Chapter Fifty-Four
"When things go wrong,
you'll find they usually go on getting worse
for some time;
but when things once start going right
they often go on getting better and better."
― C.S. Lewis
Elizabeth sat down at her desk and picked up the slate at the top of the pile of the little chalkboards on her desk. She'd just finished a history lesson about the Hudson's Bay Company and Rupert's Lands. Now, the class was completing their first art project at the new school - drawing and coloring pictures of Hudson Bay. She'd decided that the new classroom needed some student art adorning the walls. She'd circled the room, checking the students' work, and was very pleased with their efforts.
She began to grade the Math problems on the slate, but she stopped after the first problem. She suddenly felt fidgety, like she couldn't sit still. She pressed on with her grading, attempting to shove the uneasiness to the back of her mind. However, that proved harder than she expected. She finished the slate and pushed it aside before she finally surrendered to her uneasiness. She stood and walked to the windows. Jack hadn't stopped by during their lunchtime, as he said he might and she'd hoped he would. In fact, she hadn't seen him since he'd walked her to school that morning. She knew he and Bill were going to try to capture Wiley today. This thought fueled her restlessness. She looked out the window and strained to see down the road and through the trees toward town.
"Miss Thatcher?" Rosaleen called.
Elizabeth turned to face her. "Yes, Rosaleen?"
"What color is the water in Hudson Bay? Is it blue? Or kind of brown, like the pond?" she asked.
Elizabeth smiled. "It's mix of both, Rosaleen. You color yours however you want," she instructed.
Rosaleen smiled at Elizabeth and returned to her coloring. "MY Hudson Bay is gonna be blue and brown and green," she whispered to Anna, who was sitting next to her. "And maybe some purple."
Elizabeth's smile widened into a laugh. She looked around the room and saw the students were all working hard on their artwork. She enjoyed the peace for a fleeting moment before the jitters crept back into her mind. She turned and looked out the window. She couldn't see the town but she tried to imagine what might be happening there. The nervousness deepened and she felt her stomach tie itself in knots as fear filled her. She fought to calm her agitation, wishing that Jack would come riding up the path. He did not, so she returned to her desk and continued grading the slates and fighting her emotions.
After a few minutes, the school door opened. All eyes in the room flew to the opened door as Cat Montgomery and Florence Blakely stepped inside. Elizabeth was surprised to see them as there was still an hour left in the school day. "May I help you?" she asked the women.
"Elizabeth... ummm... Miss Thatcher, could we have a word with you outside?" Cat asked in a very somber voice.
Elizabeth gave Cat a questioning look and replied, "Alright." She stood and instructed the students, "Children, please continue working on your art projects, silently." Then, she headed to the door. Cat and Florence exited first and Elizabeth followed them. Elizabeth faced the widows, searching their faces for clues as to why they had interrupted the school day. Cat and Florence exchanged concerned looks before Cat finally spoke, "Elizabeth, there was a problem in town," she began.
Elizabeth's face contorted with concern and she immediately asked, "Was Jack hurt?"
Florence nodded slowly as Cat rushed to explain, "He and Inspector Avery were injured. The doctor is tending to them at the jailhouse."
Elizabeth's uneasy feeling had now grown to full-fledged panic. Her breathing quickened and tears filled her eyes.
"You go," Florence urged. "We'll make sure the children are dismissed."
"Yes, go!" Cat agreed. "We'll take care of things here."
Elizabeth suddenly felt frozen in place. Dread was filling in all the spaces that weren't already filled with panic. Cat touched her arm reassuringly and she remembered that she needed to get to Jack. She rushed down the stairs and up the road to town, hitching her skirt up with both only thought was to get to the jailhouse and to Jack. She rounded the corner into town as fast as she could. When she reached the jailhouse, she bounded up the stairs and through the door.
The scene inside the jailhouse was chaotic and Elizabeth stopped in the doorway, taking it in. The room was filled with townspeople, all talking at once. When they spotted her in doorway, they grew silent and stepped to the side making a path down the middle. Elizabeth moved through the opening they'd made toward the jail cells. Her eyes frantically searched for Jack. Instead, she spotted Abigail. Abigail saw Elizabeth and immediately moved toward her, reaching for her hand.
"Jack?" Elizabeth asked, her voice low and filled with emotion.
Abigail nodded.
"Elizabeth?" Jack's voice called.
Elizabeth looked up and was surprised to see Jack standing outside the jail cell. It was even more shocking when she saw that he wasn't wearing a shirt and had a bandage wrapped around his abdomen.
"Jack?" she called weakly, tears finally spilling onto her cheeks. She moved toward him.
He took her hand in his. "I'm fine," he assured her. "Just some banged up ribs."
Elizabeth exhaled but her tears continued to flow. "Oh, Jack," she exhaled as she squeezed his hand between both of hers. She looked up at Jack and he gave her a smile.
"Were you worried about me?" he teased.
She closed her eyes. "Always," she mumbled.
"No worries. I'm fine," he assured her.
"You're going to have to take it easy so you heal well," Ann cautioned.
Elizabeth opened her eyes and looked at Ann. She hadn't noticed her standing next to Jack before. "Yes, you will," she concurred, giving Ann a smile.
Ann briefly returned the smile before telling them, "The doctor's still working on Bill." She glanced back at the jail cell.
