Erin and Alexandra were enjoying a belated breakfast the next morning, discussing what Erin needed to do and get before she started school the next week. Suddenly, Nathaniel burst in.
"Alex, Erin, I knew something was going on!" he gasped.
"What in the world..." Erin asked.
"Andrew didn't come into work again this morning, so I went by the boarding house to see if he was all right. Then, Mrs. White, the lady in charge, tells me that Colleen didn't come home last night either! Well, I went up to their room and found this." He handed Alexandra the note.
He drew two other pieces of paper from his greatcoat pocket. "I compared it to the writing on the other note from Andrew, and it's not his handwriting! This is," he said, noting the difference between the papers.
"Also, the restaurant, Braxton's? It's closed for a month for remodeling! I saw the sign myself."
Alexandra and Erin went white. "Dear God, Nathaniel, we have to go to the police," Alexandra said.
Nathaniel nodded.
"I'm on my way now. Don't worry, darling, Erin, things will be all right." He rushed out of the room. Erin bent to calm her sister.
"They will be fine," she said. "I'm sure."
Alexandra nodded fearfully.
The clock ticking on the wall of Colleen's prison/room ticked in time to her pacing. It was two o'clock.
She had already eaten, read, napped, dressed...she was going stir crazy!
She had no idea where Andrew was, even if he was alive.
A widow. She shuddered as she remembered Collins's words. He wouldn't kill him...she had to stop thinking like this! Losing what calm she had left would not do at all.
She sank in a chair, arranging the skirt of her cornflower blue dress around her. It, as all of the dresses in the armoire, was fit for a queen.
Still, she hated the thought of it touching her skin. She pulled the shawl closer around her shoulders, and stared into the fireplace.
Suddenly, the door opened. She stood up and saw Patrick come in.
"Well, my love, you look radiant in that gown as I knew you would. I trust you are all right?"
"Yes, I'm comfortable, thank you," she replied in a low voice.
"Excellent. Now, I just wanted to tell you that because you are being so good, I have decided to reward you with dinner out of your room this evening. I'll send a maid up to help you dress properly."
"Thank you," she replied.
"Oh, and my pet, I just wanted to tell you that you needn't fear me doing anything I shouldn't. That will wait until we are properly married. I intend to be the perfect gentleman, as long as you are a proper lady," he warned.
"I will be," she promised.
"That's my good Colleen. Now, I'll leave you. I knew it would only take a few days separated from that damned Cook to convince you that my way is best," he said.
After she endured yet another kiss from him, he closed and locked the door. She wiped her mouth with repulsion on the back of her hand and resumed her pacing.
It was almost three hours before Nathaniel returned from the police station.
Erin and Alexandra were in the drawing room when he returned.
Alexandra was knitting a blanket for the baby, and Erin was working on one of her sketches, but both dropped what they were doing when he entered.
"Well?" Alexandra asked.
"What's going on?" Erin asked.
Nathaniel sat in a chair with a sigh. "Here's the story. Collins is wanted for questioning in Denver on embezzlement from his father's company, as well as why his father died under mysterious circumstances.
The police know where he is. Apparently, he bailed Jimmy Welch, a robbery suspect out of jail about two weeks ago. Welch turned himself in today after Collins beat him for a botched robbery, and told the police all he knew about the plan to kidnap the Cooks as part of a plea bargain.
The warrant for Collins' arrest is being drawn up now. They're raiding the house this afternoon, and I'm going to see if anyone needs medical care. I've just come home to change."
"Nathaniel, please be careful," Alexandra warned as she hugged him tightly.
"I will. Now, I need Erin or you to go and get some of their things from their room. I'm bringing them back here afterward so that they can rest in peace and I can monitor them if necessary. We're all they have out here, and I feel responsible for them."
"Of course, and I'll have a room prepared immediately."
"Good luck," Erin said. With that, Nathaniel left to get his things.
The ladies hurried into wraps and went to the boarding house in the carriage, grateful for something to do.
An hour later, Erin and Alex returned. The bags were taken up to the guest room, and Erin made sure things were in order before going to join her sister. There was nothing left now but to wait.
Colleen contemplated her situation. Apparently, her act of being meek and submissive was working, Patrick hadn't laid a hand on her and was trusting her as well.
