Writing chapter 135 was among the hardest ones for me to write. I struggled with it for two days because I lost all respect for E's character. I actually felt sad for her in my story. I have to go back to writing my two darlings, Grace and Lucas as soon as possible.
This is the last chapter I am writing Lucas sad and crying. From now on, Grace will make sure that he is happy 24/7.
Thanks to Helene for the brainstorming we had about this chapter!
—--
Elizabeth gaped at her Father.
"What?!"
William swallowed hard and took his daughter's palms in his.
"Elizabeth, it's time that you come home. You need help. You are not well", he spoke in a calm tone of voice, careful not to upset Elizabeth even more.
But, this woman in front of him didn't sound at all like his little Lizzie. She cackled in disbelief.
"I can't go back to Hamilton! I have duties here! My job is here, my place at the Town Council, my…", she rambled on, but William rose his voice a bit:
"It's over, Elizabeth! You are not allowed to teach the children of Hope Valley anymore!", he moved his palms to her upper arms as he continued "You've been discharged from the Town Council and Bill made a Contract for the Town buying the rowhouse back from you…", he barely finished the sentence when Elizabeth yelled:
"What?! What contract?! How dares he?! I am not signing that!"
William shook her in his arms.
"I signed it, Elizabeth!", he stated.
Only to send her to white fury.
"WHAT?! WHY?! WHAT GAVE YOU THE RIGHT TO DO THAT?!", she yelled.
That was when William lost it.
"I AM YOUR FATHER! THAT'S WHAT GAVE ME THE RIGHT!", he yelled at Elizabeth, stunning her into silence YOU DIDN'T EVEN ASK ABOUT YOUR SON OR MOTHER! YOU ARE ONLY THINKING OF YOURSELF! THAT'S ENOUGH, ELIZABETH!"
Elizabeth shivered in fury.
"I am not going. You can't make me", she said coldly, through gritted teeth. Seeing her Father's composure falling apart, she grabbed that opportunity and mumbled "I can't leave Jack."
William's eyes went wide open.
"Elizabeth, Jack is in Hamilton", he whispered incredulously. He watched in shock as his daughter shook her head, tears filling her eyes.
"No", she mumbled "He is here. He is building us a house. Just like he built me a schoolhouse."
William's heart broke at those words.
He gently squeezed Elizabeth's upper arms and said softly:
"Elizabeth…Jack is dead", as his daughter's eyes widened he slowly continued "You can't stay here. You are coming home with me. We will get you the help we should have get you after he died. But, you are not staying here."
William breathed heavily as he watched his little girl stare at him incredulously…
Only to break down in tears and crumble in her Father's arms in the next moment.
—--
As Lee and Joseph carried the boxes from Elizabeth's rowhouse, Bill turned to look at Henry and said seriously:
"I will call Agatha before we leave for Hamilton."
Henry nodded, watching as the rowhouse was being emptied slowly, but surely.
"William took Elizabeth to visit Jack's grave. Their train leaves in three hours", he shook his head "What a mess."
—--
Allie stood next to her Uncle, her palm holding his as they watched Lee and Joseph packing the last of boxes into a wagon, while Bill and Henry led despondent Elizabeth into a car.
As the doors closed, the engine roared to life and in the next moment the car drove in front of them…taking Elizabeth away.
Allie looked up at her Uncle, her heart breaking for him.
Without a word she hugged him around his waist and just held him tight, her head leaning onto his chest.
Nathan swallowed hard as he gave the car one last look before he glanced down at Allie and hugged her back.
—--
Agatha came out from Lucas' office and rubbed her forehead, feeling the headache setting in.
As she entered back in the living room both Lucas and Carson stood up.
She let out a sigh and silently said:
"It's over. They're taking her back home to Hamilton", Agatha swallowed hard and she looked at Carson "They contacted that friend of yours, that doctor?", she stammered for the name.
But, Carson nodded and softly said:
"Olive Williams", at Lucas questioning gaze, he explained "She's been successfully treating patients who suffer from PTSD for years. Perhaps she could help Elizabeth to heal."
Lucas creased his eyebrows.
"What about Jack? He can't be exposed to all of that now. He only just got better", he looked back at Agatha "Mrs. Thatcher, you are welcome to stay here as long as it is necessary."
Agatha gave him a tearful smile.
