Chapter 227 – Busy Monday Morning
Elizabeth sat down at her desk when she got to the school. She took a moment to gather her thoughts and then pulled out her papers that needed grading. She finished what she could before she heard the children outside. She looked at the clock and had five minutes before she had to ring the bell. She straightened her desk and then grabbed her bell. Elizabeth walked to the back of the classroom. She took a deep breath and stepped to the edge of the door where she could see the children. It just so happened that the way that Elizabeth stood, it clearly showed off her bump. She hadn't meant to do that, but it was what it was. She was sure that all the mothers would be talking before the end of the day.
Elizabeth rang the bell and greeted the children as they came in. She waved to the mothers as the last child entered and closed the door.
"Let's quiet down." Elizabeth said, as she walked back to the front of the classroom. "Please pass your homework forward and then we will get started. Keep your workbooks and put your new spelling words in it. Please copy the words to a second sheet of paper and then turn in your workbooks. I will try to have as much of the homework back to you tomorrow. I didn't get a lot done this weekend as I was taking care of Mountie Jack."
Elizabeth turned around and saw the children staring at her. The pile of homework was on the front pew of each side.
"I will give you a few minutes to get your words copied down." Elizabeth said. "Then we will get into math and then history. We have a lot to cover this morning. Don't forget that the science fair is Friday afternoon. I can't wait to see what you have all done."
As Elizabeth sat down with the piles of homework, she saw Cassandra with her hand raised.
"Yes, Cassandra." Elizabeth said.
"Mrs Thornton." Cassandra said. "Is it true that you are having a baby? My mom said you were and then you weren't going to be our teacher anymore."
Elizabeth took a deep breath and stood up. She knew that she was going to have to address things, but she had hoped she had a few more days.
"Yes, it is true that Mountie Jack and I are expecting a baby." Elizabeth said. "The baby will probably be born about the time that school starts again in the fall. I am working to have someone come out and teach for me until Christmas. Then I plan on coming back and teaching after the holidays. I will be around and you will see me.
Just because I am having a baby doesn't mean that I won't be teaching any more. I will be taking a few months off, but that is it. I love teaching and would miss you all too much. Now we have a lot to get through today. I promise that I will answer more questions on Friday if you get through all your work before the science fair."
"Yes, Mrs Thornton." The children answered.
They went back to copying their words and Elizabeth let out a sigh of relief. She had feared that the news of the baby would be too much and she would have a hard time getting them to focus. She knew that she was going to have plenty of questions on Friday, but she would deal with them then. She was thinking about what the mothers were going to say and how they were going to react, but she didn't have much time for that as she also had to focus.
The children brought their workbooks up and once they were all seated again, Elizabeth started in on the morning lessons. She went over some math. She gave them a worksheet for them to turn in the next day. She then went on to the history and geography lessons. She once again gave them worksheets that would be returned the next day. She didn't like giving so much homework as she knew that some of the mothers were going to complain, but it was what it was. She had material that she had to get through before the end of school and they already missed plenty of time. She also planned on sending any complaints to Aunt Elizabeth and Charlotte as long as they were there.
Overall, Elizabeth was able to get through a ton of information that morning. The children had spelling words for the week. Then they had math, history and geography worksheets that needed to be finished. They weren't long, but were enough to reinforce the lessons. She reminded them of their history test the next day and that it would be the first thing that she did in the morning.
Before Elizabeth let the children go for lunch, she reminded them that there would be a writing assignment that would be due on Friday morning. She would leave their workbooks so they could work on it, but she would need them back in the morning to do more grading. Elizabeth assigned Becky and Gem as monitors then released the children. After the children grabbed their lunchpails and headed outside, Elizabeth took a moment to walk to the back of the building, where she saw Patty. Elizabeth waved to Patty and then went back to her desk. She pulled out her lunch and sat down to start looking through the workbooks.
Wynn and Elizabeth Rose woke up when Patty knocked on their door. Wynn looked at the clock and saw that it was close to seven thirty.
"Give us a moment." Wynn called.
"I will be downstairs." Patty called.
"Thank you." Wynn called.
