My Slice of Haven

The following two days Poppi spent shut away in the Amber house pouring over her father's letters that only repeated the same things Dwight had told her at the station. Her father's trouble was her trouble triggered by Duke. Her mother's trouble was her trouble triggered by the memory of the first time that trouble had been activated. Her head was shattered and boy weary. but finally Poppi had some kind of grasp on what was happening to her, what the troubles were and the unmistakable fact that Dwight was right.

She would never be able to leave Haven.

The folder Vince had given to her was still sitting on the end of the bed as she came back in from a shower determined to leave the house at least for a few hours. "Well it can't get any worse than what I know now." With nimble fingers Poppi slid the folder into her lap and began to gently open it to find pages and pages stapled together in a format resembling the chapters in a book.

Her father had put together a sort of family tree inside that folder for Poppi to one day find. There were mini volumes of text going right back to the founding families of Haven, her's being one of the first to settle there. Quickly she found herself wrapped up in the pages that her dad had spent so long acquiring and sorting. There were lists of family names she didn't recognise with titles that were highly esteemed in the town. One of them had even built the town hall with a few of the names she did know.
As her hands flipped page through page she finally came across a certificate and pulled it from the pile before setting the folder aside to let it sit alone in her lap.

"Mom..." She whispered to herself.

Poppi's eyes carefully scanned down the page, a certificate of death authenticated by the town of Haven itself. The text was reading something very differently to what her dad had tol her about her mother's death. A breath caught in Poppi's throat.

"The body was found to be badly burnt..."

A cold stone dropped deep in her gut. Weakly she moved the paper back into the pile and sat collecting herself. Her mother had died from her trouble? How? Why weren't people speaking up? She pinched the bridge of her nose feeling the stress and confusion building inside her brain. What else was there to know? It seemed the more Poppi found out the less of it made sense.

Her head fell into her hands and she wept long and hard alone in that big house with no one around to answer her questions.

A few hours had passed before a rapid succession of heavy knocks on the wooden front door roused Poppi from a sleep she hadn't known she'd fallen into. Squinting her eyes from the afternoon sun filtering through the curtains she quickly slid from the bed and threw on the closet clothes she could find which were a pair of boyshort knickers and a baggy button down green shirt she didn't remember being hers.

"Coming." She called bounding down the steps before opening the door.

"Oh..." It was Dwight and he was blushing at the sight of Poppi in little to no clothing. "Umm I will just wait here until you get dressed."

"Oh gosh sorry, no come in and I will be right down."

Dwight sheepishly closed the door behind him, keeping his eyes averted as Poppi made her way up the stairs.

He didn't have to wait to wait long for her to come back down dressed in her trademark floral dress and knitted cardigan, feet bare however. "If you're here to tell me again that I have to stay in Haven you don't have to. I pretty much know there is no where else I can go now with these troubles."

There was a flicker of relief in his eyes. "That's good but it's not why I am here. I think I might have found something to help find your father."

Her eyes lit up. "What did you find?" She closed the distance between them like an excited wide eyes cat would on something of interest.

"It might be nothing, but I went digging through the evidence boxes Nathan had brought back from here that night and I found your dad's journal. I know you probably don't want to know any more than you do right now and that you've had enough surprises so just flip to the last page." Dwight handed her a little black leather book.

"At this rate I will have the whole evidence locker in possession." he scurried to the last page. "Are these co-ordinates? Nathan went out that night on the boat though and didn't find anything." She was looking at Dwight not knowing what to do with the digits looking at her.

"These are pretty far out so I doubt he went out that far, there would have been no reason to if your dad had left by boat." He rested his hands on his hips and glanced back down at the page. "Something might be out there."

Poppi nodded. "Duke should be back in a few days Nathan said. We can go look when he does." She sucked in a sharp breath as her mind jumped back a few hours. "Dwight you seem to know a lot about the troubles, Nathan mentioned the other night that it was your job to find people with troubles and bring them to Haven."

He nodded. "That's correct. I know a bit about everyone here."

She began to rock back and forth on the balls of her feet nervously. "Would you know what really happen d to my mother? I have her death certificate and it says she died by her trouble? How could something like that happen?"

"Ah." He ran a hand over his hair. "Poppi sometimes people's troubles can get away from them and can end up hurting them or the people around them. I know about your mother's case but I think it's something you're better off talking to Vince about...he was one of the witnesses."

Her face dropped. "There is so much I don't know that's been kept hidden in the dark. In the letters dad said she had control over her trouble...what if what happened to her, well what if it happens to me? I don't nearly have that kind of control over my emotional state."

