Nathan kept Smoky at a slow speed as he drove the wagon down the road toward Brookfield. Oakley and a few other Mounties were back at the cabin. Though he had spoken briefly with Gabriel, the Clearwater Staff Sergeant had refrained from asking Gabriel questions about what had happened at Carson's request. The doctor had told Oakley that Gabriel was not in a good place mentally to be dealing with questions right then. Both Nathan and Carson had shared with Oakley what Gabriel had told them about the abduction.
Glancing back, Nathan checked on Gabriel who was lying in the back of the wagon. Though Gabriel was supposed to tell them if he needed a break from the movement of the wagon, he knew his friend well enough to know that Gabriel would push himself. Nathan had already taken a break on his own intuition once and he would not hesitate to do so again.
Carson rode his horse next to the wagon, keeping an eye on Gabriel himself. Nathan met Carson's gaze.
"Hold up a moment," Carson instructed.
"Whoa," Nathan said to the horse as he pulled on the reigns.
"I am doing fine," Gabriel said from his bed of blankets.
"Perhaps, but you are starting to look paler to me," Carson replied as he dismounted his horse. He removed the glove on his left hand, and holding the reigns in his right hand, stepped to the side of the wagon. Reaching over the side, he pressed his fingers against the side of Gabriel's neck. The pulse was quick under his finger tips.
Carson looked up to Nathan. "His pulse is too quick for my liking," the doctor said. "We need to take a break."
Nathan nodded. He was starting to wonder if moving Gabriel had been a good idea, despite his friend's insistence that he just wanted to be home.
Nathan listened to the conversation between Carson and Gabriel as Smoky stood patiently waiting for his next command. When Gabriel admitted feeling nausea, Carson tied the reigns of his horse to the back of the wagon and then climbed in the back.
"Do you need my help, Carson?" Nathan asked.
Carson shook his head. "The nausea is probably just a symptom of the pain and the movement of the wagon probably is not helping. We will give him a few minutes, and hopefully the feeling will ease if not pass. However, I want to be able to keep a closer eye on him for the duration of the trip.
Ten minutes later, Carson told Nathan to start moving again. They continued on, with more frequent breaks. Eventually though, Nathan pulled the wagon to a stop, in front of the Mounted Police office. Their arrival drew the attention of the townsfolk who were happy to see Gabriel back. Super Intendant O'Reilly came out of the office. As Nathan got down from the wagon, O'Reilly and Carson helped Gabriel from the back of the wagon.
"Gabe!" Billy called out as he hurried from the direction of the schoolhouse. The boy stopped short of throwing his arms around Gabriel.
"I am glad to see you, Billy," Gabriel said, moving his arm from across O'Reilly's shoulders so that he could extend and arm to the boy. His other arm was still across Carson's shoulder as he leaned on the doctor for some support.
Billy took the last few steps toward Gabriel slowly and gently put his arms around him. "I was afraid I would not see you again," the boy admitted quietly as Gabriel put an arm around him.
"I am right here," Gabriel told the boy. "Though I hope, you did not just run out of class again."
"Miss Peterson said I could go," Billy replied. "She wants me back in a half hour."
"Then how about we get Gabe settled inside and I will escort you back to school before going out to the orphanage to let Lillian know Gabe is back in town."
"Then you will go home to Elizabeth, right?" Gabriel asked.
Nathan laughed. "Yes. Then I will ease your guilt and go home to my wife," Nathan told him as he moved to the side opposite of Carson.
Billy still had a hand around Gabe's waist, which put him in front of Nathan. Nathan did not try to get the boy to move, knowing that Billy needed this time to be close to Gabriel. The little group made their way slowly toward the Mounted Police office, O'Reilly moving ahead of them to get the door. Shouts of welcome back came from the gathered town people.
"I know I said I was happy to be out of bed out at the cabin, but now I am looking forward to resting in my own bed," Gabriel commented as they walked through the door at the back of the office into the living quarters.
"Was my driving that bad?" Nathan asked jokingly.
"Yes," Gabriel replied a smile coming to his face. The first smile that Nathan had seen since finding Gabriel the night before.
Once they had Gabriel in the bedroom, Nathan left Carson and Billy to help get Gabriel settled so he could go speak with O'Reilly, promising Gabriel that he would speak to him before leaving.
Nathan found O'Reilly back in the Mounted Police Office. He repeated the information he gave to Oakley about how he had found Gabriel and what Gabriel had said about the abduction so far. Nathan also brought Gabriel's mention of resigning.
