Havermouth, Five Years BeforeRhett knew that there was trouble the moment that he entered the kitchen. Phillip calmly ate his toast between sips of black coffee, his phone on the marble countertop, scrolling through emails, however Rhett’s mum caught his eye, her expression strained, and she gave a slight shake of her head. She was later leaving than her usual routine, which was warning in itself. She had stayed to mitigate Phillip’s anger.“Rhett,” Phillip lifted his eyes from the phone, his expression cool and calm.“I’m late,” Rhett said edging around the counter towards the door.“Be late. I want to talk to you before I leave.”“Phillip,” Lora murmured.Phillip cast her an irritated look. “Go to work, Lora.” She swallowed, wavering between obeying her mate and alpha, and protecting her son from his anger. A muscle worked in the corner of Phillip’s jaw. “Go on.”Lora cast Rhett a desperate look over her shoulder as she picked up her bag and went to the door. “Phillip,” she tried a
Havermouth, Five Years BeforeCameron and Heath threaded their way through the crowded corridors. “I haven’t seen Rhett this morning,” Cameron said as they stepped out of the doors and began to make their way towards the hill. He tried to keep his tone light, but there was a tightness to his throat that echoed that which gripped his heart.Had Rhett picked up Aislen and skipped school? Had he taken her to the river house to f-k, without Cameron and Heath? The feeling reminded Cameron of that he’d had when Rhett and Heath were sneaking off to f-k after they’d both turned eighteen and hadn’t told him that they were mates. He felt left out, excluded, and jealous.At least this time, he wasn’t alone. Heath was right there with him.“No,” Heath was frowning. “I haven’t seen him.”“He wouldn’t have…” Cameron flicked his blond mate a look from under his eyelashes. “Picked her up and taken her to the river house without us, would he?” That stung extra hard because the river house was Cameron’
Havermouth, Present Time“That’s enough,” Heath snapped at the same time as Talen moved in one of those blurred motions too fast for Aislen’s sight, gently positioning her behind him and glowering down at Patience. Cameron’s chair hit the ground as he shot to his feet.“Holy shit!” Tyler exclaimed.“Heath is correct, that is enough,” Talen said his voice icy. Aislen placed her hands on his waist and smirked around him at the startled policewoman. Take that, she thought gleefully, she had a mountain of daddy-bear-vampire and three hot werewolves prepared to stand up for her, now.Patience’s eyes travelled from the grim-faced vampire, along the table of affronted werewolves, to her partner, Iris, whose hand rested on her weapon. “It is the truth,” she said looking back up at Talen. “Someone needed to lay it out for her.”“I will get my coat,” Heath announced, meeting Talen’s eyes and giving a slight nod of his head which Talen returned, a silent acknowledgement that Heath would break th
Havermount, Present TimeAislen closed her eyes. She wondered if he knew the trust that she gave him in doing so. Trust, and, if she was honest with herself, weakness. She couldn’t open herself to him whilst meeting his eyes. She knew that, in a way, he would understand. He used his hair for the same escape from eye contact when it was too much for him.In her mind she imagined that she was eighteen again, and they were back in those first moments in the river house… The original bedroom would have been in the same space, just about, she thought, upon reviewing the layout of the house. Yes. The window was more or less in the same place. The internal walls had been moved in order to make space for the bathroom and the walk-in robe, but… it was the same room, she realised with one of those brain-melting moments of re-orientation.“This is the original bedroom,” she said to him. His lips had grazed from lips to hairline, and he breathed in her scent there, taking his time both to absorb
Havermouth, Present TimeThey sat with their shoulders propped up companionably on the headboard, the sheets tangled around their legs, the sex-sweat drying on their skin, and sipped whiskey whilst they shared a joint. She sighed on the exhale and rested her head on his shoulder, perfectly content in the moment.“Heath would tell me off,” Rhett said as he took the joint. “He disapproves of the smoking, nicotine or otherwise, especially inside.” He said as he blew out the smoke, returning it to her.“Of course, he does,” she laughed. “Mr Responsible.”“Hmm,” he leaned his face into her hair to deliver his kiss to the curls. “Five years,” he said.“Five years?” She frowned in confusion and regarded the joint in her fingers in accusation for her slow comprehension, and then realization dawned. “Ah, Rhett, let’s just not,” she complained. “We are all mellow and relaxed after amazing sex… Plus, we agreed, it’s in the past…”“For five years I would draw you,” he said with determination (if
Havermouth, Five Years Before Cameron woke before dawn, and blearily blinked to clear his vision, wondering what had woken him. It was early still, too early for his normal morning chores. He rolled onto his back and saw Jules standing at the end of the bed. “What the f-k, dad?” Cameron shot up to sitting. Jules and Catherine never came into Cameron’s room now that he was eighteen, they respected his den. Thank the f-k that Heath or Rhett, or both, hadn’t crawled into his bed during the night as they sometimes did, he thought immediately. It was one thing to rock up down to the kitchen in the morning with his mates in tow, all fully dressed and showered, and quite another for his dad to discover them all in bed, buck naked and reeking of sex. “Sorry, Cam,” Jules said in his quiet way. “I need your help with something.” “Sure dad,” Cameron threw back the covers and slid out, idly scratching his flank as he searched the floor for his clothes with his foot. He scooped up he jeans and
Havermouth, Present TimeAislen took a rushed shower and stepped out to find Talen in the door of the bathroom holding her towel. He wrapped it around her. “Cameron told me. I will drive you into the town,” he said as he rubbed her dry.“You’re worried,” she observed, touching his cheek, still fascinated by its bareness.“I am concerned,” he corrected as he turned his attention to her hair, running the comb through it. “You predicted this flood and these bodies, and that is something that should be taken seriously. So, I will be the one to take you to town.”“Yes, daddy,” she melted against his chest, wrapping her arms around him. “I love you.”He pressed a kiss to the crown of her head. “Let’s get you dressed.”She pulled on her black jeans and boots, and a skin-tight black knit jumper with skulls and crossbones provocatively picked out in white and positioned over her breasts, before slicking on eyeliner and bright red lipstick. She fluffed her fingers through her hair to encourage
Havermouth, Present TimeInside the tent was a press of police officers in neon safety vests and bright blue gloves taking photos and filling out forms in a very busy manner. One of the officers, a man a couple of years younger than Aislen and Triquetra, was just holding onto his composure, tears tracking down his face, but his expression set.There was a row of bodies, covered by cloth, and a smell… Something murky and dark, like wet, rotting soil overturned by a gardening fork, or the roots of a tree immersed for generations into river water, that made Aislen think of caves and graves. “So many,” Cameron murmured, shocked.“Over here,” Heath led them through the police and other officials, around the edges of the bodies. Some of them were smaller than others, and Aislen shook her head and averted her eyes. Talen took her hand, and placed a hand on Cameron’s shoulder, offering them both his support.“Thanks Iris,” Heath said to the policewoman who waited by a body.She looked at A
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