The main door to the barracks opened noisily and one of the senior officers emerged and strode along to where Tully and Metcalfe were sitting ruefully. There was a formal salute and then he handed an envelope to Tully and then promptly left them alone. Young Adrian Metcalfe had been very anxious for the whole time and he just wanted all of this to be over and done with so that he could return to duty. From as long as he could remember, even before he went to school he had dearly wanted to follow in his father's footsteps and become a Mountie and serve his country. It was his proudest moment of his life when that day came and his parents congratulated him on his successful and well-earned achievement. Some missions that he had been part of had seen some dangerous moments but he was part of a team and he had come through it all and survived. Every day was a new learning experience for him and he wore his uniform with great pride. He had sought no other vocation and he had been very happy up until now but there was this weight on his shoulders that he could do nothing about.
Tully was very apprehensive as he fumbled with the envelope as he opened it up carefully and then he started to read the contents. He almost couldn't focus as he unfolded the paper. He started to read the letter that was addressed to both of them, from the beginning and soon his degree of expectation gradually turned to a blank amazement at the short, sharp pointed and uncaring wording which was very specific and could not be interpreted in any other way. He looked in shock and disbelief as he stared at the letter and then at Adrian, "We've been dismissed from the service Adrian," The young man stared back looking for some sort of an explanation, "Tully, what does all this mean?" He was completely and utterly bewildered and didn't really understand the decision and all the instructions that they were to follow. Tully was in shock as he clenched the paper as he tried to read it again, it was indeed short and to the point. "It reads simply that we are dismissed from the service effective immediately, we are to gather up our belongings and turn in our uniform. We are to go and get our final pay and termination and then we will be escorted off the garrison. I'm so sorry Adrian that I got you into all this mess, it was my responsibility and you don't deserve to have this happen to you." Adrian was still bewildered as he hadn't taken in much of the details yet. "Adrian, they're just going to kick us out without any explanation or goodbye or anything." He noted that there was an unmistakable level of hatred in the wording of the dismissal that was going to stick with them forever.
Looking around on the station platform at St. Pierre patiently, after the train had departed, was not very inspiring. Both Emma and Peter had been here before and knew what to expect here at the little siding with only a couple of isolated dwellings to speak of. They were pleased that there was a coach sitting there which was always expected to connect train passengers to other destinations in the district. Peter's job now was to get Emma and Danny safely to Hartford and hopefully to see them settled in with James and then to revisit his search for his wife. They were the only commuters on this trip so Peter spoke at length and told the driver about his situation and, after offering him some extra money, the driver readily agreed to wait around overnight for him so that he didn't have to wait around in Hartford for a week or more.
Nathan was quite impressed with the little town of Grampton as it reminded him a little of Hope Valley. The train pulled in right next to the bustling main street and many passengers started to disembark as they had also arrived at their destination. They were finally here and now they could start to make some enquiries about the elusive sea captain. It was a busy section of the street but they had time to make sure that the rude man stayed well away from the young mother. He had in fact scooted off at a rate of knots when released and soon hurriedly returned back with a police constable who was summarily instructed to take Nathan and Simon into custody. "Constable, I want these two men arrested for accosting me back there on the train when I was only minding my own business. They forcibly removed me from my seat and rudely threw me into a draughty seat down the back and they wouldn't let me move from there for the whole journey."
The two visitors had not expected a reaction like this just as they had stepped off the train. "I want the book thrown at them and then they will learn to leave innocent people alone." The police constable was in no mood to argue with Nathan or Simon who in fact, surprisingly had said nothing after letting the man point his finger and rant and rave very bravely in front of the annoyed constable. Simon was astounded at how calm Nathan was as he just simply followed the instructions of the exasperated officer as he led them away to the station and to a cell. This was obviously not the place out here in the middle of the street to create a scene and try to profess your innocence in front of a lot of people who had already taken notice. They had made a bad start to their mission and they were just going to have to endure the process. Nathan was glad that Captain Foster was many miles away and unaware of their situation, one that he had insisted that they avoid at all cost.
