The very next morning, not too early, Rosemary had a visitor arrive at her doorstep unannounced. He was very dashing, showing up in the full uniform of a police captain of the state of Texas. "Good morning, Mrs Coulter, I did not want to depart from here and head back on our long journey without expressing our gratitude for what you have done for all of us." Rosemary liked this Captain Palmer and had done so from the first time they had met. "This is the most satisfying part of my job when we find that we are able to locate lost family members such as in this case. I can tell you that it wasn't easy because Texas is a big state and Sgt Reynolds could have served anywhere and, as we said, records from that traumatic period are sparse. I, and my staff take these enquiries very seriously as these were men who lost their lives serving their country. We plan to make every attempt to find the whereabouts of their daughter and we will inform you if we have any success.
"Mrs Coulter, it would give me great pleasure to invite you and your husband for dinner at your nice little café before we depart and you must bring your daughter along as well." He looked and pointed to Rusty, "I've seen dogs sit with such loyalty on gravesites before so I'm assuming that this little fella was her dog and that now you get the job of looking after him. He will be most welcome to join us and I'm sure that he will be allowed in the café just this once at my request." When they got to the café, Rosemary was surprised to see not only Elizabeth and Little Jack, but also Nathan, Fiona and Allie all waiting for her. Bill was ushering everybody around and looking very much like a master of ceremonies as he customarily hit a glass with a spoon gradually gaining everybody's attention. Rosemary started looking around wondering what might be going on. "Can I have everybody's attention if you please. Why is Rusty the only one looking at me?" He waited for a little while until everyone was settled. "Okay, that's better. Now, we don't get visitors like these very often in Hope Valley. They came a very long way even though they didn't have to, and they brought with them that wonderful headstone which is going to commemorate the life of a wonderful lady and offer an acknowledgement of a marriage to a fallen combatant of yesteryear." He turned to Captain Palmer, "Sir, thank you for coming here and I can say for all of us that you and your staff are most welcome here anytime."
Captain Palmer stood up now that everybody had finally been seated, "Ladies and gentlemen, I had two reasons in mind for calling this gathering. Much has been said already, before and at the service so without further ado I have a little presentation to make. There is no formal commendation or recognition for what you have done Mrs Coulter to bring closure to two most deserving people, so, before we left Texas to come here, we had this unofficial plaque made for you as a keepsake. I trust that this will be placed in a special spot in your house to remind you of a great service that you have done." He hugged a very tearful Rosemary and shook hands with Lee as he handed the plaque to her. A very solemn Bill rose in response to Captain Palmers' second request, "A month ago I never thought I'd be doing anything like this. I would like to raise a toast to Mr and Mrs Joshua William Reynolds, separated tragically fifty years ago who are now finally reunited. May you rest in peace and know that you will never be forgotten."
The visitors departed soon after dinner to catch the train as the first part of their long journey back home. "You have a wonderful community here Mrs Coulter, you can be very proud of what you have done. I know that you will visit Mrs Reynolds soon and I ask you to pass on my love and that if I could go back fifty years ago I would have gladly thrust myself in front to save the life of her husband." He climbed into the carriage and was soon out of sight. She watched the carriage until it disappeared around the bend. She thought what a dedicated man he was to make a heartfelt comment like that. Everybody wanted to congratulate Rosemary, but she also was soon out of sight as she was heading straight for the gravesite with her plaque to sit with a friend who should have still been with us all.
She sat silently, all alone and marvelled at the new headstone that Captain Palmer and his men had erected on the morning of their special service. She had been frightened that the life of this wonderful woman was going to pass by unheralded even though she had vowed not to let that happen. Captain Palmer, she knew, was now going to commence the exhaustive search for the daughter who could be anywhere and probably with a married name which would make finding her very difficult. Rosemary was quite satisfied with her work but the thoughts and questions which were going around and around in her head would not let up for hardly a moment. "Martha, did Joshua know and ever get to see his daughter? You had him taken from you just as you were both starting out. How could you have possibly got past all that, you never had an ounce of bitterness in your whole body. Fifty years or a thousand years would not have helped me survive a blow like what you had. I can visualize you having to see him off at the railway station possibly for the last time. I will never understand how," she clutched her plaque to her chest unable to speak any longer. "I miss you so much Mrs Reynolds."
Elizabeth hadn't been to the stable for quite a while and when she arrived, she was amazed how well and tidy it looked. A young woman came out from behind a fence and Elizabeth recognised her as the girl from Nathan's prison cell. This time she had a smile on her face as she said, "Hello, I remember you when you came into the jail that day. You were so upset that the Mounties had been in danger. I'm glad I got caught, I could have done something really bad back then and hurt Nathan and that would have been the end of any life that I may have had. He gave me another chance, but I don't thing that I really deserved it." Elizabeth hadn't really taken any notice of her in the jail cell but now looking at this young girl, she thought, "My goodness, she doesn't look much more than seventeen." One look told her that she must have had a pretty rocky sort of adolescence to have got herself in so much trouble, but fortunately for her, she had Nathan here and now to help guide her.
"I'm Mrs Thornton and this one over here is my horse." Sergeant nuzzled up to Amy and she patted him kindly. "It looks like he's been getting plenty of attention and he certainly likes you." Amy had a brush in her hand, "It's nice to meet you Mrs Thornton especially on the outside, my name is Amy and I am very pleased to be able to tend to your horse when you need it." Elizabeth was thinking that it would be a good idea to help Nathan and take this young girl under her wing. She probably needed all the help that Hope Valley could give her. "I'm the schoolteacher in the town," smiled Elizabeth, "so I don't always get enough time to ride him so you are welcome to give him some exercise when you can. I'm amazed how you have made the stables here look so good. If nobody has said so yet, I welcome you to Hope Valley," Just as she was leaving the stables she added," Amy, if you ever feel the need to talk to someone about anything at all, you are more than welcome to come and see me." She hoped with all her heart that this young girl would be able to let us help her find herself and make a life in Hope Valley.
