Chapter 11

Nathan knew the minute he opened his eyes that it was going to be a long and wearisome day. He felt pain throughout his whole body before he had even moved and experience told him that it would only get worse as the day wore on.

He could feel Cecilia cuddled up close by his side, her arm lying across his chest as though protecting him from the world. Some mornings when he woke early he would just lie in bed like this listening to the softness of her breathing and marvelling at his good fortune at not only finding this woman to love but having her love him and Allie in return. She would be the first person to say that she was not perfect and he agreed. Who was? But for him she was everything and more. In that first moment when their eyes had met at the Mountie dinner he had felt as though she was looking into his soul and understood who he was. Then when she laughed and winked at Allie he knew she was the one and that all of the heartache and hurt that had led to that moment had been for a reason.

As he shifted slightly another sharp pain ran through his shoulders and he remembered what he had told himself the day before. I am getting old, he thought. Was it time for him to hang up his Mountie hat and think about a life where he wouldn't be putting himself in the way of danger? Of course he knew the answer to that…..hat or no hat he would always help others in need, no matter the circumstances. It was in his nature. Just as being loving and kind was part of his wife's make-up despite the events of her past that he knew she still carried inside of her. Slowly he was learning more but it had to be at her pace and only when she was ready to divulge another piece of the puzzle, for only she knew how to unlock the door to where it was all hidden. But he was a patient man and while he would give anything to take away her pain it could only happen when she felt able to let it go. It was something she had taught him and he hoped that perhaps she could use her own experience to help Sarah Cunningham get past the shock and trauma that was bound to follow.

Cecilia began to stir, stretching out in the slow languid way she always did in the mornings and yet somehow her side of the bed remained almost undisturbed. He gently brushed away the lock of hair that had fallen across her face before leaning to kiss the brow that was starting to wrinkle as morning thoughts entered her head. There were times when he knew her dreams had triggered memories of the past and he would find her clutching the sheet, the expressions flitting across her face showing the depth of her hurt. But this morning she was still and he knew it was because she had someone else to help, another person's pain to ease and take away, and her subconscious mind would be focused on that. Each time she did this he hoped that it loosened something more inside her and allowed a little bit of the past to fall away, just like the cliff edge had been doing yesterday.

A brief shudder went through him as he thought just how different the outcome could have been had they not gotten there in time and he reached out to draw Cecilia back into the warmth of his side. She and the children were his world and he would do anything to protect them, even if it meant never returning to this place they all loved as it seemed that danger always managed to lay in wait until he came back.

…..

Things had happened very quickly once they were able to lift Sarah out, the tangled snare remaining attached to her as they knew that removing it at that point would only cause more pain and possible damage. The others had arrived with the stretcher and once they laid the unconscious girl onto it the two younger Mounties, Jim and Ed, made short work of getting her back to the car. Out in the light it was clear to see just how lucky Sarah had been. The thickness of her strong leather boot and the rustiness of the old metal meant that it had not managed to lock tightly around her ankle and with gentle pulling her foot was released. There would be swelling and some nasty bruises but fortunately nothing worse.

Faith began an immediate check of her, with Allie reaching down at her request to take hold of one hand in case Sarah woke and needed reassurance. Nothing seemed broken and fortunately the warmer day meant that her body temperature had not dropped too low. One very brave young lady she thought to herself as had she gone into shock then the outcome could have been very different. A more personal examination to make sure that nothing else had occurred would have to wait until they reached the privacy of the hospital.

The sound of an approaching car made them all turn and before Joseph could even bring it to a halt Jennifer Cunningham was leaping out and rushing across to her daughter. Jack followed, stopping beside the Mounties who were now organising themselves into groups to carry out a more extensive search of the area, hoping that some evidence could be found to give an understanding of what had caused Sarah to flee. The words came spluttering from his mouth, his emotions overwhelming him as he looked across to where his wife was kneeling down beside the girl, "Thank you so much. We were thinking the worst but you have brought her back to us. I don't know what to say, I'm….I'm…" The tears came then as he struggled to find the right words so Nathan stepped forward, placing his arm around Jack's shoulder to comfort him, the pain of the movement not going unnoticed by the other man.

