Disclaimer: I do not own the characters within this story. All rights and much respect go to Crown Media, Hallmark, Brian Bird, Michael Landon, Jr., the actors, creators, and writers of the show "When Calls the Heart." Any real people or places noted in the chapter are just there for storyline purposes.

Chapter 1- Life's Choices

Ten years ago…

Elizabeth sat in the Student Center drinking a diet Coke and waiting on her hamburger when her childhood friend, LouAnn, walked inside with a rather handsome young man in tow.

LouAnn and Elizabeth had been friends since middle school, having met when they participated in the same school clubs. They had a standing joke between them as each one attempted to set up the other with dates, looking for the perfect match.

As LouAnn and her friend approached the table, Elizabeth's first thought was that she'd met nearly everyone on this small private Virginia college campus, but somehow he'd slipped by. She wasn't certain how, but one thing was for sure, she knew that she would have remembered him.

"Elizabeth, this is Jack Thornton…Jack, this is Elizabeth Thatcher," LouAnn completed the introductions before excusing herself and walking to the counter to order something to eat, effectively leaving them alone.

"You're welcome to take a seat, unless you have other plans," she offered, assuming that if he was dating someone, he would decline her offer.

Assuming she wouldn't have made the offer if she was dating someone, he replied, "I'd like to, thanks."

LouAnn stood by the counter observing their body language and patting herself on the back for an introduction well done.

From the moment Jack took a seat, there did not appear to be any awkward silence. They talked, laughed, and without specifically meaning to, they learned a great deal about each other.

They learned that each one was from Virginia Beach, but she attended Bayside High, while he was a soccer star at Kempsville. They both attended Salem Baptist Church, but with a usual attendance of 1000 or more people for each service, it was not unusual that they wouldn't have come across each other.

They were immediately smitten with each other. However, with school obligations and a responsibility to prove to their respective parents that living on campus was in fact the right decision and would not negatively impact their studies, initially they only saw each other at mealtimes. Whoever made it to the dining hall first would save a spot for the other.

During the breakfast meal, they each ate quickly, usually in a rush to make it to their morning class. However, dinner time was a different story. Every evening they sat at a table alone talking and laughing until the lights began to flicker. Jack walked Elizabeth back to her room every evening, making certain that she arrived safely.

"You know, you don't have to walk me back to my room every night. The campus is safe."

"Humor me, okay? I'd feel responsible if something happened to you and I could have prevented it."

Elizabeth smiled as they walked side by side down the hall to her room. Once there, she unlocked the door and slipped inside.

"See you in the morning," he stated.

"Okay, 7:30?" she asked.

"Yep, I'll meet you outside the dining hall."

"Thank you for walking me home."

"My pleasure."

The door closed and she leaned against it as he begrudgingly headed back to his dorm on the other side of campus.

Elizabeth made certain to be sitting in the stands for each of Jacks home soccer games, and even surprised him on several occasions when they played out of the area.

On Thursday nights, although they were not officially dating, they sat side by side watching movies in her dorm's social hall. This continued for several semesters with each one wanting something more, but neither one wanting to assume the risk if it affected their friendship.

By spring of their sophomore year Jack and Elizabeth decided that just being buddies was not enough. They began officially dating and their friends consistently remarked how surprised they were that it took them so long to get together.

Many of Elizabeth's friends considered them to be a "Match made in Heaven," which made Jack laugh, but concerned that they were jinxing their new found relationship it simply gave Elizabeth the "Kiss of Death" feeling.

Their junior year passed and as they entered their senior year, their relationship was still very close, with each one anticipating that marriage would be the ultimate goal. However, they both realized that at the age of 22, neither one was ready for that step. Although love was important, and each one had acknowledged their feelings for the other, they needed to live more and experience life before settling down.

Elizabeth applied to several graduate schools, with her heart being set on attending Northwestern University School of Journalism. With Jack planning to enter the criminal justice field, he was comfortable looking for employment in that field wherever her educational endeavors took them.

February before graduation…

"Jack," Elizabeth yelled as she ran across the courtyard, jumped into his arms and wrapped her legs around his waist.

