It seemed to be a long, lonely drive back to Blacktown for Sonya and Marjorie, who incidentally, had barely said a word during the entire journey. Nothing felt the same now that Peter had left them and now was on his way across the vast country to restart his life with Christine. They had done a really nice service for a true gentleman in great need at the time and they wondered how, in all his excitement, he was going to be just sitting quietly on the train. Marjorie almost wished that she was there with him as she couldn't get the vision of him standing at the back of the carriage as the train departed and as it rolled out of sight. She doubted whether she would ever lose that special moment in time, one that she would treasure seeing him depart. This was a new sensation for her as she had never bothered seriously with any men as she had thrust herself into her studies and her work and there was no room for feelings for anyone else. "My goodness Sonya, thank heaven for that police officer, back at the station who allayed every worry and tension that Peter had been carrying with him. I will never forget the relief on his face to know that he had a wife who was waiting for him, it would have been absolutely horrible if, as he said, that he wandered up to the front doorstep of her house only to find her with two children and another husband." She had to correct herself to stop from driving off the road.

They were about fifteen minutes away and now the sun was setting in the west and she needed to concentrate on what she was doing and try to stay on the road. She found time to ask, "Do you mind if I ask you something Sonya?" A gentle sympathetic smile appeared on Sonya's face as the tone in Marjorie's voice sounded rather serious and she had a fair idea what was coming. As long as she stayed on the road, it would be fine. "What was it like for you when you met your husband for the first time and when did you know." Sonya knew exactly what she was getting at and what had brought it all on. She was quiet for a little while and she noticed the stars in the sky now that it was nighttime as she looked out the window. She had been quite taken by Peter but she had never stopped thinking how she had missed her husband over the last day or so. "You'll probably get to meet my wonderful, darling husband who I adore with all my heart because he should be back home by now after being away for the week on a seminar which he was speaking at." Her smile broadened now that she was trying to figure out where to start.

"I worked in Masterton at the Lakeside Hospital for a number of years after moving from Bakersfield and one day I just casually ran into this highly rated and recommended young doctor in the course of my daily duties. He seemed nice enough and considerate to others and he wasn't full of himself like some of the other authoritarians and I thought that was nice. We saw each other from time to time as each day would pass and we thought nothing of it as we were both engrossed in our work and there was no time or inclination for anything else. As I said, he was a perfect gentleman as distinct from some of the others who thought very highly of themselves as they strode around like peacocks." Marjorie thought that was funny and she had recalled seeing many similar incidents in her own work without taking any more notice of it than necessary as she listened to Sonya. "We never talked about anything other than our work and I had no idea of any outside interests that he may have had. There was one afternoon when he overheard me saying to another nurse how I had to be somewhere after my shift finished but I didn't know how I was going to get there. When he found out where it was, he kindly offered to drop me off there at whatever time it was going to be as it was on his way home. He would just stay back at the hospital as he usually did anyhow as knock-off times never worried him at all."

"I told him that I needed to go home first and change and if he was happy with seven o'clock then I would be most grateful." Marjorie had no idea where this was leading but she was captivated and she noticed how Sonya looked like laughing and crying at the same time. "I wasn't quite ready when he turned up and was invited inside our home and he introduced himself to my father. The silence was unbearable as my father, who just happened to be sitting on the throne in his castle proceeded to read the fatherly riot act and insist that he get her home at a reasonable hour." Marjorie looked at her in horror but Sonya could see the funny side of it now, "I suppose that wasn't the first time that this happened," It was only about three years ago but Sonya could remember it just like yesterday, "Travis was quite taken aback to say the least and then respectfully, he calmly said, 'sir, if you have any concerns, let's put them to bed right now, have a good evening sir,' and then he walked out the door and drove away. I came out into the living room expecting him to be there patiently but all I saw was my father with a stunned look on his face."

