Nathan turned his head towards the sound of approaching hoofbeats and watched with bated breath as the three Mounties from Edmonton rode quickly up Main Street from the eastern road, decked fully in their red surges. He snapped his head back towards Berry, who threw his cigar carelessly into the dirt, moving his hand towards his hip, where his weapon was holstered. Unfortunately, his movement did not go unnoticed by the approaching enforcement, who sadly did miss Constable Northrop's figure, hanging back in the doorway of the jailhouse, making a poor attempt at motioning towards the group to stop their speedy approach. A neck in Nathan's vein throbbed as he pondered Northrop's apparent shortcomings in investigative operations; the man was too predictable, too rigid, too nervous for this line of work. Nathan knew he was rather inexperienced, having only finished training a few years ago, but he would be surprised if Northrop had graduated anywhere above the middle of his cohort.

One of the approaching Mounties called out, "I think that's Berry!" Which prompted Berry to turn quickly, bounding up the stairs into the bank, throwing open the door wildly as he rushed inside.

Nathan cursed in his head, knowing this change in events had just put the five civilians inside that bank in immense immediate danger. He pressed his hand against his front right pocket, checking for the fiftieth time that day that he still had the key to the bank's rear door secretively stashed there. He knew he had to get inside that bank unnoticed by both the three Edmonton Mounties, who could suspect him for a criminal in his plain clothes, and whichever members of Terrell's gang were undoubtedly lurking around the area. And he had to do it now.

He walked swiftly across Main Street, towards the mercantile and rushed right through towards the rear exit Constable Northrop told him would be there. Seeing the owner was engaged in conversation with a customer, he called out to him, "You all stay inside! There's about to be a gun fight outside." Before either could reply, Nathan entered the stockroom. He looked quickly about the rear, scanning for any sign of movement. Not seeing anyone or anything suspicious either outside or from the visible bank windows next door, he removed his gun and held it up as he moved outside and took the few steps between the mercantile and the bank's rear exit. He had just placed the key in the lock when he heard the unmistakable sound of gunfire erupt. Holding his breath, he used the diversion to his advantage, swiftly opening the door, hoping the gunfire would drown out any noise he made upon entering the bank.

Lucas practically jumped with the abruptness with which the front door had been flung open. Seeing it was Berry who'd done it, he knew something outside had triggered the man's entry and he worried his friends might be in danger out there. He glanced quickly out the window nearest him and spotted flashes of red surge. In his mind, he sighed, realizing what had driven Berry inside: Mounted Police. The Edmonton Mounties must have finally shown up and spooked him. What on earth had taken them this long to get here? They were supposed to be here last night and it was just after one o'clock in the afternoon now! Clearly Northrop had not been able to inform them of the plan and now, they were all in danger because of it.

Things had been going quite well up until this moment. Neither Kelley O'Rourke, a man of about fifty with a thick Irish accent who Marty described as kindly and loyal yet sometimes unmindful, nor Clarence Abbott, a forty-something quiet and fastidious man, had been informed of the potential danger today. Constable Northrop thought it unwise, saying the two tellers were unlikely to be able to keep a secret and he suspected Clarence, particularly, would be unable to remain calm if he suspected anything amiss happening. Marty had reluctantly agreed with that assessment but he was displeased having to lie to his employees. However, Marty's two tellers had not questioned Lucas' cover story at all. In fact, because Marty seemed on edge, they were also both on edge, immediately assuming their jobs were on the line if they didn't perform to Lucas' satisfaction. He decided to use that to his advantage and chastised Marty in front of both of them for the fact that they opened the bank five minutes late. Marty had risen his eyebrows at the remark and Lucas replied warmly, "Marty, I'm sorry but just because we've been close friends the last five years, that doesn't mean I'm able to take my own duties any less seriously. I still have to report all infractions."

Catching on to his change in tactic, Marty had sighed dramatically, "I understand, George." Then he bucked his chin up and resolutely remarked, "I am certain you will not find any further infractions though." He looked pointedly at the tellers who nodded in agreement. And so the hours had passed with the three of them trying their utmost to impress him and Lucas making a few critical comments here and there of Marty's command, between lighthearted conversation they improvised about their nonexistent past friendship. Kelley and Clarence, therefore, were entirely unsuspecting that Lucas was not who he claimed to be, despite the fact that he knew his acting was beyond subpar, as was Marty's. But they'd pulled it off for Kelley and Clarence, as well as for the dozen or so customers who'd thus far walked in. So Lucas had hoped the ruse would last when Clifford Highton finally made his appearance, just after one o'clock.