"You're hurt. Was there someone else her? A fight?", he anxiously asked, looking around to check who else was standing about. He nodded in turn at each of the Mounties and Bill Avery, his gratitude evident to them all. The two men by the red car he didn't know and his eyes immediately went from them back to Nathan. "It's alright Jack, these two gentlemen were passing and stopped to help." But there was something about the way Nathan spoke that made Jack look back at them again and under his scrutiny both men shuffled about before looking down, as though they couldn't meet the eye of the relieved father. Nathan and Bill both observed this interaction with interest, indicating to each other that there was something suspicious about the West family that needed to be looked into.

At that moment Sarah began to move about on the stretcher and slowly her eyes opened, the fear in them turning to joy as she saw who was beside her. "Mom? Is that you, mom?", she whispered, as though unable to believe who she was seeing, then turning to look the other way she was confused to see Allie Grant kneeling on her other side. She struggled to sit up but Faith stepped forward, leaning down and touching her hand to the young woman's forehead. "Everything is alright Sarah, you've been through quite an ordeal so you need to stay still." The girl nodded, feeling the squeeze of her mother's hand. "Is it over? Did they catch him?"

Nathan's voice broke through then, solid but with a gentleness about it to reassure her, "You don't need to worry about that right now, Sarah. You are safe and that is the most important thing. Dr. Carter is going to take you to the hospital so that she can strap up your ankle and do a thorough check to be certain that you have no other injuries. After that Constable Buchanan and I would like to come and talk to you about what went on here. Would that be okay?" Sarah nodded, uncertainty overtaking her again as she reached for her mother. "You're coming with me? And Dad? Where is dad?" She managed to sit up then, looking around for her father who was rushing towards her. "It's okay Sarah, I'm right here."

Only Nathan saw the reaction on the faces of John and Daniel West as they caught their first full look at Sarah. Their faces had gone ashen, as though they were both seeing a ghost. There was some sort of connection here but maybe not what they had all been thinking.

…..

In town the atmosphere changed very quickly at the sight of Joseph's car, everyone rushing out onto the boardwalk eager to find out if he brought any news. Word had eventually gotten out about exactly what the emergency was that saw all of their Mounties rush out of town earlier. When he pulled up outside the Mountie Office a hush descended on the gathering crowd but he had merely nodded his head towards them and hurried inside to Patrick, who quickly closed the door behind them. "They've found her," a relieved Joseph said. "Faith is checking her over then they will bring her back here to the hospital. I need to get over there and make sure they have things in place for her arrival but Nathan wanted me to update you first."

Patrick could see both pain and relief on Joseph's face. He knew that even for a man of God, if you were unaccustomed to dealing with such matters an incident like this could be very stressful. He thought about Minnie's brother, Lincoln, who he had met when working on an investigation some years ago and how each time any Mountie was struggling to cope with a situation he would sit down with them, speaking about how he himself overcame the fear of facing evil. Faith that it could be overcome, he had said, comes in many guises. Sometimes from an understanding of God's scriptures, other times from the knowledge that there are more good than bad people in the world. Ultimately it is about believing in yourself to always know and do what is right. God asked no more than that of you.

He smiled to reassure the pastor, confident that once enough time had passed for his emotions to settle down he would move on from this with a greater wisdom to share with others in what would undoubtedly be a part of a Sunday sermon. Minnie Canfield was a woman who had the ability to put everything in perspective, much like her late brother, and Patrick was sure this wouldn't be the first time she provided the voice of comfort for her husband. Whilst Joseph often exuded the serenity that people expected from their minister, there was no doubt that he could only do that because he had his wife beside him.

When they walked out an immediate hush descended on the people who had gathered around and they wasted no time in telling them the news that while Sarah may have gone missing that morning she had now been found safe. Questions were shouted out but Patrick made it clear that no more information was available until Nathan and the other Mounties had returned. Meanwhile he asked that people get back to their daily business and allow Sarah privacy as she was brought into the hospital. She had been through a traumatic experience and, he said in his forthright manner, didn't need people gawping at her.

Some left immediately whilst others lingered, drawn into conversations with the people around them until a loud "Go now!" that was shouted from the front of The Mercantile made them all scatter, the look on Florence Yost's face clearly showing that she did not want to be messed with. Beside her stood her son, Paul, his eyes searching the distance for a sign of them returning, a conflicted look on his face as though he wasn't sure what was going to happen now.

On the balcony of The Royal Hotel two people stood watching everything going on below, one with interest in their eyes, the other with guilt.