Rosemary was sitting out the back with a cup of coffee deep in thought. Her plaque was sitting inside in a prominent place where she would see it every day. After all, said and done, she felt that she had a lot to be thankful for. She had a wonderful husband and a beautiful little girl to dote on. She reflected on how it took a tragedy for the little girl and now a little dog to come into her family. There was also the time when she had loved and been engaged to Jack and then he was taken from Elizabeth. We all had to face these things and the clock just kept on ticking away. She wondered how you were supposed to make sense of it all, but maybe there was no answer to have at all. It was strange how she didn't really know how she felt but she couldn't help feeling glad that she had been there for the few times with Martha and that she was there when it mattered afterwards. In essence, she had seen a side of herself that she didn't know was there and just quietly, she liked what she saw. There were all their good friends that she would never take for granted ever again. She vowed to love her family and always be there for them, maybe that was the answer. The events of the last few weeks had certainly made her sit up and take notice.
Jason had arrived back at Fort Clay in darkness and after checking in, headed straight for his berth at the barracks. He was tired but happy with his stint of a few weeks at Hope Valley. If he wasn't before, he now considered himself a fully-fledged Mountie as he had stood up when required and done his job. He highly valued his new family and especially his new little sister. The faces he was going to remember now would be the ones when either Fiona or Allie picked up the bottle or the jar from the table which happened to be coated with honey, compliments of Mr Yost. The smile reappeared on his face when he recalled the packet of breadcrumbs flying past his ear. He couldn't wait to talk to Sandra and say thank you for caring enough to solve a problem for him, one that might not have mattered much to anyone else.
Jason's first obligation was to report at 0800 hours to Captain Foster and provide a debriefing of his four weeks of duty at Hope Valley. "Welcome back Jason, I'm looking forward to hearing of your exploits over the last four weeks. Firstly, how is Senior Constable Grant and his family, are they well?" He invited Jason to sit and go over the period as he saw it. "Well sir, I can't speak highly enough of Senior Constable Grant. He showed me what life is like when you are the only officer in the region and the tremendous responsibility that it entails. He could see that I took it all very seriously and I believe that the people had confidence in me by the finish. I loved his family and Mrs Thornton who helped me fit in to the community. I have much better and happier memories of them than before sir." Captain Foster was anxiously looking to get to the constable's assessment of the incident of the serious charge of armed robbery and incarceration of the three offenders. "By all accounts Jason, it looks like you acquitted yourself with great expertise when it was needed. I am very impressed as was Nathan Grant when he informed me what had occurred. Tell me how you arrived at your take of the incident."
Jason started right from the beginning where he saw Nathan riding out of town with a woman and then there was the phone call from Constable Black from Buxton. "You're telling me that you came to your decisions just from a hunch," asked Captain Foster. "You were only with Nathan Grant for five minutes and you took control of the situation as he would have done. Your actions here showed expertise which I would have expected from someone with far more experience than you have. Well done young man but we're not finished yet." The captain paused and brought a file out from his desk drawer. Just for a moment he thought he saw Jason screw his nose up, "Constable, I hope I didn't see that, I think your nose must be itchy." he said with a grin. "Unfortunately, I have to admit that no one hates these things more than me, but they are a necessary part of the procedure. I had to learn the hard way." He sat back in his chair, "When I was starting out, I found myself in the same sort of incident as what you have just experienced. I had to complete the report as required, as best as I could and then submitted it to my superiors who, in turn, forwarded it on accordingly. They were busy and said that they did not have the time available to read it through. There was one minor omission on my part which was quite significant." He paused and shook his head. "What was that sir?" Jason enquired. "I left out the part about how the two men were armed with loaded pistols. Instead of them going to jail for a lengthy period, the judge let them off with a warning. I got told in no uncertain terms that I would never make captain."
Jason smiled, "I'm happy that you proved them wrong sir. I had Senior Constable Grant standing over the top of me making sure that I got it all correct. I have it here with me sir. Nathan told me not to sign it until you were happy with it." After seeing that all was in order, the captain asked about the female accomplice, "Jason, I want to know your thoughts on that woman." Jason had to collect his thoughts, "The only time I noticed her was when she rode out of town with Nathan and the time she walked back into the jailhouse. Later, when Mrs Thornton was very upset at the thought of Nathan coming close to injury, she stood up in her cell and appeared very remorseful. It looked really genuine to me. I hope she can get some compassion from the judge."
"I have some news for you Jason. After you departed, Nathan had a change of heart and contacted me for my approval. He had decided not to press any charges and have the girl placed for six months under his custody." Jason felt out of breath as he listened on, "Sir, it took me a moment to grasp all this, but now I can just imagine him using judgement like that. It looks like she has a new start and I hope she makes good use of it." Jason was not ready for the next question. "Have you ever been up before a judge Jason?" asked the captain. "No sir, I wonder why you might ask me that, although, if they found out all the stuff that I did to my three little sisters, I would be put away for years." grinned a surprised Jason. "You can take my word for it Jason, it is considerably worse to be in front of a judge when you go there as the arresting officer. That man's decision will depend on how well prepared you are. If he can cut holes in your report, he will not hesitate to do so." Jason had turned white by now. He could see why the captain was such a stickler for detail and accuracy and how he was going to see justice served correctly when he was involved.