"I am not saying it would not be the right choice for him," Nathan told O'Reilly. "I just do not want him making a quick choice that he later regrets. He never promised me he would not put in his resignation so I'm asking you not to accept any resignation letters from him for a little while."
"I can do that," O'Reilly said. "In fact, after what you have told me, I am going to insist that he takes a few weeks of medical leave. Constable Davor was here helping with the search. I believe he is the officer who covered for Gabriel when he was injured last fall."
"He was," Nathan replied.
"I will have him temporarily posted to Brookfield again, to give Gabriel some time to recover from this. As soon as the doctor gives me the okay, I will tell him the decision."
"Thank you, sir," Nathan told him.
O'Reilly nodded. "I am still waiting on the paperwork to go through, but as I have you here, I want to let you know that we are making another offer of a promotion to Inspector, Constable Grant. We believe your skills are not being put to the best use in your current position."
Nathan opened his mouth to speak but stopped when O'Reilly put his hand up.
"I know you turned it down the last time because you did not want to uproot your niece from Hope Valley. I would imagine that is even more of a factor now, with a wife, stepson and another child on the way. However, we feel that there are enough cases in the area requiring the attention of an Inspector these days that you could stay based in Hope Valley, though it would still require quite a bit of travel. There is also a young officer that has shown a real talent for investigating. He is too inexperienced for an Inspector position. To be honest, he is also a bit too impatient at times. Working with you would benefit him, I believe. Perhaps in time he could even ease some of the traveling requirements on you. I realize that this is something you will need to discuss with your wife. I hope you will at least consider the offer."
"I will certainly discuss things with Elizabeth," Nathan said, excited and worried about the promotion. It was something he had once wanted. If he were honest with himself, it was something that he still wanted. However, he had to consider his family as well. He knew he would not take the promotion unless he had Elizabeth's blessing.
"Good," O'Reilly replied, standing up. "I think the teacher will be expecting her student back in class shortly," he added as he held out his hand to Nathan. "Safe travels back to Hope Valley."
"Thank-you, sir," Nathan said, shaking his superior's hand.
Heading toward the living quarters again, Nathan found Carson in the main living area starting a fire in the stove. Nathan walked through the room to the bedroom. He knocked on the door frame as he stepped into the room.
"I can stay with you tonight, right?" Billy was asking.
The boy was perched on the side to the bed that Gabriel was lying in. Nathan could see that his friend had been helped into his nightshirt. Though Nathan did not see the pain in his friend's expression as he had in the wagon, Gabriel had yet to regain his color. The pale complexion seemed to accentuate the tired expression.
"We will discuss that later. After you come home from school," Gabriel told him.
"All right," Billy said dejectedly.
"Billy, say good-bye to Gabe and then wait for me in the next room, please," Nathan said speaking up.
Billy did as he was told, leaning over to give Gabriel a hug. As Billy left the room, Nathan took the boy's place on the side of the bed. As he looked down at Gabriel, the latter kept watching the door that Billy had gone through.
"I want him here, but I am in no shape to look after him. I know Carson plans on staying here tonight, but it is not fair to ask Carson to look out after Billy when he is staying to keep an eye on me."
Nathan reached out for his friend's hand. "It will work out. Do not stress yourself over it," he told Gabriel.
Gabriel nodded.
"Are you sure you do not need me to stay?" Nathan asked.
Gabriel finally looked from the door to meet Nathan's gaze. "Elizabeth needs you more right now. The thought of resigning is still there, but I promise I will take some time to consider it. Maybe even talk with Lillian. Besides, you probably already got O'Reilly to agree not to accept an immediate resignation from me anyway."
Nathan smiled. "You would do the same thing for me," he replied. "If you need to get away for a bit, you can come visit. Elizabeth and I would love to have you, even with the baby due soon."
"I will keep it in mind," Gabriel said. "Though right now I do not even want to think about getting back in a wagon."
Nathan chuckled. "Get the rest you need. I have no doubt Lillian will be here just as soon as I tell her you are back. It is a good knowing that I am leaving you with people who will look out for you."
Gabriel smiled. "It is nice to know I have people nearby who will look after me," he said.
Nathan gave his friend's hand a squeeze before standing up. He walked toward the door, where he paused to look back. Gabriel had his eyes closed already. Nathan knew that at least for a little while, making sure Gabriel rested would not be much of a problem.