Elizabeth followed Ann's gaze and saw the doctor standing over Bill, who was lying on the bed in the cell. Then, she turned back to look for Abigail, who was now standing in the jail cell door. She moved toward Abigail. Jack moved with her as they were still holding hands. She removed one hand from its clasp of his hand and reached up to pat Abigail's shoulder soothingly.
Abigail continued to silently watch the doctor treat Bill's injuries.
"Wiley shot him in the arm," Jack whispered to Elizabeth.
Her brow furrowed in reply but she didn't say anything.
There was still a crowd gathered in the jailhouse. The volume of the conversations had been rising since Elizabeth had arrived. Jack looked back at the crowd and frowned. Before he could say anything, Tom Trevoy announced, "Okay folks, time to go! Let's leave the doctor to his work." He turned and started motioning for people to move out. The crowd reluctantly did as instructed. Tom looked back at Jack and nodded. Jack nodded his thanks as Tom closed the door behind him.
The doctor turned around to Bill's friends and explained, "The bullet went all the way through. It didn't break the bone, fortunately. I've cleaned and bandaged it. He'll need a sling. He doesn't need to use that arm until it's healed. That'll be at least a week or so."
"I can make him a sling," Abigail quickly offered.
The doctor nodded. "Thank you, Mrs. Stanton." Then, he turned to Jack. "Let me check on your prisoner again before I go." He squeezed past Abigail and moved toward to the other jail cell.
Jack released Elizabeth's hand, as he needed to unlock the jail cell for the doctor, but Elizabeth continued to hold his hand tightly. He looked back at her, giving her a reassuring smile as he squeezed her hand before releasing it again. This time, she slowly relaxed her grip. He gave her a warm grin as he moved away.
"Abigail?" Bill called in a low, groggy voice.
She moved into the jail cell to Bill's side and looked down, giving him a smile.
"Looks like I'm sticking around Coal Valley for awhile. I think I'm going to need your biscuits everyday to get my strength back," he told her, joking.
Abigail exhaled a relieved laugh, "I think I can do that!"
His work done, the doctor headed out of the jailhouse. "I'll check on all of you tomorrow morning. Send for me if you need me
Jack rejoined Elizabeth and Ann. "Well, now that I know that you're alright," Ann told Jack, "I'm going to head back to the cafe and finish those lunch dishes. Maybe I'll make you some molasses cookies," she offered before she turned to leave.
"Ma," Jack called.
Ann stopped and looked back.
"Don't do too much," he cautioned.
She walked back to Jack and gave him a kiss in the cheek. "I feel fine today, Jack, and I want to make my son some cookies," she whispered to him before she swiveled around and exited the jailhouse.
He smiled and turned to Elizabeth. "She always baked when my Pa would come home from an assignment," he explained.
Elizabeth glanced back at the door through which Ann had just exited. She marveled at Ann's strength and said a silent prayer that God would continue to bless her with strength and days without pain from the arthritis. She, also, added a prayer of thanksgiving for God's protection of Jack and Bill.
Jack grabbed his undershirt and returned to Elizabeth's side. He took her hand in his again, startling her out of her prayer. "Come on," he told her as he pulled her toward the back door. Before going through the door, he stopped to put on the blue, collarless uniform shirt. He had some trouble so Elizabeth helped him. "Thanks," he whispered as she buttoned his shirt.
She glanced up at him and smiled. "You're welcome," she whispered back.
Then, he led her through the door and down the stairs. He slowly took her in his arms. She hesitated, afraid to embrace him. "It's okay," he encouraged. "Just don't squeeze too tightly."
She smiled and put her arms around him. She leaned her head against his right shoulder and asked him, "What happened, Jack? How did you end up with broken ribs?"
He shook his head. "Wiley didn't like it when I tried to stop him from getting away. But, I really don't want to talk about that right now. Let's just be for a few minutes."
She closed her eyes and held him, though she was very conscious of his broken ribs and not hurting him. He leaned in, his face against her hair. He breathed in and smiled at the lovely smell of her. After several moments, he became aware of pain in his left hand. He pulled back slightly and began to slowly flex the injured hand.
Elizabeth saw him stretching his hand and looked up at him. "What's wrong with your hand?"
Jack shook his head and replied, "It hit Wiley's jaw pretty hard."
Worry filled her face. "Did the doctor look at that?"
He nodded. "Yes. It's just bruised," he told her.
Her face relaxed as she looked into his eyes. "Well, at least it wasn't your drawing hand. I'm still waiting for another lovely picture from you!" she teased.
A grin filled his face. "Yes, ma'am," he replied.
Seeing his smile, she couldn't resist any longer. She moved her face towards his and their lips met.
Author's Notes: I hope you are continuing to enjoy the story! We're moving right along and the final chapter is in sight! I really appreciate the story follows, favorites, and reviews! It's very nice to know people are reading and even better that you are enjoying the story. Please write a review if you have a few moments. I noticed that some of you may not be Hearties, yet! If you like my story, I urge you to check out the series, When Calls the Heart, on which it is based. Season One is available for download on iTunes, Netflix, and Amazon Prime. Or DVDs can be purchased from Walmart, Fishflix, Christianbook, and other retailers. Check it out! Season Two starts April 25th on Hallmark Channel! Only one more week! My goal is to wrap up this story before the premiere. Stay tuned!