Havermouth, Five Years BeforeLillian was nothing if not enthusiastic in her role as the Triquetra’s pretend girlfriend, laughing and flirting, and making out with Heath and Cameron whilst Diana sulked to Cameron’s other side. Cameron suspected that Lillian was not as invested into the relationship with Diana as Diana was with Lillian, as Lillian seemed determined to take advantage of the pretend relationship with the Triquetra and make it permanent.That was never going to happen.It had, however, succeeded in getting Abigail off of the Triquetra’s back. There had been a reduction in social functions since the Triquetra had begun courting Lillian, taking her and Diana to the movies, to lunch, and to all the parties that the seniors attended in the town. Having Diana along offered them some protection, as well, as Cameron was sure that Diana wouldn’t lie for Lillian and say that the Triquetra had done anything that would get Harry Ridgeway breathing down their necks. Diana did not, af
Havermouth, Present TimeThey entered through the front door and Heath paused by the hall stand to take everyone’s jackets and the umbrellas as they entered. There was a flurry of activity as the items transferred from Aislen’s house to the river house were redistributed.“What do I do with… this?” Cameron regarding the wine box that he held in confusion.“Shove it into a cupboard,” Aislen suggested. “Somewhere out of the way. I suspect it will be a few days until we can get to Rideten, so they’ll have to wait.” The contents of the box were still, so she hoped that the spell trap had worked, and they remained intact.“Should we feed them?” He wondered his expression perplexed.“They’re not pets, Cam,” she laughed, her heart melting. “They’re dead rats and pieces of leaf animated by a magic spell. They don’t have stomachs.” It was adorable that he had wondered, and added to her overall feeling of rightness, standing in the foyer of the beautiful house surrounded by her men.This could
Havermouth, Five Years in the Past“We just need to f-k her, right?” Cameron blew out smoke, smothering a cough. Rhett watched him with interest, feeling like a scientist observing a new breed of werewolf male, something that looked familiar, but behaved in an entirely new way. “There’s no way that she’s… She’s not special,” he refused to use the other word, a muscle twisting in the corner of his jaw under the freckle that Rhett loved most of all, it’s circle darker than its neighbor’s and its form more uniformly round.The freckle was special because it was set precisely at the point that Cameron most liked to be kissed, and by the time Rhett had nibbled his way from his lips to that freckle, Cameron would go limp and pliable, and agree to anything that Rhett wanted, no matter how depraved the request.“She’s not special,” Cameron repeated putting the emphasis on the second word. “She isn’t. She’s just… hard to get. But once we get her, it will get easier… won’t it?”Rhett moved his
Havermouth, Present Time“Little seductress come here,” Talen crooked his finger at her, and she crawled to the edge of the bed. He lifted her to standing so that for once she looked down on him and reached behind her to release her bra.“That’s better,” he smoothed his hand over her hair, before lowering her back down onto the mattress. “Such beauty should not be hidden behind cloth.”She was rendered speechless, her breath catching in her throat, enthralled by the tenderness in his eyes. She reached up and touched his lips, their softness warmed by his breath. She pressed her fingertips to her own lips, transferring the kiss.“Ah, little demon,” he murmured as he lay himself at her side. “I do not possess the words to tell you what you do to me.”“Talen,” she reached for him, and he covered her with his body, the warmth of his skin against hers causing her to moan in appreciation. “Oh, god, I love to feel you on me.”“How about in you?” He kissed his way across her cheek until their
Havermouth, Five Years BeforeThe Triquetra decided to skip the pack hunt for the full moon, despite pressure to go. The Triquetra’s monthly attendance was seen as a demonstration of loyalty to the pack which helped contain concerns about the upcoming disaster that their existence heralded, and so, ever since their introduction as a pack and the Triquetra, Heath had ensured that they went.They had solid reasons for skipping the hunt this full moon, Heath told himself. None of them wanted to spend time socializing with the she-wolves that Abigail kept thrusting under their noses, encouraging them to take a female mate and begin breeding. And none of them wanted to be held under the spotlight of the pack, as attending the hunt would mean, because things were wrong… disturbingly wrong with their Triquetra.One main reason for their absence was that Rhett had obstinately set himself against Phillip Salem, who was a solid devotee of Abigail’s, and Rhett had point blank refused to go becau
Havermouth, Present TimeThe snug’s door was partially open, spilling out the murmur of the Triquetra’s voices and the dancing light of a wood fire. Talen placed his palm on the wood pressing it inwards to make way for her to proceed him.The room was a beautiful as every other room in the house, but she could see that Rhett had influenced the design.An internal room, there were no windows to the outside, and the walls around the fireplace and the opposite door into the hallway had been built in with floor to ceiling bookshelves in lacquered black, the bottom cupboard doors detailed with gold and jewel toned hand-painted designs of exotic birds and flowers.The couches arranged before the fireplace were in an antique style, the woodwork elaborately tooled, painted black and picked out in gold paint, and they had been reupholstered in velvet, each arm chair a different jewel tone, and the three-person couch in a deep red.A gilt-framed mirror was mounted above the fireplace and reflec
