Topher Lydon

Makes no comment, merely puts his hands in his pocket, and glances at the story, then at the history.

I am not going to confirm or deny that there may or may not be two competing love interests in this story. Nor am I going to confirm or deny that there may or may not be conflict because of it. What I will confirm is that love is love, and we're modern.... Wink

Will can be a infuriating at times, and he makes mistakes. Andrew... Andrew is stubborn as well, when they fight oooooooh boy

now now, that would be telling.

one 5'9" problem with that plan.

meanwhile Kyle :

Yeah you know Brian was force feeding Alex gallons of the stuff from the moment he met him. Wait, no... that wasn't water 😛

The sad thing is, a third generation of this family is... only likely through Tarquin, if he can put his ego aside long enough to stop staring at himself in the mirror and get married.

Orel man, secret mastermind of all the town's happiness... he's cupid in a flannel shirt, holding a rock. Garrett used to bully Kyle, now he kisses him -poof Tabby's lonely, now he's got an Alley cat - poof Steve is too chaotic, give him the most ocd boy in school - poof I am Orel, master of the water, keeper of the rock and Lord of the Isopods!

I am so making this a thing.

so spitballing ideas with a friend, when the suggestion came up that Orel owns the town water supply.... LOL BWAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHHA Because the Merricks did, for a very long long long time...

The above is from my original notes for the story, I wanted a reason why Oliver didn't just book it for the hills. The Trust seemed the best engine for the story.

Allistair Merrick: The Strategic Tyrant He Was a Master of Systems and Control: The trusts are the ultimate proof. He didn't just hoard wealth; he architected its future flow with cold, legal precision. He identified his sons' weaknesses (Tarquin's spendthrift cruelty, Oliver's brittle rigidity) and built a system to contain them. He didn't trust love or loyalty; he trusted law and structure. He Saw His Sons as Assets and Liabilities: Tarquin (The Liability/Figurehead): Allistair saw the flashy, cruel, impulsive heir who would burn through the legacy. Solution: Lock him out of the capital. Give him the title (Mayor) and the manor (the gilded cage) but withhold the keys to the vault. Make him dependent on the system. Oliver (The Tool/Guardian): Allistair saw the competent, anxious, rule-following accountant. Not a leader, but a perfect custodian. Solution: Make him the trustee. Burden him with the responsibility without giving him the freedom. Oliver becomes the living embodiment of his father's will—a jailer of his own brother. Orel (The ???): This is the mystery. What did the systems-obsessed tyrant see in his strange, fragile youngest? Orel won't leave, his fear holds him in place, Tarquin saw to that. And we know Orel is the key to holding Olliver in place. Tarquin can't touch the main trust, but he can touch/embezzle the town's money by using Orel over Olliver... Each of the three brothers pins the other in place. Stuck by the other's actions.

Financially, as it will get explored in the text. Tarquin's father had a vision for his sons, and tied them together with their trusts. Oliver manages said trusts, but there are iron gated rules surrounding the actual money itself. Not even Oliver can open that trust up, much to Tarquin's frustration... it's almost as if the old bastard knew his son.

this is the actual house, as it sits in Merrickville today:

It is also a UNESCO world heritage site, that place has $$$$ way beyond what it should have.

Merrickville is part of a larger Merrickville-Wolford district. Technically he's the mayor of both the village, and the town nearby.

rotten foundations, mold and ghosts

Welcome home Orel.

Chapter Four: The Keeper of the Ledger The Morning Audit Oliver Oliver Merrick lived by a schedule not because he loved it, but because the alternative was a form of drowning. At 5:30 AM, the alarm on his phone vibrated once against the mahogany nightstand. He had been awake for fifteen minutes, watching the slow bleed of dawn at the edge of the curtains. The vibration was a formality. At 5:35 AM, he was in the shower. The water was cold. He did not enjoy it. He en

i tried to find names for them that defined them. Tarquin for the above, Oliver which means Olive Tree/branch the peacekeeper, and Orel as was mentioned before, light of God. Which I felt suited his... neurodivergent nature.

Oh and no, Jacob Carter and my Jake are nothing alike... mine's more like Ned... exactly like Ned, Jake finds it amusing.

It's something I always tried to do with my Jacob. Embody my lessons to him. It's funny, there was only one time I ever lost my cool with Jake. It was in China, there was a typhoon, and he'd just waded back home through backed up sewers.... like yikes... so he comes in and heads for the bathroom without taking his shoes off. And it was stupid, I just lost it on him... It took a bit for me to realize I wasn't yelling because I was angry, I was yelling because I was worried about him out in the storm. Lots of hot chocolate, apologies, and hugs later... but he never forgot to take his shoes off again We laugh about it now, but yeah only time. Now was I a strict dad, hell yes... but yelling and cussing, no.

Indeed, Tommy is quite the character in his own right. Toad's a prince and Jacob knows it.