Chapter 18: The Mounties Always Get Their Man

It was still dark when Nathan and Gabriel were pulling on their boots at the edge of their cots in the Mountie barracks. It was a full house again with Mounties from all over the area pouring in all through the evening—just as Superintendent O'Reilly had promised.

The barracks and the hotel were completely booked with several families in town also accommodating Mounties and Alberta policemen alike. The Cafe and library were even housing men on bedrolls for the night.

Fraser's mother tirelessly worked through the night to welcome the extra guests. She provided a breakfast buffet of eggs, toast, and coffee for the men on the rearranged tables against the east wall.

Men were cycling through the cafe to grab a quick breakfast egg on toast sandwich and coffee before reporting for duty at the RCMP office.

———

Despite the early morning hour, Main Street was filled with red and brown serge speckled in with the olive green uniforms of the Alberta Provincial Police. Also scattered about were the black miner jackets from the men from Brazeau Colleries that had volunteered to help the day before.

Men with varying uniforms, but one determined glint in their eyes stood talking amongst themselves—waiting for instructions. The tension in the air was thick with anticipation for the task that lay before them.

Nathan and Gabriel waded through the gathered crowd until they reached Constables Frewin and Morley on the office steps.

"Good morning, Gentlemen." Morley greeted as he rubbed the back of his neck with a yawn.

"Good morning James." Gabriel replied back. "You look like you could use another cup of coffee."

"Is that your way of telling me that I look old?" He narrowed his eyes playfully back at the Brookfield Mountie.

"No Sir, you don't look a day over twenty-nine…." Gabriel joked, earning a lighthearted shove from Morley.

Constable Frewin laughed—until the glare from Morley suddenly silenced him. He quickly wiped the smile off his face, but his eyes still twinkled. The younger man started, "Well gentlemen, Superintendent O'Reilly appointed you three to help lead this mission. The plan is to cover every side of the slide…so I will need a team lead at the top, one on each of the sides, and a team at the bottom."

Morley was first to touch his nose. Nathan next, and Gabriel last. Frewin merely shook is head and laughed. "Well I had planned on leading the team from the top anyway."

Morley let out an audible sigh of relief.

"Are you ok with that, James?" Gabriel teased.

"Oh yeah…like I scale mountains at my age." Morley chuckled leaning back on his heels.

"You look rather spry," Nathan joked.

Morley narrowed his eyes at his quietly chuckling partners. "Gee thanks, but no thanks. I'll be down at the bottom. You boys can flush him out."

"Kinslow, you have the team on the eastern side and Grant you'll have the team on the western side. At my signal, my team will descend from the northernmost point from where Bassoff entered from the woods. When we come even with your teams' elevation, you will flank our sides." Frewin looked at each of them for acknowledgement.

At their nods, he continued, "The hope is that with our numbers, we can force him to either be found or to run. In that case, we have Morley's team at the bottom of the slide on horseback and I have a few officers even further back with Harleys and cars should there be a pursuit. Headquarters insisted that he be caught today. Preferably alive to stand trial. Any questions?"

Nathan spoke up, "Sir, how are we managing so many men staying together once we're in the boulders? Visibility will be low in some points."

"I've considered that too. We'll just have to stay alert and go slow and steady. Our numbers give us an advantage to cover everything. I'd rather take it slow and easy than risk someone getting hurt. I plan on stressing that to the men myself."

The men nodded. Without any other questions, Frewin turned to the gathered crowd to assign teams and give instructions.

Before long, Morley's team was saddling up. The others were preparing for their hikes up the mountain and through the woods—just as the first rays of light lit the mountain's peaks.

——-

A line of red mounted on horseback stood at the ready at the base of the mountain. The slide was surrounded on every side. The horses stomped and snorted visible puffs of steam as their riders waited with their eyes behind binoculars—trained for any movement on the boulder field.

A whistle blew off in the distance, and Frewin's team skidded and slid down the steepest part of the slide—repeating the same path that Bassoff had taken the day before. Some were swept completely off their feet on the steep grade and skid to a stop nearly fifty yards down the mountain carried by loose pebbles.

Gabriel's and Nathan's teams had weapons drawn and were providing cover for Frewin's team should Bassoff choose to reveal himself and take shots at the descending and exposed team.

Coming even with the East and West teams with no luck yet, Nathan and Gabriel signaled their teams forward stepping from the woods and joining Frewin's team on the mountainside.

Two hundred men descended from all sides of the Frank Slide combing through the boulders and rocks in search of the fugitive. Pebbles from their many boots cascaded down before them, and the thundering of their boots against barren rock brought the ominous sound of justice. Men filled every corner and crevice. Their jagged breath puffed out before them as they scaled slowly down the mountainside.

