AN: I am thrilled to see all the favs, alerts, and supportive comments in such a short time. Thank you all! Here is chapter 2!

Returning from rounds the following afternoon, Nathan bedded Newton down in his stall. His wrist, which he had left wrapped, had only a dull ache and was no more than a nuisance to his normal activities. Though he knew there was a chance he would have to tack the horse again if he had to go back out, Nathan felt that his horse deserved to be warm just as much as he did. He would rather have to tack the horse again than have Newton sanding around in the cold. School would let out soon, and he planned on being at the schoolhouse to pick up Ally and Opal.

For once, the roles were reversed. Melissa and Walter Weise had asked him to keep an eye on Opal while they were out of town. The couple was heading to Brookfield for two reasons, only one of which Opal knew about.

After years of struggling to have a second child, Melissa and Walter had finally decided to adopt a second child. Opal was thrilled about the idea of having a brother or a sister, though she was leaning toward a sister. The Weise's planned on meeting with Lillian and Grace and talk about adoption as well as spend time with the children at New Hope Orphanage. They had warned Opal that it might be a while longer before she got a sibling, but they had thought it important that she knew they wanted to take that step.

The reason that they weren't taking Opal to Brookfield with them was because of the second reason they were making the trip. Nathan had bought Ally a horse for her birthday and Opal had immediately asked Nathan to teach her to ride. With the Weise's permission, he had done so and now Melissa and Walter wanted to get Opal a horse of her own for Christmas. Tess Stewart, as well as a couple of the other ranchers around Brookfield, had horses they were willing to sell. Even if their trip to New Hope Orphanage amounted to nothing but talk this time, Melissa and Walter intended to return to Hope Valley with a horse for Opal's Christmas present as Christmas was only about three weeks away.

Walking into his office, Nathan hung his hat up and walked toward the desk. Approaching the desk, a new piece of paper sitting in front of the typewriter caught his attention. Picking it up and reading it, Nathan let out a sigh.

Constable Grant,

Your services are requested at the Queen of Hearts. Lucas.

Lucas had never been on the top of the list of people that Nathan wanted to interact with. That had only become more true these last few months, especially after what he had overheard last night. However, Lucas was a member of this community, and Nathan knew that he could not ignore the request.

Going back to the door, Nathan retrieved his campaign hat as he walked out the door. Saying hello to a few folks, he made his way to the saloon. Stepping inside, Nathan scanned the room looking for Lucas. He spotted the saloon owner at a table, playing poker with several other men, one of whom was one of the Pinkerton's with Spurlock. The fact that he was playing poker didn't surprise or bother Nathan none. The fact that one of the new waitresses at the Queen of Hearts whom Nathan didn't know by name yet, looked quite comfortable in the saloon owner's lap did.

Nathan bit his lower lip, forcing himself not to react. He knew Faith was right that confronting Lucas openly about the saloon's owner flirtatious behavior of late would serve no good. His actions could be seen as simple jealousy and only hurt Elizabeth more. This was one battle that he couldn't fight for Elizabeth. His best course of action was to let the news of Lucas' flirting with women at the saloon though dating Elizabeth reach her through other means. Perhaps Bill or Lee would mention it to her. Or perhaps Elizabeth was already aware of it and simply didn't care. He had noticed that Elizabeth didn't seem to be as happy when she was with Lucas as she had once been. Though his own heart hurt at her choosing Lucas over him, Nathan's heart also ached for Elizabeth. He wanted to see her happy, and except when she was with her son or her students, her smile didn't light up her eyes like it use to.

Spotting Nathan, Lucas spoke briefly to his companions, extricated himself from underneath the waitress and headed toward Nathan.

"Constable Grant, I assume you got my note," Lucas said, his usual casual smile on his face.

"I did," Nathan stated, trying to keep his voice neutral. "What is going on?"

