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Chapter Thirty-Three
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Celebrations
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Part IV
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"Son, I know we have work to do, but Emily is the nicest surprise I've had for as long as I can remember! We both thank you!"
"Bill gets the credit for this one, Sir! Seems he contacted Mrs. Blevins and suggested she visit when you first called him earlier. I only met her at the Train and had her luggage taken to your suite, and that was my pleasure!"
"And brought her here to me! I can't thank you both enough. Would you and Elizabeth be able to have lunch with us at The Queen of Hearts, perhaps in the private dining room?"
"Are you sure the two of you wouldn't prefer to dine alone? We'd totally understand since you haven't seen each other for a while!"
"Nonsense, we both would love you to join us! I think it's important that the women in our lives get to know each other, too. We only have a couple of days left, so let's make the most of them!'
"Sounds great. I'll reserve the private dining room, then call Elizabeth."
"And I'll go check on the boys. I want our Corporals to review a few charts for me to see if they can find any common threads. It's good practice for them to get their feet wet, especially since we already know what's inside them," he winked. "Then, when they finish them, you and I can discuss their findings and later jointly review their successes and failures with them."
"Good test! Thanks for setting it up, Sir!"
"Also, if you don't mind, I think it would be helpful for Alex to spend the morning on a conference call with Christian, my assistant. He's the best and can help the boy tremendously with responsibilities and proper protocol as your personal assistant. Of course, you'll refine all that as you two move forward together. But I want Alex to know the basics, so he can be efficient right out of the gate, helping you accomplish this initial set-up of the department as proficiently as possible. Once that's done, you'll know better what to use him for in the long term, as well as your entire staff."
"That's a huge help, Sir! This really is a matter of learning as we go, isn't it!"
"I'm afraid so, Son! And don't let all that overwhelm you. I'll set Alex up on the secure line in the Conference room, so you and I can use this office, as it's the most secure. Do you think we can steal Bill away from training the Constables for an hour or so today? I want him included in our discussion on the briefing of the case's classified aspects regarding Hargreaves, which, of course, will stay between the three of us for now."
"Finn wanted to evaluate his Constables first thing after lunch, which Bill and I feel sure he's capable of doing on his own. Bill said he would be willing to come by after lunch for the briefing if that works for you."
"Perfect. I feel better if all three of us are together on the same page in case there are clarifications needed so that we interpret them identically. I'll have Alex get the word to him!"
Hal smiled as he left but turned around once more to face his Chief Inspector.
"Son, I know I've thrown an awful lot at you with this promotion, and technically, we aren't even at the twenty-four-hour mark yet. But I also know you can and will do this. Remember, you won't be doing it alone. Help is coming, and I'm just a phone call away."
"I appreciate and needed that. Thank you, Sir!"
Hal nodded, closing Nathan's office door behind him...
Nathan, not quite used to his big fancy chair, leaned on the edge of his desk instead.
"Florence, it's Nathan. Can you please get Mike for me at The Queen of Hearts?"
"Chief Inspector, I just want to offer my congratulations on your important promotion! We are all so very proud…and…oh! Perhaps I'd better tell you all this in person!"
"Your congratulations are much appreciated, Florence! We'll talk at length the first chance I get."
"Oh, I'd love that. And so would Ned! Putting you through, Chief Inspector! What a nice ring that has to it!"
Nathan couldn't help but smile.
"Hey Mike, Nathan here! Can you reserve the private dining room for me at noon today?"
"Of course, it's free as can be all day today. How many people should we plan for?"
"Just four of us. Deputy Commissioner Blevins and his wife, with Elizabeth and myself."
"Would you like anything special, or would you prefer to order from the menu?"
"Maybe it would be nicer to order from your special reserve menu? Is that possible?"
"Absolutely. Gustave will be thrilled. We'll make it happen. Oh, and Nathan, huge congratulations on your grand promotion. No one deserves it more!"
"Thank you, Mike! That means a lot!"
