Chapter 10

Nathan didn't think he had overreacted but with potential threats coming from different directions he admitted he may have panicked a bit. Cecilia had been so upset when she came back with Greg, horrified that she had caused him to worry and that she had created extra work for these people who already had so much to do. He knew she wouldn't lie about having left a note, so the mystery of what happened to it added to his concerns. Had someone come into the house to remove it? Was she followed? He never thought he would be glad that she had bumped into Elizabeth but now for a variety of reasons he was.

Picking up the two cups of coffee he climbed the stairs back up to the bedroom, pushing the door open quietly with his foot. He marvelled at how neatly his wife always slept, no matter what was troubling her, the bedcovers barely disturbed on her side whereas they were all untucked and tangled where he had been. Her soft blonde hair lay around her face, that one curl falling across her eyes. She always laughed about it, saying it matched the unruly lock that he couldn't control in his thick hair.

Yet looking closely he could see the crumpled top of the sheet where she had clutched it during the night, the despondency having come again, always triggered when she felt concern for another. This woman had seen and heard so much of war and yet she dismissed her experience as insignificant compared to the brave soldiers whose paths had crossed hers. Her strength and weakness lay in the same thing, her empathy for others.

That Cecilia may have been the one to break through Elizabeth's wall wouldn't surprise him as he had no doubt she would have treated her with compassion and kindness. Perhaps the shock of this coming from the most unlikely person had been the key. He hoped the burden of doing this would not be too much for his wife.

A smile lit her face as she stretched and turned. "Is that coffee I smell? Is it being delivered by the most handsome man I know?" Her eyes opened and as she looked up at Nathan he felt his heart fill with love.

"I'm not sure about handsome but I am definitely the man who loves and adores you."

Cecilia laughed, "Well, it's good to hear that you meant what you were whispering in my ear last night!"

He placed the cups on the bedside table before climbing back into bed, his arms wrapping around her as she shuffled across to his side. It was still early but he knew that neither of them would go back to sleep now.

They had talked for a long time after Greg escorted her home and the rest of the Mounties were stood down from searching. A cooked dinner forgotten they made do with bread and cheese followed by a slice of Abigail's pie.

Cecilia was convinced by Elizabeth's sincerity although Nathan had doubts. There had been too many stories of her breakdown for him to ignore the possibility that this was just a part of her instability. Faith had warned him that she had moments of seeming normality before reverting back to her withdrawn manner, apparently common in people with melancholia. For now he needed to put into action a plan for Bill and him to safely meet with Elizabeth, if she was still willing, her warning to Cecilia something that they could not ignore.

Inside Molly's rowhouse Abigail was getting ready, surprising herself by how nervous she was about going next door to speak to Elizabeth. That is if she allows me in the door, she thought. On her last visit to Hope Valley she had tried hard to talk some sense into her friend, to make her understand that this was not what Jack would have wanted for her or their son.

It was all that she could do to stop herself from crying when Elizabeth proclaimed "What Jack wanted is no longer relevant, Abigail. He is gone and now I have a new husband and a different life. One that you no longer play a part in so I would ask you to leave and not bother coming back." Her heart had broken that day and it was later when she spoke with Bill that it was decided to contact William Thatcher to see if he could do something.

At dinner last night she and Henry had been shocked to hear the extent to which Elizabeth had withdrawn from the world around her. After first losing her job and then her custodial rights to Little Jack she had become almost reclusive, her only real contact other than Lucas being with The Coulters, and even that was just her arranged weekly meeting with her son.

Her friends worked collectively, keeping each other apprised of any happenings with Elizabeth in the hope that they could find a way to help her. It had been a group decision that Rosemary should agree to the weekly visits, more for Little Jack's benefit than Elizabeth's but still with the wish that it would make her realise that what she was doing was wrong.

The update last night from Bill that Elizabeth had opened up to Cecilia, willingly listening to her words of understanding and encouragement, had given them a glimmer of hope . It was agreed that Abigail should still go ahead with her visit today, with them all praying that Elizabeth had truly turned a corner and would welcome her old friend, although she was to prepare herself for the possibility that she would be snubbed again. If that happened then they would have to pray that Cecilia Grant had as generous a heart as they believed, for it may be that she was the only one who was going to be able to break through.

In the end rowhouse Elizabeth paused, pen in hand, as she heard footsteps on her front porch. She was not accustomed to visitors as it was something she had actively discouraged, not wanting to give Lucas any reason to question her actions. She rose and walked to the door as the knock came, ready to send away whomever it was with a sharp rebuff.