Nathan slipped from the room, spoke briefly with Carson, and then headed toward the school building with Billy. Before walking him inside though, Nathan stopped and knelt down in front of Billy.
"Billy, I know this has been hard on you," Nathan said, holding the boy's hands in his own. "And you have been very brave through it all."
"I have not felt brave," Billy admitted.
"Well you have been," Nathan reiterated. "You have done everything everyone has asked of you. You faced your fear of staying at the orphanage. You even went to school today. However, I need to ask you to do one more thing for me, okay?"
Billy nodded.
"Whatever Gabe and Dr. Shepherd ask you to do tonight, I want you to do without any questions asked, okay. Gabe wants you there with him tonight, but he is still recovering from what he went through and the wagon ride took a lot out of him. That is why Dr. Shepherd will be staying with him tonight. So if either of them asks you to stay elsewhere, and I am not saying they will," Nathan added, knowing that Carson had a really big heart himself. The doctor would allow Billy to stay if at all possible. "I want you to promise me you will go along with it. Can you do that for me, Billy?"
"Yes, Constable Grant," Billy said with a nod. "I will also be a help so Gabe can get whatever rest he needs."
"Good," Nathan said, before pulling the boy into a hug. "Everything is going to be okay, Billy," he assured the boy as Billy clung to him. "You are not alone and you never will be again," he told the boy. "You have got a bunch of people looking out for you now."
"I am starting to believe that," Billy said, the words muffled against Nathan's uniform.
Nathan smiled. He knew what a huge step even that admission was for the boy. He had come a long way in his trust in a short time. Perhaps this scare with Gabriel had even helped that process.
Nathan held the boy close until Billy pulled away. When Billy did, Nathan got to his feet.
Billy looked at the school building and then back at Nathan. "Can you walk inside with me, Constable Grant?" he asked.
"Of course," Nathan replied.
Side by side, the two of them walked into the school building. Nathan did not go any further than the doorway to the classroom, standing there while Billy quietly went to his desk, as one of the girls finished spelling a word.
"Very good," Miss Peterson told the girl, even as her eyes found Nathan's. The school teacher gave him a slight nod, to which Nathan touched two fingers to the brim of his hat and nodded before slipping from the doorway. "Vincent can you please spell, allow?" she asked continuing with her class.
Nathan slipped from the classroom and headed to the livery. His plan was to leave for Hope Valley from the orphanage rather than come back into town. After saddling Newton, he led the horse over to the Mounted Police office. He retrieved his gear, telling Carson he was heading out and went back outside. He secured the rest of the gear to the saddle and then slipped inside the Telegraph office. After sending Elizabeth a message to expect him home late that evening, Nathan rode out to New Hope Orphanage.
Unsurprisingly, Lillian opened the door in response to his knock.
"How is he?" Lillian immediately asked, without a greeting or asking him in out of the cold.
Nathan smiled, glad that he could give the anxious woman good news. "He is home," Nathan told her. "Carson plans on staying with him through the night but only as a precaution. Gabriel is going to be sore and tired for a few days but he should be fine physically. The emotional healing might take a little longer."
"Oh, Thank you Lord," Lillian said, her hands clasped over her heart and eyes closed as she said the words softly. Opening her eyes, Lillian realized Nathan was still standing on the porch. "Where are my manners? Come on in."
"I should be going. I am going to head home today."
"Well at least step in for a cup of coffee before you start that ride," Lillian said, stepping aside.
Nathan reached up for his hat as he stepped inside. Something hot to drink before a ride in the cold did sound good.
"I got coffee and I just took a loaf of corn bread out of the oven," Eleanor said, having come into the sitting room herself. "Come have a seat in the kitchen. It is warmer in there."
"Thank you," Nathan told her, making his way toward the housekeeper.
"I will take care of Constable Grant and see him off on his trip, dear," Eleanor told Lillian. "You just bundle up and head into town. Stay as long as you want. Grace and I can handle things here for the time being."
"Thank you," Lillian said, opening the closet and reaching for her coat.
Nathan let Eleanor lead him toward the kitchen. As much as Elizabeth would be anxious to have him home, he knew his wife would not begrudge him a few moments to warm up and eat something before beginning the trip.
"I will make you a couple of sandwiches to take with you for your ride home," Eleanor said, as she pointed to a chair in the kitchen. "And I don't want to hear any fuss from you," she added.
Nathan smiled. "Then I will simply say, thank you," he told her taking the seat indicated as Eleanor started with getting his cup of coffee.