She needed to keep it up until...what? What on earth was she going to do? Several hours passed as she stared into the fireplace, thinking and crying.
Her thoughts were broken as she heard a commotion outside the door. Suddenly, the door was kicked in and three police officers burst into the room.
"Are you Mrs. Colleen Cook?" one asked. Shaken, she nodded.
"We arrested Collins and his gang. It's all right, you're safe now, Mrs. Cook," he added as tears spilled down her cheeks.
One of the officers found her a warm cloak and gloves and she was ushered outside. As she passed down the hallway to the front door, she saw Patrick Collins, in handcuffs, in the dining room. She ignored him and kept on walking.
"Colleen, thank god! Are you all right?" a worried voice said. She turned and found Nathaniel standing behind the police barricades.
Grateful for a familiar face, she made her way toward him. He hugged her protectively for a minute, before repeating his question.
"I'm fine. Where's Andrew?" she asked.
"I don't know. He's not here but the police are searching, so I'm going to take you back to my house and we'll wait for word there. You need to give a statement, but the detective said he'd come by later. Let's get you home."
Colleen didn't protest as Nathaniel helped her into his carriage and they turned away from Collins and the house of horror.
Alexandra parted the curtains and peered into the darkening night.
"They're home!" she cried. She and Erin raced to meet the carriage, and watched as Nathaniel helped Colleen down. Only Colleen.
"Thank god you're safe!" Alexandra cried as she embraced Colleen tightly.
They took Colleen inside, and Alexandra gave her a cup of tea liberally laced with brandy to calm her nerves.
Colleen drank it mechanically as Erin sat next to her for moral support.
"Where is Andrew?" Alexandra whispered to Nathaniel.
"We don't know. He wasn't in the house where they were keeping Colleen, so the police are still searching. Welch didn't know, either."
Alexandra and Nathaniel looked over to where Colleen was sitting. For her sake, they prayed Andrew would be found soon.
Three days later, after endless questioning and searches, Collins confessed and Andrew was finally found, severely beaten and drugged in an abandoned warehouse.
He was rushed to the hospital, and the police notified Colleen immediately afterward.
His aunt and uncle had been told of the situation and had come to Philadelphia the same night Colleen had been found.
They and the Penningtons escorted Colleen to the hospital. The last two days had been hell for everyone, but especially Colleen. She hadn't slept, had barely eaten, and was constantly crying. Now, she paced the waiting room, waiting for the doctor to come in.
"Mrs. Cook?"
"Yes, I'm Mrs. Cook," Colleen said as she turned to the doctor.
"I'm Dr. Sacos, the attending physician for your husband. Dr. Cook has suffered a broken leg, lots of bruises and contusions and such, but he should be fine. He's still asleep from the chloroform we gave him for setting his arm, but you can see him now," he added.
"Thank you, doctor," Rose replied as Colleen dissolved into joyful tears. Dr. Sacos nodded and left, after telling her what room Andrew was in.
Colleen regained her composure finally, washed her face and followed Rose and her husband out of the waiting room and down the hall to Andrew's room.
On the walk, she steeled herself for what she might see. She had cried enough.
The room was dark. Andrew was lying in bed, his left leg in traction.
His neck and the side of his face was a mess of bruises and cuts.
Colleen dropped to her knees by the bed, took his hand and smoothed his hair back. As she kissed him and whispered to him, his aunt and uncle stood back and watched.
It would take a long time for both of them to heal, but they were well on the way.
In Colorado Springs, Sully watched as his wife seriously contemplated the meaning of the wire as they sat on their bed.
The fire blazed romantically to their right but Michaela clearly was not thinking about romance as her husband was.
"Why would she lie to us?" Michaela asked Sully as if he knew the answer.
"Really think I know?" Sully chuckled.
Michaela smiled slightly. "This is serious, Sully, we're getting offered a reward to keep her here. What if Gretta had a good reason for running away?"
"Think we best ask her that 'fore we go doin' somethin' we're gonna regret," Sully said wisely, again spouting wisdom Michaela's anxiety had made her overlook.
"But then she'll know we wired about her," Michaela replied.
Sully chuckled again as he massaged her slim shoulders. "She's already gonna know, Michaela," he reminded her.
Michaela sighed. "I guess you're right," she agreed reluctantly. She realized he was massaging her shoulders and smiled. "That feels good."
