Aberrations at TAC

By Richard Pinkerton

Tucker Pyles is bitter and twisted, angry that Rex Cassidy left him wounded on the side of the road after having been shot by Ben Tamati's shotgun. He is determined to get revenge once and for all and he's going to use Rex's only known weakness against him... Vanessa Dante.

Maggie Matthews is having major problems with her parents who cannot accept that she is bisexual and cannot accept her best friend Vanessa. Will her parents go through with their threat of removing her from Te Arawa College or will they more likely leave her to the mercy of their deluded church pastor who believes she has a demon inside her?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Richard Pinkerton
• Release date: Nov 6, 2016
• ISBN: 9781310152009

Richard Pinkerton

I am in my early 50s and have been writing now since I was 12. I prefer to write light-hearted drama but have written a little fantasy horror and science fiction too. I have an entire series of high school novels (19 of them so far) set in New Zealand (The Mob from TAC series), which I will gradually publish if there is a demand. I prefer to use a mix of quirky and outrageous characters you would never come across in reality and also your every day Joes. My writings are aimed at teenagers mainly, but also young adults. I have also written a series of detective novelettes, most of which can be found on my website. The majority require work, to be able to be published here, mainly due to copyright issues. Please do leave feedback or contact me if you want to know more about my books.

Book preview

Aberrations at TAC

(Book 15 in the Mob from TAC series)

Published by Richard Pinkerton at Smashwords

Copyright 2021 Richard Pinkerton

Other books by Richard Pinkerton

Dead End High

Dead End Town

Time Warped

The Rex Cassidy Investigators Series

The Mob from TAC series

1 - The Mob from TAC

2 – Mismatched at TAC

3 - Trouble at TAC

4 - Heroes at TAC

5 - Scheming at TAC

6 - Murder at TAC

7 - New Year at TAC

8 - Challenges at TAC

9 - Boot Camp at TAC

10 - Dark Days at TAC

11 - Jealously at TAC

12 - Choices at TAC

13 - Redemption at TAC

14 - Vendettas at TAC

15 - Aberrations at TAC

16 - Final Year at TAC

17 – Conspiracy at TAC

18 – Godly People at TAC

19 – Sabotage at TAC

20 – Distrust at TAC

21 – Competition at TAC

So Long, TAC

Acknowledgements

Bradford Jensen Jr

David Kraft

Stacey Sweeney

Vera Gordon

CHAPTER 1:

Forbidden

'Mum, I'm going over to Vanessa's.' Ginger-haired Margaret Matthews slung her handbag over her shoulder.

'No, you're not.’ Her mother held a mop in her hand, in the middle of cleaning the kitchen floor. ‘I forbid you to go there, especially not in that outfit. Cover up your midriff.'

Her slightly overweight mother had always been prudish. Both of Maggie’s parents were staunch Christians and if they had their way, she’d have all her skin covered right down to her ankles. Maybe they might both be better off being Muslim than Christian.

Maggie had her T-shirt tied up in a knot just under her bust line and liked the way it looked. ‘Oh come on, Mum, I'm sixteen years old. I should be able to wear what I want.'

‘Untie it! Wear it how it’s supposed to be worn, otherwise, I’ll take that top and destroy it. You won’t be able to wear it again.’

Maggie whimpered but did as she was told, untying it so that dropped over her bellybutton.

‘And please turn your cap around. It looks ridiculous on back to front. I don’t know why teenagers still do that. I thought it was a fad.’

Maggie removed her Dr Who cap from her head, freeing her long ginger locks. She reversed it so the tip faced the correct way and placed it back on her head.

Her mother stared at her through piercing brown eyes. 'You know how your father and I feel about that girl. We've discussed this so many times.’ She continued with her mopping and rubbed vigorously at a stain on the lino. ‘Her lifestyle is immoral and she is dragging you down with her. Right into the pits of Hell.'

‘She’s not—.'

‘Look what happened last term at that party. You were almost killed when the barn burnt down. All of you! All because of your friendship with Vanessa.'

