thousands of mines and that many had been boarded up precisely because they posed serious risks to anyone brave enough, or stupid enough, to enter them.
No boards or barriers, however, covered the entrance to Colter Mine, and no signs warned intrepid explorers about seeking answers within. The shaft appeared dark and dusty but otherwise no less inviting than Aunt Edith's attic or an alley in downtown Seattle.
Grace got up from the boulder and paced back and forth for ten minutes, as she weighed possible actions and consequences. There was a clear downside, of course, to waiting too long. If Joel had already passed through the portal, she would have only hours, maybe minutes, to follow in his path.
Joel had presumably left Seattle Saturday morning and arrived in Montana Saturday night. Grace could not imagine him loitering in a Helena hotel or eating a late breakfast, not after spending all day Sunday doing nothing. She could imagine him traveling to the mine with the rising sun and entering it at first opportunity. He knew what he was doing. She did not.
Grace glanced at the mine entrance. Did she dare enter the shaft without Joel? Did she dare wait another minute? She checked the time. Nine o'clock. The sun was higher now and brighter. Water rolling down icicles on nearby trees began to drop to the forest floor. The day was coming to life. It was a sign, she thought. It was time to get moving.
Deciding that there was no harm in stepping inside the mine and escaping the bite of the wind, Grace walked to the boulder and picked up her suitcase. It contained clothes, cash, documents, photographs, and the Christmas card she had given to Joel. She felt a tinge of sadness when she thought again about the January ski trip that she had had to cancel, but she vowed that her present to him would be a gift delayed and not a gift denied. She would deliver the goods even if it meant delivering them in the twenty-first century.
Grace took one last look at the lot and the road. No taxi worked its way toward her. Nothing worked its way toward her. No matter. If Joel had already passed this way, she would find him. If he passed through later in the day, she would find him just the same. Of that she was sure. But before she could find him, she had to enter this mysterious hole in this unfamiliar place.
Grace walked toward the shaft, pulled a flashlight from a pocket of her coat, and pushed the switch. A bright beam shot forward. Thank God for batteries, she thought.
When she reached the entrance, Grace said a silent prayer. She asked for guidance and a happy outcome. On a day when so many Americans were preparing for unhappy outcomes, she needed something a bit more positive. But most of all, she needed a resolution. She needed to get the show on the road and find the answers to questions she had just begun to ask.
Grace pointed the light toward the darkness and sighed. It was time, she thought. It was time. Gathering her courage and her bag of belongings, she bravely stepped forward into the void. She entered Colter Mine on a cold December morning and left her world behind.
CHAPTER 7: GRACE
The mine worked its magic quickly. It sent Grace to a different time in less than a minute, though not the time she had anticipated. As the woman in the blue gingham dress and wool coat moved slowly through the narrow shaft, she drifted not to 2000 but – mentally, at least – to 1937. That was the year 17-year-old Grace Vandenberg and three fearless friends had explored a slightly wider cave near Nanking, China, in search of lost treasure.
Grace smiled to herself as she recalled the last summer of her idyllic youth. More tomboy than princess, she had rarely passed up an opportunity to have boy-like fun, whether exploring caves and jungles, throwing mud balls along the Yangtze, or playing tag in the village. She liked to test her mettle and push her limits and the Colter Mine was providing her with ample opportunity to do both.
The
No boards or barriers, however, covered the entrance to Colter Mine, and no signs warned intrepid explorers about seeking answers within. The shaft appeared dark and dusty but otherwise no less inviting than Aunt Edith's attic or an alley in downtown Seattle.
Grace got up from the boulder and paced back and forth for ten minutes, as she weighed possible actions and consequences. There was a clear downside, of course, to waiting too long. If Joel had already passed through the portal, she would have only hours, maybe minutes, to follow in his path.
Joel had presumably left Seattle Saturday morning and arrived in Montana Saturday night. Grace could not imagine him loitering in a Helena hotel or eating a late breakfast, not after spending all day Sunday doing nothing. She could imagine him traveling to the mine with the rising sun and entering it at first opportunity. He knew what he was doing. She did not.
Grace glanced at the mine entrance. Did she dare enter the shaft without Joel? Did she dare wait another minute? She checked the time. Nine o'clock. The sun was higher now and brighter. Water rolling down icicles on nearby trees began to drop to the forest floor. The day was coming to life. It was a sign, she thought. It was time to get moving.
Deciding that there was no harm in stepping inside the mine and escaping the bite of the wind, Grace walked to the boulder and picked up her suitcase. It contained clothes, cash, documents, photographs, and the Christmas card she had given to Joel. She felt a tinge of sadness when she thought again about the January ski trip that she had had to cancel, but she vowed that her present to him would be a gift delayed and not a gift denied. She would deliver the goods even if it meant delivering them in the twenty-first century.
Grace took one last look at the lot and the road. No taxi worked its way toward her. Nothing worked its way toward her. No matter. If Joel had already passed this way, she would find him. If he passed through later in the day, she would find him just the same. Of that she was sure. But before she could find him, she had to enter this mysterious hole in this unfamiliar place.
Grace walked toward the shaft, pulled a flashlight from a pocket of her coat, and pushed the switch. A bright beam shot forward. Thank God for batteries, she thought.
When she reached the entrance, Grace said a silent prayer. She asked for guidance and a happy outcome. On a day when so many Americans were preparing for unhappy outcomes, she needed something a bit more positive. But most of all, she needed a resolution. She needed to get the show on the road and find the answers to questions she had just begun to ask.
Grace pointed the light toward the darkness and sighed. It was time, she thought. It was time. Gathering her courage and her bag of belongings, she bravely stepped forward into the void. She entered Colter Mine on a cold December morning and left her world behind.
CHAPTER 7: GRACE
The mine worked its magic quickly. It sent Grace to a different time in less than a minute, though not the time she had anticipated. As the woman in the blue gingham dress and wool coat moved slowly through the narrow shaft, she drifted not to 2000 but – mentally, at least – to 1937. That was the year 17-year-old Grace Vandenberg and three fearless friends had explored a slightly wider cave near Nanking, China, in search of lost treasure.
Grace smiled to herself as she recalled the last summer of her idyllic youth. More tomboy than princess, she had rarely passed up an opportunity to have boy-like fun, whether exploring caves and jungles, throwing mud balls along the Yangtze, or playing tag in the village. She liked to test her mettle and push her limits and the Colter Mine was providing her with ample opportunity to do both.
The
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