Had there ever been a worse time to be called out of town? Nathan thought, as he let Newton have a loose rein, which the horse immediately knew meant to keep up the pace but relax a little bit, and went back to his thoughts. As a Mountie, part of the job was knowing that at any time you could be called away, and it didn't matter when it was or where you were. His least favorite time to be summoned was late at night when the temperature was below freezing. Thankfully, that had only happened a handful of times, but this summons. This one had to be the worst. Not only was Allie recovering from her terrifying reaction to her bee sting, but he was enjoying spending time with Jack as well. If he was honest, he'd admit that while those two reasons were at the top of the list, the main reason this was the worst was because of Elizabeth. Just the thought of her brought up images of the last two days, the hugs, the kisses, the looks, and touches between them had been more than Nathan had dared imagine. He could feel her soft hands on his face, and her lips touching his, the heady sensation of breathing in her smell., but what he loved the most was the sense of completeness he felt with her. Protecting towns and people had been a dream of his since he was a little boy, and he loved doing it, but it was rare to find himself feeling really settled. With Elizabeth in his arms, or holding her hand, he was able to enjoy that feeling, and he liked it. In fact, in the last two days he'd become addicted to it and the thought of never having it again was terrifying.
Suddenly, Newton came to a stop, pricking his ears as he looked around. Nathan, on high alert, looked around as well. Hearing a sound behind them, Nathan turned and smiled when he saw his friend, and fellow Mountie, Gabriel Kinslow riding up to them. "Kinslow," Nathan called out in greeting.
"Grant"
"I figured you'd been in Buxton cursing my name for being late by now." Nathan said.
"Well, as much fun as that would have been, I had a few things to finish up before I could leave."
"Care to share?" Nathan asked, the smile on his friend's face making him suspicious.
"Not at the moment, no." Gabe told him before urging his horse forward.
Shaking his head in amusement, Nathan did the same, and together they continued their journey. Soon they arrived in Buxton, and headed for the Mountie Station. Upon arrival, they dismounted, tied the horses to the hitching post and went inside.
Upon entering the office, the two Mounties were shocked to see who sat behind the desk. Slowly standing up, giving enough time for the two of them to come to attention and salute, Superintendent Andrew Hargraves, reached up to return the salute. Knowing he was the last person Nathan would have expected to see, gave him a bit of satisfaction, which he kept to himself.
"At ease, gentleman." He said, pointing to the chairs in front of the desk, as he sat back down in his chair. He watched the emotions play out across Nathan's face, and noticed as the second Mountie, whom he knew was Gabriel Kinslow, seemed to be taking his cues from Nathan. Knowing he had command of the room, he continued to wait silently for the men to take their seats. When, after a few moments, they hadn't moved, he arched his eyebrow as if daring them to not follow the order. Finally, all three were seated, but it was Hargraves who felt the most comfortable.
Gabriel was the one person who knew everything about Superintendent Hargraves and Nathan's history. They had discussed it during his time recovering from the gun shot wound he had received a few years back. Trying to keep his mind off the pain, he had asked Nathan how he ended up taking Jack Thornton's post in Hope Valley. Nathan told him everything that had happened, even the things he had kept to himself. To say he was shocked would have been an understatement, dumbfounded would be the better word, he had decided. He wasn't naive and knew corruption was everywhere, he'd just assumed it was with those much higher up in rank than those he worked interacted with.
"Thank you for coming, gentleman," Andrew began. "I understand you are here to join the other group that's been assigned to assist in Union City with the increase in crime. I am sure the people there will be very grateful. Assuming you follow your orders, Constable Grant." He said, looking deep into the eyes of the man he had promised to get out of the Mounties. "Constable Kinslow, if you will please step outside, Constable Grant and I have some business to attend to."
Gabe glanced at Nathan and watched as his friend closed his eye and drew in a deep breath, slowly releasing it. Knowing he was trying to calm himself down, and wishing he could stay to help support his friend, he waited until Nathan's eyes were open and looking at him before standing up and going back outside.
