Chapter 91 – Dealing with Rushman

Everyone in that room, minus Rushman, would do what they needed to protect Jack and Elizabeth's privacy. Rushman didn't need to know who Elizabeth's family because it didn't make any difference.

"I have to agree with Lee." Abigail said. "Jack said that there was a load of donated supplies and it doesn't matter where it came from. I believe Jack when he said it was donated. Also since Hamilton Shipping has a contract with Lee, it would make sense that they wanted to supply things to protect their investment."

"Well." Rushman said. "I have heard some things, I think that you are just covering for Thornton and his little Hamilton princess. I bet he is just like his father."

"Captain." Wynn said. "I would shut up while you still have those stripes on your shoulder. I approved Corporal Thornton's emergency plan. I was also contacted by a well respected business man in Hamilton about donating supplies. So unless you have proof that those items were stolen, I would shut up. I know Thornton and I knew his father and both are honorable men. I will not have you spreading rumors about a good Mountie. I don't want to hear another word about it or I will strip you of those captain's stripes. In case you forgot, I am Deputy Commissioner and have that power without question. Now are we going to have a problem?"

"No." Rushman huffed.

"Good." Wynn said.

"Can I say something?" Charlotte asked.

"Go ahead." Wynn said.

"Rushman." Charlotte said. "I don't know if you remember me, I am Charlotte Thornton. The wife of the late Sergeant Major Thomas Thornton and mother to Jack. If I hear you smear my late husband or son one more time, we are going to have a problem. Just so you know, I rope and ride. I am also the one that taught Jack to shoot. My brother has a huge cattle ranch out near Aberdeen, and I am not afraid of you. Are we clear?"

"You can't talk to me like that." Rushman huffed.

"I just did." Charlotte said.

"Rushman, you have been warned." Wynn said. "I wouldn't cross a woman that can shoot your ass. Now there is plenty to do and I would like to talk to Constable McGinty. Also, I would like for Bill here to stay for a minute."

Everyone except Bill and Wynn stood to leave. Lee was the first out the door.

"Rushman." Wynn said. "Sit back down."

Rushman just looked at Wynn, but did what he was told. Pastor Frank, Charlotte and Abigail got up to leave. As she passed Wynn, Abigail handed him a set of keys to the office. Dee also stood and started gathering his notes. He knew that his dad was pissed and kind of wanted to get out of there. Dee looked to Wynn and received the answer to the unspoken question. As soon as the door was closed and it was just Wynn, Bill and Rushman, Wynn turned and stared at Rushman.

"I think that we have a problem here." Wynn said. "Bill any ideas how we could solve this problem?"

"I have a few, Sir." Bill said. "Back in my day, one Mountie didn't spread rumor or talk behind another's back without consequences."

"Care to share." Wynn said still staring down Rushman.

"Let me ask the Captain here a couple questions." Bill said. "Rushman where did you grow up and where have you served since leaving the academy?"

Rushman didn't say anything, but just stared at Bill.

"I don't have to answer you." Rushman said.

"No." Wynn said. "But you better start speaking before I get angry at your insubordination."

"Fine." Rushman said. "I was born in Montreal. I went to the academy. I served in Regina and then I was assigned to Benson Hills."

Bill and Wynn look at each other. Bill saw it in Wynn's eyes and thought he know what he was going to do. Bill got up and looked at Rushman, only to shake his head. Bill knew that Rushman needed a dose of humility and he figured that Wynn would send him somewhere that made Benson Hills look like a really good place to be stationed.

"I will send in McGinty." Bill said. "I think I see him on the porch."

"Okay." Wynn said. "Also please find Dee and send him back. I have an additional task for him."

"Of course." Bill said as he reached the door.

"Can I go?" Rushman asked.

"Yes, but you are to go to the office building and I don't want you to talk to the towns people other then a polite greeting between here and there." Wynn said. "Am I clear?"

"Yes Sir." Rushman said.

Rushman stood and saluted Wynn as McGinty walked in. McGinty saluted Rushman, but only received a glare in response. McGinty then saluted Wynn.

"You wanted to see me, Sir." McGinty said.

"Yes." Wynn said. "Sit, relax. I just wanted to ask you a few questions."

McGinty took a seat but didn't relax. He was afraid of what was going to happen. While Wynn and McGinty were talking, Bill went to find Dee. He wasn't that hard to find. He figured that he would be at the jail doing what his dad asked. Bill let him know that Wynn was looking for him and then excused himself and said that he was going to check on something.

