by Sable Hunter
Now it was his turn to frown. “I want a more dignified name than Percy Wombat.”
She shook her head with pretend exasperation. “We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.” Pulling out into the road, she headed downtown. “Now to buy you some new duds. Do you want to stay with cowboy clothes, or would you like to go for a laid-back Austin look with knee length shorts and a UT t-shirt?”
“Like him?” He pointed out a guy ambling down the sidewalk in exactly the type of clothing she’d described.
“Yea, that’s pretty close. He looks comfortable.”
“No, thanks. I want to feel like myself. I don’t have the legs to wear something so revealing.”
Journey could’ve argued the point. She’d seen him undressed – mostly – and there wasn’t a damn thing wrong with any part of him. He didn’t have a gym body. Rather he had real muscles from real labor. Honest, hard work. Reno Black was a man’s man.
“We’ll get you fixed right up.” She traveled slowly down the main drag until she spotted a men’s clothing store. In the window were models sporting several different styles of clothing. One of those styles was distinctly western. This was Texas, after all.
Upon entering the upscale store, a smiling clerk came to greet them. “Good morning. How may I help you?”
Journey started to speak, but Reno beat her to it. “Hello, my good man. I would like to purchase some apparel.”
“Very well.” He eyed Reno’s clothing, coming closer to examine the material. “Vintage. Interesting. Worth a pretty penny, I vouch.” He shook his head. “If you’re looking for this sort of thing, I can’t help you. I wish I could. Are you with a movie company? I bet you’re searching for period costumes, aren’t you?”
Reno glanced at Journey for help.
“Uh, no. We’re not with a movie company. We’d just like to see some western apparel. The outfit he has on is genuine, you’re right about that. He’s visiting with me, ruined his clothing, and I had to dig in the attic to find something for him to wear.”
The gentleman seemed to buy her story. “I see. Well, follow me.”
With the clerk’s help, Reno selected three pairs of jeans, two pairs of dressier pants, and five long-sleeved shirts. “Remember the unmentionables,” he whispered to Journey.
“Would you be in the market for shoes?” the clerk asked hopefully.
“Yes, sir. I believe so,” Reno followed the man to examine the available selection.
While they were looking at shoes, Journey found the underwear department. She decided briefs were more his style. Baggy boxers didn’t really appeal to her. Just imagining how Reno would look with his manhood molded by soft white fabric, tight enough for her to make out his shape and size, made her fan herself to cool down. “Whoa, Nelly. Quit picturing Reno’s junk.”
“What junk?”
She jumped at the sound of his voice. “Don’t slip up on me!”
He gave her a teasing smile. “Find anything?”
“Yes.” She handed him two packages, each containing three pairs of briefs. “This will do. If you want, you can change into some of the clothing before we leave.”
“Good idea.” He held up a pair of the jeans. “Like you said, these are cooler and a lot more comfortable.”
“I’ll wait,” she promised, finding a seat near the dressing room.
When it came time to pay, Reno pulled out a small bag, and extracted a gold coin. Journey realized he was about to try and pay for the clothing with a twenty-dollar gold piece. “I’ll get this.” She placed her hand on his and pushed the bag down.
“What?” he started to protest, but the look she gave him quelled his response. “Very well.”
The salesclerk eyed them both a bit suspiciously, but he processed her credit card just the same. “Here’s your receipt. Thank you for your business. Come again soon.”
“We will.” Reno offered the man his hand and they shook.
Once they were out of the store, Journey breathed a bit easier. “The money you’re carrying is worth a lot more than its face value.”
“How much more?”
“Several thousand dollars, I’d imagine.”
“Are you certain?” Reno looked stunned. “How is that possible?”
“Lots of reasons. It’s rare. Gold. We’ve had record inflation in the past century. You look nice by the way.”
“Thanks.” His smile was as bright as the sun.
“You’re welcome.” She took the car remote from her pocket to unlock the door. When she pressed the button, Reno reached for it.
“May I see that, please?”
After handing it over to him, she waited with amusement while he locked and unlocked the doors several times. He liked the clicking noise.
“Enough. You’re going to wear out my battery.”
He stared at the small remote. “This works with batteries?”
“Yes, like the television remote at home.”
“Hmmm.” Reno turned it over in his hand. “I’ve seen the batteries used in the telegraph office. They are much bigger.”
She opened the backseat so he could deposit the purchases. “That’s the way of things. Most electrical gadgets have gotten smaller over time. Computers. Phones. Only televisions have gotten bigger.”
“Makes sense,” he muttered as he climbed in the vehicle. “Televisions should be huge.”
“You’re going to fit into this modern world with no problem,” Journey observed as she settled behind the wheel. “Next stop is the library.”
As the car moved slowly down the busy street, Reno observed everything with interest. “Art galleries, wine shops, a bakery.” He named the stores as they passed by. “Oh, look a general mercantile, that looks familiar.”
“Do you need anything? Any toiletries?” She’d given him a new toothbrush and toothpaste. “Anything for your hair?”
“I could use a few things,” Reno admitted. “I don’t want to keep using your money, however.”