Nathan just sat there, staring at the man across the desk. Just a few hours ago he had been full of happiness, hope, and love. Now he was filled with just anger and dread. Wishing Hargarves had not dismissed Gabe, he tried to mentally prepare himself for what ever was coming.
After watching the door close, Andrew turned to Nathan, "It's quite a shock to see you here, Constable Grant."
"What brings you from Fort Clay, sir?" Nathan asked, trying to keep the anger out of his voice.
"Oh, some business around Buxton, here. Some of it pertains to you, Constable."
Nathan steeled himself for what was to follow. Nothing, with this man, ever turned out well.
"You see," he began, "We at Fort Clay decided it was long overdue to honor Constable Thornton, for all the excellent work he did for us. So, it was decided that a training classroom at the Fort would be named after him. I understand the school in Hope Valley is also names after him, so it does seem fitting." Andrew paused to gage Nathan's reaction.
"That sounds like a wonderful tribute, Sir. I am sure Mrs. Thornton and Jack will be very pleased with that." Nathan finally said.
"In deed. We actually have already had the dedication ceremony at the Fort. It was so wonderful to hear so many great things about Constable Thorton. Such a shame we lost him so early in his career. He was going to do great things for us."
"You mean you had the dedication without inviting Eliz… Mrs. Thornton?" he corrected himself.
"She was included on the guest list, but didn't come. Must have been too painful or something." He watched Nathan's face for any type of response before continuing. "Thank you, by the way, for choosing not to attend. Seeings how you were the one responsible for this death, you not being there made things a lot easier, for all of us."
Nathan tried not to show any reaction to those final words, but he couldn't stop the pain and grief from showing in his eyes. True, Elizabeth had had assured him, many times, that he was not responsible for what happened, but he still hadn't been able to truly accept it. Still, he did his best to not show any reactions, knowing that Hargraves was just looking for something to use against him. "Well, not knowing about it kind of made the decision for me." Nathan mumbled under his breath, hoping that Hargraves didn't hear, but knowing he probably did. The man seemed to have excellent hearing.
"So, what do you need from me, Sir?" Nathan asked, attempting to change the direction of the conversation.
Andrew Hargraves had more he wanted to say, but decided to save it for a later time. "Constable Grant, my next stop is Hope Valley, where I will speak with Mrs. Thornton about the training room dedication at Fort Clay we had for him, and explain how we are having a plaque made in honor of Constable Thornton, highlighting his many accomplishments, to be displayed in the RCMP Office for all to see. I am hoping she and the town leaders will agree to a ceremony, so the entire town can participate and hear the official story of what really happened."
Hearing that last comment, Nathan felt himself involuntarily stiffen. "And by the official story, you mean?"
"The one about how you were tapped for that training mission, but because of your blatant disobedience, Jack Thornton had to take it, which cost him his life, making his wife a widow and depriving his son of his true father."
Something about the way the man said those last words kindled an anger in Nathan he hadn't prepared for. "True father, Sir?"
"Nathan, I have spies everywhere, and I do mean everywhere, and they are always eager to tell me the things that they see. Especially when it comes to certain people, you being one of them. I know you have feelings for Mrs. Thornton, and have been trying to get her to return those feelings for you. What you don't know is Jack was like a brother to me, we were very good friends, and he asked me to make sure his wife was safe, if anything had happened to him. He made some powerful enemies in the Northern Territories and was afraid they'd come take their revenge on her. Her son is all we have left of that great Mountie, and I will watch out for them, Nathan, whatever the cost."
Hargraves sat quietly for a moment, following his speech, before ending with, "Constable Grant, the other Mounties have already left, but the next train to Union City leaves in one hour. I strongly suggest you be on it. The last thing you want is to have another inquiry, for disobeying orders, on your record. You are dismissed."
Hearing the door open, Gabe jumped up from the chair he'd been sitting in and watched as he friend walked out the door.
"Where are the horses, Gabe?" Nathan asked, looking around.
"I took them to the livery, so they could cool down before loading them on the train."
"Thanks" he said and started walking down the street that headed out of town.
After a few minutes, Gabe followed, hoping he'd given his friend enough time to gather his thoughts. Finding him on the outskirts of town, he called out, "Is it safe to approach?"