Her words caught in her throat when she saw Abigail standing there. Although she knew it was her voice and Henry's that she had heard the day before, the reality of seeing her here was still a shock. "Abigail! I didn't realise you were in Hope Valley. I hope there is nothing wrong?" She struggled to control the mixed emotion she felt inside at seeing her friend, wanting nothing more than to envelope her in a big hug and say how sorry she was for the way she had behaved.

"Everything is fine, Elizabeth. We have just come to visit for a few days, I wonder if I may come in, it would be lovely to catch up."

Elizabeth could feel a warmth creeping over her at the thought of sharing a cup of tea and some cake with this dear friend, someone she had missed so much. She took a slight step back, ready to welcome her in when over Abigail's shoulder, standing there on the grass in front, she saw the same man, the one she knew had been watching her the past few days. He was staring at her, not making any attempt to hide.

Quickly she pushed the door, looking sadly at her friend. "I'm sorry but I really have nothing to say to you Abigail. I would appreciate if you don't call again." With that the door was closed, leaving Abigail looking painfully at the place where her friend had just been standing.

Inside Elizabeth turned, leaning back against the door as once more her tears began to well. Did she have the courage to continuing doing what she knew was needed? She felt for her rings from Jack, which she had placed back on a chain around her neck last night, along with his wedding band, and felt her resolve begin to strengthen once again. "This is for you my love" she whispered.

Henry knew that as hard as she tried to hide her hurt Abigail had been devastated when Elizabeth turned her away. Her pain was clear to see as she explained to him what had happened. "I really felt that she was pleased to see me at first, then suddenly it was as though the shutters just came down and that was it. The door was closed. I'm sure I then heard her crying on the other side though, it was heartbreaking!"

Holding his wife close Henry was aware there was little he could say to ease her distress. Part of him wished they hadn't come, that they had just left the door firmly closed on Elizabeth and Lucas Bouchard, but then he reminded himself that there was a little boy who needed them.

"There was another thing, Henry. When I turned to come back down the steps I saw a man walking away from in front of Elizabeth's house. He seemed out of place and without any reason to be there. Could that mean something?"

Henry was sure it did have some significance, but just what he didn't know. "I think we need to talk with Nathan, tell him what happened with your visit. I'm sure Bill will have told him about our discussion and what we all think should happen." Knowing that Bill would be in his office now he suggested they go there first.

Decisions had to be made and if they could do what was needed tonight then it would be for the best.

In his office Lucas Bouchard looked up from the ledger on his desk, replying to the knock on the door. "Come in", he said firmly, expecting to see his wife here for her morning visit but surprised when it was the man who had arrived from Hamilton two days before.

"I thought we agreed that we were to have as little contact as possible while you were here."

The other man shrugged, "No-one saw me except your strange little French chef. If his food wasn't quite so outstanding I would wonder why you keep him around."

"I have my reasons. But, I am sure you have not come in to discuss Gustave with me, so what is it?"

The man sat, causing Lucas to scowl slightly as he did not want to get into a lengthy conversation right now. "I followed Mrs Bouchard yesterday."

He spoke softly, the slightness of his accent making it unclear where he originally came from. "She went out to the pond and sat there reading from a book, obviously upset by something written in it. I was hiding on the other side of the woodland when the Superintendent's wife appeared through the trees, although I would say from her surprise that this was not a planned meeting."

Lucas sat there, his elbows on the desk and fingers pressed together, with an uneasy expression. He sighed. This was all getting too complicated right here on his own doorstep. He wondered if he should just cut his losses now and go, make his way down to New Orleans and get Mei Sou to meet him there.

But he knew that the reach of the men he was dealing with extended far. Perhaps he should go to France, make his way to the old family chateau at St Germain de Confolens.

"Did they speak?" he continued.

"They made themselves known to one another. I could tell that from their body language as it was too far away for me to hear. Afterwards they sat and spoke quite solemnly for a while before one of the Mounties arrived. I gather that there was some concern as to where Mrs Grant had gone!"

Lucas looked pensive, trying to think of anything Elizabeth might have told Nathan's wife that would be believed. One advantage of her craziness being commonly accepted was that no-one ever knew how much truth there was in anything she said.

"I'm sure it was innocent, perhaps they were talking about the man they are both in love with!" he added sneeringly.