"Thank you, Lucas. But, I have to go back to Hamilton. I have some business to attend to and, unfortunately, it cannot be postponed. Jack will stay with me for a while. Hopefully by then they will be able to get Elizabeth in for a treatment", she slowly walked toward him and took his palm
between her wrinkled ones "Thank you for everything you did for Jack, Lucas", as tears became too heavy and rolled down Agatha's cheeks, Lucas gently hugged her.
"No thanks needed. Whatever Jack needs, I will be here," he said.
—--
Grace was just finishing folding the laundry when she heard the knock at the doors.
She quickly went toward the doors and opened them.
"Mrs. Thatcher", she stammered, beyond surprised to see Agatha arriving by herself.
Agatha gave her a sad smile.
"Hello, Miss Bennet. I apologize for coming unannounced, but I really have to talk to you", said Agatha as she nervously pulled on her white gloves.
Grace nodded.
"It's alright. Please, come in", she said as she opened the doors wider.
She stepped aside to let Agatha in and quickly took her coat, her eyebrows creasing in concern as she noticed how quiet the older lady was.
"Mrs. Thatcher, are you alright?", she asked as she gently led Agatha to the living room.
As they sat down, Agatha looked up at Grace and smiled sadly.
"Miss Bennet, I want to thank you for what you did for Jack. If it wasn't for you, Doctor Shepherd would never come to talk with my brother. Nor would this visit happen", she looked down, blinking tears away "That darling boy was falling into a bottomless hole before you initiated this whole thing", she quickly wiped a few tears that rolled down her cheeks and took a shivering breath in "I can never thank you enough for what you did. And I am so happy that you and Lucas found each other. The fact that you helped Elizabeth's son shows how deep is your love for that good man. And he deserves nothing less", a strangled sob escaped her "I am so ashamed of my niece's behaviour. What she did to him was plain cruel and unforgivable. Lucas is a good man. And I am glad that he found such a good woman to stand by him. I wish you all the happiness, and I know you two will be happy together. You are very much alike. Both selfless, kind and caring, always trying to help other people…", Agatha gently took Grace's palm between her wrinkled ones and pressing gently, she murmured "Thank you, sweet girl, for everything you did for my Jack. You are the most remarkable young lady I have ever met. And I
know that you and Lucas will make this world a better place for many children. Just like you did it for my Jack", taking a deep breath in, she continued "The moment I met Lucas and talked to him for the first time, I knew that he was set for the bigger stage. And he is taking that place in the most noblest way possible, by helping the little ones. And it is once again thanks to you. What you and your sister are doing here, for these children, is amazing. And I want you to know that you can always count on my help if you need anything."
During Agatha's talk tears started to form in Grace's eyes and by the time the older lady finished, Grace lost a battle to keep them in her eyes.
"Thank you, Mrs. Thatcher", she whispered and accepted a hug that Agatha gave her.
When they pulled away, Agatha gave her a soft smile and got up to leave.
"Jack and I will leave in two days. I have to attend to some business before New Year's Eve, but I won't take him back to his Grandparents until they are sure that Elizabeth starts with a treatment", Agatha silently said "We will be in touch. I said that to Lucas too. I will never be able to thank you both for what you did."
Grace took Agatha's palms in hers and gently said:
"There is no need to thank us. The only thing that matters is that Jack is doing better now", she smiled tearfully "I got a nickname from him and I have to uphold to it. His smile is the best reward for me."
Agatha smiled back at the amazing young woman standing in front of her.
"Yes. Jack's giggling buddy", she warmly hugged Grace and whispered "God bless you, sweet girl."
As they pulled away, Grace walked Agatha out and wiped her cheeks as she closed the doors.
Lillian walked toward her and just pulled her in a warm hug.
"I know", she whispered "I heard everything."
Grace hugged her sister back, searching for comfort and relief in Lillian's arms. And she got it, as she always did.
—--
The fire crackled in the fireplace as Grace watched Lucas playing marbles with Jack as they sat on the floor in the library. She got up a few minutes ago with an excuse to go get them something to drink, but she actually just needed to leave before she started to cry.
Because Jack was leaving tomorrow. And even though the child was calm about the upcoming trip, it tugged painfully at Grace's heart to think about the buddies being apart again.
She got back after a quiet trip to the kitchen where Gustave gave her three cups of warm chocolate with a sad smile on his lips.
"You did everything you could, Grace", Gustave silently said as she angrily wiped her tears, like all this mess was their fault.
"I am so worried for both of them, Gustave", she mumbled tearfully.
Gustave's facial expression turned sympathetic and he gently took Grace's fingers in his palms.
