Elizabeth watched as Ally sat on the floor with Jack, half-heartedly playing with Jack's building logs. She knew the girl was worried about her uncle and her friends. Elizabeth shared those worries. As much as she wanted to rush down to the river to find out what was going on, Elizabeth knew that her place was with Ally and Jack right now. Nathan was expecting her to keep an eye on Ally. That was why he had sent her here.
At the knock on the door, Elizabeth got to her feet. Hurrying to it, she opened the door. Seeing Gabriel standing there instead of Nathan, Elizabeth felt a familiar feeling of dread creep into her heart. She remembered the face of the other Mountie who had brought her news of Jack's death.
"Gabriel, where's Nathan?" Elizabeth managed to ask.
"He's going to be okay, Elizabeth," Gabriel assured her, even as he reached out to place a supportive hand on one elbow. "Let's go inside and sit down," he added stepping inside.
Gabriel closed the front door and then steered Elizabeth over to the settee.
"Mr. Gabe?"Ally asked, her worried and concerns clear in the simple address.
"Come sit next to Mrs. Thornton," Gabriel instructed.
Ally got to her feet. Little Jack, unaware that anything was wrong, kept right on playing with the building logs. As Ally settled on the settee next to Elizabeth, Gabriel knelt down in front of the girl
Taking Ally's hands in his, Gabriel looked directly at her. "By time your uncle and I got to the river, Opal had fallen into the river but had managed to grab a hold of a fallen tree. Robert had kept her in sight so we knew exactly where she was. Your uncle went into the river to get her."
"Are they okay?" Ally asked, echoing the question that was on Elizabeth's lips as well.
"Dr. Shepherd thinks that they're both going to be just fine," Gabriel told her. "Opal's father to her home to get her settled in bed and warmed up. Dr. Shepherd and some men took your uncle home. He swallowed some water and has some injuries from getting hit by something in the river, but he was still awake and talking."
Ally nodded even as she started crying. Reaching out, Gabriel wrapped his arms around the little girl, letting her cry.
"It's going to be okay," Gabriel told her softly as he rubbed circles on her back with one hand.
As he held Ally, Gabriel looked over at Elizabeth, who had reached out and placed a hand on Ally's back.
"You okay?" Gabriel asked her.
Elizabeth nodded.
Keeping one arm tightly around Ally as she cried, Gabriel reached out and took a hold of Elizabeth's other hand. "Nathan didn't do anything reckless. He did things by the book, and both he and Opal are safe and will be fine."
Elizabeth managed a small smile. "It's just hard sometimes, but I'm proud of him," Elizabeth managed. "It takes courage to do the job you both do. To do the job Jack did."
"We couldn't do it without the support of our loved ones," Gabriel replied.
Elizabeth nodded.
In Gabriel's embrace, Ally had stopped crying. "Can I go see him?" she asked.
"We can go to your house but you'll have to wait for Dr. Shepherd's okay to see your uncle, okay."
"Okay," Ally said pulling away.
Gabriel looked at her. "I want you to do something for me, Ally," he told her. "I want you to try not to cry in front of your uncle right now. He doesn't need the extra worry. If you need a shoulder to cry on, you come and find me, okay sweetie."
"Or me," Elizabeth added, reaching out with a hand to smooth Ally's hair.
"Okay," Ally said again, reaching up to wipe tears away.
While Elizabeth gathered some things for Little Jack, Gabriel went to the little boy.
"Hey, Jack, remember me?" Gabriel asked.
"Gabe!" the little boy said, smiling as he waved one of his building logs in the air.
"That's right," Gabriel said, surprised by the response. Though he had been trying since last Saturday to get Jack to say his name, this was the first time he had used it. "We're going to all go for a little walk. How about I get your jacket on you," Gabriel said, reaching out to pick the child up.
Little Jack happily let Gabriel pick him up, reaching out for the brim of the Stetson that the Mountie still wore.
"You really do like the hat," Gabriel commented as he turned to find Jack's coat.
Turning, he found Ally, coat already on, holding the tiny toddler coat out to him.
"Thank-you, Ally," Gabriel said, taking the coat.
A short time later, the little group was stepping out of Elizabeth's house. Little Jack was now in Elizabeth's arms, though the little boy had Gabriel's Stetson in his hands. With an arm around Ally's shoulder, Gabriel took a hold of Apollo's reigns, leading the horse as the group made the short trek down the row of houses.