Sully pressed light kisses on her smooth neck. He knew he had her closer to her thoughts. "Does it?" he asked with a cute grin.
Michaela and Sully went downstairs the next morning to find Gretta as cheerful as she ever was.
Katie was rambling undefined words and shrieked as soon as she saw her parents. Sully and Michaela smiled at their two year old daughter as Gretta turned to them.
"Good morning, Sully, Dr.Mike," she greeted them cheerfully. "Brian already left for school. He said he had a special project he needed to catch up on. And Matthew had to meet the judge."
Sully and Michaela realized how perfect this opportunity was and grabbed it whole-heartedly. "We're actually glad we have a chance to talk to you alone, Gretta," Michaela said in her gentle voice.
Gretta heard the tone in their voice and her eyes began to show the fear they had found her out. "Yes, of course. What's wrong?"
"We been hoping you could tell us," Sully said as he handed her the telegram.
Gretta's eyes scanned the note and her face froze. She looked up at them. "How did you know who to contact?"
"Your face was on a poster in Boston," Michaela told the young woman of sixteen.
She seemed so much older than she was that it was sometimes hard to remember she was sixteen. "We wired and just got this response."
"We wanted to see if ya wanna tell us somethin' you ain't been tellin' us," Sully added.
Gretta sank into a chair. Would everybody from her past be coming back to see her? First, it was Dr.Bell and now her location had been given away. Oh, how she didn't want to leave! She did love Colorado Springs so! Katie crawled into her lap and balanced herself precariously around Gretta's skirts.
"Wanna tell us?" Sully asked quietly.
Gretta looked up and saw the genuine concern and kindness in the piercing blue eyes of Sully. She let out a small sigh and nodded. She proceeded to retell her whole story and they sat in rapt attention. Katie, however, got bored and wandered away.
"I cannot go back to them," Gretta told them. "I wish you had not wired my family."
Michaela was thinking she did, too, but decided to think before she voiced her thoughts and did not tell Gretta she agreed.
"What are we going to do?" Michaela asked instead.
"I should go," Gretta said sadly. "But I really do not want to." She looked up at them. "I thank you for your immense hospitality. You understand I need to leave."
"Are ya gonna run the rest of your life?" Sully asked, again almost annoying them with his logic in tough situations.
Gretta shrugged. "I suppose I will. I will not be caught."
Michaela's adventurous, crusader part of her kicked in and her eyes set ablaze with determination. "Gretta, don't go anywhere you don't want to go," she told her confidently. "And don't leave anywhere you don't want to leave."
Gretta looked at her curiously. "What are you saying, Dr.Mike?"
Michaela glanced at Sully and the connection between them allowed a simple nod from Sully to tell her he agreed with her unvoiced thoughts. Michaela turned to Gretta. "If you want, stay here and confront them," Michaela said. "But don't go."
Gretta spotted the spark in the lady doctor's eyes and a small smile crept across her pale lips. "Thank you," she whispered. She looked around the room as if trying to decide if this place was worth it. She returned to the awaiting gazes of the married couple. "I will stay."
The young Dr. Bell never had time to answer Gretta's note, not only because Preston didn't give it to him until the day after Gretta had been at he Chateau, but mostly because he was now surrounded by women constantly wanting his company.
Carolina Worthington was the worst of all. Senator Dinston's wife and son had arrived a few days ago, along with Mrs. Dinston's sister and niece, Virginia and Carolina Worthington, along with Gilda St. Clair, whom they'd met at the Denver station, and her manager.
Carolina Worthington was about seventeen or eighteen, with blonde hair and blue eyes, who was considered quite lovely, and knew it. She was the most vain thing he'd ever been around.
But for the sake of his job, he did his best to endure her company. In fact, he was enduring it when Preston passed on the note from Gretta. He wanted to answer it right away, but Preston's look said,
"Leave now, and you won't come back". Of course, from that moment on, Miss Worthington made sure Dr. Bell was right by her side the entire day.
She had lunch with him, she stayed in his office and admired while he saw patients, she went with him when he stepped out for a breath of fresh air, and talked his ear off the whole time.