The other man sat quietly, waiting for Lucas to continue. "We need to concentrate on the game tomorrow night. Do we know when the others are arriving?" A shrug in reply told him the answer was no.

That the game went ahead on time was crucial. It was one of the most important contributions he was making to the whole operation. Without it and the others he had organised he would have failed them and that was worrying.

"Ok, see what you can find out. But don't come back here to my office. Speak to Gustav once you know something and he will pass on the message."

As an afterthought he added, "There are two men of interest who arrived on the same train as me, a Frenchman by the name of Dupont and a man from Australia, Mr Wilson. See what you can find out about them."

With that he waved his hand in dismissal and turned back to checking the figures in the ledger in front of him.

Mounties were seated around the tables in the upstairs training room, coffees in hand as they prepared to go through all the information gathered last night. Things were happening here faster than they had expected so Nathan wanted to speed up their investigation. It added more risk to everything they did but he believed that inaction was a greater danger.

After the small panic about Cecilia, Patrick and Walter had gone to The Tipperary as planned, not knowing if they would be welcome in there for a drink. The reception was less than warm but the Scots and Irish were renowned for not giving in easily to a little bit of ill-feeling so they stood their ground at the bar and waited patiently to be served.

Finally, without any conversation, two glasses of dark beer were placed in front of them and with a nod of the head the barman indicated a table in the corner at which they should sit, despite the room being almost empty. Smiling to each other they wondered if he knew that was exactly where they would have chosen….a good view of anyone coming and going through the front and a clear line of sight to the back rooms.

"We stayed for just the one, sir. It was a quiet evening in the bar but there was certainly a lot of activity in the back and raised voices quite often. I did hear Bouchard's name a few times but it was hard to place it in any context." Patrick explained. Walter added "I also heard mention a few times of the woman Mei Sou, in a way that made me think they were scared of her or who she works for. Unfortunately there were not enough people to stay longer without it being awkward, so we thought it best to leave then."

Nathan nodded, pleased that they had made their presence known. It meant that if they had to return another time it would not appear unusual. Turning to Ed and Harold he asked about their rounds last night, when they had varied their routes to cover as much ground as possible.

Ed answered first. "There was a lot of traffic going in and out of the warehouses, loaded wagons leaving and cars arriving then departing about an hour later. We made notes of vehicle descriptions and, where possible, registration details. We'll send the information through to Cape Fullerton but I'm not expecting to get anywhere. I'm guessing we haven't heard back from them about the other car?" Nathan turned to Jim Buchanan who shook his head.

Harold then continued, "It all quietened down around 10pm, when the dogs were released into the compound. Only two of them that we could see and I'm not sure they offer much protection. Just a couple of lively pups really. We have found a couple of good observation positions where we would like to set up tonight. As you know we have worked together on cases like this before sir, so have a bit of an understanding of each other's ways of doing things. I was thinking of maybe having a word with the doctors to see if they could provide us with a sedative to put in some meat to feed to the guard dogs, or perhaps some chloroform, and then getting some stout rope from The Mercantile, then we can try to get inside to investigate exactly what is stored there."

Nathan smiled, grateful for the experience and intelligent thinking of this team of men. Nothing seemed to faze them, they just saw a situation and figured out a way to deal with it.

"I'm happy with that but I want more than just the two of you out there. Walter and Patrick, after you had such an easy time drinking Guinness last night I would like you out there as back up for these two?"

Both men nodded, before Walter spoke to the other pair "Why don't we join you on the rounds this morning, then you can show us where you want us to be and we can check the layout of the terrain, in particular the quickest route down into the compound?"

At that moment the door opened and Bill appeared, Abigail and Henry following close behind. Nathan knew that their arrival here meant that Elizabeth had not been willing to see Abigail, which was confirmed by the downcast looks on all three faces.

"I can see it didn't go well with Elizabeth this morning" he offered.

Looking at the other two who both nodded, Bill then spoke. "No, I'm afraid that she wasn't welcoming, although Abigail felt at first that she was going to be invited in. Then it seemed she changed her mind."

He indicated towards Abigail who faltered a bit as she began to speak. "There was something about her manner that made me think she was happy, almost relieved, to see me. Just as she was opening the door to let me in though she stopped and it was like the plug was pulled. She changed so suddenly. That wasn't all Nathan. I am sure a man standing out on the grass area was watching it all. I don't imagine he was following me so I can only assume it is her."

Nathan felt a heaviness in the pit of his stomach. Did this mean that Elizabeth had second thoughts since speaking to Cecilia yesterday? Or was she still struggling to work out how she was going to deal with Bouchard? Then there was her warning.

