed and stretched. No matter what she was going through her trusted companion was always at her side and she was thankful for his continued support.
This break from her family was not a punishment, she needed this to regain control of herself to allow her to be what was required and if Lucas had any common sense, he would respect her decision and keep as far away from her as he could until her infuriation had passed. Gail needed to decide what she was going to do and if she had learned anything in the last few years, it was that her family had a way of clouding her judgement.
It was late in the morning and Lucas sat on his side porch as his Daughter lay back into his chest, watching the few brave birds that dared to enter their garden and dig for worms. He refused to acknowledge Gai's lack of presence, it would only make Caleb think that he had done something wrong and he was not going to let that happen.
Gail insisted on defying him and Lucas could not understand why. He had been close to coming to a deal with Karen, albeit that was not his initial intension; however, his Wife saw the need to offer her assistance instead when she knew that the woman needed to be silenced. Thankfully Caleb had interrupted Karen's acceptance of his Wife's help, ensuring that Gail was not tied into a deal that she could not honour. It appeared that his Wife still did not fully understand how things were run in his Town and he would not apologise for their family following their instincts.
Caleb came out of the house holding Luke's hand as he walked, both boys rubbing their eyes tiredly. Luke had stayed in Caleb's room last night while they awaited their Mothers return and it had been gone midnight when they had given up and fallen asleep. 'What time did she get in?' Caleb asked his Father, assuming his Mother had returned due to his Fathers calm exterior.
Gail Jr turned towards Caleb and shot him a look of warning, stopping the conversation in it's tracks.
'Did the paper come yet?' Caleb asked quickly, understanding from his Sisters warning that his Father's calmness was just for their benefit and changing the subject.
Before Lucas could answer, the Paper Boy threw the Trinity Guardian over the tall wall and Rocky ran out from behind a tree to catch it. Lucas could not help but laugh as the dog that he had gifted his Wife fell over himself clumsily and bound towards them with the newspaper, clearly proud of not ripping it. Lucas leaned down and stroked Rocky with Gail Jr then handed the newspaper to Caleb, expecting his Wife to do her usual trick of delaying the article that she needed to write due to her conscience rearing it's head.
Caleb narrowed his eyes at his Father's lack of interest, then took the newspaper and sat down on the porch swing with Luke on his knee. He smiled when he saw the front page headline 'Hunt for missing tourist stretches to fourth day' and felt a surge of excitement flow through him.
Luke stroked his Mothers name on the page sadly, then forced a smile for Caleb when he sensed his excitement. He loved his Brother and did not want to reign on his parade; however, he hated what it was doing to his Mother and he was finding it hard to hide his sadness as he missed her.
'Behave, you don't even sleep in our room anymore anyway and Caleb entertained you enough through the night' Gail advised as she approached her family, surprising even herself at caving and coming to their side so soon.
Lucas could not contain his smug smile, sensing her overwhelming need to ensure that their children were alright regardless of how mad she was at them all. 'Sleep well Love?' he asked sarcastically, knowing her location instantly when she decided to go to her cabin in the woods last night.
'Probably as well as you did Soulmate. It was amazing waking up in a quiet room with the only truly trustworthy companion that I have though' Gail responded sweetly and smiled at his clear irritation at her comment.
'His car weren't found in the river by Johnson's bridge!' Caleb exclaimed to no-one in particular, so engrossed in the article that he did not notice Gail's return or Luke climb down from his knee to run to her.
Gail smiled at the recollection of the tip she had received yesterday evening about Stuarts car being located away from her Grandfathers old property, happy that one of her orders was adhered to even though she had no idea who took on the task. 'Of course it was, a fisherman called in a tip when he saw something gleaming in the water and Floyd is all over it' Gail responded, her smile growing wider as she picked Luke up and spun him around in the air playfully.
Lucas narrowed his eyes at her for a moment, ignoring Luke when he squealed happily as he spun in the air. 'A car in the river indicates foul play Darlin', Floyd's report says the man left after he caught his Wife cheatin'' he advised disapprovingly, confused by her method.
'The man caught his Wife laughing with a trustworthy Doctor who already has a girlfriend. If the rule is that a spouse has to run anytime their other half gets close to the opposite sex, I wouldn't have come home after you so openly brushed up against the missing guys Wife yesterday' Gail responded bluntly, reminding him of his own inappropriate public display.
'It seems the missin' guys Wife is drawn to any man but her Husband, kind of like you strollin' hand in hand with your untrustworthy friend yesterday' Lucas countered, reminding her that he had eyes everywhere including the properties owned by her.
Gail inhaled deeply at the comment and forced a smile for Luke, not realising that Lucas was aware of how close she was with Joshua yesterday. 'I doubt my friend has the equipment to please me in his dead state' she said coolly, trying to keep her composure.
'Give me a day not havin' to concern myself with your judgement and Karen will be described in that exact same way Love' Lucas advised, standing up and approaching her, ignoring his Daughter trying to get his attention to distract him from his anger.
Gail walked up the porch steps to meet him, holding Luke securely against her chest and stared deep into his eyes. 'As if you need my permission to do anything, you're Lucas Buck and you couldn't give a damn about my feelings on anything that you or our family do' she accused, feeling her rage that she had been pushing down fly to her surface.
Lucas saw the fury in her eyes and smiled amused. Her attempt to appear calm was becoming all the more difficult as the seconds passed and he did not want her losing control in front of the children, no matter how much he craved this side of her; therefore, he grabbed her chin in his hand and kissed her forcefully, knowing that she would not challenge his act of affection in front of their children.
Gail was taken aback by the quick action and cursed herself when her body relaxed into his kiss, savouring the taste of his tongue in her mouth. She had only come here to check on the children and she had planned to leave quickly to regain her composure over the whole situation; however, as soon as he kissed her, her deep rooted desire for him overtook her anger and she wanted him.
Lucas released her for a moment, to gage her reaction at his forceful action and smiled when he saw that she wanted him as much as he wanted her. 'Alright kids, you be good for your Brother while the adults go hash this out once and for all' he advised, taking a reluctant Luke from Gail's arms and placing both of the children next to Caleb on the porch swing.
'Hang on, I'm not doing any such thing right now. I have to go!' Gail tried to protest, sensing the mischief radiating off of him and wanting desperately to hold on to her control.
Lucas grabbed her arm gently before she could leave, then winked at Caleb when he finally looked up from the article and dragged Gail into the house.
'Momma?' Luke called, reaching for her before she disappeared into the house abruptly.
Caleb stared down at his siblings, then rolled his eyes at his parents behaviour as they had abandoned him with the younger children once again. 'Come on, you ain't gettin' anywhere near them when they're in that mood, so I'll read you a story with just enough detail to satisfy the gossipin' biddies of our Town' he smiled, ignoring his Sisters unimpressed huff and began reading the article out loud.
-The End-