Maggie gripped the left shoulder of her bag hard. 'That wasn't Vanessa's fault. She didn’t start that fire. It wasn’t her fault we were locked inside. It was Ben Tamati. He was after Rex.'

Her mother plopped her mop into a bucket of steaming soapy water. 'Then all the more reason you should have nothing to do with her OR Rex for that matter.'

‘But they hadn’t done anything wrong. Ben Tamati is the biggest sleaz—'

‘Vanessa wants to lure you into her sick and twisted world.’ Her mother squeezed the excess water out of her mop. ‘We think you should stay well away from her, especially if you’re gonna dress provocatively.’ She paused her job to glare at her. ‘Why must you show so much skin? It’s for her benefit, isn’t it?'

‘It’s not like I’m showing off heaps of cleavage,’ Maggie whined. ‘And I’m wearing jeans.’

‘Why do you need to have your belly button exposed?’

Because it’s sexy, she wanted to say. ‘I like it. It’s a cool look. You’re old-fashioned.’ She couldn’t help but let her frustration show. ‘Next, you’ll be wanting me to wear one of those burqas like Muslim women wear. I bet you can’t even handle me exposing my ankles.’

Her mother stepped up to face her, the mop still in her hand. 'How can you be so disrespectful? Don't you know that all we're trying to do is teach you what's morally acceptable and protect you from a lot of pain?’

Maggie’s anger welled up but she did her best to suppress it. 'All you're doing is causing me pain. Stopping me from seeing the one person I love more than anyone else in this world!'

Her mother's eyes widened. 'Don't say that!'

'What? That I love her? Is that really so wrong?’

‘It is when you’re talking about perverted love. Like the type your deviant friend is trying to hook you into.’

Maggie gritted her teeth. ‘She’s not perverted! At least she cares about me. Unlike you!’

Her mother's jaw dropped. 'How can you say such a thing to your own mother?'

'How can you treat me like I'm diseased?’ She forced the anger out of her tone. ‘Why can't you accept I love another girl and want to spend time with her?'

Her mother planted the mop head on the floor with a thump. 'Don't you realise how embarrassing it is for me and your father, that our daughter is in a relationship with another girl? How do you think we felt when you got up in front of the entire community and made a drunken fool of yourself, all over that girl?'

Maggie cringed. She hated to be reminded of the incident where she, in her depression over Vanessa not feeling the same way about her, had got herself drunk. She'd gone up on stage during one of the school's live performances of Grease and professed her love for Vanessa in front of everyone.

'This isn't about you,’ Maggie insisted. ‘It's about me. Vanessa makes me happy.'

'From what I understand, she doesn't return the same feelings you have for her.'

'She still loves me.'

Her mother’s knuckles turned white as she gripped the mop handle. ‘Can't you find yourself a boyfriend? You've had boyfriends.'

'And they've all let me down.'

'So? Boys do that. Is that any reason to give up on them?'

'I haven't given up on boys. It's just Vanessa's the only one who really understands me. She accepts me for who I am. She doesn't have unrealistic expectations.'

Her mother reached out to touch her arm but Maggie yanked it away.

'I think you're confused, Margaret. You've let the negative relationships with those boys affect you. Then you have one girlfriend who makes you feel like something special and you think maybe you're gay. It’s a silly crush.'

'It's not just a silly crush. This is real!'

‘What makes you think you two have a future?'

Maggie flinched. The reality was, it seemed there was no future. Vanessa was rightfully dedicated to her guy, Rex Cassidy.

'It doesn't matter, ' she finally said. 'She makes me feel good. And I know she loves me.'

Her mother grunted. ‘Whatever you feel is completely irrelevant. Vanessa is not a good role model. Last time I spoke to her on the phone, she was rude and disrespectful to me.'

'That's because you were being horrible to her. Vanessa's the most wonderful person I know. You don't know her! I'm going to her place.'

'So, you're going over there and you're going to have sex with her?'

'It's none of your business what we do. We'll do what we want. We don't have to have your permission.'

Her mother stared at her in horror. 'Margaret Matthews, you know that it's wrong. You know that's forbidden behaviour.'