"I have a family staying in room two, who has told me that the daughter's charm bracelet has gone missing. The bracelet does not have a high monetary value but it is special to the girl. Apparently the parents have more valuable items, so they are not sure it was a theft, though they have searched the room thoroughly as have I, but the bracelet cannot be found. They are willing to let it go as simply being lost, but I asked you to come because this is not the first time something has gone missing from that room."

Nathan nodded. "What else has gone missing."

"Two weeks ago, a woman claims she lost a cameo while staying in the room. She left her contact information asking that if it was found, I returned it. It hasn't turned up. After her, I overheard a lady staying in her room that her hair pins seemed to be mysteriously disappearing. While curious, hardly a matter to concern you with. Last week, a business man was passing through Hope Valley, spent a night in room two. He told me that his pocket watch had disappeared over night. I suggested he report it and he said he had no time to waste with small town law enforcement, his words not mine," Lucas said apologetically. "As the watch had no sentimental value, I paid him the value of the watch and he went on his way. Now this."

"Things are only disappearing from that room?" Nathan asked, his curiosity piqued.

"Just that room," Lucas said. "Since the pocket watch disappeared, I have tried to not put anyone in that room but it was the only one available when the family showed up yesterday."

"Where is the family now?" Nathan asked.

"They went over to the café to eat," Lucas replied. "I had someone check out of room four so I moved them to that room for the remainder of their stay. Room two is empty now."

Nathan nodded. As the family wasn't the one asking for his services, Nathan decided to leave them be for now. Instead, he planned on checking out the room. Perhaps the lock to the door or the window was not properly working or something.

Lucas led the way up the room. Reaching the room, Lucas went to put his master key in the door knob.

"One moment please," Nathan told him, reaching out to test the door knob to make sure the door was sufficiently secure. If he had an issue with the action, Lucas kept his comments to himself, allowing Nathan to conduct his own investigation.

Satisfied that the door lock worked properly, Nathan nodded to Lucas. The saloon owner opened the door to the room. Nathan walked in, placing his campaign hat on the table in the room. Lucas stood silently by the door, as Nathan made an inspection of the room. Fifteen minutes later, Nathan hadn't found anything suspicious. The lock on the window seemed in proper order. There were no indications that the lock on the door had been picked. If the room was locked, one would need a key to get in.

Standing in the middle of the room, Nathan surveyed the room. There were the bed, a table and two chairs, the closet, night stand and bureau in the room. Lucas had told him there was a cot in the room for the daughter to sleep in but that it had been moved to the family's new room. Nathan's eyes rested on the bureau. The piece of furniture covered a large section of the wall. Looking at it, Nathan went over the missing items in his head - a broach, hair pins, pocket watch and charm bracelet. A strange combination for a human thief but what if the thief wasn't human.

"Has the bureau been moved recently?" Nathan asked.

"No," Lucas replied. "I took a lamp and looked behind it and underneath it but didn't see anything shiny."

"Help me move it." Nathan told him.

Lucas opened his mouth as if to protest but then closed it. Instead, he approached the bureau. With Lucas on one side and Nathan on the other, they moved the bureau away from the wall. Nathan examined the bottom of the wall, finding a spot where a couple of boards had broken. Nathan got down on his knees, and with his gloved hand reached in as far as he could. Feeling around, his fingers touched something small and hard. Pulling it out, Nathan held up a charm bracelet much like the one he had started for Allie a couple of years ago.

"I think your thief is a packrat, Lucas," Nathan told him, getting to his feet. He placed the charm bracelet in Lucas' hand, knowing the man would make sure it got back to its young owner.

"Any chance you want to help me catch it?" Lucas asked, a teasing smile on his face.

"Sorry, but rodents are not in my jurisdiction," Nathan informed him, reaching for his hat. "Good luck," he told the saloon owner.

"Thank you for solving the mystery at least," Lucas said, sincerely.

"You are welcome," Nathan said, heading for the door.

Reaching the doorway, Nathan paused. He may agree with Faith that it wasn't his place to confront Elizabeth about Lucas' behavior and Bill was right that making a public scene would accomplish nothing. However, it was just the two of them right now, and doing absolutely nothing, didn't sit well with Nathan.

