AN: Yeah, I probably shouldn't be starting yet another story, but this story wanted to be written. I never thought I would actually write Jack Thornton so I hope I do him justice. Jack was never a favorite character of mine but I didn't dislike him either. This is a bit different than other stories I've written so feedback would be extremely welcomed!

Nathan Grant didn't know it, but he'd had two guardian angels in his adult lifetime. People who had past on from the real world, whose lives his life had touched. People, who for whatever reason, weren't quite ready to move completely on from the life they had known on Earth. Because there was something still holding them to the life they had once lived, they walked the earth unseen by the people they had left behind, and unable to ascend fully to the next level of existence.

Jack Thornton hadn't dwelled too much on death and the afterlife while among the living. He had believed in God. He had believed that there was some kind of existence beyond the physical world when God welcomed you to his realm. That belief had been enough for him while existing in the physical world. The details of what would come after didn't affect his everyday life. He knew the risks of his life. His own father had lost his life to the job he had chosen to do. Jack had figured he'd learn about the afterlife when he reached it.

What Jack had not been counting on, was reaching the afterlife and being in limbo. He supposed on some level he just expected to leave the physical world and find himself in the next, without a say in the matter.

As his spirit had struggled to leave his physical body, Jack had found out that it wasn't a smooth transition. The sensation of being outside oneself, looking down on your own body was an eerie one. He had watched as his physical body fought for air under the weight of the mud that had crashed into him. He had been aware of the pain from broken bones and internal injuries, though it had seemed vague. Like a bad dream, which you weren't quite sure you remembered.

Jack had been angry with himself in that moment. Angry for choosing to take this assignment right after getting married. He had been angry for choosing the assignment over his honeymoon. Angry that he had put duty above Elizabeth, his own wife. Angry at not being able to keep the men training under him safe. Yes, he had pushed two out of the way of the mud, but two others had been trapped under the mud with him.

Not far away, he saw the hazy image of Cadet Raymond Mackey. The young man had been quiet and steady throughout the training. Mackey had a faith that had made Jack feel like a doubter. As he watched, the image of Mackey looked up from the scene just below them, gave Jack a quick salute, and then disappeared. Though he hadn't known it in that moment, Jack had later learned that Mackey had been able to accept his death. He had moved fully onto the next plane of existence, no regrets from the life he had lived.

So Jack had hovered there, seemingly alone. Another cadet, Carl Andrews, had also been caught by the moving mud. Jack could see Andrews, one arm and head the only thing above the dirt that had crashed into them. The other recruits were already trying to extricate their trapped comrade. Jack felt a feeling of pride seeing their reaction to the tragedy. They were going to make fine Mounties.

Constable Fraser, his fellow training officer, and most of the other cadets were already searching for the others trapped. Searching for him and Cadet Mackey, Jack had realized as he watched, alone but present.

Except that Jack soon realized, his spirit wasn't alone. Looking to his left, Jack noticed a hazy form of a young brunette. He tried to place her but he couldn't recall ever having met her.

"We haven't met," she had replied quietly.

"Then why are you here?" Jack asked, hoping to find something that he could understand about this whole situation.

"I'm here to look over him," the woman had replied, pointing a hazy figure to the ground a bit southeast of the mudslide.

Jack let his gaze follow the direction his companion was pointing. He spotted another figure in red serge riding toward the scene of the mudslide. He hadn't been aware that there were any other Mounties currently in the area.

"That is my brother," the woman stated, a sadness to her voice as she spoke. "Constable Nathan Grant. He has been raising my little girl since my death."

"Grant?" Jack said, the name sounding familiar. "He's the one whom I was replacing, isn't he?"

"He was," Colleen confirmed. "His commanding officer has been giving him a hard time about disobeying orders. Nathan was cleared by an inquiry board and the suspension lifted, much to his commanding officers dislike. The man has been giving my brother a hard time ever since. When Nathan suggested this morning that somebody should warn you and Constable Fraser about reports of rain making things unstable in these mountains, Hargraves told him that if he was so concerned he could make the ride himself. I'm sorry the warning didn't reach you in time."

Jack shook, his head as if that would clear the fog he felt he was stuck in. He was having trouble believing that he was actually talking to another spirit. However, this woman was not only speaking about things as if she were omniscient but there was a hint of authority in her voice.

"What do you mean, look over him?" Jack asked.

"I told you, Nathan is raising my little girl. He's the only person my Ally has to look out for her. As for Nathan, he's always looked out for those in his life, but he doesn't really have anyone to be there for him. Except for me that is. Even I can't protect him from everything but I can affect things in a limited way."

"What do you mean?" Jack asked, even as he glanced back down at the scene below. He still felt a pull to this place, like there was something holding him back. He wondered if that meant his physical body was still fighting for life.

