Chapter 41 – Real Concerns
Elizabeth woke up Friday and didn't feel good. She wondered if it was just her nerves or was something wrong. She tried to push the worry away and focus on what needed to be done. She got up and got ready for the day. She made breakfast and then lunch to take to school. Elizabeth left for school earlier than she normally would, because she just couldn't stay in the house any longer. She got to school and got the fire going. She sat at her desk and started working on some of the papers that needed grading.
While Elizabeth was grading, Pastor Frank stopped by to check on her. He had heard her earlier than normal and was concerned. Elizabeth explained that she just wasn't used to having Jack gone and that she had had trouble sleeping the last two nights. She also told him that it was easier to focus at school than at the house. He said that he would keep both her and Jack in his prayers. He also tried to assure Elizabeth that Jack was safe and that he would be home soon. Elizabeth thanked Pastor Frank for his concern and that she would try to stay positive, but it was hard having Jack away. She knew that he was going to have to leave from time to time but it was the first time in a long time that Jack had been gone and she couldn't help but worry. Pastor Frank let her know that her concerns were normal, but that Jack was also good at what he did.
Elizabeth felt better by the time that the children started arriving at school. Elizabeth settled into the day and focused on the children. Only once did Elizabeth's thoughts drift to Jack. She took a moment to gather herself and refocus on the children. Once again at lunch, Elizabeth let her thoughts drift to Jack. She wondered what he was doing and where he was exactly. She knew that he was headed to the Rock Creek area, but that was it. She had received the message that he had arrived safely, but that was it. Elizabeth called the children back in after lunch and once again focused on what they needed instead of Jack. She found it easier to focus on the children and her mind didn't wonder about all the possible things that could happen. Elizabeth ended up assigning quite a bit of homework for the weekend before letting the children go.
Once again, Elizabeth lingered at the schoolhouse. She took her time cleaning things. She finally picked up her papers and things before heading to the cafe. She just didn't want to be home alone. Once again, Abigail insisted that Elizabeth stay for supper. Abigail knew that Elizabeth was struggling with Jack being gone even if it was only for a few days. Abigail knew that it had been months since Jack had left town and Elizabeth had been alone. Abigail also knew how Elizabeth struggled with the dangers of Jack's job and that him being out of town only makes those worries worse. It was once again almost dark before Elizabeth headed home.
Friday, Jack woke up early again. He had not seen Polina the previous evening, but had also spent most of his time at his campsite. He went over what he had learned. He actually even wrote things out to try and make more sense. All he still needed to do was talk to Polina. Jack didn't have enough to arrest Dimitri, but he had enough to make him mad. He knew that he would have to have another conversation with Dimitri before he left, but he wanted to talk to Polina before he did that. That was part of the reason that Jack was up early. He didn't want Polina sneaking off into the woods again all day, as he was sure that was where she had been. Jack also figured that if she was hiding, she was hiding something. Jack wanted to settle this and get home. He was done playing games and was determined that he was going to get to the bottom of things that day. He was in the settlement just as people started to stir. He immediately went to the tent where Polina was.
Jack was lucky and found her still there. She didn't want to talk to him, but he gave her no choice. He told her she could talk to him there or he could take her to Benson Hills and put her in jail. She chose to talk to Jack, but still wouldn't give him much information. Jack decided to play her game. He unsnapped his case and placed her in handcuffs. He informed her that this was her last chance to talk or she would be going to Benson Hills. She realized that he was serious, so she started talking to him. Jack asked all his questions and got enough answers to satisfy him. He removed the handcuffs and warned Polina about not talking to the Mounties. He still felt that she was hiding something, but he had nothing other than a gut feeling to go on. He couldn't arrest them without proof. He looked at what he knew and then called the people together.
Jack determined that no real crime had taken place, at least that he could prove. All the things that were supposedly taken were food or things that the families usually shared. Jack warned Dasha and Polina that he took fighting and drinking seriously. He also let them know that the next time that a Mountie had to come out here for fighting or drinking, that someone would be under arrest. He said that they needed to learn to get along, not only for each other but for the betterment of the entire settlement. He said that he understood that there were cultural differences, but that didn't mean that they could drink and fight without consequences. He also let them know that if they couldn't get along, then one or both of the families needed to find somewhere else to live. He also reminded them of what kind of example that they were setting for not only their children, but all the children of the settlement.