After leaving her office, Abigail and Charlotte headed back to the cafe. They both wanted to check on Jack and Elizabeth. They found the pair asleep. Abigail didn't want to wake them, but she knew that they needed to know what happened. She quickly looked at Charlotte and without speaking she nodded. Charlotte could see what Abigail was thinking. Abigail went down and got some tea to bring up, while Charlotte woke the pair.

"Jack." Charlotte said. "Please wake up. I need to talk to you."

Elizabeth was the first to stir, but then Jack opened his eyes. Charlotte helped him sit up and about that time, Abigail was back upstairs with a tray of tea.

"I am sorry that I woke you." Charlotte said. "But I think you need to know what happened."

"I will go." Elizabeth said.

"No stay." Abigail said. "You know part of this already. You may as well as hear the rest."

"First of all, Jack." Charlotte said. "I wanted to let you know that everything is under control and people are doing what they are suppose to. I don't want you to worry, but when I saw the number of injured, I had Bill send word to Benson Hills and Buxton for help. Well anyway Captain Rushman showed up earlier today and he has been causing problems."

Jack tried to get up, but Elizabeth and Charlotte stopped him.

"No need to worry." Abigail said. "Wynn and Dee also showed up this afternoon and have dealt with Rushman. He proceeded to really upset Wynn when he accused you and the town of stealing many of the supplies that we received. He was set straight that they were donated, but we didn't go into specifically from who. For some reason, he doesn't like you and also called Elizabeth 'your Hamilton princess'. Now before you get upset, Wynn is angry with him and threatened to strip him of his captain's stripes. Charlotte here also gave him a good dressing down. I just wanted you to be aware of what happened. There are three other Mounties with Rushman, including McGinty."

"Wynn made it clear." Charlotte continued. "That Bill, Abigail and Lee are in charge. I don't know what is going to happen, but I will let you know if there is anything else. Before you ask, I just reminded Rushman that I was not be crossed. I think he got the point."

"Okay." Jack said. "I don't even want to know what you said Ma. I can just about imagine. I am sure that he got the point if he is still standing. I am sure that it involved your scary teacher face I have a couple of questions, if you can answer them."

Elizabeth couldn't help but smile when her heard Jack. She knew better then to cross Charlotte and wondered what she had actually said. She also hadn't seen her scary teacher face, but had seen her scold Jack a couple times and that was enough.

"Go ahead." Abigail said. "I will do my best."

"First, was Maggie found safe?" Jack asked. "Second, did anyone find Sergeant? Finally, did all the injured make it back to town?"

"Yes." Abigail said. "Maggie was picked up along the trail by a hunter. He brought her to town. She was unharmed, physically at least. She was scared, but I think that she is doing better. Gabe Montgomery found Sergeant, and brought him back. He is being taken care of by a couple of the older boys. I haven't seen him, but I assume Gabe would have said something if he was injured."

"There were over twenty injured." Charlotte said. "Everyone made it back safely, Faith has been great. She has made sure everyone is being cared for. You know about the one death, but there was one more. There is still one that could go either way, but other then that, everyone is expected to recover. The town has really pulled together to help each other. We don't really have a plan moving forward. We kind of need to know what is going to happen with the mine, but Dee is working on that."

"Good." Jack said. "I know that there is more, but I can't think right now."

"It is okay." Abigail said. "There will be plenty of time to catch up. Are either of you hungry? I can bring up some soup."

"Please." Jack said.

Abigail headed back down to get Jack and Elizabeth some soup. Charlotte stayed up and talked to Jack for a little longer. She didn't want to wear him out, but she also wanted to let him know that everything was being taken care of. It didn't take Abigail long to come back with another tray of food. Charlotte nodded for her to leave and they did. When Charlotte and Abigail got back downstairs, they looked at each other. They knew that they needed to convince Elizabeth to see Faith again, but they weren't sure what to say. They didn't want to say anything to Jack, as it wasn't their place, but they were worried about Elizabeth. As they were talking, Faith came in. She just looked between Charlotte and Abigail for a moment, almost like she had caught them talking about her.

"I was going to check on Jack." Faith said. "Sorry I missed the meeting, but I was tending to a couple of the children that had gotten scraped up playing near the pond."

"Didn't miss anything important." Abigail said. "I was wondering if we could talk to you for a moment before heading up to check on Jack. He is eating right now anyway."

