After the cookies in episode 10.9, we get just a few more brief interactions between Nathan and Elizabeth. We obviously see quite a bit of Elizabeth's turmoil working out on screen as she reacts to Nathan and the hostage situation, but we don't get much from Nathan at all. Just a few glances - check ins if you will - that make it clear that he is paying attention to her. So I took some liberties (much like in Ghosts) to try to fill in some scenes and add some additional ones - including one that *could* have happened plausibly and if you're willing to think it did, might change your interpretation of the end of the episode and Nathan's actions in episode 10.10.

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"Did you read this?" Nathan Grant asked the man standing next to him, as he held up the telegram that held an urgent, but not for public consumption, message for him.

"I always do," Ned Yost responded matter-of-factly.

Ned then turned and headed back into the mercantile, and Nathan shook his head at the sheer amount of information Ned probably possessed that he should not. And if Ned knew, that meant Florence knew. He made a mental note to have a conversation with Ned about the importance of confidentiality, then he looked again toward the saloon where Elizabeth had headed after their brief interaction.

There was definitely something up with her - something different than what had been bothering her recently. This seemed like something that was a little less personal. He was actually glad to see this side of her. Perhaps she was doing better today - or at least had been distracted by something else for a while. Either way, he needed to go to the jail and gather his supplies. It looked like he was heading to Rock Creek.

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When Nathan got his next glimpse of Elizabeth, hours later after a little more excitement than he had anticipated, the look on her face was no longer one of simple distraction. He'd seen her run up out of the corner of his eye when he and Bill arrived back in town. He'd tried to say focused on his hug from Allie and deflecting Bill's praise, but he could sense Elizabeth's eyes on him and couldn't help glancing up in her direction as he headed toward the livery.

The slight smile she gave him hardly hid the emotions on her face. She looked relieved. If he didn't know better he would swear that she wished she could have been Allie - running into his arms when she saw that he was home and safe. And if that was true, it had to be tied again to what he had sensed from her in recent days - that something was troubling her deeply. She could be remembering what it was like to lose Jack, and Nathan felt both guilty for once again sparking those fears in her and saddened that he was destined to always be that person. But if that were true - if she was struggling so much right now, he once again worried about her upcoming wedding. It wasn't that he wished she was marrying him. He may still love her, but he had long since given up on that as any kind of possibility. He was just worried about her. He couldn't help himself. In spite of everything, her happiness still mattered to him.

As he walked to the livery, he was distracted from this thoughts by Allie's voice demanding his attention.

"Dad?" she asked, the annoyance clear in her tone, "Are you even listening to me?"

"I'm sorry, kiddo, I was just thinking about this afternoon," Nathan replied with a version of the truth. "What were you saying?"

"I said I told you that you were going to miss a lot of excitement. The governor is coming. He's supposed to be here any minute. And the choir is going to sing the song Angela and I wrote for him when he arrives!"

"Wow. How did all that happen?" he asked, realizing that the Governor's visit must have been what Elizabeth had learned that had her acting so shifty earlier in the day.

"Well, Mrs. Coulter wrote him a letter -" Allie began, but Nathan cut her off.

"You really don't have to say any more than that. If Mrs. Coulter is involved, I'm surprised there isn't a lot more than a choir performance."

"Oh Dad. There is soooooo much more than a choir performance. There's a dinner. And a black tie ball. She and Mrs. Thornton have been running around all afternoon trying to get everything together. There was supposed to be a bandstand, and Mrs. Thornton even offered up the wood for her wedding project so it could be built in time - but Mrs. Coulter wouldn't let her use it. Mr. Gowen and Emily, Opal, and Timmy just built a little stage instead."

Nathan was pretty sure he would never get used to the pace with which his daughter shared information, but he couldn't help but smile at her enthusiasm. The sound of Ned's voice shouting "He's coming!" interrupted their conversation.

"This is it! I have to go!" Allie shouted, handing Hero's reins to him and taking off down the street. Nathan just shook his head and continued to the livery.

He was just starting to unsaddle Newton when he heard footsteps approaching followed by the unmistakable voice of Henry Gowen.

"Afternoon, Nathan," Henry said as he approached the Mountie and the two horses he was tending to.

"Henry. Good afternoon," Nathan looked up and recognized something indiscernible in Henry's expression. "Is there something I can help you with?"

"Not exactly," Henry said, looking down briefly, and Nathan arched an eyebrow. It felt like there was something Henry was wanting to say, but there was quite the pause before he continued speaking.

"It seems like you had quite the afternoon," he said. Nathan was pretty sure that wasn't the thing that Henry had been thinking about.

"Yeah, umm," Nathan tried to figure out a way to squelch the exaggerations that Bill had already been spreading, "It really wasn't that big a deal. Just some Pinkertons causing trouble with a local farmer."

The two men stood there looking at each other for just a moment before Henry looked down again, and Nathan turned to finish unsaddling Newton.

"Well, you had people worried. I'm glad you're okay, though."

There was something about the way Henry said "people" that made Nathan pause and look back toward the older man.

Henry just stared at him - like he was willing him to understand something that he couldn't share, and then he finally broke the silence.

"If the governor's here, I'm sure it's causing a ruckus out there. Why don't you let me finish up with the horses? I'm happy to get them fed and settled for you."

Nathan furrowed his brow, but nodded his head.

"Thanks, Henry," he said. "You're probably right."

Nathan wiped his hands on a towel hanging near Newton's stall and grabbed his hat. As he headed out of the livery, Nathan looked back toward Henry.

"Hey - do you know anything about this Montague guy?"

"Can't say that I do. But you might talk to Bill and Elizabeth about him. I get the impression they have some concerns."

Nathan nodded again and headed outside and toward the crowd on main street. Henry had placed a subtle emphasis on the name "Elizabeth" - much like he had the word "people." It made Nathan feel like she might have been the subject of that whole awkward conversation. Nathan scanned the people for her and saw that she wasn't with everyone else, but then he caught a glimpse of her profile walking toward Rosemary from the direction of the library. She looked like she was trying to compose herself.

Nathan filed away the information for later. For now, he knew that he needed to discuss what he'd learned this afternoon with her, Bill, Lucas, and the Coulters.

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As Nathan sat at his table that evening, he couldn't help but give thanks that he was home safely. The world was an unpredictable place, and he didn't need many reminders that things could go south quickly. He knew that this town that he loved so much was facing an uphill battle, and they would have to fight for it. It was good to know at times like these that he had friends and neighbors he could trust - though he did chuckle at people's insistence that he be recognized today for the "hostage" situation. Saying Mr. Stuckey held him hostage was the negative equivalent to saying Ned Yost was a police informant.

No - being held hostage required much more than having an old man point a gun at you. It required someone to be in complete possession of you - for you not to be able to escape. For you to be at their mercy. Most of the time hostages were taken against their will and used by their captor until they were no longer beneficial. But sometimes hostages went willingly - happily surrendering their own freedom into the hands of someone else. Sometimes, Nathan thought before heading up to bed, they couldn't help themselves.

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So - let me know your thoughts! Definitely want to hear about your reaction to the Nathan/Henry convo. Plausible? Terrible?

Leave a review if you can or a comment on Instagram. I'm having a ton of fun discussing these with all of you.