Nathan wandered down early in the morning to the stables ready to saddle his horse for the days' work. Amy had already been up and brushed him down and had saddled Sergeant and was planning to give him some early exercise around the town. "Good morning Amy, I see Sergeant has a new best friend. He likes his home even more now that you are here. Would you like to come for a ride with me on my round? I would enjoy the company." She waited patiently as he saddled his horse with her help and then they set off leisurely around the town. Nathan was relieved to see that Amy was settling in and looking relaxed and happy. He had made a relatively snap judgement that he wasn't really entitled to make, and it could ultimately backfire on him but, for her, he had been prepared to take that chance. "I met Mrs Thornton the other day," she said with a smile, "she was really nice to me when she didn't have to be. That's going to take me some time to get used it. I could have hurt you and you have now given me a new start. I promise that I will never let you down ever." They set off at a gallop and rode past the little school where Nathan noticed her looking at it longingly.
"Sandra, if I give you my gun, can you shoot me please." pleaded Jason looking very disturbed. "You see, I can't do it myself, it's against the rules." Sandra was completely overcome with surprise. "What in heaven's name is the matter, we didn't send you to Hope Valley to come back like this?" Jason was in a mess, "I arrested three offenders at Hope Valley and then I had to do the report which I could have done without, now I find out from Captain Foster that I have to go to court as the arresting officer." Sandra wondered what the problem was with that, "You should be very proud of yourself Constable Jason, we only sent you to Hope Valley to meet the people and sort out a few problems, not to have to take on robbers all on your own. Of course, you will have to testify at the trial of these men. You don't want them to go free do you?" Jason was still not satisfied, "Captain Foster says that it is worse for the arresting officer than the crooks. The judge is going to make mincemeat out of me and have me for breakfast. You see that guardhouse over there, that's where I'll probably be spending the next five years. Do you reckon Allie will come and visit me in jail?" Sandra smiled at him sympathetically, "If anyone is going to jail it will be our Captain Foster for telling these outlandish stories. When you eventually go to court, he will be right there with you and not leaving you alone to face all of this. If your report is complete and correct, then you will have nothing to fear. There is no way that he would venture into a courtroom without being well prepared." The young Mountie was still not impressed, "I should have let them shoot me and be done with it."
Rosemary had been to the gravesite early in the morning to lay more flowers and sit with Mrs Reynolds for a while. She had noticed with some contentment that others had been regularly paying their respects and laying flowers as well. Many people had remarked how they had never seen or been part of a service relating to military personnel. They said how they had been moved to tears when the bugle played even though they did not know the person involved. It was always a nice little walk back home after sharing some time with Martha. She imagined how appropriate it was that her husband Joshua had referred to her as Marty. Did he name her that or had she grown up with that nickname? She walked in the front door, "Hello dear, have you seen my suit pants?" asked a puzzled husband, "I distinctly remember leaving them on our chair last night so that I would have them ready for this morning." Rosemary was not taking much notice as it was not the first time that things happened not to be where they were supposed to be. "You must have left them somewhere else if they are not there." She was well versed in being able to provide an annoying answer when required even though she was in good humour. "You've got other ones that you can wear for today if you are in a hurry." Lee was quite frustrated, "Those ones match my jacket, and everything fits so well. Alright, I will continue looking even in the unusual places." Everywhere he looked Rusty was underfoot and Emily wasn't much help either.
They had acquired a nice little basket which was just the right size for Rusty to sleep in at night, however, he was now used to sleeping on Emily's bed with her. He was a wonderful companion for Emily, and she played with him from dawn to dusk. He would somehow manage to fit in an afternoon nap if Emily and Little Jack were drawing or practicing writing letters to each other. That's when Rusty's little basket got some use. Rusty went and sat in his basket out of the way and Lee noticed him sitting on what looked like a very familiar pair of suit trousers. He couldn't imagine why they would be in there and was annoyed that there would be dog's hair and fluff all over them. The piece of clothing was quickly retrieved despite Rusty's effort to have a tug of war and it looked markedly worse for wear. A further examination of the sorry sight of trousers revealed that there was only one button remaining. All the others had somehow been chewed off probably compliments of a very innocent looking little dog. Rosemary was initially horrified but was soon trying to hide a little smirk as she tried to picture Lee wandering off to work in a pair of buttonless trousers. The smirk was soon replaced by puzzlement as she seemed to recall not being able to remember a certain blouse that had been hanging on the line the other day. She looked pointedly at Rusty, "I suppose it's a waste of time asking you where it is." Rusty looked at her thinking that a couple of cookies would go down just nicely about now.
"That's enough about mincemeat, me shooting anyone and courtrooms and dreary stuff like that." said Sandra taking his hand. "Tell me about Fiona and Allie and your stay with them. It seems that it was all a resounding success and you now have yet another little sister." This change of subject finally brought a smile to Jason's face. "They are such a wonderful family," he said, "Fiona and Nathan are engaged and are really happy together, everything is so different than when I was there during the search for Nathan. The man in the Mercantile warned me about Fiona and Allie but I didn't listen. Someone slipped the strap on my saddle, not mentioning any names, and I promptly found myself on my backside after trying to mount my horse." Sandra laughed, "This has made my day Jason." He grinned as he told her how they would get sticky hands when picking up the items on the table after he had left to return to Fort Clay. "I felt really satisfied that the people there believed in me when there was a crisis on their doorstep, and I was the only one in any sort of authority. I think I learned something about myself then."
Lee headed into work having settled on the navy-blue trousers much to his annoyance. Rosemary had despaired at the sight of him as he departed but there was little that could be done, not even scolding the dog would help matters. "Good morning Lee, I see you could do with some lessons in colour coordination, although, it is rather effective if you are looking for attention." said Molly scratching her head looking rather bemused. "You can borrow our dog for a few days and then I will probably be able to give you the same advice. Do you know if Ned sells buttons?" said an annoyed Lee. Rosemary was not having any better luck than Lee. Her blouse had somehow materialised in Rusty's little basket but luckily, all the buttons were intact. "Emily, what are we going to do with that little pest of yours. We could lock him in the cupboard or even put him in the bin." Emily laughed because she could see her mum was only teasing. "Maybe we could take him to Uncle Nathan's and put him in the jail." Rosemary thought, "No wonder Martha never had many clothes to wear, her dog had probably destroyed most of them."