"Oh, Nathan, since the Deputy Commissioner is staying through Friday, should I go on and hold the private dining room for lunch and dinner then, too?"
"That would be great, Mike! Thanks for thinking of it."
The two men hung up, and then Nathan reconnected with Florence.
"Florence, Nathan here! Could you place one more call for me, please?"
"I'd be happy to. Whom shall I ring?"
"Elizabeth, please!"
"Thrilled to do it, Chief Inspector!"
Nathan listened for the click, then heard Elizabeth's excited voice on the line.
"Hello, Beautiful," he stated so lovingly in that tender voice that always flowed when speaking with her. "How is your day so far?"
"I should be the one asking that of you! Though I do love that 'beautiful' part. Nathan, I'm so glad you called. I've been missing you desperately all morning!"
"It's nice to be missed desperately, though you have also been missed every bit as desperately on this end!"
"Did you need something special, or do you have a break where we can sneak a visit in," she asked coyly. "You know, I'm dying to see that fancy new office of yours! I may even have a little gift to christen it with!"
"As long as it involves those same lips that were doing crazy things with mine last night, it's a date!"
She giggled.
"Please, Chief Inspector! We must, at the very least, maintain some propriety," she teasingly admonished. "Or must we?"
"Oh, you are so bad! And I'd better stop right now and explain why I called, or I'll never remember! Apparently, Bill called Emily, the Deputy Commissioner's wife, (from now on let's just use DC for Hal, since it feels totally inappropriate to use his first name). He talked her into visiting us when the DC first called him. She's here now, resting at The Queen of Hearts, but the DC suggested we have lunch with them in the private dining room there. Are you able?"
"Able? I wouldn't miss this for the world! I'm so excited!"
"About seeing me or Emily?"
"Both, silly! But don't worry, Chief Inspector, you're still my number one!"
"Good to know. I love you, Lizbeth! Meet you at 11:45 in Bill's office. Since I would like to have a little privacy the first time you come up to my new office. How about a private family tour Friday evening when everyone clears out for the weekend?"
"I love the sound of that! Then, 11:45, downstairs in Bill's office, it is. And Nathan, I love you, too, so much! Though I might have another fine dress or two you haven't seen," she added not so innocently.
She giggled as she heard his moan.
"Lizbeth, please go easy on me! Could you maybe not look so crazy beautiful and distracting in it?"
Elizabeth couldn't stop laughing, knowing her new clothes were working their magic on the man she adored.
"Poor Baby, I'll see what I can do!"
"Which means you're going to positively make it worse than ever on me, Babe!"
Elizabeth couldn't help but laugh.
"Maybe…"
Out on Rounds, Bill was both impressed and frustrated.
Finn was the salt of the earth in the Judge's mind, but these younger Constables had a way to go!
Since said Constables were lagging a little behind, the Judge decided to just come out with it.
"Finn, you've got what it takes, but we've got some work to do with these two younger ones!"
"Agreed, Judge Avery! They're fresh out of training, and I fully expected that. But they'll adapt to the real world soon. They're smart and committed. And they pick up things quickly. I think a little patience and you'll be shocked at the difference!"
"Hmph! Unfortunately, patience has never been one of my strong suits!"
Andrew and Zane rode up beside the two men.
"This land is stunning," noted Zane.
"And most of it I own! So, protect it well, boys!"
"You can count on it, Judge," assured Finn. "Zane's right. The land is really impressive. Where to next, Sir?"
"Straight ahead to Mrs. Haversham's farm."
"Is it true the Chief Inspector delivered twin calves yesterday morning before meeting the Deputy Commissioner?" asked Andrew, the animal lover of the two.
"True as true," answered the Judge. "In fact, the Chief Inspector asked us to check up on them, and that's what we're gonna do right now, Gentlemen!"
"Can't wait to see them!" grinned Andrew.
"I don't get it. How did he know what to do," asked Zane. "And why did he do it? I mean, that's not really something we learn in training."