Colleen smiled. "I'm what humans refer to as a guardian angel," she told him. "I'm neither part of the physical world nor the spiritual world. I'm stuck in between. In my case, I'm stuck because I can't completely let go of my connection to Nathan and Ally. I might not be able to be with them, but I can still keep and eye on them. Even in limited ways, keep them safe."

"Limited ways? You mean you can affect their actions."

"Yes and no," Colleen replied. "Humans have free will. They are in control of their actions. However, a guardian angel can sometimes have an effect on those actions. A breeze where before there was none when a person asks for a sign. A break in the clouds at just the right moment. We can even have small effects on inanimate objects. You know, that buckle that breaks at just the wrong time when later you find out that the delay could have saved your life. You had your own guardian angel for a time, Jack."

"How do you know my name?" Jack asked, looking toward her in surprise.

"I can learn anyone's name," Colleen told him. "They've been calling all three of your names while they search. Andrews has been rescued. That meant you were either Jack Thornton or Cadet Mackey. As you already told me you took Nathan's assignment, that means you are not a cadet."

"You said I had a guardian angle of my own?" Jack asked.

Colleen nodded. "Your father, Thomas. We crossed paths while looking over you and Nathan in the Northern Territories. A nice guy but he felt guilty for leaving you and your brother to grow up on your own. Especially, you as he felt Tom had you to look out for him. When we crossed paths, I remember him saying that once you married Elizabeth, he felt like he could finally let go of that regret and moved on. As he isn't with us, I suppose that he did."

Jack nodded, though the irony was not lost on him. His father moves on and then this happened. Jack watched as below him, Nathan Grant moved some of the dirt from on top of him. Watching someone unbury your body was kind of surreal.

"I found Constable Thornton," Nathan called out to the others involved in the rescue effort.

A couple of the recruits came over to help Grant move more dirt from around him. Though Jack felt like he should be able to breathe easier, he still had a vague sensation of having a hard time drawing air into his lungs.

"You've inhaled dirt particles into your lungs," Colleen said behind him. "A broken rib has punctured a lung, among other injures. Your physical body won't be able to keep functioning for much longer."

"You mean I'm going to die?" Jack asked.

"Eventually," Colleen said. "The spirit is much stronger than our physical bodies, though we don't realize it until the very end."

Jack watched as his body was pulled from the pile of dirt left by the landslide. Watched as Constable Grant gave him first aid. His fellow Mountie wasn't giving up on him as it appeared the spirit of his sister had.

"I'm sorry, Elizabeth."

Jack heard the whispered words even though given the distance he should not have. However, following the whispered apology, he no longer felt anchored to the spot. He felt light and free. Yet still he remained, watching as Constable Grant tried to breathe life back into his already lifeless body.

"That's the type of person Nathan is. He will keep fighting for life until the very end. I died in his arms, you know. I think he would have tried anything to save me if I hadn't made him promise to simply let me go. That I was ready to go."

Colleen paused. "Except that I wasn't as ready to go as I thought I was. I need to know that Nathan and Ally have found happiness again before I can move on."

"Is that why I'm still with you?" Jack asked. "Is there something keeping me from moving on?"

"Apparently," Colleen told him. "From your last words, I would say that it has something to do with this Elizabeth."

Elizabeth.

His wife hadn't wanted him to go. Jack couldn't blame her. They had just gotten married after his long deployment in the Northern Territories. Jack could still recall standing there in that row house telling her that there was no danger involved in this assignment. Promising that it would be the last assignment that he would take away from her.

Now, some other Mountie would be breaking the news to her that he wasn't coming back. Elizabeth was going to be devastated. Perhaps she would even angry at him. He thought of the letter he had written her when he had left for the Northern Territories. Abigail still had that letter. He hadn't thought to ask for it back. Would Abigail think to give it to Elizabeth now? He tried to recall what he had written. Were his words still appropriate?

Jack did recall writing that if anything were to happen to him that he wanted Elizabeth to open herself to love again. Like Colleen wanted her brother and daughter to find happiness, Jack knew that he wanted that for Elizabeth as well.

Was that why he was still here? Did he need to see that Elizabeth had found love again before he could move on?

Colleen reached out and took his hand. He could feel the pressure of her hand in his.

"You'll figure out why you're stuck here between the two realms of existence. Everybody does eventually, though some of us take longer than others. You may feel like you are alone right now Jack, but you're not. Not really. You always have a place in the hearts of those whose lives you touched and those who have already moved on are waiting to welcome us to the next realm of existence when we're ready for that part of our journey."

And so it was that Jack became Elizabeth's guardian angel, guided in those first moments by Nathan Grant's first guardian angel.