"Hello Mrs Thornton, I'm giving Sergeant some more exercise," said an excited Amy early in the morning. "He's a lovely horse to ride, you must love him to bits." Elizabeth had purposely called in to the stable with Little Jack hoping that Amy would be there. She planned to be around regularly to support this young girl who, you never know, may want someone to talk to from time to time. "I'm enjoying seeing all the people everywhere I go. They all give me a smile and a wave as I go by. This is much better than what I've been used to all my life." Amy climbed down from the horse and she sat down with Elizabeth. "Are you in a hurry Mrs Thornton?" she asked politely. "He's a handsome little boy, I bet he keeps you on your toes." Elizabeth said how she had more than half an hour before school would start and was in no hurry at all. "You know Mrs Thornton; I could have been in prison by now if Nathan hadn't helped me. I don't know why he did that. Nobody else has ever done anything like that for me before." Elizabeth was curious, "What about your family, surely they would be missing you by now." Amy looked forlorn and disappointed, "My parents split quite a few years ago and I would have liked to stay with my mother, but she said that she could not have any means to support me. My father was a heavy drinker and that made him very rude and abusive. Those two men said that they would help me, but they proved to be just as hopeless as my father. I am frightened that they will come back for me when they get out of prison. They didn't like it that I locked them back up after they managed to unlock the cell door. I gave Nathan back his gun and I expected to end up in prison. I told him that I would be back after so that I could make amends for causing so much trouble." Elizabeth thought to herself that, if this bright young lady was given half a chance, she could achieve almost anything. She was going to be around to help see that it would happen. "Well, you'll be able to leave all of that behind now and make a fresh start.
Molly met Florence in the street outside the café, "I ran into Lee Coulter earlier this morning," she exclaimed, "I have no idea what is going on. He looked like something out of the circus and he was so self-conscious. He is always so immaculately dressed but today it all left a lot to be desired. I can't believe that Rosemary would let him out of the house looking so unkempt." Florence had only ever seen Lee in a suit or the next best thing so to imagine him in anything else would be unthinkable. "Maybe Rosemary is starting to neglect him, that sort of thing can happen in a marriage after a while." They were horrified at this possibility, "Oh the poor man, we have to help by showing him some understanding. We could bake him an apple pie and take it to him and tell him how well looks. We mustn't make any fuss over the clothes he wears, or it might make things worse for him." Molly was despondent at the thought of that lovely little girl being part of a troubled family. She thought that the people of Hope Valley would rally around someone in desperate need.
Rosemary wasn't exactly desperate, but she was concerned that she needed to get buttons for Lee's trousers without causing a scandal or incurring ridicule. Elizabeth would have to come to the rescue and a story would have to be invented. They would have to turn the home into a dog proof fortress, enough to frustrate the little pest. "Elizabeth, do you think that Lee will finally be prepared after all this time to put his clothes away to keep them away from Rusty. We have to raise the height of the washing line so that he can't reach anything." In short, they had to make their house Rusty proof. Elizabeth had seen the funny side, especially when she imagined the look on Lee's face when he had found his pants minus the buttons. "It wasn't funny when my grubby blouse turned up in Rusty's basket." Elizabeth thought that buying some buttons would have to be a perfectly innocent purchase and could be done easily without raising any suspicion. "If Ned asks what they are for you could tell him to button his lips." laughed Elizabeth. Rosemary agreed and immediately set off with her daughter and Rusty down the street to the Mercantile. There had been at least one button left intact that had been found in the dog's basket, so she hoped to find the same ones or at least something similar. She reckoned that she had answers ready for any embarrassing questions that might come her way.
"Good morning ladies, it's a wonderful morning to be out and about," said Rosemary and Emily happily as they wandered past Molly and Florence in the street. "Hello Rosemary, is everything alright?" asked Florence hesitantly thinking the worst. "Yes, everything is great, we're taking a walk down the street and heading into the Mercantile to get some buttons for a little sewing task that I have to do. I have Emily and Rusty to keep me company. I might need your help Florence to see if you have any buttons like the one I have here." They said bye to Molly and continued on their way. "Good morning Ned, Florence is going to help find buttons like this one. I've got some sewing to do." Ned made sure that Emily hung onto the dog while they were in the shop. "He's a naughty little doggie," said Emily. "He chewed all the buttons off dad's pants," she blurted out as she clung onto her dog. Rosemary went white and looked very flustered and embarrassed as she listened to Emily as she spilled the beans about the morning's event. Ned smiled at her and she knew that the jig was up. She had thought that she had good answers ready for any queries that might have come her way, but she never dreamed that her darling daughter would intervene. The damage was done, and Ned couldn't wait to ask Lee how his day was going. Florence immediately sought out Molly to cancel the apple pie for Lee.
Despite Rosemary's opposition, Ned accompanied her and Emily to Lee's office. Rosemary had got the buttons that she needed and could have easily rectified the situation but for a certain little ragamuffin saying it just like little children seem to do. "Florence tells me that you are having trouble with colour coordination. I wondered whether you might need my help." grinned Ned trying very unsuccessfully to appear concerned. Rosemary was resigned to her fate and was shaking her head. "I'm thinking of adding men's clothing to our business, it should do very well." Lee was completely nonplussed as he was more concerned with a priority lumber consignment. His choice of clothes had not concerned him once he had arrived at work. "I could provide you with ten pairs of trousers if you like. That ought to last you about three weeks, I guess. "Alright, how did it all go public," winced Lee. Rosemary pointed to Emily and managed a forlorn smile. Lee looked at his daughter, "Blabbermouth," he said with a grin. "Hey Ned, would you like a dog to help you out in the shop?" Ned decided to make a quick exit.