Marjorie was finding it hard to drive the car when she was out of breath, "I bet you were ready to feed your dad to the fish after that." Sonya said how this was something new for her dad as she had hardly ever dated anyone, "I only ever met anyone and it would only ever be for a drink after work and nothing ever became of it. Dad was so apologetic and embarrassed, especially when I told him about how Travis was the most highly rated young practitioner in the district and all he was doing was a favour to drop me off somewhere on his way home, my mum was angry and she told him how he had well and truly, put his foot in it and, if it was all left to him, she would never get to see any grandchildren. I was sad for a while because things seemed to be a little awkward around him at work but we just put up with it. My father in his infinite wisdom, didn't let the issue stand for long and he asked to see him at work at the hospital at the first opportunity and they became best of friends after his so sincere and unreserved apology. They all laugh about it now and mum always never misses an opportunity to remind him, in front of everyone, to make sure that he gets her home at a reasonable hour on every single occasion."

"I did like him and it wasn't only admiration that I held for him and I always looked forward to seeing him every day. He was so dedicated to the wellbeing of every patient and he would visit them even when he was off duty. I was not looking for a relationship or a husband and I would just go about my business and not really know what was happening. People think that you can just turn your emotions on and off at will but they don't say that when it jumps out and hits them right between the eyes. When you're not in love then it doesn't matter but there have been people who travel halfway round the world and move heaven on earth for the one they love. I arrived at work one morning only to see Travis asleep in a chair still holding the hand of an elderly lady who must have passed away during the night. When he eventually awoke, he gently placed her hand on her chest and then he sat there just reflecting. I still get tears in my eyes when I remember what he told me."

Sonya said how he had asked her to come outside and sit in the morning sun for a while, "The ladies' name was Mrs Pike and she was well into her eighties. She had lost her husband about thirty years ago through illness and she had lived by herself quite happily. She was so happy to have Travis to talk to and he was a good listener as she told him what it was like when she was young. It was all dirt track and no motor cars and we had to make our own fun. We would travel in horse and carts to the Saturday dance and we loved every minute of it. She said how they always travelled to school in the cart and they had to be ready and on time because the horse knew what time it was and he would go to school with or without them." Sonya had thought what wonderful memories to have and how lucky Travis had been to be allowed to share in them.

"Travis was blinking back the tears as we sat outside and he told me how Mrs Pike had remembered how her own grandmother, who had travelled across the sea to make a new life here, had told her how she could remember how the men in the army wore red coats. He couldn't get it out of his head how, all of a sudden, all those memories that she had were gone forever, that's the moment I fell completely in love with him and I took his hand and we sat close together in the morning sun."

"My mother has never come back down to earth from when she found out who her son-in-law was going to be. We are happy together but, after these few days, I am going to sit with him and talk about how we need to make time for each other so that life doesn't pass us by. My mother said that she wants no less than fifteen grandchildren but I think that might be rather extreme don't you think, if we are fortunate along the way to have a son, I will ask Travis if we can name him Peter. If there are two daughters then they will be named Christine and Marjorie, we have had quite an amazing few days haven't we Marjorie."

There were a lot of good people sitting or standing in the jailhouse and the stern words of conviction from Judge Bill Avery had convinced them all to worry about considering any blame some other time and, instead, they should all start to focus on the task ahead. He had not minced his words and they all knew that he was right. It didn't lessen the impact that the loss of a young Mountie had on him but, his years of experience came to the fore when it was needed. It had been a well thought out decision to summon Sandra to be here and she had good affect already on everybody. She now had two timely suggestions that needed to be put forward to the captain, "Eric, I think it's time that Earl started for home at Union City as his work here is done and he needs to see his wife." The captain was in full agreement, "Good suggestion Sandra but I'm not letting him go alone, he needs company." Immediately, Bill and Virgil volunteered their services to accompany Earl back home and they would take the opportunity to meet with Captain Edwards. If they started out now, they would be there while it was still daylight.

