The letter
Chapter 1
It had been a day much like any other for the constable of Hope Valley- long and uneventful. At least the weather was nice, Nathan thought as he looked up at the now-darkening sky. There was nothing worse than an unending day in a rainstorm.
Smiling as he turned towards home, Nathan wondered what Allie might have made for dinner this evening. As he opened the door, a nice aroma filled the air. "What in the world is that amazing smell?" he asked as he threw his Stetson into its normal resting place.
"Chicken stew. I tried something different. Hope you like it, Dad."
Leaning in to kiss his daughter's cheek, Nathan placed his hands on her shoulders. "If you made it, I will love it."
Their relationship had been a little rocky in the beginning after her mom, Nathan's sister, died and he had taken her in, but they had bonded quickly. Shortly after her adoption was final, she started calling him Dad and it always made his heart skip a little to hear it. Her biological father had made an appearance a couple of years ago, but thankfully he was now out of their lives.
As they sat down to eat, Allie spoke. "Oh Dad, I almost forgot. I'm spending the night at Opal's tomorrow if that is okay. We have a school project to finish. I'll go home with her after school."
"I think that would be alright." It was a Friday night, so it shouldn't interfere with her sleep if they stayed up a little late.
"Great."
Upon tasting his meal, Nathan's eyes widened. "This is delicious, Allie! You are becoming quite the chef."
"Thanks, Dad!" she replied, her sunny grin all the appreciation he needed.
###
Later, after Allie had gone to bed, Nathan was making sure everything was in its place before he went upstairs. From the back of the house, he heard a light tap on the front door and looked at the clock. It was almost 10 pm, an unusual time for anyone to be stopping by. Placing the dusting cloth on the table, he walked to the door and opened it.
There was no one there.
Nathan stepped out on the porch and looked around before scratching his head. Was he hearing things? Walking into the yard, he still didn't see anyone. "That's odd," he said out loud to himself before heading back to the house. As he got to the porch, he noticed an envelope lying next to the door. Moving up the steps he picked it up and took it inside, closing the door behind him.
Quietly walking to the couch, he sat down and examined it to find nothing written on the outside. He flipped it over and opened it, pulling out the single sheet inside. Once he unfolded it, he began to read.
Constable,
Meet me behind the jail 8 o'clock Friday night.
It was signed with a heart. Turning it over, there was nothing else written. Nathan was bewildered and curious as to who would have sent him an anonymous letter. The heart led him to believe it was a woman. Did he have an admirer? If so, why would she ask to meet him behind the jail? And after dark?
Turning off the light, Nathan went upstairs. He sat down on his bed and examined the letter again. It was carefully printed and hard to tell whether it was written by a man, woman, or child. Refolding it, he placed it back in the envelope and put it on his nightstand before getting ready for bed.
As he lay down, his mind refused to settle. He closed his eyes, hoping he would be able to get some sleep tonight because he had a few visits to make tomorrow and needed some answers.
Chapter 2
The night had brought not only a lack of sleep, but strange dreams the few times he dozed off, so it was no surprise that Nathan was groggy as he rolled out of bed the next morning. An extra cup of coffee would have to help him get through until lunchtime.
Watching as Allie left for school, Nathan went back to his room to retrieve the letter, sliding it into his pocket prior to leaving the house.
Now he had some investigating to do.
His walk to town was slower than normal due to his lack of rest overnight, but he was there shortly and headed to the infirmary.
Entering the building, Nathan was surprised to hear two voices coming from the examining room, one sounding suspiciously like Lucas's. "Faith? It's Nathan," he called out.
"Come on back," Lucas answered, bringing Nathan to the room where he saw Lucas sitting on a table being checked over by Faith.
"Everything alright?"
"I had a little accident while decorating at the saloon, a minor cut," Lucas replied.
"I'll need to stitch this up, should only need about 5 sutures, I think. Did you need something, Nathan?" Faith turned to get her supplies and glanced in his direction.
"No. I had a question for you, but it will keep. Take care of yourself, Lucas."
As he turned to leave, Lucas and Faith looked at each other. "What do you suppose that was about?" she asked.
"I don't know Nathan well enough to venture a guess," Lucas answered.
"Alright, let's get this over with."
###
Removing his hat as he entered the barber shop, Nathan sat down when he saw Fiona was busy styling Mei's hair.
"Oh, hi Nathan," Fiona said brightly. "Need a haircut?" Mei smiled and nodded in his direction.
"Hi, ladies. Maybe just a trim. I don't mind waiting."
"It will be a few moments."
Nathan watched as Fiona arranged the other woman's hair and had a thought. "That's a nice style. Are you meeting someone special for dinner tonight?"
"I certainly am."
"Really? Who's the lucky guy?" he asked curiously.
"Actually, there is no guy. I'm going out with Faith and Fiona tonight. We are meeting at the saloon."
"Oh? That sounds like fun. Uh... Fiona, I forgot I have an appointment. I'll have to come back for that trim. See you both later," he sputtered out as he stood and left quickly.
Fiona and Mei watched him leave and then looked at each other and shrugged.
###
"Hey Bill." Nathan walked into the jail to find the judge sitting at his desk.
"What's wrong with you? Lose your best friend?"
"Someone put a letter on my porch last night."
"Oh?" Bill said starting to smile. "From a lady?"
"I don't know. It wasn't signed."
