Alright guys, here is chapter 2. Major plot development in this one.000000000000000000000000000000000
Rosemary Coulter was no less than a cyclone in heels. Anyone that knew the blonde would tell you to watch out for anything coming out of her mouth as iy usually involved some planned event she had in mind to host. Unfortunately nobody had yet informed Wynn Delaney about Rosemary. But he soon found out as she stormed into his office, metaphorical guns blazing. "Look here Mr..."
"Delaney", he said, rising to shake her hand. "Mr. Delaney, I don't know you, but right now with your slick, kaniving charms and your dastardly flirtatious grin, I don't like you".
"Miss I don't kno..."
"No you zip it, I'm talking. The way you are stepping around in your shiny black boots like your God's gift to women, and with my dear friend, a widow no less. So you, Mr. Delaney can back off and leave her",
"Rosemary". The name cut through the air and brought Rosemary out of her heated speech to turn and see Elizabeth, looking very pregnant indeed. "Rosemary what is going on"? Rosemary wasted no time in embracing Elizabeth. "Oh dear, dear Elizabeth don't you worry. I'm here for you and whatever you need".
"What I need is an explanation for why you're treating Mr. Delaney like this".
"Elizabeth, I will not simply stand by and ley some ouf try and fill in Jack's shoes when he needs to focus on more important things, like his job", she said looking at Wynn. "Rosie, what are you talking about"?
"I'm talking about his trying to court you Elizabeth". As realization set in both Elizabeth and Wynn started to laugh. "Well I don't see what's so funny about this".
"I'm sorry Mrs. Coulter", Wynn began, "I'm not interested in Mrs. Thornton like that. To be honest, someone else has my attention".
"Oh, well in that case who is it, if I know them, and I most likely do, I can have you ship shape for a date in no.."
"Actually Rosemary", Elizabeth said, coming to the rescue, "Charles is due on the stage Saturday, I could use your help finishing his room".
"His room"?
"Don't worry, I'm going to be staying at Abigail's".
"Well, I don't like the idea of him snooping around your house with you gone".
"Charles is not a snoop, Rosemary".
"Elizabeth if you are implying that I, Rosemary Coulter am a snoop...well, frankly my dear I can't argue". As the duo left Wynn chuckled to himself. Life in Hope Valley was certainly going to be interesting.
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"All right Opal, you're all fixed up now". Carson loved the way Faith was patient with the younger kids in town whenever they were ill or had a skin'd knee. She was everybit motherly material. "Thank you Miss Faith, do I get my lollipop"?
"Of course you do, here", she said, taking the lollipop jar in hand and helping Opal pick one out. "Bye Dr. Shepard".
"Bye Opal. And you, Mrs. Thornton, you need to keep off of your feet as much as possible. We don't want little Jack coming before he's ready".
"Ohh, I think I'll be ready before him. Anyways, thank you both so much, c'mon Opal", she said, taking the little girls hand and leading her back to the school house. Along the way Opal talked and talked about her new stuffed bear, Beary and how much she loved him. Elizabeth smiled. A lot of the time she wanted a boy just like Jack, but at other times she wanted a girl like her mother, or Abigail. And then there were times when she was scared witless. Shr knre she didn't have to raise her child alone, and she thanked God she didn't have to but at times she just wished it was all over and done with. *kick* "Mrs. Thornton, are you okay".
"Oh, yes Opal, the baby just kicked that's all", *KICK*. "aaaagggghhhh. Opal, I need you to go get Dr. Shepard, okay"?
"Are you okay"?
"Yes Opal but please, go get Dr. Shepard".
"Okay". Opal took off as fast as her little legs could carry her. Elizabeth prayed it would be in time. Afterall, there was only one reason a woman's water breaks.
