out of nowhere, possibly the future, and changed the lives of Brian Johnson, Shelly Preston, and many others in Unionville, Oregon, forever.
Kevin stared into space and thought again of his parents' alleged time-traveler encounter when his mother kissed him on the head and brought him back to the here and now.
"I pulled a couple of steaks from the freezer and put them in the fridge to thaw," she said. "There's also some milk and fruit in there. I'll make lasagna tomorrow night."
"I'll try to keep from starving, Mom. Run along or you'll miss a shoe sale."
Shelly shook her head and smiled at her son.
"Don't just watch TV, Kevin. Do something different. Have an adventure. Do something you wouldn't do with your boring old family around. I mean it."
"I'll think of something. I promise. Now go."
Kevin watched his mother walk out of the kitchen and out of the house. A moment later, he heard the SUV pull out of the driveway and zoom away. He finally had the place to himself.
He got up from the kitchen table, poured his remaining coffee in the sink, and glanced at the nutty clock on the wall. The hands indicated seven fifteen. Cuckoo had gone into hiding.
Kevin walked into the nearby bathroom, threw some water on his face, and stared into a brightly lit mirror. A brown-haired man with deep blue eyes, his mother's eyes, stared back.
It was still not too late to choose another course, he told the man in the mirror. He could check out one of those mysterious mines or give the Hiawatha another spin. He hoped to ride the fifteen-mile trail of tunnels and trestles at least one more time before he left for home.
Kevin knew he could also join his family in Spokane. An eighty-mile drive was nothing, particularly on a freeway where a speed limit of seventy-five miles per hour was not just allowed but encouraged. He could ride his bike for a few hours and still meet the others for dinner.
But he knew the minute he pulled his light cotton jacket from a nearby closet that he had no intention of leaving Wallace, at least not today. He had a curious mind to satisfy and another agenda to fulfill. He would do something different and perhaps have an adventure, though probably not the kind his mother had in mind.
Kevin put on his jacket, grabbed Asa Johnson's diary, exited through the front door, and walked around the residence to the large yard in back. He considered turning on the sprinkler, but quickly decided against it. If he were gone more than a few hours, he might have some explaining to do when the others returned.
He turned his head and put a hand above his eyes. A warm, bright sun – the solstice sun – rose above the mountains to the east. It was yet another sign that he had something better to do than shop for clothes or see a show.
Kevin zipped his jacket and walked the remaining fifteen yards to the south edge of the property, where ferns, tall grass, and weeds marked the division between civilization and nature. When he reached his destination, he pulled out the leather journal and flipped to a dog-eared page. Anxiety quickly replaced confidence as the primary tenant of his mind.
Kevin arranged more than twenty of Asa's double eagles neatly on the ground, said a quick prayer, and opened a weathered wooden door. He entered his great-great-grandfather's house of rocks and stepped into the year of the fire.
CHAPTER 6: KEVIN
Friday, July 22, 1910
Kevin needed no more than a few seconds to realize that he had traveled to another time. When he stepped out of the chamber of stones, he stepped into thicker air, a darker day, and a neighborhood that looked a whole lot different than the one he had left.
Grandpa Roger's house still stood on Garnet Street, but it didn't stand alone. Stately homes occupied nearby lots, including two Victorian mansions that looked like they had been built in the past twenty years. The inhabitants of this Johnson house did not live in isolation at the end of a wooded lane but rather in
Kevin stared into space and thought again of his parents' alleged time-traveler encounter when his mother kissed him on the head and brought him back to the here and now.
"I pulled a couple of steaks from the freezer and put them in the fridge to thaw," she said. "There's also some milk and fruit in there. I'll make lasagna tomorrow night."
"I'll try to keep from starving, Mom. Run along or you'll miss a shoe sale."
Shelly shook her head and smiled at her son.
"Don't just watch TV, Kevin. Do something different. Have an adventure. Do something you wouldn't do with your boring old family around. I mean it."
"I'll think of something. I promise. Now go."
Kevin watched his mother walk out of the kitchen and out of the house. A moment later, he heard the SUV pull out of the driveway and zoom away. He finally had the place to himself.
He got up from the kitchen table, poured his remaining coffee in the sink, and glanced at the nutty clock on the wall. The hands indicated seven fifteen. Cuckoo had gone into hiding.
Kevin walked into the nearby bathroom, threw some water on his face, and stared into a brightly lit mirror. A brown-haired man with deep blue eyes, his mother's eyes, stared back.
It was still not too late to choose another course, he told the man in the mirror. He could check out one of those mysterious mines or give the Hiawatha another spin. He hoped to ride the fifteen-mile trail of tunnels and trestles at least one more time before he left for home.
Kevin knew he could also join his family in Spokane. An eighty-mile drive was nothing, particularly on a freeway where a speed limit of seventy-five miles per hour was not just allowed but encouraged. He could ride his bike for a few hours and still meet the others for dinner.
But he knew the minute he pulled his light cotton jacket from a nearby closet that he had no intention of leaving Wallace, at least not today. He had a curious mind to satisfy and another agenda to fulfill. He would do something different and perhaps have an adventure, though probably not the kind his mother had in mind.
Kevin put on his jacket, grabbed Asa Johnson's diary, exited through the front door, and walked around the residence to the large yard in back. He considered turning on the sprinkler, but quickly decided against it. If he were gone more than a few hours, he might have some explaining to do when the others returned.
He turned his head and put a hand above his eyes. A warm, bright sun – the solstice sun – rose above the mountains to the east. It was yet another sign that he had something better to do than shop for clothes or see a show.
Kevin zipped his jacket and walked the remaining fifteen yards to the south edge of the property, where ferns, tall grass, and weeds marked the division between civilization and nature. When he reached his destination, he pulled out the leather journal and flipped to a dog-eared page. Anxiety quickly replaced confidence as the primary tenant of his mind.
Kevin arranged more than twenty of Asa's double eagles neatly on the ground, said a quick prayer, and opened a weathered wooden door. He entered his great-great-grandfather's house of rocks and stepped into the year of the fire.
CHAPTER 6: KEVIN
Friday, July 22, 1910
Kevin needed no more than a few seconds to realize that he had traveled to another time. When he stepped out of the chamber of stones, he stepped into thicker air, a darker day, and a neighborhood that looked a whole lot different than the one he had left.
Grandpa Roger's house still stood on Garnet Street, but it didn't stand alone. Stately homes occupied nearby lots, including two Victorian mansions that looked like they had been built in the past twenty years. The inhabitants of this Johnson house did not live in isolation at the end of a wooded lane but rather in
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