“I haven’t ever ridden a horse, although I always wanted to.”
“Well, it’s time to try.”
Paige unhooked the two horses and made sure the reins were tight then she turned to Justin. “Are you ready? I’ll help you up.”
“As ready as I’ll ever be, I guess.”
“Don’t be nervous. The horses can sense it.”
“I’ll try.”
She helped him onto the horse. “Okay,” she asked.
“Yes,”
“Alright, put your heels into his sides to make him go. Turn the right rein right to go right, turn the left to go left. Pull up on both to stop.”
Paige climbed onto the other horse and led the way toward town. Justin followed slowly. He was thinking about the snow blindness although he hadn’t heard of anyone getting it. He rode with his head down allowing the large hat to shade his eyes, all the while wishing he had his sun glasses.
It was hard to tell how long they had ridden before Paige stopped and said, “Look up ahead. It’s the outside of town.”
“Good, I’m tired and hungry,” Justin told her.
“So am I. Grandmother will feed us when we get back to the saloon. Come on, let’s hurry,” she kneed her horse hard in the ribs and the horse began to trot through the snow.
Justin did the same and held on tight to the reins, half afraid he would fall off. It didn’t take them long to reach the saloon. Paige jumped off her horse and helped Justin down as well, then she pushed open the swinging door of the saloon. Frank was behind the bar and looked up as they came in.
“Paige, Justin, where have the two of you been? We were worried.” He came from behind the bar and hugged his granddaughter. Then he patted Justin on the back.
“We are alright, Grandfather. We found a small opening in the back of the mountain and spent the night there. We rode the horses back but someone will need to get the buckboard later when some of the snow melts off. Now we are going to see what’s to eat, we’re starved.” Paige turned toward the kitchen as she spoke and Justin followed.
Opening the door of the kitchen, Paige called. “Grandmother, where are you?”
“I’m here, Paige,” Tess came from a room to the side. “I was so worried about you, are you alright?”
“Yes, Grandmother, we are fine.”
“Sit, I will fix you two a plate.”
Both Paige and Justin sat down at the table and soon were eating a huge plate of food. As soon as they had eaten, Paige motioned for Justin to come out of the kitchen. She led the way to a store room where they were alone.
“What kind of clothes do I need to travel to your time,” Paige asked excitedly.
Justin looked at the dress she wore. “I can fix what you have on when we get home. We will end up back in my apartment. Then we will go on from there.”
“I’m so excited to go.”
“You sure this is what you want to do? Things have changed a lot over the years.”
“I know. When can we go?”
“Anytime you’re ready.”
“I’m ready now.”
“Alright, let’s go out back.”
“I need to let Grandfather know I am going after supplies. I’ll meet you out back.”
“Justin walked out through the saloon to the back door. As he waited for Paige, he pulled the pocket watch from his pocket and looked at it.
He would have to move the little car forward and hope it was right. He still hadn’t figured out the gist of it yet. Looking up as Paige came out the back door of the saloon, he returned the smile she gave him.
“I’m ready,” she said as she came to stand beside Justin.
“I’m going to move the car and you take my hand. It happens fast.” He moved the car forward and Paige took his hand. The world began to spin. Paige closed her eyes.
CHAPTER 7
In only a few minutes, the world stopped spinning and Justin realized they were standing in his kitchen.
“Here we are Paige,” he said.
Watching as Paige opened her eyes, he saw her smile as she looked around.
“It’s beautiful,” she said as she began to walk around the room but she was careful at first not to touch anything. At first she didn’t say anything either. Then she began to ask Justin what everything was and what it did.
Justin laughed and answered all her questions. He could tell she was excited about learning what everything was but when she turned on the water in the sink she jumped back.
“What is that,” she asked.
“We have indoor plumbing. I mean water in the house; in the kitchen and the bathroom. We could put water in any room you wanted to put it in. Our bathroom is the same as your outhouse. Only we have a tub and shower to bath in. In this time, we take baths every day.”
“Wonderful. I want to take a bath, but not right now, I’m still looking.”
Paige was amazed at everything she saw. She looked around Justin’s apartment and it took her several hours to stop asking questions.
“It’s so different, but life here is easier, isn’t it,” she asked.
“Yes it is. We also have cars we drive. It will get you somewhere in minutes not hours, and lights at the flick of a switch.” Justin turned on the light to show her and let her look out the window at the cars on the street.
“I need to call Aunt Helen,” Justin said.
“Call,” Paige asked puzzled.
“I’ll show you.” He found his cell phone and seeing that it was dead, he plugged it in. Trying to explain what he was doing to Paige as he did. Then he showed her how to make a call.
“When I call, Aunt Helen will answer on the other end and it sounds as if she is here with us but she lives in Texas. We are, of course, still in Tennessee.”
“Oh my goodness,” Paige sat down and waited until Justin called and she could hear a woman’s voice.
“Justin,” Helen said. “How are you?”
“I’m fine Aunt Helen, and you?”
“I’m better now. I’ve been worried about you.”
