Chapter 6

Union City, Alberta Canada

Wednesday October 8, 1924

Balfour sat reading his morning newspaper as he sipped on his steaming hot cup of black coffee. The headline had Balfour chuckling. "Governor feared dead in Plane Crash." This is the kind of headline I like seeing, Balfour thought to himself. Johnny Barker then took a seat at Balfour's table.

"I assume that headline pleases you?" Barker asked Balfour with a wick grin on his face.

"What would please me more is seeing a headline confirming that he's dead." Balfour said coldly.

"Soon enough, Bix. I'm sure of it. So maybe I will stick around and you can give me a job in your new administration. I can be in charge of pest control." Barker said finding himself funny. Balfour gave him the side eye and stood up to leave. It did not do him any favors to be seen in public with Barker during this time. As he started to walk away a group of reporters came up to him.

"Mr. Balfour, do you have any comments on what happened to Governor Bouchard?" A reporter asked.

"Hmm, I feel very sorry for the Governor's young family but I want to assure the people of Alberta that I will be here for them in the event that the Governor did indeed perish in that tragic plane crash. Governor Bouchard has always been a bit of a daredevil and it would seem this time it has caught up with him. I will have no further comment at this time out of respect for the governor's family. Now if you will excuse me." Balfour said as a small smile settled on his face as he left the reporters wanting more.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Hope Valley, Alberta Canada

Wednesday, October 8, 1924

MaKayla sat alone at her kitchen table sipping her tea. The Mounties were still looking for Lucas and Andrew. Alex was still flying search runs looking for them from the skies but still nothing. It had been five days since the plane crash. MaKayla thought for sure that they would have found them by now. How were they surviving out there? She knew they would be resourceful but what if they were really hurt? Although she would never admit it to anyone else her optimism was starting to fade.

MaKayla got up and went to look out her back kitchen window. "Oh Lucas, where are you, my love? We need you to come home." She said aloud as she gently caressed her abdomen.

She missed her children and wondered if perhaps she should have Mrs. Cleveland bring the twins to Hope Valley. She had no idea how much longer she would be away. They had never been away from them, both at the same time, for this long before. She sat there totally perplexed as to what she should do. She hated just sitting around. There had to be something she could do help but what? Her heart still told her they were alive but how much longer could they last out there. She would not let her mind go to that dark place, it would serve no purpose, she chided herself.

Just then her telephone rang. She got up to answer it hoping it was good news about Lucas.

"MaKayla, it's Carson Shepherd. Any word on Lucas and Andrew today?" He asked hopeful

"No, nothing yet. Everyone is out looking and Alex is flying search runs over the area but the tree cover is still so dense he hasn't been able to spot the plane yet." She told him sadly.

"And you? How are you holding up?" Carson asked concerned.

"I'm tired and of course worried but I haven't given up. I might have our nanny bring the children to Hope Valley. I miss them so much and I know as soon as Lucas is found he will want to see them." She told him with a hint of melancholy.

"MaKayla, I'm sorry to ask this but I'm kind of in a difficult spot here. Mark Wainwright was supposed to assist me with a difficult surgery later this afternoon. Unfortunately, he is really under the weather and can't operate. I was hoping that maybe you would be willing to assist me?" Carson asked.

"What kind of surgery is it?" MaKayla asked.

"A colectomy." Carson told her.

MaKayla had seen many abdominal wounds during the war where a colectomy had to be done. "Of course, Carson. It would be my pleasure to assist you. What time do you need me at the hospital? She asked him

"Surgery will begin around 3." Carson told her.

"I'll be there. And thank you Carson. I need a distraction and this will definitely do it." MaKayla told him. She wondered if Mark Wainwright was actually sick or Carson was just trying to help her keep her mind off her current situation. Whatever the case she was grateful to be useful to someone else even if she was doing nothing to help located her husband and brother.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Lucas awoke to the sun shining on his face. The sun felt like a welcome relief given the cold, wind and rain they had been dealing with. Lucas stretched but there was not a part of his body that didn't hurt, he thought. His leg still pained him greatly but there was nothing to do for it but to push on.

Andrew was still sleeping as Lucas gave him a shove. "Come on Donovan, time to wake up. We need to get moving." Lucas told him.

"Leave me alone Bouchard. I'm having a nice dream about my wife." Andrew told him. Lucas had to laugh; Andrew was a newlywed after all.

"Well how about instead of dreaming about your beautiful wife you get up so you can get closer to seeing the real thing today. It looks like the weather is finally on our side. We have to be close. I can just feel it." Lucas told him as Andrew did not make any attempt to get moving.