“No worries. I’ll get them now. When we get home, I’ll try to find a place for you to sell some of your coins in exchange for modern money.”
A little while later, they were on the road again and Reno was delving into the sack filled with shampoo, deodorant, dental floss, a razor, shaving cream, and a comb. “I look forward to using these products. Thank you.”
“Glad to do it.”
“Explain the card you use to make the purchases.”
Journey explained the intricacies of the credit system. “A bank issues the card and sets a credit limit for me based on my ability to repay it. Some people have a two-thousand-dollar limit, and some have a million-dollar limit. Mine is in between at ten thousand dollars.”
“The card allows the bank to pay for the purchases and then you pay back the bank,” he said slowly. “Sounds like extra trouble to me when you could just pay for it yourself to begin with.”
Journey laughed. “You’re right. Go figure.” Ahead, she noticed something that might interest him. “How do you feel about big boats?”
With his curiosity aroused, she stopped at the museum. Once they were out of the Subaru, she spoke softly to him as they neared the entrance. “This is the National Museum for the Pacific War. During World War II, the commander of the Pacific fleet was a man who grew up here in Fredericksburg. His name was Chester Nimitz.” As they entered into the building and made their way through the displays, Journey explained to him how the world came to be at war. She told him about Hitler, Mussolini, Stalin, and Hirohito. She also spoke of Churchill and Dwight Eisenhower.”
Reno was mesmerized and full of questions. He looked at films and photos of fighter planes and aircraft carriers. He was shocked by the sheer size of the carriers. When he came to a display depicting the bombings of Nagasaki and Hiroshima, he stood, stunned. “A bomb did this destruction?”
“Nuclear bombs, yes.”
“I want to know more about them.”
“I’ll find some articles for
you when we get home.”
Journey explained the importance of the war. How Hitler slaughtered the Jewish people and how the Allies stood up to prevent Hitler and the Axis nations from overtaking the world.
“I would’ve thought the horrors of the war between the states would’ve taught the world a lesson.”
“You’d think so. Once when I was trying to learn as much about you and your life as possible, I read an article on the civil war. Approximately, a million and a quarter US soldiers have died in wars to date. Six hundred twenty thousand of those were killed in the Civil War and six hundred forty-four thousand in all the other conflicts our country engaged in put together.”
“That’s so sad. Do those large numbers include the Native Americans who died protecting their homeland?”
“You know, I don’t know.” His question made her feel funny. “Justice is not always a product of conflict. Civil War ended slavery and the World Wars kept evil men from taking over.” Journey realized what she said made things sound too simple. “Yet, these wars didn’t solve all the problems. The slaves were freed but it was a century later before they received equal rights. Some say they’re not equal yet. And even the lessons of the world wars weren’t enough to prevent more fighting. Remind me to tell you about the Vietnam war and the wars in the Middle East.”
“Sounds like the passage of time has succeeded in advancing technology but failed in the lessons of peace.”
“Exactly.” They looked around a bit more, then went on their way.
“Is the library next?”
She checked her phone before she started out. “Isn’t that a shame? I can’t remember where the public library is located. Ah, it’s just down the street.”
“I thought you liked to read.”
“I do.” Journey eased on down the road a few blocks. “There are still many people who use libraries, but the internet and ebooks have transformed the way we read. They are still necessary for local research, however. Not all of the old documents and letters have been uploaded onto the internet.”
“You need to teach me how to use a computer.”
His interest pleased her. “I will.” He sounded as if he might be accepting the possibility of being a permanent resident of the future.
When they arrived at the library, Reno opened the door for her once more. As they stepped inside, he took a deep breath. “I’ve always loved the smell of books.”
She breathed in, more aware of what she was sensing. “Yea. Leather. Wood polish. Knowledge.”
“I don’t think you can smell knowledge.” He tugged on a lock of her hair. “I forgot to tell you something this morning.”
“What was that?” she whispered as they tread softly across the large rugs on the hard wood floors.
“I really like what you’re wearing. You look nice in that red dress. You’re very beautiful.”
Journey felt warmth envelop her. “Thank you, Reno.” She felt her nipples tingle and swell. As they neared the information desk, she held her purse up in front of her breasts to hide their reaction to his compliment.
“How may I help you?” A harried older lady wearing a pink suit several sizes too big for her peered at them over a pair of gold rim spectacles. Her tag read ‘Miss Stanberry.”
Journey glanced at Reno to see if he wanted her to speak for them. When he nodded, she leaned in a bit. “We’d like to see any historical documents you might have on skirmishes or battles between the local settlers and the Native American tribes who lived in the area. The time frame we’re interested in is between early 1869 and 1873.” She met Reno’s gaze and he smiled his approval.
“Let me think.” She tapped the side of her sizeable nose. “We might have a book or two. Fredericksburg didn’t have a newspaper until 1877 and Austin didn’t have one until 1873. There might be some personal papers, however.” She held up a finger. “Let me go check.”
While Miss Stanberry was gone, Journey turned to Reno. “I should phone Apple. She said she’d look through the Ramsay family papers.”
“If we come up short here, let’s do that.”
Journey nodded, liking how he mentioned them as a team. “How about your brother? Do you want to ask if there’s any record that mentions him?”
