by Bess McBride
Ellie ran down the street for the El and raced onto the next train. She refused a seat as she paced from pole to pole waiting for the subway to reach the train station. She wanted to scream at the constant stops and starts, but she bit her lip and willed the El to move faster...if that were possible.
They arrived at the train station, and Ellie jumped off the El and ran into the station. She hustled through the throngs of people and popped up to the ticket window, thanking her lucky stars she’d found one without a line. She paid for her ticket and ran down the concourse as she headed for the train that would leave in five minutes. Where was the gate? Where was the gate? Ellie’s chest ached as she gasped for air. She felt lightheaded, as if she might pass out. Anxiety robbed her of oxygen. She stepped outside onto the platform and beheld her dear, beloved, gleaming silver train. There it was! The train that would take her once again to Seattle! Ellie knew it was a long shot, but it was all she had. She couldn’t sleep. Perhaps Robert hadn’t been a dream!
Chapter Sixteen
Ellie waved her ticket in the conductor’s face and sped past him to hop aboard the train.
“31B, 31B,” she muttered as if possessed while she hurriedly scanned the seat numbers. “Where is it?”
“Aha!” she exclaimed to no one in particular when she located the seat she wanted. Luckily for someone else, it was empty, because Ellie had every intention of sitting in that seat. She slid into it and nestled against the window, hoping for a miracle.
Nothing happened. She squeezed her eyes shut and waited.
Still nothing. Ellie tried to regulate her erratic breathing. Her heart paused and skipped beats like Morse code. She willed herself to calm down.
“Not yet. Just wait,” she murmured to herself. Passengers continued to board the train, and Ellie tapped her foot impatiently, hoping to see the last of them onboard and safely stowed in their seats so the train could leave.
Finally, the train began its stealthy movement, so unlike the jerking and whistle-blowing fanfare of the Victorian train in her dreams. She pressed her head against the cool glass and watched as the train tracks of Chicago fell away into the distance. Once they were out of the city, the train picked up its pace and Ellie closed her eyes, waiting for sleep.
Nothing happened. No sleep. No time travel. A single hot tear slid down Ellie’s face and she brushed it away. She wouldn’t give up hope. There was still time. Reluctant though she was to leave her seat in case it happened, she had to use the bathroom. She hurried down the stairs and washed up, returning to her seat within minutes. As she settled in once again, Ellie wondered, had that been the moment? Had she missed the “window” by going to the bathroom?
The hours passed slowly as the train made its way through Wisconsin. By the time they reached Minnesota, she knew Kyle would be home from work and wondering where she was. She’d left no note for him. He might assume she’d stayed late at work. She often did. In fact, she realized she herself had been a workaholic—grading papers, preparing lectures, working on articles for publication. Just like Robert. The last week...or last night...had been one of the most restful of her life in terms of leisure time, though the stress of falling in love had been incredibly tense.
Ellie took a break from her vigil around eight that night and went down to the snack bar for a bite to eat. She returned to her seat with a sandwich and a surprisingly unexpected cup of tea and stared out the window at the passing lights. The tea wasn’t nearly as tasty as that which she’d shared with Robert, but she had somehow grown fond of the ubiquitous beverage.
She closed her eyes as the train rolled out of St. Paul, Minnesota, and drowsed with her head lolling back and forth in the corner of her seat. She dreamed of a handsome silver-haired man with green eyes who visited his children in Washington, D.C. She awoke with a start and looked around. It was dark, but the rumbling sound of the tracks and a loud whistle revealed she was still on the train. What time was it? Where was her cell phone? Her purse?
She reached out to the empty seat next to her. The sterile roughness indicated a polyester blend, not luxurious velvet. She squeezed her eyes shut against the burning tears, but they slid down her cheeks. She didn’t bother to wipe them in the dark. Who would see?