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Charles Kensington smiled at the picture in his pocket watch, closed it, then closed the journal in his lap. Foolishly he had tried writting a letter to his fiance, but the jarring of the stage made it nearly impossible. He smiled as he remembered the last time he had ridden a stage. It had been nearly four years since he had last seen Elizabeth, at which time he had proposed to her. He chuckled at the idea now. Not that he didn't love Elizabeth, she would aleays have a special place in his heart, but his heart had now been given to another that he knew no other woman would ever be able to match in beauty, intelligence, humor, compassion and empathy. She was his world. And he hoped that she would be willing to move with him to Hope Valley. After all, if you are looking for a second chance, what better place to be?
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Abigail Stanton's mayoral duties had been stressful for her in yhe beginning; not to say she wasn't stressed right now, but she had found her groove as mayor and had settled into the new, busy routine quite nicely. Right now especially was busy as she and Mr. Jenkins, the town banker, were walking through the last minute preparations with a Mountie representative of the Bank in Robb, Alberta. About a year and a half back a large vein of gold had been discovered and now was ready to be shipped off to the Royal Canadian Mint. Sitting in on the meeting was Wynn Delaney, he would be in charge of security at the train depot to ensure everything went off without a hitch. "My concern", he began, "Isn't the train depot, it's the stop the train makes midway to refuel at Carter's Junction. There will only be a handful of men on duty to load the coal and we only have four guards on the train".
"We can only spare so many men right now, Mr. Delaney", the Mountie said, "but everything has been planned and a chain of custody is in place. You have no need to worry". Abigail looked from Wynn, and then to the Mountie across from her. She had enough experience to know that arguing with stubborn men got you nowhere, but she had also learned to trust the instincts of a Mountie, especially one who resides in Hope Valley. "I have to agree with the constable, Carter's Junction is practically in the middle of nowhere with very few Mounties in the area and many places to hide".
"How do you know so much about the arra around Carter's Junction"?
"When My husband Noah and I moved out here we stayed a few weeks there to help a family in need. I spent a lot of time walking the woods with Noah to make sure they were clear of predators and gathering herbs and edible roots for meals while Noah hunted for their winter supply of meat and ours".
"Well, you certainly are full of surprises Mayor Stanton. I will personally make that a point of interest when I report to my commanding officer".
"Thank you very much. Now, if you'll excuse me, I must continue with my work. It was a pleasure, Sargent".
"For me as well, Mayor. For me as well". As Abigail prepared her desk to return to her paperwork Cody rushed in frantically. "Mom hurry, Mrs. Thronton is having her baby"!
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Lee, Jesse, Henry and just about every citizen of Hope Valley was waiting outside the infirmary for news. They wouldn't have been so on edge if it weren't for Elizabeth's cries of pain, more often than not and getting closer together. As Lee was about to stand and knock on the door all fell silent, and just as quickly that silence was broken by the cries if a new born baby.
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Elizabeth smiled at the crying bundle in her arms. The hours of labor had been just that, laborious and painful. And she would gladly do it all again to look into the face of someone who she knew was a product of pure love. She had no idea you could so instantaneously fall in love with someone, one look and her heart had instantly bonded to her new baby boy, a baby biy who, even merely seconds old, resembled his father so strongly. As this realization hit she began to cry. Jack should have been there. His child had just been born and he wasn't there to see it. He would never hear his son's first words, never see him take his first step, wouldn't be there to teach him how to be a man and what it means to be one. He was dead. And nothing could ever change that.
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1 Year Ago
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William Delaney walked down the cold streets of San Francisco, his hat pulled low and his coat collar pulled up against the cold air. He had just lost his last dollar in a craps shoot. Now he was walking home, or what was left of it. As he turned the corner he saw two men at the door of his tenament building. They saw him and started walking towards him, one putting out his lit cigarette. "Hello Mr. Delaney", the first said in a heavy Canadian accent, "How do you feel about doing a job that will turn your misfortune around"?
