Chapter 2 - Call Me Chris…
O – O – O – O – O – O
The week moved slowly for Rebecca and Sarah as they waited to hear from Jack. Over the course of the next few days, they began to wonder just what part of the moon they had landed on. When they had inquired about transportation out of town, they were informed that horses could be rented at the livery. Further inquiries about the nearest telephone were met with continued odd looks. The town's lack of anything remotely modern only caused Rebecca and Sarah to wonder if they had perhaps entered the twilight zone.
It wasn't until Wednesday, six days after their arrival, that Rebecca got the biggest shock of her life. She was visiting Mary Travis at the newspaper office when she felt she had fallen into total bizarro-land.
Opening the door to The Clarion, Rebecca stepped inside out of the noonday heat. Dabbing at her face with a handkerchief she carried, she also fluffed out the long skirt of her dress hoping to draw some air under it. Though it had only been six days, she privately longed for her tank top and shorts.
The day was a scorcher with little or no wind to cool the oppressive heat. The inside of the newspaper office was a bit cooler, but not much and she felt stifled in all the clothing she had on. This kind of weather normally had her hanging out at the beach or swimming in a pool, but Four Corners offered no such amenities.
Mary seemed to be in an agitated state as she hurriedly laid printing type. She glanced up as Rebecca walked into the office, "I'm sorry, but I'm going to be a few minutes longer. I'm putting out a special edition of the paper. I just received word of a terrible tragedy and while I don't have a lot of the details yet, I need to put out something and let everyone know."
Rebecca put a hand on her new friend's shoulder, "Calm down Mary! What is it? What has happened?"
Stopping for a moment, she brushed an errant lock of blonde hair out of her eyes. "I received a telegraph message from a newspaper friend of mine in Colorado and he said that this Sunday past, at a place in the Montana Territory, a battle took place that my friend is calling Little Big Horn. The Seventh Calvary under the command of General George Armstrong Custer was massacred by several different Indian tribes. He didn't have all the details yet, but I felt I should publish what I know."
Rebecca's mouth dropped open as she sputtered, "Custer...I don't believe...are you sure?" Stunned, she couldn't believe what she was hearing!
Slowly she began to back toward the door, unable to cope with the thoughts running through her head. As she did, she bumped into Mary's desk sending a small stack of newspapers fluttering to the floor. Instinctively, she turned and started to retrieve them.
"Oh don't worry about those." Mary stated. "They are last week's papers. I really need to pile them someplace else anyway."
Mary went back to setting the typeface again. "Those are the only details I have so far. I need to wire my friend and find out if he knows anything else."
Rebecca picked up the papers anyway and as she did, the headlines from the top paper grabbed her attention. The story was about how the seven town protectors had once again thwarted a bank robbery. The date on the paper confirmed what Rebecca's horrified mind was refusing to acknowledge. It read June 19, 1876.
Rebecca's face grew pale. Suddenly everything that she and Sarah had seen and done over the past few days began to make sense. The clothing, the lack of electricity, no telephones, the horses to get around, this wasn't a cult or anything like that! It was the late 1800's! Somehow she and Sarah were in the past.
Feeling her knees growing weak, a sick feeling curled itself into a ball in the pit of her stomach. Clutching one of the papers tightly in her fist, she backed toward the door again.
Panic constricted her throat and her eyes blurred making it hard to see. The world seemed to close in on her as she finally made it to the door and into the bright sunshine outside. It did nothing to calm the icy cold feeling that was creeping over her.
She began to walk, slowly at first, then as she began to move she started to run. She didn't know where she was going, only that she needed to go. She suddenly realized she had to find Sarah...had to tell her sister what she had discovered or she might go mad.
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Sarah stood silently to one side of the poker table, watching as Buck, JD, Nathan, Josiah and Ezra engaged in a friendly game of poker. In the six days that she and Rebecca had been in Four Corners, these five men had become their friends and protectors. Buck held up his cards so Sarah could see them. She kept a non-descript look on her face.
