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Nathan & Elizabeth: An Epic Love
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Chapter Thirty-Seven
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Three Men & A Miracle
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"As your Commanding Officer, I wanted to meet with all of you one last time, now as a fully operational team, before I head back to Headquarters. First, I can't tell you, Bill and Nathan, the hometown boys, how much Emily and I appreciate the great warmth you have extended to us while we've been here in Hope Valley. Know that it hasn't gone unnoticed but instead is deeply appreciated and will be fondly remembered, as will the both of you, along with Elizabeth, Allie, and Jack. Know that you, both and yours, are welcome to stay with us whenever you visit us in Regina. And yes, it's safe to say there will be visits to our fair metropolis in your future! And yes, Bill Avery, that's an out-and-out hint to find a much-needed partner, as Emily and I worry about this bachelor status you seem to be confirming. In fact, I'm hoping these young Gentlemen here can help show you how it's done!"
Everyone laughed, including the Judge himself!
"So that's the first order I'm leaving with you. The next order pertains specifically to your new roles. Chief Inspector Grant has accepted a most daunting job that honestly is demanding, endless, and wearing. You are here to, first and foremost, support him in his many new and most important endeavors. And the way you best support him is to listen and learn, constantly finding ways on your own that go beyond what he asks of you. As you begin each work day, ask yourselves what have I done to fulfil my role to support the Chief Inspector the previous day, and what can I do today to go beyond fulfilling that specified role that will further assist and support him."
"Staff Sergeant Valen, Special Sergeant O'Reilly, Corporal Landry, Corporal Hubbard, Constable Morgan, Constable Taylor – all of you have been chosen because you are the best of the best in your various areas. And you are here in Hope Valley to be ultimately led by Chief Inspector Grant. I am challenging each one of you to become better, besting your own personal best. When you are able to do that, this team becomes totally unstoppable, and your Immediate Commanding Officer standing in front of you right now, with your stellar assistance, will be able to accomplish miraculous successes far and wide that the Mounties have only dreamed of previously!"
"But the fact is, he can't do any of this alone."
"It's all up to you in how you face each new day and what you do to become better and stronger in support of your Chief. That is not an option. It is a prerequisite for you to remain here. This is your challenge. If you have questions on how to accomplish that, contact my personal assistant, Sergeant Major Christian Bernard, who, better than anyone I know, will most assuredly help you without ever once breaking your confidence, not even to me. Another excellent resource I want to leave you with is Staff Sergeant Major Blake Hadley, who is the excellent personal assistant of Chief Superintendent Patrick O'Reilly."
"I've asked Alex to prepare a starting list of those names and private numbers for each of you as your primary resources for now. As you grow, if you find yourself needing others, we will see that you have them. Reach out to the resources every single time you have a question. That is what they are there for."
"This is not a drill. This is real life, and Chief Inspector Grant has inherited a robustly active quagmire of crime, and it's his job to stop it! Are you with him?"
"Yes, Sir!" answered each of the group in robust fashion.
"I know you are, and I, along with your Commissioner Donaghy, cannot wait to see what you accomplish as this new innovative team together! I am expecting great things from this mature group who has rolled up their sleeves and is already prepared to work like no other team out there. I am counting on each of you to make this the team that's known as the RCMP movers and shakers, the team that works together at new levels of excellence, pushing their leader out into new realms of success through their sheer dedication, always going a step beyond!"
"I have every confidence in your Chief Inspector, and he and I have every confidence in each and every one of you. Make us proud! And with that, until next time, may God pour out his abundant blessings upon you!"
The Chief Inspector's Team rose and saluted their Deputy Commissioner till he put them at ease, leading them in a rousing chant of the RCMP motto.
"Maintiens le Droit!"
"Maintiens le Droit!"
"Maintiens le Droit!"
(*91)
In a further show of deep respect, the Chief Inspector's team of men formed an impromptu honorary guard led by Staff Sergeant Valen, moving along behind the Deputy Commissioner, Chief Inspector, and Judge Avery, escorting them to The Queen of Hearts to retrieve his wife and Elizabeth Thornton, and Allie Grant, who were all accompanying the couple to the Train Station to see them off in style…"
What the Blevins hadn't expected was the entire town meeting them at the station to send them off as well, in addition to Hal's impromptu Honorary Guard.
Lee Coulter, the Mayor, presented the Deputy Commissioner with the Key to Hope Valley, along with a plaque of commemoration of the gifted Town Gazebo. But as a personal touch, since Rosemary had noticed the Deputy Commissioner's briefcase was rather worn, a brand new, even better one had been ordered to present to him.