Highton and the red haired man, who'd been introduced to them as a Mr. Cornelius Deluca and his associate, Mr. Angus MacLagan, had gone with the second scheme Marty had envisioned: cashing in forged government bond bills. Marty had allowed Kelley to begin serving them. Lucas was thus very relieved Highton had appeared when he did, when Clarence was busy assisting the young woman with a large deposit her father had sent her in with. Marty was back in his office, feigning pouring over some records that Lucas had requested to look over, trying to keep up their ruse for the tellers that Lucas was there to inspect the branch's operations. Kelley had just finished helping Mrs. Gorton when they walked in, so Lucas had wandered over to her, to introduce himself and free up Kelley so they could get Highton out of there as quickly as possible.

As he chatted with Mrs. Gorton a few moments longer than he would have liked, he had kept his ear trained on Kelley's conversation with the men.

'Angus MacLagen' asked Kelley gruffly, "Who's the new guy?"

Kelley whispered conspiratorially, "He's a friend of Marty's but he's also a bank monitor and he's already caught us in a few infractions. I'm a little nervous for my job, honestly, mister. I'd assume Marty's safe since they've known each other like five years, but if you could put in a good word when you leave, I'd appreciate it." Highton and 'MacLagen' exchanged a brief concerned look but Highton gave 'MacLagen' a slight nod and they pressed on. Kelley asked brightly, "How can I help you today? Would you like to make another deposit, Mr. Deluca?"

In that moment, Lucas was glad Northrop had recommended not informing the two tellers of the plan, as Kelley could not possibly have played his response to 'MacLagen's' inquiry any better. Lucas was sure he would have fouled it up nervously if he'd been privy to the true purpose of Lucas' presence in that bank today.

Highton replied, "No deposits. We have some bank bonds that we'd like to cash in though."

"Certainly," Kelley smiled. As Highton began putting the bond notes onto the counter, Kelley asked in surprise, "How much in bonds will you be cashing in today?"

"Seven thousand," 'MacLagen' replied.

"You have seven thousand in bank bonds you say?" Kelley marvelled.

"Yes, that is what I said. Are you hard of hearing?" Highton replied with haughty nervousness.

Kelley cleared his throat, trying to keep his tone respectful, though he was clearly affronted, "No, I heard you fine, sir. It's just we don't normally cash that much in a single transaction. I'd need to ask my manager about that."

Lucas worried for a moment how Highton would react to Kelley's reply. He turned to look at Marty, who also looked a bit distressed but was trying diligently to pretend he was busy with the ledgers Lucas had requested. Swallowing, he looked down at Mrs. Gorton, interrupting her tirade about her son's deranged rooster who crowed all hours of the night, "Ma'am, would you excuse me for one moment, please? I'll be right back."

He hobbled over to Kelley and put his hand on the man's back, murmuring, "What seems to be the problem here, Mr. O'Rourke?"

Kelley stammered nervously, "Well, Mr. Howard, these men want to cash in seven thousand in bank bonds."

Highton squirmed nervously in his seat. Lucas looked down briefly at the bonds and immediately noted their inappreciable discoloration. Marty had showed him multiple last night, reviewing possible methods for identifying a forgery. He picked one up and turned it over in his fingers; they were indeed forged, just slightly too thick. He placed it back down in front of Kelley and squeezed his shoulder slightly, as he gave the older man what he hoped came off as a disappointed stare. He grumbled, "Well then, I don't see the problem. You are aware company policy on this changed two months ago, are you not?"

Kelley stammered uncomfortably, "I uh. I."

Lucas sighed dramatically, remarking in a patronizing tone, "Mr. O'Rourke, the bank's limitation on government bond deposits is ten thousand dollars. Please finish assisting these gentlemen."

Marty interjected, "But, sir. The manager normally inspects any bond deposits above two hundred dollars."

"And I have just done so," Lucas countered, irritated.

Feigning disinterested aggravation, Marty called from his office, "Kelley, please follow Mr. Howard's instructions. I hope you do recall the memo we reviewed last month regarding the change in bank policy regarding bond deposits."

"Yes, sir," Kelley replied, flummoxed.

Lucas bowed his head towards Highton and his associate, "My apologies gentlemen for the misunderstanding. The staff here are clearly in need of retraining."