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Present
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The Mountie left Hope Valley with a wicked grin on his lips. The plan was going perfectly, except for that do-good Mountie, Delaney. He was to smart for his own good when it came to the gold shipment. Still, when the time came, and he prayed it did, he would have no trouble killing him. His route out of town took him past the grave of RCMP Sargent, Jack Thornton. He grinned once again at the thought of who was really in the grave. And nobody had been the wiser.
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Elizabeth and Rosemary sat alone in the infirmary. Both silent, but each content to be in the others presence. "You know something Rosie"? Elizabeth asked, her eyes rising from her son to meet her friends. "What's that"?
"If someone had told me four years ago that we would be such good friends, I wouldn't have believed them".
"Well, you were insanely jealous of me". Elizabeth put on a face of mock shock. "I was not".
"Oh please, a beautiful actress, singer and dancer comes to town to win the heart of the man she loves back from some grimy school teacher whom he has fallen desperately in love with and you tell me you weren't jealous"?
"Okay, maybe a little. Wait, you thought I was grimy"?
"Well... you weren't exactly at my level". The two friends shared a laugh at the memory. "You know what else? Jack was proud to see us become good friends Elizabeth". Elizabeth couldn't have agreed more.
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Charles had no idea how much he loved leg room until he was able to stretch his legs as he got off of the stagecoach. Looking around he didn't see Elizabeth; upon looking at his watch he realized that he was early. Good, he had some business to take care of that Elizabeth couldn't know about, not yet anyways. His bag was handed down to him, but his leather folio was safe in his briefcase that was safe in hand. Crossing the street he noticed that something about Hope Valley was drastically different. He could hear a phone ring.
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Wynn Delaney couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong with the events that were about to transpire. That Mountie was off-putting himself, the way he held himself and the way he talked was... unprofessional. And ehat was with the lack of security? Even if the Mounties wrre short handed at the moment a gold shipment like yhis called for double security. Something was wrong. He just wished he could see it. "Excuse me, Constable Delaney"?
"Yes".
"Hi, Charles Kensington, I wired you from Hamilton a few weeks back".
"Yes, I'm sorry, please come in".
"Thank you. So I know this musy be un usual business for you".
"Anything concerning a fellow Mountie, unusual or not, is always a pleasure to look into. But I am curious, Mr. Kensington, how did you come about this information"?
"Well, I've been a friend of Elizabeth's for our entire life and I was worried about her well being for the future so I looked to see if Sargent Thornton had left a will of any kind. I wasn't able to find one so I looked to see if his mother knew of anything and as I looked for her I discovered that she had been previously married to a man named Jarrick Evans".
"Mr. Kensington, what exactly are you trying to say"?
"Charlotte Thornton gave birth to twin boys while married to Jarrick Sawyer, when he died she gave up one child to an orphanage and kept the other, she couldn't care for two children by herself. Then she married Thomas Thornton out of necessity, then gave birth to a third son. Thomas Thornton Jr.".
"Aside from the obvious, what dies this have to do with Sargent Thornton". Silently Charles took out a WANTED poster with an all to familiar face and name on it. "I have reason to believe he is still alive".
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Rhonda Bennett took one last look into the deep eyes she had come to care so much for. The dark hair she loved flowed loosely without the Biltmore to corral it. "I promise to write you as soon as I get home Wynn".
"I can't believe how much I miss you already".
"It'll be okay, I promised Carson to be back every month to make sure there's no damage". At those words he gently cradled her head, causing her to giggle. "Im fine Wynn. There is nothing to worry about".
"You've got to go". He said these words more mournfully than intended. "I know".
Gently and courteously pulled her head towards his and tenderly kissed her forehead. "What was that for"? she asked, a smile in her voice. "To tide me over until I see you again". Silently he released her to climb into the stage. As the coach pulled away he stood and watched as it dissapeared. As he walked into the office he looked in the mailbox and saw a telegram from the RCMP headquarters. The message inside made him wish Charles Kensington had been wrong.