After church the next morning Nathan walked Elizabeth, Jack, and Allie back to her row house so that Nathan could talk to Lucas about the fire the previous day. Dressed in uniform he made his way to the office in the back of the saloon. He knocked on the door and drew himself to his full height, preparing for a difficult conversation. Lucas opened the door and let out a sigh as he greeted the constable and invited him into his office. He was not looking forward to what the man had to say. "Unfortunately, I'm here in an official capacity. I am required to write up a report on the incident yesterday. Could you fill me in on what happened?" Nathan asked, politely.
"I thought that might be the reason for your visit, Constable," Lucas said fidgeting with the pen in his hand. "I was sitting in the library with a few candles lit when the children came in to show the building to one of their friends. I greeted them and then excused myself to get a cup of tea at the saloon. I was taking a sip of my tea when I heard screams and saw the library go up in flames. I didn't have any part in it." The businessman explained, annoyed that Nathan was bothering him with this.
"What do you mean you didn't have a part in it? Why were you lighting candles in a wooden building full of books?" Nathan said seething in frustration.
"I do it all the time. I like having a candle burning while I'm thinking," Lucas' fists clenched, frustrated that Nathan was criticizing his actions. "Besides, I wasn't expecting children to come in and knock them over."
"Lucas, you know perfectly well that this was not the children's fault. Why didn't you blow out the candles before you left? We could have avoided burning down a building, scaring the children and the rest of the town, and almost killing a young girl."
"What do you mean? Were any of them hurt? I just assumed they had knocked the candle over and left."
Nathan looked at the other man confused, "Did you not hear that we had to run in and rescue Opal from the burning building? She spent the afternoon in the infirmary so that Dr. Shepherd could make sure she was alright."
"And is she?" Lucas asked, lowering himself into a chair. A pleading look in his eyes hoping that the child was okay.
Nathan sat down in the chair next to him. "Luckily he thinks that she will make a full recovery."
"Thank goodness. Constable, I truly had no idea that any of this happened."
"Do you understand why I came to get information from you before writing my report? You are mostly to blame for this incident."
Lucas sunk into the chair, overwhelmed by this new information. "I am truly sorry, Nathan. I was not aware of the consequences of my actions. I will make sure to pay a visit to Opal's family to apologize for what happened. I will also donate the money to rebuild the library."
"I think that is a good start. Now for my report, are you going to be blaming the children for the incident?"
"No. I feel terrible for accusing them of this. I will rightfully take the blame for this situation."
"I'm glad to hear that. I will let headquarters know that this was an accident caused by a small mistake. As long as Opal's family doesn't want to press charges, and the library is rebuilt, I believe we can put this behind us."
Lucas let out a long breath. "Thank you, Nathan. I appreciate it. Before you leave, perhaps we can talk in an unofficial manner?" he asked.
"Yes. I've been meaning to talk to you about this." Nathan said, feeling more uncomfortable with the personal conversation than the professional one.
"Before I almost set the whole town on fire yesterday I had some time to think about my relationship with Elizabeth. While I admit that I had every intention of asking her to court me, and I was very upset when she came to me telling me that she wasn't interested, I understand now," Lucas admitted, and let the breath he was holding out. "We were never right for each other. She belongs with you and I hope she's told you that. I am ready to move on and I fully respect that you are her chosen suitor." he said in defeat.
Now that he had admitted this to Nathan he wasn't sure how the other man was going to react. "Thank you, Lucas, I appreciate that and I know Elizabeth will as well," Nathan replied, surprised at his old competitor's words. They both felt the tension lifted from the room. "I have a report to write, so if you'll excuse me I better get going."
The two men stood up and Lucas extended his hand, "I hope you and I can get to know each other better. Thank you again."
"I would like that," Nathan confirmed, shaking the outstretched hand.
Hand in hand Allie and Jack walked with Elizabeth back to her house. After helping Elizabeth take off Jack's coat, the young boy darted off to the living room to play with his toy blocks. Elizabeth and Allie retreated to the settee, grateful for a moment of quiet before they had to head to the cafe for lunch with their friends. "Mrs. Thornton?" Allie spoke first.
"Allie," she said, putting her hand over the girls to stop her. "I've been thinking. We're going to be spending quite a bit of time together, and Mrs. Thornton is far too formal of a title for you to use. What would you think of calling me Elizabeth? When we aren't in school of course," she added.
"Really? Thank you, Elizabeth! I'm glad you're finally courting my uncle."
"I am too Allie. Were you going to ask me something before?"