After spinning completely around in a circle twice, he carefully placed her feet back on the ground, "Northwestern…I was accepted to Northwestern for graduate school."

"I knew you could do it. I'm so proud of you, Elizabeth."

As they sat down for dinner that evening, they discussed future plans. Jack was willing to pursue a job in Chicago so they could remain together. After all, that was the plan…the optimum word being…was.

Elizabeth and Jack scoured the internet seeking a place to live together that would provide two bedrooms, one for each of them. They were in love, but Elizabeth had expressed a desire to remain a virgin until marriage, hence the necessity for separate bedrooms.

Their plans took a complete turn when, in April, three weeks before graduation, Jack learned that his cousin, and truly his best friend, Lucas was killed while serving in Iraq.

Jack shut down, closing himself off from everyone; his family, his friends, even his Elizabeth.

Jack was devastated; he didn't show up for his final exams causing his classes to suffer, only passing his final semester by the grace of God.

On graduation day, Elizabeth went to his dorm room, dressed in her required white dress with her gown draped over her arm and her cap in her hand as she banged on his door. "Jack, please let me in. We don't have to talk; I just want to be with you…" She heard nothing inside, but knew he was there.

She leaned against the wall as her body slid down to the floor and she sat… waiting… hoping that he'd come outside, yet the door remained closed.

With the processional only moments away, she eventually left, running across the field as she pulled on her cap and gown, and breathlessly worked her way up to her place in line.

She felt her heart break just a bit more when Jack's name was called but he didn't appear. His diploma was simply placed on a table with several others to be mailed to the recipients at a later date.

Elizabeth assumed that at some point Jack would come to terms with his grief and although this experience would impact him for life, she was certain that he would come back to her. She quickly learned that she couldn't have been more wrong.

She cried over him more that she ever dreamed possible, subsequently moving on from sadness to anger and remaining there for quite some time. After all, it was his choice to leave; his choice to join the military following graduation, and it was his choice to break her heart.

She only received one letter from him which arrived just after he left, but she was so hurt that she never opened it, assuming it to be filled with "It's not you, it's me," "If we had met at a different time in our lives," and "I just want you to be happy" lines that truly meant nothing to her. The fact was he apparently didn't know her at all…for until he left, she was happy.

Elizabeth followed through with her original plan following graduation and in August, with her parents blessing, she packed up her car and headed for Chicago and the next chapter in her life.

She moved into an apartment that sadly she alone chose; a two bedroom in an older building across from Lake Michigan. With the additional bedroom, she subconsciously hoped he'd return to her. However, as time passed with no further correspondence from him, his return was seemingly less likely.

The view from her den window was beautiful; the commute, by train, to school was reasonable, and the new friends she made helped remove Jack from her present, leaving him where she felt he now belonged, in her past.

She did her best not to think of him, although she had to admit that there were times when a sound, song or scent brought him to mind. It angered her that he was still able to affect her mood, so she did her best to throw herself into school and social activities, even dating on occasion. However, any man she dated only lasted for a short while, usually no more than a month. To those who knew her best it was evident that no one seemed to measure up to Jack in her eyes.

On this crisp Friday morning as Elizabeth took a seat on the train, in the midst of a packed compartment, she suddenly felt alone. For what seemed like years they were supposed to begin this adventure together, now she was by herself, and at times she felt devastatingly alone.

She reached into her bag and pulled out her journal. Although she carried it everywhere, she hadn't added to the entries, or even opened its leather bound cover since he left. She didn't want to read her last entries, being fairly certain that her anger was strongly noted in her words.

She opened her journal and quickly flipped past her most recent entries, refusing to read her words from what she considered to be one of the worst periods in her life. She pulled a pen from her purse, and for the first time in months, she began to convey her feelings onto the paper…

"I want to hate you, it would make getting over you so much easier, but I can't. I want to forget about you, forget about the fun times we had, forget about the love we felt, but I can't. I want to move on, I need to move on…realizing that you are no longer a part of my life, but sadly I can't. I need to let go, but my heart can't…won't and I somehow sit around waiting for the impossible to happen.

