Congressman Hollingsworth was standing in front of the Magazine’s brick walls, looking over the structure that had already been turned into a small museum, while the others stepped inside.
“Father!” Henry called.
Congressman Hollingsworth turned, and a wide grin lit his face. “I see you’ve found Libby.”
I couldn’t suppress my grin, nor did I want to. “You knew, didn’t you?”
“I had my suspicions when we met on theOlympic,” he conceded, joy in his blue eyes—eyes that were remarkably like Henry’s. How hadn’t I noticed before?
“Why didn’t you tell me?” I asked.
“It wasn’t my place.” He lifted his hands. “If I’ve learned anything, it’s that we must not try to usurp God’s plans. Had I told you about Henry, it might have caused both of you to seek your own paths. I knew that if God intended for you to meet again, you would.”
I shook my head, marveling at his faith. He was right. Had I known about Henry in this path, I would have made far different choices. I wouldn’t have married Lord Cumberland, Father would have been ruined, and Teddy wouldn’t have been born.
“What about your son?” Henry asked, as if he knew the course of my thoughts. “Is he a time-crosser?”
“No. He doesn’t bear the mark.”
“Do you have a mark, as well?”
“I have a sunburst over my heart, the same as Mama and her mother before her.”
“Our mark is here.” Henry took off his fedora and lifted the hair at the nape of his neck.
“I know.” I smiled, recalling how I had realized Congressman Hollingsworth was a time-crosser.
“We are given until the age of twenty-five to choose which path we want to keep,” Henry added.
I had wondered, since he had been twenty-three in 1775. “And now we are free to talk about our other paths together.”
Congressman Hollingsworth put his hand on Henry’s shoulder. “I think I should leave you two alone. I’m sure you have a lot to discuss.” He approached me and took my hands in his. “I’m so happy you’re finally here with us, Libby. I’ve heard so much about you, and I look forward to getting to know you better.”
After he entered the Magazine, Henry and I just looked at each other. I couldn’t get enough of him, and I still struggled to believe what had happened. So many memories filled my heart and mind, and I thought about that day when we had said our farewell in Mama’s backyard. What if we had known then what we knew now? How differently our paths would have played out.
I was happy I hadn’t known.
Henry took a step closer to me, shaking his head in wonder. His eyes were so beautiful and so full of hope and love. He was exactly as he’d been in 1775.
“I want to marry you, Libby. As soon as possible. I don’t want to spend another day apart.”
“I want the same.” I swallowed the worry that suddenly crept up my throat. “But what about Teddy?”
He took my hands and laid them against his beating heart. “I want every part of you, Libby Conant. The joy, the sadness, the blessings, and the pain. I can’t wait to meet Teddy, because I know I’m going to love him with all of my heart. He’s an extension of you, so how could I not?”
My heart expanded at his words, and I had to force back the tears threatening to fall.
I was done crying. From now on, my life would be one of laughter and joy. I wasn’t naïve enough to believe that we would be immune to hardships, but I was confident that if we had survived a separation in 1775 and still found each other in Mama’s backyard one hundred and forty-one years later, then there was something much larger than us at work.
We were walking on the path God had ordained, standing in the center of His perfect will, and I never wanted to be anywhere else.
Epilogue
WILLIAMSBURG, VIRGINIA
JANUARY 1, 1921
“It’s time, Henry.” I placed my hand on his arm, while the other rested on my stomach as a contraction subsided.