Jack returned to his campsite and packed it up. When that was done, he headed to the mine and talked to Petar and Dimitri again. He told them the same things that he had told their wives. He said that he would be filing an official report and that if there continued to be problems, that someone would be in trouble. He also let them know that if another Mountie had to respond out there, someone was going to be under arrest. He warned them about drinking and fighting and that the Mounties didn't take kindly to those that caused trouble for others. Jack also let them know that an official report would be made and kept on file with the Mounties about everything that he had learned. The last thing that Jack did was pull Dimitri aside and let him know that if he ever laid a hand on a woman or child again, Jack would personally come arrest him and would have the backing of the entire Royal Northwest Mounted Police as they took assault on women and children seriously. He also let him know that the only reason that he wasn't under arrest at this time was that he didn't have enough to make the charges stick, but that would not be the case next time.
Jack left the mine and headed into Rock Creek. He talked to the mayor and sent a wire to Benson Hills. Then he headed back toward Hope Valley. It started raining on his way back to Hope Valley. It slowed Jack's ride down and made it miserable to ride. Jack just pushed through even though he was getting cold. He was already wet and decided that the best thing to do was just to get home. It was dark by the time that Jack reached Hope Valley. He dropped Sergeant at the livery and let one of the workers care for his horse. He wanted to head home. It was still lightly raining. Jack grabbed all of his gear. He didn't stop anywhere but headed straight home. When Jack got to the row house, he knocked on the door and then walked in. Elizabeth was on the couch reading. She was surprised to see Jack. She saw that Jack's clothes were wet. She insisted that he get out of those wet clothes and sit by the fire. After putting his gear on the back porch and securing both firearms, Jack hung up his coat and pulled off his boots. He hung up his serge and then headed upstairs to change. Jack changed into some longjohns and headed back downstairs. By the time that he came down, Elizabeth had stoked the fire. She encouraged Jack to sit with her on the couch. He chose to sit behind her and pull a blanket over both of them.
Jack enjoyed having Elizabeth back in his arms. He knew that he had only been gone two nights, but it felt much longer than that. Elizabeth turned in Jack's arms so that she could kiss him. She had missed kissing him. They stayed on the couch and warmed up for a while. Finally, Jack banked the fire and led Elizabeth upstairs to their room. Both had barely slept in the two nights apart and both were tired. Jack also wanted to be with his wife. Jack knew that he would have to do rounds on Saturday as well as finish the reports about what happened at the Rock Creek settlement. He didn't want to think about the next day, he just wanted to focus on Elizabeth and that they were together. Jack laid on the bed and watched Elizabeth slip out of her skirt. She blushed when she caught Jack watching her. He gave her a dimpled grin, before jumping out of bed and pulling her to him. Jack kissed Elizabeth until he was breathless. He led her to the bed and their passion grew, finally coming together as one after being apart for days. As they lay under the covers, Jack pulled Elizabeth into him and they fell asleep together.
Saturday, Jack woke up early and as he was trying to slip from the bed he woke Elizabeth. She wanted him to come back to bed, but he said he was hungry. Elizabeth got up and wrapped her robe around herself and headed downstairs. She made breakfast for both her and Jack. Jack had gotten dressed in his uniform before he came downstairs for breakfast. While they were sitting and eating, Jack let Elizabeth know what he had to do for the day. He said that he was going on rounds and then he would have to go into the office and check in with Bill and write up his report. He said that he didn't plan to stay all day, but only long enough to do the reports that he needed to. Elizabeth said that she planned to stay home and work on grading papers. She asked Jack to pick up a few things at the mercantile before he came back. Jack said that he would do that. He then got up and kissed Elizabeth before heading out for the morning.
Jack quickly made his way to town and the livery, carrying his gear from the night before. He saddled Sergeant. He wanted to ride a full rounds and get back. He knew that full rounds were about two hours of riding. He also knew that he had to get the Rock Creek report written and hopefully in the mail. He also wanted to check his disaster plan after a few things that he learned in Rock Creek. He had already started ordering things without headquarters approving his plan. He had a feeling that things needed to be in place for the spring and he also knew the dangers of being unprepared. He knew that the blankets, cots and medical supplies could always be sent to some place else if they were not needed in Hope Valley.
Jack was stopped many times while he was out on rounds. People wanted to welcome him back or talk to him about something. It ended up taking Jack close to three and half hours to ride rounds. When he got back, he left Sergeant outside the jail and headed in. He needed to write up his morning rounds and then he started on the Rock Creek report. Before he knew it his stomach was rumbling, he hadn't planned on eating at the cafe. If he had been honest with himself, he had planned on being home by lunch. He started to finish what he was doing so that he could go grab a bite to eat. He was almost ready to walk out when there was a knock at the door. Jack got up and answered, surprised to see Elizabeth standing there.
"Thought you could use some lunch." Elizabeth said, lifting a basket.
