A mountie to rely upon

by awdeano

This is the story of how Nathan rescued Little Jack and his visit to Fort Clay. He had to move on from Elizabeth and other new characters came into his life. They all avert catastrophe and they are forced to test how they feel now that we venture into season 9 and beyond. It's not going to be easy. I, along with the program's aim, try to arrive at a positive outcome for all of us.

49. Chapter 49

Carla was tied up with a forlorn patient who had needed to be given some understanding and kindness as he had been losing confidence and belief that he was going to get better, she had sat with him, consoling him until he had fallen into an uneasy restless sleep. Mrs Curtis was watching from the next bed, "you see Carla, you have a God given talent for helping people in need like this and it isn't given to everybody so it will be a shame if you choose not to follow it through" Carla always listened to her kind and caring words but now it was getting so hard after many months of living in the unknown and she was starting to worry that her work would be suffering with her constant inattention and lack of progress, she was engaged to be married and supposed to be happy but she felt as if she had nothing to look forward to in her life.

Carla looked around and could suddenly see the anguish on the nurse's face as she rushed headlong through the door, into the room, she could see to be extra careful and not to wake Carla's patient so she whispered but it was in a firm tone, "Carla, it's Les, I'm sure of it." She wouldn't joke about anything like this as she was one of the many people who loved him dearly, they had all cried for him after he had gone so abruptly five months ago. Carla stood up in a state of confusion and she felt as if all the blood drained from her head, "Carla, that bearded man they brought in, I'm sure it's Les." She was weak at the knees from too many disappointments in the last few months but she hurriedly regained composure. She was out of breath before she started as they raced frantically down the corridor and slowed down to enter the room quietly. Carla stood in the doorway almost too afraid to enter, she had not laid eyes on the bearded man before and now she had to be coaxed inside with Nancy's help to take a closer look, she could hardly breathe as stared at the man with the beard and she knew instantly, without doubt, here, lying peacefully as if to conceal his painful injuries, was the young man who she had grown up with and confided in him and only him, all her hopes and dreams for the future. He had loved her with all his heart and it was so unselfish that she didn't even know.

It was Les alright but he was only a shadow of his former self. He looked sick and malnourished and emaciated and he was probably suffering terribly since the beating from the accident. His face had a kind of serene appearance rather than the look of resignation and defeat like what she saw on him when she last saw him at the post office. She had virtually lost all hope of seeing him again as five months had seemed like a lifetime for her, not knowing whether he was safe and well and whether he hated her for the way she had treated him. She buried her face in her hands at the shock of seeing him like this, "what could possibly have happened to him, what if he doesn't wake up, look what I did to him. I was supposed to be there for him and I failed miserably." She had gone about her daily duties for so long with the look of resignation all over her face and there was little that her friends could do to help her. She could see why he had put himself in harms' way without a thought for himself, he obviously didn't care whether he lived or died and she knew who was to blame. She saw the graze on his forehead and she nearly choked with fright and wanted to die. She knelt down beside the bed and took his hand in hers, she was shocked to see him covered in bruises and he looked like he was just in an endless sleep.

There was so much she wanted to tell him, ask and beg for his forgiveness, she sat down after they brought her a chair and she took his hand as she wished she could have done every single day over the last five months. She realised by now that it should have been them planning their wedding and a future together, something that everybody else seemed to know except for her, she was going to sit with him forever just like at their park bench and she was going to tell him everything just like it was with them before. What had he been doing for the last five months, had he been able to leave Ringwood completely behind and start all over again or was there a place for us that would always be in his heart. She shuddered to think how he might react if he wakes up and sees her, he might wish to shut his eyes forever. She held his hand and she could feel the scar where the nasty cut had been and it had been forced to heal crudely by itself without her being there for him.

Rachael stood silently absolutely horrified and stunned at the injury racked man who she had loved so much but she knew his heart belonged to Carla, she couldn't speak or find any words for her best friend as seeing Les here in such trauma caused her to be in shock. She had not been fooled for one moment ever since she had seen Les's reaction to Rory picking up the apples for Carla and then she had seen him at the dance having to see Carla and Rory together. She could see how shattered he was at the post office and she couldn't believe how her best friend had just casually displayed her engagement ring to him without a second thought for his feelings. She was unable to say anything, even though she badly wanted to, as Carla either didn't know or she didn't care. She was devastated when he left but she could see that he had no other recourse.

He had set off for his new post at the earliest opportunity once his letter of transfer came through, he had requested anywhere and it didn't matter to him where they had sent him, or what he might have to do. It was bad enough for him even when he had company but the nights were unbearable as he couldn't get Carla out of his mind. He would see them looking starry eyed when they sat on the park bench, full of love for each other and when he saw them kiss on the balcony, it rocked him to the bone and then when he saw the engagement ring and rather, the way she had displayed it to him, it was like she didn't care for him anymore and he was just another person in the street and their friendship from the years past just didn't matter. He volunteered and accepted any task even if there was danger involved and he didn't care at all. It took him a long time to come to terms with it and he thought maybe it was for the better. He tried hard and he had genuinely hoped that she would be happy with Rory and that they would have a wonderful life together.

Two days and nights went by and Carla had barely moved from his side, nurses had to bring food and drink for her that she refused and pushed away and it was only when her good friends accompanied her bodily to her home that she accepted any help, she cried in their arms, "what would I do without you my best friends, you've all been with me when you should have cast me out with the trash. I don't deserve you all as friends but I know you won't leave me just like I will never leave you." The girls ran a bath for her and, as she sat by her dressing table in complete silence and deep in thought, they saw her do something that she thought that she should have done weeks if not months ago. She stared into space and, in the still of the night, she slowly and deliberately removed her engagement ring and put it on her dressing table and it looked like it was it was going to be forever. She said to herself that the only ring that would ever go on her finger again would be from Les.