They heard Patty walk away and both Wynn and Elizabeth Rose giggled. They felt like teenagers who had been caught. They quickly washed up and got dressed. Ten minutes after Patty had knocked on their door, they were walking down the stairs to meet her. The trio headed to the cafe to have breakfast and talk about the day. Patty just shook her head, especially when she had seen the blush on Wynn's face when she asked how he slept. She was glad that they were still intimate with each other. Not many older couples did that, but she was glad. They were still so much in love and Patty thought it was sweet, even if they were embarrassed. She wouldn't say anything, but might tease her friend later.
The trio arrived at the cafe and it was busy. Patty looked at the two.
"Come on." Patty said. "Let's head to the kitchen. I have already had a biscuit, so I will jump in and help."
Abigail saw them and waved them back to the kitchen. The trio headed back there. Patty immediately went to help Ann. Elizabeth Rose and Wynn each took a seat at the smaller table that had been moved in so there was room to move.
"Where is Charlotte?" Elizabeth Rose asked. "I figured she would be here helping."
"She is helping Becky get ready." Abigail said. "She was really sore this morning, so I let her sleep a bit longer. Cody is already gone, something about looking for stuff for his science project before school with Robert and Timmy."
"Aw yes." Elizabeth Rose said. "They were each doing something on bugs or leaves and needed a few specimens."
"As long as they keep them at school and not in my house." Abigail said.
"Understood." Elizabeth Rose said.
As they were enjoying their coffee, Charlotte brought Becky down and set her in her chair. The moment that she rolled herself up to the table, Ann set a plate of eggs and sausage in front of her.
"Hurry up so you aren't late for school." Elizabeth Rose said.
Becky nodded and then said a quick prayer before quickly eating. Wynn wanted to see how Becky was doing but didn't want her to be late for school. Becky had finished her breakfast and was leaving just as Elizabeth Rose and Wynn got their breakfast.
After Dee, Jacobs and Faith left, Doug bowed his head and prayed over Jack again. Jack was still out from the chloroform, but he was breathing and stable. Doug pulled his Rosary from his pocket and started praying in Latin with one hand on Jack's chest. Twice he had to sit him up a bit and calm him down before a nightmare took hold. Each time, Doug had stopped, done what was needed and then resumed praying.
Finally after almost an hour and a half, Jack's eyes started to flutter open. It took a few more minutes, but then Jack brought his hand up and once again pinched the bridge of his nose and let out a harsh breath.
"How bad is the headache?" Doug asked.
"No … morphine." Jack rasped.
"I repeat, how bad is the headache." Doug said.
"Bad." Jack said. "Cool cloth and dark … no meds." Jack said.
"I will try." Doug said. "But you know that I have to tell Faith when she comes back."
Jack stuck his tongue out at Doug.
"At least you are feeling a little better." Doug joked.
Jack just shook his finger at Doug. But Doug got up and pulled the blinds shut before going to get some cool clothes for Jack's head. He came back and put a damp, cool cloth across Jack's forehead.
"Thank you." Jack said.
"I told you I would be here." Doug said.
"However you got here." Jack said. "Thank you. I owe you."
"No you don't." Doug said. "This is what family does and I have a feeling that Joe is responsible for sending the order that brought me here, but I am not going to think about it. I am here and have been assured I will be allowed to stay for as long as you need."
"Thank you." Jack said. "As much as I love Elizabeth, I am not sure how much more that she can take. I heard her crying last night when I sort of woke up. I didn't move nor did I tell her that I heard her."
"I will admit." Doug said. "She has been struggling with seeing you in so much pain, but she is only worried because she loves you and wants you to be around to see the little one grow up."
Jack just nodded his head.
"Now." Doug said. "Close your eyes and rest. That is what you need. If you can do that and be good, I need to finish cleaning up from breakfast."
"Go." Jack said.
Doug sat there for a few more moments and then left Jack to rest.
After they ate, Wynn gave his wife a kiss and headed to the office and Elizabeth Rose jumped in to help at the cafe until it was time to leave for the schoolhouse. Abigail also left shortly after Wynn headed over to the office. When it was just Ann, Elizabeth Rose and Patty in the kitchen for a few minutes, Patty looked at her friend and wanted to say something but wasn't sure. Ann beat her to it.