He was only just back in time to see a young lady wander in nervously to see him and Florence. They watched curiously as she strolled slowly to the counter and started to introduce herself. "Hello," she said, "I've been trying to build up the courage to come and see you and to apologise for the trouble I caused." Both Ned and Florence looked at each other in surprise. They had never seen the third party to the two hold-up men and consequently, had no idea what she was talking about. "I was part of the attempted robbery recently and I shudder to think how it could have turned out a lot worse." She was struggling to find the words now that she could see the really nice couple in here who were just trying to be a good part of the community. She thought how those two men would have gladly cleaned them out and not given them a second thought. "I'm really glad that I was caught and especially how nobody got hurt. I had Nathan at gunpoint and he eventually decided not to press charges against me and give me a chance to atone for everything. I'm going to do my best." She put her hands on the counter and started to cry, "I'm so sorry, I'm going to spend the rest of my life to make it up to you. I've never met nicer people until I came here, and it has made me want to become a good person." Despite the sad despairing circumstances, Florence took an instant liking to this young snippet of a girl and came from around the counter and thrust out her arms. "I'm sure Nathan has said the same thing to you that everybody deserves another chance. What's your name my dear?" Amy was very upset, "I could have really hurt someone, I never want to see or touch a gun ever again. Oh, I'm sorry, my name is Amy." Florence could see that this girl had come from a life of hardship and now a kind word and a friendly face would be very helpful. "Ned and I are glad that things look like being better for you, we are always here if you need us." Amy turned to leave when Florence asked, "Amy my dear, where has Nathan got you staying, surely not in that dreadful jail cell of his!" Amy replied how that had been just fine and at least the door wasn't locked anymore. "That's disgraceful," said an annoyed Florence. "What would that Mountie know about how a girl is supposed to live. We have a spare room upstairs and you shall stay here with us." Amy didn't want to be any bother. "Nonsense!" said Florence firmly. I'm sure that you would never want to see inside that building ever again. Come along, I won't hear of anything else." Ned grinned at her, "That's good, while she's yelling at you that means she's not yelling at me." Amy couldn't remember the last time anyone fussed over her like this.
The days rolled by and soon the one came along that Jason was dreading. Today he had to attend court and go before the judge as the arresting officer. He was thankful that Captain Foster was in charge and that it should mean that he might only have minimal input and they could all go home. Jason had never been inside a courtroom before and vowed that he would not ride down the same road ever again. The captain and Jason sat in their allotted places in court and soon had to rise at the entrance of Judge Tierney who was to preside over the case. Jason looked at him and thought that he looked to be the most hardened and uncompromising man he had ever seen. The two defendants were sitting on the other side of the room and looked rather nonplussed. It looked like they already knew their fate and were resigned to it. They entered a guilty plea as had been suggested because that might encourage some leniency from the judge. Everybody had to wait while Judge Tierney reviewed the comprehensive report which Captain Foster had religiously overseen. "Everything appears to be in order gentlemen; however, I have a couple of questions of my own. I would like to address the arresting officer please, which of you is Constable Robertson?" Jason identified himself and stood up in his place. He was relieved that he had remembered is own name as he was trying to come to grips with his growing nervousness. "Constable, your report says that it was armed robbery. When these men entered the Mercantile, were their guns drawn or not?" Jason thought for a moment then answered truthfully the he believed that their guns were still in the holsters. He added that he had ordered the proprietors to be upstairs and out of sight which made the pistols unnecessary. "Your report mentions that a woman was involved, why is she not here may I ask?" Captain Foster decided that it was time for him to intervene as this could become a rather contentious matter. "Sir, I'm Captain Foster, second in command at Fort Clay. I would like to clarify this matter if you please. The young woman in question was captured and placed in custody, however, she showed considerable remorse such that Senior Constable Grant decided not to press charges but to place her in his own guardianship for a period of six months. I believe that she is doing a fine job working in the stables under his direction. For the record sir, it was me and my judgement that gave him the approval to go ahead with this course of action. It is my belief that we chose the right path sir. I stand by my decision and the judgement of Senior Constable Grant." Judge Tierney became rather agitated with the apparent defiant remarks of this man in uniform. "You are not the one responsible here for issuing out justice in cases like this. It is the task of the judicial system and I am not impressed at having law enforcement personnel taking this action in my place. The girl can stay where she is, but she had better not appear in my courtroom for any reason in the future." He turned his attention to the two men in question, "You will serve two months in prison and I hope that you accept this leniency for what could have been a much worse crime."
The two officers departed the courtroom after they had watched the two prisoners being led away into the prison system. "Well, Constable, what did you think of your first taste of the legal and justice system in action?" enquired the remarkably composed captain. Jason was much less in control, "I'm not sure sir that I'm allowed to say what I really think. All I know is that we all did what was right and we finished up being reprimanded for it." Captain Foster smiled at him, "I believe that you summed it up correctly Jason. I am going to have to make sure that Nathan Grant knows the situation and how we incurred the wrath of the presiding judge just for doing the right thing. There was nothing wrong with our report. Not every judge would have reacted like that." Jason watched this captain in action and could see where Nathan and Simon had got their inspiration from. This man was seething with anger but had remained calm and in control. He didn't like to ask but he wondered if the captain had run into Judge Tierney previously. Jason thought that he would confidently go into battle with this officer if he had to.
