Quinn woke with a start, disoriented for a moment. She had woken from a dream about Andrew Booth and what she had done to him. She kept seeing herself stabbing him with the bottle, feeling the jolt that had gone up her arms as she connected with his skin. Never had she deliberately hurt another human being, but yesterday she hadn't hesitated to pick up that bottle and smash it, ramming it as hard as she could into his side. She took a deep breath and tried to calm her racing heart and ragged breathing.
Glancing at Allie in the dawn light that shone through the window, she was pleased that she hadn't disturbed her, knowing this was why Nathan had been concerned about her staying over. As she watched the young girl sleep, her face so innocent, she started to calm down. Quinn gently pushed a stray piece of hair from Allie's face and smiled, so grateful this young girl had come into her life.
Laying back on the pillow, she stared at the ceiling as she relived the previous day; yes, what Booth had done to her was horrible, but what she had done was worse. Harming another person went against the very core of who she thought she was. Quinn wasn't sure how badly she had hurt him; neither Nathan nor Gabe would tell her anything about his condition. Faith hadn't come back to the cafe with her and Fiona, wanting to tidy up the clinic first, but maybe that was a ruse, to stay back and treat Booth after Quinn left. With the change in sleeping arrangements, she wouldn't know whether Faith had been coming or not.
She needed to know. Allie was deep in sleep, so she wouldn't disturb her if she checked in on Booth at the jail or infirmary, wherever he was. Allie would accept it if she left a note saying she had gone for air and would be back for breakfast.
Quinn slipped quietly out of bed and grabbed her clothes, wincing as her ribs protested the movement; she could change in the other room. Looking back at Allie as she left the room, she saw she was still sleeping soundly. After she dressed, she crept down the stairs and snuck out of the kitchen door after writing her note.
As she closed the door quietly, she jumped as she heard a voice behind her.
"You're up nice and early."
Spinning around, hand on her heart, stifling a cry, she said, "Nathan, you scared me half to death; what are you doing here?" Quinn kept her voice down so as not to wake the Town.
Walking over and reaching for her hand, he smiled, "checking on you, of course. I had a feeling you wouldn't sleep in and that you would go and check on Booth." Placing a kiss on the palm of her hand, he leaned down and placed another on her lips. "How are you? Did you sleep okay? I assume Allie is still sleeping."
Quinn nodded, "yes, I left her a note, and Minnie will be here soon, so she won't be alone." She deliberately ignored his question and wondered if he would let her get away with it.
"And..." Nathan said, raising his eyebrow.
Quinn sighed, "I am okay. I slept quite well, but you were right. I did have a nightmare about what happened yesterday; that's why I need to find out what happened to him."
"I told you he was okay; the injury wasn't serious." Nathan explained gently, placing his hand against her cheek, "I am so sorry about your nightmare. Are you sure you are, okay? You would tell me if he did something... more to you than you have already said?" He asked hesitantly.
Quinn smiled at him, "Nathan, It's not so much about what Booth did to me, it was awful, and I know it will take time to deal with it, but I have told you everything. I am more concerned about me, what I did." Ducking her head, Quinn struggled to look at him, ashamed of her behaviour and actions.
"Quinn, look at me; surely you aren't concerned about harming Booth; he could have killed you, Joshua or Gabe and me. You had no choice." Nathan's tone was intense; he lifted Quinn's chin, wanting to look into her eyes, "please, Quinn, this is not something you should feel bad for; you probably saved one of us from being hurt."
Tears welled in Quinn's eyes and spilled over onto her cheeks; she wished she could believe him; she wanted to believe him, but it would take time and a visit to Booth. "I still need to see him, Nathan; if I don't, I will imagine the worst."
Nodding in understanding, Nathan wiped the tears from her cheeks, "Do you think you're ready to face the Mountie office, Quinn, I know how that upsets you, and I don't want that."
Quinn's mouth dropped open in surprise, "Nathan, I hadn't even thought about that. All I could think of was seeing Booth and what I had done to him." she paused again, "I don't know, but I am going to try."
"Maybe this is another positive to come out of what happened," Nathan said.
"What's the other?" Quinn asked, perplexed.
"More than one other, you saved at least three people from being injured or worse, and now, ... you know what happened to your father and who is responsible. You have the chance to get justice for him and restore your reputation." Nathan explained, understanding that these were not things she had focused on before; her focus had been on the terrible thing she thought she had done.
Quinn's heart pounded in her chest; how had she not realised this? How had she not focused on this. It was like she had locked the information away somewhere inside her and forgotten to unlock it. Yesterday she was too concerned about surviving to think about it; then confusion over Nathan's behaviour, her behaviour and exhaustion took over.
"Oh Nathan, you're right," she said, crying, "I finally know why." As tears streamed down her face, she asked, "why doesn't this feel better?"