It was rocky ground and hard work to push the wheelchair along the path to the school building. Sandra had thought that it was about time to consult with Elizabeth outside of the jailhouse and what better place could there be than the lovely little schoolhouse by the pond. She had yearned to come to Hope Valley and see Elizabeth again and visit the pride of the little town but not on these current circumstances. Jason had been only too pleased to come along to help with the wheelchair and he couldn't help but admire the building again on the little rise that the people of Hope Valley loved so dearly. Jason carried Sandra inside the front door and she gasped to take in the spirit as she sat and waited for her wheelchair to be brought inside, "Oh, Elizabeth, it's just like our little chapel back home and I can feel why it is named after you. My goodness, Elizabeth, you and Jack were married right here and I can feel his presence as we sit here, it is so wonderful, I'm having trouble catching my breath."

"I'll be back for you in about half an hour if that's alright," and with that he excused himself and returned to the main street. Jason knew his way around Hope Valley and there were good memories for him and some not so good ones as well. He remembered how it had hit him pretty hard over the time when they were searching for Nathan for so long without any success and they just had to soldier on each and every day over the same old ground. He was thankful that it was all well and truly in the distant past and now he smiled and focussed on Fiona and Allie and how they showed everybody how to have faith and courage when they needed all of it at that time. He decided to change direction and head for their place to renew old acquaintances. There was lots to ask about while he was here, there was the approaching wedding and what Nathan and Simon were up to while they were away.

It was a school day and the children had showed up in the morning but they gradually returned home puzzled once they knew that their teacher had not turned up for the day so Allie was at home when Jason knocked on the front door. She was overjoyed to see her big brother again and she hugged him tightly and said how glad she was to see him as she missed her dad while he was away. He was not surprised to see Fiona's watery smile as she invited him inside. She was missing her fiancé and she was worried about how he was going to take the loss of a young Mountie after an accident. "Jason, I often wonder what goes on in his mind as he goes about each day and you can see it in his face that the memory of what happened to Jack Thornton is always with him." He was so glad that he had made the time to come and talk with them, "Fiona, Nathan has so many people who love him and look up to him since the accident happened to Jack. All these people who have come into his life and they depend on him as someone in the community who they can look up to. This will see him through after an initial shock and I'm sure he will be okay."

Fiona looked warmly at this young man and thought how far he had come since those dark days of Nathan's accident. His words had made a lot of sense to her and she knew now that Nathan would indeed be okay after a while with everyone's support around him. "I envy you and Nathan being together and having a future together, it must feel so wonderful to have each other to lean on in times like this." She was surprised to hear him talk like that about people having relationships and working together to make a family. She remembered how she would tease Nathan to the brink and, with that in mind, she decided to make a few relevant comments of her own, and she thought that maybe some of them may actually be true. "Jason, you make it sound like you will never experience anything like this, I can promise you, a young handsome, eligible man like yourself will be snapped up and you won't even know what happened. You can take it from me, us girls do not miss the chance when it comes up to snare someone like you and do you know what, you won't even have any say in the matter."

Elizabeth had only spent time with Sandra while she was at Fort Clay during her visit but she felt that she loved and knew her like a sister. She could tell that she had something on her mind and it must be serious. There was no better place than here for a heart to heart talk, "Sandra, ever since you arrived and, thank God that you are here but, I can tell that you are troubled and somehow it affects us here at Hope Valley. Please tell me what is bothering you." Sandra sat and just stared at her and then into space as she tried to get her bearings, "Jason got the phone call from Mrs Yost and all we knew was that Eric wanted me here as soon as possible, we had no idea what had happened and I was so frightened that something bad had happened to people we love. We prayed for weeks for Nathan and the thought of him or Simon being harmed was too much for us to bear." She cheered up ever so slightly, "Elizabeth, I have only seen Amy for a few moments but I can see already what a treasure she is to this town and community, Jack was right to warn us and I will want to hear about what happened and did it work out for her."

