Anna had gone up to take a bath, and Teddy had retired to his room to write a letter. Daddy and Mama always ended their day in the study, and today was no exception. Daddy was sitting at his desk, looking over essays from the summer class he was teaching, and Mama held a book. The fireplace, which usually blazed in the winter months, was empty. A window was open, allowing in a cool evening breeze, and a few lamps cast a soft glow over the bookshelves, comfortable furniture, and throw rugs.
“Maggie.” Mama’s face lit up with a smile when she noticed me. She set aside her book and patted the sofa. “Come in.”
Daddy looked up from his paper and took off his glasses, his blue eyes sparkling at my arrival. They had always looked at each of us as if we were truly remarkable. Though I had been blessed with three sets of wonderful parents, my marked mother and father were special. I bore their marks and could speak to them openly about time-crossing, so I had always felt a unique bond with them.
“I could tell something was on your mind as soon as I saw you at the depot,” Daddy said, swiveling his chair away from his desk and giving me his full attention.
“Your call was a surprise.” Mama tucked a wisp of hair back into the roll along the side of my head. A hint of worry filled her green eyes. “Did something happen in one of your other paths?”
“Many things are happening.” I looked down at my hands. “We just endured the First Battle of Bull Run in 1861.”
Daddy nodded, understanding completely. As an American History professor at the College of William and Mary, he probably knew more than I did about what was happening. “Are you any closer to making a decision?”
I shook my head. “No, although I thought I had lost 1861, and when I returned there, my relief was so profound that it has made me wonder if I am not meant to stay there permanently.” I quickly told them about saving Virgil Earp’s life. “I don’t understand what happened,” I admitted. “I thought I was changing history, but he lived, and I was allowed to stay there.”
“Why do you think you were so relieved to return?” Mama asked. “Has a special young man caught your eye?”
There was a special young man, but was he the reason I was relieved? “I have met someone, but he is not the reason. I hardly know him.” I didn’t want to talk about Gray right now. “But that’s not why I’ve come home. I have a problem in this path that I need help navigating.”
“What happened?” Mama asked.
My parents could be trusted with future knowledge. Having lived with this gift, they knew, better than anyone else, how to keep information to themselves.
“I have never told you,” I began, “but there will be a catastrophic event on December seventh of this year that will lead us into the war.”
“I knew there would be another world war,” Mama said. “My marked mother told me as much. And with the growing tension, I knew it would be soon.”
“Japan will attack America at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu,” I told them quietly. “They will destroy most of the Pacific fleet and take thousands of lives.”
Mama and Daddy looked at one another, unspokencommunication passing between them. I’d never met two people who understood each other like they did.
“President Roosevelt will call for our entrance into the war,” I continued, “and we will fight until 1945.”
“We’ll win,” Mama said as more of a statement than a question.
“We will.”
“Why are you telling us this?” Daddy asked. “You know the risks.”
“I’m telling you because Dr. Philips has asked if Anna and I would like to be transferred to the USSSolace, which will be heading to Pearl Harbor in a couple of weeks. The hospital ship will be there on December seventh.”
My parents did not speak as they stared at me.
Finally, Mama asked, “Will theSolacebe attacked?”
“I don’t know. I haven’t done much research on Pearl Harbor because I didn’t think it would affect me. And now I’m afraid to in case I learn something I could change. It would be hard enough to be there in the days leading up to the attack without that temptation.”
“We both understand,” Mama assured me. “Your father and I knew of many events in the 1770s that we could not prevent. It’s one of the burdens of this gift.”
“One of many,” I said.
“What do you want to do?” Daddy asked.
I shook my head. “I don’t know.”
“If you didn’t know what was going to happen,” Mama said, “would you want to go to Pearl Harbor?”
“Yes—without a doubt. I would love to work on a hospital ship and see Hawaii. Who wouldn’t?”