What I hate is that you treated me so kindly, so respectfully, so lovingly, encouraging me to fall for you when in fact, catching me was never your intention.

I know you aren't coming back. I know I'll never see you again and yet my heart breaks and the tears flow over feelings I can't seem to resolve. You were both the best and worst part of my life. I trusted you; I believed your words, but in the silence, your actions have spoken volumes. I just haven't come to grips with the fact that you were much more important to me than I apparently ever was to you.

I pray that you are safe, and that you have found peace. My hope is that you will find that special person, the one who will set your heart on fire…"

"Excuse me, are you okay?" the young woman sitting beside her asked.

"I've been better, but I'll be fine. Thank you for asking…"

She returned to her journal and the entry that seemed to write itself…

"I pray that you are safe, and that you have found peace. My hope is that you will find that special person, the one who will set your heart on fire, and will be everything to you that I wanted to be, but wasn't.

Feelings of overwhelming sadness brought about by a fear of loss, leaves you numb, and often unable to rationalize the events that brought you to that point. Love, no matter what kind, family, friendship, or romantic should be a joyous feeling; not one where you are left with a sense of betrayal, a hurt so deep that you find it difficult to remember the good times. A shattered heart is much like a fractured rib…on the outside you see nothing but the smile I force, but on the inside, I feel broken beyond repair.

However, I do need to thank you… if nothing else you've shown me that my happiness cannot be placed in someone else's hands. I am the procurer of my own destiny and although this was a harsh lesson, I would never want you to be with me out of some sense of obligation.

Today is the day I turn the page; the past will remain behind me and I will look forward to the remainder of what my life's book has to offer. Goodbye…you know who you are!"

Afghanistan…

Jack finished boot camp and joined other soldiers from various branches of the military on his first deployment. He was embarrassed to admit but he was scared. Bombs and gunfire were heard regularly, and it wasn't uncommon to see victims, Middle East military personnel and civilians lying dead in the streets.

Most waking moments he was on edge waiting for the next "Incoming" alert, keeping his mind free of anything but necessary information. However, during quiet times, those times when you could even hear a pin drop into a pile of sand, he could see her face, and hear her begging him not to leave. Those were the times when he ached to be back with her and pieces of his heart seemed to peel away again.

Every young woman he saw brought back memories of Elizabeth and how he wished that he'd left under better terms. He wrote countless letters, but not knowing where she was he mailed them all to her family home. He heard nothing back, unaware that her father, angered that he'd broken his middle daughter's heart, lit them up and tossed them into the fire place. Jack incorrectly assumed that she wanted nothing more to do with him, so he, like her attempted to move on.

Five years ago…

Elizabeth sat in her apartment, eight miles away from campus, staring at herself in the mirror. This should be the most exciting day of her life thus far; unfortunately all she could muster were tears. She stood in her cap and gown, preparing to accept her Master's Degree in Journalism from Northwestern University, wondering with all the joy that was in her life, why she simply felt so empty.

She unzipped her gown, removed her cap, and slipped back into bed. As the tears rolled down her cheeks, she realized that tomorrow would be another day, and the university could mail her the diploma.

Then she heard his words rushing in her ear and swirling around her head as if they had nowhere else to go, "I care about you, but it's time for us to move on."

Move on? What does that even mean? I thought we were planning to move on together…

Why those words still bothered her she wasn't sure. Why she even thought about them after all these years, she wondered even more. How could they go from being inseparable to being two independent people, and how was it that she never saw it coming?

She had done her best not to think about him and had even gone so far as to threaten disbarment of their friendship to any companion who mentioned his name. But now, on the cusp of her advanced degree graduation, she couldn't do anything but think of him.

She threw back the covers and slipped out of bed, grabbed her cap and gown and headed for the door, "I won't let him take this from me."

She pulled into the university parking lot, lucked into a space for her car and rushed to the student center to line up for the processional. With her parents proudly sitting in the audience, she forced a smile, accepted her diploma, and made the decision to go one with her life, as he had apparently decided to go on with his.