Rachael put her arm around her and told her what she should have known long ago, "Carla, Les never ever had to have a date with you or any special occasion to fall in love with you, he just loves you for who you are," She was going to make a pledge with Les tomorrow whether he could hear her from the bedside or not. There were no tears, just a fierce determined look about her, she was never going to fail this man ever again and it would be a promise that she would give him first thing tomorrow. She had her bath and was soon ready to return to Les's bedside but the girls were insistent that she needed rest and some sleep if she could. She reluctantly accepted their instructions as there was three of them and only one Carla. "Les isn't going anywhere and the nightshift will look after him and you need to look nice for him when he wakes up." Carla had a horrible thought, "what if he had woken up and seen the ring on my finger, that would have been awful for him. Rachael, you saw me take it off, I should have stood up for myself weeks ago and taken it off back then."

Next morning she held her breath when she could see the flicker of an eye but that was all there was for the time being but at least it was a glimmer of hope that he was on the mend. She spoke to him and reminisced from their long days together over the years and she told him how she had loved it how he would sit with her quietly even when she was complaining about studying and finding it hard to get her head around everything. Suddenly he opened his eyes as he felt her holding his hand and he saw her sitting with him, he tried hard to speak but it was only a forced whisper and he was hard to understand, "I want to wish you and Rory all the very b…" he couldn't finish his words and he lapsed back into his sleep. She cried silently, she dearly wanted to tell him that it was all over between her and Rory and that he was the only one who she could ever have real true love with. One of the three girls, Rachael had sat with her and she had seen Les try to speak, "Carla, part of me died the day that he left and I thought that we would never see him again."

"He is so badly injured, malnourished, dehydrated and very sick but he is here and he is alive, some miracle has brought him back here to us and we are going to make him better and nurse him back to health with the love and kindness that he deserves which he hasn't had for quite a while. When he wakes up, he is going to be horrified to see the married woman by his side, the very nightmare that forced him to leave his home but I bet when you get a chance to talk to him and tell him what has happened, he will be glad to be back here even if he is suffering. I would bet anything that he has never stopped loving you all this time no matter where he was." She had an impish smile in amongst her tears as she said to Carla, "You know that I love him just as much as you do and I would have given anything to have him look at me the way he would look at you, I don't think that there will be anyone else for me in this whole world, there couldn't possibly be any one else like Les." She wiped a tear from her eye, "anyhow, I'm going to kiss him at your wedding like I've always wanted to and you will be a such a jealous bride."

Mrs Watson had only been at the hospital for less than two months so she knew nothing of Constable Les Graham so she was overcome with sadness when she had to comfort Carla and hear of how they were best friends for years and the circumstances why he had departed the town. "It seems Carla, that his love for you was much more than friendship and he couldn't handle life without you after you promised yourself to Rory, he must have left this town and his home broken-hearted." She noticed that the engagement ring was gone and that told her a great deal and that Carla must be going through hell with guilt at the moment. "Mrs Watson, he was my best friend and I discarded him like waste paper, I couldn't have been more cold hearted if I tried." They gazed sadly at Les just lying there and wondered what could possibly be going through his mind while he was sleeping, was it full of hate for Carla or did he still have room for some love for his former best friend.

A local phone call wasn't nearly so hard to achieve and soon Mrs Watson was talking to the Officer in Charge at the police station, "Sir, I need to talk to you about a former employee that you had, Constable Les Graham. I believe that he was one of your officers." He was hesitant to reply thinking that he hadn't heard from him since he left and he honestly never knew where he had been posted to, "yes, he was here and he was a fine officer and a nice young man, it was so sad that circumstances forced him to leave us." He was thinking that she was trying to find where Les had gone and he wasn't going to be able to give her an answer. Mrs Watson was glad of the official confirmation, "well sir, we are quite certain that we have him here in the hospital, he was involved in the rescue of a little girl and he sustained traumatic injuries and he is in a coma, you are more than welcome to come and visit if you are available sometime." He was full of thanks for the call and he said that he would lock up and be there in ten minutes.

He was stunned by Les's appearance but he recognised him immediately and he was grateful for the information that Mrs Watson could provide, he saw Carla sitting there and she had been the one coming regularly to the station hoping for good news but there was never any to share. He also noticed that the engagement ring was nowhere to be seen. He was upset that he couldn't do anything for him and he implored Carla and the nurses to do their best for him. He stood there quietly telling Les who he was and soon there was the odd moan from the patient and then a word came from his mouth, "Justine," he repeated it a few times and they wondered whether he had someone back in Laymond who loved him and would be missing him. Carla was taken aback and her heart quickened in shock as she never considered for a moment that he was going to love someone else other than her but five long months had gone by and he might have moved on after all and left her and Ringwood behind.

Carla lamented to Mrs Watson, "He's probably found someone who cares about him and told her how he had this awful experience with a woman who didn't care about him and he had to leave that wretched place behind and never go back there ever again, she's probably going out of her mind with worry. " Mrs Watson was not one for jumping to conclusions quite so quickly, she wiped the tears away from Carla's eyes, "let me make some enquiries and we'll see who this Justine might be, if she loves him so much then why isn't she here by his bedside like you are, there has to be some explanation and I will find out what it is." Mrs Watson asked for them all to be patient and give her a chance to contact Officer Roseberry again, "this time I will be able to tell him who Les is and how he was originally from right here in Ringwood."