It seemed like a bad dream as they removed their beloved red serges for the last time and placed them carefully on the rack. They had only read the shock news of their dismissal only a few minutes ago. Adrian was quiet and in denial as they carried out their final instructions. The paymaster had known both men for years but he was unable to find any words for his comrades or even look them in the eyes now that their careers were over. They were soon escorted to the gate as instructed and had it shut behind them. They were now standing outside of the compound with no future and nowhere to go. Their horses had been put outside and tied to the rail.
Adrian's upbringing with his family could not be faulted as he was the middle one of three brothers in a close family so he was always included and rarely alone. Standing outside with the main gate slammed behind him made him feel loneliness for the first time in his life and it was the most desolate feeling that he could imagine. They had no idea what to do after the shock so they just led their horses and sat somewhere in a park. They didn't stray too far away just in case one of the men from the garrison came looking for them and say that there had been a dreadful mistake but after a while they stopped looking. Adrian looked in despair at Tully, "What are we going to do now?" Former constable Gene Tully had no answer for him.
Steven Munroe was busily checking his suit while he was making his livid and animated statement to the constable, He motioned angrily to Nathan and Simon, "You two are very lucky that you're not going to be up for a new suit as replacement" He was still brushing himself down as he was describing his death defying ordeal at the hands of the two men sitting in the cell. It was a fanciful piece of script and a very respectful Nathan knew that there would be time for them to dispute these claims and expose this idiot for what he was. He wasn't so sure that the constable was running with the story either so he held Simon back from reaching into his bag for his uniform. The impatient young constable appeared as if he could have done without this incident but he was now forced to go through the motions. He wondered about the two men he had in his cell, they certainly looked placid enough so he would ponder over what had caused them to carry out this apparent dastardly act upon this man as he had described it. He stepped out into the street with the still agitated man and said that he would look into the matter further. He intended to do just that because the redoubtable Mr Monroe had provided one side of the story. He was sure that there was another side to consider.
The journey to Hartford was not as fearsome as the one from Overton back to Ringwood as the roads were starting to dry out finally even though the mud was still around. Emma could remember the time quite some years ago that she had with James and Judy and she had liked the little town of Hartford. This was long before she had met Jacob and of course there was no Danny back then so there had been much water under the bridge since then. The driver reiterated his agreement with Peter about staying here overnight and then he would get Peter back to the St. Pierre station in time to link up with the train to Grampton.
There seemed to be a gathering at the little church and Peter hoped that it was just a little get-together of some of the townsfolk. He hoped that Mrs Carrington might be there and that would be a good chance to introduce Emma and Danny to them. Emma was nervous and felt like she was imposing but all that was soon put to rest when they opened the door to the church. Mrs Carrington was there but sitting right next to her was James who stood straight up as he instantly recognised Emma. "My goodness me, how many years had it been Emma?" This saved Peter the job of explaining how he still had not found his wife yet and that Emma was a relation of hers. She hugged her uncle, Uncle James, I've come to stay with you if that's alright, oh, and this is my son Danny." He was quite taken by surprise but said how this was the best news that he had heard for ages. He proudly introduced his niece and her little boy to all the gathering and she instantly felt at home.
Next morning Emma, James and Danny saw Peter off back to St. Pierre on the stage. "Peter, I've only known you for about a week but I can't thank you enough for what you have done for us, please bring Christine here to see us in our new place." Mrs Carrington confided in Peter how James had seemed to be very lonely after the loss of his wife and she loved Emma and Danny right from the outset and this was going to be very good for him. James would be able and very happy to escort Danny to and from school until he settled in.
"Welcome to Hartford Emma, we are so glad to have you here and to be part of our community." Before deciding to go looking up anyone else on his list he thought that it would be advantageous to find out whether Susan had been given any new information about Christine. She had said how she was writing to everyone and that he was to check in with her eventually as she may have the answer. It was annoying to have communications down but he knew that this was part of life in the frontier and they just accepted it. He had made it back in time to the station thanks to the stage and the driver and was soon on the train bound for Grampton. This time thankfully there was to be no rude and boisterous individual on board to ruin the journey for everyone. He was also thankful that he didn't have to intervene thanks to those two men who handled the situation so well.
