A/N Just as a reminder/clarification, I know that I have both Jack and Nathan listed as characters in this story, but that's just because the Mountie I've written here is a hybrid of the two characters. There won't be a "Nathan" character showing up, but I've tried to write this in a way that you can replace all of the "Jack"s with "Nathan" if that's what you prefer :)
...
Elizabeth turned from the rack of clothes she had been straightening when she heard the door open.
"Oh. Hello, Constable." She ducked her face, trying to hide the heat filling her cheeks. She had no idea why, ever since she had spent time with him while the children were fishing, she felt flustered around him. She shook off the feeling, clearing her throat as she stepped to the other side of the counter. "Is there something that I can help you with?"
"Actually, I need to talk with you."
"Okay…" Nervousness crept into her, and her mind started reeling with the possibilities of what he would need to speak with her about. It must be urgent if he was seeking her out at work.
"Your family is on their way to Hope Valley," he announced. "They should be here by the end of the week."
"What?" She froze. Of all the things he could've said, that was the last thing she expected. "How do they know I'm here?"
"Bill had some business in Hamilton. He stopped by to let them know you were safe."
"I was safe. Now I'm not." She started pacing the floor. "They'll tell James where I am. I can't go back with him, Jack." Pausing her movement, she looked over at him. Tears filled her eyes. "Why would Bill do that?"
The hurt on her face felt like a punch to the gut. "We just thought—"
"I don't want to hear it," she snapped. "Don't you think that if I felt like it was safe for my parents to know where I went, I would've told them? Who else did he tell? Did he go to the Mounties there? Because I'm certain James's family will be asking questions of anyone who might know where I am." She sank down into a nearby chair, covering her face with her hands as she let the tears fall. "I was beginning to trust you," she whispered. "I thought…"
"Elizabeth, I…" He reached toward her, but dropped his hand when he realized she didn't want his attempts at comforting her. He sighed. "I'm sorry. I know you don't want to hear that right now, but I am. I don't think he will, but if James shows up here, we'll do everything we can to keep you and the children safe. I promise."
"You don't know him." Her voice cracked as she spoke. "You don't know what he can do."
"Faith told me about the bruises. And…the baby."
She flinched at the reminder. Absentmindedly drawing her hand to her stomach, she took a shaky breath. "He…he…"
"I swear, I won't let him lay a hand on you ever again."
She shook her head. "I think you should go now."
He shifted his weight from one foot to the other, as if trying to decide what to say next. Finally, he just said, "okay. But I'm going to keep trying to figure out a way to get you out of this, Elizabeth." Then he was gone.
Elizabeth slumped down, wiping the sticky remnants of her tears off of her cheeks. She didn't know how long she sat there before Rosemary came out from the back room.
"Elizabeth? Are you okay?" She walked over to the chair where Elizabeth was sitting, crouching down to her level.
Elizabeth glanced up at her. "My family is coming to Hope Valley."
"Okay…?" Rosemary was confused, expecting Elizabeth to be happy about news like that.
"What if they tell James that I'm here? What if the Spencers find out they know where I am, and they go after them? I didn't tell them for a reason."
"But what if James doesn't find out, and you get to have a wonderful visit with your family? I'm sure they've been worried sick since they heard you were gone. This could be good for all of you." She took Elizabeth's hand. "And if James happens to find out and comes here for you, I know that Jack—and frankly, almost everyone in town—will protect you as best they can."
"I just…" She shook her head. "My gut tells me that this is bad."
...
A clap of thunder startled Elizabeth awake. Rain was pattering on the rooftop, small gusts of wind rattling the window across the room.
The children were curled up on either side of her, somehow still asleep despite the noise of the storm. Peaceful. The opposite of how she was feeling.
She carefully climbed out of the bed, making sure she didn't disturb the children. Slipping her borrowed robe onto her shoulders, she padded over to the window.
Pushing the curtain aside, she watched the raindrops as they slid down the glass. A flash of lightning. A clap of thunder.