Mercifully, the phone was answered at the first attempt and Officer Roseberry was grateful for a name to the face that had been so brave in the action to rescue the little girl. "Officer Roseberry, we are at least getting some reaction from him now, even though he hasn't emerged from the coma, and he seems to be asking for someone called Justine, is that anything or anyone that you can help us with please?" She was almost begging for a reply. His response was immediate and enthusiastic, "yes ma'am, that is the name of the little girl who he saved, with your permission, I would like to inform her parents of his whereabouts and we will all pray for his recovery."

Mrs Watson thanked the officer profusely and when she hung up the phone, she needed a quiet moment to herself to stop from crying. She thought to herself how she wanted Les to survive so desperately because he must be a most special man and he deserves the prayers of everyone. She pulled herself together and went and sat next to Carla. She spoke through her watery eyes, "Carla, I found out who Justine is, she is the little girl who was kidnapped and Les had a major part in saving her life." They cried in each other's arms. Carla cried to think that he was only asking for the little girl who was in danger, "it was just like him to care about everyone else except for himself." She grabbed his hand roughly, "what did you go through all that time while you were away, I'm never, ever going to let you go."

Carla sat at the park bench with Rory for the last time and he could see that her look was ominous, he had felt that this news had been coming for quite some time but it was still a shock for him and he was overcome and upset when she told him that she was actually breaking off the engagement and she promptly returned the bracelet and the beautiful necklace and his ring that she had preserved in an envelope instead of on her finger. She would have preferred not to have to have any explanation or discussion on her decision other than to say that Les had been returned and he was badly injured and her primary thought was going to be for him for the rest of her life. It was hard for her as she watched him as it wasn't so long ago that she was so madly in love with him and her future with him was assured. She was his fiancé and she owed him her reason why she couldn't marry him even if Les had not returned.

"Rory, I'm not going to be just a housewife as you would have preferred and I'm sure that my medical studies would have driven a wedge between us, I'm going to be Doctor Carla Pennington and who knows what the future may hold after that." She told him how Les had always impressed upon her that she was put on this earth to make a difference. "Les never stopped believing in me and now I don't care how long it takes but I will be there for him like I should have been before. He's only in this condition because of me. I will always love you Rory and you will always have a place in my heart." She gave him a goodbye kiss and after that he knew it was permanent. She left quickly before he could try to talk her out of it as she was more interested in telling Les that little Justine was safe and that her parents hoped that he could find the will to survive and that one day they could come to see him and hug and kiss him.

She sat with him all day and all night and anytime that she was reluctantly and forcibly persuaded to take some respite, she was never more than half an hour and she would be back again at his bedside. This last year was becoming a nightmare for her and she couldn't believe how she had actually fallen in love and be captivated with someone like Rory at the expense of her best friend and confidant, she hated herself for having such a wonderful time and she thought that she would never forgive herself. She was frightened at the thought of having to be confronted with a different Les, one who now would not be prepared to trust her after being hurt by her for so long. He might ask her what happened to her and Rory and she thought that she wouldn't be able to answer him properly as she really didn't know how it all happened, she knew now that it was all a mistake that she wished that she could undo.

A couple of days went by and Carla thought how he hadn't had a drink or anything for a long time and surely he must be seriously dehydrated or close to it, she never let go of his hand for one moment as she endlessly poured her heart out to him as she tried in vain to explain herself to him and some time or other, he surely must have heard her. He looked around with his eyes open only for a moment and he had no idea where he might be but he could remember the sight of a small herd of cattle rushing towards him. Carla had her eyes shut and had been squeezing his hand imploring him to forgive her as she struggled to explain how she could have done all this to him. She was just as passionate as ever pleading with him over and over again to find it in his heart to forgive her until she finally felt his hand move. She was so frightened with the thought that, as soon as he could stand, he would be trying to leave and get away from her again just like before.

The nurses came in to settle him down as he looked scared and worried from not knowing what had happened to him or where he was. He had heard Carla's voice and he thought that it must be a dream but it bothered him as he thought that he was past that part of his life and her persistent voice just brought back bad memories that he wished to forget. Now it all seemed so real as she was stroking his forehead and kissing him and telling him that he was going to be alright. He had a splitting headache and he moaned in pain and rolled his head from side to side, starting to wake up had brought the pain forward so anything that Carla said would have to wait until later. "Why am I being punished like this, I don't deserve this." He thought. They removed his filthy shirt which revealed severe bruising most probably from the cattle and they would have to wait to see if there was any internal damage and trauma. They had all gasped when they saw the graze on his forehead and how close he must have come to impending disaster.

He had no idea where he was and why he was here and one thing was for sure, he didn't look happy to see Carla even if it was only in a dream, he thought that he must be having his worst dream all over again, he lay there in pain with his eyes still shut and if he heard anything, he just ignored it and hoped that his bad dream would just go away and not torment him like this after all this time. His headache never subsided for a moment and his vision was blurred when he tried to open his eyes, he felt that he must be in a hospital bed somewhere but it bothered him that he could hear Carla's voice every now and then and that was the last thing that he needed. He eventually came to the realisation that he wasn't having a bad dream after all and that he must be back at Ringwood somehow and it was Carla who was sitting with him and trying to get him to remain calm. Her initial thought was for him, she spoke to settle him down as best as she could, "Les, you've had a bad accident and some very good people have brought you here to Ringwood so that we can look after you.