"Because it doesn't bring him back, Quinn, but now you can allow yourself to grieve for him properly, without the distraction of the mystery about why and who." Nathan wrapped his arms around her as she sobbed, holding her until the tears slowed.
Quinn cried until she exhausted all her tears; she didn't even know how long they had been standing there until she heard Minnie's concerned voice. "Is everything okay, Nathan?"
Nathan and Quinn looked at Minnie, nodding without answering, pleased when Minnie just patted Quinn on the back and went inside the kitchen, leaving them to work it out. They both loved Minnie, but now wasn't the best time to try and explain, and they appreciated that she understood they needed to be alone.
"I don't want you talking to Booth Quinn, I will walk with you to the jail, and you can look in on him, but you are not to engage with him," Nathan said seriously. He shook his head when she would have argued, "I am sorry, Quinn, but that's the condition. Gabe and I discussed this last night, and we agree that there is something not right with Booth -mentally, and I won't risk you talking to him."
Quinn was disappointed initially, then gave herself a minute to think about it; other than knowing Booth was okay, she didn't need anything else from him. She knew she would need to find forgiveness elsewhere and then work on forgiving herself. She would talk to Joseph over the next few days; he always gave wise counsel. Having Nathan and Allie close by would help her work through her feelings, and with Minnie at the cafe, who always knew the perfect thing to say, she would find a way forward.
"Agreed," she said firmly.
Nathan shook his head and looked at her, surprised, "that's twice you have given in far more quickly than I expected." he said, wrinkling his nose.
"I can admit when someone else is right, and you happened to be right twice in two days. I don't expect that will last." Quinn said, joking, reinforcing this with a quick kiss on his lips. "Thank you again, Nathan, for being there for me and being you."
Nathan blushed and ignored the comment about himself; instead, he kissed her again before breaking away and responding, "I will always be here for you." Extending his arm for her, he said, "ready."
Quinn wrapped her hands around his arm, conscious of the pain in her ribs as she pressed herself against his side. "Do you know how long bruised ribs take to heal?" she asked, frowning. "I cannot wait to go for a ride on Misty; that is the other place I intended to go this morning - to visit her."
"That sounds good to me, and I just happen to have apples with me; I planned to visit Newton and the others to apologise for forgetting about them last night." As they started walking, Nathan kissed the top of her head, "and the ribs... a lot longer than you want to know." He withdrew his arm from hers and wrapped it around her shoulder instead.
Gabe watched Andrew Booth as he stirred in his sleep, the first time he had done so since Gabe had relieved Mike earlier. Gabe spent the night with Nathan; he expected that he wouldn't get much sleep, and he was right. His ordinarily quiet friend opened up, talking about his fears over what had happened to Quinn the day before and the fall-out. Nathan confided in Gabe about his concerns over Joshua's feelings for Quinn and how what happened may affect her long-term.
Gabe finally had the chance to talk to Nathan about his relationship with Quinn, how it started and how it was going. It was serious between them, and he was glad for Nathan and Allie. Although he didn't say it out loud, he was happy Elizabeth Thornton was no longer a part of their lives and that Quinn didn't hesitate to defend Allie and Nathan when she interfered.
Quinn had made a place for herself in this Town, and working with Bill and whoever eventually won the mayoral election would be the perfect job for her. Gabe was glad Quinn planned on staying in Hope Valley, and he prayed that knowing about her father and being able to clear her name wouldn't change that. It would break Nathan and Allie's hearts if that happened.
Gabe would enjoy having two friends close by to him and Lillian for the future as they married and expanded their families, hopefully at the same time. Having true friends in your life was the same as having a family.
Andrew Booth came awake with a roar, unhappy to find himself locked behind bars. Gabe stood and strode to the front of the desk, leaning against it silently. Andrew Booth saw him and started cursing, demanding to be released. Gabe remained passive, secure in knowing that Booth wasn't going anywhere, at least not until the Mountie escort arrived to deliver him to another cell at Brookfield.
Ignoring his outburst, he calmly asked Booth, "how are you feeling? Can I interest you in breakfast? The cafe does good food."
Booth's only answer was to spit at him through the bars.
Gabe pressed his lips together and nodded, "I will take that as a no." Walking back around the desk to take his seat, he looked out the window. Gabe saw a flash of red and realised Nathan was back; doing a double-take, he realised Quinn was with him. Gabe was surprised by Quinn's presence. Firstly, Nathan had brought her with him, and Quinn had overcome her fears of the Mountie office to be there.
When Nathan and Quinn arrived outside the Mountie office, Nathan stopped, turning her to face him. Searching her face, he asked, "are you sure you're up to this? You don't have to go in. I can go in and check for you."