"Rosemary, how do you like my new addition to this household." Elizabeth had been outside many times admiring the replacement piece of equipment and how the discarded item had been promptly removed from the premises to avoid any temptation. "I never realised how dangerous it was, I thought that it still had many years of life left in it." She looked at her best friend with her accustomed cheeky grin, "You should have seen him out here with Little Jack when he saw my ladder. He was asking him for an explanation on how he had allowed me to set foot anywhere near it." Rosemary couldn't help laughing as Elizabeth was reliving the experience, "I thought I was going to be served with an infringement notice and a formal warning." She hung on to her little boy, "Poor Little Jack didn't know what to make of it all as he was handed the responsibility for looking after my welfare from now on."
She glared at a grinning Rosemary, "and I have to say, your darling little miss wasn't much help either….I saw Auntie Elizabeth climb up there lots of times." Rosemary was enjoying this; she could see a glint in her friend's eyes that she hadn't seen for a long time. "I'm really glad he's here with us for a while Elizabeth, he's a real help for Christine. Ned Yost still asks Lee if the buttons on his trousers are still all there, thanks to Emily spilling the beans about Rusty chewing them off that time." Elizabeth added gleefully, "You know the captain said that he wouldn't be able to sleep at night if I still had that piece of junk hanging around he said, he took Little Jack with him to show him that it was burnt and gone forever." Her mood gradually turned to a more thoughtful and serious one, "He is one of the most caring men that I have ever met, he seems to take on everybody's problems just as if they were his own. I'm going to miss him terribly when he leaves us and returns to Fort Clay."
Tully thought that he had never seen anyone so shattered and now they didn't seem to have any prospects for the future which they hadn't really considered anyhow. It was only an hour ago where they were in the barracks awaiting their penalty and then preparing to continue with their careers. Now, it didn't really matter what time of the day it was because they had nothing to do, nowhere to go and nothing to look forward to either. Adrian could see people bustling about and it looked like they all had a purpose in their lives but he now felt like an outcast and so unwanted and so unreliable. His thoughts returned to Fred Burns languishing in a jail cell for something he hadn't done and it made him sad because he couldn't undo what had happened to him. If he really thought about it, he would have preferred to have been put in jail himself rather than just cut loose and cast aside into the cold.
They had their money from their last and final pay before they were evicted so they weren't going to go hungry but food or in fact eating anything was the last thing on their minds. The problem was that they, especially Tully, had to face the fact that they could not atone for what they had done and no amount of wishing that it had never happened would rectify the situation. He hated how he had single-handedly caused all of this for Adrian knowing that this was all his own responsibility. Even so, he had thought that he had done the right thing all along as he was totally convinced of the man's guilt at the time but now he had been proven wrong and he was going to have to pay for it with the loss of his credibility and his career along with Adrian.
Grampton now had a constable in the town who was fast losing his patience because, even though he had walked outside of his office, he was still on the receiving end of a continual tirade from Mr Monroe. He had informed him many times that he was going to investigate the matter further but it seemed to fall on deaf ears. He now decided that he had more than enough of this conversation and so, calmly and without raising his voice he said, "Mr Monroe, I've told you consistently that I will follow this up and I will do so, have a nice day," and with that he turned abruptly and walked away and returned to his office with the two men in his jail cells. He had really wanted to tell him that he had far more important things to attend to than this, however, he decided to retain his professional approach and reluctantly follow the matter up as he had indicated.
He walked inside, thankful and relieved that Mr Monroe had finally decided to leave him alone, and now he was suddenly stopped in his tracks as he saw something that he wasn't expecting to see in a million years. He was now confronted with the sight of two men in his cell displaying in full uniform showing that they were officers of the Northwest Mounted Police. He was most certainly stopped dead in his tracks and he shook his head and a broad smile appeared on his face. "This now answers a few questions and queries that I might have had. Now I can see why you didn't put up any defiance or argument in front of our Mr Monroe." He unlocked the cell door immediately and asked for some introductions, "I am now in a very awkward situation thanks to you two and our Mr Monroe, if any of my colleagues or my superiors find out that I locked up police officers my name will be mud and I will be a laughingstock and I will never live it down."