The batwing doors to the saloon creaked loudly as Rebecca pushed through them, a wild, lost express covering her face. Sarah motioned for her sister to come over, but she stood frozen just inside the doors.
Realizing something was bothering her sister, she approached asking, "What's wrong Rebecca? You look like you've seen a ghost?"
Finally looking at Sarah, Rebecca wiped at her pale, sweaty face. Raising her arm, she thrust the newspaper she was clutching into her sister's face. "I need to show you something Sarah. It's very...I can't believe.."
Her eyes suddenly rolled back in her head as she fainted, crumpling into a small heap on the floor. The paper she had gripped so tightly fell from her limp fingers.
"REBECCA!" Sarah screamed.
Nathan and Ezra leapt from their chairs at the same time. Nathan knelt beside the young woman as Ezra sat down on the floor, cradling her head in his lap. The healer gave her a cursory once over before saying, "Let's get her off the floor and to her bed in the hotel."
Absentmindedly, Sarah scooped the newspaper from the floor watching as Ezra gathered her sister into his arms. He walked slowly toward the hotel with Sarah and the others in tow.
When he reached their room, Ezra laid Rebecca gently on the bed and stepped back so Nathan could examine her. JD ran into the room after retrieving Nathan's medical bag.
Quickly, Nathan searched inside it. Finally finding what he was looking for, he opened a small bottle and waved it back and forth under Rebecca's nose.
Coughing violently, her eyes flew open pushing Nathan's hand away from her as she tried to sit up.
Ezra poured a glass of water and handed it to Nathan. He held the glass for her saying, "Easy now, Miss Rebecca. Sip it slow. Don't drink it too fast or it'll come back up on you."
Standing off to one side of the bed, Sarah asked, "Are you all right sis?" Her eyes concerned for her big sister.
"I'm alright now I think," she glanced at her surroundings, "How did I get here? I was in the saloon, but I..."
"You fainted Miss Rebecca," JD offered.
"I did? I don't remember. I came looking for Sarah and then...I...I just..."
"It's awful hot out there today Miss Rebecca. You should take it easy for a while. You rest easy and I'll have the hotel send you something to eat later," Nathan replied in soothing tones.
Managing a weak grin, she nodded. "Thank you Nathan. I think I'll do just that." She slid back down on the bed and turned on her side.
Nathan stood and motioned for everyone to leave. Ezra held back a moment wanting to be sure Rebecca was all right, but Nathan took hold of his arm and pulled him toward the door. Sarah started to leave also, but Rebecca said, "Don't go Sarah. Please…stay with me a moment."
"Okay," Sarah replied.
Waiting for the door to fully close, Rebecca sat up. "I found out something today that couldn't possibly be, but it is. I don't know how it happened…don't know how we can even change what's happened."
Sarah sat down on the bed beside her sister, "Rebecca, calm down! You're babbling! You're not making any sense."
Taking a few slow, deep breaths to steady herself, Rebecca said, "I was just at the newspaper office… Mary was in the process of printing a special edition of the paper. Something tragic has happened and she wants to get the news out."
"What?" Sarah asked her curiosity peeked.
"This past Sunday, General George Armstrong Custer was killed at the Battle of Little Big Horn."
Sarah narrowed her eyes starting to reply, but Rebecca interrupted her, "Now, before you call Nathan back in here to examine me, hear me out. That newspaper that you're holding has a date on it. Look at it!"
Unfolding the rumpled paper she scanned the print along the top. Her mouth fell open, her eyes grew wide in disbelief. Looking at her sister, Sarah began to wear the same disbelieving stare that Rebecca knew she had sported earlier.
"Is this for real?" Sarah whispered. "How can this be possible?"
Rebecca shook her head. "I don't know. I keep thinking it has something to do with that storm. I don't know how or why, but somehow it transported us. We are in the year 1876 and there is nothing we can do about it. We might wake up tomorrow and find ourselves back in our time. I just don't know."
Sarah embraced her sister feeling sick to her stomach. Rebecca did the same, whispering, "It's alright. We're safe and we've made some friends in the six days we've been here. I think in that short span of time I think they've come to care about us."