"I was just heading to the cafe." Jack said. "Rounds took longer than I thought and have been writing reports since I got back."
"That is okay." Elizabeth said. "You weren't back yet and I just thought that we could have a nice lunch together. I took a chance that you were stuck here working."
Elizabeth stepped into the jail and went about setting up their lunch while Jack brewed some more coffee. She looked around for a moment.
"Where is Bill?" Elizabeth asked.
"I don't know." Jack said. "He left me a note and said he was leaving and will be back some time tomorrow."
"He didn't say where he was going?" Elizabeth asked.
"No." Jack said. "He must have seen Sergeant was back otherwise he wouldn't have left."
Elizabeth didn't say anything, but she wondered if everything was okay. She was going to let it go for the time being, but was worried about Bill. He had disappeared several times over the last month. It wasn't long before they were sitting eating a nice lunch. Jack told Elizabeth about rounds that morning and being stopped by over a dozen people. Jack told her how he was surprised by how many people he talked to because normally he only saw a handful of people. She asked a few questions, but it was mostly Jack doing the talking. Elizabeth loved when Jack talked about his job. It was rare that he was able to share a lot of details. She also loved just listening to Jack. His voice had a level of excitement when he talked about his job.
As they finished eating, Elizabeth picked up the leftovers and Jack went back to his reports. He promised Elizabeth that he would be home as soon as possible. She gave him a kiss and headed out. She planned on stopping by the mercantile before heading home. She had promised Jack a hot supper. She picked up some supplies they needed and a roast that she planned on making for supper. As Elizabeth walked back to the house, she saw a couple of her students so she stopped to talk for a moment. She also ran into Cat and they talked for a moment.
After Elizabeth left, Jack went back to his reports. He finished writing his Rock Creek report and then started typing the official report that needed to be sent to Benson Hills and headquarters. Jack was glad that he could type at a decent speed. It didn't take Jack long to type up two copies. He knew that he needed to type a third for himself, but that could wait until Monday or he could type his copy at the house. He got the copy of the report for Benson Hills ready to post before he left. He then placed the rest of his stuff in his messenger bag. Before heading back to the house, he stopped at the mercantile to post the letter and double check if there were any more messages. He then headed home to spend the rest of the afternoon with Elizabeth.
Jack and Elizabeth enjoyed being in each other's company even if they were each doing their own thing. Jack typed his report and Elizabeth sat at the table and graded papers. When she was done, she grabbed a book and sat on the couch. It wasn't long and Jack joined her on the couch. He sat on the opposite side as Elizabeth and it wasn't long before she shifted to lean up against Jack. Jack wrapped his arm around Elizabeth and each read their own book for a while. They enjoyed being close to each other. Jack eventually needed more than just closeness with Elizabeth. Jack set his book down and then leaned down and kissed Elizabeth. His kiss was light, but quickly deepened. He turned Elizabeth in his arms and then continued to kiss her. Jack and Elizabeth ended up eating supper and then spending more time each reading a book. They turned in early.
Sunday was services and then lunch at the cafe. They spent Sunday night together. It wasn't that Jack and Elizabeth didn't want to spend more time with friends, but it was that Jack had been gone for a couple of days and they just wanted to spend some time alone. Monday, Jack and Elizabeth settled back into their routine. By the end of the week, it was snowing/raining again. Jack had ridden by the river and was getting concerned. The river was higher than he had read about in previous reports. He was more concerned, because it was still early March. Jack had talked to Bill and Abigail. He had then sent an urgent message to headquarters about the river. Jack had received a reply back that he could start planning for a spring disaster. The plan was to have extra blankets, cots, medical supplies and canned food held in storage in case of a disaster. Jack's plan had been approved and was allocated a certain amount of money to cover things. Jack quickly realized that it wouldn't be enough. Wynn had also sent word to Abigail that the Pacific Northwest Mining Office and the infirmary were forfeited back to the town, but that didn't mean they wouldn't try and cause trouble. Wynn had also said to let him know if they did cause trouble.
Jack shared his concerns with Elizabeth, it wasn't that he wanted her to do something about it, but he had just wanted to talk about things with someone. Besides that, Elizabeth would know that something was bothering Jack. Elizabeth decided to share her concerns with her Aunt Agatha. She wasn't sure what Agatha would do, but she and her husband had lived through many things and maybe had a better idea of what they could do. Elizabeth didn't share with Jack that she had sent a letter to her Aunt Agatha. She also didn't share, thinking that her Aunt Agatha would do anything other than tell them how to be better prepared or maybe send a few things that they thought would be helpful.
