(AN) Hello and welcome to the next chapter of Revenge; hope you all enjoy.
In the last chapter, David and Amy agreed to the idea of returning to Wakely for Rose and Scott's wedding. In this chapter, we see the family arriving in Wakely, get introduced to some new characters, four of which are part of the villain group.
Disclaimer: I don't own Straw Dogs; all characters and locations are owned by their respective owners.
Chapter Two
Two months later, the family arrived in Wakely. David, Amy, Karen, Brian and Rose took in their surroundings. The village had a modern day look to it, but David and Amy still recognised some of the buildings and they could still see the church.
"Welcome to Wakely," said Scott gleefully, "It's not much, but it's home."
"I think it's quite nice." remarked Rose.
"Hasn't changed much, has it." remarked Amy.
"Definitely more modern looking." pointed out David.
"Right, my family's waiting to meet us at the Wakely Arms." said Scott.
The group entered the Wakely Arms, which also looked more modern with a Pincheco machine in the corner. Scott waved over to a group of people sitting at a table. There was a tall, middle-aged man with short, black hair, a short, middle-aged woman with dark brown hair, a young man with short, light-brown hair and a young man with messy, black hair.
"Scott, you're here!" cried the woman in delight as she and the others got up and walked over to them.
"Hey, Mum, Dad," replied Scott as he hugged the middle-aged woman and man before turning to the others, "Everybody, these are my parents, Gina and Luke," he said before indicating to the two younger people, "And these are my sibblings: Rachel and Johnny. Guys, this is my fiancé Rose and her family."
"It's very nice to meet you." said Gina as she shook Rose's hand.
"Great to finally meet you as well," said Rose happily before indicating to her family, "These are my parents: Karen and Brian Cooper and my grandparents: David and Amy Sumner."
After everybody had finished greeting each other, they all sat down at a table. Linda Ware, the landlady, came over and delivered their drinks.
"Thanks, Linda." said Luke.
"You're welcome." replied Linda before walking away.
"So, what do you all do for a living?" asked Luke to the rest of the Sumner-Coopers."
"Well, I'm a science teacher," informed Karen, "Brian's a TV script writer."
"I'm an actress," explained Rose, "Not famous or anything; mostly just TV roles."
"I'm a therapist for people who've been through traumatic experiences," explained Amy, "I used to just be a housewife, but some things in life inspired me to want to help others."
"And I was a maths professor up at the university in Philadelphia." said David.
"That sounds fascinating," remarked Gina, "Well, me and Luke are both vets."
"Wonderful," remarked Rose, "So, Scott says that you've been helping with the wedding arrangements." said Rose.
"Yes, and you'll be pleased to know that everything's going great," informed Scott's dad, "We've actually got an appointment at the church after we've finished here. The reverend is eager to meet you, David and Amy."
"Really!" cried the retired maths professor in surprise, "Tell me, is Barney Hood still working at the church?"
"Oh no, poor Barney passed away nearly ten years ago," lamented Luke, "His wife is now the reverend."
"Oh," replied David, "Well, it's nice to know that the family legacy lives on."
"So, did you live here at some point?" asked Gina to the elderly couple.
"This was my childhood home," answered Amy, "Me and David briefly stayed up at Trencher's Farm in the early 70s."
"Trencher's Farm?" asked Luke in shock, "Forgive me for asking, but you weren't involved in what's known as the siege of Trencher's Farm, were you?"
"Yes, we were," replied Amy darkly, "We were the homeowners that those villagers were trying to kill."
"Oh my!" exclaimed Gina in shock, "Well, we won't ask for any details; I'm sure that's an event you've been trying to forget."
"Indeed." remarked David.
After they had finished, the group headed over to the church. Upon entering the main area, the group saw an elderly woman with long grey hair approaching them. "David and Amy Sumner, as I live and breath!" the woman cried in delight before sharing a hug with the elderly couple.
"Hello, Louise," greeted David happily, "Hey, erm, sorry to hear about Barney."
"Oh, thank you," replied Louise, "He lived a good life."
Louise then turned towards Karen and Brian. "And you must be Karen and Brian Cooper. Karen, you remind me so much of your mother."
"Thank you," replied Karen, "So, will you be the one doing the ceremony?"
"I will indeed," replied Louise cheerfully before turning to Rose and Scott, "I've been the reverend at this church for a few years now and you'll be pleased to know, Scott, that me and your parents have been working to make this wedding spectacular."
"That's good to hear." replied Scott.
"So, Reverend, you knew Mom and Dad when they lived here?" asked Karen curiously.
"Please, call me Louise," replied the elderly woman, "Yes, I remembered them quite well. Me, my husband and the local magistrate at the time, John Scott, gave them a nice welcome to the village, though, I don't think your dad and my husband got off to the best start."
"I admit, I may have gotten a bit tipsy." explained David, blushing slightly.
"A bit?" chuckled Amy before smirking at her husband, "Major Scott had to escort you back to the farmhouse because you walked into the pub half naked, and then not long afterwards, you told Barney that there was no other kingdom with more blood spilt than the kingdom of Christ."
"Was Major Scott the same magistrate that was killed by that drunk villager?" asked Rose curiously.
"Yes, he was," lamented the reverend sadly, "John wasn't the most reliable at times, but he was one of the kindest people I'd ever known."
"Amen to that." muttered David darkly.
"You know, I've still got an old photo of you two lying around somewhere," said Louise, "We here at the church like to keep a photo album of all the residents who've lived here over the years, since everybody knows each other."