"No, it's not part of trainin'. But Son, it's part of life. And that jumpin' cow of Mrs. Haversham's is pretty important to her. We are Mounties and that means we do the right thing, no matter what, even of it includes buildin' a fence or birthin' twin calves. Got it?"
"He built a fence, too?" asked Andrew, pretty impressed.
"I wouldn't know where to begin," admitted Zane.
"What the Judge means, Zane, is it's our responsibility to help when help is needed, whether it's in the manual or not. And we either figure it out or get help to make it happen. But no matter what, we get the job done. These are our people to care for, now. Understand?"
"Yes, Sir!"
Bill rolled his eyes; fairly certain Finn's lesson was far from over with these two.
"Better Finn than me," muttered the Judge under his breath, with a huge sigh and yet another eyeroll…
Nathan took a moment to admire the view from his office window, but only a moment.
He then quickly turned, pulled out his fancy chair, determined to adapt.
Still feeling somewhat of an outsider in his own office, he realized none of his personal things were out. Remembering the box brought over from his former Mountie Office, he rummaged through it, pulling out his carefully wrapped photos of Allie and him.
Setting the framed photos on the corner of his desk, he already felt better.
But suddenly, he realized he needed photos of Elizabeth and Jack as well.
The very thought warmed his heart, making him grin from ear to ear, as his 'family' was finally coming together.
What no one knew, not even the woman he loved, was that he had plans in place to make it all official real soon!
It was just there was so much going on with all these new developments surrounding his unexpected and highly visible, daunting promotion, he wasn't sure how he could work it all out.
But nothing had ever stopped him before, and this wouldn't either.
Being the methodical person that he was, he already had made several lists, which calmed him and made him believe all of it together really was somehow attainable.
He just had to figure out how…
While Nathan was getting his bearings regarding his new Chief Inspector's position and attempting to get used to his new Chief Inspector's Office, the Deputy Commissioner passed off his stack of Union City case records to Corporals Hubbard and Landry at the opposite end of the floor.
"Where are my two Corporals? Jacques, Peyton, I need you to review these top case reports from Union City in detail, starting now. And I want you to specifically search for any ways the cases might be linked. Also, if you see anything unusual that stands out to you, make note of that as well. Any questions?"
"When do you need these, Sir?" asked Peyton.
"No later than the end of the day, earlier if at all possible. Any other questions?"
"No, Sir!" the two men answered in unison, saluting their Deputy Commissioner, who informally saluted them back. "Get to it, gentlemen!"
They stood respectfully till Hal moved on to Alex's office next door, then immediately began dividing up the charts so that both would be able to track them by alternating stacks and review the entire caseload.
Next door, Deputy Commissioner Blevins knocked lightly on Special Sergeant O'Reilly's opened door.
"Getting settled, Son?"
"Attempting to. It's a lot, Sir, but I'll get it done!"
"Before I forget, will you please get a message to Judge Avery to come by here after lunch at 1 PM or so for a classified meeting with the Chief Inspector and myself?"
"Consider it done, Sir!"
"Thank you. You know, Alex, it would be a great thing for you to spend the morning on the secure phone line in the conference room with my own Personal Assistant, Sergeant Major Christian Bernard. He's the best, and not because he's mine. Everyone who meets him knows he's the best. And I need you to be the same for the Chief Inspector in order for this department to get off the ground in the way it must. Is that doable?"
"Of course, Sir! Can't tell you how much that relieves me. I'm a fast study, Sir, and I'll do my best by the Chief Inspector."
"I know you will, Son. Why don't you walk over to the Conference room with me, and I'll teach you how to use the secure phone and get you set up with Christian?"
"Yes, Sir!"
"There's a separate phone there for setting up the appointment with Judge Avery."
"Yes, Sir! I noticed that yesterday on our tour."
"Good that you're detail-oriented and proactive, Son! I can already tell you and the Chief are going to be a good fit…"
Lunch in the private dining room was delightful, but not as delightful as Emily.