Havermouth, Five Years BeforeThe school had decided to volunteer their senior students at a local aged care center. It was intended to teach the teenagers compassion and giving to their community and provide the oldies with some entertainment.It was precisely the sort of thing that his dad and mum encouraged Heath to do throughout his childhood, and he hated it, because he knew from experience that it was pretend, image-based charity. His parents always made sure that they were photographed in such acts, and his father spent as much time helping the oldies to write him cheques as he did in reading from the Bible - cheques that Heath knew ended up in Charlie’s offshore account, rather than the church’s coffers or any charity’s account.The Triquetra headed to the back of the bus, to the rear seats that were reserved, in an unspoken acknowledgement of social hierarchy, for them. Lillian, playing the role of girlfriend with renewed dedication in Diana’s absence, sat between him and Hea
Havermouth, Present TimeRhett caught her in his arms, but to her surprise he went down to his knees, carrying them both to the ground and wrapped himself over her, pinning her beneath him in a swamp of dark hair and long limbed, lean man. He pressed his face into the curve of her neck and shoulder and just lay there. She stroked her hands through his hair, thoroughly confused.She had expected anger and fight, as things had always been between them. He would yell at her about being thoughtless and she would accuse him of expecting more of her than he did other people, of setting unrealistic standards for her…He had robbed her of her preconceived idea of what hammering at his door would mean, and as a result she was disarmed.“You forgive me,” he said, his voice muffled. “You forgive me for the tattoos and the piercings.”“Rhett,” she stroked back his hair craning her chin to her chest seeking to see his face. “I’m sorry,” she fought back tears. She had known that it was there betwee
Havermouth, Present Time Talen and Aislen were quickly called to a stop as they approached the busy area directly in front of the town hall. The police and the firies were packing up, she noticed, frowning, and none of them looked happy about it. “We are encouraging civilians to stay in their residences and off the streets,” a stern voiced soldier told Aislen and Talen disapprovingly. “There are many hazards left after the storm, and our men need free access to clear the roads of debris and make repairs.” Aislen swallowed back the words that she wanted to say, and instead smiled sweetly. “We’re from Boyston’s coffee shop,” she lied showing him the box that she held. “Making a delivery. Cakes and slices that are going stale, to help fuel the forces here. They’re free,” she added with a bright smile. “See, that’s our coffee van, over there,” she nodded with her chin. “Oh,” he was non-plussed, looking over his shoulder at the van, and then back at the box that she held. “Let me look,”
Havermouth, Two Years Before“Aislen Carter graduated from Rideten School of Art with honors on the eleventh of the month, and vacated her school accommodation four days later,” the PI’s report stated blandly the words that sent icy shards of fear and horror through Heath’s soul.“Her vehicle was placed for sale at North Rideten Car Sales one week prior and sold on the fifteenth with deposits made into bank accounts that were, in turn, closed on the twentieth. We have seen this sort of behavior before, in victims of domestic violence, where the subject is escaping an abusive spouse through the help of an organization. It is our companies ethical position not to pursue such cases further.”“Sure,” Heath snarled at the email. “But you f-king charged me the full price.”He was tempted to throw the laptop against the wall in his frustration, but he gripped the table edge instead and blew out his breath, controlling the anger, turning the heat to ice, and focusing on the house around him t
Havermouth, Two Years Before The Rideten night club was overflowing with patrons, and Heath had to fight for the standing table where he could look out across the dance floor and keep an eye on Rhett, who was having a fantastic time with his co-workers celebrating the end of his apprenticeship and the purchase of his own shop in Havermouth. It was the happiest that Heath had seen him in a long time, and that thought pained him, but did not surprise him. The Triquetra pretended well, most of the time, however the waiting was slowly tearing them apart. They were spending less time together at the river house, and it often felt more like they were house mates than mates, as they rarely even shared a meal let alone a bed. Cameron was spending more and more time on the land now that he had graduated university, Rhett had thrown himself into getting as much experience as he could before starting his own shop, and Heath was working part time at the law firm he had purchased in Havermouth i
