Abigail walked into Lee's lumber factory with a basket. She saw Lee and walked over to him, smiling. Henry saw her from her, walking towards Lee and sighed deeply. He watched as she talked to Lee animatedly. How he adored her. However, how he didn't deserve her.

He saw that she had finished talking to him. She looked grave and disappointed. Lee pointed towards him and he knew instantly that she had come over to see him. He was sure she had noticed his absence in the past two days. He did not know how to explain the fact of the matter to her. As Lee pointed to him, he pretended to inspect a piece of lumber near him.

Abigail smiled at Lee as she walked over to Henry.

"Hi there…" she called out gently with a light smile. Henry responded to her with a smile. "Do you have a minute? I was hoping we could take a walk." She said, tilting her face to the side.

"Actually, I was doing costing of some lumber…" he mumbled on as he looked around for idle pieces of lumber.

"Please." She asked, gently, her eyes pleading. Henry saw the look in her eyes and nodded ever so slightly. He motioned for them to walk towards the fields on the left of the factory.

They walked side by side, Henry, and her, their hands almost touching. He did feel the softness of her touch on his rough hands. It was almost soothing to him. He liked her touch. It gave him peace of mind.

They approached a clearing that led to a clear lakeside. There was a gentle cold breeze in the air. There was a sense of tranquility in the atmosphere around him and her presence grounded him even more. He wished she could always be by his side. She motioned for them to sit on two boulders at the lakeside. The icy water gently flowed by at their feet.

Abigail set aside the basket and looked over at the lake. Henry followed her gaze as he looked up ahead.

"How have you been?" she said, just looking ahead.

"Good. I have been good." He said as he looked at her. She didn't flinch but kept on looking ahead. Seeing that, he also looked up ahead, rubbing his hands to keep warm.

"I haven't seen you around for the past couple of days." She said.

"Yes, I was out of town" Henry said, not wanting to broach that topic.

She then looked at him and so did he. He saw a look in her eyes. She wasn't requesting but demanding an explanation. Henry sighed and looked up ahead.

"I had a couple of things to sort out in Hamilton." He said, still not looking at her.

"I see…" she said as she reached for two packs of lunch and napkins from her basket. She handed one of each over to Henry who hesitated.

"I am alright." He resisted. She didn't move, but her eyes were defiant. He blinked and took the pack from her. She opened it slightly for him to take a bite out of it. "Thanks." He said dryly as he bit into a broccoli.

"You didn't tell me you were going out of town." She said, looking up ahead, again.

"It was a sudden matter that needed to be sorted." He said, still not willing to give her any information.

"A sudden matter that would involve you moving to Hamilton?" she asked and looked at him fiercely in his eyes. He realized that Lee must have told her about the notice he had given to him about him leaving his job. Henry cleared his throat.

"There is a good opportunity out there for someone like me." He said firmly as he squared his jaw. He was preparing himself for a showdown.

"I see." She said, without any emotion, as she sipped her water. "And you will be happy there?" She asked. He took a moment to answer that.

"I have not thought of that. I saw an opportunity and took it." Henry said coldly.

"An opportunity to what? Escape?" She asked, her voice unshaken.

"You sound upset." Henry said, looking at her squarely.

"Even if I was, why would you care?" She said, anger rising in her. The heat that was in her sharply contrasted the biting cold outside.

"My decision to move is for the best." Henry defended, his voice firm.

"For whom? Hope Valley? Me? You? Or Bill?" She asked defiantly. And henry looked at her, with furrowed eyebrows. "I saw your little exchange at the saloon the other day. You may have fooled others but not me." She finished.

"I have done some bad things in the past, Abigail. Why would you even forgive me?" He said emotionally.

"So your decision is based on your guilt?" Abigail went on, fiercely.

"Don't you think Hope Valley has had enough of Henry Gowen?" He asked, with a defeated look on his face.

"Oh. That is what it is then. "I" have had enough of Hope Valley's kindness, so "I" should go?" She asked again, fiercely.

"Abigail, you are misunderstanding me. I am doing what I feel is best for the town." Henry explained.

"Is that so? Tell me I am wrong about this." She countered. He sighed.

"I am of no use to anyone here, Abigail. I do not feel any value to my existence, nothing at all. I do not like to look into the eyes of the people here because I have wronged them and I may not be able to make things right." He reasoned and Abigail paused.

"OK, sure, I won't stop you. You do what you think is the RIGHT thing to do. Who am I to stop you anyway?" she said angrily, putting her lunch pack in her basket. She grabbed the one in Henry's hands too and put it away in a huff in her basket and stood up angrily. She yanked the napkin that she had given him earlier on and roughly picked up the basket. She turned around and started walking away.

"Abigail…" Henry said as he stood up quickly and followed her. He was limping as he tried to keep up with her. She continued to walk. "Abigail, listen to me." He called out to her again and she pretended not to hear him.

While he was running after her, his leg entered into a puddle of water and he fell hard on the ground. He groaned loudly as a huge sharp twig lodged into his other leg. Abigail heard him fall with a thud and turned around to see him as he groaned and held on to his other leg in pain. She quickly ran to his side, throwing the basket aside.

