CHAPTER 37

Rose arrived at the infirmary like a hurricane, she was agitated and spoke so fast that one word was added to another and no one understood anything, Faith tried to calm her down, but she didn't seem to hear a word.

- Rosemary Leveaux Coult... I'm fine, my love. Lee said in a thick, firm voice.

Tears rolled down Rose's cheeks as she looked at her husband lying face up in a bandage.

- Rose, I only hurt my foot and Carson and Faith have already done the surgery. I'm fine.

- Surgery... Rose shouted, and went pale, her legs wobbled and she fell to the floor.

Carson ran over and picked her up, carried her to the stretcher next to Lee, and began to examine her. He felt something, examined her again and looked at Lee, who was very frightened to see his wife unconscious.

Carson looked at Faith, who noticed his movements. She smiled and reached for a cloth soaked in a substance that she used to wake Rose.

She soon came to, and a worried Lee spoke up:

- Carson! She's ill...

- Lee, this will pass in a few months, but you need to take better care of your diet, my friend Rose.

- I'm not hungry, Carson. My stomach's been acting up, I think I ate something that didn't feel right.

- Lee, Rose, you're expecting a baby. There's a child coming, and you, Rose, are already more than four months pregnant. It won't be long and Hope Valle will have its new inhabitant.

Lee and Rose looked at each other, tears of joy rolling down their faces, almost five years of marriage, and never managing to conceive a child and when they gave up, there was that precious gift.

Carson and Faith left the room, this was the couple's moment, a family moment.

The door was open and Robert and his friends carefully entered.

-Professor Elizabeth! It's us, your students...

-Robert, be careful, there's glass everywhere.

-Where are you? Emily, Laura, Opall and Cody are with me.

- I'm with the children in my room, the girls can come in. I'm sorry, Robert, but they're not dressed yet.

- It's okay, Mrs. Grant... Robert laughed. We'll be cleaning up, don't worry and take some time to rest. Nathan asked us to take care of you for him.

-Mrs. Grant, can you tell me if Alien and little Jack are all right?

- Oh! Robert... Yes, they're fine.

And so the girls entered the room with great care, carrying a lot of fruit, a garbage bag, a shovel and a broom, and while the Grant family ate, Opall, Emily and Laura left everything clean.

Elizabeth, after changing with her children, went downstairs to find the children downstairs. She looked sad when she noticed that some of their frames had fallen off the wall and broken, but that Robert had left the photos of Jack and his life with Nathan and Alien there, all organized. Some mountie soldiers had also broken or lost parts, and a tear came to Elizabeth's eye when she remembered that Jack had given them to her when he returned from the Northern Territory and then Nathan, seeing that she liked them, had given her others too. She'd had two mounties in her life, the two best men she'd ever known and the most honorable... one she'd already lost, and it was a lifelong pain, she couldn't lose Nathan in any way, she wouldn't even know how to breathe without him.

Robert noticed that his teacher was looking at pictures of mountie Jack and mountie Nathan. He knew she loved those two men, and he could see her fear of losing her new husband. He may have been a young man about to join the mountie battalion, but he had known his teacher for five years, and he knew that torch of fear in her gaze was the same as when mountie Jack had been assigned to the battles in the Northern Territories.

- Mrs. Grant... mountie Nathan is fine. He was with Judge Bill Avery and he will protect him from all harm. As for Mr. Lee, he was hit by the explosion, but Henry and Jessy saved him and took him to the infirmary, and Dr. Carson has already performed surgery on his foot.

- Robert, my boy... when did you get so grown up? You've grown up so fast and I didn't notice...

- I'm graduating in the next few days and will soon be joining the Mounties. I hope to be as brave and honorable as mountie Jack and mountie Nathan. And I hope I can make you proud of me, knowing that if I got here, and what I'm going to achieve, it was thanks to your efforts as a teacher and as an older sister.

- The same goes for me," said Laura. You were our support when we lost our relatives in the mine explosion. You fought for each of us, just as you convinced my father to allow me to study.

Cody in turn went on to say:

-You helped me save Beck, you never belittled me, even though you knew I had stolen; you fought my fears, and you helped me have a family again.

Emily smiled and in her gentle way spoke:

- You are everything to us. We are what we are today because of you. And it's not just us who feel this way about you. Gabi is far away, but in all his letters he asks me about you and little Jack, he says that every night he puts you in his prayers, asking God to guide your steps and protect you, because everything he's achieved is because of you. And he hugged her...

Alien held little Jack in her arms with eyes full of tears, she had never imagined how much the lives of all her friends had been transformed by her mother's hands.

Nathan stood with Bill and Elizabeth's father at the door and they watched and listened in deep silence. Willian Thatcher burst into tears when he heard the boy Robert speak:

- You are our reason for being better. You showed us that even in the face of adversity we should never give up. You are...

Robert choked up but continued:

- Your commitment, dedication and passion for teaching have made an incredible difference to me and all my fellow students. You are not just our teacher, but a mentor, an inspiration and someone who believed in our potential when many doubted. You arrived as a beacon of determination and strength, the iron lady, Mrs. Thatcher" Queen Elizabeth", and took on the role of a tireless warrior when you became Mrs. Thorton and even in the midst of pain, you continued to fight tirelessly for us. Today, you are like Mrs. Grant, a figure of achievement and leadership in our lives. Your journey has been a testament to perseverance and dedication. Over time, you have not only shared knowledge, but also shaped our character. Your ability to take us along on your journey of growth and success is truly beautiful. And teacher, we want you to know, that as we move forward on our journeys, we will remember your lasting influence and the deep gratitude we have for you. Your legacy will continue to inspire generations, just as you have inspired us all.

Elizabeth didn't need words to express what she felt at that moment. Her eyes were watery with gratitude and her lips curved into a tender, welcoming smile. A solemn silence hung over everyone present. His arms opened wide, inviting everyone to come closer, and there he welcomed them... tears of gratitude and admiration flowed from his students' eyes. There wasn't a single person in the room who wasn't deeply touched by Elizabeth's presence and dedication.

She looked up and saw Nathan, Bill and her father at the door.

Their eyes met like her husband's, smiles multiplied, and there they communicated in their silence, where their eyes said everything to each other. She saw the pride in Nathan's and Bill's eyes and she saw...

"Your father, he had a proud look on his face..."

And Elizabeth smiled at him.