Since I am re-writing the story for season 7, there may be more changes as I try to make it fit a story of Nathan and Elizabeth together. I added a new character in this chapter. You will see how this story goes in the next chapters.

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Nathan was called away on a tracking assignment right after New Years. Allie was staying with the Weiss' while he was out of town. He had received word from Mountie headquarters that a criminal had escaped custody on the way to jail in Union City. Since Nathan was one of the best trackers in the area, he was the first person that was called for the search. He knocked on Elizabeth's door with his serge on, hat in hand.

Elizabeth saw the look on his face and she instantly knew. She had been through this with Jack when he had been called away. Somehow this felt different. Elizabeth knew that Nathan and her had admitted they had feelings for each other before Christmas. With the holidays, they didn't have a chance to have the date they had planned. Elizabeth gave Nathan a hug until he told her he had to go. He reluctantly pulled back and held her face in his hands. He wanted to kiss her but he didn't think it was the right time. Instead he told her that he would be home soon and she told him to be safe.

That was six weeks ago. Everyday when Allie came to school, Elizabeth looked out of the doors, hoping that Nathan would be with her. She tried to hide her worry from Allie and put a smile on her face when she greeted the girl. Elizabeth knew that Allie was missing her uncle just as much as she was. At night after school, her son continued to play with his Mountie toy and horse that Nathan had made for him. This caused Elizabeth to continue to think about Nathan- where he was and if he was ok.

Bill came to her house at the end of the sixth week. He had called Mountie Headquarters. Elizabeth thought he must be missing Nathan too, or at least Bill wasn't enjoying acting as the law in his absence. The superintendent he spoke to said Nathan was ok and he would be headed home soon. Elizabeth couldn't wait to see him again. Maybe they could plan a picnic this weekend if he was feeling up to it.

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Bill had been splitting his time between his office and work as the judge/mayor and with the Mountie office. He had called Mountie headquarters to inquire when Nathan would be coming back. Nathan had finished the tracking mission and would be home in the next couple days. Headquarters had tried to convince Nathan to stay and rest for a few days but Nathan had told them he needed to get home to his niece. Bill knew that he would also want to see Elizabeth when he got back. Bill wasn't sure what had happened between them, but he knew something had happened.

Bill was sitting at his desk. There were a couple cases that needed to be looked at before the end of the day. He had locked his office door and he told Ned in the mercantile that he was only to be interrupted in an emergency. He had even gone to the cafe to get lunch before going to his office. He spread out all the papers on his desk and went to get a couple books off the shelves for research.

There was a knock at the door. Bill could see the man standing there from where he was by the bookshelf. The man was one he hadn't seen before. He was dressed in a suit and there was a car in front of his office. Only two people in town had cars, and this was not one of them. Bill walked over to the door and opened it halfway.

"Can I help you?"

"Judge Avery?"

"Yes, do I know you?"

"No, but I know you. I was told you are the person to talk to about purchasing an office space in town," the man said.

"People don't usually come into town asking to buy a space here. Can I ask your name and what you need the space for?"

"My name is Edward Morton. I am a businessman and I would like to purchase a space in town."

"What type of business do you run Mr. Morton?"

"Investments," the man told Bill.

Bill looked at Mr. Morton and he wasn't sure what to make of the request. He knew that he would have to check out his story with the Mounties before allowing an outsider to purchase anything in town.

"I will need to check the records of the spaces in town and see if anything is available. Is there somewhere I can reach you?"

"I need to travel to Union City for business. I will be back in a few days and perhaps we can speak then?" he held out his hand for Bill.

Bill reluctantly shook his hand and the man left. He sat down at this desk and began to make some calls.

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Nathan rode into town the next day. He was exhausted and dehydrated. He had pushed himself to get home as quickly as possible. He had given all the water he had to Newton so they could keep going, only taking short breaks. He took Newton to the stable to get him settled and fed. He filled up his canteen outside and drank the whole thing. He filled it up again and started to walk towards Bill's office. He wanted to see Allie but she was still in school for a few hours and he didn't want to disrupt the classes.

Nathan grabbed his arm. He had cut it on a fence while on the search. The doctor at Mountie headquarters had stitched him up but it still hurt due to the amount of riding he did today. He decided he would go to the infirmary to have them check it out later if it was still bothering him. Nathan needed to check with Bill about what he had missed while he was away.

He grabbed the door handle and noticed the door to Bill's office was locked. Nathan looked at the door confused. He wouldn't remember the door ever being locked while he had been in town. He knocked, calling out, "Bill, it's Nathan. Are you in there?"

The door immediately opened. Bill looked at him, "Oh thank goodness you are back. Come in."

Nathan walked into the room and Bill shut and locked the door behind them.

"Bill what's going on? Why is your door locked?"

"There was a visitor in town earlier. A Mr. Edward Morton. He was inquiring about office spaces in Hope Valley. I've called all my contacts in the Mounties and a person I know with the New York police. No one knows anything about this guy."

"Isn't that a good thing? If he was a criminal, wouldn't someone have a record of him?"

"They would, but I can't help the feeling I had when he walked in."

"You know Bill, you can't be suspicious of every new person that comes into town," Nathan said with a smirk.

"Ok, he will be back in a few days. I will introduce you then and you can make a decision on your own."

Nathan nodded. "What else has been going on while I've been gone?"

"It has been quiet otherwise. A couple of fights in the saloon, but after a night in jail the men were ok. There were some lost cows from one of the farmers on the outside of town. Everything was taken care of so you should just need to do rounds like normal."

"Great, thank you Bill. I am going to stop by the Mountie office to make a call to headquarters and let them know I am back. Then I will be heading home."

"Make sure you stop by the school on the way home, your girls are anxious for you to be back."

Nathan looked at Bill with shock as he said 'your girls'. Nathan knew it was the truth though so he smiled and tipped his hat, heading for the door.

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Nathan decided to stop at the infirmary before going to the Mountie office. His arm was still sore from the ride and he wanted to have Carson check the stitches. The door to the infirmary was open so Nathan walked in.

"Constable, what brings you in?" Carson asked.

"It's Nathan, please. When I was out on a tracking assignment, I cut my arm on a fence. The Mountie doctors stitched it up but I am in some pain after riding back to Hope Valley. Dr. Shepherd, I was hoping you could check the stitches just to make sure it is ok."

"Call me Carson. Let's take a look."

Nathan removed his serge, being careful to not move his arm too much. Carson removed the bandage on Nathan's upper arm.

"It looked a little red and swollen but that could just be because of the ride you had today. I will check your vitals and then we can give you some medicine to help with the pain."

Nathan nodded and waited for Carson to get his supplies.