Quinn squeezed his arm, reassuring him, "I truly am fine, Nathan, he can't hurt me, and I need to see him to put this behind me. I even feel comfortable going inside."
"Well, then let me go in first; I am not letting you walk in cold."
Nathan and Quinn looked up as the door to the Mountie office opened, and Gabe strode out. "Good morning, Quinn, Nathan." Smiling at both, he closed the door behind him, leaving Booth inside alone.
"I must say I am surprised to see you both here. What are you doing here, Quinn?" While Gabe asked the question of Quinn, his eyes were on Nathan, wondering what reason could be strong enough for Nathan to expose Quinn to Booth.
"I need to see him, Gabe. I can't stop thinking about what I did to him, that I could do that to anyone. I have to see for myself that I didn't cause any permanent harm." Quinn explained, her face grave.
Gabe looked between the two of them and realised the truth in what Quinn was saying. Quinn wasn't a Mountie, and physically harming someone was not in her nature. As a Mountie, he knew there was a chance that when he apprehended a criminal, there was a risk one of them could be injured.
"He hasn't woken up in a favourable mood Quinn," he explained, wondering how much detail to give her. "My breakfast offer resulted in him spitting at me; I can't expose you to that, sorry."
Quinn looked at Nathan, imploring him to intercede on her behalf.
Gabe shook his head and said gently, "don't do that, Quinn; please don't make Nathan decide this. It's my call as the Mountie watching him; even though this is Nathan's Town, we both know he is not impartial in this situation."
Quinn's shoulders slumped, and she felt guilty; that had been what she wanted Nathan to do, overrule Gabe, and it wasn't fair of her. "I'm sorry, Nathan, Gabe, you're right; that was wrong of me." Swallowing, she said, "what are my options, though? I do need to see him."
"What about if you give him more time, let him eat breakfast and allow his situation to sink in before coming back." Gabe explained that he had only recently woken, " I am sure his head isn't clear now, given what happened and the whiskey he drank, I am not surprised."
Quinn bit her lip as she mulled over the suggestion; sighing, she said, "okay, fine, I will wait, but I want you both to know I am coming back."
Gabe looked at Nathan and could see the relief in his eyes, and he was glad they had reached this compromise. "Do you think you could organise some breakfast, Nathan? I am happy to eat here with Booth so you too can spend some time together."
"Already done; Minnie let me know last night that she would do that for us. Minnie had arrived at the cafe as Quinn and I were leaving, so I don't think it will be too long." Looking at Quinn for agreement, he said, "we are heading to the livery now to check in on the horses and make amends with apples."
Gabe said, "you will gain Apollo's forgiveness easily; he loves apples." Smiling, he reached out to pat Quinn's arm, "take your time coming back, Quinn, he isn't going anywhere this morning, and I can assure you, his attitude is evidence that he isn't seriously injured, just annoyed."
Grateful for Gabe's kind words, Quinn took Nathan's hand in hers, "thank you, Gabe, I appreciate what you are saying, and I will see you later."
As Gabe watched his friends walk away, he spent a few moments looking around the Town. His home was Brookfield; however, he could see the similarities between the two places and was pleased his friends would make their life there. Taking one last deep breath, he turned and re-entered the jail, ready to spend more time with the less than friendly Andrew Booth.
Joshua Booth lay in the bed of his room at the Saloon reliving yesterday's events. He was glad Andrew Booth had been arrested without seriously injuring anyone. His brother... would he ever be able to think of Andrew Booth as his brother, he wondered, was in jail where he belonged, and he was glad of it. Quinn was safe now; although hurt, she wasn't badly hurt.
Quinn. Seeing her again had been bittersweet. He wasn't sure what he had expected it to be like, especially given the circumstances, but it certainly hadn't gone anything like he thought it would. Joshua had expected Quinn to acknowledge him, even if she didn't welcome him with open arms. She had ignored him; it was like he wasn't even there.
The Mountie had feelings for her and hadn't tried to hide them or the fact that he didn't want Joshua anywhere near Quinn. Was something happening between them, he wondered, and if so, was it serious? Surely it couldn't be; Quinn had never been one of those silly girls who fawned all over boys or men; she didn't think her only mission in life was to find a husband; she wanted a career.
Now that Joshua had exposed Booth and his mother's part in her father's death, Quinn could come home; she could clear her name and resume her career with Sam Madison at home in Oakville. They could both continue their lives; although he didn't know how his father would take the news of his wife's betrayal, they could get through it together; they were family, always had been.
Jumping out of bed, Joshua decided he needed to see Quinn as soon as possible, talk to her, tell her his thoughts...ask her forgiveness. He knew she lived above the cafe, and it would open early. Lucas Bouchard had explained that most guests at the Saloon ate there, so he would do the same, it wouldn't be hard to find Quinn, and he hoped she would be glad to see him.