“I brought Paige back with me Aunt Helen.”
Helen sounded surprised. “You did? What does she think?”
“It’s a little much for her I think but she’ll be alright.”
He looked at Paige as he spoke. She was amazed or at least that was how she looked. She was probably thinking, “How can people who lives in Texas hear someone in Tennessee?”
“How is your restaurant doing Aunt Helen?”
“Much better Justin. I’ve been spending a lot of time there now. We’ve added several new items to the menu and they are selling well.”
“That’s great Aunt Helen. Paige gave me the bread recipe. If you want, I can give it to you now.” Justin unfolded the paper Paige had given him before.
“I think I’m ready now Justin. What does it take?”
Justin read off what was needed to make the bread and how to make it.
“Oh, I’m so glad to have this, Justin. Thank you. Be sure and thank Paige for me too.”
“Let me know how you like it.”
“I sure will, Justin. You be careful.”
“I will Aunt Helen. I’ll talk to you later.”
“Okay, bye.”
Justin laid the phone down on the table. “This is my cell phone, Paige.”
“A cell phone is what you talk to people in other states on,” Paige asked.
“Not only in other states. We can call someone in the next room or on the other side of the world if we wanted to.
“Strange.” Paige was quiet for a minute. “Find me some clothes so I can go out on the street.”
“I’ll buy you an outfit, but first we need to make this one work until we can get to Walmart.” He found a pair of scissors and began to cut off the tail of her dress. Then he cut off the sleeves and cut the neckline folding it down to show some of her chest, but not too much.
“My goodness, I feel half dressed,” Paige told him.
“Y
ou haven’t seen anything yet,” Justin said with a smile. “Are you ready to go outside?”
“As ready as I’ll ever be.”
“Alright, let’s go.”
Together the two of them left the apartment. Paige took his arm as they stepped out into the street. She stood still looking at the cars moving up and down the street.
“Oh gosh, they are moving so fast.”
Justin laughed. “This is not fast at all. You should see them on the interstate.”
“The what?”
“It’s a road where cars travel at a much higher rate of speed. There’s no stopping on the interstate.”
“Okay,” Paige said but Justin could tell she still didn’t understand.
“We can walk down the street and we will be at Walmart. It’s a big store, so stay with me.”
“Don’t worry about that Justin. I will stay with you.”
“Are you scared?”
“Not as long as you are with me. Don’t let me go.”
Justin had no intention of letting her go. He liked the thought of her hanging onto him. He didn’t want to let her go. He liked having her with him and missed her when she wasn’t. Together they walked down the street. Paige would stop and look at different things. Then they would begin to walk once more. Soon they came to the Walmart. Paige was amazed at the size of it. It was larger than the whole town of Dry Gulch. Justin led the way to the clothing department and asked the clerk to help her find a nice outfit. Soon the clerk had picked out several outfits for her to try on. She showed them to Paige and Paige picked out one of them to try on.
Paige looked at her reflection in the mirror with shock and embarrassment. She couldn’t go out in public like this! Her legs and upper arms were exposed. Not to mention her chest. The undergarments the sales lady picked out pushed her bosom up so it swelled up under the tank top. “Was that what Justin called it?”
Paige, you alright in there,” Justin called from outside the dressing room.
How was she going to walk around in this? How was she to let Justin see her?
“Come on, let’s see,” he knocked on the door playfully.
“I can’t,” came her weak response.
“Paige, I told you all the women wear stuff like this here. It’s alright.” He tried reassuring her. Justin knew that the transition would be hard on Paige. Women, then, were a lot different than women now.
“Okay,” taking a deep breath she slowly opened the door.
“Wow!” She looked amazing and Justin couldn’t take his eyes off her.
Paige blushed and looked away as Justin’s eyes roamed her body.
“You look beautiful.” He gently placed a finger under her chin, bringing her eyes to meet his.
“Are you sure this isn’t indecent,” she whispered.
“I promise. No one is going to proposition you,” he smiled down at her. He knew that things were changing between them. Even though he promised himself it wouldn’t.
“I…I trust you,” Paige put a brave face on throughout the store. She was surprised when she had no more strange looks in her new outfit than when she entered the store.
Paige wore the new clothes out after Justin paid for them. Watching her as they walked, he hadn’t noticed how small and petite she was. He wasn’t a large man or a tall man; probably about five foot eleven and weighed around one ninety. Compared to Paige, now that she wore clothes which fit her snuggly, she looked to be about five foot two or three maybe and weighed around one hundred pounds. He wasn’t a good judge of weight or height.
Together the two of them walked out of the Walmart. Walking down the street, Paige was excited about almost everything she saw. She kept saying how she loved this time. Justin was beginning to think that maybe she could live in this time. Then she saw a waterfall across the street.
“Oh, Justin, look. It’s beautiful.”
“At night it lights up with different colored lights,” he told her.
“It’s amazing.” Her eyes were on the waterfall and she began to walk out into the street not seeing the car speeding toward her.