Outside of the Grant home, Bill's horse was tied. Removing his harm from around Ally, Gabriel quickly tied Apollo next to Ember and then escorted Elizabeth and the children into the house.
"Carson's still upstairs with him," Bill informed them as the group filed into the house. "I made some coffee," Bill said pulling out a chair for Elizabeth even as Gabriel helped her out of her coat.
"Thank-you," Elizabeth murmured, heading to the chair with Little Jack as Gabriel took Ally's coat and led the girl to another chair.
"Would you like some hot chocolate?" Bill asked Ally, having found the stuff he would need while looking for the things to put coffee on. Gabriel had already retrieved to mugs and moved to the coffee pot.
Ally shrugged her shoulders.
"I'll take that as a yes," Bill said, unfazed by the lack of response.
While Gabriel got coffee for him and Elizabeth, Bill went about making hot chocolate for Ally. After giving Elizabeth her coffee Gabriel moved one of the chairs so he could set down next to Ally. His own coffee in one hand, he reached out and put his arm around Ally's shoulder. Ally leaned against him.
Finishing the hot chocolate, Bill poured some into the mug and added a little milk. Handing the mug to Ally, Bill sat down in the fourth chair.
"Thank-you," Ally told him.
"You're welcome," Bill told her.
The little group sat in silence, sipping from their mugs though none of them really tasted what was in them. Little Jack, Gabriel's Stetson still in his hands, seemed to pick up on the mood of the adults around them and was quiet. Footsteps on the stairs had all of them looking in that direction.
"I see I've got a roomful of people waiting for me," Carson said easily as he stepped off the last step. "Nathan is doing well," he said not waiting for anyone to ask the question he knew was on all of their hearts and mine. "His lungs sound clear and it appears that the back injury is just some bad bruising. He just needs a couple of days of rest and he should be up and about for a certain young lady's birthday party," Carson said, addressing the last comment to Ally.
"Can I go see him?" Ally asked.
"Of course," Carson said. "He's exhausted from his swim in the river so he might be sleeping though," he warned.
"I just want to see him," Ally said. She looked toward Elizabeth. "Can you come with me, Mrs. Thornton?"
"Of course," Elizabeth said, getting to her feet, Little Jack in her arms. The Stetson had finally found its way to the table top.
"Gabe," Little Jack said, reaching out his hands to the Mountie.
"I'm his god father and he says everyone else's name before mine," Bill commented. "Though I'm still blaming the uniform in some cases," he added as Gabe took Jack from Elizabeth.
Gabriel watched as Ally and Elizabeth made their way upstairs. When he felt they were safely out of ear shot, Gabriel looked to Carson. "What didn't you say, Carson?"
"He really is doing well right now," the doctor said. "My concern is the fact that he swallowed some water. Even though his lungs are clear now there could still be complications. I've got him propped up with pillows for now, and he shouldn't lay flat until at least tomorrow. We need to keep a close eye on him for the next twenty-four hours."
Gabriel nodded. "I'll stay here tonight instead of the saloon."
Carson nodded. "Good. You and I can take shifts so we can both get some sleep, then."
"I can help out too," Bill supplied.
"Sounds good. Right now, I want to go check on Opal again. If you need me before I make it back, that's where I'll be," Carson told them, before heading for the door.
As the door shut behind Carson, Gabriel turned to Bill.
"Can you stay here for a little while right now?" Gabriel asked him. "I don't want to leave Ally and Elizabeth here alone right now."
"Yeah. What are you going to do?"
"I want to go talk to Robert," Gabriel said. "I want to make sure he's doing okay. No one could really give him any reassurance out there and if he hadn't kept Opal in sight we might not have found her."
"Good idea," Bill said. "He's going to make a good Mountie one day."
"Robert's interested in becoming a Mountie?" Gabriel asked as he passed Little Jack to his god father.
"He is," Bill said. "He was actually thinking of leaving school early and joining at seventeen. He spent some time shadowing Nathan and decided to put off the decision."
"Glad to hear that. Finishing school is just as important as being a Mountie," Gabriel said. "I doubt Ally will even realize I'm gone, but should she come down, assure her that I will be back soon."