"This is just marvelous. I simply haven't had time to replace my battered one! I will carry this most elegant one with pride and fond memories of all of you! This isn't a final goodbye by any means, as I will be returning to purchase some land, soon. I look forward to meeting with all of you who are now my new friends, but by then, hopefully, will be my old forever friends, just like this one here," as Hal nodded to the Judge with a warm smile.
Rosemary, the Mayor's wife, had a huge bouquet of hot pink roses, which she presented to Emily, as they were her favorites.
"On behalf of my beautiful wife, Emily, we thank you for your kind hospitality from the bottom of our hearts. What a wonderful send-off!"
"Elizabeth, Dear, don't hesitate to call even if you just need to talk! I've thoroughly enjoyed meeting you, and I dearly love that we've been able to grow so close over such a short time! I'll send you the information on the Mountie Ball Committee as soon as I return home!"
"I'll miss you, Emily. Thanks for all you've done!"
"And Inspector Alison Rose Grant," teased the Deputy Commissioner. "You're on my team any time and every time!"
"Yes, Sir!" and the two saluted each other as capably as any Officer to Officer salute.
Then he held out his arms and gave his youngest team member a huge hug!
"Can't wait to see you both again!" smiled Allie.
"Bill, Hal and I want you to come visit. Whenever you can!" smiled Emily.
"It's been great havin' you here, and I'm gonna miss you both like crazy! What a fantastic blast from the past and our present, because we three are forever friends. So, for the future, don't you two dare to be strangers!"
"Wouldn't think of it," smiled Hal, shepherding his wife toward their Train. "We'll be in constant touch about all this classified info, Nathan. As I get the info, I will see that it is all passed on to you, and then if you will pass what I give you on to Bill, I'd greatly appreciate that. Call if you need me to talk about anything. I'll try not to hover over you too much! But I'm always here when you need me. I have complete faith in you, Son!"
"Thank you, Sir, for everything! It's my distinct honor and privilege to have the opportunity to both know and serve with you!"
Then, to rousing applause as the Deputy Commissioner and his wife boarded, they turned and waved as the Train began to steam out of sight, waving till Hope Valley was now hidden from their view.
"Papa, do you have to go back to work?"
"I do, Princess, but we've got a big day planned for tomorrow!"
"We do?"
"How about a repeat trip to Buxton, but this time with the whole family in our new car!"
"Yes!" screamed Allie, suddenly growing quiet, realizing she had been a lot louder than intended and embarrassingly in front of Alex, too, as the impromptu Honor Guard was still close by.
"I take it that's a good thing?"
"That's a great thing!"
"Elizabeth, are you able?"
"Please, Mama!"
"Sounds thrilling to me. I wouldn't miss it for anything, and we all know Jack is a yes!"
"Looks like we have a family date! I'm sorry, I have to go back to work!"
"Not a problem, but there is one thing…" and Elizabeth reached to kiss him, not caring who saw.
"I love you, Nathan Grant."
"And I love you, Elizabeth Thornton!"
But for the first time, Nathan had spoken her name, something didn't feel right.
And then he knew.
He fully understood Jack would always hold a piece of her heart, and he was proud of that fact. Even if he could change it, he would still refuse to have it any other way.
But something was profoundly different now.
And suddenly, he knew what it was, though he had no idea when the transition had taken place.
In his mind, she no longer belonged to Jack.
Now, she clearly belonged to him…
Bill and Nathan walked back to their offices with their men as Elizabeth and Allie took off with the Coulters ahead of them.
With no surprise whatsoever, when they reached their various destinations, Bill walked on up to Nathan's office with him, nodding to Alex to not disturb them, then shutting the door behind him.
Neither man spoke, but as Bill tried out the various chairs and found his favorite, Nathan wandered over to the huge window, looking out, yet seeing nothing, instead deep in thought.
Thought that was so painful, it was numbing.
With Bill now content in his chair choice, he watched Nathan, his own heart, broken at seeing this good man's broken heart, not knowing how to help him.
"Hey, Son!"
Nathan hadn't heard him.
Finally, Bill made a decision.
"I suppose this is one of those times, 'if you can't beat 'em, join 'em,' applies!"
And so, he walked over to stand beside this man he loved as his own son.
The two men stood there together, neither speaking a word, but somehow, there was solace in their quietness.
And a solidarity with this unspoken battle the younger one had raging inside him.