He explained to Nathan and Simon how he was only here in Grampton for about a week on relief while the regular constable was away with others on an inspection tour of the storm damage. Also, he was aware that Stephen Monroe was the only son of the new local magistrate, a family who had moved here to this district only recently. He added shaking a finger as he looked suspiciously with a smile at Nathan, "I knew something was up when you didn't bother with professing your innocence vigorously and making a scene outside at the time. I couldn't help but notice when you put a restraining hand on Simon here and now I can see why. Mr Monroe was far too full of his own importance to notice that. He is going to get the shock of his life when he has to confront you two in front of his magistrate father. I can imagine that the reports of the incident from both parties will be quite varied.
An uneventful ride on the train was something of a blessing this time and Peter was even able to catch a bit of a nap even though he found it hard to sleep on the train. He was soon nodding off by the time he became bored at looking at the same type of scenery over and over again. The train was nowhere near at its normal schedule but workers had been able to inspect much of the line and authorities had given the okay to gradually increase some speed over some parts of the journey. The immense devastation from the storm was going to make recovery a long and drawn out task but Peter could see workers out there in different places where telegraph and phone lines used to be.
He could see how all the towns for many miles were now isolated for some extended time until some temporary or makeshift arrangement could be made. It was generally considered though that even if it would take longer, it would be better to get it right the first time. He was excited at the thought than in a few hours he would see Susan again and maybe, just maybe without being too optimistic, she might have some news for him. Maybe she might have received a prompt response from one of the letters that she had sent and told her that she was at a place called Hope Valley. He could just visualize her being at the station waiting for him and being able to tell him where Christine was living.
It was getting late in the afternoon and gradually the hustle and bustle of the township of Cape Fullarton was starting to wane a little and the cooler evening air was coming in. People were finishing their daily business and activities and were gradually making their way home to loving families. Now the two men were starting to feel really alone and unloved in the world and now the total realisation for Tully was becoming all too clear. What was to become of them now that they were on their own and seemingly unwelcome in their own town. He would look again and again at his young comrade and feel the utter despair of full responsibility.
Before night fell completely they decided to ride well out of the town so that they could find an out of the way place to sleep and build a fire to keep warm. They had camped out many times as part of a team in the field on training missions and at night they would look in awe at the millions of stars in the sky which were far more prominent when you were away from all the streetlights. Tully knew that his despair was not going to go away by itself so he had to come up with some sort of a plan to repair all the damage that he had caused. He couldn't restore the years lost to Fred Burns but he felt that he had to make a supreme effort to restore Adrian's career to him. He proposed for them to travel the long seven hundred mile journey to Hope Valley and offer their heartfelt and genuine apologies to Judge Bill Avery. This was what he was going to suggest as a plan to Adrian but he was really going to beg for Adrian's reinstatement to a position somewhere in the force at another location. He cared little for his own welfare because he knew that he was a good person who knew right from wrong. This was the only option that he could think of at this time.
The young relieving constable at Grampton figured that two members of the police from another district many miles from here, must have showed up here for a reason but he thought that whatever it may be, it would have to wait until this matter with the rude Mr Monroe was dealt with. Nathan and Simon sat down with him and drafted out an extensive and well detailed report of what actually occurred back there on the train. Simon had retrieved and produced the whisky stained flask for additional evidence. He had handled it very carefully just in case finger marks on it needed to be identified. Their report left no doubt in the constable's mind as to the mind set of Mr Monroe and the poor attitude to the public that went with it.
The constable wanted a good description of the young mother so that he could get a statement from her if possible. He was not impressed by any means that she had been hit by Mr Monroe and he was in sync with Simon and Nathan to see that justice would be carried out. "We need to be very thorough with this as the magistrate is Monroe's father and we don't know how sympathetic he is going to be with his son. This investigation will take some time and now I'm going to ask you men something," It came with a smile but he was quite serious with his request, "can I prevail upon you two dangerous fugitives from justice to stay out of uniform for the present and find a nice quiet room at our hotel down the street please and stay out of the way. I locked you up for long enough and I don't want anyone to know about it, particularly the ones who can make my life a misery."
Constable Earl Grey had listened intently to his orders from his captain and understood the importance of keeping on top of a possible dangerous situation which could escalate if two strangers with a bad attitude arrived in their district who might feel that there was a score to be settled with Judge Bill Avery. He had to stop and draw breath when told how these two men in question were solely responsible for a man wrongly doing years in prison for something he didn't do and that it was Judge Avery who had conducted and rectified the situation. He could see that it was a serious matter so the quicker he could discuss the matter with the Mountie at Cape Fullarton, the better it would be so that he could make up his own mind about how to handle it.