Sarah nodded, but began to weep anyway. Rebecca felt tears roll down her cheeks too, but brushed them away, trying to be strong for Sarah. "We'll be just fine," she whispered as she held her sister tightly.
M7***M7***M7***M7***M7***M7***M7
Rebecca stepped into The Clarion and looked around nervously. It had been three days since she had made her startling discovery. After thinking about it and discussing it with Sarah, she had decided to tell someone about her and her sister…someone she felt she could trust.
That someone she decided was Mary Travis.
Reasoning that the newspaper owner would be the able to handle the truth…once she was to able relay it to her. She only hoped that she wasn't wrong and that their story didn't get splashed across the paper like an Old West version of Jerry Springer.
She found the Mary at her desk writing an article to print. Approaching slowly, she tried to put her thoughts in some semblance of order. How do you tell someone that you're not from around these parts she wondered? Gathering her courage Rebecca said, "Good afternoon Mary, hope you're not too busy to talk?"
Glancing up the paper she had before her, Mary smiled, "I'm free. What can I help you with?"
Sitting down, she nervously licked her lips, "Sarah and I aren't what we appear to be and I've decided to trust you with our secret. I hope what I'm about to tell you will be kept in strictest confidence."
Intrigued, Mary leaned forward in her chair, "Of course you can trust me."
Rebecca sat her knapsack on Mary's desk. "When Buck found us do you remember what day it was?"
"Yes, of course. It was June 23."
"And the year?"
"1876 of course."
Wetting her lips again before clearing her throat, she continued. "It was 1876 your time, but it was June 23, 2021 my time." She waited to see what kind of reaction she would get from Mary.
The newspaperwoman stared at Rebecca like she had just grown another head. "What are you trying to tell me?"
"Sarah and I are from the future. We don't know how it happened or how we got here, but we're not from this time. Now before you accuse me of being insane, let me prove it to you."
Rebecca leaned forward in her chair and began pulling items from her bag. For the next half an hour she took The Clarion owner forward in time. She gave her a glimpse of what life was like 146 years in the future. When she had finished presenting her case, Rebecca gazed at Mary waiting for her to speak.
Mary, to her credit, gazed at Rebecca and said, "It's a miracle. How is it possible for you to be here?"
Rebecca shrugged her shoulders. "I've spent the better part of three days trying to make sense of what has happened to us. The only thing I've been able to come up with is that on the day we were in Brices Canyon, there was that violent storm in our time and maybe here at the exact same moment. Buck mentioned when found us it was during a storm. Somehow it created a doorway into the past…connecting our space and time with yours. However it happened it allowed us to cross through."
Mary shook her head unable to grasp the concept, "You're talking way above my head Rebecca, but I'll accept whatever explanation you've come up with. The proof of what you're saying is spread out before me."
"I knew I had to tell someone where we were from. I've suspected you've been wondering about us from the very first. At least that's the impression I've gotten from you. Am I right?"
Mary nodded. "The clothes you had on that first day were so different from anything I'd ever seen and your undergarments definitely were not normal for women of this time. I tried to convince myself that perhaps it was what Easterners were wearing or women in France, but I didn't really believe it. Plus that pen you were writing you notes with…never seen anything like that."
Rebecca smiled at Mary. "Well I'm glad my impression was right. I imagine being a newspaper woman you must have all kinds of questions about the future."
Mary leaned back in her chair, "Try several million."
"Well I don't think I should tell you everything the future holds. I remember reading a book once about time travel and one of the things it talked about was influencing future events while in the past...how it could possibly change things."
"Well, what can you tell me?" Mary asked.
Rebecca thought for a moment then said, "I know that women's causes are a big thing for you...well women are given the right to vote in 1920. It's the 19th amendment to the Constitution."
"Wonderful!" Mary exclaimed. "What else?"
