Time Risk: A Time Travel Novel, page 27
Rachel took the pages eagerly and opened the first, her eyes falling on the typewritten page. She read:
Zachory Taylor Reynolds
Zachary Taylor Reynolds was born in Oneida, Tennessee, on December 27, 1916. In 1936, after completing two years of college, Zach enlisted in the Army Air Corps. His exceptional skills and calm demeanor quickly earned him a position as a First Lieutenant and a flight instructor at Wheeler Field in Hawaii. There, Zach honed the abilities of young pilots, preparing them for the perilous skies of World War II. His time at Wheeler Field was abruptly disrupted on December 7, 1941, when the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor plunged the United States into war.
In early 1942, Zach was assigned to Burma, where he flew the iconic P-40 Warhawks, engaging in fierce dogfights against Japanese aircraft. In 1943, during a particularly intense skirmish, his plane was shot down. Wounded, but surviving the crash, Zach returned to the United States and became a flight instructor for the P-40 Warhawk, the P-47 Thunderbolt, and the P-51 Mustang.
When the war ended, Zach was discharged from the United States Army Air Corps as a Captain. He then met and married Lily May Faulkner. They moved to Charleston, South Carolina, where Zach pursued a law degree, graduating with honors and establishing a successful legal practice. Zach and Lily May raised three children, daughters Bessie and Ruby, and a son, David, named in honor of a friend and pilot, David Whitlock, who was shot down and killed over Germany in 1944.
Zach was an avid golfer and a deacon at his local Baptist church. In 1978, he retired from his law practice, dedicating his remaining years to family, faith, and leisurely pursuits. Zachary Taylor Reynolds passed away on April 9, 1991, leaving behind his wife, three children, seven grandchildren, and one great-grandson. He is buried in Magnolia Cemetery in Charleston, South Carolina.
Rachel lifted her eyes from the page, feeling as if she had just awakened from a dream. She folded Zach’s page, slipped it into her jeans pocket, and unfolded the next sheet of paper.
Victoria Gilbert
Victoria Gilbert was born on November 10, 1908, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She was the daughter of Catharine Gilbert, a suffragist, and George Gilbert, a Methodist minister. In 1926, Victoria graduated from high school and enrolled at Bryn Mawr College. However, the following year, she left without graduating to pursue a career as a journalist. Her first published articles appeared in The Philadelphia Inquirer.
In 1932, driven by her ambition to become a foreign correspondent, Victoria journeyed to England and then France, where she spent two years working at the United Press bureau in Paris. After reporting sexual harassment by a man connected to the agency, she was fired.
Undeterred, she spent the following years traveling across Europe, writing for newspapers in Paris and Pittsburgh, and covering fashion for Vogue.
In 1938, she went to Spain to report on the civil war, where she was wounded in action. She returned to England and studied photography. For the next two years, she worked as a photographic journalist and writer for several U.S. and European newspapers.
Her articles and photographs about the Battle of Britain, from July to October 1940, gained attention and earned her worldwide recognition. Early in 1941, she went to live at the White House to help Eleanor Roosevelt with her correspondence and her “My Day” daily newspaper column.
Later that year, Victoria moved to Honolulu to work for the Honolulu Advertiser, writing articles on the looming Pacific war.
After the attack on Pearl Harbor, Victoria returned to Europe, where she covered the war until June 1944. On June 10, 1944, while in France, just days after the D-Day landings, the jeep in which she was a passenger struck a land mine, and she was seriously wounded. Victoria remained in a Paris hospital for a short time, finally succumbing to her injuries on June 18, 1944. Victoria’s body was returned to Pittsburg, where her parents had her buried at the Allegheny Cemetery.
The Victoria Gilbert Prize for Journalism is named after her.
Sinclair saw the tears fill Rachel’s eyes, then break and run down her cheeks. “Is there anything I can do, Rachel?”
Rachel shut her eyes. “No… thank you.”
Sinclair turned and walked away, giving her time to be alone.
Later, when Rachel had worked through the emotion, she gazed up into the sky and smiled. “Well, Victoria, it happened a long time ago, didn’t it, Kiddo?”
As Rachel started back to the lab, Sinclair joined her, walking quietly at her side.
“After all you’ve been through and with all the surprises you’ve had in the last two or three days, I hope you’re up for one more rather big surprise.”