"Grace, Jack will be fine. Madame Thatcher adores him and so do his Grandparents. They will make sure that he is taken care of", his eyes softened as he gently added "And Lucas will be fine too. You will take care of him, like you always did, from the moment you met."
Grace sat back down on the floor in front of the fireplace and watched as Jack built a marble tower in front of him. His puppy was snoring peacefully on his little bed in front of the fireplace.
She was so lost in her thoughts that she flinched a bit, startled as she felt Jack taking her palm. She looked down warmly at the sweet boy and swore her heart stopped as she saw him put her fingers on Lucas' palm.
"I love you, buddy. And I love you, Miss Grace. And I am going home tomorrow", turning to look at Lucas, Jack continued talking "You need someone who will make you smile, buddy. Like I did when you were sad. I won't be around, but Miss Grace is almost as funny as I am. She will make you smile", the precious boy's face was serious, no traces of sorrow on it as he smiled his sweet toothless grin and said "You should marry Miss Grace, buddy."
Lucas scooped the dear boy up in his arms and the child went in happily. Closing his eyes tightly to stop the tears, Lucas gently kissed Jack's blonde head and whispered:
"I will, buddy. Thank you", opening his eyes, Lucas looked at Grace and she quickly wiped her tears with shivering fingers before gifting him with a tearful smile.
—--
The train whistled its last call for the passengers. Grace hugged Jack one last time and kissed his soft cheek.
"Be good, Jack. I'll miss you", she gently said, earning herself another squeeze of his little hands.
"I'll miss you too, Miss Grace", Jack mumbled silently.
Agatha gave Lucas one last hug and silently said:
"Thank you, Lucas. For everything", as they pulled away, she watched as his facial expression grew nervous "What is it?"
In the next moment, she felt Lucas taking her palm and placing something on it.
As he pulled his hand back, Agatha looked down at the item on her palm.
A pocket watch.
"It was a gift from Elizabeth", she heard his voice and looked up in surprise only to see Lucas swallowing hard before he added "I don't want it anymore. You can give it back to her or do whatever you want with it."
Agatha held his gaze and nodded. As Lucas turned around to take his buddy in his arms for a final hug, Agatha turned the pocket watch around and felt a bile rising in her throat at the words engraved on the back.
Our Time Has Come.
Lucas hugged Jack tightly and inhaled his sweet child scent, wishing he could bottle it up and save it forever.
"I love you, buddy", he whispered.
Jack tightened his hold on Lucas and whispered:
"I love you too, buddy."
"Train for Hamilton about to depart. All aboard! Train for Hamilton about to depart. All aboard!"
Lucas helped Agatha to climb the steps and handed Jack and a cage box with a puppy into her awaiting arms.
He took a few steps back as the train roared into life and slowly started to move. He pressed his lips tightly together as Jack's little palm waved to him. Lucas waved back, swallowing hard, begging himself not to cry.
Not in front of Jack. I must stay strong for him.
He took two more steps back and felt Grace's warm and gentle fingers taking his other palm as she also waved to Jack and Agatha.
And as the dear boy's face disappeared in the smoke from the train, Lucas let out a strangled sob.
One step - that's all it took for Grace to turn toward Lucas and pull him in her arms. Lucas buried his face in her soft hair, tears bursting out from him at last.
Grace let out a shaky breath as her own eyes lost a battle with tears and she pulled Lucas closer to her, hugging him with all the love she felt.
"Just cry, my Lucas. Let it all out", she whispered tearfully "I'm here. You are not alone. I'm here. We'll go through this together."
Suntracks broke through the thick smoke and washed over the train station in the golden light.
—--
Chiquitita, tell me what's wrong,
You're enchained by your own sorrow,
In your eyes there is no hope for tomorrow.
How I hate to see you like this,
There is no way you can deny it,
I can see that you're oh so sad, so quiet.
Chiquitita, tell me the truth,
I'm a shoulder you can cry on,
Your best friend I'm the one you must rely on.
You were always sure of yourself
Now I see you've broken a feather,
I hope we can patch it up together.
Chiquitita, you and I know
How the heartaches come and they go and the scars they're leaving,
You'll be dancing once again and the pain will end,
You will have no time for grieving.
Chiquitita, you and I cry,
But the sun is still in the sky and shining above you
Let me hear you sing once more like you did before
Sing a new song, Chiquitita.
Try once more like you did before
Sing a new song, Chiquitita.
("Chiquitita" - ABBA)