Turning back to Lucas, he fixed the man with an intense stare. Nathan watched as Lucas involuntarily took a step back from him.

"Lucas, you once told me that I should be sure I had Elizabeth's best interests in mind," Nathan said, deliberately leaving Ally out of the statement. Ally had been hurt enough by the whole affair and Nathan was trying his best to keep her out of his issues with Elizabeth and Lucas. "Perhaps you should take your own advice and ask yourself if your behavior is in Elizabeth's best interests."

"That was totally innocent. Violet was simply being a good luck charm while watching the game," Lucas said. "Do you plan on telling Elizabeth what you saw?"

Nathan shook his head. "It is not my place," he said regretfully. "However, it will not be long before your behavior here gets back to her. You might want to consider how she will view your behavior. She might not view it as innocently as you do."

With that said, Nathan headed for the stairs. It was about time to head out to the schoolhouse and pick up Allie and Opal.

Bill sighed as he reached up to rub his temples. While he didn't oppose to progress necessarily, he was wary of it. Just like he was wary of Wyman and this proposed factory. Things were being done too secretively, though little by little things were coming out. The people of Hope Valley were rallying together to protect their little town, and of course that meant all the legal issues came his way.

More than ever, Bill knew that he was needed in his position as judge. It was why he had withdrew his name from the mayoral race even though Bouchard had added his. To Bill's relief, Hickman had won rather than Bouchard. At least he could trust Mike. There was still something he didn't trust about Lucas Bouchard. Something that told him that somehow, Lucas was wrapped up in all these so-called business propositions.

He needed proof though, not suspicions.

Lucas' behavior the night before didn't sit well with him either. Bill had considered the idea of telling Elizabeth about it. However, his relationship with Elizabeth these days was already strained. Though Bill hadn't directly said so, Elizabeth had picked up on his opinion that she had made a mistake with picking Lucas over Nathan. He was fairly sure the only reason she even tolerated his presence these days was for Little Jack's sake. As his godson's third birthday approached, Bill found himself wondering if he would receive an invitation to that celebration. He also found himself wondering if he wanted to, knowing that Lucas would probably be there.

Though he and Lee hadn't discussed it, Bill found himself hoping that perhaps Lucas' flirtatious behavior would find its way to Elizabeth through the mill owner. If Lee didn't say something to her, perhaps he would mention it to Rosemary who could say something to Elizabeth. As far as he knew, Elizabeth was still on good terms with Lee and Rosemary.

He might not be able to do much about the situation with Elizabeth but at least Bill had the satisfaction of knowing he had helped Fiona out. After learning that Wyman was trying to buy the building from Mr. Reynolds who leased it to Fiona, Bill had stepped in. While he couldn't put a stop to Wyman's bid for the building, Bill did ask a friend of his to make a counter offer. Reynolds had been persuaded to take the second offer. After that, Bill had arranged for a buyout agreement between Fiona and his friend. Instead of lease payments, Fiona's monthly payments would go to paying back the purchase price of the building. Until she was sole owner of the building, ten percent of the profits would go to the building's owner. Fiona was thrilled that she was on the path to ownership of a business.

That had been one of the few happy moments of the past few months, and Bill had thought there had been precious few. Finding a pastor had been a bright spot. Joseph Canfield seemed to fit quite nicely into their little community and Minnie was a great help at the café. Abigail's return to Hope Valley had been another. She had finished out her term, but had no interest on seeking reelection. She and Cody seemed to be settling back into life okay. No one seemed to know where Henry had disappeared to, though Bill thought that might not be such a bad thing. He was sure Henry's son had been involved with that stolen car but once again he had no evidence. He had never been able to match up the print he had found to the shoe that had made it. Perhaps Nathan had a point. The car had been returned to its owner and that was the important thing.

