Chapter 7

- Where did she go? asked Rosemary.

Lucas went on to explain the old plan: she's going north, her uncle Wynn Delany is stationed there and lives with his family. If she gets there, she and Jack Junior will be well looked after, I've already telegrammed this uncle and he's been out looking for her and the little one for days, because according to him, this year's winter is very harsh. His father, Willian Thatcher, was surrounded by henchmen all along the way looking for them. I came on the train and there were people looking for them at every stop. The problem isn't to find her first. Everywhere she goes, she'll find someone she can trust with Jack. If she needs him and a letter, they'll be left behind so that only she'll be able to get him, or Bill, Nathan, Lee or Rosemary with the secret word. ... But she will...

- But what? What Lucas, just say it! shouted Nathan...

-She's going to kill herself before Charles catches her. She has Jack's dagger, and two other kinds of poison, and all two poisons have no antidote. She knows Charles and his father, and she's petrified of Charles.

Bill went on to say that she should reality be afraid, that man is cruel, he came here before her, she was in church, classes had finished, he went in, but she was on her back, she thought it was Jack, he went on to say that he had come for her, he knelt down and asked her to marry him, she refused; he said that she was going to be his, because he was negotiating a high price with her father. When she showed Jack her engagement ring, he went crazy and said I won't spend a penny and you'll be mine just the same. When she tried to get away from him, he punched her, followed by several others, when she fell to the ground, he kicked her several times, breaking four of her ribs, then left, pulling her by the legs and tearing her clothes. That day Jack had delayed his rounds because there was a highway robber, so I went to school with him, but I waited on the hill with the horses, because the lovers wanted some time alone. When I realized Jack was running to the church and heard a lot of shouting, I rode away as fast as I could. When I got inside Jack had thrown Charles away, several punches and Charles was screaming and Jack was looking and trying to hold Elizabeth who was screaming and didn't even seem to see that it was Jack, I arrested Charles and he was released using his money, that's why I became a judge. In addition to bruises on her arms, legs, face, finger marks on her neck, Elizabeth had four broken ribs and a broken leg because he pulled too hard while she was fighting. When I saw her with her clothes all torn up and her face and arms with bloodstains on them, I froze, I almost killed Charles. Jack and I were possessed at the time. A few days later, her father showed up and even though he saw it, he reported that Jack had done it. Elizabeth, even though she was all bruised up, managed to make the painful journey, to witness the 16-year-old brother of the highway robber, yes, the robber that Jack arrested. This boy was being treated well because of Elizabeth's kindness, she was giving him food, shelter at the back of the school and affection and understanding. He was hiding outside when Elizabeth was attacked and he was terrified, she convinced him to testify against his thieving family and tell what he saw about Charles and Jack, thus proving Jack's innocence. If Charles catches Elizabeth he'll rape her, hurt her in every way possible, and Nathan if this man somehow catches Elizabeth, she'll kill herself, I know her very well, she's already decided and she won't let him touch them, I know this girl.

- Bill, but her father, he knows what this Charles did as ... Nathan was upset about how they treated Lizbeth.

- Nathan, she's been running away from her father's traps since she was twelve. I know that Charles tried to rape her when she was twelve, but she was saved by an aunt. At fifteen again, she wasn't raped by Charles, because a family friend saved her and she died at Charles's hand. This girl came here alone on the train, after more than ten hours on stage, that's when the stage was stolen and even though she didn't know how to set it up, she showed up here at Hope Valle and the stage valet. She didn't have a single piece of clothing. At that moment Abigail came running ...

- Bill, don't forget that she had nothing and she fought to stay here, she fought against Jack, since Jack came at the behest of her father at the time, in fact a Hanson was supposed to come, but he was punished and Jack came. This Hanson was supposed to strike terror into Elizabeth so that she would return to Hamilton and marry Charles. Jack didn't like her either at first, according to him, a little Hamilton princess who couldn't break her precious little fingernail, but she wouldn't last a week, but Elizabeth challenged him with her hand on his waist telling him to get used to eating coal because she was a Thatcher, and a Thatcher doesn't give up. Jack may have had his problems with her, but every day he saw that she was different, mainly because of the way she fought for her students, Jack was very correct, and he ended up falling madly in love with her and they got married. Em, but I came running because I got this here, look Bill it's from her...Bill opened the telegram and read it aloud, showing Nathan...

ABIGAIL -URGENT

WATCH OUT CODY, BECKY, SCHOOL, CITY HALL,

- Nathan, is she going to Ottawa? Fiona asked.

- Yes, Abigail went on to say. I just don't know how.

- Bill, she's with Gab at the orphanage 10 hours from here. She doesn't know him and she doesn't know that he served with Jack Thornton in the Northern Territories. He took her and little Jack to the orphanage in town, where his girlfriend owns the place, Lilian will take good care of them, I can be sure of that, according to Gab when he found them after the train, their suitcases on the floor and the little one asleep on his lap, he offered to help, but she said she needed a simple, cheap place. At the orphanage while she was bathing, Lilian was feeding Jack, when the boy saw Gab enter and ran up saying that he was almost as handsome as his father and almost as tall as his Nathan, Gab's sense alerted him and the boy told him that he was Jack's son and that he was in heaven protecting us all. That's how I found out and ran here.

She's got a bit of money, not a lot or for luxury, she's always saved some; a while ago I found out that she was buying enough food just for Jack Junior, she hardly ate or if she did, it was very little, so Fiona and I started to make her some treats and various foods and I would always bring her a basket and make her eat in front of us.

- Is that why she was so thin back then? asked Rosemary, who couldn't stop crying.

- Yes, she told everyone that Lucas liked thinner women, like Hamilton's society ladies, because it was more appropriate. So you'd all hate her, push her away and think that her plans with Lucas were marriage. Fiona said with a hand on her waist.

- What I don't understand is that all of you, who were such good friends and family, didn't notice how many apples she picked from her feet down by the lake? We often found her going into the forest, because that's where a lot of bananas and other fruit came from for Jack and her. Fiona said. I saw it myself from my barbershop, and several times she got an apple from the schoolchildren, that was all she ate all day, just one apple... Tears flowed from Fiona's eyes, Lucas hugged her and consoled her. The room was completely silent. Could we all have left her alone, with so many problems? Everyone's head was pounding, these questions... even though she was pushing us away, we should have fought for her, Lee said.