"Okay." Faith said. "What is going on, isn't a good thing that Jack is eating?"

"We don't want to talk to you about Jack." Charlotte said. "First of all, what we tell you can't be repeated. Some know and others don't and that is okay. Elizabeth's uncle and cousin are in town. The thing is her uncle is a Deputy Commissioner with the Mounties."

"Okay." Faith said. "Doesn't matter to me. But I sense that there is something else."

"Yes and no." Abigail said. "Jack and Elizabeth like their privacy. I know that you are from Hamilton and I am sure that you know who Elizabeth's family is. People here don't really know, it isn't that Elizabeth is hiding it, but she doesn't want to be treated differently."

"Okay." Faith said. "I get it. Like I said, it doesn't matter to me. Now what is really going on. I know there is something that you are not telling me."

Charlotte and Abigail just look at each other and Faith caught the looks.

"Is this about Elizabeth?" Faith asked. "I noticed that she was still really tired and pale when I checked on Jack earlier."

"Yes." Charlotte said. "She still has no appetite and has had an upset stomach again today. We think that we know what is wrong, but when we tried to talk to her, she didn't want to listen."

It dawned on Faith what they were trying to say, without saying it. She just covered her mouth and looked between the two women in front of her.

"I will talk to her." Faith said. "Don't worry, I won't say that you said anything."

"Thank you." Abigail and Charlotte both said.

"I need to talk to you later." Faith said. "I heard something about moving some of the patients out of the schoolhouse. I have some concerns, but we can deal with that later."

"Okay." Abigail said.

Charlotte and Abigail watched as Faith went upstairs to check on both Jack and Elizabeth. Abigail was glad that they had talked to Faith. She was also glad that Faith had agreed to stay. She just wished that the town had the money to keep her longer then through the end of the month. Abigail thought she might mention something to Elizabeth and/or Wynn. Abigail was happy that they had a nurse and wanted to keep her. Faith hadn't agreed to anything yet, but Abigail was hopeful. She knew that she needed a plan before talking to Faith. She had looked at the books and it wasn't looking at good, but Abigail wasn't too worried about that at the moment. There were more important things that needed to be handled. Abigail was worried about the town as a whole and she also had to think of Cody and Becky. Becky was still in the hospital and the worker there was pressuring her to make a decision about the future of both children. She didn't want them to go anywhere but wasn't sure that she would be able to keep them. She wanted to keep them both, but there were things that needed to be in place before that happened. Abigail made a point to find some time to talk to Wynn and Dee about Cody and Becky and see if they would be able to help her. She needed to get some answers before she could move forward. She knew that keeping the children there was going to be the best for them, but she wasn't sure that she could handle everything.

Wynn and McGinty were just finishing up when Dee returned to the mayor's office. Dee knocked and waited to enter. When he did, he was glad to see his dad in a better mood. He wondered what had changed.

"Dee." Wynn said. "I need you to send a couple of wires to headquarters tonight."

"Okay." Dee said. "What do you need?"

"Let Superintendent Anderson know that I will have the formal paperwork later." Wynn said. "I need you to have Constable Jeremiah Jacobs recalled from Fort St John immediately. He is to report to Benson Hills for the time being. Let Fort St John know that they will receive a replacement in short order. I have a couple of other changes, but for now, I need Jacobs here. If he needs a train ticket, please deal with it. I also need to know what Anderson plans for Edmonton. I was thinking of some personnel changes."

"Yes Sir." Dee said.

With that, Dee took off to find Ned to send out the wires immediately. He didn't know what his dad was up to, but he knew that he wasn't kidding around. If he wasn't going to wait for Jacobs to ride here, then something big must be happening. Wynn nodded to McGinty and the Constable left his superior alone. Wynn was trying to figure out things out. He knew that there needed to be a few changes, but he was sure that everyone wouldn't be happy about it. Wynn wasn't only thinking of what was good for the area, but what was good for the Mounties as a whole. He also knew that he was tired and hungry. He decided that he was going to head to the cafe to grab a bite to eat and hopefully talk to Abigail some more. He also was hoping to see Jack, but he figured he might be asleep. Dee was worried about what was happening. It wasn't often that his dad was that angry, but when he was it was usually for a good reason and it didn't usually end well for the person that had upset him.. Dee also wondered if Elizabeth was alright, she had been very emotional when they arrived. He wondered if there wasn't something more going on, that wasn't being said. He thought Elizabeth would be relieved that Jack was doing better.