She turned a miserable face to the window. Her grand idea to recreate the trip on the train was an abysmal failure. She was still here, on a modern train in her own time. Robert did not smile at her or take her hand under his arm. Melinda didn’t ogle her in curiosity. Mrs. Chamberlain didn’t disapprove. By Grand Forks, North Dakota, Ellie was numb. Nothing mattered. She thought she might as well get off the train, but she lacked the energy to do even that. She’d already paid the fare to Seattle, and she found it easier to sit in misery than to get off the train and call Kyle to send her money for a return trip home.
When the sun came up over North Dakota, Ellie stared at the Great Plains as the train rolled through wheat fields brightened to gold by the first rays of dawn. She blinked at the beauty of nature, and her spirits lifted...a little. The dark night had passed, and although Robert had not come for her, she felt better in the light of a new day.
“How are you doing, miss? Do you need anything?” The tall, young conductor leaned over to check her ticket. “Seattle, huh? Visiting family there?”
“Ummm...yes,” Ellie murmured with a yawn. She stretched and wished her silver-haired gentlemen had joined her on this trip. She recalled dreaming about him the night before. What was his name? Edward? His eyes...so green...like Robert’s.
The young conductor in wheel hat, dark blue jacket and vest consulted his wristwatch. “Well, the snack bar opens in a half hour, at 6 a.m. We reach Minot, North Dakota at 8:54 a.m. You can get off the train and stretch your legs there, if you like.”
“Thank you,” Ellie murmured. Did she want to stretch her legs in Minot, North Dakota? She had no earthly idea. On a modern train, she could stretch her legs by virtually running from car to car. Since the conductor had given her the idea, she stood at that moment and worked out the kinks in her knees. Another cup of tea and some breakfast might be in order.
Ellie spent the day wandering from car to car, studying the people on board. She wondered about their lives, who they visited, who they loved, whether they’d left anyone behind or were on their way to meet their true love. She hung around in the lounge car and stared out the panoramic floor-to-ceiling windows at the rolling fields of eastern Montana, a continuation of the Great Plains of North Dakota. She counted her money. Dangerously low on funds, she grabbed an inexpensive snack for lunch. She would be lucky to make it to Seattle before she ran out of money. Once there, she would call Kyle to book a hotel room for her and reserve her return fare...by airplane. She had no idea how she would explain her mad dash on the train, but she resolved to worry about that another time.
By evening, she dozed in her seat once again as they crossed into the Rocky Mountains.
“Mom, look, look! Up there! Look at those mountain goats!”
Ellie’s eyes popped open at the young boy’s shout from the seat behind. She peered out the window, and craned her neck to see three mountain goats hugging the side of a steep hill above the tracks. Well, to her, they seemed to be “hugging” the mountainside. She suspected that, for mountain goats, they merely lazed about as a sunbather might do at a beach.
“Aw, Mom, why can’t we stay here in Montana? I want to go to the Park.”
The conductor strolled down the aisle intoning the next stop. “Essex, Montana. Essex, Montana. Glacier National Park.” He didn’t shout. He didn’t have to. The modern train muted much of the rumbling along the tracks.
A woman’s voice shushed the boy. “Quiet, Patrick. You’ll wake the other passengers. Maybe we will go to the Park one day. Get some sleep now. We’ll be in Seattle in the morning, and Grandma will be there to meet us.”
The view of the mountain goats receded into the blue-gray dusk behind tall pine trees, and Ellie leaned her forehead against the cool window
with her eyes closed. For a moment, she thought that it had actually happened. She’d traveled back in time! Young Patrick’s voice sounded exactly like the little boy she’d heard just last week on the train...before she met her seat companion, Edward...and before she fell asleep to awaken to Robert.
But a quick glance around the darkening car revealed she was still on the same train—a comfortable but sterile silver snake that silently wound its way across the United States. She hugged herself and stared out of the window, willing the light to stay with her a little longer to keep the long, dark night at bay. By breakfast, they would be nearing Seattle, and the trip would end. Her hopes of finding Robert would end.