"Elizabeth Rose." Ann said. "You are absolutely glowing this morning."
Elizabeth Rose blushed and ducked her head. Ann laughed.
"No need to be embarrassed." Ann said "I thoroughly enjoyed having my husband home over the weekend. So no need to explain."
"I know that I shouldn't be embarrassed." Elizabeth Rose said. "But this morning I felt like a teenager getting caught when Patty knocked on the door."
All three ladies laughed and let the subject drop for the time being. There was plenty to keep them busy and Charlotte had walked in with two cadets to help with the dishes and laundry, since it didn't get done over the weekend due to the rain.
After leaving the house, Dee had a busy morning. After a flurry of wires back and forth with headquarters, Dee learned that Doug had not failed any part of his probationary period, but his Sergeant had just filed a report that he was AWOL – absent without leave. Dee countered that he had signed orders giving him three weeks in Hope Valley and Union City to visit family and close friends.
Dee also disclosed that at present he was the primary support and caregiver for Corporal Jack Thornton as his wife had returned to the classroom since she was needed. Superintendent Anderson said if his father signed overriding orders, his hands would be tied and he wouldn't have a choice but to look into what the Sergeant was doing in Coaldale and Lethbridge. Dee said he would send the orders as soon as possible.
Dee then went to the office, wrote the orders and temporarily reassigned Doug Burke to Hope Valley pending a full review of the needs of the area. He then slid the papers to father.
"Sign these." Dee said. "I need to get them over to Mike Hickum before he leaves for Buxton so he can put them on the mail train to headquarters."
Wynn skimmed over them
"Wait what?" Wynn said.
Dee quickly explained and showed the messages back and forth.
"How did he end up here in the first place?" Wynn asked.
"McGinty asked Bill about it and Bill sent the order as an Inspector." Dee said.
Wynn chuckled and shook his head. He pulled the pen out of his pocket and signed the papers, pushing them back to Dee. Dee then quickly took them over to Hickum. When Dee got back, he filled in the answers that he and Doug had found, as well as the additional questions Doug had added. Once those things were done, he quietly grabbed another stack of papers and continued to work.
Both Wynn and Jacobs realized that Dee had been working hard for them both and they hadn't even really noticed, but everything that Dee did made their job easier as he ran interference and handled things he could without having to run to them every time they turned around. Jacobs sat back and took a moment to say a quick prayer of thanks for Dee. Jacobs might have struggled with his faith since his father's death, but he knew there was a God and he believed in him, even if it was hard at times. However, believing had become easier since being in Hope Valley. He saw people who had nothing, offering to help a neighbor just because they could.
After his prayer, Jacobs went back to work, more determined to help resolve the situation and not shrug off any more leadership responsibilities.
Aunt Elizabeth walked in a few moments after Elizabeth sat down. She came in, took a seat and grabbed a cookie as well as a stack of grading.
"Thank you." Elizabeth said. "I thought I would try to get a little grading done before I went home so I might actually get it all done this week, especially with more worksheets and a history test tomorrow."
"Patty, Charlotte and I can help with the grading if you want." Aunt Elizabeth said.
"Thank you." Elizabeth said. "The worksheets and tests might be easier for you. I want to grade the writing assignments. It gives me a chance to see what the children are thinking and I know who needs extra encouragement with small notes and who is fine with just corrections."
"We will do what we can to help you." Aunt Elizabeth said. "How about we see how the next couple of days go and if you still need to catch up, we can come over after school on Wednesday and get all caught up."
"Thank you." Elizabeth said. "That might work. I haven't written the new writing assignment on the board yet, but it is in the note. Please make sure they get it. I told them it was due Friday. The history test is in the morning. They have math, history and geography worksheets due in the morning. I also gave them new words for the week. That test will be on Friday before the science fair."
"I will make sure they know." Aunt Elizabeth said.
"Thank you." Elizabeth said.
For the next twenty-five minutes, they ladies worked on grading papers. Elizabeth snacked on her lunch that she had packed. She was hungry and knew that she wouldn't have been able to wait until she got home. With only a few minutes left before the children came back in, they gathered the papers and put everything in Elizabeth's basket. Aunt Elizabeth erased the board and added the new writing assignment while Elizabeth left.