However, a moment of honesty surprised even Nathan.
"Elizabeth, I can't tell you how lovely it is to meet you! I'm afraid our men won't admit they know this, but it's we women who have to be the strong ones."
"That's exactly what my mother used to say, though she is the wife of a businessman and not a Mountie! I'll admit, I've really struggled with all this. You see, I lost my husband, who was a Mountie, and because of that loss, I'm embarrassed to admit I ran away from Nathan for quite some time, thinking I couldn't risk that kind of loss again."
"I totally understand that, and I'm so very sorry for your loss!" assured Emily with such care. "It takes time to work through difficult things like that. They are life-changing!"
"Thankfully, I finally realized that no matter what happened, and God forbid the worst, I couldn't live without Nathan. Had I not learned to conquer my fear, I would have lost him anyway, and that was intolerable. I simply had to acknowledge my great love for him and honor it by being brave again!"
He reached for her free hand, tightening his own around it while lacing his long fingers through hers.
"Well, one look at the two of you tells me the struggle was worth it. You both are absolutely radiant!"
"They're a beautiful couple and an even more beautiful family unit with their two children, Allie and Jack, Emily," explained Hal.
"Oh, I must meet them!"
"They are priceless, and I cannot wait for the celebration tonight, though Jack will only get to stay for a while, as he'll tire easily with all the excitement," explained Elizabeth with a smile that Nathan was most thankful for.
"You Ladies should spend the day together tomorrow without us men to cramp your style," winked Hal.
"Oh, Emily, I would love that! We'll have the best time! I can show you the town. And I would absolutely love for us to just talk and talk."
"Sounds wonderful, Elizabeth! It's a date! I have to ask, is the town excited about the huge party tonight?"
"Oh, so very much!" assured Nathan. "The streets will be full to the brim!"
"I guess I should warn you, Son! We also have Mounties coming from the entire area and a few beyond! The parents of your new men are coming as well, though that's a surprise!"
"Does that mean Chief Superintendent O'Reilly will be coming too? I would love to talk with him."
"He and his wife should be here about the time the party starts! Patrick's hoping to spend some private time with you, too, Nathan."
"I can't wait to introduce his wife to you. She's in a very similar position to the one you are now finding yourself in, and I'm sure you will become fast friends!" assured Emily.
"I look forward to it!" smiled Elizabeth.
"Well, Ladies," teased Hal. "Look, your most beautiful tonight. It's going to be quite the evening and more fun than this town has ever seen…"
When the Deputy Commissioner and the Chief Inspector returned from lunch, Corporals Hubbard and Landry were anxiously waiting.
"Sirs, Peyton, and I worked through lunch to get our case review done if you have time to go over our findings with us."
Hal quickly deferred to Nathan, who had also reviewed the top cases.
"Let's go over as much as we can during the next few minutes before the Judge arrives. We'll go into more detail when we can schedule a longer block of time together. We would like a preliminary overview regarding your approach to make sure we are all on the same page in our process. Jacques, Peyton, give us a moment, and we'll meet you in the conference room."
The Corporals gathered their notes along with the case files, transporting them all into their meeting space for easy reference.
Both Jacques and Peyton were surprised to find Alex still on the secure line to the Deputy Commissioner's private assistant.
"Oops, sorry, Alex. We didn't realize you were still here," apologized Peyton.
"No problem, we're in the middle of breaking for a quick lunch, so I'll be out of your way," explained Alex, as he confirmed a call time for additional training after eating, then hung up the secure line with Christian.
As Alex came upon his Commanding Officers in the hall, he saluted, which they returned.
"Sergeant Major Bernard has been a tremendous help, Sirs! If it's alright, we're breaking for a quick lunch and will resume the training afterward."
"That's perfect, Alex. We'll be fine! Enjoy your lunch," assured Nathan.
As the two men stepped into the conference room, they did so professionally but not in an intimidating way, wanting their corporals to use this as a learning experience instead of feeling pressured to perform.
