“Great. Call me when it arrives, and I’ll pick it up after the park closes.”
“I don’t mind dropping it off. I need to stop by and check up on the park anyway,” he said. “How’re things going?”
“Everything is going great.” If one didn’t count Oliver’s near possession by the doers of dastardly deeds. Should she mention the buried treasure she helped recover? What about the possibility that she’d travel back in time to save a ghost she was pretty sure she was already half in love with?
A bubble of near-hysteria burst, and she coughed to prevent it from turning into mad laughter. “Excuse me. Just inhaled a bug.” Another cough-cough for good measure, and she continued, “The package should arrive in the next few days.” Because she planned to pay extra to see that it did, and her budget be damned. She had a very nice, very dead Irishman to rescue.
“I’ll keep an eye out for your shipment, and I’ll bring the box by the day it arrives.”
“Thanks. I’ll see you then.” Meredith ended the call and pulled her laptop and her wallet from her backpack. Parked as she was in Starbuck’s lot, she still had decent wi-fi. With credit card in hand, she brought up the Historical Emporium. “This is the craziest, most impulsive thing I have ever done,” she muttered as she filled out the form and made her purchase.
She hadn’t fully made up her mind yet, but she didn’t want to waste any time either. If she decided not to take on the role of super hero in Daniel’s tragedy, she’d send the clothing back.
Meredith brought her dirty dishes to the sink. “That was the best chili I’ve ever had, John,” she said. “Thanks for dinner.”
“You’re welcome, and thanks for picking up the ingredients today.” He rose from the kitchen table and started gathering silverware and napkins. “Chili is the only thing I make that comes out like I want it to.”
“Really?” Oliver stood up from the table. “The cornbread was also excellent.”
“Yeah, Judy made that,” John grinned sheepishly.
Judy kept an eye on Oliver as he stretched and glanced toward his loft. “Meredith, will you join me in the bedroom for a moment?” she asked. “There’s something of a personal nature I need to discuss with you.”
“Sure, but it’s my turn to do the dishes.”
“Oliver and I will take care of the dishes.” John glanced at Oliver. “Won’t we?”
“Sure, sure.” Oliver nodded. “Glad to help.”
“Thanks,” Meredith said as she followed Judy to her room. “This is all very mysterious.” She grinned as Judy closed the door behind them.
“Yes, well, I didn’t want to discuss this in front of Oliver. He’s so impressionable.” Judy gestured toward one of the two twin beds. “Have a seat.”
“Okay.” Meredith’s curiosity grew as Judy laid her hand on a stack of books sitting on top of a dresser.
“As you know, John and I have been volunteering here for the past decade, this year being our eleventh.”
Meredith nodded.
“These are the history books we sell in the gift shop. All of them are about mining in the Garnet Mountains and Garrettsville’s history in particular.”
Judy’s expression seemed to hold expectation as she gazed at Meredith. Where was she going with this? “So?” Meredith prompted.
“You’re the American history professor. Haven’t you read any of them?”
“I bought one, but I haven’t had the time to even flip through the pages.” She frowned. “You want to discuss the books we sell in the gift shop?”
Judy shook her head. “We know my ancestor was robbed and murdered here. We also know Daniel and several others met the same fate at the hands of the same three men. Other than a missing prostitute, her supposed lover, and one old man, no mention is made in any of these books about the numerous murders and thefts that occurred in Garrettsville.”
“Okay.” Meredith nodded again.
Judy threw up her hands. “It would’ve made the news, Meredith. There are photocopies of other articles about this town in the Missoula papers, yet nothing about the gang preying on the prospectors. Do you know what that means?”
“Nobody reported the crimes?” she hedged.
“Are you pretending to be dense? No!” Judy’s eyes saucered. “It means you went back in time and prevented the murders from happening.”
Her own eyes widened. This was the last thing she’d expected from Judy. “If you’re right, how do you explain the fortune we recovered? If I prevented the murders, your ancestor—”
“I have no idea, but what you told us about your sisters makes it clear that our understanding of how time works is—”
“Malleable?” Meredith’s mind spun as she remembered the stories her older sister had told her about time. “Fluid?”
“I was thinking incomprehensible.” Judy flashed her a pointed look. “Perhaps you weren’t meant to go back until certain events had already occurred. Or, you prevent a lot of murders, and my great-great-grandfather died of a heart attack before telling Prudence he’d buried a fortune. He might’ve feared the bank would be robbed one day with or without the gang of three’s presence. It’s not like those kinds of crimes weren’t common back then. He would’ve thought about such things.” Judy threw up her hands. “I don’t know.”
“Yeah, that doesn’t make sense, because—”
“I know it doesn’t make sense, but you’re planning to go back.” Judy arched a brow.
“Aren’t you?”
“I’m considering the matter.” Meredith shared what had transpired earlier that day and the conversations she’d had with her sisters. Talking about her sisters brought back something else Regan had told her.
“A Tuatha dé Danann prince told Regan nothing that occurs upon one thread is ever removed from the tapestry of time and space. When a new thread is created—as in going back and changing what occurred—we humans only forget what transpired on the other strand.”
“Well, there you go.” Judy strode to one of the dressers, opened a drawer and lifted out a zippered cosmetic bag that made a clinking noise in her