"I will," Bill said, as Gabriel picked up his hat and headed for the door. "So, god son," Bill said focusing on the toddler in his arms. "You've said just about everybody else's name in your little circle, can you say Uncle Bill?"
Little Jack looked up at Bill with a confused look on his face.
"That's okay, I love you anyway," Bill told him, hugging the boy close.
Elizabeth followed Ally up the steps. This was the first time she had been upstairs in the Grant's household and she was feeling a little nervous. While she was sure Nathan would welcome a visit from Ally, she couldn't help but wonder if this might be a little too personal at this stage of their relationship. However, Ally had asked her to come with her and she did want to see with her own eyes that Nathan was indeed doing okay.
Reaching the top of the stairs, Elizabeth followed Ally down the hallway. She stood behind the young girl, as Ally came to a stop in one of the doorways.
"Uncle Nathan, are you awake?" Ally asked tentatively.
Propped up a bit with some pillows, Nathan opened his eyes and turned his head toward the door.
"I'm awake, Ally," Nathan replied. "Come on in."
Ally moved forward going Nathan's bedside. Elizabeth took a tentative step into the room. Though he didn't say anything to her, Nathan acknowledged her presence with his gaze.
"Are you okay?" Ally asked standing at the bedside.
"I'm fine, Ally," Nathan assured her. "Just a little tired and sore," he told her.
"Is it okay if I gave you a hug?"
"I'd like that very much," Nathan told her, patting the mattress beside him.
Sitting on the side of the bed, Ally leaned over and gave her uncle a hug. Nathan reached up and put an arm securely around his niece.
"Everything is okay, sweetie," Nathan assured her, resting his chin gently against the top of his niece's head.
"I love you," Ally said, the words muffled against the blankets. "I don't think I tell you that enough."
"You don't need to say it, Ally. I know that. I love you too and I'm proud of you," he added.
"Proud of me?" Ally said, sounding confused. As she sat up, the expression on her face expressed that confusion as well.
"Yes," Nathan told her. "You listened to what I told you about the river being dangerous right now because of the rain and you didn't go down there."
"But I couldn't stop the others."
"True," Nathan conceded. "However, you're not responsible for their actions. You told them of the dangers and when they wouldn't listen to you, then you came and got me. Things could have turned out differently if you hadn't done that. You helped save Opal's life today. So yeah, I'm very proud of you today."
Ally ducked her head. Her cheeks pink.
"Now, what do you say you go grab a book and come back and read to me, seeing as Dr. Shepherd has me on bed rest for the next day or two."
"Okay," Ally replied, sliding from the bed and heading out of the room.
"How are you feeling, Nathan?" Elizabeth asked taking a couple of steps forward.
"Like a huge tree branch hit me but that's probably because it did," he replied.
Elizabeth smiled, feeling a bit better knowing that he was feeling well enough to make jokes.
"Just make sure you listen to Carson," Elizabeth told him.
"I'm quite sure Gabriel will make sure that happens," Nathan told her.
"Good. When he showed up at my door instead of you . . ."
Elizabeth let the words trail off. She didn't want to put those fears into words though she was sure Nathan knew where her thoughts were at.
Nathan held out his hand to her. Closing the distance between her and the bed, Elizabeth took it.
"Elizabeth, my job is always going to be dangerous. I can't change that and as much as I'd like to say I'd give it up for you, I don't think I'd be happy doing anything else."
"I wouldn't want to you to stop being a Mountie. I know how big a part of you the job is. Just like it was with Jack. It's your calling. Just like teaching is my calling."
"Teaching is a little safer of a calling."
Elizabeth laughed. "It depends on how you look at it," she replied. "My mom was not happy that my calling took me so far from home and getting here turned out to be quite an adventure even with a Mountie escort."
"That sounds like quite a story to hear," Nathan commented.
"Yes, the city girl coming out to the wilderness had quite a few adventures," Elizabeth admitted. "I'm sure there will be plenty of time for me to recount some of those early days," she told him. She gave his hand a squeeze as she continued. "I'm not going anywhere, Nathan. Fears and all, I'm in this for the long haul."
"You're a brave woman, Elizabeth Thornton."
"I have to be," Elizabeth said lightly. "I fell in love with a brave Mountie, not once but twice," she said, leaning down and placing a quick kiss on his cheek just before Ally came back into the room.