He held her gaze, his jaw tensing. “Do you think they’d have anything? I thought I might have to contact the army.” A wistful look came to his eyes. “Unlike me, he might have descendants to ask.”
“We’ll think of something, some way to find out.” She didn’t want him to be sad. “You’re only twenty-six. There’s no reason you won’t have any children. If you don’t go back and get married in the past, you can get married and have children in this time.” As soon as she made the statement, Journey realized how he might take her suggestion. “I didn’t mean…”
“Sorry it took so long.” Miss Stanberry passed them a slip of paper. “Here are the file numbers for some things you might find interesting. Go upstairs to the archive room and give these numbers to Miss Winkler. You can’t take anything out of the room, it’s climate-controlled for protection. You can, however, spend whatever time you need studying the documents. Take notes. We don’t subject those books and papers to a copier. They’re very valuable. One day we’ll have them scanned onto a computer…when our budget increases and we have some decent help.”
“Good. One more thing.” Journey picked up a pen and a small notepad lying on the counter and wrote out the name of Cole Black. “Could you see if this name is mentioned in any Civil War records? He fought for the Union in Major General Gouverneur K. Warren’s Fifth Corp.”
Ms. Stanberry looked put out, but an encouraging smile from Reno made all the difference. “Go on up. I’ll see what I can find and if I do, I’ll bring the number up to Miss Winkler for you.”
“Thank you,” Journey told her, then raised her eyebrows to Reno as they started toward the elevator. “She likes you. She likes you.”
Reno ignored her sing-song tease. “What were you saying back there about me getting married?”
“Nothing.” She made sure to keep her voice even and her expression bland. “I just meant that if you stayed in the present…there’s no reason why you might not meet someone, fall in love – you know.” About that time, she came to the elevator door and pressed the button marked UP.
When the doors opened with a whoosh, Reno froze. “What in Sam Hill is this?”
Journey held the door. “This is called an elevator. It will take us upstairs.” She saw someone else coming. “Get in and don’t talk.”
Reno obeyed and they were joined by two college age students, both girls. They seemed extra happy to be sharing the space with Reno. They looked at one another, giggled, then glanced at him and giggled some more. Unfortunately for them, the cowboy was oblivious to their antics. When the elevator began to move, he grabbed onto the rails on either side of him and held on for dear life. Since they were only going from the first floor to the second floor, the ride was over before Journey could offer him any comfort. The two girls didn’t seem to notice Reno’s discomfort or his white knuckled death grip, they were too busy admiring the rest of him.
After their elevator companions stepped off with a sneaky look back at Reno, he grabbed Journey’s arm and held her steady. “Stay.”
“Why?”
He reached over to the control panel and pressed the ‘down’ arrow. “I want to do it again.”
“Oh, please. Really?” She couldn’t believe this.
For the next ten minutes, they rode up and down until Miss Stanberry came over to stand in front of the open doors of the elevator, folded her arms, and tapped her foot on the carpet.
“See what you did,” Journey whispered to him in a hiss as she pressed the ‘up’ button.
“What did I do?” Reno asked innocently as the doors opened on the second floor.
“Never mind. Our next outing will be to the mall to ride an escalator,” she muttered dryly. “You’ll love that.”
Once they gave Miss Winkler the file numbers, they were told to wait at a certain table and the items would be brought out to them.
“What’s an escalator?” Reno whispered; his head bent close to Journey’s.
She pursed her lips and tried to pretend to be annoyed. “Moving stairs. Instead of you climbing them, they just glide up and you step off at the top. If there’s an up escalator, there’s also a down escalator.”
Reno grinned. “You’re making that up. You think I’ll just swallow anything, don’t you?”
She spread her hands out as if she couldn’t help what his beliefs told him. “We’ll see.”
In a few moments, Miss Winkler approached carrying two oversized tomes. “There’s a chapter in each of these concerning the events you wished to research.”
“Thank you.” Journey took one and gave Reno the other.
“If you need any assistance, just let me know.”
“Yes, ma’am. Thank you.” This time the gratitude came from Reno. He checked out the title of the book. “Texas Indian Wars.”
Journey did the same. “Mine is Records of the Bureau of Indian Affairs.”
They both dove in to see what they could find. After about five minutes of searching, Reno elbowed her. “Look.”
He began to read. “As reprisal for a series of raids and attacks on the white settlers by the local Indian tribes, the US Cavalry, assisted by an armed militia of central Texas ranchers, engaged the Indians in a massive battle near Fredericksburg, Texas. The date was June 1869 and the tribes were all but wiped out. Only a few survived and many of those were killed in skirmishes in the early 1870’s, resulting in an almost total extermination of the native peoples of central Texas.”
“Oh, my God,” Journey gasped. “I’m so sorry.”
Reno hit the table with his fist which brought a stern reprimanding stare from Miss Winkler. “Wiped out. Over a lie. God, I wish I had told Clay when I had the chance. I just didn’t spare the time.” He closed his eyes and fumed. “Those raids weren’t carried out by Indians. They were white raiders. If I were there, I could prove it. If I could get back, I could stop this from happening.”