The moment he had seen Abigail, Bill knew that he and Molly had made the right choice. He had asked the feisty redhead out to dinner. They had eaten at the saloon, and while Bill enjoyed Molly's company, there had been no sparks. As he walked her home, he had felt no desire to want to kiss her good night. Molly seemed content to walk beside him without holding hands as well. When they had reached Molly's front door, Molly had looked him in the eyes and said, "this felt more like dinner with a friend than a date despite getting dressed up, didn't it?" Bill could only agree with the assessment and felt relief that the woman felt the same way that he did. He and Molly were still friends.

However, the moment Abigail had walked into the cafe, Bill had felt his heart skip a beat. He still had feelings for Abigail Stanton. At one time, when Frank had been in town, Bill had thought his chance with Abigail had passed. Now though, perhaps there might be another chance for him, though he knew he had to bide his time. Abigail's heart was still hurting from the loss of her mother whom she had spent these last couple of years caring for. Being her mother's full time care giver had taken a toll on her. For now, Bill was just trying to play the role of a supportive friend. Hopefully, in time an opportunity to voice his feelings would appear.

Breaking out of his thoughts, Bill surveyed the paperwork spread out on his desk. If he left it there, it wouldn't go anywhere over the weekend no matter how much he might wish it would.

The door to his office opening made Bill look up. Despite the headache, he could feel his spirits lifting at the sight of Ally and Opal rushing into his office. Nathan was right behind them with a casual smile on his face. The two girls now standing in front of Bill's desk were about the only ones who could bring a smile to Nathan's face these days. Bill knew the man was hurting because of Elizabeth's choice, though he had been stoic over the whole situation. Bill knew that despite his own feelings, Nathan wanted only the best for Elizabeth.

Not for the first time, Bill doubted the same could be said for Lucas.

"What may I do for the two of you?" Bill asked, pushing his thoughts aside and concentrating on the two bright smiles in front of him.

"We want to invite you to dinner at the Grant's tonight, Judge Avery!" Opal said.

"Opal and I are cooking tonight," Ally added.

"I'm staying with Mountie Nathan, while my parents go to Brookfield," Opal said. "Did you know my mom and dad might adopt another child?"

"I am aware of that. How does that make you feel?"

"I always wanted a sibling. Ally is almost like a sister as we spend a lot of time at one another's home, but it is not quite the same," Opal replied.

"I just hope I don't get forgotten," Ally commented, her smile fading.

Opal immediately hugged her friend. "I'll never forget you. You are always going to be my best friend, sibling or not," Opal declared.

Ally hugged her friend back, her smile returning. Letting go of Opal, Ally looked back at Bill. "So, will you come to dinner?"

"And your uncle is not cooking at all?" Bill asked, looking up at Nathan with a teasing look.

"He says he is just going to watch to make sure we do not burn the house down," Ally said, clearly not amused by Nathan's dad joke.

"Then I will be happy to accept the dinner invitation," Bill told them.

"Yes," both Ally and Opal said happily.

"In fact, if you do not mind, perhaps I will walk home with you now. I have had enough paperwork to last me until Christmas," Bill said, directing the question to Ally but looking up at Nathan for permission as well.

"That would be great!" Ally replied. "You can keep Uncle Nathan from worrying and making me nervous," she stated.

"Am I really that bad?" Nathan asked.

Ally shot him a look. "You place the first aid kit on the table any time I pick up a knife to cut vegetables," she told him.

Bill coughed to cover up his laugh, not at all surprised. Truth be told though, Bill could see himself doing something like that himself if he was trying to raise a young girl on his own.

"Just wait until you go out on your first date," Nathan warned her.

"Robert has already said he would not be surprised to find you waiting on the front porch for him with your rifle if he ever picked me up for a date," Ally commented, even as she and Opal headed for the door.

"That is not a bad idea," Nathan commented quietly to Bill as Bill got to his feet, leaving the paperwork exactly where it was. The judge was certain it would be right there waiting for him on Monday, though part of him secretly hoped it wouldn't be.