Lucas had dreamt of his beautiful wife as well. He hoped she was alright and the worry she must be going through had not adversely affected her pregnancy. And the twins, did they wonder where their Daddy was? Lucas had made up his mind, they wouldn't stop today until they were home. In addition to seeing his beautiful family, he had a score to settle with Balfour. He was one hundred percent certain that Balfour was behind having the fuel line cut and he would make sure that the man paid dearly for trying to keep him from his family. Lucas was not a vengeful man by nature but he had had enough. His anger was not for himself or even Andrew but for Andrew's wife, and his wife and children. It was unconscionable to him that their families were paying for the decisions he had made.

Andrew was finally up and they were on their way, exactly where to they didn't know but hoped they were getting closer. They just had to be.

They had been walking for hours, hoping that each step as painful as it was; was leading them home. They stopped about 3 p.m. to take a breather. As they were sitting, they thought they heard another plane overhead. Andrew leapt up as he thought this time in addition to hearing the plane he thought he caught a glimpse of a 'Jenny' flying overhead. Andrew was hopping up and down; shouting with abandon and not paying much attention to where he was standing. The next step he took, Lucas watched in horror as he saw Andrew fall backwards down a deep ravine. Lucas leapt to his feet and went over to the edge of the ravine and looked down.

"Andrew!" Lucas shouted. Much to his dismay he saw Andrew laying very still at the bottom of the deep ravine. Lucas closed his eyes for a moment. "No, no, no. This cannot be happening." Lucas screamed out. Lucas opened his eyes and started yelling. "Andrew, can you hear me?" There was no answer. Lucas fell to his knees as he looked down at his brother-in-law laying so still below. "Andrew!" Lucas yelled again as Andrew didn't move or respond to his calls.

Lucas raised his head to the sky. "Really God! Like we needed one more thing to go wrong." Lucas shouted into the open air. Lucas sat back on his heels contemplating what the best course of action was. He knew he had no choice. He would have to somehow make his way down the steep ravine, bad leg and all.

Lucas cautiously maneuvered his way down the steep ravine finally reaching Andrew. He shook Andrew but he didn't move. He checked him over, nothing additional seemed to be broken that he could tell. But he did have a good size gash on the back of his head that was bleeding quite profusely. MaKayla had told Lucas that head wounds bled the worst and was not necessarily indicative of a serious wound. Still, he needed to stop the bleeding. He took off his jacket and ripped the other sleeve off his shirt to use as a bandage. He wrapped it around Andrew's head and hoped it would help stem the bleeding.

Lucas sat back looking at Andrew, not sure what to do next. He had nothing to make a travois with and he knew with his bad leg there was no way he would be able to carry Andrew over his shoulder. In that moment seeing his brother-in-law laying there so still he felt himself starting to lose his composure as tears pricked at his eyes. He wanted so desperately to feel the touch of his beloved MaKayla again, to feel the warmth of his children in his arms. He told himself he would not break down. Andrew needed him. They had to get back to their families.

Digging deep within himself he mustered what energy he had left and started to gather some branches and twigs to make a fire, it would be dark soon. As he walked around the area, he couldn't help but feel that it felt very familiar. Had he been here before? He wasn't sure but he felt that he had.

About an hour after Lucas had made his way down to the bottom of the ravine, Andrew started coming around. "Andrew, can you hear me?" Lucas said loudly.

Andrew started to groan as he brought his hand up to his head. "Yes, stop yelling, will you. God, my head hurts." Andrew said as he slowly started to sit up. Lucas smiled at his friend, relieved to hear him talking.

"What in the hell happened?" Andrew asked confused as the world was spinning slightly around him.

"You got a little to exuberate signaling to the plane and you fell down a ravine." Lucas said while pointing to the steep incline behind them. "That was about an hour and half ago. Anything else seem amiss besides the fact that your head hurts? Lucas asked him hoping he had suffered no further injuries.

"You have a deep gash on the back of your skull that you acquired on the way down that ravine. I couldn't find that you broke any additional bones." Lucas told him

Andrew gave him a cocky grin. "There is not a part of my body that doesn't hurt right now, how would I know if I hurt something new." Andrew said with ironic grin.

Lucas laughed, "Touche. Do you see that full moon up there?" Lucas asked.

"Yes. What does a full moon have to do with anything?" Andrew asked confused.

"That my friend is going to light our way home. Do you think you're up to walking a bit more tonight?" Lucas asked hopefully.

"Do you know where we are?" Andrew asked with hope in his voice.

"I believe so." Lucas said with a dimpled grin. "Now, I'm not hundred percent sure but are you willing to take a gamble with me?" Lucas asked.

"When it comes to gambling you are one of the surest bets I know. Lead the way. We've got nothing to lose at this point." Andrew said as the two men started to put out their campfire before they headed out.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

When Nathan had returned to town from another day of searching, he headed over to the saloon which had become his custom. Only Henry and Edwin were sitting at a table waiting. Nathan approached them. "Where's MaKayla?" He asked, surprised she wasn't waiting with the men.

