Indiana Belle (American Journey Book 3) (6 page)

"Do you think I was wrong to put him on the spot?"

Jeanette shook her head.

"You made him a fair offer. You did what most men would have done in the same situation. You saw an opportunity and took it."

Cameron smiled sadly as he pondered the statement. Jeanette Bell had described his actions to a T. He regretted the way he had conducted himself on Saturday, but he did not regret forcing the professor's hand. He knew the only way he could possibly get his way was to deal from a position of strength and exploit his advantage. So he did.

He gazed at the boardwalk and once again saw it come to life. A woman in a bikini walked by with a Great Dane twice her size. Three men raced each other on electric scooters. Two others, carrying surfboards, crossed the concrete path on their way to the beach, the ocean, and waves that Jeff Spicoli of
Fast Times at Ridgemont High
might consider "tasty" or "gnarly."

Cameron thought about the delightful differences between California and Rhode Island and then turned his attention back to the pleasing Mrs. Bell. He wondered why she had asked to meet him on this sunny afternoon and meet him without her husband.

"I suppose you want to know what I plan to do," Cameron said.

Jeanette smiled sweetly.

"I already know."

"You do?"

She nodded.

"You plan to race to Indiana and save Candice Bell from her awful fate. I'm sure you want to study the twenties and fulfill your promise to Geoffrey, but that's not why you picked 1925. You picked 1925 because you're in love with a woman who's been dead for more than ninety years."

"Are you a mind reader?" Cameron asked.

"No," Jeanette said. She laughed. "I'm more of an eye reader. I saw how you looked at that photo on Saturday. Geoffrey may have missed the wistful glint in your eyes, but I did not. I suspect you've been obsessed with Miss Bell since you first laid eyes on her."

Cameron chuckled.

"You say that like it's a bad thing."

"It's not bad to have a healthy obsession," Jeanette said.

"Are you sure my obsession is healthy?"

"I am."

"How can you be sure of that?" Cameron asked. "You don't know me."

"I do though. We checked you out."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean we hired a private investigator to look into your personal life, your finances, and your past," Jeanette said. "We know about your family, the girls you've dated, the friends you've made, and the major decisions you've made since your grandparents died."

"You mean you violated my privacy," Cameron said.

"You didn't think we were going to share our secrets with a total stranger, did you?"

"I guess not."

Cameron laughed softly.

"What's so funny?" Jeanette asked.

"I was just thinking about what you said. If you've already checked me out, then why did you ask to see me today? Is there still a stone you haven't turned?"

Jeanette smiled softly.

"There is. There are two, in fact."

"What's the first?" Cameron asked.

"I'll show you."

Jeanette reached into her purse and pulled out an unsealed manila envelope that had been stuffed to the gills. She looked at her acquaintance and then handed him the envelope.

"What's this?" Cameron asked.

"These are your papers," Jeanette said. "You'll need to fill them out, sign them, and return them to us before you can travel."

"Let me guess. You want me to fill out a release form."

Jeanette stared across the table.

"We want you to fill out several forms, including some releases. We don't think they will be necessary. We
hope
they won't be necessary, but we want to be prepared just in case. Time travel is serious business, Cameron. If you do not return, we will have to explain to others what happened to you. These forms are for your benefit."

"I understand. I'll fill them out and give them to you on Friday," Cameron said. "What's the other reason you wanted to meet with me today?"

"It's nothing serious," Jeanette said. "I just wanted to hear you out."

"What do you mean?"

"I want to hear your thoughts on all this before we blast you to the past. You didn't say much to Geoffrey when you talked to him on Monday," Jeanette said. "I'm sure you're excited."

"I am."

"Are you scared?"

Cameron chuckled.

"I'm terrified, to be perfectly honest."

"You shouldn't be," Jeanette said.

"Why do you say that?"

"I say it because you're not the first astronaut we've sent into space."

"Come again?" Cameron asked.

"We sent two other parties, complete strangers, to the past last year."

"Really?"

Jeanette nodded.