She sighed, trying to calm the emotions rolling through her. Now that her parents were on the way, how much time did she have before James arrived? What would he do when he found her? Jack had promised to protect her, as had others in town. But what power did they have against James? Against the Spencers? They knew powerful people, even high-ranking Mounties.
Maybe, she thought, maybe going back willingly was the best choice. She could apologize to him, tell him it was a mistake to leave and promise never to go again. Perhaps he would let her off easy if she went without a fight.
The more she thought about it, the more she resigned herself to the fact that she couldn't stay. Even if she decided not to go back to Toronto, she knew that she couldn't stay in Hope Valley. James couldn't find her. She would have to keep running or go back to him, and she had to decide quickly.
...
"Thank you for coming by," Rosemary let Jack into the house. "I don't know what to do. I found her packing this morning, and she doesn't seem to want to listen to reason."
"I'll see what I can do." He crouched down, speaking to his niece, "Allie, you stay down here with Mrs. Coulter, okay?"
"Yes, sir." She nodded. "Can William and Emma play with me?"
"I'll ask." He gave her a smile and squeezed her little hand. "She's upstairs?"
"In the guest room," Rosemary confirmed. "Allie, would you like some lemonade?"
"Yes, please." She licked her lips, following Rosemary to the kitchen.
Jack ascended the steps, pausing once he found himself in front of the guest room. What was he going to say to her? How could he convince her that leaving was a bad idea?
He knocked quietly. "Elizabeth? It's me."
There was no answer, but he could hear movement on the other side of the door. She had heard him, but was simply ignoring him.
"Elizabeth, can we please talk?"
The door cracked open, but it was William standing there, not Elizabeth.
"Mama says there's nothing to talk about."
"Mr. Mountie," Emma hurried over to the door, beaming up at him. "We're goin' home!"
"I heard that." He pushed the door open wider, but didn't enter the room without her permission. He'd already broken her trust; he didn't need to make matters worse. "Elizabeth, please."
"I've made up my mind." She sniffled, folding up one of Emma's dresses and placing it in the suitcase. "We're going back to Toronto as soon as possible. I have just enough money for the train back."
"William, Emma," he said, "Allie is downstairs, if you two want to go play with her."
"Can we, mama?" William looked over at his mother hopefully.
She sighed. "For a few minutes."
Jack moved aside to let the children out of the room. Once they were gone, he quietly watched Elizabeth. "Why?" he finally spoke.
"I have no other choice." She sank down onto the bed, wringing a blouse in her hands. "I can either spend my life running from him, or I stay here and wait for him to find me. Or I can go back willingly and hope he can forgive me for leaving. Right now, that seems like my best option."
"And if he doesn't forgive you?" He moved to stand fully in the doorway. "The way he hurt you, Elizabeth, and the amount of anger he might be feeling right now…he could…" He shook his head, not wanting to finish the sentence but knowing he needed to get through to her somehow. "He could kill you, Elizabeth. He could hurt the children."
"I won't let him." She clenched her jaw. "He won't lay a hand on the children. I'll protect them."
"And who's going to protect you?"
She froze, his words seeming to break through to her. Finally, she met his eyes, her own shiny with unshed tears. "I'm going," she croaked. "You aren't going to convince me to stay."
"Elizabeth." He took a step toward her, wanting so badly to comfort her. "At least give it a few days. Wait until your family arrives. If you still want to leave after seeing them," he sighed, "then I won't stop you."
"Promise?"
"I won't stop trying to make a case against him, though."
She resumed her packing. "Don't you have a whole town to worry about? Why are you so focused on this? You didn't even know me a week ago."
"I know you haven't told me everything you've gone through, but I know it's more than anyone should ever have to go through."
"Well, it's my life." She shrugged. "I think it's best if you just forget about me."
He ducked his head, whispering, "I can't do that," under his breath as he left the room.
