Chapter 11: Life Goes On
Things were changing in Hope Valley over the next few weeks. The schoolhouse transitioned back to simply that, a schoolhouse, with the hopes of school starting back up within the next month as long as there were no new flu cases. The goal was that once the school opened again for the students to return, the facial masks should no longer be needed. Dr. McGuffin continued to visit weekly and promised to continue doing so until all cases of the flu were completely gone in Hope Valley. Faith was thankful for the extra set of professional hands and collaboration during this sensitive time.
The town chipped in and purchased the Queen of Hearts from the Bouchards and did the necessary renovations to not only repair it from the recent fire from the previous months but also to transition it more into a hotel and restaurant. The name was changed to the Hope Valley Inn. Just like the makeshift hospital, the inn would be run by miscellaneous people of the Hope Valley community on rotating shifts. Gustave stayed on as well, since he had become quite fond of Hope Valley over the past few years.
Since Bill and Henry were still on the mend from the residual effects of the flu, Mike decided to remain as interim mayor with support from Lee if he needed someone to step in. Bill stepped down as Hope Valley's judge but put in a request from his old friend Earl Bleakney for Hamilton to step in for him. Judge Bleakney came into town shortly after the hospital's transition back to a schoolhouse. He was a tall man in his mid-40s with kind, dark blue eyes and thin, balding hair. Earl had been wanting a little bit of a slower pace in life, so Bill's phone call last month couldn't have come at a better time.
His first matter of business as judge of Hope Valley was to rule on the case of the oil company vs. Henry Gowan. After hearing all the testimony and seeing all the evidence, and knowing of Henry's health since the epidemic hit Hope Valley, Judge Bleakney made a slightly unusual judgment for this fragile case in this town. He ruled that Henry would do community service for the Hope Valley community as determined by the interim mayor and Constable Grant over the next five years with a mandatory weekly check-in with one of those individuals. If he left the town or failed to follow through on those duties, he would be immediately placed in prison, no exception. Henry was truly humbled by that sentence and gladly accepted it.
Minnie and Joseph completed the renovations to the cafe and the rooms above it. Minnie decided to honor the history of the cafe by keeping it named Abigail's. Even though Bill still owned part of it, Minnie was solely responsible for the running of the cafe, with Anna and some of the other Hope Valley residents waitressing and cooking shifts as well. Both Anna and Judge Bleakney chose to rent rooms above the cafe as well.
With the frustration of the mine explosion, the epidemic, and the simple, unwelcome reception of the town, the oil company decided to take their business elsewhere. In all reality, most were relieved at that turn of events. The community knew that times were changing, but they weren't quite ready for their little town to go through too drastic of a change after the effects of the epidemic.