Louise then exited the room. After a few minutes, she returned with a photo album before slowly flicking through it. After a minute, she stopped, gently pulled out a photo and handed it to Karen. Karen looked at the photo. It was old and a bit faded, but she could still see her parents when they were much younger, standing in front of a farmhouse and smiling at the camera. "Wow, Dad, you looked like a Beatle impersonator with glasses." she remarked.
"Hey, that was the style back then." replied the elderly man defensively, but smirking at the same time.
Karen then looked in the background and noticed four men working on the roof of the garage. "Hey, who were they?" she asked curiously.
David took the photo and looked at the four men. "Charlie Venner, Norman Scutt, Chris Cawsey and Bobby Hedden," he answered in a serious manner, "I hired them to fix the garage roof, but they spent more time bullying me and mucking about than actually working. Charlie, Scutt and Chris were three of the men who tried to kill me, your mom and Henry Niles."
Karen noted that three of the men seemed to be staring at her mom, which made her skin crawl. Amy then looked at the photo and looked at Charlie's face. The blonde seemed to freeze up as she thought back to that awful day when Charlie and Scutt forced themselves on her.
"Don't tease me, Amy, please."
"NO! NO!"
"Mom, Mom, are you alright?" asked Karen in concern as she tapped Amy on the shoulder.
"Huh," grunted Amy as she suddenly snapped back to reality, "Yes, I'm fine, dear, just getting caught up in … memories."
Karen wasn't convinced that her mom was telling the entire truth, but she decided to drop it for now.
Louise quickly took the photo and placed it back in the album, she then turned to the others. "So, will anybody else be coming to the wedding? It's important to know these things."
"Just my grandparents and a few of mine and Rose's close friends." informed Scott.
"Excellent!" exclaimed Louise happily.
Afterwards, the group exited the church.
"Uhhh, you lot get yourselves to the house: me and Amy just want to talk to Louise." said David.
"Okay." replied Karen.
As the group walked away, Karen took Brian aside. "Alright, I'm worried about those two," she whispered, indicating her parents, "Did you see the way my mom reacted to seeing those guys in that photo."
"Well to be fair, three of them did try to break in and murder her and your dad, and one of them tried to rape your mom during that," snarked Brian, "Seeing those faces probably triggered her."
"No, she would've just said," argued Karen, "I don't think they were being entirely honest about everything that happened and that's rich because my dad can't help but be honest."
"Well, if there is anything, I'm sure they'll tell us in their own time." assured Brian.
"Are you two coming!" hollered Rose.
"Coming!" called back Karen.
Meanwhile, David, Amy and Louise had found a quiet corner to talk.
"I'm sorry for showing that photo," apologised Louise, "I sense that you're still not fully over what happened back then?"
"I don't think we'll ever fully get over it." answered David.
"Do Karen and the others know about what happened?" asked Louise curiously.
"We told Karen, Brian, Rose and Scott a couple of months back," answered Amy, "Well, most of it … I never told them about Charlie, Scutt and Cawsey hitting on me … or about what Charlie and Scutt did to me?"
"I think you should tell them," suggested Louise, "I'm sure they'll understand. We are in a very different place compared to 52 years ago."
"I guess you're right." said David.
"So, I've heard Trencher's Farm is now condemned." said Amy.
"Yes; been that way for years," answered the elderly reverend, "Once word about what had happened spread, nobody was that keen on living there, so we've all just stayed away."
"You know, I wouldn't mind seeing the old place again," said the blonde before seeing the bewildered look on her husband's face, "I know that sounds strange, but it was my dad's and I'd like to see what's become of it."
"Hmmm, well, I guess it wouldn't hurt to have a quick look." replied her husband, who felt a bit unsure about going there.
"Well, you're braver than me." commented Louise.
As David and Amy parted ways with Louise, they were completley unaware that somebody had been watching them: Bobby Hedden. Bobby had managed to hear everything that was said, and so was aware that the Sumners were back and were heading to Trencher's Farm.
"I knew they'd be back!" hissed Bobby to himself, "It's time those two payed the price for their crimes!"
Bobby then began walking while he pulled out a mobile.
David booked a taxi. It soon arrived and took him and Amy up to Trencher's Farm.
The car stopped near the farmhouse and the couple hopped out.
"You sure you want out here?" asked the confused taxi driver.
"Yes, here's fine." replied Amy.
"Okay." replied the now bewildered taxi driver.
The taxi drove off and the couple began walking around the farmyard and observing the house. All the windows were boarded up, the walls were covered in cobwebs and there were tiles missing from the roof. The glasshouse was no longer there and the garage still had an unfinished roof.
"I guess there was no point in finishing it," chuckled David, "I sometimes wonder: could we have actually settled here if I hadn't hired those specific people to fix the roof and if I hadn't taken Henry back here."
"You couldn't have known any of that was going to happen; none of us could," assured Amy gently, "And Charlie was obsessed with me; he could've assaulted me anywhere; didn't have to be the house."
"I guess you're right," replied David, "I just wish that-
David suddenly stopped. The couple's ears pricked up as they heard the sound of an approaching car.
"Did you book the taxi back already?" questioned David curiously.
"No," replied the blonde nervously, "Nobody else apart from Louise knew we were coming up here."
The couple watched as a large, black sports car came rolling into the yard. A group of five people hopped out of the car: three male, two female. One of the women was clearly younger than the rest of the group and had long, brown hair. The others had grey hair. Even though he was much older, David and Amy instantly recognised Bobby as one of the men.
"Well, well, well, returning to the scene of the crime." remarked Bobby darkly.
(AN) And that's it for this chapter of Revenge; hope you enjoyed.
In the next chapter, we'll get a proper introduction to the four other villains and see how they tie in with Bobby's revenge.
Until then, this is TimeLordMaster108 signing out.