Two years ago…

It had been years since she'd seen him, and actually in this world of millions and millions of people, she didn't believe that she'd ever see him again. So, following her graduation from Northwestern University, she secluded herself in her family's cabin in the Charlottesville Mountains. The result, "What Could Have Been," was a bestselling 462 page manuscript, a piece of fiction that came very close to resembling her own life.

Maybe his leaving gave her the incentive to succeed, the heartbreak she needed to experience in order to write the love stories that people seemed to feel a part of. Each edition she completed felt as though her heart was again being ripped from her body as the feelings and emotions seemed to leave her raw, her chest open, ripe for the plucking and leaving her with little until the next installment was due.

One year ago…

Following the success of her first book, Elizabeth relaxed, spending time with friends and family. Her first book climbed quickly to the top of the New York Times Best Sellers List, and with book tours and signings, her time for relaxation was short lived.

Although Elizabeth was quite proud of her first book endeavor, she was disappointed that it was written under her penned persona, Halsey Woodrow. Unfortunately, unless you were in her close circle of friends, you'd have no idea that Elizabeth and Halsey were one in the same.

Six months ago…

"How is the last rewrite coming along?" Elizabeth's editor, Rosemary Coulter asked.

"I'm almost done and I decided on a title…"

"Okay, let me have it…"

"Where the Truth Lies…"

"I love it, and don't forget we have a meeting with the publishing company next Thursday. Will your rewrite be completed by then?" Rosemary asked.

"Absolutely; I'll see you in New York on Thursday."

"Hey Elizabeth, can you come into town on Wednesday and we'll have dinner?" Rosemary asked. "I haven't seen you for so long."

"I have nothing else going on…sure. I'll see you Wednesday."

On Wednesday morning, Elizabeth caught a flight out of Richmond International Airport, non-stop to JFK in New York City. There was a car waiting on her, taking her immediately to the Four Seasons Hotel, where she checked into the suite maintained by her publishing company, Phantom Books, for use by their clients.

Elizabeth was lying across the bed when her phone rang.

"Ms. Woodrow, we have a delivery here for you. Is it okay of we bring it up?" the front desk clerk asked.

"Sure; thank you…" she replied, somewhat puzzled by what the delivery could be.

Ten minutes later there was a knock on her door. As she opened it, there was a hotel employee holding a vase containing two dozen roses, half red, and half white.

"Oh my, please come in. You can set them down on the table," Elizabeth stated as she reached into her purse for a tip. "Thank you very much."

Elizabeth pulled the card from the pick in the middle of the arrangement. Opening the envelope she wasn't certain what to think…

"Beautiful flowers for a beautiful woman. Halsey, you will one day be mine…"

Several hours later Rosemary arrived and immediately took the elevator up to Elizabeth's suite. "Oh my, someone has an admirer. Who are they from?"

"Well, I don't know, but it isn't someone I know. Here, look at the card; they called me Halsey…"

The smile initially covering Rosemary's face quickly disappeared, "Has anyone been following you?"

"Not that I know of, but you know me, I'm too busy enjoying the sunshine and fresh air that I don't pay attention to stuff like that."

Rosemary pulled out her phone, "You better start paying attention." She turned her attention to her phone call, "Hey, this is Rosemary Coulter; is Mr. Lancaster there?" she asked the Phantom Books receptionist.

"No, he just stepped out," she replied.

"Okay, well, I need to talk to him as soon as he gets back in, okay?"

"Sure, I will make sure he knows."

"What's wrong?" Elizabeth asked.

"Are you that naïve?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Elizabeth, you just received flowers from someone and the card says that one day you will be theirs. It's not even you, it's Halsey, so they don't really know you, which means you most likely don't know them. Aren't you scared? Because if you aren't you should be."

"Well, it is kinda odd, but I'm sure it's nothing. Come on, let's go to dinner. Where are we going?" Elizabeth asked.

Not wanting to take her outside, Rosemary suggested that they go to "Cut," the Wolfgang Puck restaurant located inside the hotel.