Highton cleared his throat, moderately relaxing his stance, "No problem, sir. Thank you."

Kelley frowned, his brow furrowed and began counting out the bank notes, as Lucas walked back towards Mrs. Gorton. He, again, was glad Kelley and Clarence weren't informed about his true identity as he knew the ruse would've been harder to pull off if Kelley knew Lucas wasn't actually his superior and was just making up bank policy on the fly. In actuality, he had no idea what or if there were a limitation. He should have asked Marty about that.

Mrs. Gorton remarked, "Well I do hope everything is alright." She then whispered, "And I hope you won't fire anyone."

Lucas smiled, "Oh not to worry, Mrs. Gorton, I have not seen a need for that yet. I am sure I will have this branch back in compliance within the next week or so, with a little refreshment of company policies."

She scowled at Marty through his open office door, likely presuming the poor man was incompetent now. "Well I should hope so. I should be on my way."

Lucas knew the old lady was about to rush out and inform whichever townsfolk would listen that Marty was mismanaging the bank and he felt a little guilty for encouraging the spread of false rumors. But he wanted her out of there and he wanted Kelley to finish Highton's transaction as quickly as possible, and this seemed like the easiest path to ensure that. He suspected Kelley would be less diligent in inspecting those bonds if he'd been chastised and he was hoping the man wouldn't quickly discern them to be forged, as they undoubtedly were. If he did, he might raise his suspicions to Marty, which could then result in an altercation inside, one he and Marty were desperate to avoid.

Lucas walked Mrs. Gorton outside, surprised to see a man clearly matching Berry's description there, smoking at the entrance. He had been speaking to Marty when Highton came in, discussing options in the area for dining. They were both hungry but anxious about leaving the bank; something they both wished they'd thought of when preparing that morning. Kelley had taken his lunch break at eleven and Clarence at just before twelve. Marty was overdue for his and Lucas could tell, without being told so, that that made Marty anxious. He knew they were both wondering if Terrell's gang was waiting for the manager to leave for his break before making their move.

Lucas suspected if Berry were standing guard outside, it likely meant Highton would commit armed robbery if their bond scheme failed. He also figured it meant there were more gang members lurking about, ready to assist if things went awry and that made him tense. He hoped his nerves hadn't shown during the brief exchange he had with the man as Mrs. Gorton exited, but truthfully, Lucas reckoned the only time he'd ever been this on edge was when Amos was holding Elizabeth at gunpoint. Lucas was beginning to feel he didn't have the stomach for involvement in law enforcement as his was entirely in knots now.

So he'd turned back inside, having encouraged Mrs. Gorton to leave and given Nathan a quick signal he hoped the Mountie had seen, and was observing as Kelley slowly counted out the seven thousand in bills at the desk on the left and Clarence spoke softly with the young woman on the right. Clarence was quickly nearing the end of his transaction, and Lucas silently hoped he'd slow things down.

The last thing they wanted was to have her exit at the same time as the gang members and end up in a crossfire outside or worse, becoming taken hostage by them. Now that he knew Berry was outside, he didn't want to risk sending her out. He wanted her inside, with him and Marty, away from the likely coming skirmish. He drummed his fingers on his cane, pondering options. He was leaning towards flirting with her, noting she didn't have a wedding band on. He hoped she wasn't taken because he had no other solid ideas. She'd already spoken amiably with Marty for a few minutes about her father's farm when she arrived, so he doubted she'd trust him suggesting she needed to speak to Marty further about something, but it was worth a shot as he didn't entirely trust his own skills in posturing and wasn't sure she'd even have interest in reciprocating such a playful banter, it ran the risk of driving her out, away from his advances and into possible actual danger. He didn't know what Marty had running through his head or if he'd taken note of Berry outside but they'd told Marty about the gang's proclivities in preying on young women though, so if he had seen Berry, Lucas hoped Marty would also see the necessity of keeping her protected in here.

Checking to ensure Highton and his friend weren't watching him, Lucas then turned towards Marty and gave a him a pointed look, motioning his eyebrows towards the young woman, then back towards Marty's office. Marty clearly understood him, standing quickly and walking swiftly over towards Clarence, who was just handing over the woman's written receipt. Marty stated jovially, "Maggie, I just remembered that Bianca wanted to me to discuss something with you. Can you spare a few more minutes?"