"A secret admirer? Well, what did it say?" Bill's voice welled with excitement.
"Read it for yourself." The words were followed by Nathan laying an envelope on the desk. Bill picked it up and opened it, a big smile on his face. As soon as he read the words, his expression turned serious.
"That's it? Nothing else? Just the one line?"
"That's all that was in the envelope. I thought perhaps it might be from Faith or Mei, but it seems they have plans for the evening. Fiona too. I don't know who else might have written it... since it's signed with a heart."
"I see." Bill's words were clipped, his countenance solemn.
"What aren't you saying, Bill?"
"My hope is that you have simply caught the eye of a shy young woman about town. But there is a possibility that it could be someone with malicious intent."
"Yeah," Nathan snickered, rolling his eyes. "Because all outlaws sign their notes with a heart."
"I'm sure it's harmless, but I will feel better if I follow you to make sure everything is on the up and up. You put on your best suit, and I'll cover you. Once I see everything is okay, I'll go back home."
"If you're concerned, I should bring my firearm also," Nathan added.
"On a date? I'm certain I'm overreacting and shouldn't have made you nervous, but I'm a worrywart. Nathan, I don't believe this is anything other than what it appears to be, but I want to be cautious. I'll stay out of sight unless I'm needed. She'll never see me. It's all kind of romantic, isn't it?" Bill's smile was enough to soothe Nathan's anxiety.
Exhaling loudly, Nathan chuckled and threw up his hands. "Okay. I'll get dressed up to meet my secret admirer who could be an outlaw. What could go wrong?"
Chapter 3
The hours took their sweet time passing by and the closer to 8 o'clock it got, the more nervous Nathan became. He was now convinced that Bill was right, and this meeting was innocuous and the result of someone not having the courage to meet him in public. The more he analyzed it, the sillier he felt that he had been concerned. If someone wanted to meet him for nefarious purposes, would they write a letter first so he could plan to have backup with him? It must be someone that felt unsure of themselves.
As his mind went in that direction, he couldn't help but wonder who this mystery woman was. Mei, Faith, and Fiona were really the only single women in town that he spoke to regularly and they had plans together tonight. Who else did he know?
He had taken extra time with his toilette as the minutes ticked by, making sure to shave and put on cologne. His suit had recently been cleaned, so he was fresh and ready to go. As he walked down the road, he wished he had brought Newton home with him, but no matter, it wasn't that far to travel.
Drawing near the building, Nathan saw that Bill had positioned himself in the shadows behind the barber shop next to the jail. He almost thought of sending the man away as he now felt ridiculous at his apprehension earlier, but as soon as the thought came, he heard footsteps approaching.
His heart began palpitating at the realization that he would finally see who his new fan was when suddenly the sound ceased.
"Hello? Who's there?" Nathan called out as the hair on his arm rose. Glancing back, he saw that Bill was still close behind and took a few more steps forward, now thinking this was probably a bad idea after all.
His peripheral vision caught a slight movement at the far corner of the jail, and he strained to make out what he was seeing in the dim light. It was a person, wearing dark clothes and a hat pulled low over their eyes.
"Who are you?" Nathan said as he heard Bill coming up to him from behind.
"This is Judge Avery! Show yourself!" Bill shouted, apparently startling the person who immediately began running in between the buildings toward the town. "After him!" Bill hollered as both men sprinted in that direction, catching a glimpse of the person they now assumed was a man as he crossed the street at a fast pace.
"He's headed for the saloon!" Nathan yelled behind him, Bill trying to keep up with the much younger constable, seeing the person throw the doors open and run inside the building. As they arrived at the now-closed doors, Bill stopped Nathan.
"Maybe we shouldn't run inside, we might scare the customers."
"The lights are off, Bill," Nathan replied, motioning to the windows. "I can't imagine why they would be off this early on a Friday, and the front door left unlocked."
"He had to have a reason for wanting to meet you. Let's see if we can find out what it is," Bill responded, slowly walking into the dark interior. "Hello! We know you are in here. Come out where we can see you!"
Nathan heard some shuffling around and felt quite vulnerable in this shadowy situation without his weapon. "Come on out!" he yelled, thankful that at least they hadn't been shot at.
Suddenly he was blinded as the lights were switched on, blinking his eyes to try and adjust his vision. Soon after, he heard the uproar.
"Surprise!" Many voices shouted in unison as he looked around at a crowded room and a birthday banner. "Happy birthday, Nathan!" was yelled out from the gathering as Allie threw herself into his arms laughing. "I hope you don't mind that I fibbed to you, a little," she said as she hugged him and kissed his cheek. "Happy birthday, Dad."
The applause was loud, finally bringing a smile to his face as he realized it was all a ruse that began with the letter on his porch last night. Tomorrow was his birthday and his friends and fellow citizens of Hope Valley had come together to celebrate him. He saw Robert in the corner pulling off an overcoat and hat, Fiona, Faith, and Mei were blowing birthday horns, and Elizabeth and Lucas were clapping.
Handshakes and hugs overtook him as his heart finally came down to a normal rhythm before turning to see Bill laughing behind him. Walking forward, the judge slapped his shoulder. "Happy birthday, Nathan," he stated. "You are a hard man to surprise."
"Well, somehow you managed. It's definitely a birthday I will never forget," Nathan replied cheerfully as he joined in the festivity.
The End