Chapter 56- The Truth
This chapter is almost a tail of two parts…
Part 1- Unbuttoned. Suspenders. Flirt-Y!
Part 2- The Truth... Sorry :(
"Knock, knock," Charlotte's knuckles rapped on the open wood door to the Mountie office. "Oh! Hello Joseph! I didn't know you would be here. I was just telling Minnie, I felt like I haven't seen you around town in weeks. She says that you have been busy on a new project at a farm just outside of town."
"Yes, Ms. Charlotte," Joseph answered, quickly picking up some of the papers he had been discussing with Nathan at the desk. "I was just wanting to get Nathan's opinion on some of the structural elements for the building. You know, probably more than anyone, how great of a carpenter he is."
"That I do, Joseph," Charlotte answered, seeing Nathan open a large lower drawer in his desk to place more papers into. She raised an eyebrow at him, to which he just responded with a sheepish grin.
"Well, I better be going. Plenty of work yet to do this afternoon. You two have a nice rest of your day." Joseph stated as he slid past Charlotte in the doorway.
"This is a surprise. What brings you here today?" Nathan asked, standing, and rounding the corner of his desk.
"Just thought I would bring an apple to the apple of my eye," Charlotte winked, revealing the hidden fruit from behind her back and offering it to Nathan.
Nathan tipped his head back and chuckled. "Was that a pun, Ms. Thompson? I thought I was the keeper of all those silly jokes."
"Has the student now become the master?" Charlotte asked mischievously, batting her eyelashes slightly and looking up into Nathan's blue eyes.
Nathan reached forward to take the apple from Charlotte's hand. "I was just thinking, shouldn't it be me bringing an apple to the teacher? But in this case, since the roles are now reversed, I happily accept. Thank you." He leaned forward to place a gentle kiss on her cheek.
"You know," Charlotte began, moving across the floor, looking at the hat rack, pictures, and posters lining the back wall. "I've lived in Hope Valley for over a year now and have worked in the classroom right beside your office, but I don't think I've ever been in this building."
"I hadn't even thought about that, but I think you are right."
What a change from Elizabeth who was always barging into the office to discuss 'things' with him.
Nathan followed Charlotte around the room towards the jail, watching as she wrapped her hand on one of the bars and slowly swung her body into the open cell.
"So, this is where you lock up all the pretty outlaws, huh?" Charlotte asked, as she inspected the space.
Nathan reached up to unbutton the top collar of his Henley. Suddenly the room had become stifling, and he felt as though he couldn't catch a breath. His heart was hammering in his chest as Charlotte turned to look at him. Realizing the effect she was having on Nathan, Charlotte smiled.
"There is only one pretty lady I want to arrest right now, but I don't think she would be too difficult to apprehend. Seeing as you're already behind bars." Nathan blew out another steadying breath. Get a grip, man.
"Hmmm," Charlotte hummed, sauntering towards Nathan, sticking her wrists through the bars and taking hold of his suspenders she pulled his body closer towards hers. "What am I being charged with?"
Nathan's mouth went dry, as if he had been walking in the desert without a stitch of water for days. Thoughts flashed through his mind of seeing if Joseph had left town yet, and if not, asking if he could marry them right here and now as Nathan wasn't sure if he could control his feelings for Charlotte much longer. Especially with the way her hands were roaming across his torso.
Charlotte bit her lower lip as she stared up into Nathan's intense gaze, "What does the law say about bribing a public official with an apple, constable?"
Nathan reached up and removed Charlotte's hands from his chest, he leaned forward and placed a kiss on the back of her knuckles. When he looked up again, he saw that his action had caused Charlotte's eyes to close and breath to catch.
"I'm not quite sure what it says about bribery, but I'm thinking it would be a lifetime commitment for stealing his heart."
"Doesn't sound like a sentence that would make me repentant for my ways."
The energy was electric between the two this afternoon. They could feel the way their pulses raced.
"Your hands are cold," Nathan stated, his thumbs running across the back of Charlotte's knuckles paying extra mind to her left ring finger. Why had he forgotten his saddle bag at the house this morning? "How about I put some water on the stove for a cup of coffee or tea to warm you up?"
Oh, I feel plenty warm. Charlotte thought to herself, but a cup of coffee seemed like a good distraction before things became much more intense between the two of them.
"That sounds nice," Charlotte answered.
"I'll be right back," Nathan released his hold and headed towards the door to retrieve some water at the pump out back.
Charlotte let out a breath and made her way to investigate the rest of Nathan's office. She walked past the rifle case and stood a moment at the bookshelf in the corner. Running her hand along the edges she noted the different titles in front of her. Some law books. Others were novels. And a few poetry booklets to round out Nathan's collection.
She turned towards the desk. It was neat and tidy. Nathan's typewriter sat to the side along with a few posters and reports filed into a sorting tray. There were two picture frames on his desk beside the telephone. One of Nathan and Allie, smiles beaming at the camera. The other was of Nathan and her dancing by the pond at what appeared to be Charlotte's birthday party. How was it that Carson always had a way of taking these pictures when she least expected it? She picked up the frame to inspect it closer.
Charlotte remembered everything about that moment. The slow, opening notes of the 'Waltzing Matilda' arrangement that started to play as Nathan took her into his arms. The way Charlotte's breath caught at his nearness. The picture in her hands conveyed the message of that moment. The way their bodies and souls had communicated during the dance, expressing to each other what seemed too deep for words.
When Charlotte set the frame back down on the old wood desk, she accidentally knocked a small stack of letters onto the floor. Charlotte reached down, picked them up and replaced them in their rightful spot.
