“Yes. Let’s get you to your table first,” the hostess said. Then she came back for Charles and Carson. “Right this way, please.” They followed her to a table close by, behind the gentleman. They had plenty of room to work and got busy right away.
Ellie apologized again and again to Mr. Witherspoon. She tried to explain.
He stopped her by leaning over towards her and said, “Really Ms. Olsen, I don’t care why you are late.”
Ellie cut him off. “Mr. Witherspoon, I beg you to hear me out. I really was detained, and on my way I tripped and well, just look at me…”
He leaned back in his chair laughing. Ellie was noticeably getting angry with him for being so rude, when he said, “Please let me finish before you find me deplorable. What I was trying to say is, I would have waited no matter how long it took you. I had no intention of going anywhere.”
She slumped in her chair. “Again, I am so sorry, my mistake.” She blushed as she said the words.
He was amused by her reaction. He was used to women finding his rugged good looks irresistible. This Miss Olsen now posed a challenge to him. He certainly had the advantage, for the moment anyway.
Ellie sat up straight in her chair and smoothed out her skirt. Ellie could hardly think about what she planned to say. All she could think about was the fact that Mr. Witherspoon was making her feel uncomfortable. He was incredibly good looking and the way he was staring at her made her feel self-conscious. She wished those two gentleman would hurry with the paperwork. Her thoughts were so jumbled right now. Pull it together Ellie: she thought to herself. Keep your mind on your work.
He was becoming more and more fascinated with Miss Eleanor Olsen. He would make sure this wasn’t their last meeting.
Then, the hostess escorted Carson to the table. “Excuse me Miss Olsen; here is the paperwork you requested.” He set the papers on the table.
“Thank you so much,” she said to Carson.
“Aggie, please see to it that the gentlemen are taken care of and put it on my tab,” Ellie said breathing a sigh of relief.
Aggie smiled and walked them to a booth on the other side of the room. “Eleanor was very grateful for your help. Here’s a menu. I will be back to take your order. May I start with your drinks?”
“Thank you, but we really must be on our way,” Carson said.
“Oh no, you don’t. You aren’t going anywhere,” Aggie said with raised eyebrows. “I am not letting you out of my sight. Eleanor is our best and most influential regular customer. Please, let’s try again. May I get you something to drink?” Charles and Carson looked at each other.
“Well, I guess we will start with two teas.”
“Thank you.”
After Ellie concluded the meeting with Mr. Witherspoon she found Carson and Charles. “Oh, thank goodness you are both still here. Thank you so much for helping me. I think the meeting was a success,” she said as she sat down with them.
Charles looked at Carson. They knew the outcome of the meeting that day between Eleanor and Nathaniel. He married her.
“You’re welcome. I’m quite sure you did fine,” Carson said.
“I certainly hope so. That was the first time I was actually nervous in a meeting,” she said cocking her head to the side as she was giving that thought some contemplation. She shook her head and laughed at a thought that crossed her mind about her meeting with Nathaniel. He was quite charming. For a brief instance she hoped she would see him again.
Charles thanked her for the drinks. “You are quite welcome. That is the least I could do to repay your kindness. You saved me from embarrassment.”
“Oh, I think you could have handled him without our help,” Charles said.
Ellie blushed. “Well, I wasn’t exactly doing well on my own before you brought the papers. My mind was a jumbled mess.” Then, Ellie did something very unexpected. She changed history. She opened her purse and took out a shiny object. She took Charles’ hand and closed it around the object. She smiled at him. “I want you to have this.”
Charles opened his hand. He turned white when he saw the coin for which they had been Sojourning. “Oh, Miss Olsen, I can’t accept this gift.” Charles was shaking his head. “This is very generous of you but I can’t accept. I couldn’t take something from you.”
She laughed so loud that it took Charles and Carson by surprise. “Oh yes you can, and yes you will. I insist!” She leaned close to Carson and whispered, “I know who you are… you are a Sojourner. Aren’t you?” She looked him right in the eyes.
“Ma’am?”
Ellie said, “Yes, you are. Don’t deny it. I am one too. It takes one to know one. I saw another Sojourner earlier in the day. He was following me. He left without what he wanted. In the future this coin is very valuable and I want this young gentleman to have it. I won’t take no for an answer.”
“To give us a coin is breaking all the rules. You change history,” Carson replied. “No, that coin has been with me since it was minted. I’ve already checked the bylaws on the official rules. It is legal. Tell me what the riddle is.”
“You know I can’t do that,” Carson said. They were both locked in each other’s stare.
“It’s legal,” Ellie said leaning back in her chair.
Carson blinked. He looked at Charles. “Charles, she is right. This coin has only been in her possession. She is able to transfer it to you at her digression.”
Charles looked at him. Then he looked at the coin and said, “Miss Eleanor…”
“Take it. It is my gift to you. I love to see young Sojourners. I want you to have it. It would be rude not to accept a gift, would it not?” She closed his hand around it. “Thank you gentlemen; it was a pleasure to meet you both. I hope our paths cross again.” She stood up from the table and smiled as she walked out the door.