"Oh my God! You are bleeding." She exclaimed as she tore open the lower pant leg to reveal the wound. Blood flowed out of the wound. She helped him by putting his hand around her shoulders, to limp to the boulders on which they were seated. She gently lowered herself to the lakeside and cupped some water in her hands and splashed it onto his wound, trying to wash the blood away but almost an equal amount of blood flowed through the wound again. He groaned some more. "Hold on tight." She said calmly as she leaned over to approach him. She touched the twig. "This may…" she started saying as she yanked the twig out of his leg and Henry groaned even more loudly in horrible pain. "…hurt a little…" she finished. More blood flowed out. She quickly cupped water in both her hands and cleaned his wound again. She looked over to the side of the lake and plucked a few leaves and put them on his wound. "Hold this." She said gently as she ran to her basket. Henry closed his eyes tight in pain as his breathing fastened.

Abigail went over to the basket and grabbed the clean napkin. She walked fast over to Henry and tied the napkin around the wound.

"Is this better?" she asked him as she looked up at him. He was breathing heavily as he nodded.

"Thanks." He whispered in-between his breathing.

"I think we will still need to get this checked by Carson. Let me help you walk to his infirmary." She said as she held up her hand to take his. He tried to get up a little but groaned in pain. "OK, that's fine. I will get Carson and Faith over." She said as she started walking away.

"Abigail…" He said as he held her hand, stopping her. His hand was trembling against hers. She looked at him, not shaking his hand off hers. "I count on you…" he struggled to say. "…to tell me when my decision is wrong. I…would not value anyone else's opinions…" he said, his breathing heavy, "…as much as I value yours." He said, taking his hands off hers. Abigail looked at him, her eyes gentle.

"I see a man wallowing in self-pity, trying to escape the goodness in the hearts of people who care for him. I see a man, who has decided that he cannot handle kindness and would choose to remain far from it. I see a man too guilty to set things right. That is not the Henry I thought you to be and that is the man I know you are not." She said as she looked him in the eye. "Either way, your decision is yours to make. I do not have anything else to say to you." She said. His eyes fluttered open and shut. She knew she had to act fast. She leaned over and put her hand on his cheek. Henry!" she called as she shook him by his shoulder. Henry opened his eyes slightly. "Stay with me. I am getting help." She said in a panic.

He saw her rush off, sadness engulfed him. His heart was in turmoil. He knew she was right. Hell, she could see right through him. Does she not see a murderer in him? Why would she still be affected by his leaving? Why did he feel like he could not keep his eyes open anymore? The lake swooned in front of him. The ground felt jelly-like under his feet, or was it his feet that were jelly-like? His arms felt lifeless and suddenly he did not have the strength to keep his back up straight. Thoughts clouded his brain. It was either the burden of his decision or the fact that he had lost a tremendous amount of blood. Henry passed out, falling gently over the boulder, his body half off it.

AT THE TOWN

Abigail ran over to Carson's infirmary. She was beside herself with worry. Bill saw that from his office. He stood up and looked outside his window. He saw Abigail disappear into the infirmary. He walked outside on to the porch and onto the road, slowly, making his way to the infirmary. After a few seconds, Carson and Faith ran out with their kit, Abigail following closely behind. Bill ran towards her and caught up with her.

"What's happening?" he asked as he matched Abigail's jogging, by her side.

"Henry's hurt." She said hastily, not looking at him.

"What? What happened?" he asked worriedly. "How is he doing?"

"Oh you're the one to worry." She said sarcastically.

"What do you mean?" he asked as he slowed down, forcing her to do so too.

"Whatever it is you told him at the saloon the other day…? You should be happy, he has decided to leave town." She said as she looked back at him.

"I didn't ask him to." He said, defending himself.

"I am sure you did not. Not in so many words anyway." She said, anger flashing in her eyes. "We do not need help. Dr. Carson, Faith and I can handle Henry." She said fiercely as she ran to catch up with Carson and Faith, leaving Bill behind with a quizzed look.

AT THE LAKESIDE.

Abigail found Carson and Faith leaning over Henry, sprawled over the boulder she had left him sitting on.

"Oh my God! Carson, what's happening?" She leaned in too as Carson checked Henry's pulse and Faith removed supplies from the kit. Carson heaved a sigh of relief as he detected a pulse, albeit low, on Henry.

"It seems like he has passed out from excessive loss of blood. This is a deep wound. He has lost quite an amount of blood" Carson said, looking at Henry's blood-stained trousers, the blood running down his shoe on to a pool of blood on the ground. Faith dressed the wound. Abigail covered her mouth with her hand. "We need to stitch him up really fast." Carson finished as he looked over at Faith. "Faith, I need you to rush to the infirmary to prepare for surgery. Send me some men over to help us carry him there." He ordered. Faith nodded and rushed away.

"Is…is there anything I can do?" Abigail said, panic written all over her face.

"I need you to press the wound tight for me so as to avoid more bleeding." Carson said. Abigail nodded quickly and pressed on to his wound. She looked up over at him. He lay there motionless, his skin pale, both from the extreme cold and the loss of blood. Her hands trembled as her eyes teared up.

"Please be OK, Henry…please…" she whispered as she looked up at his still body.

At that moment, she felt her heart sink, a little more than usual.