"We can tell you that you saved a little girl called Justine and she is back, safe and well with her parents, they want to know as soon as you are better." He showed relief at this news but to hear Carla's voice again made him think that he was going to have to relive those awful months and memories of someone else's romance all over again after it had taken him all this time to try and put it behind him. His eyes remained closed so she didn't know whether he had heard and understood or even paid any attention to what she was saying. He hated it here and it was like a nightmare for him to have to relive it all over again just when he might be getting his life back together. He struggled with his eyesight but after a couple of days it seemed to settle down, he remained unmoved partly because of all the pain but also being back here in Ringwood. He could now see again and he knew that this was no dream at all, all he wanted to do was leave Carla and Ringwood for good and never return.

He took one look at Carla and turned away and didn't even try to speak, his immediate thought, through his awful headache, was to get better as fast or even just enough so that he could go back where he had come from and say goodbye to Ringwood forever even if it was to be a struggle. She didn't blame him one bit for the way he looked at her, it was obvious to her that she was just a bad memory from the past and it hurt him too much to see her again. She thought that it might have turned out like this but it was a shock to her when it actually happened, he closed his eyes and fell asleep after one of the young nurses helped him with some water. He took no notice of anyone, least of all Carla. She felt like she now deserved to have the shoe on the other foot and her being on the receiving end of pain and suffering after someone you love ignores you. She felt a cold, frightening shudder when she saw that graze again on his forehead, it could only mean one thing and it meant that an inch the other way and his life would nearly have been taken from him.

Her three friends were unable to help her after this but they did get her back home for a short while as they thought that Les would sleep all night and that would actually be good for him, her eyes and cheeks were red from worry and crying, "How am I going to talk to him, I can see it in his eyes that he actually hates me with a passion and he is right to do so, I have really wronged him so badly, I'm sure that he won't want me anywhere near him from now on and I don't blame him." Those girls were her best friends and always would be, "we remember Les for the way that he was and he can be that person again, we know him, he's not the kind of person to hold a grudge, if you persevere with him Carla and he finds out exactly how you feel, then he may let you talk to him. You need to know how he felt during those months when you were with Rory and that may help us all understand what pushed him away." She refused to sleep at home for the night, instead she walked in the dark and was back at the hospital by his bedside sitting in the dark and that's where she was going to stay.

She was guilt ridden as she watched the silhouetted figure lying in a restless sleep in the dark and she thought that he wouldn't be there in this position if not for her, he obviously had no care anymore for his own welfare as she had pushed him away without regard for their friendship which should have been much more important than how she treated him. The nurses tried to cheer him up through the oncoming days but, being back here in Ringwood of all places only brought back the painful memories that had forced him away. He barely noticed Carla holding his hand and, even if he did , he never drew his away, maybe he was just too weak to bother and anyhow, his first and only aim was to be on his way out of here as soon as he would be able, it had been a shock and disappointment to find out where he had ended up after trying so hard to be away from here and Carla. "At least I'll only be just another patient in the ward with people looking after me who have probably forgotten who I was and don't care and anyhow, I can deal with that and, when I am able, I will be on my way and hopefully, for good."

He barely smiled or uttered a single word all day and night as his health got to gradually improve over the next few days and they were pleased how he could take some liquid and eventually eat something and then he was able to sit up with the help of the nurses even though that was a painful experience. Carla was still there but now his hand was no longer available to her and he still ignored her and said nothing. He was in pain but he didn't care, he had spent the last five months not caring whether he lived or died and now he was going to be confronted by it all over again. He lay there trying his hardest to ignore her and not even to take a glance at her, he couldn't bear the thought that she must be a married woman by now and a doctor but what hurt him the most was remembering how beautiful she was at the dance and not being with him. He didn't even bother to see her wearing her engagement ring which would now most probably have a wedding ring next to it. He had seen her once with an engagement ring on her finger and that was more than enough for his broken heart.

He had no business to ask but curiosity had got the better of him and then it just came out of the blue as he stared helplessly out into space and not even looking at her, "How did the wedding go, what do we call you now, Mrs Rory?" The hint of sarcasm coming from him was unmistakable and she had never experienced anything like that from him in all the time that she had known him and it hurt her to the bone. She was upset that she hadn't mentioned this to him already and now he had to ask her, but her concern for his health and welfare since he had been brought in to the ward had made her completely forget about it and anyhow, maybe by now, he didn't care whether she was married or not. She leaned over and put her hand right in front of his eyes so that he couldn't miss it, "Les, there was no wedding and I purposely avoided setting a date and I finished up breaking up with him some time ago."

She was starting to get a full head of steam as she owed him the heartfelt explanation that he deserved, the tears in her eyes started to form again as she got two nurses and an orderly to help her place him into a wheelchair even though it hurt him like the devil, "come on Les, you've been in here long enough, it's time you got some fresh air and some sunshine," She knew that he wasn't in any condition to be put into a wheelchair as he was barely able to sit up but Carla had things to tell him that could wait no longer, and with that, despite all his groans and grimaces, she was able to wheel him outside into their nice little gazebo set nicely in the little courtyard out the back. She needed to be alone with him and far away from other patients back there in the room. She was frightened that he wouldn't even want to listen or he would say that it was all too late and he just wanted to get better and hurry up and leave this place forever. He was still quiet and subdued and in even more discomfort now, but her words about breaking off the relationship with Rory did not go unnoticed even though he wasn't sure whether he had heard it correctly. He actually felt really sorry for her that things mustn't have worked out for her, "how could that possibly have happened, I've never seen a couple as happy and so devoted to each other as what they were, I can't imagine what must have happened with them, she deserved to be happy." He wanted to ask he what had happened but he was in constant pain and any speech was forced.