The next week was much the same consisting of school, work and the occasional rain/snow. By the end of the second week, even Bill and Lee had expressed concern to Jack about the river. Jack talked to Abigail and they decided that they needed to let other people in on their plan. Abigail planned to call a town meeting for the 23rd of March so that people could learn about the plan and prepare themselves. Word was spread about the town meeting. Jack had wanted a different day, but there was a conflict with the days that Jack had suggested. He wondered if it was a day that people should be talking about a potential disaster. Jack voiced his concern to Abigail, but she assured him that it would be fine. Jack wasn't sure that it would be good to have the meeting a couple days after the one year anniversary of the mine disaster, but it was what it was. The last thing that Jack wanted was for people to panic, but he also realized that they needed to know what was going to happen if there was mudslide or flood at the settlement. Jack just hoped that the people of Hope Valley again pulled together if something happened. It was one thing if something happened in your own community, but to basically strangers, then being asked to help was totally different.
The weekend before the meeting was busy and Jack and Elizabeth didn't get much time together. They spent as much time together as possible, but it seemed that they only were able to share meals and then fall asleep together. Jack really wanted to spend some time with Elizabeth. What he actually wanted to do was get away for a weekend, but he realized that it wouldn't happen until closer to when school got out for the summer. There was just too much going on with the danger of the river to try and get away. Elizabeth was hoping to get away as well. She was missing spending time with her husband. She knew that Jack's job was demanding at times, but it was consuming him at the moment and she was afraid that he was going to get burnt out and then something was going to happen. Elizabeth didn't share with Jack that she was having nightmares about something happening to Jack. Jack knew that something was bothering her, but he figured it was because he was so busy and they didn't have a lot of time together.
The first part of the third week of March was difficult as well. The rain and wet weather was taking its toll on everyone. The kids hated not being able to run around outside. Even the adults were having a hard time with all the wet weather and kids always being underfoot. Elizabeth had wanted to let the kids play outside at school, but was worried about the mud and parents getting upset that the children came home muddy. Elizabeth was also trying to get through things at school and because of the weather, she was sending lots of homework home to keep the kids busy and push through so the children might be where their peers were compared to other schools in the county. One thing Jack was grateful for, supplies had started arriving and things were being stored at Gowen's old house. It was near the center of town and would easily be accessible to the infirmary, saloon, and cafe. Jack was also grateful that Wynn had stepped in and gotten the mining company to turn the infirmary over to the town. Jack still was working on getting the infirmary set up and a nurse to come out.
The 21st of March was a somber day and it was greeted with more rain. The service for the anniversary had been planned for the next day, to give people a chance to spend the actual day of the anniversary how they wanted. Bill and Lee had changed their plans when they learned that it was the anniversary. They both wanted to be around, since they knew that it was going to be a hard time for the families. Pastor Frank even had changed his trip to the settlement to be around for the people that needed someone to talk with about things. Elizabeth had planned that some of the kids might be gone, so she had a more fun day planned. With the weather, it turned out most people hung at the cafe that day. Abigail was extremely busy and glad that Bill and Clara were there to help. Abigail liked the business and it helped her not to focus on all that she had lost a year ago. She tried to focus on the positive things. It wasn't that she didn't miss Noah and Peter, but she knew that she was going to be okay.
On the 22nd, all plans ended up changing. It started as an overcast day, but given what it was to the town it was almost appropriate. Pastor Frank had planned on having a short prayer service that morning and then having school start after that. Abigail thought that it was nice that Frank had wanted to do something to remember the men that had been lost a year prior. Abigail thought how much had changed in the last year. She made a comment to Jack how different the town looked in a year. Jack agreed that even though he hadn't been there quite a year, a lot had changed. She smiled when she realized what he meant. Jack and Elizabeth hadn't been in Hope Valley for a year and here they were married and trying to start a family.
After the short service, Pastor Frank let people know that he would be around if anyone wanted to or needed to talk, but other than that, he encouraged people to continue with their day and that included letting the children get back to their lessons. Many people headed to the cafe to share stories. Abigail didn't mind. She knew that many of the widows needed time to share and be together. Jack was concerned for Abigail and how she was dealing, but she assured him that she was fine. Elizabeth had even planned a special project for school that day to help the kids deal with the anniversary. She had been against commemorating it anyway, but then realized that it was an important day in the lives of many of her students. She wasn't sure that talking about something so sad was good, but then she remembered that yes it was sad what happened, but many of the children had more happy memories than sad ones. She thought back to Caleb when he didn't like his mother getting close to DeWitt. Elizabeth agreed with Jack and Abigail, that a lot changed in the last year.