If the truth were known, though to a lesser degree, the same battle was going on in the older gentleman who couldn't begin to understand why this senseless and most hurtful twist of fate even existed, much less had to be known.
Bill watched as Nathan remained still, unmoving.
The two men stood that way for at least a good ten minutes, neither moving, neither making a single sound.
Finally, Bill could no longer stand it, so he turned and picked up Nathan's direct line to Alex.
"Alex, the Chief Inspector needs Newton saddled and brought over. And I need the same done for Hero."
"Now, Sir?"
"Yes! As soon as possible."
Then Bill resumed his position at the window side by side with Nathan…
"Bill, I shouldn't leave the men."
"Your men are fine. I left them plenty to do. The fact is you are not fine. And we are going to ride, you understand me?"
Numbly, Nathan nodded, and the men mounted their steeds as though on automatic pilot and took off, neither really knowing where they were going.
They rode at a gallop till suddenly Newton slowed, as if he knew best what his master needed.
Bill was astounded.
"What do you know," he mused aloud, pulling Hero back. "These horses of ours really do know us better than ourselves."
Both men sat a moment, as Bill was not about to leave Nathan alone, not dealing with all this. If he needed his privacy, fine! The Chief could ask, and then the Judge would make himself scarce. But only then.
Otherwise, Bill was sticking to his son's side like glue until then…
The two dismounted at the same time, both heading in the same direction, walking quietly through the cemetery's squeaky gate, then on over to the spot where Jack was buried.
Bill and Nathan stood in front of Jack's stone, both saluting.
Bill spoke first.
"Jack, Son, this is my other Son. I get the feelin' you two might already know each other, but in case you haven't been formally introduced. I'm gonna do that right now. This is Chief Inspector Nathan Grant, Jack, and Nathan, this is Constable Jack Thornton. Two of the best men I know. Now, Jack, what we've got to tell you today isn't at all pleasant. In fact, we're quite sick about it, but if you don't mind, we're just gonna sit ourselves down and start from the beginnin'," began Bill.
The two immediately did just that - sitting down on the hard ground like having a conversation with a fallen comrade was the most normal thing in the world.
"We found out some tragic news today, and it's about your death, Jack. We read your journals, and like the great Mountie you are, you gave us everything we needed. And since I don't know how to sugarcoat this, I'm just gonna come out with it."
"You see, you were right, Son! Sadly, you were right. Hargreaves let you and your men down. There were no special forces, just as you suspected. That monster knowingly sent you and your men to your graves. He's a murderer pure and simple, Jack, and Nathan and I both took a vow today, that he will pay for that abominable act, and neither of us is gonna rest until that happens, you hear me?"
"Bill is right, Jack, we both are physically ill that this happened to you, and we vow that, along with Deputy Commissioner Hal Blevins, who is as sickened as we are, we will not stop until this man pays for what he did to you and your fine men. You aren't forgotten, Jack, and you never will be. But you see, there's another problem, and the truth is, I don't know what to do with it."
Nathan paused before he could continue.
"You know I've visited you before, and we've always been honest and respectful with each other. We've had to be because we both love Elizabeth, and we both love your son, Jack. But Jack, the man who murdered you in cold blood, put a knife in my heart today as surely as though he had taken my own life. And I can't let that happen because now I have to be here for our Elizabeth, our Jack, and for my Allie. But after what he said, I don't know how to do it. I don't even know if I can do it!"
Though Bill nor Nathan couldn't believe it, a red cardinal circled over them and Jack's grave.
Then the red cardinal perched on Jack's tombstone and stayed there for the remainder of this three-way conversation as if to say, 'I'm tangible proof that Jack is here, too, as an active participant. You may now proceed!'
"Before I share what he said, I need you to know, Jack, that I am not discounting the importance or impact of yours and Elizabeth's love, nor would I ever want Little Jack to not be here, or for that matter, even Allie. That's not what this is about. I desperately need you to understand that. But in addition to what we've just told you about Hargreaves, we are bound to keep all that from Elizabeth until the classified mission is completed. Which is protocol, as I'm sure you understand, so Hargreaves can be held accountable for all the evil deeds he's done. Still, I don't like keeping anything at all from her."
"But we agree, Nathan, in this, neither one of us has a choice. Jack knows it, you know it, and I know it!" interjected Bill. "It's the oath we take."
Nathan nodded sadly.
Bill reached and grasped his shoulder, supporting him in continuing to speak.