Her mood became serious once more, "before we left, I went and sat at Jack's graveside and told him that something had happened at Hope Valley and that Jason is taking me there the next morning to find out what happened. I said how it must be serious and that I would be able to tell him when we got back. Later that night I was having difficulty sleeping but I knew that I had to try. I don't know how but I had some sort of a vision which was as clear to me as if I was right there with you." Elizabeth had to put her arm around her and they were both close to tears, "I could see you and Eric standing together at a gravesite somewhere and I had no idea who or even where it was. I was very frightened and I knew I had to get here straightaway, I can only think that it must be the young Mountie at Rainsford but now the other vision I had concerns me even more. I saw you and Eric standing at someone's bedside in a hospital and you both are very worried and I don't know who it is that is in the bed. Elizabeth, I am very worried about this." There were no answers to be had and they thought it best to keep it to themselves.

They were startled as the phone rang loudly in the office, "Captain, I'm so sorry to bother you at this moment but I have a call for you from Cape Fullarton." Captain Foster needed good people around him in times of a crisis like this and Florence Yost was one of them, "Thank you very much Mrs Yost," and then he waited for a long moment and drew breath expecting the caller to be Captain Bedford. "This is Captain Eric Foster here at Hope Valley," and then he waited for a response. "Stanbridge here, superintendent at Cape Fullarton, we need to discuss the most tragic death of our Constable Adrian Metcalfe and also, the whereabouts of his partner Constable Gene Tully." This sounded very much like the preliminaries were over and now this senior man from the cape had some serious instructions to issue and they needed to be followed quickly and be completely understood. Captain Foster was all ears, "I'll start from the beginning, Captain Bedford came to me after having received a phone call from yourself and confessed and took full responsibility for his actions that had perpetrated this catastrophe. I will give him that much; he didn't attempt in any way to hide it or place blame elsewhere. Nevertheless, captain, it has been a disgraceful act on these two men and I am shattered in that I cannot undo this any of this."

There was authority in this man's voice and it came across strongly, "I have given out two instructions immediately and the first one of them is to ensure that everything to do with the dismissal of those two men is completely expunged from any record anywhere and not referred to again. Bedford and I have been to see the parents of young Metcalfe and that, I can tell you, was an experience that I will never forget or recover from for the rest of my life. I broke the tragic news to them and to see Mrs Metcalfe take this in the way that she did was most profound. She showed much more respect for us than what we deserved and I felt so ashamed of what had beset their family." The superintendent had to pause for a while to take a breath and regain composure. Captain Foster recalled what he had said some time ago, "I can understand how you feel sir, we have a lady here at Hope Valley who had to hear the same news some years back and it was a young constable who had been sent to deliver the news which was a disgrace as far as I'm concerned. Thank you sir for taking this task upon yourself and not delegating such a task to a subordinate."

"Captain, thank you for your support, my other instruction to everyone is more urgent and quite frankly, I am at a loss to make sure that the Metcalfe family do not ever find out what happened to their son at the hands of Captain Bedford. I want them to know that he lost his life as a hero in the field and that he will always be held here at Cape Fullarton in the highest regard. Captain, I will never forget Mrs Metcalfe's poise and dignity in the face of all of this and now she doesn't deserve the heartache of losing her son under these awful circumstances." He then made reference to Gene Tully and this was where the captain had to intervene. "Sir, I'm sure that he will appreciate your concern for him but, from when he first arrived here in such a distressed state after sinking to his knees in the street to where he is now, I believe that any reinstatement to his position is the furthest thought in his mind. He has already insisted that all this is his own fault and that he will never wear his uniform ever again but I intend to take up that matter for him well down the track. I said clearly to the constable who brought him here that I will not rest until I can get him to be able to resume his career even if it is somewhere else, maybe like Fort Clay. I will pass on your best wishes to him in good time sir."

They had hardly had any time to make plans for their future except for their hastily arranged wedding. It had been all so clear that love at first sight would prevail and everything else would take care of itself afterwards. It was all so wonderful and they commenced their honeymoon which was soon cut off because of instructions for return to active sea duty. They vowed to wait for each other until they were reunited together but the years went by and all they could do was to individually hope and pray for that day to come. The years at sea were tough and demanding and there was very little time for contemplating the future but, every now and then there were calm seas and still nights where, if you shut your eyes, you could see the girl you had married standing on the dance floor waiting for you to return. He had thrust himself into his work as part of the crew but his wife always remained uppermost in his mind and an inspiration for him.