The terrain was unbelievably rugged and the footing was unsure. There were boulders the size of two story houses. Some boulders were small enough to be stepped over, but many were easy to hide behind. Hundreds of men scaling down the mountain gave them a distinct advantage, but there was still one cold-blooded killer armed and hiding—seemingly anywhere. It was a dangerous game of cat and mouse.

The lower the elevation, the larger the boulders became. Just as Nathan had feared, visibility became scarce. Between the boulders' size and the dust kicked up from the descending men, it was hard to tell who was who.

Ducking in and around the boulders, Nathan kept his weapon raised and at the ready—straining for anything amiss in front of him. A flash of light shone from the corner of his eye and the unmistakable sound of a shot echoed through the mountainside. He glanced to his feet with his heart pounding in his ears—recognizing the bright red drops of blood on the rocks around him.

———

Elizabeth sat at her desk as her students finished their math test. The only sound in the room was the scratching of pencils. In the quiet, Elizabeth's eyes fell to her vase of wilted asters, and she found herself praying, yet again, for Nathan and Gabriel's safety.

She reached for her rings, as her usual nervous fidget, and remembered that they were absent. She reached up to the thin necklace hanging discreetly around her neck. She patted the rings that hung down into her dress. It was progress, but she couldn't quite part with the rings completely yet.

She had awoken this morning from the most unusual dream. It was about a burned barn and a fundraiser of pies and cakes. Rather than see the dream through her own eyes, however, it was like she watched the whole thing unfolding like a fly on the wall of Nathan's home. She could see with such clarity the gentle way that Nathan loved her son in contrast to Lucas's disinterest and boasting. So clearly she could see the way that her friends pushed her and Nathan together to be a family. And, oh, they danced. Around and around the floor they had danced. That feeling alone of being in Nathan's arms brought her warmth even now—long after the dream had ended.

She had awoken feeling so light, and happy, and with such peace. She had opened Jack's letter again and reread it—thinking again of only Nathan, yet grateful that Jack had left her his words of hope that she would find love again. And she had. The morning light had caught the diamond just right, and she found herself completely at peace removing the rings from her finger.

She went to her desk drawer to put the them safely in the engagement ring box. No sooner had she closed it, she reopened it, and placed the rings on a necklace instead.

One step at a time. She thought to herself. She started to scold herself, when she remembered Nathan's words from their time in the aster field. Oh Lizbeth, no….it's ok. Jack will always be important to you. You'll always love and miss him. I understand that. She clasped the necklace behind her neck, tucked the rings under her dress, and stared for a moment at her reflection with bare fingers.

It was the ending of an era. She had been—and always would be—proud to be Jack's wife. But now, she also found herself hopeful to be Nathan's wife someday as well. That thought alone made her eyes twinkle where her fingers now lacked.

"Mrs. Thornton?" The small voice of Opal shook her from her thoughts.

"Yes Opal?" She asked, a bit flustered.

"We're all done."

Elizabeth looked up to see the entire class smiling and looking back at her curiously.

"Oh….right. Ok. I'll…collect the tests…thanks Opal." Elizabeth stood and cleared her throat. "We'll start our grammar lesson then."

Collective whispers and groans washed over the classroom.

——-

Nathan sank to his knees next to the fallen officer. The man's brown serge was darkening with blood from where the bullet had gone through his chest. Nathan reached into his serge pocket and produced a handful of gauze that he pressed firmly against the wound. Several men gathered around Nathan with weapons raised—forming a protective semi-circle in front of them.

Recognizing Constable LeClair among the gathered men, Nathan tasked him with running back up the mountain and through the woods towards town. He needed to call for help, and for a transport wagon with a stretcher.

A young Constable emerged from around the boulder with a shaking hand. "I'm so sorry…I thought…" The man's face was pale and etched with grief and regret. "I thought…" but he couldn't finish.

Nathan took compassion on the young man and gave him small tasks to do to avoid having him go into shock. "Here. Hold this gauze…. Open them…. Hand them to me one at a time…. Now go collect as much gauze as you can….Then bring me everything you have." The instructions were slow and methodical—keeping the man focused on the job at hand and not the potentially deadly mistake that he had made.

———-

Meanwhile, Gabriel's troop continued through the boulder field. The echoing shot put everyone on high alert and increased their rate of descent. Gabriel shouted to his men to slow their rate and keep together, but it couldn't be heard over the clamor. The men rushed forward, and another shot rung out in the dusty haze—this time not thirty yards ahead.

A whizzing sound sailed over Gabriel's head followed by a crash of rocks. Ducking low for cover, Gabriel looked up to the sight of a swarm of Mounties surrounding the badly wounded Bassoff who was finally out of ammunition. Bassoff dropped his empty revolver off to the side as Mounties secured—his now empty—hands in handcuffs.