She knelt down beside him and took his bruised arm forcibly, "Les, if you never want to speak to me ever again, I wouldn't blame you and I'll understand. What I did to you was completely unforgivable and insensitive and I don't deserve anyone like you to love me. I wake up every day and wish that I could take it all back and none of it ever happened." His arm hurt even more cause she was squeezing it far too tightly and she was starting to sob, "I've got no acceptable explanation for how I was, except to say that I must be just like any susceptible and impressionable girl who got caught up in the glitz and glamour of romance and none of that is any excuse, I know that I hurt you and I'm so , so sorry. I know you probably don't even want to be here but you have to know, it was terrible not knowing where you were, I prayed for you every day that you'd come back." She put her head on his lap and started to cry.

He was stunned to hear her pour out her heart in a confession and he hated to see her in distress. He gently put his hand on her shoulder and he tried to speak but it wasn't much more than a whisper, Carla had to strain to try and hear what he was saying as his accident had taken a toll on his voice, he was determined to try and say something to her, "I saw the way you looked at each other with such love in your eyes, you kissed him on the balcony at the dance and then you showed me your engagement ring. I decided then that there was no place for me here anymore so I left and I was never going to return. You never looked at me the way you looked at him and it broke my heart." She knew that she had hurt him but now she realised how deeply he was hurt, he was destroyed and it forced him to leave his home that he loved. She never imagined that he would have seen her at the time when she went out onto the balcony and now she was turning white and she started to feel sick and lightheaded, while she was accepting a proposal of marriage, he was all alone in despair on the park bench. This was the young man who she had confided in over the years and now she had been responsible for treating him like a worthless outcast. She remembered how callous and uncaring she must have seemed when she told him that Rory had proposed that night on the balcony and that she had accepted.

"Les, I was never going to marry him, it took me all that time after you went away to realise why, he wasn't you and I could never marry anyone else." She looked up at him through her crying eyes and he could see the love in her eyes after all the agony and finally this time, now it was all for him. He put his two arms around her and hugged her tightly even though it hurt, fate had brought them back together and now they were to share a love together and this time they would make it right. He was too much in shock to shed any tears. He couldn't believe that she was looking at him with the love that he had been so jealous of before he left. She screwed her nose up at him, "Every girl wants a knight in shining armour, I already had mine and you were there all the time and I didn't know it, I so badly want to kiss you but I'm not going to with all that mess that you have all over your face," she was trying to make a light-hearted moment but it didn't work and she was close to crying again. "I'm afraid Les, it's all coming off tomorrow, you look like a shaggy dog."

She started to wheel her man back inside." He was dizzy with confusion and he was too frightened to try and comprehend everything that she had said to him. It had been more than eight months or more since he had seen Rory pick up the apples and he had gradually been forced to accept that Carla was lost. Now he was thinking that he was hearing that it was all different and she wasn't lost after all, he felt sick and injured and he was in great pain and the Carla who he was seeing now was not the same one who he had seen day in and day out who was head over heels in love with someone else. It was all too much for him in his condition to absorb as he had been hurt far too many times over this last year and he remained withdrawn despite what he was hearing.

She could see that it was going to take a long time for him to accept what she had told him as this entire episode had taken its toll on him, she knew that she had to be patient but, at least he had listened to her and not shunned her after all this time. She remembered how he was so immaculate and so handsome and now his head and face was covered with long matted hair and scruffy beard and he looked awful, "Les, we're going to bring you back to how you were and I hope that you can fall in love with me again, "I want you back like before." and then she stopped and knelt beside him in tears, "I'm afraid to hold you Les, I think that I may never let you go. I thought that I'd never see you again and I nearly got you killed." She cried as she remembered not so long ago, Mrs Curtis telling her how things had a hand in working themselves out and she was right. He took her hand and he felt where her ring would have been and now he could see for himself that there was no longer any sign of any engagement and she wasn't a married woman. She looked at him with the loving look that he had yearned for, "It was the answer to every prayer that I could have, asking for you to come back so that I could tell you how sorry I am, I love you Les, I have always loved you, I just didn't know it." She hugged him and it hurt, "It's you Les or it's nobody for me."

It was cruel what they had done to him, forcing him to be placed into the wheelchair in his current state but he could somehow understand. A massive weight had been removed from his shoulders now that he had been given a few minutes to sit quietly and grasp it all before being dragged back into the bed where he would remain during his long recovery. He had sat there with his head in his hands chocking back the tears and hoping desperately that it wasn't just another dream which couldn't possibly be real. It had to be real because Carla was sitting next to him with her arm around him and she said that she was never going away.

The weeks went by and Les slowly improved, he was lucky from his brief but catastrophic encounter with the rampaging cattle, he was kicked and bumped heavily out of the way rather than trampled and that would have been the only thing that would have saved him. If he had been trampled and trodden on when he was down, the outcome might have been different and it would have been tragic. The young nurses gasped with delight when they saw his face without the awful bushy beard as they weren't here at the time when he was the resident police officer so they had never seen him before. The shaving and the haircut had been a painful experience for him as he had sustained severe bruising to his face and head compliments of the cattle rushing past but the nurses found him to be very handsome. They had taken their time with it as he wasn't ready to be sitting up yet and they felt so sorry for him when the razor hurt him, it took over three days of toil but he started to look like he had done and he reminded Carla of the times she would see him riding on his rounds on his horse.