The letter on top was unfolded and not in an envelope. Charlotte's eyes naturally scanned the writing, but in an instant, she wished they hadn't as her knees threatened to give out and bile quickly rose in her throat.
Her hands tightened on the paper, crinkling the edges. Two words continually jumped off the pages as if written in bold lettering.
Beck McEntire
Charlotte's heart hammered against her chest. She could hear nothing except the THUMP… THUMP… THUMP sounding in her eardrums. Charlotte hadn't even noticed Nathan returning from his quest to get water.
"Sorry, I got tied up. Jesse needed help loading a couple things from Lee's office," Nathan stated, closing the door behind him, and placing the kettle on his wood burning stove.
Turning to face Charlotte, he instantly paled. The color draining from his features until he looked as white as snow. He knew what Charlotte held in her hands before she even said anything.
"Wh… What is this?" Charlotte was visibly shaking, making her words difficult to form. The letter she held up crumpled from her grip. "You've been investigating Beck?"
The hurt that carried in Charlotte's voice when she spoke Beck's name, made Nathan wince in pain.
"I needed to find out more about him. You told me he threatened to find you wherever you went."
Charlotte shook her head defiantly. "It's been over a year! What if he has moved on and forgotten all about me? Why did you go digging this up?"
"Charlotte, you are unforgettable. I know that firsthand. I believed from what you had told me, that Beck would still be searching for you. Gabe confirmed that."
"Gabe?! You brought Gabe into this too?" Charlotte's jaw clenched.
Nathan couldn't bring himself to make eye contact with Charlotte, his head dropped, and he looked down to his leather boots. "I asked him and Bill to help. When I went to Brookfield this spring to aid Gabe in serving that warrant, we talked about it. Since then, Gabe's done a few undercover investigations this summer, posing as a railroad security agent, to help garner information."
"And what did Gabe find out?"
"Beck is deeply involved in a number of criminal connections across the territory, most predominantly the Schneider gang and their various business dealings. Cattle rustling, extortion, theft, brothels, illegal casinos, narcotics, and…" Nathan paused.
"And what?!" Charlotte's tongue was sharp and biting.
"And a string of unproven murders."
"God," Charlotte looked up to the ceiling, silently pleading, while blinking back tears. Her hand had released the letter and the pages floated gently back and forth in the air before coming to rest on the floor between them. "Nathan, what have you done?"
"I haven't done anything. Not yet anyway."
"No, you have! Don't you see? Beck may be a horrible human being, but he's smart. Don't you think he suspects something is off? Why couldn't you have just left this alone?"
"I needed to bring justice for what he did to you Charlotte. It's my job."
"It may be your job, but what about your life? Don't you understand? If Beck knew about you… knew about you and me…" Charlotte's voice trailed off as she started to pace back and forth, her arms crossed tightly in front of her body.
"Charlie…" Nathan began, taking a step towards where Charlotte's walking was creating a trench in the wood floor beneath her boots.
"No. Don't." Charlotte held up a hand to cut off Nathan, stopping him in his advancement. "What did Gabe say that makes you think Beck is still looking for me after all this time?"
Nathan's eyes drifted to the frames on his desk. "Gabe said Beck still has pictures of you in his office. He hasn't moved on Charlotte. We have to arrest him before he finds you. I need to put him behind bars for what he did…" Nathan's voice broke. "For what he stole from you."
Charlotte's grey eyes were stormy and unblinking. Nathan saw a realization pass through her body, and he didn't like what came over her. Charlotte wiped the tears from her cheeks, and she began to distance herself, taking a step or two back towards the front door.
"Nathan, I told you," Charlotte's voice had become steady. "Beck is a monster. He has connections. He said he would find me and make me pay and now not only are you involved in the middle of this, but so is Gabe and Bill."
"I was just trying to protect you. I made a promise that as long as I'm around I wouldn't let Beck hurt you again."
"Protecting me is one thing. Actively searching for danger and trouble is a whole other. What about Allie? Didn't you think about how this would affect her?" As soon as Charlotte asked that question, she realized. "Wait. That's why you asked me to be her guardian. This was what was bugging you in Brookfield? Because you knew you were going after Beck and that you might never come back to us."
"Charlotte, please…" Nathan reached forward and took hold of Charlotte's elbow, trying to connect them.
"Don't touch me!" Charlotte wrenched her arm from Nathan's grip. "You had no right to make this decision for me. For us! You… you are no better than Archie when he pawned off Maise's ruby brooch. You said that if Archie had just told Maise the truth, you didn't think she would have been as hurt and that she would have forgiven him because at least then she would have understood the motive behind his actions."
Nathan physically retracted from Charlotte's harsh words. She noticed his reaction and her stance softened slightly. Her muscles released some of their tension and she took a step towards Nathan before realizing what she was doing and again shut down and took a step backwards.
"I wanted to tell you so many times, it just never seemed right. Beck had already caused you so much hurt, that I didn't want him to be the reason for anymore."
Charlotte nodded her head. "The thing is Nathan. I expect hurt from Beck. I just never expected it from you."
Again, Nathan reached for Charlotte, but she shifted away from his hand. "I'm sorry, Nathan, but I need some time alone to think."
And with that, Nathan watched his life walk out the door.
*Please don't be too harsh on Charlotte (especially with what she said about Nathan being like Archie). I personally went back and forth with writing that. As I've said on here before, I want to bring a little real life/messy world to this story. Unfortunately, that includes fights and saying very unkind things to the ones you love most. These characters are not perfect. Don't worry, Charlotte will see the error of her ways quickly (aka… the next chapter).
Hopefully, that super flirty "jail scene" at the beginning made up for some of the hurt at the end.