Bassoff's clothes were torn where he had managed to bandage his arm last night. He had nicks and scrapes on his face, likely from his hasty retreat down the slide. From the looks of it, it wasn't an easy night. And yet, it seemed fitting that the man who took two lives in cold blood had to spend the night on the mass graves of innocent people. It was a harrowing place to be trapped.

With Bassoff secured, Gabriel let out a shrill whistle with his fingers to signal to the others that Bassoff was captured. Like a chain reaction, several others joined in and whistled as well.

The surrounding Mounties created a wall of red and brown serge—completely surrounding the fugitive. They escorted him down the slide to the awaiting police cars to take him back to Nordegg to be booked into their jail for the night.

The search was over. Justice was served, but the arriving transport wagon and men running with a stretcher meant that it wasn't over yet for someone.

———

Back up the mountain, Nathan had collected more than enough gauze from the surrounding men. The air was thick with dust, and it was hard to keep the man still and clean. He was slipping in and out of consciousness, but they had gathered that his name was Nicolas Kyslik.

According to one of the men with him, he was a Special Constable—primarily a translator for the Cree First Nation—yet also fluent in Russian from his upbringing. Having just completed summer training at Banff, he was called upon for the manhunt and subsequent interrogation should a Russian translator be needed. From the extent of his injuries, he was unlikely to be of assistance anytime soon.

The men loaded Kyslik onto the stretcher and took over for Nathan applying pressure to the wound. It was slow going carrying a man through a boulder field, but they eventually loaded him onto the transport wagon.

With the job done, Nathan sat back on a boulder with his soiled hands out in front of him—his forearms casually resting on his knees.

————

Gabriel had spotted the transport and his eyes followed back to find his friend handing off the medical responsibilities to the next team of responders.

He approached quietly now and loosened his canteen. "Nathan…" Gabriel's voice was soothing breaking him from his many thoughts. "Here. Let me wash you up." He poured the cool water slowly over Nathan's hands.

"I don't think he's going to make it, Gabe." Nathan muttered looking up finally at his friend. "He's just a young kid."

Gabriel nodded solemnly, "You took good care of him. Sometimes that is all you can do." Nathan nodded and took Gabriel's offered hand—helping him to his feet.

They walked quietly back to town. When they reached Main Street, a group of gathered serge huddled around the blonde from the General Store. She had a handful of slips and was calling out names as the men passed by. As they drew nearer, Nathan was surprised to hear his name called.

He claimed the telegram and quickly read:

NATHAN YOURE ON MY MIND & IN MY PRAYERS BE SAFE LOVE ELIZABETH

Nathan let out a breath, and his heart warmed. Despite Elizabeth knowing that he was in a shoot out the day before, it was a comfort to him to know that she was still praying and supporting him instead of stepping back in fear. He folded the telegram and put it into his breast pocket, close to his heart.

"Did she call you Sweet Cakes?" Gabriel nudged his friend in jest.

"I'll never tell." Nathan retorted looking down his nose at Gabriel with a smirk.

Looking up and down Main Street, the evidence that Nordegg was moving on with life was apparent. Fraser stood with his mother and sister on the steps of the Cafe. It was hard to say who looked more proud among the three of them.

Mounties and Alberta Policemen alike stood together with their telegrams up and down the road. The General Store was setting out barrels of apples for sale on the storefront's boardwalk.

Despite their heavy losses this week, Nordegg was moving on. Nathan was mulling over the morning's events. The Mounties got their man, justice was served, he did all he could for a fellow Mountie, and before long he would be heading home to Hope Valley and the two ladies he loved most. One thing was for sure, he was more eager to return home than ever.

A/N:

Lots of history this chapter! (And some that I messed with).

Historically, Bassoff somehow managed to escape the pursuit despite the 200 men and was found 3 days later near Crowsnest Pass. He just so happened to find a cabin with a nurse in it that patched him up. As far fetched as that sounds, that's the truth of what happened. He was ultimately hanged for his crimes.

Nicolas Kyslik really was killed in friendly fire during the pursuit on the Frank Slide. I have no idea if he was young or which languages he was fluent in, but Eoin MacLean said he was likely a translator with the title Special Constable. All I had for information was his name, title, & tragic death by friendly fire.

Normally gauze and a first aid kit would be carried in the horse's saddlebags, but Eoin & I decided that for an on foot mission like the slide, they would have been carrying supplies in their serge pockets. (Thanks again for the video Eoin!) *He posted the video to the Sunday Night Serge Facebook group

Elizabeth's dream is from my very first fanfic "A Cakewalk To Remember" which now ties that one-shot story into this universe. So you can read (what I have now made into) her dream there if you like.

Also, I'm done killing people for awhile ;) …on to the sweet & tender reunion moments!!

Thanks to @nebula2, @pn1thrasher, & Eoin MacLean !