"Jack, Hargreaves said some nasty things that don't need to be repeated, but he told me I should have come to Coal Valley, back when he offered me the job the first time, that Elizabeth and I would have met back then. But I couldn't because my sister had just died, and that's when I took over care for Allie. What do I do with that, Jack? What do we do with that horrific information, which isn't a bit good for either one of us?"
Suddenly, four additional cardinals appeared, landing on the ground on the far side of Jack's gravestone, in direct line to Nathan, seemingly there to remain for the rest of this talk.
Then, a second lone cardinal flew in, perching itself right beside Bill and in a direct line with the singular cardinal perched on the tombstone, who was clearly representing Jack.
"Well, I'll be!" whistled Bill.
"What's wrong, Bill?"
"Absolutely nothin', Son! Don't you see? This doesn't change a thing!"
"What are you talking about, Bill?" asked a distraught Nathan.
"Don't you see it, Son, Jack is sitting right there on his gravestone, and that family of cardinals on the ground at the other end represents you, Elizabeth, Allie, and Jack, if ever I saw anything in my life? Why, it's as clear as a family portrait! The Grant Family portrait!"
"Next, you'll be telling me you'll be flying in as a red cardinal, too!"
"Nope, I'm already here," laughed Bill as he reached out and touched the red bird beside him before it joined the other cardinals on the ground beside Jack's tombstone.
"Son, don't you see? Jack is tryin' to tell us this changes nothin'! The fact of the matter is not a one of us can change fate unless Jack has some special angelic talent we don't have down here. And I'd say, by the looks of these cardinals, that he not only does but is usin' it right now!"
Nathan furrowed his brow, staring at the cardinals.
'Could Bill be right?' he wondered.
"It is awfully coincidental," he admitted aloud.
"Coincidence has nothin' to do with it! You and Elizabeth love each other, and Allie and Jack love you both. They already think of you as their two parents. And those two kids aren't gettin' any younger! Jack can't come back and remarry Elizabeth, nor be a father to Allie and Little Jack. But you can, Nathan! And if I'm readin' all this right, not a single thing has changed except a rotten piece of luck that opens up a huge 'what if!' But this is life, Son, and from where I'm sittin' what-ifs don't matter! 'Specially when they come from a crook like Hargreaves!"
Bill paused, then posed a question.
"Are you and Elizabeth gonna grieve over this 'what if'? Of course, you are! And so am I. But my advice to you is this: 'Don't let it upset a single plan of yours!' You understand me?"
"Bill and Jack, you both need to know this too. I planned to call Mr. Thatcher this afternoon and ask for Elizabeth's hand in marriage. And if he agrees, I had planned to propose this Sunday night. Don't you both see? I wanted this weekend to be at least the second happiest one in Elizabeth's life!"
Bill cackled.
"Bill! This isn't the least bit funny!"
"Hey, Jack knows I was around for the first proposal when our beloved Constable Thornton almost set the town and whole valley on fire with all his candles! Sort of like somebody else we know, if you get my drift! All I'm sayin' is cut down on the number of candles, Chief Inspector, and this might be the happiest weekend proposal she's ever had, right Jack?"
It was almost as if Nathan and Bill could hear Jack laugh.
That was when the cardinals started singing – a loud string of clear, down-slurred, two-parted whistles, speeding up and ending in a slow trill – just like Bill was leading the choir of birds, or perhaps it was Jack! (*92)
Nathan couldn't help but grin because miraculously, somehow, the heaviest impossible part of his burden had just lifted.
"You both are right! But keep this between us. I am proceeding with my plans exactly as I planned them. I'm calling Mr. Thatcher this evening for his permission to propose to his daughter, and the family is going to Buxton tomorrow for a family date, and at some point, I will share this 'what-if' as you call it, Bill, with Elizabeth, as gently as I can. Then, Sunday night, I am going to ask Elizabeth to marry me, and it's going to be the happiest night of our lives, in spite of all this mess!"
"Now, that's the spirit!" declared Bill. "See, Jack, I knew all three of us could figure this thing out…"
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91. "Maintiens le Droit," French for 'Uphold the Right,' the official motto of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police; the use was first advocated in 1873 and adopted 2 years later in 1875. Public Domain Information.
92." Cardinal's Song," both male and female cardinals sing; their song includes a loud string of clear down-slurred or two-parted whistles, which can often speed up and end in a slowed-down trill; typically lasts 2-3 seconds; syllables can sound like cheer, cheer, cheer or birdie, birdie, birdie or pew, pew, pew; the cardinal has long been believed to be a spiritual messenger sent by our loved ones in Heaven to watch over us. Public Domain Information.