Bill continued. "There's another thing Nathan. Not about this morning but what we discussed last night. As you know we three had dinner last night with Rosemary and Lee, along with Molly. We didn't keep anything from Abigail and Henry, told them everything that we knew about what had happened with Elizabeth, even going over events as far back as when you and Allie left Hope Valley."

He hesitated for a moment, looking around at the Mounties in the room.

Nathan quickly responded, "It is fine Bill, there is nothing that my men don't already know or shouldn't hear about events here. We are a team and that means that I trust them with everything that affects this case. There is no way I would bring them here without knowing the full background to what happened before."

Understanding exactly what Nathan meant, Bill went on, "There is something that concerns us more than anything else, especially if things escalate here as the signs seem to indicate. The murder of Shue Moy's man has taken this all to another level."

At mention of that Nathan looked around for Greg Aldritt, who quickly answered his boss's unasked question, "He was shot at close range, sir, and with no struggle, which tells me that the gunman was someone he knew. Without having the murder weapon to examine my guess would be that the shooter was the other Chinese man we saw fleeing the scene."

Henry spoke up then, the serious expression on his face worrying the men around him. "We had a long talk last night Nathan, about the possibilities of what could happen over the coming days or weeks. There is very little within our control but we do know something that we have the power to deal with. The safety of the children."

Wondering where this conversation was going Nathan sat down, extending his hand out to Henry to indicate that he had the floor.

"As you can imagine Rosemary and Lee are worried about any danger to Little Jack and Patrick. We really don't know what effect any of what we do here will have on Elizabeth. We haven't been here but those who have know just how unpredictable she can be, Abigail's experience with her this morning is a good example." He looked across at his wife, sympathy for the helplessness she was feeling evident in his expression. "And who knows what Bouchard may do."

"Basically we all agreed last night that if things didn't go well with Elizabeth this morning then it might be best for the boys to be away from Hope Valley until everything is resolved. We thought that Abigail and I could take them back to Brookfield with us. We think it would be best for Allie to come too. The boys can stay at the orphanage with Gabe and Lilian, where they will blend in with the other children, and we would happily have Allie with us at the hotel or if she didn't want to stay there I know that Tess would love her to stay out at the ranch. Someone would watch over them all the time. They would be safe, Nathan, and none of you would have to worry about them."

Bill stepped forward, knowing how hard this was for Nathan. As much as he would understand that this was the best thing for them, there was an inate belief in him that his daughter should be somewhere he could keep her safe. "You know Gabe would protect them with his life, Nathan."

Nathan swallowed hard, understanding the wisdom of this move but knowing how difficult it would be. That Rosemary and Lee viewed this as the best way to ensure the safety of their children meant a lot. However things played out over the coming days, Little Jack was a potential target and, by association, so was Patrick. It went without saying that Allie always was whenever he was dealing with dangerous people.

The room was quiet, every one of them wondering how they would make such a decision but all having faith that Nathan would do what was right. He knew the stakes involved and that the children's lives were too important to risk.

"How do you plan to get them away without anyone knowing?" he finally asked.

Henry looked at Bill, who walked across to stand beside his friend. "Abigail and Henry will leave here later this afternoon, making a point of stopping in the middle of town to say goodbye to people and let it be seen that there is no-one else in the car with them. I will ride with the children on the back road from their house to meet the car out past the Wolfe's place and then they will continue from there."

Nathan didn't say anything, just stood there taking in what he had heard and trying to find a reason to disagree. There was nothing.

He knew it was the sensible thing to do and would not be expected. He also knew that if Bouchard was to find out about a meeting with Elizabeth then the risk to the children would be so much higher.

Turning to Abigail and Henry he continued, "Ok, but I want a Mountie with you, not just until you reach Brookfield but while the children are there. I know that Gabe will do everything to keep them safe but if it came to the worst then one man may not be enough."

He looked around the room, his eyes landing on Jim Buchanan. Without the need for him to speak the younger man stood, "I will be happy to go, sir. Perhaps we could use the excuse of my head injury as the reason for me not being seen around town for a while. That would certainly be accepted by most."

Nathan smiled at the logic of his thinking. "Thank you."

Turning to the others he said "We have work to do here everyone, so let's get on it. Bill, can I leave it to you to tell Rosemary and Lee to get their children ready and make the arrangements with them. I need to go and find my daughter."