He had gone inside the carriage and found a seat by himself after sadly having to tearfully wave goodbye to Sonya and Marjorie, the two ladies who, he felt had saved his life and given him back his future, which he was beginning to think that he had lost for ever. Right now, he was no fit company for anyone as he sat quietly by himself with his eyes shut trying to remember to take a deep breath and calm himself down. He felt like a prisoner living with no prospect of parole and now just having been released with the big doors of the jail closed behind him. He was alone and he felt stunned and it was almost as if good news was just as hard to grasp as bad news. He could feel the train as it rumbled along the track and he knew that this was all going to take some time for him to unravel as he had no idea of anything except to just sit where he was. He prayed that the meeting with the police officer at the station and all the revelations were real and not just a dream. Who were the two Mounties who had come so far just for his benefit. He owed so much to so many people who had helped him through many dark moments. He remembered Bert and how had said quite plainly how Christine was waiting for him and, as usual, he was right all along. He didn't feel any sensation of tension being released and he didn't really feel any different than the day before but he was very teary as the train had now begun its journey in earnest. All he knew was that he was on his way home.

"Gentlemen, I want to talk to you about the law and the justice system and the people like me in this great country of ours who spend their adult working lives aspiring to do their level best to serve the community and provide a service to the very people who devised our laws in the first place. There are a number of things that we all are supposed to live by, one of them is that you are innocent until proven guilty and an accused, similar to the one you brought here, has the right to a fair and just hearing. Whatever you heard from Stephen Monroe is irrelevant to my courtroom and he is no longer part of our justice system in our country. In any event gentlemen, you are adults and are expected to know the difference between right and wrong and hence, you should have rejected any proposal from him out of hand."

By now Blake had heard more than enough, "Judge, we expected your son to be here and now, as he is not here to help us, we are leaving and heading back to Gladstone." He grabbed Ryan by the arm and stood up to head out, "Sit down gentlemen, I am not finished with you by any means." Judge Monroe motioned to the constable and the six other deputies who had recently appeared to ensure that Blake and Ryan remained seated where they were. "Gentlemen, now where were we, I have to tell you that from time to time I have the unpleasant task of sitting in judgement of some very unsavoury characters and I have dealt with them accordingly and I am still able to sleep at night.

You have attempted to ruin a young man's life with such obscene brutality, in order to further your own careers probably on the advice that you received from my son. I will have you know that we are not a family business where people, such as yourselves, can come to an illegal arrangement at the expense of someone else like this unfortunate young man. I will soon be sending a constable at some stage to Gladstone to help complete our report and I imagine any eyewitness will probably provide a different account to what you people had been prepared to submit. I take a dim view of people like you trying to tamper with our justice system. I am going to put a stop to your disgusting methods interpreted as law enforcement right now. Your lives will be different for you two from now on and for a very long time.

It was very satisfying, particularly for Simon as he saw the two men being escorted from the courthouse in handcuffs and leg irons and being placed straight into an awaiting prison wagon. It would be a long and arduous and unpleasant journey to where they were going. The constable had asked Nathan and Simon to don their uniforms as the judge had requested a meeting with them as he knew that the train was delayed in parting. They stood out from the crowd in the red serge, "I'm in the market for a husband and you will do just nicely." remarked Audrey as she clapped an iron grip on Simon's arm, "you can arrest me anytime you like." She refused to let go and Simon was unable to break free no matter how hard he tried. Gretchen smiled and took Nathan's arm but not as violently as what was happening to Simon, "you are the two officers who got Noel to arrange our diversion, I hope you were impressed as we always give our best efforts for a good cause."

