Charlotte Thornton was a simple woman who lived a simple life. She lived in a cabin about ten miles outside of the nearest town, so it surprised her to see Abigail Stanton arrive one day, and it didn't look like good news with how rushed she looked. With her son gone, Charlotte knew it could only be one thing, and the very thought of losing Elizabeth as well broke her heart.
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With each snip of the scissors Jack's beard shortened until there was just whiskers left, at which point he lathered the shaving cream and applied it to his face. Then, as he lifted the straight razor to his face, his hand began to shake. Trying again he scraped some of his face clean before the shakes started again, causing the razor to knick his cheek. It didn't hurt, not much could after what he went through, but the cause of the shakes is what did the most damage.
It was a nice evening in Hope Valley, the sky was a nice amber and there was enough light outside to finish the shave job, but he couldn't. Elizabeth looked up from her laundry basket, half full of the dried clothes and sheets, to see Jack leaning on the wash basin's table. Casually as possible she approached her husband and rested her hand on his.
"May I"?, she asked, holding her hand out for the razor. Silently he nodded and gently placed the sharp implement in her hand. She retrieved a chair from the dining area and led Jack to sit in it. As she shaved his face she spoke to him.
"I know you don't want to talk about it Jack",
"I don't".
",and you don't have to. But I need you to know that I'm here, you're here, and that's all that matters".
As she looked into his eyes she saw a tear break free. It hurt her beyond words to see such a strong man broken like that.
"I'm not the man you lost Elizabeth. I'm not sure if I'm the man you fell in love with".
"You're right", she said, surprising him.
"You're not the man I fell in love with. That man wasn't looking for a wife or to settle down somewhere. That man loathed the fact that he had to patrol a back water town, all because a big shot city man wanted his school teacher daughter who had never seen an out house to be safe. It was her fault that man got stuck in such a horrible situation".
For the first time since he got back home, Jack Thornton smiled. Not his full fledged dimpled smile that brought the sun to Elizabeth's gloomiest days, but the hint of those dimples was enough to give her hope.
"So, despite any bellyaching and self pitying you may do Mr. Thornton, I love you. I will always love you, and that little man over there", she said indicating little Jack's outdoor rocker, "loves you too".
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'My Dearest Rhonda
By now you may have read in the papers that Jack Thornton, the deceased husband of Carter's friend Elizabeth, is alive and well, having helped foil the robbery of a shipment of gold that he had been forced to take part in. I wish to always be honest with you, and by the time you read this you may have already visited Hope Valley and heard the truth from myself, but nevertheless, I was injured in the altercation, trying to prevent the robbery . I am well, Carson is a God send, and am quickly healing, but when I was shot all I could think about was you and how I would never see you again, or see you smile or hear your sweet laugh. It is with all my heart that I ask your forgiveness for almost breaking the heart that I cherish so much'.
As Wynn Delaney finished this paragraph he heard the stagecoach roll in, and saw, in his own humble opinion, the most beautiful woman in the world watch for him.
'Even as I write this, you have just arrived and are looking for. I shall not keep you waiting my love. I close this letter, knowing that any moment now I will once again hold you in my arms. With all my deepest love and affection,
Wynn Delaney
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Rhonda Bennett removed her bonnet and sat still as Carson examined his favorite sister-in-law, while Wynn sat by the door, clearly nervous. Gently, Carson probed Rhonda's head and, happy with what he found, stood back and crossed his arms.
"Well Rhonda, if you were anymore healthy I'd have to cite you in a medical book".
Wynn, completely lost in the discussion looked worried.
"What does that mean"?
"It means", Rhonda giggled, "I'm perfectly fine silly".
"Alright, I've got some stuff to take care of, but when I'm done we'll have that picnic".
With that Wynn kissed her cheek and walked out into the afternoon sun.
Carson noticed the brilliant look in her expression and smiled. After everything they had been through, they had both found wonderful people to love, and who loved them back.
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In Abigail's sitting room, Elizabeth, Charlotte and Abigail sat together. Charlotte still couldn't get over the fact of the matter. Jack, her son, was alive, and for nearly a year had lived without his memory. No memory of her, or Elizabeth, or any memory of his life.
Elizabeth herself was having a hard time believing it herself, but she knew that Charlotte would never lie about her son.
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Charlotte's Story
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The cold wind howled around the small cabin in the dark, dead of night. The small fire barely warmed the small room, but that didn't matter to the young woman, or her husband. Busy around the woman in bed was another woman, roughly the same age, brown headed and very tired.
As the women were busy bringing a baby into the world the husband put on his thin coat and hat and grabbed his rifle.
"Abby", he called over his wife's screams of pain, "I'm going to help Noah, I'll be back soon".
Without another word he left, fighting the cold wind every step of the way.
It didn't take the man long to find Noah, patrolling around the cabin, guarding against a desperate pack of wolves.
"Jack, you shouldn't be out in this".
"I'm fine Noah, besides, two sets of eyes are better than one".
Noah didn't fight his friend on this. He knew the only way Jarrick Evans would leave was if he was knocked him unconscious, and Noah just couldn't do that to him.
The two men were close enough to hear when the baby was born, and both were surprised to hear a second baby cry.
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The summer soon came and it soon came time for Noah and Abigail Stanton to bid their friends farewell. Charlotte and Abigail had become close in the long winter together as the seemingly constant storm kept both couples closed in together. As Noah and Jarrick finished strapping fown the last of their belongings. They had all been thrown into the small cabin out of necessity and now they were on separate paths, going where they felt led.
Abigail held her godsons one last time as she said goodbye to each one. They were both sleeping, but soon would wake up to a new adventure in their young lives.
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Charlotte Evans gazed lovingly at her two babies sleeping in a makeshift double crib of blankets and pillows in the back of the wagon. She smiled and thanked God for the blessings in her life, completely unaware of the truals ahead of her.
It started when Jarrick stopped to help two men, only to be gunned down. The bandits let Charlotte and her children go when they arrived close to a mountie outpost, threatening her children's lives if she said a word about what happened.
As she made her way, she began to think about how she was going to care for two children without a husband. She couldn't, not on her own. It was in this frame of mind when she came across Wynn and Elizabeth Delaney. They had just lost their own child and Charlotte couldn't have prayed for a better blessing. She knew that they would care and love for her child. It broke her heart, but she had no choice. She could care for one child in her situation, but not two.
A man named Avery met her at the door of the small RCMP outpost. He brought her inside and prepared a simple meal for her, nit much but it was more than ehat she had been eating. She fed her son, Jarrick after his father, first and then saw to herself. Mr. Avery kept an eye on her and little Jack all the time they were there. Arrangements were made for Charlotte to stay in the spare bed in the outpost, normally occupied by Mr. Avery's fellow mountie, and best friend, Thomas Thornton. As night set in and she lay down to sleep she felt the events of the week set in and, finally, let herself cry.
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Alright, here it is, Charlotte's story and, hopefully a lot of answers questioned... wait, that's not right...a lot of questions answered...yeah, yeah that one's right. Anywho, the full details about the train robbery, the lost twin and how Jack's face ended up on a wanted poster will be i. the next chapter. Also, I hadn't planned on the Evan's being the ones that Abigail and her husband helped(see chapter 2), but I'm glad that I wrote that because it worked out and I love it. As always I love you all and will talk to you soon
Sincerely
Ficmaniac12