"Yes," the girl replied hesitantly. "I was wondering if we could talk about what happened yesterday."
"Whenever you're ready, sweetheart."
Allie smiled at the endearment. "I was so overwhelmed last night that I wasn't sure where to begin. Now that I've had time to collect my thoughts I want to share them with somebody,"
"I'm listening whenever you're ready to talk," Elizabeth told her patiently.
Allie thought for a few seconds before she began, "I was having so much fun with the other kids. We were showing Cody the new library. When we went in we saw Mr. Bouchard sitting with a few candles lit." She hesitated when mentioning the saloon owner's name, not wanting to offend Elizabeth by her obvious dislike of the man.
"Mr. Bouchard was there?" Elizabeth asked, unaware of his involvement in the fire.
"Yes, but he left shortly after we got there. When Opal reached up to grab a book, it slipped out of her hands and fell on the open flame. I was so scared that we wouldn't be able to make it out of the building. I just ran and screamed for help. Soon the whole town was there and Uncle Nathan ran in to rescue Opal. What would have happened to me if Uncle Nathan hadn't come back out? He's my whole world. I haven't had anybody besides him since my mom died and my father left." By now tears were streaming down Allie's face.
"Oh Allie," Elizabeth said as she consoled her. "I don't know what would have happened, that's a question for your uncle. What I do know is that now you have me and I will do everything I can to protect you. I love you just as much as I love Jack."
At the sound of his name, Jack came toddling over and climbed into Allie's lap. "Awee sad?" The little boy asked her.
"Not anymore Jack." She replied, wiping the tears off of her cheeks and replacing them with a smile. "I'm glad I have you and Jack now. I hope that we can be a real family one day."
"Me too sweetie. Allie, have you heard the story about the fire in the church a few years ago?"
"Really?"
"Yes, it was right before I married Jack's father. Your classmates wanted to practice lighting candles for our wedding ceremony but when Cody was reaching up to help another student he accidentally knocked the candle down and the whole church went up in flames."
Allie gasped in shock. "What happened? Was everyone okay?"
"All of the children except for Opal were able to get out on their own. Just like your uncle did today, Jack ran into the burning building and saved her life. I was so nervous that he wouldn't come back out, I could barely breathe. When he and Opal both came out safe I was both relieved that they were okay but also scared by the idea that they had been in danger. Like you, I worried about what would have happened if the outcome was different. But I realized that I couldn't spend my life worrying about things that could happen. I needed to focus on the wonderful things that did happen. The entire town worked all day and night to rebuild the church before my wedding to Jack. I was reminded of the kindness and support of the people here in Hope Valley. We are lucky to be a part of such a strong community."
"I hear so much about how brave Little Jack's father was but I've never actually heard a story about him. Thank you for sharing that, Elizabeth."
"Of course Allie," Elizabeth said, hugging her. "Are you ready to go to the cafe? Are you still okay with the plan for you and to distract Cody while we set up the welcome home party after lunch?"
Allie nodded her head but she seemed nervous.
"What's wrong Allie?"
"Do you think Mrs. Stanton will like me?" Allie blurted out.
"Of course, she will. She is very excited to get to know you and your uncle. And Jack too. She left when he was only a baby."
This seemed to reassure Allie. "Thank you, Elizabeth. I'm ready to go now."
When they got to the cafe Abigail was already sitting at their usual table. Seeing Abigail made her smile, remembering all of the Sundays they had spent together.
"Hello," Abigail greeted them with a warm smile, "it's nice to see you again Allie. Cody is in the kitchen if you want to tell him that you're here."
"Thank you, Mrs. Stanton," Allie replied and left to go get her new friend.
With Allie out of earshot, Elizabeth sat in the chair across from Abigail; she placed Jack in her lap and leaned over to whisper to her friend. "Thanks for being so nice to her. She was nervous about this."
"Well, she seems like a very sweet girl. I can see why Cody was talking so much about her after the fire yesterday," Abigail said, raising her eyebrows.
"Don't let Nathan hear you say that," Elizabeth warned jokingly.
"Don't let Nathan hear what?" the mountie asked, walking into the cafe with Bill.
"Nothing," she replied, still laughing.
He turned his attention to the woman sitting at the table, "it's good to see you again Abigail."
"You too Nathan," she said warmly.
Nathan sat down in the chair next to Elizabeth, and Jack quickly moved over to his lap. Nathan wrapped an arm around him protectively, making sure that the little boy didn't fall. This did not go unnoticed by Bill as he came to join everyone at the table.