Broken ribs were going to take time to heal but he dutifully began his lengthy rehabilitation which included getting his life back together with the girl who he loved. He had all the time in the world to recover and he was still trying to process what Carla had told him out on the gazebo but he couldn't understand why her relationship with Rory had disintegrated after it had looked so perfect every time he had seen them together. Rachael and the others would fight over who was going to help feed him his dinner and they teased him about having to be fed like a baby and he just had to put up with it, he certainly wasn't about to be going anywhere just yet, he knew that it was all in fun but he could see the love that they had for him. Rachael would steal a kiss every now and then as he was in no condition to resist, "Les, we all died a little when you left and us girls knew why, but you're back here with us now and you will be better soon and you and Carla can move on but, always know that we all love you." The more embarrassed he looked and felt, the better they liked it.

He was the happiest when he and Carla would sit together outside in the courtyard in the morning sun, she would have her head on his shoulder and sometimes they were just content to be together and nothing would be said at all. The nurses could be seen peering through the curtains at them and they were thinking that finally, things had been set right after some awful months, Mrs Watson saw them and wondered why they weren't on the job but she understood when they showed her what they were looking at. She smiled at them and hugged the three of them as she had found a soft spot in her heart for Les. She was happy for Carla as she had seen what she went through and how she had suffered every day while Les was away.

Carla sobbed repeatedly in Les's arms and there was so much that she wanted to ask him but she was too frightened to make any mention of it. She had been able to understand how he had felt prior to leaving after having the love of your life promise herself to someone else which was something that she couldn't bear to imagine. She could still see the hurt in his eyes as well as the relief that it was finally all behind them but she knew that the scars were to remain with him possibly for years. There was far more to it than his accident. He never asked her much about her time when he was gone and he never mentioned anything about what he had done and where he went so suddenly.

He had many questions and thoughts running through his head every single day, leaving the town did not make it any easier for him and trying to put Carla out of his mind was next to impossible. He wondered whether he should have stayed and not taken the easy way out, had he panicked at the thought of the engagement and how it had driven him out of his mind, to see them together every day was becoming a nightmare for him. He had a good job and was well respected in the town so he had every good reason to stay and make the best of it. What if he got an invitation to the wedding, he nearly fell over at the horrible thought of sitting in the pews of the church and seeing her get married to someone else, he couldn't possibly go through that and what would he say to get out of it and having to go to the dance again and see her there, maybe as a married woman, it would be completely out of the question.

Even when some months had gone by, he still didn't have any answers to any of his questions, he wondered whether she had even taken any notice that he had gone or whether she was too involved with Rory and all the wedding arrangements to care about where he might be. She had barely given him the time of day for months so leaving Ringwood had been the right decision as far as he was concerned. He could still see the nonchalant look on her face when she displayed her engagement ring to him, after all our time together, she never cared for one moment how he might have felt. By now they must have had the wedding as he imagined that it would have been arranged soon after the engagement, they would have had their honeymoon somewhere and been back just in time for the next fundraising dance in the town hall. She must be happily married and now a wife and maybe their first child might be on the way. All her studies must have been completed by now and she must have had her graduation ceremony and now she is a doctor in the community. He thought, "I must be a distant or even a forgotten memory by now, if that, and I would not be in anyone's memory anymore but I miss her terribly." He had little regard for his own welfare or any future so he had no problem with facing any danger, if he met his end then, at least the nightmare of not having Carla in his life would be over.

He had taken on a position in the little town of Brantford and there was an office where he worked as a subordinate to a sergeant who was waiting out his time until retirement. He had put in for a blanket transfer and he hadn't cared where he would be sent, the sooner the better. This place was about two hundred miles away from Ringwood so it suited him just fine and he could leave Carla and Rory to their matrimony without him being anywhere near there. He had got out of the post office as quick as he could and he opened his letter hastily on the way back to the station just before the rains came. He had just been shown Carla's engagement ring so, if the kiss on the balcony didn't convince him then that certainly did. He quickly looked up where Brantford was and very soon after that, he was on his way even though it was raining heavily.

It took him ten or more days to get there with battling the inclement weather but it eased from then on. He was grateful to the people along the way who gave him and his horse shelter and now he was thankful that he had left Carla and Rory and Ringwood far behind forever. It didn't take him long to run out of bandages as his wound was still bleeding but there was a kindly lady in one place who did her best for him, "you really should have this looked at by a doctor." Unfortunately, that was the furthest thought from his mind, he never wanted to see a doctor ever again. He was sorry that he had put his horse through the awful weather but he couldn't have stayed there a moment longer. He told him how they were starting a new life together.

It was not much more than a one street village but their district to look after was sizable. The sergeant found Les to be a likable young chap and he wished that he would be a bit more free and easy rather than withdrawn. He often tried to talk to Les about the times that he would unnecessarily place himself in precarious positions without a care for his well-being but somehow, he didn't get very far with him. He was sure that Les was having some difficulty and was and trying to come to grips with something in his past. When the time of the kidnapping came around, the request for assistance came through and Les volunteered immediately without even finding out any details. The next thing that Les knew was when he awoke in the hospital bed in Ringwood.