'I'm sixteen years old. I'm allowed to.'

Maggie’s mother shook her finger at her. 'Not according to the Bible. God forbids it! You know what he did to Sodom and Gomorrah! He wiped them all out because they were despicable homosexuals.'

‘Why should anyone believe that crazy story?’

‘You’ll burn in Hell if you continue with that behaviour!’

Maggie planted her hands on her hips. ‘Hell’s made up. The Bible is full of made-up stuff written by old fuddy-duddies who weren't getting any themselves, so they didn’t see why anybody else should.'

Her mother gasped. 'How can you say that? It's God's word! Hell is real, and it quite clearly says a woman should not lie with another woman as they would a man.'

'That would be kind of difficult.'

'That's beside the point!'

'That's exactly the point. It’s really stupid.'

'You wish to defy God?'

Maggie shook her head. 'No, I wish to defy the stupid ignorant people who wrote that stuff.'

Her mother writhed. 'You're choosing to shame yourself. Choosing to do immoral acts.'

'I choose to show my love because that's what someone in love should do.'

Her mother huffed. 'I can't believe what I'm hearing. That's not love, that's lust. It's sexual perversion. It's unnatural. You're deliberately defying God's laws and making him angrier and angrier.'

'No, I'm acting on my God-given instincts.'

‘You've been listening to that horrible Vanessa. She's been filling your head with this mumbo-jumbo.'

'It's not mumbo-jumbo, Mum, it's true. You're the one that's filling your head with mumbo-jumbo by following old rules written by superstitious and bigoted old men from thousands of years ago.'

Her mother's eyes bugged. 'I can't believe how blasphemous you're being. What the hell has gotten into you?'

'I don't know, must be all those demons. Oh yeah, the gay demon is in me. You better have Pastor Payne perform an exorcism. He loves doing those. He's always casting that demon out of Mrs Turner at church week after week because it keeps coming back. They never seem to be able to get rid of it. I wonder why? Ohhhhh, maybe it's not really a demon at all!'

Her mother shook an accusing finger at her. 'Your tone is getting very offensive, young lady, and if you don’t watch it, I’ll give you a good clip across the ears. You’re not too old for one of those you know. ‘

‘You’re being threatening to me. Threatening, offensive and cruel. I'm going. Bye.'

'You're staying.'

'I'm going.' She walked towards the door.

'This is not you!'

She pushed past her mother and swung open the door to get outside.

'You come back here or I’ll whack you!'

Maggie stormed off along the path, her mind racing with angry thoughts. She hated both her parents right now and she drove her feet into the pavement with each angry step.

Vanessa's place was only a ten-minute walk from hers. It was a grey bungalow with an arched roof. The front was mainly concrete but there were well-kept gardens along the front of the house and the fence line.

She couldn't wait to see Vanessa again. It had been a week due to Vanessa and Rex having been on holiday together down south. She envied them, having such liberal parents who trusted them and let them go off alone for days on end. Granted, they’d known each other almost all their lives and had established an unbreakable bond that their parents were well familiar with.

Oh, how Maggie wished she had parents who were so accepting of her relationships and who trusted her not to do anything crazy.

On arrival at Vanessa's, she threw her arms around the tall, shapely brunette and held her tight. 'I missed you, Ness.'

'I missed you, too,'

'You did not.' Maggie grinned. 'You were too busy having the time of your life with Rexy.'

'Too true. But it's great to see you.'

Maggie gazed into her alluring sapphire-blue eyes. Her skin was always so smooth and unblemished. She wanted to kiss her luscious full lips but her mother, Grace, stepped into the hallway. It was easy to see where Vanessa got her amazing looks. Grace was in her mid-30s but still possessed a perfect figure. She had long dark, spiral hair like Vanessa, the full lips and the eyes.

This time though her eyes seemed kind of pained. 'Hi, Maggie. I just got a phone call from your mother.'

Maggie groaned and let go of Vanessa. 'How did she get your number? I never gave it to her.'

'Somehow she found it.'

Vanessa turned to face her mother. 'She's being difficult, right?'

'I'm afraid so. Tells me I'm to send you home right away, Maggie.'