Had Robert ever really lived? Or had he been a figment of her imagination? The aching sense of loss in her throat and chest seemed too real and painful to suffer over a mystical dream lover. She remembered the day she’d imagined Robert, Constance, Stephen and Malcolm dead and buried a hundred years later. The memory still made her shudder. Perhaps she could go to the library in Seattle and see if any of them had ever really existed.
Perhaps find their graves? Was it possible?
Ellie brushed away the tears from her eyes with the back of her hands. She turned her face away from the aisle as a tall man approached. In the moment before she looked away, something about the waves of his dark hair caught her attention. She gasped and swung her head back in his direction.
The tall man glanced down at her, nodded pleasantly and passed.
It wasn’t Robert! How could it be? She shook her head and pressed a hand to her racing heart. What was she thinking?
Ellie closed her eyes once again and dozed fitfully. During the night, she heard the conductor’s monotone as he passed through the car with a quiet, “Spokane, Washington. Spokane, Washington.” She pulled up her legs, hunched her shoulders and pressed tighter into her corner.
“Wenatchee, Washington, five minutes. Wenatchee, Washington.”
Ellie pried open one eye to the faint rosy light of dawn. Her ears pricked. Wenatchee?
This was it! This had to be the moment. If she were ever going to find Robert, this had to be it! She jumped up from her seat, stumbling against the back of the seat in front of her. She had to get off at this stop. This is where Robert would be. She bent down to look out the window. Tall pine trees hugged the train tracks. Streaks of daylight broke through the openings in the forest. This had to be right.
The train slid into a smooth halt, and Ellie tripped down the stairs. She hopped off the train and surveyed the area around the concrete platform. Up and down the length of the gleaming train, other passengers descended to stretch their legs. Something was wrong. Nothing looked as it should.
She turned to the young conductor who stood by the door of the car. “Excuse me. Is this Wenatchee?” The modern concrete platform, paved parking lot and steel and glass station bore little resemblance to the old wooden station surrounded by dirt.
“Yes, ma’am.” He pointed to the sign over the station which read “Wenatchee” in glaringly huge letters. Ellie stared at it for a moment, and her exhausted knees wobbled. Then Wenatchee wasn’t the answer! Robert did not appear. He didn’t stride up to her and take her hand in his. He didn’t fold her in his arms.
Ellie’s feet began to move with a will of their own, and she headed toward the train station. A large round station clock read 5:35 a.m. She pushed open the glass and steel door and stepped into the deserted lobby. Modern acrylic benches in a multitude of colors decorated the room. No one waited for her. The lobby was desolate.
This had been her last hope! Gone!
A bout of dizziness and a wave of nausea overtook her. Her knees buckled and she fell against one of the benches. She gave in to a strange urge and laid her head down for just a moment, hoping the world would soon right itself. But the world continued to slide, and Ellie slipped into unconsciousness.
“Miss. Miss, are you all right? Did you fall asleep?”
Ellie woke up to gentle prodding of her shoulder by a kindly, bespectacled, gray-haired man sporting a train conductor’s uniform. She tried to raise her aching head but slumped for a moment.
“I-I’m fine. I’m okay. What time is it?” she asked assuming only a few moments had passed.
“It’s 5:45 a.m., Miss. The station is closed. How did you get in here?”
Ellie met the older man’s kind blue eyes and looked behind him to see weathered wooden walls and a dusty floor. The varnished pine bench under her legs bore no resemblance to the acrylic bench onto which she’d slumped. Her heart began to pound.
This was it! She’d done it!
The loud whistle of the train brought her to her feet.
She rushed past the startled stationmaster and pushed open the wooden door, careening to a halt. The train no longer stood in front of the station. A puff of black smoke was all that remained of the gleaming black vintage train as it barreled out of the station on its way to Seattle.
“Wait!” Ellie screamed as she ran across the dusty wooden platform toward the empty tracks. She stopped for a moment and bent over, bracing her hands on her knees to draw in a deep breath.