"Carson asked her to assist him with a surgery he had this afternoon. I can go over there later and updated her on any new information. But from the looks of things, you still have nothing." Henry said with disappointment.

"I wish I had better news. But we have found absolutely nothing. I'm beginning to think we are not looking in the right area." Nathan said forlornly.

"You're going to keep looking, right?" Edwin asked alarmed

"Of course." Nathan assured both men.

Edwin sighed. "Thank you for the update, Constable. I will inform the press." He told them as he got up from the table dejected that nothing had changed.

"I'll head over to the hospital. It's my responsibility to let MaKayla know the status of things. See you later Henry." He told him as he stood tiredly.

"Tell MaKayla I will be working in Lucas's office, if she needs me." Henry told him as he left the saloon as well.

When Nathan arrived at the hospital, he was told that MaKayla was still in surgery and that he could wait for her in the surgical waiting area. The nurse directed him to where he could wait for the doctor. Nathan found the waiting room and took a seat.

Finally, a little after 7 p.m. MaKayla came out of the operating room. As she walked into the surgical waiting area, she saw Nathan sitting in a chair leaning back against the wall with his eyes closed. He looked exhausted, she thought. Staring at him she felt like her heart stopped beating for just a moment as her mind went to a dark place. A place she never let it wander to. But just as quickly the moment past. She knew that her heart was telling her differently. Lucas was still alive; she just knew it. Just breath, she told herself. Finally, she found her voice as she walked over to him.

"Nathan," she shook him gently. "Do you have news?" MaKayla said quietly.

He opened his eyes and stood up. He stared at her for a long moment. How he wished he had better news for her. "No, I'm sorry. We still haven't found them or the plane wreckage. Maybe we are looking in the wrong area. I just don't know anymore. We're not giving up, MaKayla. I promise you that, it's just…" He trailed off really not sure what to say to her any more.

She looked him in the eyes. "Nathan, he's not dead. I know it. You will find them. I appreciate you coming over here to tell me how the search went today." She told him. "Go home now, hug your wife and children and get some rest. We will talk tomorrow. Goodnight, Nathan." She said sadly as she started to walk away.

"MaKayla." He called as she turned back around. "Henry is working in Lucas's office, if you need him. Or maybe you'd like to come with me and visit with Faith for a little bit?" Nathan asked not sure how to help her. He just knew he wanted to do something.

"I'm fine Nathan, honestly. I need to get cleaned up and our patient will need several hours of monitoring. If I need anything I will call. Thank you again for all you're doing." MaKayla told him then walked back into the surgical area.

MaKayla and Carson were standing near the entrance door of the hospital. "Carson, please go home get some rest. I will stay here in case Mr. Sweeney develops any issues. I can catch some sleep in the on-call room if I get tired." She told him.

"Are you sure MaKayla?" Carson asked.

"Yes, I'm sure. I don't have any reason to rush home." She said with melancholy.

"I really appreciate you filling in for Mark today. This was my first time actually working with you on a surgical case. And I have to tell you, I seriously did not realize what a gift you have. You are a wizard with a scalpel. You saved Mr. Sweeney's life you know." He told her with sincerity.

"And to think I have James O'Mara to thank for my career." MaKayla said with a laugh.

"James O'Mara? Who is that?" Carson asked confused.

"Someday I will tell you about…" MaKayla trailed off as her eyes became as big as saucers.

"MaKayla, are you alright?" Carson asked as he turned to see what she was looking at.

MaKayla ran to the two men standing at the entrance of the hospital. "Lucas!" She said as she fell into his embrace. He held her tight. She held him equally as tight. She pulled away slightly as she cupped his face. "Lucas, you're here. I knew you weren't dead. I knew you would come back to me." She said as she kissed him.

For just a moment, she let go of Lucas and turned her attention to her brother, and pulled him into an equally tight embrace. "Hey big brother, what took you so long to bring my husband home?" She asked through her happy tears.

Andrew smiled at his sister. "Wasn't me. Your husband is the hero. We'd still be out there or bear food if I was in charge. But I have to tell you, we really need to sit down before we both fall down." Andrew said in an unsteady voice feeling a bit dizzy.

Carson spoke up. "Let's get you both into an exam room." Carson helped Andrew and MaKayla held tight to Lucas as they walked to a room off the entrance to the hospital.

"We need to let everyone know you're here." MaKayla said as they entered the exam room.

"No!" Lucas said sternly as he stopped to stare at his wife. "Just call Nathan. Ask him to pick up Jenny and Henry and bring them over here. Andrew needs to see his wife. Don't tell him what it's about. I'll explain everything later." Lucas told her tiredly.

"Ok, governor." MaKayla said surprised by the strength of his request. "What are you up to?"