"Last April, we sent a reporter and his son to 1900. They spent several months in Galveston, Texas, the site of a terrible hurricane. Later, in September, we sent a romance novelist, her mother, and her daughter to 1938 and Princeton, New Jersey. They returned about the time World War II broke out in Europe. Like the reporter and his son, they returned in one piece."

"Why would you share your secrets with strangers?" Cameron asked.

"We have our reasons."

"I see. So am I the latest guinea pig?"

Jeanette stared at her tablemate.

"You're the latest person to sign up for the adventure of a lifetime."

"OK."

"You're free to back out at any time."

"No. I'll go," Cameron said. "As you probably know, I don't have a lot to lose right now. I'm financially set, thanks to my grandparents, but I have no close relatives and only a few friends. If I disappeared from the face of the earth, only a handful of people would even notice."

"You seem sour on life," Jeanette said.

"I'm not, Mrs. Bell. I'm actually more of a glass-is-half-full kind of guy, but I'm realistic. I know firsthand that happiness can be a fleeting thing. I take what I can when I can, but I don't demand or expect more from life than the next guy."

"You sound like a pragmatist."

"If I do, it's because I am."

Jeanette sipped her drink.

"Do you plan to be a pragmatist in 1925?"

Cameron took a breath.

"I don't know what I plan to do."

Jeanette chuckled.

"I think we both know that's not true."

"You still think this is all about a girl?"

Jeanette grinned.

"I do."

Cameron smiled sheepishly.

"I guess there's no point in trying to hide the truth."

Jeanette reached across the table and put her hand on his.

"There's nothing wrong with your interest in Candice Bell. There's nothing wrong with your interest in 1925," Jeanette said. "Just remember that when you step into the past on Friday, you will step into a world that hasn't existed for nearly a century. Treat everyone you meet as if you had absolute power of their future and their fate, because in fact you might."

CHAPTER 8: CAMERON

Friday, March 10, 2017

Cameron had to give Geoffrey Bell credit. For a man who did not want to send a pushy doctoral student to the past, he was making it happen with blinding speed and efficiency.

Cameron did not even have to drive himself to the professor's residence. All he had to do was pack his bags, step into a waiting limousine, and enjoy the scenery as a hired hand drove him through the heart of Los Angeles to a West Adams address fifteen miles away.

When he arrived at the residence thirty minutes later, he stepped out of the limo, retrieved his bags from the trunk, and cast his eyes on two lovely ladies. The first was a Painted Lady, a blue, green, and gold edifice with gables, bay windows, and ornate trim. The second was the matron of the house. Jeanette Bell smiled at the visitor as he stood with his luggage on a brick driveway.

After walking to the limo and paying the driver, Jeanette greeted Cameron with a hug, grabbed the smaller of his two bags, and led him into a house that looked more like a Victorian museum than a modern California residence. Once inside, she played the gracious hostess. She directed Cameron to a settee in the parlor, poured him a glass of iced tea, and answered his questions about the house and the neighborhood with candor and warmth.

Jeanette did
not
answer Cameron's questions about time travel or shed light on her husband's whereabouts. She instead guided the Rhode Islander to a first-floor bedroom and asked him to do three things: hand over a manila envelope, change into a double-breasted suit, and leave his contemporary clothes and belongings, including his identification, on the bed. In less than fifteen minutes, the gracious hostess had turned into a no-nonsense businesswoman.

Cameron did not mind. He had not come to the West Adams district to get a guided tour of one of its finest homes. He had come to do something that most people, including the world's top physicists, considered impossible. He had come for the adventure of a lifetime.

Jeanette returned for Cameron twenty minutes later. At a quarter to noon, she led him through the house and down a dark, dingy staircase that all but screamed Tower of London.

Cameron expected to find a dark, dingy basement at the bottom of the stairs. What he found instead was something that looked more like a lavish corporate lounge.

Cameron squinted as he followed Mrs. Bell into a thirty-by-forty-foot space that threw off more light than a full moon. With white walls, a white ceiling, a plush white carpet, and two large white leather couches, the room was a glowing tribute to the color that was all colors.