Carson sat back in his chair. “Well, that is a first,” he said smiling. “Time to go home.” They got up from the table. “Charles, put your treasure in your zipper pocket. You’ve earned it.”
They thanked Aggie as they left. She smiled and said goodbye.
They made their way back to the courtyard. As they were walking Carson told Charles he was proud of him.
Charles thanked him and said, “I wasn’t expecting that.”
Carson said, “I didn’t either. She was right though. She has the legal right to do what she did. What is strange is that the riddle reflects that.”
Charles stopped and asked, “Really?”
“Yes. It does. It makes sense.” They picked up their pace, crossed the street to the courtyard and made their way to the door. Carson opened the door and Charles followed.
When they reached the other side Carson let out a sigh of relief. “We did it! We actually did it. We beat our competition,” Carson said looking into Charles’ eyes.
Charles looked at his watch. It was spinning. “Look at this!” he said.
“It can’t read the time because time is irrelevant here. When we get home it will be as if we have only been gone a couple of minutes,” Carson replied looking at Charles. “Whoa,” Charles said.
They made their way through the crowd. Sojourners were weaving around them. Carson was careful not to lose track of Charles. They had to wait in line to get their travel documents stamped. They left the tunnel, made their way through the Hub and back toward the row of primary Passageways. “Do you recognize ours?” Carson asked. “I think so,” Charles said as he walked. He stopped in front of a particular set of stairs.
Carson had his crystal in his hand. “Good. If you ever forget, take your crystal out and it will show you. When you reach our Passageway it turns green.”
Charles took his out and it was green. He nodded. “I was right.”
“Yes, you did a good job. Now before we go through the Passageway, how do you feel about your first adventure?”
“It was amazing! I have so many questions. I just can’t think of them all right now. I am just so excited about everything. I can’t
wait until we do it again,” Charles said.
“All right, take time to think things through. We can talk about it later.”
They entered the hallway and made their way to their stall. Carson went to the combination lock. He entered the code. The Passageway opened. The two of them stepped inside and waited as the door closed and locked behind them. They walked through and exited into the office.
“Wow! I can’t believe that!” Charles said.
“Are you all right?”
“Yes, I am all right. I just wasn’t expecting anything quite like that!” Charles took his new coin from his pocket and looked down at it.
“Okay, I’m going to put our things away,” said Carson. He walked to the desk and set the Expedition Guide down. Then, he let Airabelle go from her cage and put Esmond down on the ground. Next he sat down at his desk chair and returned the Expedition Guide to its drawer. He took the vault key from the desk, and turned to Charles. “Today you get to add an important coin to our collection. Good job,” he said with a big grin. He tossed the keys to Charles. Charles snatched them from the air, went to the vault and opened it. Carson was right behind him.
Charles handed the coin to Carson. “I still can’t believe Miss Olsen would do that. She’s a generous lady.”
“This is a real beauty to add to our collection. It finishes the set,” Carson said admiring the coin. Then he looked at Charles. “For now I am going to place the coin in the correct drawer and save cataloging it for later.” He retrieved the master key. He walked to the correct drawer, opened it and put the coin in. Then closed the drawer and locked it. Next he put the travel currency and their pouches away. He took his travel documents out of his breast pocket and put them in the drawer. Next they placed their crystals in another drawer. After checking that all the drawers were locked, Carson replaced the master key. He closed the door to the vault. Finally they returned their spectacles to the designated place.
They both walked to the closet door. Charles opened the secret stairway and they descended the stairs. Carson and Charles changed clothes. They put the clothes they wore on their adventure in a bag and brought it upstairs. “Nana will wash these for us,” Carson said as he put the bag by the desk. They secured everything and walked out the office door.
CHAPTER 26
Everyone arrived at the farmhouse to celebrate the market’s grand opening.
He knew the perfect place to take her where they could sit and talk. He held out his hand. She took it and he led the way. “How long will you be able to stay tonight?”
Caroline answered, “I think we will be staying through dinner.”
“That’s good, then we have plenty of time. Will you be back tomorrow?”
“I don’t know. Mom is painting the basement with my dad. She told Grandma they could work faster if I was with her.” Caroline smiled.
“So, you ended up here?”
“Uh huh.”
He smiled as he playfully swung her arm while they walked.
“What did you do today?” she asked.
He stopped; she took a couple of steps before he pulled her back to him. She stood facing him looking up into his eyes. He pulled her close and kissed her. When they parted he said, “I was thinking about you.”
She smiled and said, “I was thinking about you too.”
He took her hand again. “Come on, it isn’t that much farther.”
“Where are we going?”
“You’ll see… We are going to go off the large path here and follow a rock trail.” He pointed in the direction they would be walking.
“How do you know about this place you are taking me?”
“Oh, it used to be my mom’s hangout. Paw Paw built it for her by the creek.”
“A hangout?” she said as she raised her eyebrows looking at him in disbelief.
“Yes, a hangout…” he said mocking her. “Come on, you’ll really like it.”
“All right, lead the way. Did you tell my grandma you were taking me here? I don’t want to get in trouble.”
“I asked, Worrywart. Now come on or we won’t make it there before it gets dark,” he said smiling.
