Lucas felt the bright sunlight from a crack in the curtains resting on his face, signalling that he had made it through to morning without a more severe reaction from his Wife. Gail had not been impressed by his announcement at the meal and had managed to keep her anger bottled up until they returned to their territory; however, when they were squared away behind their bedroom door, her control faltered and she could not keep her rage down any longer.
Lucas glanced at his Wife, who appeared to be sleeping peacefully beside him and carefully manoeuvred himself to enable him to swing his legs over the side of the bed, then rested his feet on the floor quietly so not to disturb her.
Gail had been attempting to sleep for the better part of four hours, her mind was plagued with unruly thoughts and she had not managed to rest at all. When she felt Lucas wake, she waited for a few moments expecting him to entangle himself further in her; however, she was surprised by his attempt at a discreet departure and rolled over slowly to scold him. Gail let out a small gasp when she saw the bruises and nail marks on his back from her rough behaviour last night, then sat up to inspect the damage that she had caused.
Lucas smiled when he heard her gasp and felt her soft hands trail down his back in concern. After how active they had been into the early hours of the morning, he had hoped that she would be able to rest and had not wanted to disturb her. Now that she was up, his mind wandered to their previous nights fun and he felt himself become excited. 'Don't worry Love, your punishment wasn't entirely unenjoyable and you didn't avoid the battle scars yourself' he whispered over his shoulder at her and reached back to pull down the sheet that was covering her body, then trailed his fingers carefully over the bite marks covering her breasts and ribs.
Gail glanced down at her own wounds and let out a small laugh, remembering Lucas' retaliation to her punishment. She had embraced her darkness within their intimate exchange and had not realised that they had played this hard. 'The difference is you deserve everything you got...How could you throw me to the wolves like that?' she asked frankly, still in disbelief of what he had roped her into.
'Technically it was Billy-boy who volunteered your services and the other members agreed. Besides, it's only fair given that you step up considerin' it was you who took Jack from his important position' Lucas responded casually, pushing her back down on the bed and kissing her wounds tenderly.
'The important position of sitting on his ass and judging people...It was you who arranged for Mark's position to become vacant, remind me why I'm cleaning up that mess too?' Gail asked moodily, hating his casual demeanour.
Lucas pulled himself up and rested on her, parting her legs slowly with his knees. 'Well, there are still some busybodies out there who you work with and I've got my hands tied with Caleb's recent activities...You really want some Reporters diggin' into the specifics of who last visited Mark before his tragic death? Why not give them somethin' else to talk about, like a promising young Reporter being promoted to her dream job' he replied sarcastically and kissed the tip of her nose softly.
Gail was not impressed with his controlling tactics, or his tender way of attempting to distract her from her anger at the situation. She hated being drawn in to matters that would affect the Town, especially when the stuck up overprivileged members of their society contributed to the decision and she had no desire to spend any time with that group whatsoever. The fact that the decision had already been made for her caused her rage to stir and she felt it boiling inside of her.
Gail had done too much to her family recently that she could not allow herself to lost control again, it was not fair on the children; however, she was not willing to take this insult lying down without consequences for the guilty parties. As Lucas ran his hands over her body, disregarding her obvious fury, another idea crossed her mind which would be the answer to one of her uncompleted tasks and she smiled in amusement. 'This is not OK Lucas, but I'll play ball...only if you provide something worth my while to persuade me to that is' she smirked, her smile growing wider when Lucas' hands stopped roaming at the comment.
Lucas stared down at her curiously for a moment, then shook his head in mock disapproval when she kept her thoughts guarded. 'Is my undivided attention suddenly not good enough for you Mrs Buck?' he asked, feigning hurt.
'Oh I require much more than that if you want me to add yet another chore to my list Master Buck, but you're smart, you'll figure it out...and if you don't, you can kiss my cooperation in this matter goodbye' Gail smiled and manoeuvred herself on top of him, then scraped her nails teasingly down his chest and placed his hard manhood inside of her.
Lucas regarded her suspiciously, sensing that what she required was not going to be easily obtained; however, the feeling of being inside her and the seductive look that she was giving him was much more pressing than whatever inconvenience he would undoubtedly experience later, and he gripped her behind tight to show that his attention was completely on her.
Caleb sat in the front passenger side of the blood red Mustang, tapping his fingers on the dashboard anxiously. Gail had insisted on driving him today, ignoring his protests and this was the first proper time that he had been alone with her since her return. Caleb had been enjoying his time with his Father, who did not appear to care whether he went to School or not; therefore, his Step Mother's insistence on his return to class was an inconvenience and he just wanted to patrol Trinity with his Father.