"Please be seated, Corporals, smiled Nathan as he and Hal took their seats, and Jacques and Patrick waited to be seated after.
"First, tell me how you went about this assignment," ordered Nathan, but in a cordial way.
The two corporals looked at each other, agreeing for Jacques to begin.
"We first took the records we had and randomly divided them into two equal stacks. Then each of us took a stack, and alternated so that we both reviewed all charts. We first worked alone, then combined our efforts and discussed."
"Do you have any questions about the records themselves," asked their Chief, giving them a huge hint.
"Why were these particular records chosen," asked Peyton.
"I'll defer to our Deputy Commissioner, who gathered the reports for our use," directed Nathan.
"I always review the top 3 cases wherever I go. In this instance, I asked for all additional cases that had any similarities, and that's how I ended up with this stack," explained Hal. "What would have been preferred?"
"A cursory review of all burglaries?" asked Jacques.
"Absolutely preferred, but not always feasible due to time. You have to consider subjectives as well. For example, how well do you know the team's strengths who's responsible for the cases, how intense was the review, did multiple people or just one person write up the original report, were there any classified reviews that perhaps should have been included, and the list goes on and on."
"The Deputy Commissioner makes a most valid point as you will be making snap decisions based on our staffing and time constraints, as well as prioritization of the cases. An advantage we'll build here with our internal review is that as you become more adept at inspection, you will each learn the other's strengths, as well as my own. That and our smaller number will allow us to eliminate a few more of the subjectives than most departments, yet we need to be aware that some will still remain. What are your preliminary findings?"
"We noticed that the businesses in the top three were all located within a 3.2km distance, and all the robberies took place between 9 PM and Midnight," offered Peyton.
"Good," nodded Nathan. "You've looked at location and time for top three, now you need to expand that to the additional cases to see if any of those fit."
"We found this odd, but the top three cases included second-hand stores being robbed: a consignment shop and two pawn shops," noted Jacques. "There were other cases with second-hand shops as well, but they were in outlying towns."
"I'd look at ownership of all the second-hand shops, including the ones out of town. But back to the first point: what would be a good reason for robbing second-hand shops?" asked Nathan.
"We discussed, thinking it was odd, but not sure, Sir?" answered Jacques. "There was more money there than we expected, though."
"If the perpetrator is wanting to fence the goods, as there were goods stolen in addition to the money, it's much easier to fence items that may have already been stolen than high-end items from the ritzy department stores, which can more easily be traced as stolen goods."
"Of course, I can't believe we missed that!" agreed a frustrated Peyton. "Makes perfect sense, plus they've already been circulating, so likely wouldn't be reported again as being stolen."
"Exactly," nodded Nathan, proud of his men catching on so quickly. "I really appreciate your getting back with us so quickly, but are you both sure you've caught all commonalities?"
The two Corporals looked at each other before their Chief Inspector continued.
"Write down every single detail of the case. And think about this: how were the robber or robbers successful at each of the locations? Think about that and consider all possible options! We'll delve into more tomorrow, so be ready! Spend this afternoon working on that with an open mind!"
The Corporals smiled at their Chief, realizing they had lots more work to do, and excited about starting.
"Thanks, Gentlemen! Don't forget to leave the office by no later than 4 in order to get ready for the party tonight. I'd appreciate your help in greeting the visiting Mounties and making them feel welcome throughout the night…"
Back in Nathan's office at the Deputy Commissioner's classified debriefing with his Chief Inspector and best friend, Judge Avery, the atmosphere was indeed solemn.
"I'm stunned that he's gotten this far, Sir," admitted Nathan. "It's sickening to think that one of ours could be doing such awful deeds within our force while pretending to serve with honor. I am, however, impressed and grateful for how much your team has been able to uncover, and in such a relatively short period, too."