He, as well as all the others at the station, never took the new technology of the telephone system for granted. It would be hours on a train or a coach like in previous years before you could get to see the person required but now you could ring and be talking to your person within minutes. Virgil was surprised to receive a phone call from as far away as Union City and he was curious to find out what the matter was that seemed to concern him. "Hello, I'm Constable Earl Grey from Union City Police station and I've been instructed to liaise with Constable Virgil McCain regarding two of your former Mounties. I know of Judge Avery from Hope Valley and the investigative job that he did for you people recently and I'm to ask about the whereabouts of the two men and whether they are planning to proceed to Hope Valley and whether they are perceived to be a threat."
This weird phone call caused Virgil to be rather curious as to the reason why anyone should be concerned if the two men in question decided to head anywhere near Hope Valley. There seemed to be an inference of some sort that he didn't like the sound of, so he decided to pursue the matter further. "Sir, I get the distinct impression that someone feels that our men may be seeking to pursue some sort of vendetta against Judge Avery. Frankly, there could be nothing further from reality. Whoever is peddling that story doesn't know these men at all. Things have been pretty tense around here for quite a while and, now that the dust has settled, we are all now are supposed to get on with things just like normal. Those two men were highly respected within our community and just between the two of us, the ultimate penalty that they have sorely paid is totally unfair and unreasonable as far as many of us are concerned. Further, they were dismissed and unceremoniously escorted out the gate and sent on their way without most of us being aware of it. They made an honest mistake and they are paying a hefty price for it. I would stake my reputation on it that they would harbour no grudge against the judge. I am getting more worried about them as each day passes."
With all that being said quite forcefully, Virgil said that he would keep Earl advised if he became aware of any moves by the two men. "Thank you Virgil for putting me straight on the matter. I can tell you that I have been given orders by people who don't know these men like you do so I'm in the dark up till now. I can hear the anxiety in your voice and now I share your assessment of the situation. I'll do my best to look out for them and maybe a kind and caring word will not go astray. I will be glad to meet you one day."
It had taken most of the day in very hot and sticky conditions but mercifully, the train finally pulled into Grampton where many of the passengers had found their final place of destination. It was a different arrival for Peter this time because everything was familiar and he knew where he was heading right from the beginning as soon as he arrived on the platform. He remembered the nice waitress and the meatloaf and coffee at the little café down the road and soon he was on his way. It was now much better without having to lug his full kit to have to carry around with him as he had decided to leave it with Carla and be optimistic that he would soon know where to have it sent. He had decided that he had done more than his fill of train travel but he knew that there would be more very soon if it was going to lead him to Christine.
The young waitress was overjoyed to see Peter again and totally forgot herself as she hugged him affectionately, "I am so glad to see you back here again and I am hoping that you found your wife along the way. I was sad that I never saw you again after David brought the horse and cart back last time." She sat down with him while he tucked into the highly recommended meatloaf. He was glad for the fine company and the chance to see her again, "After I left here last time I found that young newly married couple with the help of your directions and I got the shock of my life, I'm sure that my heart stopped for at least ten minutes." She was horrified and was hanging on every word. He recalled sitting in the living room and seeing the dark haired lady down the passage. He had a very reflective look as he described the occasion, "That is sixty seconds of my life that I will never, never, never forget." He almost had to wipe a tear away as he remembered the first glimpse of Susan. The waitress had her hanky out as she said, "I won't sleep a wink tonight thanks to you."
Sleeping out in the open meant that there was nowhere to hide from the sun as it rose in the early morning soon after first light. The fire had gone out on its own and any embers and smoke had passed long ago through the night. It was a warm, stillness morning and, as they awoke and looked around, the full realisation of the previous day came flooding back. The old saying that a good sleep and things will look better in the morning did not seem to apply here. Tully was just sitting still, looking blankly and feeling racked with guilt, "I wonder how Fred Burns is feeling as he wakes up each morning now that he has his freedom. This is the one positive thing to come out of this mess. He must hate me with a passion and I wouldn't blame him." He looked at Adrian, "We never even got the chance to tell him how sorry we were when we were just booted out like unwanted pests."
