CHAPTER 52

Tom stopped by the judge's office, where he had agreed to meet him and Charlotte every day and give a report on the day. It was the only demand Bill had made. Jack decided to stay in the annex room, where he could hear everything, without being noticed, he wanted to know what he would say about his wife, because if he reduced her value or something similar, that would end today. His wife didn't need to go through all that, due to Tom's nonsense.

- So how was your day? Bill asked before handing over the forms to fill out.

Tom showed his injured hands from cutting so much firewood, he had filled the school with firewood, he was going to get the winter stock ready. His hands had calluses, something Charlotte had never seen before. Tom didn't like hard work.

— Did she make you chop all the firewood? All day long? Bill looked at Charlotte, he knew Elizabeth had a plan, but he didn't think it would be slave labor.

Tom quickly explained his presentation to the room, and then told them the story about the children forgiving and giving him a second chance.

— What does this have to do with firewood? Charlotte asked.

— I wanted to go ahead. She taught me how to light the stove. Robert said it was Jack who taught her when she arrived and knew nothing. She, with her injured hand, lit the fire easily and didn't even get dirty, and I decided that I won't make her worry about that; If she wants her students to be warm, she will have it. They deserve to be well taken care of, and I thought like this... If I cut the firewood faster, there will be more time and she can give me another task; She already has a lot to do, she has twenty-eight students and each one is at a different age and I can't understand how she teaches everyone so well at the same time. You had to see mom. She is a good teacher.

— I've seen Tom. I spent days with her in that room and saw her power with children.

— I can't forgive myself for what I did to her; And so I can't ask Jack or her to forgive me. Even though she said she forgave, I still can't accept it without suffering a little first.

Bill told him that maybe this wasn't suffering, but rather a learning experience. Life can teach us in different ways and using different situations.

After Tom and Charlotte left, Jack entered the room and looked at Bill.

Bill knew how Jack's head was, everything was mixed up and made a mess of his emotions, he opened his arms and gave Jack what he needed most at that moment... a hug with a father's love.

The stagecoach, prison, had just entered the lane of solitude, where darkness already reigned, that tortuous road full of boulders, making the animals move slowly. The tight curves took away the view of what was ahead. The mounties were all nervous, they had their weapons in hand, all cocked ready to fire if attacked. A shiver ran down the spine of each of those mounties. The sound of crows was heard, the agony in the birds screamed, even Charles in his prison cage was becoming terrified. He knew the danger of that road, he heard the mounties talking with some fear. Crosses began to appear in that darkness of the night, several bones and so, between fear and terror, they found themselves falling into traps, where the axle of the stagecoach broke and two of the horses broke their hooves; two shots were heard in the middle of the valley... The horses were sacrificed... Charles was taken from the stagecoach and placed on the mountie's spotted horse and they continued forward, they needed to get to the caves and take cover. They entered the bend of agony, the sound of howling coyotes were heard... The owl hooted and several whining sounds were heard. The dead seemed to mourn in that place.

They entered the cave and soon after gunshots were heard inside and outside, going to a secret passage in that cave where the mounties were taken by surprise and fell to the ground, shot. Masked men, armed to the teeth, caught Charles, saying the word "Hargraves", and took him away, going straight to a special place that would serve as a hiding place.

Charles had a smile on his face, he was going to spend a lot, but Hargraves was worth his investment, he smiled mischievously.