Maggie huffed. 'I hope you told her to get lost.'

Grace grinned. 'No. But I told her you were welcome here and I wasn't going to turn you away.'

'I bet she loved that,' Vanessa said.

‘She was quite irate. Told me, in not nice terms, that she'd forbidden you to spend time together. I said that by law, you were both old enough to decide who you spend your time with and I wasn't going to interfere. Then she accused me of being a terrible mother who never taught her daughter good morals.' Her sapphire eyes burned. 'I wasn't going to have that. I told her, my daughter has very good morals and I was very proud of how she has turned out and who she chooses to see is completely up to her. As long as whoever it is treats her with love and respect, they have my blessing.'

'Go, Mother.' Vanessa beamed.

Maggie found Vanessa's smile so irresistible. It lit up the entire room when she did. It was no wonder everybody loved her and why everybody was so protective of her, especially Rex. She thought back to the horrible night when Ben Tamati and Byron Hastings had them trapped in the barn and how guys like Sheep and Wal were willing to put their own selves at risk to defend Vanessa.

Even Jacqui Donaldson, who always seemed to despise Vanessa before, had stood up for her and risked death to save her from burning in the barn after Ben set it alight. Rex had dodged bullets and suffered serious burns to bust open the barn door and rescue them all. Even now, memories of the experience haunted her. But a positive thing that came out of it was it strengthened a lot of bonds that day.

Grace spoke again, 'I thought you should both know your mother did ring. And as far as I'm concerned, you're welcome here and I'm not going to turn you away. If your mother doesn't like that, then tough for her.'

'Thanks.' Maggie smiled. Although her heart weighed heavy. She wasn’t sure how much longer she could remain strong.

'You're the best, Mum,' Vanessa added.

Grace winked. 'I know. I hope I don't live to regret it.'

'How can anyone regret doing what's morally sound?'

'True.'

As much as Maggie wanted to forget about the treatment she had received from her parents recently, she couldn’t. The tears welled up. Both Grace and Vanessa knew what it was like to suffer bigotry for their sexual orientation. Therefore, it was as good a time as any to cry. At least she had two people who understood, so she broke down and allowed the tears to come.

‘Oh, Maggs…’ Vanessa put her arm around her and led her to the lounge. Grace went to the kitchen and brought back three glasses of lemonade. They both sat with her and allowed her to bawl her eyes out for a few minutes.

It felt better to be able to cry but, at the same time, the pain remained. Maggie sipped her drink. ‘Why are they being so difficult?’ She gazed down at the front of her T-shirt. Her cap was back on in reverse but she had not tied her shirt back up like she’d been tempted to. She could at least go with her mother’s wishes there, even though she’d left the house against her mother’s will.

She felt bad about that now. ‘What if they’re right and I am angering God?’

‘If there is a god, why would he make you like that if it was wrong?’ Vanessa asked. ‘That doesn’t make sense. He made you the way he intended you to be.’

‘So why can’t they accept me for who I am?’

Vanessa ran her fingers through Maggie’s hair. ‘I’m so sorry.’

Grace placed her hand on her back. ‘I know it’s hard. People have certain expectations of you. I know what that was like with my ex-husband. And he’s not the only one. I had friends who shunned me when I came out of the closet. I’ll admit, I never had an issue with my parents but, then again, they never knew. I got married, had Vanessa and it wasn’t until a lot later, at the end of my marriage that I revealed the truth to anyone. Then I was a single adult, with a daughter, prepared to go it on my own. And it’s worked out fine. But people do have expectations and it’s hard for them when they find things aren’t what they hoped or expected them to be. You need to give your parents time. I know it’s hard but they will come around.’

‘What if they don’t?’

‘You have to trust they will.’

‘I’m here for you, Maggs,’ Vanessa said. ‘You know that, right?’

‘Yes.’ She sobbed.

Grace drank from her glass of lemonade. ‘Maggie, I want you to know we’ll support you in any way we can but you must try to remain strong. At least when you’re around your parents.’

‘They’re so religious. They’ve been talking about taking me to