Nathan was startled when he heard Gabe's question, and looked over. Slowly, he nodded and went back to staring out into the woods. Once Gabe was settled, the two of them sat for a few minutes before Gabe said, "So that was Superintendent Andrew Hargraves, huh?"
Nathan nodded, and Gabe continued, "From everything I've heard about that man, I always pictured him as this large and imposing, mean looking man. Like the Headmaster of the school I attended as a kid. Not some scrawny little guy like me."
"Imposing or scrawny, that is one man you don't want to get on the wrong side of." Nathan said, ruefully, "He has a tendency to show up at the worst possible moments, and only ever brings bad news with him."
"So what happened?" Gabe finally asked.
"Hargraves is on his way to Hope Valley where he plans to tell everyone that I am the reason Jack died, and to present an official plaque highlighting all his accomplishments that will be displayed in the RCMP office. He told me he and Jack were really good friends, and that he promised Jack he'd look after Elizabeth if anything should happen. He said Jack made some enemies in the Northern Territories, and was worried it could put Elizabeth in danger."
"He and Jack were friends?" Gabe asked.
"Yeah, he said they were like brothers."
"Brothers?" Gabe repeated, "Really? Because the way Jack talked about him, he had zero trust in that man."
Nathan, looked at his friend in shock, "You knew Jack?"
"Not well, but we crossed paths a few times early on, but that was about it. We met up again on the train heading North. I told you about this. He had just finished a Christmas visit to Hope Valley and was heading back, and I was on my way up for the first time. He told me how he was going back to a new unit, having been reassigned because he disagreed a few times with the decisions his Unit Commander, Hargraves, had made that resulted in heavy losses for them. Hargraves was furious and had him reassigned."
"He served under Hargraves?" Nathan asked.
"Do you ever pay attention when we talk?" Gabe teased before saying, "Yeah, Hargraves gave an order to march down into this little valley, where they were ambushed by gunrunners. Jack had questioned why since everyone knew a large gang was hiding out in the hills surrounding it, but Hargraves accused him of trying to take command and advanced anyway. Soon after, Jack was transferred to another unit because of insubordination. He didn't say it right out, but seemed to imply that Hargraves was working with the gunrunners, not against them."
Both man sat there, deep in thought, until they heard the town bell announce the time. Standing up, Gabe reached out a hand to help his friend stand. "I think that's our cue to head for the train station."
Something seemed off to Nathan as he and Gabe walked, with their horses, to the train station. Why would Hargraves tell him all those things? What purpose would it serve? He knew that man never did anything without a reason, and that reason was always for his benefit.
"Where is everyone?" Gabe asked, pulling Nathan out of his thoughts once they reached the train station.
"Hargraves said everyone left on the earlier train." Nathan answered, a little distracted.
"Nathan, there is only one train that goes to Union City from Buxton, and it's the one pulling into the station right now."
That comment brought Nathan out of his thoughts. "What?" he asked, thinking he hadn't heard correctly
"There is only one train that that goes to Union City from Buxton each day, and it's this one." Gabe repeated, pointing at the train waiting on the track in front of them.
"Good Afternoon, Constables," came a voice from behind them. Turning, they saw another Constable making their way towards them. "What brings you to Buxton today? Oh, hello Constable Grant" he added, recognizing one of them.
"Well, we received orders to meet up with other Mounties here before heading to Union City to assist with some investigations." Gabe explained before holding out his hand, "Gabriel Kinslow, I'm stationed in Brookfield, and it seems like you know this guy." he said pointing to Nathan.
"Lawrence Collins. I am stationed here in Buxton, but please call me Larry." Larry said, accepting Gabe's outstretched hand.
"Constable Collins, it's nice to see you again. I never did get to thank you for all your help last week with capturing Shaw." Nathan said, shaking the proffered hand as well.
"Always happy to help out." Larry said. "Now, what's this about orders to Union City? I was just up there yesterday and didn't hear anything about assisting with investigations. Besides, why would they have you come here, when Hope Valley has a train that goes straight to Union City now?"
"Oh no," Nathan said, before jumping on Newton and heading out of town.