She was relieved to know that there had never been any hatred in his heart for her and that it was only seeing her again that brought the heartache and bad memories flooding back. He must have thought that she was married when he saw her when he woke up, "That must have been dreadful for him." She cried a lot in his arms and she couldn't help herself, it hurt his face when she kissed him and his ribs hurt when he hugged her so tightly and it all told a story for them, she could see that he must have gone through hell and not having her by his side, she thought that she may never know the full story of his five months away but she had him here now and, with her help, they would have the life together that was destined for them.

He remained determined in his hospital bed with renewed hope that he was going to get better and that he had to regain his strength after being battered and bruised and severely dehydrated after his accident. He didn't look too bad actually for being grossly underweight but he was still so weak that he had difficulty taking a few steps and he nearly stumbled so walking was put on hold for quite some time. Sometimes in the evening all he wanted to do was hold Carla in his arms and when they were on their own, she could feel him gently sobbing. He still could hardly believe that she was here with him and none of the things that had frightened him to death had happened after all. Even though it was all in the past, he could still see the engagement ring on her finger and all the agonising visions that he could still see like when she was at the dance and how she was so happy to be with someone else, truly, it was in the past but it would dwell in his memory for a lot longer than he wished.

With perseverance with Carla, who never left his side, he eventually walked again totally unaided as he had refused to even look at the wooden walking stick for assistance. Every time he stumbled, she would be there to support him especially when he felt that his rehabilitation was taking longer than he wanted. He seemed to be much happier now as he had been able to manage the demons from the past and he could now see that he was on the way to a full recovery and he was making Carla very happy with each day that he would be on the improve. They stayed together in the courtyard mostly as they were happy to leave the park bench in the past and it could stay there forever for someone else to use. A young trainee nurse was very excited one afternoon and she came hurriedly to thank Carla for all her help and guidance because now she had finally achieved her qualifications as a nurse and she couldn't be happier.

She proudly displayed her certificate that she had worked so hard for and Carla told her that whole life was now ahead of her and don't waste it, make sure that you do something good for someone every day. As the jubilant young nurse left, Les could see sadness and a great deal of reflection in her eyes and it was for a subject that had never come up since he had been back. He put his arm around her as they sat close together and he noticed that the sad but thoughtful look on her face was not going away. They had kept a lot of their separation to themselves but, now that he was getting better, he started to ask her things as carefully as he thought he could. He told her how he thought of her every day and how he had wondered whether she was happy, being a married woman and being a doctor and how he thought that she hadn't cared for a moment that he went away.

She cried in his arms at how he must have thought all this and she said how he couldn't have been more mistaken, "I haven't touched or gone near my studies since before you left, I was so smitten with Rory and I am so ashamed to say how I neglected my best friend and my work right from the beginning. I will always have love for him but I eventually realised that he was never going to be able love me the way that you do, you were always there for me and you always gave me the confidence that nobody else could and now I'm worried that I can never find my way back. I'm so happy for that young nurse and her certificate but I'm sad to think that my chance has come and gone forever. I told Mrs Curtis how it seemed that Rory must have been right all along. I'm going to be so sad when I have to leave the hospital for ever. Anyhow, the only thing that I care about at the moment is getting you all better and kissing you all the time whether it hurts you or not and telling you how much I love you." She cried as she was always apologising to him and it was driving him to distraction. "I forced you to leave your home and I nearly got you killed." He thought that his ribs would never heal properly if she kept on hugging him so hard.

He had wondered whether she had cared that he had gone when, in actual fact, she was actually shattered and her studies had gone out the window and they had already been neglected. She told him how she had only hung on to her relationship with Rory because now that Les had gone, she would probably have no alternative but to settle for becoming a housewife and her dream of being a doctor would be lost forever. Les was horrified at her thoughts and how desolate she had been for those five months. He was normally very calm and considered but now he became very intense, "I will never believe that in a million years Carla, Rory had no right to take that away from you but now all that is behind us and I am recovering better than I thought I would, I will make a deal with you if that's okay. When I can ride a horse again, I want to sit with you and help you make a start on your studies again and who knows, one day you may like to be called Doctor Carla Graham." For Les, that was meant to be a light-hearted comment but inside, he was angry at the thought that she had lost her will to study for the dream that she had ever since he knew her, he could see the look of resignation in her eyes, she had lost a lot of confidence from not having him around for the support that she needed but he was determined that he would change all that, "when we were growing up and we were together all the time, I never realised that it was love that I had for you and that's why I had such a hard time when you were with Rory." She kissed him again and again and then she lay smiling in his arms and repeated over and over again, "Doctor Carla Graham," she started to regain some belief in herself that she was now going to be able to make it happen with Les by her side. She thought how this was the first time that there was any mention of marriage and she was quite happy to lie peacefully in his arms.

It took a month or more and despite him pestering her that he was ready even a week ago, Carla wouldn't let him anywhere near a horse so he just had to wait, "My studies have waited this long, another couple of weeks won't hurt," she said firmly. They were both in a much better frame of mind with each other and life by now and the past was starting to be relegated to just that, and now they were ready for their future. There was still some unfinished business and Carla went to Mrs Watson and she didn't hesitate for one moment to make some enquiries on her behalf, she couldn't promise anything but she said that she would do her best for her.

Les was getting impatient at having to wait around all this time as he had been around horses all his life and he felt well enough and finally Carla consented. She had phoned the police officer who came along for support and he saw Les look around for the horse that he was supposed to be riding, He came from around the corner and Carla was there to support Les who now got the biggest surprise of his life. He looked in disbelief at the horse and then at Carla, "Jaffa, I never thought I'd ever see you again." He still couldn't believe it as he patted him and everybody could see that Jaffa knew that he was back home for good. Carla had tears in her eyes, "all the people at Brantford looked after Jaffa for you and they took care of him hoping that you would survive and see him again, they did this for you Les."