Dwight was looking down at this young woman with such pity. "You've done okay so far and you've got Duke to help you and from what I can see that's working."

"And what happens when comes the day I don't have him? I have to know what really happened so I can stop it happening to me."

"If you like I can run you over to see Vince?" He offered knowing Poppi was right. Everyone needed a sense of self control and the sooner she learnt to harness her troubles by herself the safer she would be. "It won't be any problem."

She nodded. "Thanks Dwight."

* * *

The sun was beginning to set over Haven by the time Vince was ready to talk about Lily's death. "It was horrible." He sat on the porch in his old wooden chair while Poppi sat with her legs crossed in front of him watching intently and listening even more sharply. "It was just after breakfast at the cafe when I noticed Thomson chasing Lily down the middle of the road. His voice was raised as he shouted after her. She was crying and telling him to leave her alone.

At the time no one knew what was going on but slowly they began to gather as Lily slowed to face your father. And then it came out, the truth of it. Lily had fallen in love with Simon Crocker, as dangerous as he was. This broke your father's heart to the point where he had lost total control of his troubles.

The emotional connection between Thomson and Lily lead your mother to in turn lose her own grip on her troubles as well. I guess the anguish she could feel from Thomson over took her and the flames that were her own creation took her.

If I remember right you were being babysat by Nathan's father at the time, your mother was supposed to have been out buying drinks for a picnic. People said they Thomson had found Lily in the arms of Simon Crocker."

"I...I have to go." Poppi didn't want to hear what she had heard and fled from Vince's presence.

"That poor poor girl." Vince mumbled to himself.

* * *

Dwight was sitting in the back of his pick up truck closing the lid on his toolbox when he looked up to see a frantic Poppi racing down the street.

"Whoa, whoa Poppi!" He jumped from the truck in time to catch the woman by her arm and bring her around. Her cheeks were red and eyes burning red from tears. "What happened?"

"I...I spoke to Vince and, and...oh god Dwight. My mother is dead because of my dad, his trouble killed her." With that omission Poppi could no longer hold herself up and her knees buckled under the weight of it all. Years in the boarding school practising the art of pushing away the sin of emotion hadn't prepared her for all the skeleton's she'd uncovered.

Catching her Dwight slowly sank to the ground with her sobbing loudly into his shoulder, he didn't know what to do. "Is that was Vince told you?"

She nodded through her tears. "My mom was in love with Duke's father and he found them together."

Dwight could put the rest of the pieces together for himself and began to pat her back in the way a father would do to console a child. "I'm sorry Poppi."

Trying her hardest Poppi couldn't stop the overwhelming tears that choked her and in Dwight's arms she allowed herself to feel every little thing that had bulked down on her. From her father's disappearance, to the troubles and even Jason dying. It all was crumbling down on top of her. Her hands clung to Dwight's shirt.

"I don't...I don't know who I am any more." Se began to confess through tears.

Holding her tight Dwight could sympathise. "I know how that feels to feel so lost you no longer recognise yourself. I can tell you that you will get past this."

Poppi began to pull back, Dwight wiping the tears from her cheeks. "It doesn't feel like it. I feel like a freak." She batted back hair stuck to her cheeks. "Part of me wishes that I had missed Vince's call." Gulping down another onslaught of tears she blew out a long breath she wasn't aware she was holding in.

"You're not a freak. Let's get you home. Duke will probably be back tomorrow and we can go look for those co-ordinates." He gave her a reassuring look before bundling her into the passenger side of his truck.

* * *

Duke wasn't sure what he was going to be walking into the next afternoon after Dwight had stopped him at the docks to tell him about what Poppi had found out from Vince.

He was nervous as he put away the pick lock tools into his back pocket. "Poppi?" There was no answer. He looked around the downstairs level before quietly making his way to the upper floor.

There he found her curled up on the edge of the guest bed fast sleep, to her right on the floor were the papers Vince had given her and beyond that was an old leather book with the initial T. Amber scribed across the front in bronze. As he stood in the doorway watching the only child of the Amber's sleep he noticed she was wearing the button down green shirt he had left behind after taking the floor to sleep.
The sight of her in his shirt sent a gentle tingling sensation through his chest and he smiled to himself. Still smelling like the sea he removed his boots and shirt till just his jeans and wife-beater remained. Neatly he folded them into the corner and crossed the room to move under the covers next to her.

Poppi felt the bed shift under a weight next to her, but she didn't have to open her eyes to know it was Duke, the simple feeling of the way his heart beat for her let her know that it was him. Still with those green eyes shut she rolled over and curled into his embrace before falling back asleep.

The gesture made Duke look down at her before wrapping an arm around Poppi's shoulders. He placed a kiss atop her head and eventually began to drift.