"Well, laws were finally enacted in the 1980's protecting women against abusive husbands and boyfriends. Domestic violence became a big issue and women's rights advocates fought long and hard to get laws together to protect women. There was also a push to get equal pay for women doing the same job as their male counterparts. There's still a lot of work needed in that area, but it is getting better. We also finally elected the first Black President of the US and as of the last election in 2020, we have the first Black female Vice President. "
Mary smiled, "Incredible! I'm glad to hear that things have changed for the better."
"I wish I could say that everything has gotten better…there's still a lot of work that needs to be done." Rebecca replied.
She stood gathering her stuff, piling it back into her knapsack. "Well...I'll let you get back to work. I'm glad I let you in on our secret Mary. It's nice to know that someone besides Sarah and I will know where we're really from. If I ever need to talk, I hope I can come to you?"
"Anytime Rebecca," Mary smiled.
"Thanks. That means a lot. I'll talk to you later then."
Rebecca stepped out of the Clarion, looking at the dust-covered streets of Four Corners. What was that old saying...'Home is anywhere you hang your hat.' She smiled to herself. For the time being this was home and she felt better knowing she had at least one person who knew the truth. Slinging her pack over her shoulder she headed back toward her new home in the hotel.
M7***M7***M7***M7***M7***M7***M7
Chris Larabee trudged up the stairs to his room in the hotel. His spurs clicked and jingled with each step. He was tired, aching to the very marrow of his bones. He and his best friend Vin Tanner had been a week in the saddle delivering the prisoners from the most recent bank robbery attempt to another town for pickup.
The last two miles of their journey seemed the hardest. Vin had kept a running dialog of what he planned on doing once they arrived back in Four Corners. The usually quiet tracker had repeatedly told Chris he was going to get himself a hot meal and a bath, and not necessarily in that order. Chris had just smiled at Vin and rode on in silence.
Chris had decided that his first order of business was to get quietly drunk. Memories of his dead wife and son had been in his thoughts recently. The only way he knew how to block the pain of losing them and dull the ache in his heart was to drink himself into a stupor. He knew Sarah would never have approved of his behavior, but then if she and Adam had still been alive there would be no need.
As he rounded the corner heading for his room, he heard a guitar and a woman singing. Her voice was low and sweet making him pause outside the door of the room and listen. It was a love song, one he didn't recognize, but it made him smile anyway. He closed his tired eyes remembering how Sarah would sing as she did her chores. He waited for the familiar ache in his heart that usually happened whenever she entered his thoughts, but this time the memory made him smile.
The song ended abruptly as his eyes snapped open, jolted from his revere. Light footsteps approached the door and it opened to reveal a lovely young woman. She closed the door almost bumping into Chris. A startled look crossed her face, but was quickly replaced with a smile.
"I'm sorry, sir. I didn't see you there. My apologies."
"Ma'am," he said quietly, tipping his hat as he stepped aside.
She continued to smile as she walked away. Stopping briefly at the end of the hall, she threw a quick glance over her shoulder as she noticed the stranger was still watching her. A blush colored her cheeks as she finally turned the corner.
Watching her walk away, he felt something stir inside of him. While the young woman didn't look exactly like Sarah, there was a physical resemblance. She had long wavy auburn hair and the same light blue eyes that seemed to look right through a person. She was also about the same height and her voice had the same lilting quality Sarah's often had. The enticing scent of lavender trailed after her making him ache with remembrance.
Without realizing he was doing it, Chris followed her at a distance. When he reached the landing to the stairs, he heard familiar voices below. It was Buck and Ezra.
"Well howdy Miss Rebecca. We were just on our way to see if you were ready for supper," Buck said in his most charming voice.
"I'm sorry I kept you Gentlemen waiting. I'm afraid I got caught up in a song I was playing," Rebecca paused then continued, "I hope you haven't waited long?"
"Not at all, my dear," Ezra interjected with his usual smooth style. "My compatriot and I had only just arrived when you made your entrance. May I or should I say we, have the pleasure of escorting you?" Ezra extended his arm as did Buck.
Rebecca flashed both men a big smile, "Thank you. That would be nice," Looping her arms through theirs; she was guided to the hotel restaurant.