“Wait!” she screamed even louder. “Wait for me!” Her throat burned, but she kept screaming. “Robert! Wait for me! Please don’t leave me! Robert! Come back for me!”
“Ellie, wake up!” Strong arms enveloped her.
Chapter Seventeen
“Ellie, wake up!”
She awoke with a start, tears streaming down her cheeks, and burrowed her face into Robert’s neck. He held her against him and kissed the top of her head as he rubbed her back in long soothing strokes.
“Another dream, my love?”
Ellie nodded, rubbing against his warm skin.
“Were you running for the train again, sweeting?” Ellie calmed to the rumble of his voice in his chest.
“Again,” she murmured. She drew a deep breath to calm her racing heart. “I still haven’t caught it,” she said with a watery chuckle.
Robert’s low laugh bounced her face on his chest, and she craned her neck to look at him. He bent his head and kissed her lips in a slow, lingering caress, pulling her closer to him, molding her body against his as they lay together. He lifted his head and studied her face with warm green eyes.
“Maybe the dreams will end someday, my love. I hope so.”
She buried her face against him again. “I hope so too,” she mumbled. “I don’t think they’re good for the baby.”
Robert slid his hand down to her rounded stomach. “The baby will be fine, Ellie. She has been a hundred years in the making. She must be strong, don’t you think?”
Ellie chuckled at Robert’s logic. “Yes, dear. I think he will be very strong.” She leaned up on one elbow and stared into her husband’s soft, dark-lashed eyes. “I love you, Robert. I cannot tell you how much I love you.”
“And you are the only woman I have ever loved, Ellie. I waited for you a long time.” He stared at her as he reached to brush the tangled curly brown hair from her face. “I hope the baby looks like you. I hope she has your hair.”
Ellie grinned. “Well, your grandmother just hopes I have a baby with two arms and two legs. You know she thinks I’m too old.”
Robert smiled and his eyes twinkled. “If only she knew how old. Almost one hundred and fifty years, I would say.” He snorted. “You look remarkable for your age, Mrs. Chamberlain.”
She gave him a playful smack on his shoulder.
“Thank you, Mr. Chamberlain.”
His face grew serious. “Thank you, Ellie, for marrying me and having our child. Thank you for coming back in time for me.”
Ellie wrinkled her nose. “You know I still don’t believe in time travel, Robert, though it appears likely that this isn’t a dream. No one could possibly dream up a man like you...the love we’ve shared...the nights.” Her face burned at the light in his eyes. She looked down on her rounded belly. “And the baby we created together.”
“This is no dream, my love. Though Mr. Wells wrote back to tell me he thought I had taken his book a little too seriously, I know you heard my loneliness and came through time for me.”
She pressed her lips against the adorable cleft in his chin and tilted her head to study his face.
“I can’t imagine how a handsome man like you could ever be lonely, Robert.”
His eyes narrowed seductively. “Well, it took you forever to come to me. I waited and waited, though I understand you had quite a long journey.”
Ellie laughed, and the baby in her stomach moved in response. She lay back and reached for Robert’s hand to place it on her stomach. He rolled over on his elbow and looked down into her face. His green eyes sparkled, reminding her of another set of eyes.
“Robert. Do you think it’s possible that I could have met my grandchildren in the future? There was a man on the train...” She let her voice trail off as Robert began to kiss the corner of her mouth.
****
Edward awoke to the voice of the conductor.
“Wenatchee, Washington. Wenatchee, Washington.”
He rubbed his eyes and turned to look at his seatmate. She was gone. He checked his watch. 5:45 a.m. The hour was early. Muted light broke through a few cracks in the curtains. Maybe she’d gone to the restroom.
He stood to stretch his legs with a fervent wish that he could get a cup of tea at this early hour, but the snack bar would not open for another fifteen minutes. He eased himself back into his seat and waited for the young woman...Ellie...to reappear. Maybe she would like to join him. There was something about her that intrigued him. He wasn’t certain what it was. The color of her hair, the hazel of her eyes, the tilt of her lips as she smiled?