Havermouth, Five Years BeforeThe little Redbank tattoo parlour that had agreed to take him as an apprentice had many things that Rhett liked, and many that he didn’t. The shop was tiny, with a staircase to the second level which was so steep that it kicked in Rhett’s phobia about heights, and, whilst the workstations were brightly lit for the purpose of the artists, everywhere else was shadowy and pokey. The little kitchen could only fit one person at a time, and the toilet was so narrow that cleaning it (which was one of Rhett’s duties as an apprentice) was a bit like performing yoga in a box.Mostly he divided his time between manning the reception desk, doing clean-up of the workstations, and making drinks for the artists and customers, but on the slow days, the artists would take turns working with his sketches, and he would sit with his pants around his ankles on one of the chairs and practise on himself, upside down.If he produced a decent piece, one of the other artists, Matt
Havermouth, Five Years BeforeHeath left the final class of the year feeling as if a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. Just the exams left to do, and high school would be a thing of the past. He paused for a moment, his eyes adjusting from the artificial light of the classroom and his body to movement after two intense hours of mental activity as the teacher had taken the opportunity to run them through a practice exam.Cameron’s bright hair caught the sunlight over the heads of other students moving out into freedom. “Hey!” Cameron grinned as he headed over. “It’s done! We are free!”“Until exams,” Heath corrected. “And, then the pre-reading for university.”“Ugh,” Cameron’s groan of disgust was throaty. “Let me have at least today to enjoy the end of classes without filling my head up with more useless knowledge.”Heath slung his arm around Cameron’s shoulders. “Will you miss school?”“Nope,” Cameron leaned into Heath. “You?”“Nope,” Heath agreed. He gave Cameron’s shoulders
Havermouth, Five Years BeforeCameron’s dreams were filled with chasing Aislen through the fields. He could see her just ahead of him, her dark hair bouncing with the motion of her run, the weeds catching on the skirt of her dress and dragging long scratches along her legs that she didn’t seem to notice. “Aislen!” He cried out. “Slow down!”He woke with a start to the echoes of his own voice. It wasn’t yet midnight and he was alone in bed. He pressed his face into the pillows, breathing in, seeking the scent of Rhett and Heath from the fabric, but it had been too long since they’d slept there, and the scent had faded beneath his own.He couldn’t remember ever having fought with either of them. It left him feeling off-balance, and unwell. He’d thrown himself into working the farm with his dad, trying to distract himself from the anguish of it. Jules hadn’t questioned why Cameron wasn’t going to school, studying, or spending time with the other two members of the Triquetra, although Cam
Havermouth, Five Years Prior“I can’t go home - things are too bad with dad and he seems to be hanging around more than ever, and things are f-ked up with Aislen at home too, so I was thinking that Aislen and I could stay at the river house for a few days until we all find somewhere to rent in Havermouth. If we all go in to Aislen’s we can get her packed and out of there before her parents can do anything about it, right?” Rhett suggested, twisting in his seat to look from Heath to Cameron.“Sure,” Cameron leaned forward and gripped the front seats. “We can all stay at the river house. It will be fun.”“Exams next week,” Heath said softly, his heart sinking. “We should study more. But, sure, a few days at the river house won’t hurt. We can study during the daytime whilst there’s light.” What day would they take Aislen away, he wondered. Did she know that she was going to Rideten? Had that been why her suitcases had been under the bed?“Speak for yourself,” Rhett snorted. “I’m not f-ki
Havermouth, Five Years BeforeAs dawn pinked the sky, Cameron scuffed the toe of his shoe through the dust that was all that remained of the grass where cows had been killed. Now that he knew what caused these patches, whenever he was by the river, his eyes were peeled for them, and he was surprised by how many there were – patches where nothing seemed to grow, which he’d always accepted as just being randomly barren spots because he’d grown up with their occurrence.“Don’t play in the dust,” Jules reprimanded as he returned to the Ute.“Why?” Cameron wondered. “It’s just dirt, dad.”“It’s still dead. I don’t trust it until it grows green again.”It made sense that Jules would think that way, Cameron thought stepping away from the patch. Jules' relationship to the land was other level, as Jules’ father and grandfather had been before him. Cameron loved the farm. He loved and respected the land, the river house, and the work. He couldn’t imagine doing anything else with his life, but h
Havermouth, Five Years BeforeHeath fed some twigs into the ashes of the firepit knowing that below the layer of ash, there was enough heat to get the fire going again. They’d be grateful in the morning when they went to make coffee and breakfast if there were still hot coals, so he’d get the fire going again whilst Rhett got his drunk on, and then the three of them would go to bed, f-k it out, and get some sleep, he decided.Rhett winced his way through a swig of whiskey, drinking to the side of his mouth away from the piercing and then deliberately swishing the whiskey over the wound, using it as a disinfectant, the action betraying how much it was paining him and his concern over the damage. He met Heath’s eye and gave a little rueful shrug – there wasn’t much that he could do other than hope that it healed alright.Heath took the whiskey bottle from him and took a swig before returning it and leaning over to throw some logs onto the firepit as the kindling leapt into flame. “I got