Rosemary and Lee arrived next and took their regular seats next to their friends. Everyone was smiling and felt happiness in the room that hadn't been there since Abigail and Cody had left. Their Sunday tradition hadn't been the same without them. They were also excited to welcome Nathan and Allie into their little family. Cody and Allie came out a minute later, clearly already very good friends.
Abigail and Cody shared stories about their time away from Hope Valley and everyone was happy to hear that her mother is doing much better.
Clara brought out their lunch soon after. "Do you want to join us, Clara?" Abigail invited her daughter-in-law.
"Thank you, but when the lunch rush is over I am going to eat with Jesse. If that's okay."
"Of course! Thanks for bringing out our lunch," Abigail said. With a smile, Clara turned and disappeared back into the kitchen.
"Elizabeth, can you pass me the salt?" Allie asked her teacher.
Nathan's head quickly turns away from his conversation with Lee when he hears the improper name. "It's okay Nathan," Elizabeth tells him, putting her hand on his arm. "I told her to call me by my first name when we aren't in school of course."
Nathan smiles at them and squeezes Elizabeth's hand under the table.
"Speaking of names," Rosemary started. "Jack calls us aunt and uncle so if you want, we would love it if you would call us that as well."
"Thank you, Aunt Rosemary and Uncle Lee!" Allie said joyfully.
"Don't forget Uncle Bill," Bill added.
"And Aunt Abigail," Abigail told Allie.
"Really?" the elated girl asked.
"Absolutely," Abigail confirmed. Allie jumped out of her chair and hugged her new aunts and uncles, ecstatic to have more family.
Nathan mouthed a silent thank you to the adults and they all smiled back. They are happy to finally have Nathan and Allie as part of their family.
After they finish eating Allie asked if she could show Cody some of the other things that have changed since he lived here. Cody nodded excitedly and looked at his mother for permission; she in turn looked over at Nathan. "Sure. Just be back at the cafe by four," he said.
Allie and Cody excuse themselves and leave the cafe. After chipping in for the meal Rosemary and Lee left to start setting up for the party. They had decided to use the saloon because it was the only place that would fit everyone and they were hoping the use of Lucas' building would send a message to the town that there weren't any hard feelings. "Nathan, would you mind joining me in the kitchen for a moment?"
"Sure, Abigail," he replied and followed her into the back of the cafe.
"I just wanted to thank you for making Elizabeth and Jack so happy," Abigail said. "After Jack died I wasn't sure if I would ever see that light in her again. I felt terrible leaving her here alone so soon after she had Little Jack, but I didn't have a choice. It makes me feel better to know that she had you looking after her. I promised Jack that I would take care of her and that she would never be alone, and I feel confident now knowing that you will be able to help me fulfill that promise." Tears were now streaming down Abigail's face. Nathan didn't get emotional often but tears were starting to well up in his eyes too.
"You don't know how much that means to me. Thank you, Abigail," Nathan said gratefully and stepped forward to hug her.
"Now on official business," Abigail said, breaking the embrace after a moment, "I will be returning to my role as mayor as soon as possible. I know that Bill took over my office when he became the judge, so we will have some logistics to work out. Can we find a time for Bill, Henry, you, and me to meet tomorrow?"
He nodded. "Just tell me when and where. We've been doing our best to fill in for you, but to be honest we've been struggling lately," Nathan admitted.
"I'm sorry that my absence caused all of you more work," she apologized.
"We understood. Besides split between all of us it wasn't that much additional work," he explained.
"Still, thank you. I'll go check with Bill now for a good time for the meeting. After I confirm that with Henry, I'll get back to you with an official time," she told him as they walked back towards the table where Elizabeth and Bill were still chatting with Jack sitting peacefully on his mother's lap.
"Hello," Abigail said to make their presence known. When they looked up she continued, "Bill, I wanted to find a time tomorrow to meet so that I can resume my role as mayor."
"Sure, does ten o'clock work for both of you?"
"Works for me," Nathan agreed.
"Great, I'll check with Henry and let you know," Abigail said. "Elizabeth, if you don't have other plans do you want to stay and chat for a little bit?"
Elizabeth turned to look at Nathan. She wanted to make sure he wouldn't be excluded if she accepted the invitation.
"I know it's Sunday but I have to finish writing my report about the fire so I was going to head into the office for a little bit anyway. I'll meet you back here at four o'clock?" he asked.
"Sounds good," Elizabeth confirmed.
"I wanted to talk to you about the fire," Bill stated, "do you have a moment to do it now?"
"Sure," Nathan said, and after placing a kiss on Jack's head and Elizabeth's cheek they headed towards his office.