CHAPTER 53

Robert and Cody had given their all in that mountie training, they had been there for four months, and soon they would receive their first mission.

Cody missed Bill's mother very much; he hoped that they would soon have a wedding. He would like to see the two of them together and happy as a family. No one should be alone in this life, especially when they loved each other as much as those two did. They had loved each other for years, but something always came up to get in the way.

He was worried, because the last letter he received from his mother told him about the closure of the café... he tried to go and help, but he couldn't get a discharge from the battalion.

Hope Valle was a small town, and he knew that tension hung in the air as the café was closed, shrouded in tax mysteries. His mother was notorious for her rigid paperwork and taxes, which is why Cody and Robert, talking this evening, couldn't think of or find a solution. They also received a letter from Alien, and according to her, her father was under investigation, because the mercantile was also in trouble, and this was fueling the residents' nervousness. According to Alien's and her mother's information, the same mysterious figure who had delivered the summons to the café was the one who had delivered it to Ned, and so the mercantile had been closed for days.

The town depended on goods to survive, and the only place to do so was the mercantile, but its closure was already causing fear and uncertainty to grow in the town.

The absence of commercial activities was beginning to affect daily life. The streets that were once bustling with activity were now echoing with a disconcerting silence. Without open markets, the inhabitants were limited to leaving town to shop or even moving away, which would turn it into a ghost town.

Cody and Robert were young, but as their teacher Elizabeth said, they were men of peculiar visions, so they decided to tackle the enigma surrounding the crisis in the town. On a silent night, while shadows danced in the deserted streets near the battalion, Robert and Cody got together to think and strategize, trying to find out who wanted to do so much harm to their city.

They both shared an uncommon perspicacity and began to piece together the facts, from the first attacks on Elizabeth to the closure of trade, looking beyond the immediate problems. For hours, they debated possibilities and theories about what could be behind the simultaneous closure of the café, the mercantile, the attack on Lee, Willian Thatcher and their teacher Elizabeth. They made a chart and put all the clues on it, and together they decided to send a letter to Alien, because she could give them something more to see beyond the problems. They knew that something serious was going on, the graph seemed to date and show something, but they hadn't been able to come up with an answer yet, but they realized that everything was interconnected.

It was going to be a long night, and Cody decided to turn in and go to sleep. Dawn would soon come and they would have horse training.

Robert, for his part, took advantage of the fact that he was now alone in his bed, and with all the privacy he could have in a mountie's quarters, decided to read Alien's letter. And taking it in his hands, he smelled the scent of his beloved.

Dear Robert,

I hope this letter finds you well, although the longing I feel is palpable, as if a part of me is lost without your presence.

Since your departure, the city has been shrouded in a fog of uncertainty. The streets are empty and silent... both the café and the mercantile remain closed. It's very sad to see.

Dad and Bill are hard at work trying to uncover the clues in this case. My mother, Elizabeth, is still as beautiful as ever and my little brother, Jack, is getting cuter and cuter.

Robert, I may still be young, but I wanted to tell you that it feels like my soul has fallen asleep, without your smile to light up the dark days, it feels like I've lost not just my best friend, but the light that guided my path...

I couldn't imagine how different the town and the school would be without you, Robert.

Your presence always brought a sense of calm and the certainty of a beautiful, sunny day, something that now fades into the thin air of uncertainty.

Robert... The nights have become long and the emptiness in my heart grows with every sunset.

As I walk through the deserted streets, I can't help but remember the moments we shared. Your determination to graduate well, and your courage in saving my mother, are always an inspiration to me... I promise that I will study hard while you are away and I will make you very proud of me, I will graduate well like you did, and I will wait for you... because you are everything to me, in fact, I miss you so much that there are no words to express it.

Robert, I've realized that despite my age, my heart has already chosen its path, and it's you who occupies that special place. I eagerly await your return, but know that my love for you only grows, crossing the boundaries of time. With all my affection... Your Alien.

Reading Alien's letter, Robert felt a whirlwind of emotions. His eyes filled with tears as he realized the depth of the love she was expressing. He knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that Alien was his future, his hope in the midst of darkness and the unknown. He had butterflies in his stomach, and they tickled him, making him feel silly as he read those words. She was his love, his first and last love. Robert knew he was lucky, like Jack Thorton and Nathan Gran, he knew that with Alien, he too had found true and pure love.

Tired, but with his heart warmed by the memory of Alien, Robert lay down to rest. As the shadows of the night enveloped him, her words echoed in his mind, bringing with them the promise of a pure and unbreakable love.

Before falling asleep, Robert found himself immersed in comforting thoughts about the moments he had shared with Alien. The laughter, the glances, the dreams they had built together all these years, all became a balm for his tired body. He knew that, regardless of the challenges they faced, the love they shared was the light that would guide their paths back to each other.

In a gesture of humility and gratitude, Robert, with his eyes closed, raised a prayer to God

"Lord, please protect my Alien. Protect her from all evil, and surround her with your grace and love. Give me the strength to face challenges, the wisdom to overcome them and the humility to follow the right path. Make me know how to listen to and respect others. Thank you, Lord, for Alien being present in my life. Lord, protect this beautiful love of ours, make it grow and flourish, withstanding the storms that may arise and the distance we will have at the beginning of our love. Lord, if you can, make the years fly by, so that she can graduate quickly and I can marry her... Amen."

And so, in the stillness of the night, Robert's words mingled with the sighing of the wind to form a heartfelt prayer full of hope and faith in the future.

And so he went to sleep smiling.