It was a little different for the younger less experienced Adrian, there was nothing else that he wanted to do with his life than become a Mountie and his family had been so proud of him. Now he couldn't bear to face his father and tell him of his dismissal from the force. He now had nothing to do and nowhere to go and he started to feel like a failure as a person and Tully could see this coming on even more prevalent. "Adrian, would you be prepared to journey with me to the place where Judge Avery lives so that we can apologise to him in person. It may mean nothing to him but it may be a good start for us and we have no other plan so far.
The relieving constable was not quite so frustrated anymore as he went about seeking statements from people who were passengers on the train recently. He was going to do this right as he had developed an instant dislike to the arrogant Mr Monroe. As he walked along the street he made sure to avoid the building on the corner which now housed Mr Monroe who was setting himself up in the town as a second legal practitioner for the district. So far, during his short stay in this town, he had not had any occasion to have to formulate any incident reports for the magistrate who he had met only on one brief meeting. It took an exhausting search but he eventually located the young mother from the train with the help of some of the townspeople. She came to the door with her little child in her arms. She was understandably very apprehensive and scared at the thought of having to provide a statement for the courts for fear that her husband may find out and take matters into his own hands. She knew that he would be more than capable at dealing with Mr Monroe. "I was only being nice to him so that I might have someone to talk to on the train, he totally got the wrong idea." She eventually accepted with reluctance but on the condition that it would only be used if there was no other alternative. The constable smiled mischievously and said that Mr Monroe was going to get the surprise of his life. "Ma'am, I only need this to reinforce what I already know, I shouldn't be telling you this but Mr Monroe was dealing with those two men who are from the Northwest Mounted police."
Days were going so painfully slow for Christine back in Hope Valley while waiting for the slightest bit of news to give her some hope. She didn't even know that Nathan and Simon were away and heading on the trail until Fiona had made mention that she was missing Nathan while he was away. She tried with a comforting smile to reassure Christine that they had something very much in common, "Christine, I will have a new husband and you will have yours back right here by your side. That's if I can pry Nathan away long enough to help make wedding plans. Your sea captain might be in the wedding party yet." She knew that it was eventually going to happen but the waiting was still unbearable. She knew that Captain Foster was determined to make some inroads and had said how the massive storm had frustrated his efforts but he was not beaten yet. She was heartened with the thought that he had actually cared enough to despatch Nathan and Simon halfway across the country to help seek out her husband.
It was not unusual for letters to come for Faith as she was the local doctor for the entire district and much correspondence would arrive keeping them up to date with the latest. One letter arrived for Christine and that was unusual because no one outside of Hope Valley, other than Captain Palmer, who helped her with her grandmother, knew of her existence. Anyone else wouldn't know where she was in order to write to her and she had lost track of everyone else who she knew in the past. Faith said for her not to wait so she opened it and read it there in the Infirmary. There was no mistake because the letter was addressed to Mrs Christine Glover of Hope Valley. It was in very nice handwriting, "My dear Christine, it's been four long years since I have heard anything about you and I'm so glad and relieved that we now know where you are. I have quite a bit of news for you. Of course, you would know that I had a phone call from your Captain Foster some time ago and I had told him that Peter had been here looking for some lead as to where you might be. He is very well Christine, and he has rose to the level of a ship's captain in only four years of sea duty. Peter is determined to find you and he will not stop until you are reunited with him. Your captain knows that Peter is following a small list of people with the surname of Pennington and somehow along the way, that eventually led him to your cousin Susan in Grampton. She is married recently and her name is Susan Madison and I received a letter from her saying how wonderful it was to meet her new cousin and that she is getting started with writing to everybody that she knows to help try and find you. You can now write to her as I will shortly and then when Peter checks in with her or me again as she has insisted, she will now be able to point him in your direction. It was sad when Peter arrived here because his grandfather, Bert was gravely ill and had not much longer to live. We rushed Peter to the hospital and we were ever so grateful that he was able to talk with Bert for about an hour before he passed away. Nurse Christine, you must keep your chin up as now we are getting a little closer to you with each day passing so please write to me as soon as you can, God bless you my dear, signed Janet Glover." Christine finished her letter and sat there sobbing. Faith stopped what she was doing and came and sat there with her, "Faith, I'm going to have a family again after all these years."