Ally walked down the streets of Hope Valley, seemingly lost in her own thoughts. She had been super distracted all throughout the school day and now, though the sky was blue, Ally's mind was cloudy and stormy. Her Uncle Nathan was going through a Mountie inquiry and there was nothing she could do about the situation.

Nathan had been cool and collected about the inquiry and investigation. He had said it was about the shooting last fall and everything would be found out right. But Ally had known her uncle was being less than honest. She knew him far too well. She could read between the lines; she knew his moods and how he conveyed his feelings with his eyes.

Ally paused, reflecting over the last couple of weeks. Nathan had been joyous when he had brought up adopting Ally. His joy had been a little less than her effervescence. She wanted to officially be Ally Grant, to call the man who had raised her "Dad."

Nathan had also been joyous when talking about buying Judge Avery's land. He had been so excited the day he had ridden out to look at it. How there was a river where they could go fishing and that he wanted her thoughts on what a house could look like—if he found the perfect spot. He had promised that Ally could see the land too but that day had never happened.

Ally realized the time she had seen her Uncle the most happy. It was the afternoon he had come home from Rounds and had told her to change. That Mrs. Thornton had said yes to going to dinner with him, with them. That Jack and herself could come too. She had actually heard her uncle whistling as he had gotten ready.

But of course, there were those moments in Uncle Nathan's eyes where instead of joy, there was pain. Pain after he had come back from seeing the land. Pain when Mrs. Thornton felt sick just before their dinner outing. Pain that the Mounties were calling his ethics into question. Ally couldn't stand seeing her uncle so sad. More than anything, she wanted a smile on his face. His smile always filled up a room and made Ally feel safe.

"Ally," a voice interrupted Ally's reverie. "Are you alright?"

Ally looked up to see Elizabeth, Mrs. Thornton, standing right in front of her. She managed a tentative smile. "I am fine." Ally sought to walk past her teacher. Yes, she loved Mrs. Thornton but in this precise moment, she knew she would be unable to keep her emotions in check.

"Everything with your uncle will be alright," Mrs. Thornton said. "I know it."

"Why do you care?"

Ally hardly recognized her own voice as she spoke those words. If Uncle Nathan had been standing right there, he would have told her to be more respectful. But Uncle Nathan wasn't here and for once, Ally was grateful.

"Mrs. Thornton, I mean it. Why do you care?" Ally's voice trembled as she tried to maintain her emotions.

Mrs. Thornton looked taken aback. "I care about your uncle and I know…"

"If you really cared about my uncle," Ally took a deep breath, "you would stop hurting him. You would stop hurting me."

Ally decided to share her feelings before she lost her nerve. "Mrs. Thornton, my uncle loves you. I know it and you know it. I see it in how he looks at you. I see it in how he has never, not once, rushed you to go on a date. But every time, instead of choosing him, you choose Mr. Bouchard. You went to Union City with Mr. Bouchard. You stopped the dinner date, our dinner date, last minute when we were on the Café doorstep—after Mr. Bouchard's mother came to town. I'm also pretty positive something happened between you and my uncle and that's why he isn't buying Judge Avery's land now. So, with all due respect, why do you care?"

Ally allowed herself to shed a tear. "I'm all my uncle has right now. I won't leave him. Not ever. But right now, the Mounties could take him from me. You don't want him. The Mounties don't seem to want him. What has he ever done to you people? He was finally happy Mrs. Thornton, WE were finally happy."

Ally walked past Mrs. Thornton, knowing that she would indeed apologize. Mrs. Thornton would probably be there when Uncle Nathan found out the outcome of his trial. Mrs. Thornton always seemed to find her way to Uncle Nathan.

But here, now, Ally was sad and angry. Someone had to go to bat for Nathan Grant. He always did for her.

Now it was her turn.