“Paige, look out,” Justin darted out into the traffic but Paige didn’t hear him. She kept walking toward the waterfall. The driver of the car hit his brakes and skidded slowly to a stop but it was too late. Paige was struck from the side and was on the ground before Justin could reach her. It all happened so fast but to Justin it seemed as if it had happened in slow motion.
Once he reached her, he was on the phone dialing 911. He knelt beside her and checked for a pulse. At first, he felt nothing. Then, he felt it very faint. He knew enough not to try to move her. Her head was bleeding and so was her left leg.
It only took a few minutes before the ambulance arrived. Justin watched as they put her into the back of the ambulance. He climbed in the back with her, knowing he would stay with her until she was well. Somehow he felt it was all his fault. If he hadn’t brought her into this time, nothing would have happened to her. If only he hadn’t brought her here to Walmart, she wouldn’t be going to the hospital now.
“You have to be alright, Paige. I promise you I will take you back to your time where you will be safe,” Justin said aloud.
“It’s not your fault sir,” the young woman checking her blood pressure told him. “It was an accident.”
Justin had forgotten about someone else being there and wondered how he was going to cover for what he said. The young woman must have thought he was meaning she was from another part of the country for she said as she hung the blood pressure cuff on the wall where another one hung, “Accidents can happen in any part of the United States.”
“You’re right,” Justin said.
It seemed to be such a long ride to the hospital. Once they arrived, they made Justin stay in the waiting room. He was walking the floor for what seemed hours before a nurse came and told him he could go back and see her.
When he walked into the room, he could tell she was already bruised. Her face had blue marks and was swollen in some places.
“Paige,” he said softly.
She didn’t answer and he knew she was sleeping. He took her hand and held it. Not knowing what to say, he simply sat and looked at her face as if he were burning it into his memory.
After a while, he closed his eyes. He could still see the bruises on her face in his mind. He must have fallen asleep for when he opened his eyes Paige was smiling at him.
“Justin, how long have you been here?”
“As long as you have. I rode in the ambulance with you. Are you in pain?”
“A little, not bad. What happened?”
“You don’t remember?”
“No, the last thing I remember is us being in Walmart.”
“You were hit by a car while you were crossing the street.”
“I remember.”
“I promise you that when you are better I will take you back to your time. It’s my fault you were hit. I should never have brought you into the future.”
“The future? What are you talking about Justin. We have always been here. I may have been in an accident but I do know where I live and I know who I am. My name is Paige and I am your wife. We live together in your apartment. We’ve been married for over a year.”
Justin was shocked. Paige thought she was married to him. What should he do?
“I’m going to go tell the nurse you are awake. I’ll be right back.”
“Okay,” Paige smiled at him. “I’m not going anywhere.”
Justin walked out of the room and up to the nurses desk.
“Paige is awake. Is her doctor close by? I need to talk to him.”
“Yes, he wanted to know when she woke up. I’ll call him. He should be here in just a few minutes,” the nurse said and called the doctor at once.
Justin figured it would take more than a few minutes for the doctor to come, but he was wrong. A tall, lanky, young man came up to Justin holding out his hand.
“Hello, I’m Doctor Burnette,
Paige’s doctor.”
Justin shook his hand. “Doctor, Paige thinks she is married to me. She doesn’t remember. What do I do?”
“The best thing to do is go along with it for now. Her memory will come back in time. Maybe a little at a time, or all at once. If you tell her differently, she might get scared and try to leave or something worse.”
“Alright,” Justin said. “I will.” His mind was racing. He would have to get her clothes and put them in his closet. He would try to make some pictures of them like a wedding. There were so many things he would need to do.
He walked back into her room as the nurse and doctor were leaving.
“She will be fine. We need to keep her overnight and probably let her go home tomorrow,” the doctor said. “I have given her something to make her sleep. She will be out for about three or four hours, if you need to get things ready for her to come home.”
“Thanks. I will have to do that,” Justin said as he walked back into Paige’s room and sat on the bed beside her. She was already starting to dose off. She smiled at him and took his hand.
“Will you be here when I wake up?”
“Of course. I’ll be right here Paige,” he told her.
This seemed to ease her mind as she closed her eyes and was asleep almost at once. This gave Justin time to leave and get done what he needed to do. He went by a second hand store and bought some clothes for her. He was glad he knew her size from shopping with her at Walmart just hours ago. Then he went to the dollar store and bought more things he thought she would need. Back at his apartment, he placed the clothes in the closet with his own and went to work making a photo of them. He wasn’t much on photo shop and it took him a while but finally he had a picture which he thought would pass as a wedding picture. From that he used other backgrounds and made several other pictures of them. One on a beach and one on a hiking trail. Looking at his watch, he realized it was getting late and he needed to get back to the hospital. This time he took his car since he knew he would need it to get Paige home.
Justin walked into the hospital room. Paige was still asleep. Sitting down in the one and only chair, he waited for her to wake up. He began to worry about how she would react to being in this time, after living in the past. Finally in about thirty minutes, Paige opened her eyes.
Portals of Time Page 25