"Don't forget you helped significantly with what you uncovered on Tuesday. That was a whole aspect of his empire we had zero knowledge of. Though my men are now fully aware. Your work, Nathan, has set off multiple undercover teams who are now exploring the gypsy angle throughout our country. I already have word they've uncovered two more caravans that Hargreaves appears to be involved with. There's no telling how many more we'll find."
The three men sat still for a moment, silent in their thoughts.
"Bill, you've been awfully quiet. What are you thinking?" asked Hal.
"I'm quiet because I'm furious when I think of the way this despicable man has treated our honorable Chief Inspector over the years! Hal, I had to serve as defense attorney for Nathan at a tribunal Hargreaves set up against him for basically doing his job well, just like with the cattle rustler situation I told you about. The venom he used against Nathan in both instances was disgusting for no logical reason that I could find, unless, of course, Hargreaves was taking kickbacks from the cattle rustling way back when, and Nathan thwarted that too, by doing his job!"
Bill was so angry that he had to pause before finishing.
"And now I find out this same Superintendent may be implicated in Jack's death? It makes my blood boil, and I don't trust what I'll say. There are just no words."
"He's pure evil, Bill. We already know that with what we've got. The problem is we need to bring down his entire team of fencers. And we can't do that if we arrest him now. Thankfully, so far, there's a direct link with only one Mountie in admin, but we can't be sure there aren't more. In fact, my team believes there are many more in the field. We have to make this monster tip his hand as to whom his cohorts are, or we can only resolve this operation partially. And we just can't risk doing that!"
"Sir, have you thought about the Jeanette Au Coin case, the rum-running that's taken place under Governor Balfour, and the recent shooting of Governor Bouchard?"
"How do you mean, Son?
"I believe all these things are somehow connected. Both Clayton Pike and the presumed male version of Casimir Shaw were extremely fearful, saying we didn't understand, that this person was so big, they had eyes everywhere, and that their lives would be worth nothing, not even a plug nickel were they found ratting them out."
"So, whoever this is, instilled inordinate fear via intimidation throughout this country?"
"That's exactly what I'm saying, and perhaps even beyond our own country, since, as you know, there are numerous Shaw connections to cases in the US – enough so to make him most wanted in both. But there's more, Sir!"
Nathan paused to collect his thoughts so they could be most easily understood.
"I've done some checking. And granted, our Governor in his life before politics and Hope Valley previously led a seamier existence, even influencing Miss AuCoin to partake in some criminal activity. But those crimes were nothing compared to what she's recently been accused of. What if Hargreaves and his minions were involved in the rum-running under Governor Balfour, whom they were successfully able to blackmail, AND are also involved in Governor Bouchard's shooting, trying to intimidate him to be receptive to blackmail?"
"I see where you are going. That makes sense, Son!"
"What if they are also the one blackmailing Miss AuCoin? See, Sir, I don't see Jeanette as a hardened criminal that would fit what we know of Casimir Shaw. I only saw a woman in love, desperate to recapture the attention of Governor Bouchard, the man she loved. What if Hargreaves et al. are also blackmailing Miss AuCoin, especially since he couldn't get through to our current governor?"
"But why would they try to blackmail a woman with no significant means?"
"First, they knew she was in love with the Governor and therefore might be able to reach him, but there's another even bigger reason! Second, and most importantly I did some investigating of my own, Miss AuCoin uses her French mother's maiden name as her own last name. In reality, she is heir to one of the richest dynasties in America, and it's a name everyone recognizes. Her father has a sterling reputation and is a philanthropist whose main purpose is doing great things for the world with the intent of leaving it a better place. What if Hargreaves is also blackmailing her, thinking he can access more and more of the family's billions? And there are billions. I know she's confessed to being Casimir Shaw, and I'm not sure why, unless it's just that she's so deeply hurt by Lucas not admitting his love for her, or that she's tired of being blackmailed, or both. Still, I simply don't believe she is Casimir Shaw. Not the real one, at any rate. I think the real Casimir Shaw is still out there, and my instincts say Hargreaves has attempted to partner with him…"