Mead was awake wellbefore dawn. He recognized the anxious feelings, but they were also tempered with excitement. He supposed what annoyed him the most was the sense that he was dreaming. How was all of this possible? Yes, he believed in the unseen. His faith was strong and at this point he could only see Morgan as God sent. The man from the future had made a tremendous difference in all of their lives, and strange as it seemed he was willing to leave all of this behind him and stay. Amazing.
Here he could have everything he wanted, but it seemed he’d somehow found more to appreciate in the past. Smiling, Mead’s mind flashed back to all the meals they’d shared since he appeared, and he recalled all the little moans of appreciation that escaped as Morgan savored Emma’s cooking. Morgan was more of a brother to him and Matthew, more of a son to Emma then the real son she’d born.
Getting up to use the bathroom he chuckled. It was really too bad that Morgan no longer wanted Lilly, for Mead would have been happy to return her. Still, it would not be a kindness. The man saddled with her for the rest of his life would likely not have a happy one. When had she turned into such a harpy? When had she changed from the sweet little lady to a green-eyed hellion, jealous of Callie Mae and the rest of the girls? It looked as though he was stuck with her and for a moment he was tempted to tell Witt and Cara he would like to stay. Morgan had found happiness in the past; perhaps there was a chance for Mead to find the same here.
He wouldn’t do it, of course. He would never put his mother through the agony of wondering what had become of her son. He’d seen what Morgan’s disappearance had done to her and her joy when he returned. There was no way he could justify hurting her and Missy, not to mention he genuinely loved Morgan and Matthew. No, the problem was Lilly and he made up his mind that if everything went well for him, he would find a way to deal with her when he returned. Seeing how happy Witt and Cara were, and the pleasure Morgan found with Callie Mae he would not settle for less.
The quiet knock of the door had him wheeling the chair from the bathroom and opening it.
“How about a cup of black coffee?” Witt asked.
“Sounds good. How much longer before we have to leave?”
“About an hour,” Witt replied. “You’ll find another sweat suit in the dresser, and I can help you dress. I hope today isn’t going to be too trying for you.”
“I’ll be fine,” Mead assured him as he followed him to the kitchen. “As long as I have hope of walking again, I’m ready to endure about anything.”
Witt placed the mug on the table and got another cup for himself.
“Is Cara coming?” Mead asked, taking a sip.
“No, she’s going to work. She’ll cover for me and fend off any questions that might arise, although I doubt anyone noticed us whisking you out of there.”
“How long have you and Cara been married?”
“Almost four years,” Witt replied.
“Really? Funny how that works. Morgan has only been with us for a few weeks. What do you think accounts for the time lapse?” Mead asked curiously.
“I think it may have something to do with the speed at which everything happens now, as opposed to how slowly things moved back where you come from, but it will take a lot of research and we might never be able to nail down an answer. Even with today’s technology, there is so much we don’t know about time travel, so much we have to learn. Very few people at the institute are even aware of our experiments. It’s decidedly top-secret.”
“Will you reveal what you’ve learned?” Mead asked quietly.
“I’m not sure. Cara is against it, but in the interest of science I believe we should. Not until after you’ve returned home, of course,” Witt continued. “Still, without a living candidate, it will be our word the others would have to trust, and I don’t want to risk discrediting Cara’s work. Unfortunately, it may have to stay our secret,” he sadly remarked.
“I’m sorry about that,” Mead offered. “Morgan tells me that when he made the decision to be part of the experiment, he felt he had no reason to stay here. The same cannot be said for me, or I would consider staying for the sake of science. In my case, I would be leaving a family I care deeply for.”
“And of course, your fiancée,” Witt added. “What did you say her name was?”
“Lillian, Lillian Piersal,” Mead answered. “Why?”
“Last night I had a hard time sleeping, so I got up and did some genealogical research on my laptop. I found no mention of that name in the Whittaker history.”
“You can do that on a machine?”
“Yes, but it’s not always terribly accurate, especially when you are going back many generations. People feed in information they believe is correct and it can send you off in a completely wrong direction.”
“I see, and did you find my name?” Mead asked curiously.
“I did,” Witt admitted with a nod.
“And did it tell you whom I married, or how many children I will have?” he inquired intently, leaning forward.
“It did, but I cannot reveal that information to you,” Witt said kindly. “What if it’s wrong? What if the woman listed as your wife is not the one you marry? You could alter the future, as Morgan has done.”
“Would that be such a terrible thing?” Mead pressed.
Witt laughed and took their empty cups to the silver cupboard that cleaned the dishes.