He waited a few seconds for his eyes to adjust and then looked at Jeanette. He could see from the subtle smile on her face that she was amused.

"What is this place?" Cameron asked. "God's Waiting Room?"

"You're close," Geoffrey Bell said matter-of-factly as he entered the basement. Carrying an old-style leather satchel, he joined the others in the middle of the room. "It's your transfer point from this world to the next."

"Hi, Professor," Cameron said.

"Hello, Mr. Coelho. Please take a seat," Bell said as he pointed to the sofas. "We have a lot to talk about."

"All right."

Cameron walked to the closest couch, sat down, and watched Bell closely as he whispered to his wife in the center of the room. He didn't know what to make of the professor's cool demeanor or businesslike message, but he guessed he was about to find out.

A moment later, Bell escorted Jeanette to the facing sofa, waited for her to sit, and then carefully placed the satchel atop a glass-and-brass coffee table. He sat next to his wife, took a breath, and offered his guest a tight smile. If he was still comfortable with his decision to send Cameron to the past, he was doing a bad job of showing it.

"Let me start by thanking you for filling out the forms completely and bringing them to the house today," Bell said. "I'm sure the last thing you wanted to do was fill out paperwork in the middle of your California vacation, but I think you understand why it was necessary."

"I do," Cameron replied.

"Do you have any questions before I begin?"

Cameron smiled.

"I do."

"What's that?" Bell asked.

"What's in the satchel?"

Bell chuckled as if slightly irritated.

"I'll show you."

The professor reached for the satchel, popped two brass latches, and opened the bag. He pulled out a thick manila envelope and handed it to Cameron.

"May I open it?" Cameron asked.

"Be my guest," Bell said.

Cameron reached into the unsealed envelope, pulled out the contents, and spread them out on the table. Among other things, he saw a map of Los Angeles, an 1897 California birth certificate, stamps, postcards, a letter of reference, and a stack of hundred-dollar bills. Issued in 1924, the Federal Reserve notes were as crisp as a winter day.

"You can't be serious," Cameron said. "That must be three thousand dollars."

"Try five," Bell replied.

"That's insane. I won't need that much money."

"You probably won't. I doubt you will need more than a few hundred dollars."

"Then why give me more?" Cameron asked.

"I'm giving you more because I want you to succeed. If you find the cave and bring back some crystals, you will give me far more than I'm giving you," Bell said. "I'm placing my faith in you, Mr. Coelho. I'm betting that you will provide a return on my investment."

Cameron sighed as he looked again at the banknotes. For the first time since pushing his way into this adventure, he felt pressure. He felt pressure to come through for someone who had clearly – and unexpectedly – come through for him.

"I appreciate your confidence," Cameron said. "I won't let you down."

"I'm sure you won't," Bell said.

"What else is in the satchel?"

"There are news articles I want you to read. I want you to know Candice Bell well. She will almost certainly be your link to Henry Bell, his time-travel writings, and the cave."

Cameron laughed to himself as he pondered the words. He wondered if Bell knew about his personal interest in the trailblazing journalist. If there was one thing the professor did not need to do, it was to insist that Cameron get to know his distant relative as well as possible.

"I understand," Cameron said. "I'll go to Indiana first."

"I figured you would," Bell replied.

Cameron smiled.
I guess that settles that
. He paused a moment to gather his thoughts and then glanced at an upright suitcase that someone had placed near the coffee table. Like the satchel, it was leather, slightly worn, and perfectly suited for 1925.

"Are those my clothes?" Cameron asked.

"They are," Bell said. "I packed an extra suit, three shirts, underwear, and socks."

"I appreciate that."

"You can buy extra attire with the money I've enclosed. I suggest that once you get to Indiana, you wear what the locals wear. The last thing you want to do as a time traveler is stand out. That is why I insisted in one of the forms you signed that you not bring anything that might identify you as a resident of 2017. I assume you have honored that request."