Chris watched as they disappeared through the restaurant doors. He stood a moment longer before turning back toward his room. Unlocking the door he stepped inside. Lighting one of the wall lamps he set his whiskey on the dresser.
He took the cork out of the bottle pouring himself a drink. As he raised the glass to his lips he caught sight of himself in the mirror. He looked like hell, yet she had smiled at him. Why? He downed the drink in one swallow then poured another. He started to pick it up, but caught sight of his image in the mirror one more time…stopping. "Why?" he wondered aloud.
Pulling out a drawer, Chris grabbed some clean clothing, his razor and a few other items and headed for the bathhouse to join Vin.
M7***M7***M7***M7***M7***M7***M7
Ezra pulled out a chair for Rebecca and she sat down. Sarah was already there as was JD, Josiah and Nathan. Buck sat down on one side of Rebecca and Ezra the other.
"Glad you finally made it sis, I'm starved," Sarah joked.
"Sorry if I held everyone up, but I've been working on a song and got sidetracked," Rebecca apologized.
"Ladies, you simply must perform for us one day. This town is in dire and definite need of some culture," Ezra drawled.
"Shoot! Things ain't that bad around here. Why just last week we had a magician come through town and he put on quite a show. Well...at least he did until ole Ezra here told everyone how he was doing his card tricks," Buck complained.
"The man was a fool…very sloppy with his prestidigitation," Ezra countered.
"Prestidig...what?" asked JD.
"His card tricks," replied Ezra, "I can do better sleight of hand than that."
"And probably have during some of our poker games," Buck chuckled.
Ezra shot the ladies' man a nasty look and started to reply to his insinuation. Instead he changed the subject. "Well what delectables are on the list for tonight."
Opening a menu, he leaned toward Rebecca, discussing different choices with her.
She smiled at Ezra as they looked over menu. She loved being in his company and over the last few days she found that more often than not, they spent most of their free moments together. In the short time she had been in Four Corners, he had become a good friend. He made her feel special.
Ezra was about to make a suggestion for dinner, when into the restaurant walked Vin and Chris.
"Welcome back Gentlemen! Good to see you have returned in one piece," Ezra drawled.
"Hey Chris, Vin. Welcome back pards," Buck added.
The two men approached the group at the large table as the others welcomed them home.
Buck motioned for the two to grab chairs and sit down.
"Ladies…these two Gentlemen are the missing friends we've been telling you about. This is Chris Larabee and Vin Tanner. Boys we'd like for ya'll to meet the newest members of our little town, Rebecca and Sarah Dannon."
The sisters exchanged looks over the two new arrivals. Sarah made a face at Becky and mouthed, 'Whoa! How cute are they?'
Rebecca didn't know what Vin looked like after arriving back in town, but Chris definitely cleaned up well. He had obviously bathed, shaved and donned some clean clothes.
Instead of the totally black outfit he had sported earlier, Chris had changed into a black and white striped shirt with a black vest and pants. He had knocked the dust from his hat and it hung behind him letting her get a better look at him. He had dark blonde hair that swept back off his face and blue-gray eyes that seemed to command your attention. He glanced at Rebecca at one point during the introductions and gave her a smile. It made his handsome face glow. Rebecca couldn't help but return it.
She looked at Vin Tanner next and had to agree with Sarah's assessment. How cute was this man? He was wearing a dark red shirt with two rows of gold buttons on the front and tan trousers. Around his neck he wore a light pink patterned scarf and like Chris, he let his hat hang by its strap down his back. Vin had incredible blue eyes and softly curling brown hair that hung to his shoulders and when he smiled his whole face lit up.
After the two men had seated themselves, Chris glanced across the table at Rebecca. He chose a seat directly across from her wanting a better look. The attention he seemed to be giving her wasn't lost on Buck.
For the first time, he took a long hard look at Rebecca. Why hadn't he noticed it before? Rebecca had more than a passing resemblance to Sarah Larabee and Buck was certain his friend could see it.
Conversations ebbed and flowed across the table with so many sitting together, but Rebecca noticed that Chris's eyes never strayed far from her. She could feel herself blushing from time to time as she would catch him watching her.