He patted his horse again and slowly and carefully and gingerly mounted him again just like many times before. "Jaffa, you need to be easy on me because I'm still getting better." Carla smiled and whispered to the nurses, "I think he is the happiest when he is on his horse and parading around the town." His recovery was just about complete and now it was going to be Carla's turn, he would sit with her and be a sounding board even though he had no idea what she was talking about but he could see the sparkle in her eye was coming back just like he remembered and now she was confidently facing the challenge of her studies head on just like before.

He felt good and he thought that his recovery was finally complete but every now and then he was reminded that his injuries had been extensive and his body told him that he still had some healing and recovery to do. He could get around on his horse quite well but walking did tire him out after a while but he was never dejected at any time. He was so pleased to be able to watch and listen to Carla confidently rattle off paragraph after paragraph of questions and answers and she would continually say how she owed it all to him just being there for her. It was all just meaningless spiel that must mean something to someone but it didn't mean a thing to him. He looked anxious and out of sorts one day when he was finally back in his uniform and he entered the hospital and stood silently in the foyer wondering where Carla might be. Rachael and the others were stopped in their tracks as they hadn't seen him in his uniform since before he had left so suddenly back then. He looked so handsome just like before and they knew that something was up.

This time when one of the nurses went to get Carla, it was all smiles, "Carla, I think that you need to come with me please." This time there was no urgency and they just wandered along the corridor to the main entrance, Carla gasped as she saw him in his uniform and she ran to his arms and looked at him in amazement. Les smiled at her, "Carla, I couldn't think of a better place to do this," he got down on one knee still with some difficulty and he produced a ring from his pocket, "Miss Carla Pennington, would you honour me by marrying me and becoming Doctor Carla Graham." The girls hugged each other and held their breath for what seemed like an eternity. He waited for her to stop jumping up and down and say, yes, then he slipped the ring on her finger and she nearly fainted. Rachael watched him kiss her and she reminded herself that she was going to keep her promise that she had made to Carla.

They talked of marriage and they looked forward to it but Les held back from setting a date with her until he was completely mobile and healthy, he had baulked at the thought of getting married in a wheelchair or with a walking stick, that was never going to be acceptable and Carla understood. The town had welcomed him back with open arms and he resumed his position at the station which had never been filled, purposely by the officer in charge who had always hoped that Les would return someday. The townsfolk looked in awe and they never took it for granted that their beloved police officer was back with them to stay. Carla had to smile as she watched Les respectfully refused an official welcome back ceremony as he had said that all he had done was to cause a great deal of heartache for everyone and he would be grateful if he could put it all behind him. He reluctantly accepted an invite with Carla to a dinner but he didn't realise that the entire council were there as well.

Carla and Les were married in a little chapel and they had a quiet little ceremony and the reception was in the adjacent hall at the same place in town. This was how she had wanted it to be as she didn't want it to resemble in any way, the massive wedding ceremony that she had dreamed of at the time of Les's departure. She had got herself swept up in such an extravagant wedding day and honeymoon and just the memory of it made her feel quite ill and guilty. She wanted to put as much distance between herself and that time in her life and now she wished to consign it to the distant past. It was a lot for her to have to put behind her and she had to continually remind herself that she was only human. She would tear up as she would now look at her engagement ring that she had stared at everyday which now had a gold band next to it and that's where it would stay. Carla was really and genuinely happy this time because she had got dressed up and had her visit to the hairdresser and this time, it was all for Les.

Rachael had told the others of her promise and they weren't about to be left out, she lined up the unsuspecting groomsman and wrapped her arms around him tightly and slowly planted her lips on his and refused to let go, she looked at him lovingly and there was no mistake of her love for him. There was no time for contemplation as two other lady nurses hurriedly lined up for their turn and they had seen how it was done. Carla had smiled when Rachael had made her cheeky threat back at Les's bedside but now she had real mixed feelings because she could see how heartbroken Les must have felt when he had seen her kissing Rory. She had to admit to herself, she didn't like it one bit. From now on Les would be her first thought of the day and the last when it was nighttime and the day would come to an end. The police officer in charge made a long awaited heartfelt speech to them and the group as he set about proposing a toast to the bride and groom, and he said passionately, that he had never felt so heartbroken but now, being here to see Les and Carla married was the best day of his life.

Later in the evening, compliments of some work and a request done by Mrs Watson, they had a visit from a mother and little daughter who had come from many miles away to see and wish the man well who was getting married, who had saved her life in her hour of need. The room fell silent as everybody stopped and looked around to see the shy little girl enter with her mother and Mrs Watson's guidance. She looked at Les timidly, without saying a word while clinging tightly to mum. Mrs Watson took her hand carefully and she held back some tears, "Constable Graham, this is Justine and they have come all the way from Melton to be here with you and Carla tonight. She had a little bow of flowers which she gave to Carla who knelt down and kissed her gently and she had a little card that she had made with mum's help, it had a drawing of a man and a little girl and all it said was, 'thank you'. Les knelt down in front of her and she managed a smile and he gently touched her on her shoulder. She was still too young to know who Les was but the mother, who was trying so hard not to cry in front of everyone because she could see this very handsome young man standing here, who nearly lost his life saving her daughter, she was going to make sure that she would never allow her daughter to ever forget him.