"Of course, Marty," she replied amiably.

The two of them walked back toward his office, leaving his door open. Lucas heard him saying, "I think we may need some help with Eleanor when this baby comes." He'd taken out a sheet of paper and was scribbling something quickly as he spoke. "I know you have shifts during the day, but are you ever free evenings?"

"Oh Marty, I don't have a lot of experience with young children," she replied quickly, obviously uninterested in the proposition.

He slid the paper towards her as he replied, "That wouldn't be necessary. She needs help around the house and just keeping Ellie occupied. This here is a list of the main duties, if you have experience with that, would you just write that down so I can have Bianca consider it?"

When she didn't immediately respond, he pressed gently, "Please. I know Eleanor is a bit of a handful but we really could use the help."

"Of course, Marty," she replied, her voice sounding uncertain.

Marty stood up, smiling, "Excellent. Thank you. I'll be back in a few minutes."

He walked out of his office, closing the door behind him and asked Clarence pleasantly, "So what was the special at the cafe today?"

At that precise moment, Berry had thrown open the door, causing all the men inside the bank to turn towards him with a start. Lucas purposefully focused on Berry, ignoring his own curiosity as to how Highton and the other man would respond to Berry's appearance. Trying to sound in control of himself and unconcerned, he asked Berry pleasantly, "How can I help you, sir?"

Berry looked back out towards the door, his forehead perspiring. He looked pointedly towards Highton and his associate and groaned, "Just wanted to see what was taking my boss so long."

Lucas then looked back towards Highton, who shrugged, trying (but failing) to stay calm. Lucas saw his hand twitching nervously on his thigh as his red-haired guard moved his own hand over his holstered weapon, unsnapping the buckle. Highton answered, "Nearly done, I think."

Not wanting Kelley to become suspicious or panic at the odd exchange, Lucas ambled over to him to assist, desiring to shift the teller back towards nerves regarding his supposed inspection. He remarked, "Oh yes, I think Mr. O'Rourke is nearly done here. I do apologize for the delay, we had a bit of hiccup in misremembering a few branch policies. Let me help count out the bills."

Kelley, now feeling affronted again (as Lucas had hoped), grumbled, "No need, Mr. Howard. I am capable of counting."

Lucas replied sternly, "I do not appreciate the tone, Mr. O'Rourke." He turned to Marty and scoffed, "Marty, I had expected more from your employees! I am finding the customer service to be severely lacking here!"

Marty swallowed, trying to feign concern for his bank's failures, "I do apologize, George." He rose his eyebrows at Kelley, who went back to diligently counting out his bills, his brow sweating. Turning back to Clarence, he stated, "It wasn't roast beef again was it?"

Clarence replied, "No. Curried egg sandwiches. An atrocity if you ask me, Marty. Whoever heard of putting such horrid spice on eggs?"

Marty shook his head in playful outrage, "Who indeed, Clarence. I actually don't care much for cold eggs to begin with."

"Nor I!" Clarence snorted. The two of them continued their discussion of the cafe's menu options quietly.

Kelley was just finishing counting out the final bills in front of Highton and 'Mr. Angus MacLagan' when three thunderous booms crackled in the air. Lucas knew immediately what it was. Gunfire had erupted outside. His heart sank with the realization that Nathan and Bill were likely in danger now, and most probably, he and the three bank employees would be soon as well.

Trying to use his wits to calm the situation or at least bide them time, Lucas moved over to the window to assess the threat. He couldn't immediately see Nathan anywhere, which did not surprise him given their plan. He hadn't heard anyone enter the back door but he suspected, because Highton was still here, that Nathan was either already inside the bank or very close to it, having seen the Mounties approaching. He felt some relief with the expectation. Bill's riffle was now visible from the roof of the dentist's office, aiming downwards at the four men in plainclothes, who were pushing towards the three Edmonton Mounties, who themselves were now dispersed on the sides of the street, trying to make their way towards the bank, as the gang tried to keep them back. Lucas could no longer see Constable Northrop outside the jail and wondered where he'd gone off to. He hoped the man was alright.

Those three shots turned into a quick succession, causing Lucas to move away from the window in alarm. Taking a deep breath, and not even failing to hide his alarm, he said to the men in the bank, "There's some kind of trouble out there."