They went down the rock path. It was above a retaining wall with large rocks scattered across the ground. Caroline held on to Charles as they made their way. “See it up ahead?” Charles said pointing up in the tree.
“Oh, wow. That is some tree house!” The house covered most of the tree.
“Paw Paw will probably fix it up at some point. He doesn’t want to take it down because of the memories. We still come here from time to time,” Charles said.
Caroline stopped and looked it over. “Well, hurry up Charles Brookfield! What are we waiting for?” She started to walk a little faster.
“Caroline, you need to be careful. You could…” He didn’t get to finish the sentence because she fell and scraped up her knee and her hand. He ran over to her. “Are you okay?”
“Yes.”
“Let’s go back and get you cleaned up.”
“No way! No way,” she said shaking her head. “We came this far and I am going up in that tree.” She pointed to the tree house.
“Are you kidding me? You’ll bleed all over it. I’m not taking you up there.” He laughed.
“Oh, yes you are Charlie,” she said as she got up making her way to the tree.
“Why are girls so stubborn?”
“Because we can be.”
“Your grandma isn’t going to like this. We better enjoy our time together now. I bet she will never let you go anywhere with me again,” Charles said as he rolled his eyes.
They made it to the huge tree. Caroline looked up at the tree house. It looked like a two story cottage. Charles led the way up the wrought iron staircase. Once they stepped up on the porch, Charles opened the door and they walked inside. Caroline looked around the tree house as Charles walked across the room toward a cabinet and opened it. He pulled out an airtight container. “Here is a first aid kit, well kind of anyway…” he said as he started going through it. He came over to her with a couple of bandages and some wipes. “Caroline, next time don’t run off like that. Now give me your hand,” he said. She reached out her hand. He doctored her hand and leg. He helped her up.
“Are you ready to continue climbing?”
“I think so,” she said while stiffly walking to the steps off of the main room.
“Go slow. I’ll follow you up.”
“This is beautiful. It’s so spacious inside. A person could actually live here.”
When they reached the top of the steps Caroline walked over to the window and looked out into the forest. The sun was shining through the canopy of trees creating a pretty picture. “The light show is amazing. Oh, look at the creek. This is a beautiful place. I am so glad you thought to bring me here,” exclaimed Caroline.
“Top of the World.”
Charles opened a window so they could hear the birds. They sat down and talked. Charles heard a noise that sounded like twigs cracking and muffled laughter. He looked out the window and saw someone coming through the trees. Charles called, “Who’s there?” Caroline came and stood beside Charles.
The response he got back was, “Who wants to know?”
Charles asked, “Peter, is that you?” He was annoyed at being followed.
The voice called back, “Who else would it be?” Peter and Cynthia stepped out into a clearing.
“Oh no, you brought her?” Charles said laughing.
Cynthia stuck her tongue out at him. There was a pause; they were talking quietly. Peter picked up Cynthia and carried her the rest of the way. “Put me down you caveman!” she yelled.
Caroline and Charles laughed as Cynthia pretended to be mad flailing around in his arms. Charles turned to Caroline and said, “She’s such a faker.” It wasn’t long until they came up the steps.
“Wow! What happened to you? Did Charles throw you down?” Cynthia asked Caroline.
“Right, I just threw her down
, just like that!” He pointed to Peter and laughed. “We are both cavemen.” They gave each other a high five and the girls rolled their eyes.
Cynthia moved closer to Caroline. They sat down on the floor and talked until it was time to go back to the farmhouse. Peter and Cynthia went down the steps first. Charles helped Caroline down the steps. Her leg was really bothering her now. They all slowly walked back to the house.
When they reached the house Cynthia took Caroline inside to get a drink. Peter and Charles sat on the front porch. Bev came out and asked Peter if he wanted to stay for dinner. He did, so she asked him to call and ask his mom if that would be okay with her.
Cynthia was excited when she heard him on the phone asking if he could stay for dinner. She motioned to Caroline to follow her into the dining room. “Did you hear that? Peter is going to stay for dinner.”
Caroline laughed in her hand. “Why Cynthia, you don’t like Peter, do you?”
Cynthia opened her eyes wide in surprise and then said, “You didn’t know that? Why Caroline, you are the ONLY one that didn’t know that.” They walked back to the kitchen giggling.
Cynthia stood in the kitchen doorway talking to Peter until Charles brushed by her to get into the kitchen. “Excuse you,” Cynthia said irritated at him. She stuck out her tongue.
Charles walked over to Peter and slugged him on the arm. “Let’s go play catch. The baseball and the gloves are in the garage.” As he finished saying that, Peter was already heading out the kitchen back door. They raced to the garage and found what they needed to play catch in the back yard. They talked about how their summer was going. Peter talked about his family’s business and what they were doing to improve the guns they were manufacturing. He had been trap shooting with his uncle recently. He told Charles he wanted him to come to the range and try out a new gun his dad gave him.
“Cynthia is getting good at aiming. She actually fired our factories’ latest model last week.”
“What did you say?” Charles yelled. Peter repeated himself. Charles was really angry and could feel himself getting red in the face. “You put a gun in her hand? Are you crazy?” he yelled.
The Xidoran Prophecy Page 25