She watched him leave, tears streaming down her face. Everything in her screamed to call him back in, to admit everything to him, every beating, every bruise, every scar. But what good would that do? James would just counter everything she said. His parents would pay some ridiculous amount of money to cover up any allegations she made, and she would still be exactly where she already was. Stuck.
...
"Mr. Mountie?" William stepped into the jail, looking uncertain.
"William." Jack stood and walked over to the little boy. "What are you doing here? Does your mother know you're here?"
He shook his head. "Mama's at work. I sneaked out from Miss Abigail's," he explained. "I gotta talk to you."
"Why don't you come sit down?" He pulled a chair over, taking a seat beside him. "What did you want to talk to me about?"
"Mama says we're going back home soon, but I don't want to go. My daddy scares me," he admitted.
"Why's that?" He already knew, but he hoped that he could get William to give some more information, anything that could possibly be used in a case against James Spencer.
"He tried to hit Emma and me. And he hits mama. I saw it."
Jack's heart broke as he listened to William speak. It was unfair, the trauma that this little boy had experienced in his short five years of life.
"Mama says it's not nice to hurt people," he continued. "But daddy hurts mama. And he yells at her when he thinks I'm sleeping. He said mean words. I don't like it." He looked up earnestly, his big brown eyes pleading. "Mama says that Mounties put bad people in jail. Can you put my daddy in jail? 'Cause then he can't hurt mama anymore."
"I'm trying, William. I promise." He put his hand on the little boy's shoulder. "Inspector Avery and I are doing everything we can to make sure your dad can't hurt you or Emma or your mom ever again."
"I hate my daddy. Mama says it's not nice to hate people, but I hate him."
"I'm sure you do," he sympathized. "William," he leaned in, "is there anything else you've seen your daddy do?"
He shrugged. "Sometimes when mama isn't home, daddy comes back with ladies. I see out my window. He kisses them. He doesn't know I see."
"Did you ever tell your mom about that?"
He shook his head. "I was s'posed to be sleeping. I didn't want to get in trouble."
"Well, thank you for telling me, William. You're a very observant little boy." He gave him a smile and ruffled his hair.
"Will that help you put daddy in jail?"
"It might, but I need to talk to some people first." He stood. "Now, let's get you back to Miss Abigail before she sends out a search party for you."
...
Elizabeth shifted nervously as she watched the car turn the corner and slow as it approached. Emma poked her head out from behind her, gripping her skirt with both hands.
"Is that grandma and grandpa?" William asked, holding tightly to Elizabeth's hand.
"I think so," she answered.
Emma stood a little taller. "Are we going with them, mama?"
"No, baby. They're going to visit for a few days, and then we're going back home to your daddy." She glanced toward the jail as she spoke. The constable was leaning against the doorframe. He gave her a little smile when he noticed she was looking in his direction.
She flicked her eyes away. She didn't want to think about him, think about the things he said to try to convince her to stay. She'd made up her mind, and after her parents had a chance to see that they were okay, she would leave.
Finally, the car rolled to a stop, and almost immediately, the Thatchers poured out from the vehicle. William, Grace, and Julie. Elizabeth let out a breath when she was sure that James wasn't with them. A part of her had feared that her husband would show up with them, and though she planned to return to him, she wasn't ready to see him again just yet.
Grace hurried over and drew Elizabeth into her embrace. "Oh, Beth. It's wonderful to see you."
"Does he know?" she gasped, stifling a sob as she finally let her emotions spill over. "Does he know I'm here?"
William shook his head, putting a hand on her shoulder. "We didn't tell him. We won't tell him. I'm so sorry, Beth."
Julie had picked Emma up, the little girl nuzzling into her shoulder. "Is there somewhere we can go talk? We're attracting a bit of a crowd here," she pointed out.
Sure enough, everyone out on Main Street seemed to have stopped what they were doing, their attention on the reunion happening before them.
Elizabeth wiped her eyes. "We can go to Abigail's Café. There's a lot for us to talk about."
"Lead the way," William spoke, picking up his little namesake.
Grace put her arm around her daughter once more. "It really is so good to see you, dear."