* * *

"Gonna be a tight squeeze but we can manage it." Duke replied with lashings of sarcasm as Dwight and Nathan boarded the boat. Poppi was already sitting crossed legged on a wooden box looking as far over the edge as she could.

"Do we know what's out there?" Nathan asked glancing towards Poppi. "And is she okay?"

Duke looked over his shoulder to see her rake a hand through her hair and drop her head. "Not really, but she'll make it. And no, no idea what's out there if I am honest. It's a part I haven't been past before."

Dwight took note of the conversation but made a point to extract himself to make way over to Poppi. "How you feeling today?"

She looked up at him. "I don't know if I am honest." Poppi shifted over to make room for Dwight. "I guess...a little jaded, kind of empty. I spent most of the day with Duke, he got back a few hours ago and have just been playing with that connection. He feels good and kind. That makes me feel something other than dread I guess."

"You know we have no clue what we're going to find out there..." He began to make a point but Poppi waved her hand.

"I will try not to burn anything down. It's okay, I thought of that already. I have been sitting here thinking of what could be out there...maybe a body or just more questions."

His lips pressed into a line. "At least you're not alone."

Poppi looked to Duke and Nathan before back to him. "Not now any ways."

"Are we ready lady and gentlemen?" Duke announced before dipping to steering bay of the Cape Rouge.

"Let's just get going already Duke." Nathan rolled his eyes with irritation to which Duke smirked.

"It's going to be a long few hours with these two." Dwight pointed you.

Poppi chuckled. "You've no idea." She watched Duke do what he did inside that little steering room. His face had dropped the humour and was concentrating on the journey ahead of them now. Part of her began to ponder the idea of picking up where they had so abruptly left off years ago. "Do you think that what happened to my parents would happen to me?"

Dwight followed her eye line and he sat back. "You mean to you and Duke? I don't know but I would wager not. Nathan filled me in on your history with Crocker and if what I saw happen between your troubles is anything to go by, I would almost say you were a matching pair. There are some troubles that just compliment one another. In time Duke is going to be open to your emotions like I said and when he is I think you'll find that you will have something solid." He wanted to ask Poppi if she really knew about the Crocker's and the true affliction of Duke's trouble however decided that was a conversation best to another time when Duke wanted to tell her.

"Staying in Haven might not be so bad after all then."

Duke stole a moment to glance over at Poppi as she spoke to Dwight, about what? He didn't know but as he watched her the more he could see her begin to settle with the people around her. Haven was her real home but Duke wasn't going to force it on her, if Poppi wanted to stay she would and if she didn't that was a fork in the road he would come to later.

"What are you kids whispering about over here?" Nathan made his way over to Dwight and Poppi.

"Stuff and things." She replied. "So when we get there I guess that's when we make a what-to-do-next plan?"

Nathan nodded. "That's the idea seeing as not even out Captain knows what's out there." The reference was a sarcastic stab at Duke.

"I heard that Nathan."

"You were meant to." Replied to Detective.

"You both bicker like an old married couple these days more than anything." Poppi joked before getting up and making her way into the steering bay.

"Remember the last time we were on this thing?" Duke didn't have to look over at Poppi to know there was the smallest smile tugging at her lips. "Yeah you do."

"Your dad would have skinned the both of us if he'd found us in that fireworks box." She leant against a spare space behind Duke looking out the windshield. By now Poppi was aware Dwight had informed Duke of the truth Vince had told her.

"That won't happen to us." Duke said thinking the same thing as she.

"I hope not, that would certainly put a dent in my plans to stay in Haven." Her eyes were looking at her boots as she mentioned that to Duke.

"Oh so you're staying?" He said casually but with a smile that said he wanted to turn and grab her up in a swinging hug. "Good to know."

She nodded unable to hold back her smile. "Makes sense. House is going to need an overhaul though. I don't want to start back here in a place filled with so many false memories."

"And your job?"

"I can edit from Haven via correspondence, there are a lot of editors but none of them as good as I am." She said the last words with smug satisfaction. "It might been a few trips away from Haven a year but that's okay." Amongst the mess things were strangely starting to feel like they would come together in the end. There were still things that needed to be answered, maybe it was just the sway of the fresh open waters making her head feel lighter.

Duke was practically whooping in the inside but careful to maintain a cool face as he steered the boat across the waters. "Being the first to offer my services with the renovations."

"Doing the heavy lifting? Hrm I think I could get used to you doing that." Poppi was well aware of just how good Duke looked in a wife-beater and was keen to add the lifting of heavy furniture into that mix.

"Cheeky." He smirked.