Rachel kept walking, the gravel crunching under her feet. “I think I’ve had all the surprises I can handle for a while. And if that surprise is about asking me to take another time travel journey, the answer is no. I’m happy to live in the present, even if I did lose three years. I’m finished with the past.”
As they approached the back door to the lab, it opened, and an attractive, short-haired blonde woman in her late-thirties stepped out. Rachel sized her up with a glance, trying to recall if she knew her or if she had worked with her on the time travel project. There was something intriguing in the woman’s intelligent blue eyes, her smiling mouth; something familiar about her cheekbones and posture.
“Hello, Rae,” the woman said tentatively, her wet, glistening eyes expanding on Rachel.
Rachel was still and alert. No one called her Rae. No one… except Sarah. Her sister, Sarah, was the only person who had ever called her that. Rachel straightened up, and her pulse jumped.
“Who the hell are you?” Rachel asked.
The woman softened; took a small step forward. “They said you might not recognize me, Rae.”
“Rae? What the hell is going on? What is this?”
The woman said, “Look at me, Rachel. Really look at me. You know who I am.”
Rachel felt a crisis of sensation. She wiped all expression from her face.
“Remember ‘Magic Meteor Night?’ We were just girls. We stood barefoot in the driveway on a warm summer night, staring up at all those billions of stars. Remember? Bright streaks of light went shooting across the sky. It was a meteor shower performing its magic show just for us. You remember. I know you do.”
Rachel was rigid, her heart drumming so fast it hurt.
“I said, ‘Look, Rae. The world is filled with magic.’ And then you said, ‘I want to be an astronaut, and go someplace where no woman has ever gone before.’ I know you remember.”
Rachel couldn’t move. Her mind, her soul, her entire being struggled to understand the new and impossible reality she was living in.
“It’s Sarah, Rae. It’s me, your sister. I didn’t die. I’m here, and our parents are alive, too, and I have two wonderful sons who drive me nuts, and who are anxious to meet you.”
Rachel’s mind scurried about looking for truth—any truth. She breathed in and then let the air out of her lungs carefully, staring with troubled wonderment.
“Rae… Rachel… When you saved David Whitlock, you didn’t know it, but, according to Mike Sterner, you saved me, too. How? I don’t know, but here I am. In my reality, we grew up together; had vacations together; talked about boyfriends and our careers, and then I met Jason and got married. You became a cop. You came to me one morning and said, ‘Hey, Sarah, guess what? I’m going to time travel.’ And I said, ‘Go for it, Rae.’”
Rachel felt the impact of Sarah’s words, even if she couldn’t comprehend them.
Sarah’s voice turned soft with affection. “Rae… Mike Sterner said none of it will make sense to you. He said you’ll need time. So, let’s take all the time we need, Rae.”
The moment expanded, and it deepened, and Rachel’s hard shell of wary apprehension slowly began to dissolve. She didn’t care how or why it happened. She would leap into this new reality, like a swimmer who dives off a high rocky cliff into the depths of the ocean.
Rachel took two steps toward her sister, inhaled a breath, and lifted her welcoming arms. Sarah came in a rush and Rachel enfolded her. The sisters held their embrace, as the tears flowed, and as time stopped.
Rachel flashed back to her hospital room in 1941, when she was recovering from her wounds. Victoria was there, and she’d said, “You stopped a wave, Rachel. You stopped one single wave when you saved David Whitlock’s life.”
Rachel had said, “I don’t think I stopped a wave, but I guess I did change its course.”
Victoria had added, “And so you changed the course of the world, Rachel. This world that was traveling down one road, heading in one direction. But then, thanks to you, the big old wide world swerved a bit. Now it’s traveling down a different road. How is it going to change the world of the future, do you think?”
After the embrace, Rachel gently held Sarah at arm’s length, tears sliding down her cheeks. “It’s been such a crazy journey, Sarah, and now that it’s over, I don’t know the truth or have the answers to anything. Nothing makes sense. But none of that matters. You’re here. We’re together, and that’s the only truth I need. It’s enough. It’s perfect.”
Thank You!
Thank you for taking the time to read Time Risk–A Time Travel Novel. If you enjoyed it, please consider telling your friends or posting a short review. Word of mouth is an author’s best friend, and it is much appreciated.
And a note to our alert readers: Although our team does its best to catch all typos and factual errors, we sometimes miss a thing or two. If you’ve read something that doesn’t sound right, please don’t hesitate to email us with the information. We appreciate hearing from you via email rather than having it posted in a review.