Audrey suddenly hugged Simon and smothered his face in lipstick, "I don't care whether you have a girlfriend because now you have me." Simon was visibly frightened and embarrassed and it didn't help that Nathan started laughing at him. "Your face matches your uniform and I wish that I had a camera with me. I can just see now, your fiancé, Janie with her arms folded imagining what kind of an explanation she would be getting." The grin came off his face as soon as Gretchen grabbed hold of him with the same vicelike grip and soon both of the Mounties looked like twins. Many of the people of Grampton had seen this before and they knew to stay out of the way of the audacious old ladies who were quite prepared to terrorise anyone who got in their way. Now Simon could see the funny side of it, "How are you going to explain this to Fiona and Allie." Gretchen smiled at them just like as if they had two more victims to their collection. "Lipstick doesn't come off that easily."

"Well, hello you two most favourite guys of mine, I can see that you have met Gretchen and Audrey," Susan appeared from behind them and she couldn't contain her giggle at their expense. They were still amazed at the close resemblance that she had with Christine. Susan could see in an instant what was coming and she warned them not to come anywhere near her but it was too late. She squealed as the two Mounties rubbed their faces against hers and by then, they looked at her with satisfaction and felt that it had all been worthwhile. After the initial shock of having her face destroyed, she didn't care and she hugged her two new cousins as Gretchen and Audrey looked on in amazement as they felt as if they had been upstaged. Simon warned her, "Susan, if any of this gets back to the station at Union City, I will tell your husband." He shook his finger at her as he knew that she was making a mental note for the future now that she was a mess just like them. He also knew that his warning had, well and truly fallen on deaf ears. She had the same impish look on her face, just like when she had threatened that she was coming to their weddings.

Susan was just about ready to ask about Captain Glover and whether they had any success when the door to the police station opened and the constable assisted a young man still in distress after his ordeal. The smile on Gretchan's face suddenly disappeared at the sight of this young man, "my goodness, he's not much more than a boy." Her mood turned to anger and then to concern for him as she could see that he was in a lot of pain and he needed a great deal of reassurance. Nathan took her arm and said, Gretchen, this is what your rude, outrageous and nasty behaviour, back on the train was for, you saved this boy's life. His name is Patrick." Now, all of a sudden there was another side of her personality that was coming out. She was close to tears as she went to him, "Patrick, you are safe now and nobody is going to hurt you ever again, I'm taking you straight to the doctor," but before that, Simon went to see him and was disgusted to see the chafing and the wounds from the handcuffs.

Patrick stared at him but there was no smile as he was in pain, probably from a broken jaw, "You are the one who came and talked to me on the train, was it you that helped me go free?" Nathan spoke softly to Gretchen, "you and Audrey going at it so angrily, like what we asked and it gave Simon the chance to talk with Patrick just for a moment and it was just what we had thought. Those officers had arrested him as an opportunity just to try and get a quick promotion." Gretchen was shaking with rage by now but she knew that she had to contain herself for the benefit of poor Patrick, "Have you got family my dear, we must let them know that you are safe," she had some choice words in her head but she was careful not to let fly when she really wanted to. He was so traumatised that he barely knew where he was but he liked and felt safe with this nice, caring old lady. It was painful for him to talk but he did his best anyway, "I lived with my grandma in Gladstone but she died last week when a big tree fell on her house in the night. It didn't get me but now I'm all by myself."

Gretchen was so sorry and sympathetic for him but she was very angry as well and she made no effort to restrain herself. Nathan was thankful that she never had a gun in her hand and he thought to himself that she was probably very capable and knew how to use one. "Why on earth did they arrest you?" she asked as she threw her hands in the air. Patrick started to feel a little more relaxed now that he was in the arms of a lady who cared for him. "They said I was trying to steal a horse and cart but all I did was to restrain him from bolting down the main street when he got startled. There were lots of people and many children in the street and they would have got hurt." They looked and saw Simon leaning on a rail with his head bowed, deep in reflection. All three women were concerned, Nathan explained sadly to them, "Simon's wife Sarah was hit by a runaway some years ago and she died in his arms in the middle of the street, she had pushed their little girl out of the way just in time." They hugged Simon and then Gretchen said with a ferocity in her voice that seemed different to the one back on the train, "Nathan, we are so proud to have met you and Simon and what you have done for Patrick," she pursed her lips determinedly, "Now, I want to see those two men, I want them in jail and behind bars for good for what they did."