Nathan was incensed that the judge had only given the two men such a short sentence for what was a serious enough crime in itself but could have been much worse. It seemed that the Mounties did not deserve any credit for their judgement in matters like this. If he had followed the letter of the law, then Amy would be put away for a considerable period and would have to fend for herself afterwards. Bill was not impressed with the judge's findings as he had done his own interpretation of the law in the past when he felt justified. They decided to keep a close eye on what might happen in two months' time. Fiona and Allie had still not met Amy yet but had put their faith in Nathan's judgement. They both wanted to give the judge a piece of their mind. At least it was all done with and now she could get on with life in Hope Valley. Fiona put her arm around Nathan, "That's a wonderful thing that you have done for this girl. You weren't obliged to do that, but you did it anyway. I love you for it even more." She laughed when she told Nathan how Florence had taken Amy away from that wretched dungeon in his office. "You had better stay clear of Florence for a while although she had a tear in her eye when she said what a nice thing that you had done for this girl."
The Hope Valley newspaper was a growing attraction for the families of the district. The reverse side had included the stories about one of the children each week which had proved to be very popular. Rosemary had been very careful to ensure that parents had vetted the information before going into print. Allie, Little Jack and Emily had photos of them with very little else so that there would be no chance of any association with any Mounties. They loved the photo of Emily, but it was funny how Rusty had made it into the picture. The work of the children had made the job very easy for Rosemary and she was pleased how sales of the paper had skyrocketed from previous weeks. Copies of the paper were prominently placed around the school classroom. These were to be wonderful keepsakes for the families as they knew how quickly the children were growing up so fast.
One afternoon the Coulter family complete with their dog were down the street heading for the Mercantile. Ned had said that he was ordering many sets of trousers just happening to be in Lee's size. "I've asked for a number of pairs of those ragged old blue pants that you had on the other day. They are apparently very popular with the old folk." Rosemary had quite enough by now and told Rusty if he went near any clothes ever again, he would be fed to the fish in the pond. They walked outside just as the afternoon stage arrived. A young mother stepped out from the cab with a little girl of about three years old. Rusty bolted down the road as fast as he could towards this lady. "Rusty," she squealed, "Hello little fella," as she picked him up and cuddled him. "You remembered me from before."
Nathan took Fiona and Allie down to the stables to see if they could meet Amy if she wasn't out exercising one of the horses. They could see her returning from a short ride out past the pond where she could see the school and sometimes see the children outside at recess time. She froze in the saddle at the sight of what must be Nathan's family waiting there to meet her. Apart from Ned and Florence, these people were the ones most affected by her recent actions. Fiona could see the tension building and quickly went to greet her and make her feel at ease. Amy was about to cry when Allie gave her a hug and said, "Hello Amy, I'm Allie and I am finally glad to meet you." They had discussed at length about Amy's situation and what probably happened to her in the past and it made it easier to accept her. Amy looked at Fiona and loved her right from the start. She didn't care what might happen to herself in the future. She was just so relieved that she hadn't done anything terrible even though she had the gun pointed at Nathan. She thought of the ramifications of how a person's actions could have long lasting effects on others. Her heartbeat and breathing became out of control and she needed to sit for a while with a feeling of light-headedness. Fiona and Allie sat with her arm in arm for some time as they both knew what was happening. Amy felt as if she had come face to face with the realisation of how close she had come to destroying a family.
Lee and Rosemary and Emily wandered over to the stage where the lady was waiting for her bags to be set down by the driver. "Hello, I hope our dog hasn't been annoying you folk. It's strange how he scooted over to you just as if he knew you. "No, that's okay, I've seen Rusty before, but you say that he's your dog. It looks like he couldn't be in better company." Rosemary thought that this was quite strange that a woman and a little child would just arrive in Hope Valley unexpected and not be met by anyone. "Welcome to Hope Valley," said Rosemary, "Can we help you in any way, you must be tired and hungry from your long journey." The young mother was eternally grateful to see a friendly and caring set of faces. "I wondered whether we were doing the right thing but as soon as I saw Rusty, I knew we were at the right place. "I'm Christine Glover and I'm hoping to find a Mrs Rosemary Coulter who lives here in Hope Valley. This little girl here is my daughter Marie." Rosemary thought how strange it was that someone arrives here in town and knows Rusty. "Well Christine, you're in luck because I'm the one you are looking for, I'm Rosemary Coulter and this is my husband Lee, and this down here is my daughter Emily. You've already met Rusty and it seems that you already know him." Christine gave Rusty a little hug and said with a hint of sadness, "Rusty was NannaReynolds little dog, she was my grandmother."
Two months sentence for a far more dastardly crime was an outright insult to the well credentialed mounted police, and it did not sit well at all with Captain Foster. They could have lodged an appeal and possibly been successful, but that action may have drawn the girl into the mix with adverse effects. He decided that the matter was best left alone, however, he planned to follow up any information that they could gather on the two men just in case. Assuming that the information in the court findings was correct, he noted that one of the men's place of residence was listed as in a little town about seven miles out of Union City. He felt for the future that it would be prudent to do some checking on whether the address and their names on the record were authentic or otherwise. He had just the right man in Union City who could carry out a little investigation for him. He decided to mail Simon a copy of the complete report and the ridiculous court findings and ask for some discussion down the track. He was concerned that he had seen the looks on the two men's faces when they heard that the girl was to stay at Hope Valley under the direction of the resident Mountie.
Rosemary gasped at what she had just heard, "Oh my goodness! I never guessed even when you introduced your beautiful little daughter as Marie. She's named after her grandmother isn't she. How on earth did you find us?" Rosemary's head was spinning, "I have so much to tell you from what has happened here over the last few months. Lee, get her bags will you and let's go straight to our place. Christine, I'm sure you must have a million questions to ask and we will help out as much as we can." Rosemary was trying to see if there was much likeness with Christine and Marie to Martha and she soon found herself apologising for staring. Marie was a shy little girl, but she liked to pat Rusty as he went past. She had seen Rusty before, but she had been too young to remember him. Christine smiled as Emily took little Marie's hand as they walked along to the house.