"Now really, Dr. Bell," She was saying, though he didn't really hear it, "since you're working for my uncle, we really must be good friends. You must take me to all the parties. Uncle Charles says that he's going to through a big party to announce his ownership, and then a huge ball at Christmas time, with dancing and gourmet dinners. You will ask me, won't you Dr. Bell?"
"I'm afraid I don't care for dancing," Dr. Bell fibbed. He really liked to dance, but not that much.
But it seemed to through Miss Worthington off her guard, and he actually had two seconds of peace, until one of the hotel servants came up to him with a slip of paper.
"A letter for you, sir," the man said. Dr. Bell took it, and, at last having an excuse, excused himself from Miss Worthington. He nearly ran when he was out of Carolina Worthington's sight. The letter was from his mother. She was very disappointed that he did not tell her that he was going west, but had to hear of it from his uncle.
"I'll be coming to see you at Christmas time," she wrote. "You can count on that."
'Well,' He though, rather pleased, 'at least I don't have to beg her to come. Miss Dorothy shall meet the famous Daphne Pennington Bell, and I shall keep my pride!'.
Of course, not everyone would benefit from Daphne Pennington Bell's visit at Christmas time. Two feuding families would collide. There would be a big storm at Christmas time, and once again, Gretta's tears would end up being the rain.
Brian was disappointed he and Sara would not get to be alone but he figured there would be plenty of time to talk with Sara.
Brian greeted the senator's son warmly.
"Oliver, this is my friend, Sara," Brian introduced the two.
"Sara, Oliver Dinston, the senator's son."
Oliver was clearly a mirror of political propriety and etiquette as he greeted the sweet young lady with all the charms of a refined man.
Brian was wondering what Oliver was doing in Colorado Springs and asked him this.
"My father bought the Chateau," Oliver explained willingly, glancing at Sara with her brightly shining blond hair. "I don't suppose we will be here too awful long, though."
"That's too bad," Brian said, only half meaning it. He wanted to get back to talking to Sara. He remembered his own manners and reluctantly inquired, "Wanna walk with us?"
Oliver, admiring Sara quite a bit, eagerly agreed to the invitation. "Yes, thank you."
Sara, a smart girl, sensed something unseen and unvoiced transpiring between the two boys. She wondered what it was but did not think much on it then.
She honestly wanted to talk to Brian but decided to bide her time with the senator's son.
Brian listened as Oliver began speaking, hardly stopping, and finally tuned most of him out. It was tiring to listen to Oliver's different life constantly but would tolerate him.
Matthew sat with Emma in the cafe. He wanted to know what she was thinking while she all but stared into space while they talked casually.
The conversation was stilted and a little uncomfortable, neither sure of the other's feelings or expectations.
"It's fun travellin' around with Gilda," Emma admitted when Matthew asked.
She returned from wherever she had mentally been to reply and Matthew noticed this.
"I miss bein' here, though. There's so much goin' on here. I woulda liked to have seen Colleen get married." Emma sighed slightly.
"I guess that's part of bein' someone who travels all around the world. I gotta miss so much."
Matthew realized he was on uncertain territory and so he 'tested the water' carefully. "We've all missed ya a lot here," Matthew said.
On impulse, he added, "'Specially me."
He almost blushed and Emma smiled shyly, liking his own bashfulness.
"I missed you, too," Emma admitted, feeling less nervous about telling him this since he had told her first. She had wanted to tell him but never found a good time, nor gathered confidence enough.
"I missed everything here. It's been hard losin' all my real friends."
Matthew recognized Emma's small smile as inaudible words, telling him he was her real friend. Matthew reached across the table and took her hand tentatively in his. She gripped his hand lightly and smiled. "I kinda wish you didn't have to go."
"Not for a while," Emma said, touched with his heartfelt sentiment.
"Matthew!" Daniel called.
'Ya always had great timing, Daniel,' Matthew thought to himself as he released Emma's soft hand.
Daniel approached.
"Yeah, Daniel?" Matthew asked, keeping the irritation out of his voice the best that he could.
"The judge wants to meet with ya," Daniel said. "He wants to start the hearing."
"Can I come?" Emma asked so they turned to her. "I wanna see ya in action, Matthew."
Matthew was pleased she lightly teased him. "Sure, but ya can't say anything," he said, warning her in advance.
"Of course not," Emma assured him quickly.
Matthew tossed down some money and they left to start the trial for custody of Samantha Bing.
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