"Sounds good."

Following their dinner, Rosemary asked for the check and was advised that the dinner was already covered.

"Excuse me, but who paid it?" Rosemary asked.

The waitress glanced over to the bar and stated, "Hmm, that's odd, he was right there."

"What did he look like?" Elizabeth asked.

"Um, his eyes were gorgeous…"

"Is that all you remember?" Rosemary inquired.

"Sorry, I'm kinda busy."

On their way back to the suite, Elizabeth joked, "Hmm, well if he's going to take care of all my bills maybe I should pick out a new Prada outfit."

"Are you seriously not scared?"

"I was just kidding about the Prada outfit, but I refuse to let someone scare me into submission. This is my life and thanks to someone in my past, I'm living it to the fullest."

"Well that's all fine and dandy, but you need to be careful; something isn't right here."

When Rosemary left Elizabeth's suite she advised, "Do not open this door to anyone. If someone comes here, call the front desk to make sure that they are who they say they are, okay?"

"Okay, I promise."

Early Thursday morning Rosemary was at Elizabeth's hotel room door.

Elizabeth grabbed her bag, opened the door and stepped out into the hallway.

Rosemary stood in disbelief, "You didn't even ask who it was at the door."

"Because I knew it was you."

"Elizabeth, you are going to make this very hard on us, and way too easy for him. Please be careful."

"I'm sorry. I just find it hard to believe that someone is truly that infatuated with me. I'm sure he'll get tired of the game."

Phantom Books, hired several security teams to protect Elizabeth, but she kept turning their services away. Elizabeth felt like a caged animal, and refused to live with an armed guard constantly by her side.

She kept telling herself that no one would be looking for Elizabeth Thatcher. They would be seeking her alter ego, her penned persona, "Halsey Woodrow." Somehow that thought made her feel a bit safer.

One week ago…

Elizabeth sat at a table in the Barnes and Noble book store located in a large Dallas shopping mall signing copies of her latest best seller, "Where the Truth Lies." She'd taken one break after signing what felt like a thousand copies, and had just returned to her seat when a sealed envelope was found on the table, stuck between two copies of her book.

Without thinking, she ripped open the envelope and removed its contents. Opening up the sheet of paper she found a typed letter, the words frightening her to her core as she released the correspondence and watched it float to the floor.

Rosemary, observing Elizabeth's startled expression, and rushed over to her. Seeing the white piece of paper against the neutral tweed colored carpet, she picked it up and began to peruse the words.

Looking back at Elizabeth, she stated, "I don't care what you say; now you will have security and you will accept their services," a firm acknowledgement that Elizabeth begrudgingly accepted.

Present Day…

Elizabeth sat in her hotel room in San Francisco, feeling much like a prisoner in her own skin. It wasn't that long ago, but then again it felt like a lifetime since she had been able to walk down the street feeling safe. Was it him? Was it her? Was it more than one person or maybe even someone she knew? She never thought there would come a time when she'd need security to do what she loved…writing.

Apparently more anonymous letters had recently been received by the publishing company threatening "Halsey's" safety. Elizabeth initially laughed it off, chalking it up to a crazed fan or fans that were unable to distinguish fact from fiction.

However, there she was skeptical of everyone she met, and simply those she'd pass on the street, wondering when the next threat would arrive, and would it be in the form of a letter, or something more aggressive and physical.

Rosemary knocked on her hotel room door, "Who is it?" Elizabeth called out.

"It's me…"

The door opened and Rosemary slipped inside. "Hey, I know you don't like the idea of having security, but Mr. Lancaster is ordering it at this point. So, you can't turn it away anymore. He is sending someone over and I'm just telling you that you have no choice, so please just accept it."

Elizabeth walked over to the window and pulled back the curtain, staring down at the street below. The knock on her door did nothing to jar her and she initially refused to turn away from the window.

Rosemary opened the door and invited the man inside. As he walked into the room he announced himself, "Hi, Miss Woodrow. My name is…"

Elizabeth turned around, "Jack…?"

"Elizabeth…?"

To be continued…