When the turning for the Elementary School past by on his right and his Step Mother continued driving, Caleb tensed and glanced towards her cautiously. 'We ain't goin' to School?' he asked concerned, watching her carefully.
'That we ain't' Gail responded in her best southern drawl, attempting to sound like her Husband.
Caleb let out a small laugh at her impression and relaxed slightly, not remembering the last time he had some relaxed fun with Gail. 'I thought you wanted me to lear-' he started, then spotted the large white house where he had been the previous day with his Father and could not take his eyes off of it.
Gail sensed his attention shift from her and glanced at the house that currently belonged to Doctor Charlton, then smiled mischievously. 'You'll learn the right way and I'm going to make sure of it' she advised, turning her attention back to the road.
'You're annoyed about Mrs Gardiner' Caleb said quietly, expecting her judgement to be fierce.
'I'm more annoyed at your Father's insistence on dragging you into our affairs, or did you think I wouldn't find out about your little trip to my Grandfathers old property yesterday?' she asked knowingly, still watching the road and her demeanour remaining calm.
Caleb tensed again in his seat, unsure why his Father would promise him not to tell her about their visit but then tell her anyway.
'He didn't tell me about your involvement and your Father's paying for that right now, don't you worry your cute little head about it' Gail smirked, amused as she sensed her Husbands current discomfort radiating off of him.
Caleb noticed that Gail had turned onto the long stretch of road which led to Johnson's Bridge and turned towards her fully. 'Are you mad at me for helpin' my Daddy?' he asked, thoroughly confused as to what this was.
Gail let out a small laugh and shook her head at his question. 'Your Daddy demands a show of loyalty on a regular basis, I'm used to that myself, I just want your honesty...It's been a tough few weeks, for you more than the others. I'm not oblivious to what you had to deal with and we will hash that out sooner rather than later, but for now I need your assistance and I hoped that you would be as willing to help me as you are your Father' she explained, not having the time or patience to deal with what her dark half had put Caleb through right now.
Caleb thought for a moment, remaining silent in his seat. This was the first time Gail had acknowledged the things that had been thrown at him when she was not herself and like her, he was not ready to address those things right now. 'You're always there for me when I need it, of course I'm happy to be there for you' he responded finally, not used to her asking for help and more than willing to be of assistance.
Gail smiled at his instinct to help her and shook her head in judgement of her own actions. 'Don't be happy just yet, you may not like what I'm going to ask of you' she sighed, unsure of whether it was the right decision to get Caleb involved in this; however, choosing to trust her instincts and continue on as planned.
Lucas leaned casually against the door in Doctor Charlton's office, watching impatiently as the man paced around as though he had an air of importance surrounding him. Doctor Charlton was one of the older members of his group and he knew how to keep secrets, making him a good man to have close; however, his feelings of self importance always did irritate Lucas and his current stance was not one that Lucas was willing to accept.
'I knew she'd find a way to twist this, women like that always do...You'd think she'd just be grateful for the promotion!' Doctor Charlton spat out venomously, unhappy with this current unexpected visit.
Lucas let out a long sigh and shook his head in irritation. Gail had not taken well to the disrespect that Jack had shown, even when she was not present at the time to witness it and Lucas did not need another so called suicide on his hands. 'Firstly, that woman is brilliant and you know that her reputation alone in this Town is paramount to the integrity of Trinity. Secondly, she is my Wife and you'd take care to remember your place when talkin' about her' he warned coolly, not allowing his irritation to impact his demeanour.
Doctor Charlton saw the dark look in Lucas' eyes and felt a sharp tightness in his throat. Fear began to sweep through him as his oxygen was cut short and he began to gasp for air. After a minute of intense discomfort, the pressure released and Doctor Charlton held his throat protectively, not taking his eyes off of Lucas. 'I...umm...I didn't mean anythin' Lucas. It's just...well...it's my home! I can't just-'
'Give it back to it's rightful heir?' Lucas interrupted bluntly, growing tired of the mans snivelling and turned around to open the door, not waiting for a response.
'Lucas wait! This isn't right!' Doctor Charlton snapped desperately, hoping the man would listen to reason.
'Neither is your affair with that underage babysitter of your grandchildren, but alas life ain't fair' Lucas responded coldly and shot Doctor Charlton a look of warning when he tried to respond, then headed out of the Hospital and back to his rounds.
Caleb stood with his back against a large tree and stared cautiously into the Trinity River. Gail was right, he did not like being here especially without his Father, he always felt like he was intruding on a private place when he was in this area and he hated the eyes that he felt watching him.
Gail glanced over her shoulder when she sensed Caleb's caution and let out a small laugh. 'You torture a man in the Junkyard, set an office on fire causing the occupant to dive out of a window to his death and kill an old woman, yet you're scared to come closer to this water? she asked in belief, then shook her head at his silence.