He watched as Marty leaned down and whispered something in Clarence's ear. The man, his face ashen, nodded and accepted the key Marty had fished out of his pocket. He stood and walked quickly back to Marty's office. Lucas was relieved Clarence had been so quick, as Berry, Highton and 'Angus MacLagan' didn't have time to rush across the bank to stop him. Thus, Clarence slipped into Marty's office, presumably locking it behind him, leaving only Marty, Kelley and himself with the known criminals. Lucas wished fervently that Marty had gone with Clarence. Little Eleanor's face flashed in Lucas' mind as he thought about her, Bianca and the baby. He thought about Elizabeth and the pain she'd gone through, still went through at times, without having Jack by her side, and he felt a bit angry that Marty hadn't locked himself behind that door the first chance he got.

But he also understood why he hadn't. A captain, after all, is obliged to go down with his ship. And this was Marty's ship. And Kelley was one of Marty's most trusted mates. Lucas knew from the decision Marty had just made that he would have to find a way to get Kelley out of this mess if he had any hope of saving Marty from it too. And he knew he had to save Marty from it; no matter what personal risk he himself might have to take to do it. Because Marty's wife and children needed him back tonight.

Lucas turned back to the gang members, apologizing, "I am so sorry for the trouble. I guess Wildwood is more wild than I imagined." He snorted at his own lame joke, then quickly swallowed seeing nobody else appeared amused. This was not going well. He added, "Hopefully their little skirmish will be over soon. But it seems the most prudent thing for us all to do would be to stay put." Was that the most prudent thing? Essentially barricading himself and the others inside with three known criminals? He tried to think quickly, wondering how he could get Marty and Kelley out of danger, how he could get himself out of danger, understanding it was unlikely the gang members would remain in here, calmly, for much longer.

He'd promised Elizabeth that he wouldn't do anything reckless, and he hadn't intended to, but with the present situation unfolding as it was, he had no idea which of the options rushing through his mind would be considered reckless because he had no way of knowing the outcomes any of those options would present. He didn't know how these three men would respond. How Marty or Kelley would react. If Nathan were, for sure, even in the bank. If Terrell's entire gang was just one second from all bursting through that door. All Lucas knew was that he wanted himself, Marty, Kelley, Clarence and Maggie to somehow be magicked away to their homes. But he'd, sadly, never learned a magic trick as complex as disappearance. All Lucas could manage were a few card tricks and some slights of hand.

He turned to Marty and asked in what he hoped was a pleasant tone, "Do you have any refreshments you can offer our guests while we wait?"

Marty rose his eyebrow for a moment and then caught on, turning to Kelley and stating in an even tone, "Certainly. Kelley, I think I have some shortbread cookies in the back room. Could you bring them out please?"

Kelley looked at Marty perplexed but nodded and stood up. Lucas refrained from rolling his eyes. He wanted Marty himself to go back there. To see if Nathan had managed to get in. To keep himself out of harm's way. To, if necessary, unholster his own weapon and waltz swiftly, unsuspectingly, back in here to eliminate Berry or 'MacLagen' while Lucas took out the other. But, again, Marty hadn't made that choice. He'd chosen to risk himself to save a man he employed. And Lucas knew that meant he would be risking himself to save this man who he'd only know for twenty-four hours but could not imagine the world going on without. Lucas could not imagine Bianca's suffering if she lost him. And so, Lucas said a silent prayer that the two of them would both walk out of this bank alive and that if, for some reason, he couldn't, Elizabeth would forgive him for breaking the promise he'd made her. That she'd forgive him for 'acting the hero' when his heart and mind and conscience were torn between self-preservation and the utter necessity of protecting an innocent man who'd trusted him, sheltered him, and without second thought, chosen to protect the lives of three others today, at unknown risk to himself.

The gravity of the situation became realer as he watched Highton, Berry and 'Angus MacLagan' look between the three bankers suspiciously. Wanting to reassess the outside threat, Lucas glanced out the window quickly again and spied one of the Terrell gang ascending the ladder Bill had used to climb up to the roof of the dental office. His heart sank as his eyes traveled up towards Bill's figure, which was now kneeling, firing quickly down at the men gathered in the street. Lucas knew he was unaware of the approaching doom, and he assumed the Mounties were as well, because none of them had view of this side of the dental office and none appeared to be moving in that direction, attempting to intercept the man. Lucas' breath hitched as he internally acknowledged that Bill Avery was not going back to Hope Valley alive. Knowing three armed men were now staring at his back, Lucas wasn't sure if he would be either.