"A friend of mine always gets a copy of the local newspaper from Hope Valley and I just happened to see the picture of a pretty little girl with a little dog." said Christine. "I was curious and when I had a read of it, I saw the name of the dog as Rusty. Also, I noticed in our major newspaper an article about an elderly lady who had passed away at Hope Valley who had been the widow of a Texas law enforcement officer. I was overcome when I saw her name as being Martha Reynolds." Rosemary could see the sadness in her eyes as she related how her grandmother had gone from where she resided and was not seen again. "The article mentioned a Captain Palmer who was endeavouring to find the whereabouts of the daughter Marie as there was no record of her in any records from so long ago. Nobody ever knew that my mother died when I was only six years old. I can barely remember her, but I do know that she had been in constant pain until the end." She had to stop for a while, but she could manage a smile as she watched the two little girls playing together. Rosemary told Christine about Emily to give her a bit of respite, "Emily can be a bit of a terror sometimes. I took her with me on one occasion to ask our schoolteacher something and she settled in for the entire afternoon and refused to come away until school was ended for the day and all the children were to go home." Christine smiled, "Your little one can be as naughty as she likes, I love her already." She followed on with more of her story, "I wrote to Captain Palmer about my mum and he wrote ever such a nice letter back to me. He mentioned you, Rosemary and how you weren't going to stop until you found information about my lovely grandmother. He told me to come to see you here at Hope Valley and that you knew as much if not more than what he did."
Rosemary started from the very beginning how the children were playing out the front and a little dog came along and pinched their ball and wouldn't give it back. "That's how we met Rusty who proved to be the most wonderful little dog you could meet. It was then your grandmother appeared and we had such a wonderful relationship ever since. How she got to be in Hope Valley we will never know but we loved her right from the beginning. She loved the children and had infinite patience with them. She taught them how to make cookies and helped them with painting little figurines. There never seemed to be any mess at the finish. I remember how she told us not to bother knocking but just come straight inside when we felt like it. I treasure every moment we had with her and I miss her so much. I'm so sad that we never really got to know her."
A large envelope from Fort Clay arrived at the Union City police station marked attention Senior Constable Simon Morgan. The station would regularly receive reports which may be deemed relevant to their district, but Simon was surprised to find one specifically directed to him. He opened it and immediately noticed the familiar handwriting of Captain Foster. This document was going to take some reading because of its extensive nature, and he could see that the captain had a point to get across. Simon had not been aware of this entire matter until now, so he was very amazed to see that the report had been prepared by Constable Jason Robertson at Hope Valley. He viewed with pride how Jason had stepped up when required and how Nathan had not pressed charges against the young woman involved. He read further with growing anger at the findings of the redoubtable Judge Tierney. He could see where he may be able to have some involvement in this case as the completion of the two-month sentence came closer. He knew his captain very well and how being ill-treated by an ill-informed judge would have caused him some grief. He had emphasized that the danger of these men revisiting Hope Valley in the near future was real.
"After my mother died, I was placed in the care of a foster family who were very nice and raised me to adulthood. I couldn't have had a nicer family to look after me and put me through school. I could hardly remember mum and I never knew my dad, why, I don't know. I fell in love and got married against my foster parents' wishes, but I was young, and I thought that I knew best." Rosemary knew only too well about being compulsive in her youth. "My husband works in the merchant marine on the east coast in the Atlantic Ocean and he has never seen his daughter. I've been on my own and had to fend for myself ever since. I have worked very hard over the last few years and now I have finally qualified in all areas to become a fully fledged nurse. I badly wanted NannaReynolds to come to my graduation, but she had gone from where she lived. Nobody knew where she had gone. She would have been proud of me I'm sure." Christine paused and was nearly in tears, "I never wanted it to be like this, I thought that she would always be there." Rusty could sense the distress and came over and sat next to her.
Amy sat on her new bed in her new room and looked around in absolute awe. She had never had anything resembling a room of her own right through her life and she wasn't about to ever take this for granted. She asked Florence to come and sit with her while she got ready for bed. "What am I to call you," she asked politely. "I can't call you Florence, that doesn't feel right. Would you mind terribly much if I got used to calling you mother?" Florence already had a daughter who was all grown up and had moved away some years ago, so she was very happy to have someone like Amy to look after. "You gave me that lovely dinner tonight; I want to be able to pay you back for all of this. I could do a lot of the cleaning for you if you like. I can't work in the shop because I know nothing about money because I've never had any before. I've only ever known how to look after the animals and do cleaning jobs. After I do my jobs at the stables, I could help clean up in the shop. I'm going to do everything I can for you and everybody here in Hope Valley." Florence gave her new daughter a big hug and wished her goodnight. Before she left the room Amy hopped out of bed and kneeled down and said, "I can only remember a little bit of this," She put her hands together and recited, "Now I lay me down to sleep, that's all I can remember." Florence kneeled with her and helped her out with the rest. "Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep. Guard me Jesus, through the night, and wake me with the morning light." Florence smiled and said, "We can practice that together every night if you like."
Rosemary had taken Christine and Marie up to Martha's house and she had asked if they could stay there for the night. Most of the furniture had been left there until there was time and the inclination to do something with it all. She had fed them before they went and said how there would be breakfast in the morning when they were ready. Christine had looked around inside, "So this is where you got to NannaReynolds." She spoke to her just like as if her nanna was there with her. "You'd be proud of me NannaReynolds, I worked so hard and now I'm a nurse. I can just see you looking at me in my uniform. I'm going to try my best and make a difference in the world. You always told me, and I never forgot, that we can do anything if we just do our best and don't lose faith." She hugged her little daughter and told her, "Marie, this is where your great nanna lived. Now she has gone to heaven."