Rebecca noticed that Vin and Sarah had taken an instant liking to each other. They were deep in a conversation that every so often caused one or the other to smile.
And that made her smile for Sarah.
She was glad to see Sarah smiling again. The last week had been rough on both of them. Trying to adjust to the fact that they were stuck in the past had been hard, but their new friends had made it a lot easier.
"So Mr. Larabee, I understand that you and Mr. Tanner just returned from delivering some bank robbers. I hope your journey was a peaceful one?" Deciding to grab the bull be the horns, Rebecca thought hopefully he would talk to her and stop with the staring.
"As peaceful as it could be considering what we were doing, Miss Dannon."
Nodding, she decided to continue. "Well as I've come to know these other Gentlemen as friends, I hope that you and I can also become friends."
Chris favored her with another smile, "I think I would like that, Miss Dannon."
"Please call me Rebecca. Miss Dannon sounds so formal."
"Alright, but only if you call me Chris."
Rebecca grinned, "I'd like that."
"Buck tells me that you and your sister are singers. Do you think you might consider performing here in Four Corners?"
"Actually Sarah and I have been giving it a lot of thought. We just haven't made up our minds yet," Rebecca replied.
"Well I look forward to that. I was able to hear part of a song upstairs earlier when we ran into each other. I thought it was quite beautiful. Was it a love song?"
"As a matter of fact it was. It's one I've been working on."
"Well you have a beautiful voice," Chris said favoring her with another smile.
"Thank you," Rebecca blushed back.
Ezra had been fairly quiet during most of their conversation. He had noticed the frank stares that Chris had been giving Rebecca and the way she had returned them.
Over the last week, Ezra had come to realize he was starting to care about her. She was the most extraordinary woman he had ever met. He wanted to tell her, but for the first time in his life he was unsure how to proceed. Why did she make him feel so unbalanced and yet so alive?
Standing suddenly, Rebecca announced, "If you Gentlemen will excuse me, I'm feeling rather warm and need a breath of fresh air." She left the restaurant and walked outside onto the plank sidewalk.
Watching as Rebecca left the room, Ezra wondered if perhaps this would be a good time to tell her how he felt. She would be alone and it seemed the fates were providing him with a golden opportunity. As he stood to leave, he saw Chris follow her out the door. Ezra made a face wondering if maybe he had moved too slowly.
Looking into the starry night sky Rebecca smiled. She was having a thousand different feelings and every one of them led back to Chris Larabee. Never had she felt such a rush of strong emotion about someone. He made her quiver all over.
Suddenly she became aware that she wasn't alone. A tall, silhouetted figure stood in the hotel doorway watching her every move she made. She took a few steps toward the hotel realizing it was Chris.
Not wishing to appear eager for his company, she decided on a different tactic. Trying to sound slightly annoyed, Rebecca asked, "Is there some reason why you keep watching me Mr. Larabee?"
"Chris."
"What?"
"Call me Chris."
Rebecca rolled her eyes, "Is there some reason you keep watching me Chris? I'm finding it a bit unnerving."
"Sorry, it's just you remind me of someone I use to know," he replied in a low voice.
"Well…is the memory good or bad?" she asked stepping closer.
"Both," he responded.
Walking out of the shadows to stand before her, Chris asked, "Would you care to take a walk Rebecca?"
She stood watching him for moment, "Alright, Chris."
Offering his arm he asked, "So do you think you and your sister will be staying on in Four Corners?"
"Probably so," Rebecca replied. She wanted to add that they had nowhere else to go.
"So who is it that I remind you of? And was she pretty?"
"Someone...and yes she was beautiful," was his only response.
Nodding, she pursed her lips; "Well I'm flattered."
Chris smiled as they walked down the wooden walkway away from the hotel.
Stepping from the hotel shadows, Ezra watched as the pair walked away. His heart shattered into a million pieces. Standing a moment longer as the figures receded into the night, he walked across the street to the saloon. Perhaps some measure of comfort could be found there in either drinking or playing cards.