Thank you,
Elyse Douglas
Other novels by Elyse Douglas that you might enjoy:
The Christmas Diary
The Christmas Diary – Lost and Found
The Summer Diary
The Other Side of Summer
The Christmas Women
Time with Norma Jeane (A Time Travel Novel)
The Christmas Eve Letter (A Time Travel Novel) Book 1
The Christmas Eve Daughter (A Time Travel Novel) Book 2
The Christmas Eve Secret (A Time Travel Novel) Book 3
The Christmas Eve Promise (A Time Travel Novel) Book 4
The Christmas Eve Journey (A Time Travel Novel) Book 5
The Lost Mata Hari Ring (A Time Travel Novel)
The Christmas Town (A Time Travel Novel)
Time Change - A Time Travel Novel
Time Lost - A Time Travel Novel
Time Parallel - A Time Travel Novel
The Summer Letters
Daring Summer - Romantic Suspense
The Date Before Christmas
Christmas Ever After
Christmas for Juliet
The Christmas Bridge
Wanting Rita
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About The Author
Elyse Douglas
Elyse Douglas is the pen name for the husband and wife writing team of Elyse Parmentier and Douglas Pennington. Elyse began writing poems and short stories at an early age, and graduated with a degree in English Literature.
Douglas grew up in a family of musicians, astrologers and avid readers, and attended the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, playing piano professionally for many years. His great grandfather lived to be a 134 years old and was the oldest man in the world when he died in 1922. Their cat, Sir Eaton, loves parties and a few sips from a good glass of Pinot Noir.
Some of Elyse Douglas's novels include: "Time Lost” "Time Past," "The Christmas Eve Letter Series," "The Christmas Town," "The Christmas Diary" and "Time and Tide."
They live in New York City.
www.elysedouglas.com
Praise For Author
"You will laugh, cry, swear, yell, and still keep reading because the story will have you in its grip."
- Books, Books and More Books
"THE CHRISTMAS EVE LETTER is a wonderful Time Travel book and one of my favorite books of the year!"
- The Book Return Blog
"Hypnotic, original and intrepid. TIME CHANGE grabs you from the first page and never lets go."
- Peggy-Anne Lawford -
Perfect Word Book Blog
"Loved the book!" (Time With Norma Jeane).
- Five Stars!
--International Book Reviews
"My first Elyse Douglas book and definitely not my last. Very refreshing - a world apart from my usual reading material. Loved every page."
- Amazon Reader - United Kingdom
"The writing is hauntingly beautiful, and the author has a talent for crafting believable characters. It's heartwarming and heartbreaking at the same time. An excellent book!" (The Other Side of Summer).
- I Heart Reading Blog Review
"Speakeasy" is a frolicky, jazzy blast that will have you eagerly turning pages into the wee hours of the night!"
- Bookshelf Reviews
"The characters seemed real. I didn't want to put the book down. I read it in two sittings. Can't wait for the next book!"
- Amazon Reader - United States
"Such an amazing read. Flawless. 5 Stars!" (The Summer Letters).
- Anteria Writes Blog - To Dream, To Write, To Live
5.0 out of 5 stars! The City of Deadly Dreams
"Excellent Noir Mystery, Very Atmospheric... I loved the detective, Dane Cooper!"
- DTChantel Book Reviews
"This author knows how to consistently hit all the right notes in her romantic and suspenseful time travel stories. With compelling characters and interesting plot lines the stories come alive and keep your interest up to the last line."
- Amazon Reader
Books By This Author
Time Visitor
In 1944 a Squadron of Navy Planes Disappears off the Florida Coast. One Lands in 2005... In Ohio.
Time Parallel
Straddling two parallel worlds, Harper Close confronts the mysteries of time and reality in an emotional story of love, loss, and redemption.
Time Lost
In 1953, a mother's routine drive home is transformed into a time-travel odyssey, when the light from a mysterious spacecraft hurls her and her car to 2023, setting in motion a series of extraordinary events and a life-and-death decision.
Time and Tide
Will Gillian rewrite history or surrender to destiny? Time travel to 1900 New York City.
Time Zone
Mary McLane Carson has two lives and two loves. She has time travel mysteries she can't understand, and secrets she can never tell.
Elyse Douglas, Time Risk: A Time Travel Novel