Next morning Amy was up bright and early again and down at the stables. There was work to be done before she could take Sergeant out for a ride around the town that she was growing to love. There wasn't much activity at this early hour, but a few people were on the street making a start for the day. She rode out of the street and went past the pond and stopped again to stare at the little school building. Soon the school children would be heading along to the school for the day. There was no sign of Mrs Thornton yet so, after a last look at the school, she continued along the track and back to the stable. "Good morning Amy, you're out and about so early every morning, it's going to be hard to keep up with you," laughed a beaming Mrs Thornton. "I knew I'd catch you here sometime. I've brought a couple of books for you to have a look at when you get a chance. We have a library in town, and you are most welcome to go and have a look at all the books that we have in there." Elizabeth noticed again how well the stables looked, "I hope you are getting well paid for all this good work you are doing Amy." she remarked. "No, I'm not in the least bit interested in any money, I wouldn't know what to do with it anyway. I've never had any money before. I was happy sleeping in the jail cell with the door unlocked but now Florence has put me in her spare room upstairs and she feeds me the most lovely dinner that I could ever have. I don't need or want for anything else." Amy looked at the two books and saw the illustrations. She thanked Mrs Thornton who was then hurrying off to get ready for the school day.
Christine heard the knock on the door early. "Hello, It's me Rosemary." Christine smiled as she opened the door, "Just like NannaReynolds would say, come straight in and never bother to knock because the door is always open to you," She and little Marie had stayed in the house overnight and slept in the grandmother's bed quite happily. It didn't take long for Rosemary to get rather serious as she felt the things that she had to show Christine wouldn't wait for much longer. "Christine, I want to take you down to see your grandmother's grave, but I have something to show you before we do that. Firstly, I want to repeat how I had taken an instant liking to her and when she had passed on, I was distraught to think that a nice lady like her was going to be laid to rest and never be remembered by anyone. I could not handle that at all, and I told everyone that I wouldn't rest until I made good on my promise to her. She was never going to be lost and forgotten if I had anything to do with it. I hated the thought of having to go through all her things, but somebody had to do it and I was elected. I never dreamed for one minute what we were going to find." She handed her a letter to read, "I copied the text word for word before Captain Palmer took it so that it would be filed it the historical archives for posterity. I have read this letter three times a day ever since."
Christine sat down with the letter and started slowly to read, "My dearest Marty," Her eyes were welling up already and Rosemary could see her lips quivering as each word on the page broke her heart. She said nothing as she was forever trying to wipe away the tears. She knew nothing of her grandfather and here he was talking to her even though it had been a letter to her grandmother. "Your grandfather was a good man Christine; He endured the years of that terrible conflict and yet he still had the hope that life and sanity would return for everyone. I am very proud that I had a small part to play in restoring this to you." Christine was numb and sat silently for some time before she could say anything. "I can understand how NannaReynolds never spoke of him all those years. He was taken from her and she lived with his memory for fifty years. This letter must have been all that she had to remember him. He probably never saw my mother because of his service." Rosemary sat with her and put her arm around her as she read the letter over again.
Amy finished up at the stables and returned to her room with the two books. She looked again at the many illustrations and then stood them on the shelf out of the way. There was work to be done downstairs and Ned and Florence could see that she was not afraid of hard work. Amy was just so happy to belong to someone and be a worthwhile part of the community. "I saw those two books upstairs. Mrs Thornton must have got them for you to read. I'm sure that you will enjoy both of them and I will look forward to you telling me what you think of them." said Florence. Amy was thoughtful for a moment, "I love that little school building. Does Mrs Thornton like being the schoolteacher here in Hope Valley. I bet all the children love her dearly." Florence had a smile and a distant look on her face, "When Mrs Thornton came here so many years ago, we never thought that she could do the job. Now we just couldn't do without her."
Rosemary stretched out her hand to Christine, "Let's take a walk and I'll show you where your grandmother lies. I visit there every day." They set off all together, the two little ones and Rusty. Christine was pleasantly surprised to see how Rusty knew where to go. "There's more to that dog than we will ever know." remarked Rosemary, "You watch him when we get there, and you'll see." They arrived at the gravesite and Rusty immediately took pride of place on the grave as always. "When we had our first little service for her, Emily was the only one he allowed near the grave. It was like he was guarding it." said Rosemary still remembering. Christine put her hand on the headstone as she read the inscription. Rosemary chimed in, "When Captain Palmer came into the picture with all of this, he looked through every record that he could find throughout Texas and arranged for this headstone. It took four weeks and he came here with two of his staff to place it at the head of the grave and conduct a military funeral service of their own. There are many people, Christine who hold your family in high esteem." Rosemary took Emily and left Christine, Marie and Rusty at the grave for their own quiet time.
Florence enjoyed the chance to spend the quiet peaceful time with Amy at bedtime. Amy started to remember the little prayer and would recite it with the reverence that it deserved. Florence couldn't help asking about why she had taken such an interest in the little school as she rode around the town. "I see the children excitedly going to the school every day with each other and I can't help wondering what it must be like. I never got a chance to go to school like the other children, so I have no idea what they do there." Florence couldn't believe what she was hearing. Somebody else who was a mean, couldn't care less parent, had decided the fate of this young girl who wouldn't ever be given a chance at learning anything worthwhile. Florence was going to take it upon herself and see to it that this would change, and Amy was going to have that chance at life. As she left the room after saying goodnight, she noticed how the two books were still on the shelf and had not been touched. She wondered whether a quiet word to our Mrs Thornton would be in order.