Caleb's caution was fine, it was actually very smart considering which part of the Trinity River that they were currently at. If Gail's darkness did not trust Caleb, there was no chance Rosemary would and that was what Gail was counting on right now.
As if to confirm her presumption, there was a disturbance in the water and Gail sensed Rosemary moving towards them, unimpressed at the intrusion in her sacred place. Gail did not want to be here either, Rosemary deserved peace after what she had gone through in life; however, Gail had given her word to Joshua and one thing that she was not was untrustworthy, at least to the people she allowed close.
'Gail?' Caleb called quietly, seeing the disturbance in the water moving closer to him and sensing the anger beneath it.
'Hold strong and remember what I told you' Gail said reassuringly and kept her focus on the water.
Caleb watched as the water parted and a pale white figure emerged, her long dark brown hair draped over her face and her head held down. 'Gail?' Caleb called more urgently now, pushing his back further into the tree as the figure stepped out of the water fully and onto the riverbank.
Gail inhaled deeply, forcing herself to remain still and allowing Rosemary to sense his fear. Her past self had a way of sniffing out fear, just like her Husband and like Lucas, Rosemary was likely to pounce should weakness present itself. 'Deep breaths Son, trust me' she responded calmly and took a discreet step towards the water.
Caleb was scared and he dug his nails into the bark of the tree so tight that his fingers began to bleed. When he heard Gail uncharacteristically refer to him as her Son out loud, he felt a strong reassurance flow through him and he took in a deep breath, in an attempt to hold strong like she had instructed.
Rosemary disregarded her kin, sensing no threat from her and focussed on the young boy before her. His fear engulfed her causing her dark urges to stir and she was happy that her kin had finally brought him to her for punishment of his sins. Rosemary had wanted to get her hands on this one for so long and it appeared that her kin had come to her sensed regarding him.
Caleb saw the features on the pale face change and felt his darkness clawing to be released when he saw the wicked smile cross her lips, revealing sharp teeth ready to take a chunk out of him. 'Mom?' he pleaded in a whisper, his resolve beginning to waiver at the gruesome figure bounding towards him.
Gail knelt down and placed her hands into the cold river, closing her eyes and allowing the deep dark depths to flood her mind. When she sensed that Rosemary's focus was completely on Caleb, she opened her mind and found Rosemary's play toy buried deep in the centre of the river . She forced her darkness to rip off the cursed chains which were holding the tortured spirit in place, then stood up quickly at the sound of Caleb's plea and turned her full focus to him. 'Stop!' she ordered sternly, just as Rosemary began to reach out for Caleb.
Rosemary froze involuntarily at the sound of the order, her focus on the boy interrupted, then sensed her play thing was no longer in it's prison and sped towards her kin, gripping her shoulders tight in anger.
Gail wanted to shudder at the feel of the cold slimy hands that were gripping her shoulder; however, she stood tall. Her darkness had returned to her and she felt strong, finally choosing to be one with it rather than burying it deep. 'It had to be done...enough of this' she said calmly, feeling her darkness flowing through her veins and staring deep into Rosemary's cold dead eyes, hating the look of betrayal that she was giving her.
Rosemary stared back at her coldly, wanting to rip her apart limb by limb; however, their connection was too strong and deep down she loved this woman who had finally released her from her purgatory a few years earlier.
Gail saw a small bit of emotion cross over Rosemary's eyes and smiled sadly. Her past self did not deserve what she had endured and it saddened her to think of the loneliness that she must feel. 'Come home with me, it's cold down there' she pleaded, hating the thought of her Rosemary continuing to torture herself in the cold depths of the Trinity River.
Rosemary grinned maliciously at the plea, disregarding the genuine offer of help, then glanced over at the boy who stood silently watching them and took a step back towards him.
'Don't' Gail warned, sensing that Rosemary truly wanted to hurt her but was unable to so; therefore, was directing her anger at the closest thing to them.
Rosemary ignored the warning and took another step towards the boy, sensing how much her kin cared for him even after all that he had done to her and wanting to punish them both for this betrayal.
Gail grabbed Rosemary's arm tight and pulled her back towards her. 'Off limits, you understand?...he's mine' she whispered dominantly, not willing to allow Caleb to be harmed.
Rosemary stared deep into Gail's eyes for a moment, projecting all of her hatred into her, then turned away and ripped her arm free as she headed back into the depths of the river.
Gail watched as Rosemary disappeared, sensing her anger, then turned towards Caleb and shot him a look of relief before rushing towards him and hugging him affectionately, proud of his courage.
Lucas whistled casually to himself as he strolled up the long path which led to the large brightly lit Mansion, spinning a set of keys in his hands. He had expected to find his Wife at the back of their property, sensing her presence their a lot lately and when he had strolled through the woods at the back of his property, he had felt the hostile spirits all around him, unimpressed by his presence; however, they were too weak to make a move on him and Lucas had no remorse for what he had done to their resting place.
As he had made his way through the clearing and out into the open field which contained his families resting plot, Lucas had been amused at the newly planted gravestones, clearly replaced by his Wife. He had expected her to use her free time on more pressing things; however, he applauded her effort and knew that this would help the restless spirits which had been plaguing his Town recently to relax.
When he headed to their home, in search of his missing Love, the house was empty and all that was left was a note to direct him here. He could not help but smile at the large pumpkins that lit the way to the entrance of the Mansion and his smile grew wider when he sensed his youngest Son close by.
Lucas took a few steps forward, then stopped. He scratched his head in mock confusion and glanced to his left. 'Aww hell, I wonder where everyone is? I appear to have lost my family' he called sarcastically, trying not to smile when he heard Luke's loud giggles.
'Shush' Caleb scolded quietly from behind a small tree, then cursed out loud when Luke could not contain his excitement any longer and rushed towards his Father.
Lucas sensed Luke instantly and kept his back turned, comically jumping when his youngest Son yelled in an attempt to scare him. 'Now where did you come from?' he asked Luke amused, picking him up and lifting him high above his head when he spotted Luke's Superman costume.
'As if you didn't know' Caleb advised sarcastically, rolling his eyes at Luke's pitiful attempt to scare their Father and smiling when his Brother pointed proudly at the pumpkins that he had picked for this occasion.
Lucas glanced at Caleb and nodded his approval at Caleb's Skeleton costume. 'Face paint and all?' he asked, surprised that Caleb had entertained dressing up.
Caleb shrugged coolly and led Lucas to the entrance, smiling at Gail as he past her at the door.
'Well, well, what do we have here?' Lucas asked appreciatively, his eyes trailing down Gail's body as he took in the tight red corset and black fishnet stockings that she was wearing.
Gail smiled as she sensed his desire instantly and ran her hands teasingly down her short skirt, shifting slightly in her stilettos. 'You mean this old thing? It's nothing to concern yourself with Soulmate' she responded sweetly, moving closer to him and taking Luke from him carefully.
Lucas paced slowly around her, admiring her revealing costume and placed his hand under her skirt, then gently squeezed her behind. 'Oh it'll be a concern when I remove it with my teeth' he whispered in her ear playfully, ignoring Luke's presence and moving his hand to her sweet spot.
'Now, now Sheriff, there's a whole host of people in there who are just dying to meet your approval. It's wouldn't be fair to waste all your effort on little old me now would it?' She asked sarcastically, knowing that he would struggle to control himself in public while she was dressed like this.
Lucas let out a small laugh and shook his head in frustration. 'If I required a big fuss, I would've mentioned my birthday Love' he advised, unimpressed that he could not play his way.
'But alas, you are the almighty Lucas Buck and the most beloved man in Trinity...you don't get to hide away any more than I do' Gail responded sweetly, then placed Luke down and pushed him towards the entrance, signalling for him to follow Caleb to give them some privacy.
'This isn't what I wanted Gail' Lucas said sternly, not appreciating her disregard for his desire.
'Did you get what I wanted?' Gail asked flatly, ignoring his mood.
Lucas inhaled deeply in an attempt to keep his composure, then took hold of her hand and placed the set of keys in her palm. 'Looks like all properties have been returned to their rightful owner' he advised, watching her closely.
'And the deed?' Gail asked calmly, trying to hide her excitement.
'All in your name, tucked away securely in our Study just waitin' for you to claim' Lucas responded, sensing her excitement no matter how hard she was trying to remain calm.
Gail nodded appreciatively, then inhaled deeply and ran her hand through his hair, allowing him to wrap his arms around her and pull her close. 'Well, now that that's settled, what's say we visit Doctor Charlton's room to inspect the Master Bedroom? I don't know about you but the thought of tarnishing that idiot's bed causes all sorts of pleasurable feelings to flood through me' she smiled, nipping at Lucas' lips playfully.
Lucas lifted her up into his arms, then discreetly moved through the entrance before anyone saw them and carried her up the stairs. 'You took the thoughts right out of my mind Love' he whispered in her ear, then kissed her passionately.
'Happy Birthday Papa Bear' Gail smiled lovingly and allowed him to carry her to the Master Bedroom, to have some fun before they both had to perform for their townspeople.
-The End-