The Universes Inside the Lighthouse

by Stucky, Pam

  “Dr. Waldo, are you sure you’re up to this? Maybe it’s time for someone else to take over?” said Milo.

  “Don’t be silly,” said Dr. Waldo. “I built it the first time, I can build it again! Yes, the Experimental Building had some flaws, you know it did, this time I’ll build it better, can’t see why not, no need to make it exactly the same, I’ll make it better. Maybe some of you have ideas for new rooms?” He looked directly at Emma.

  “I will think about it,” she said, her heart full of joy. She did have some ideas, indeed.

  Three days later, Emma and both Charlies headed back to the lighthouse. Worried what might happen to Emma if she tried sending Parallel Charlie back herself, using her new-found powers, Dr. Waldo had suggested that perhaps the young man might stay with the Nelsons for a few days, long enough to give Dr. Waldo time to figure out just exactly where in the multiverse Parallel Charlie belonged. Emma had quickly agreed. Exciting adventures aside, getting swept onto a desert planet by a powerful ancient force had been unsettling, to say the least. Emma was interested in learning more about how she might travel again, and Charlie was begging to learn as well, but for now, Emma wanted nothing of travel beyond this little island on her own Earth.

  Dr. Waldo had called earlier that afternoon to tell them to come over.

  Emma had answered her phone warily, seeing an unusually long number and “The Hub” listed on Caller ID.

  “Um, hello?” she had said, not sure who could be on the other end of the line. No way this call could really be from the Hub!, she had thought.

  Much to her surprise, though, a familiar voice had come through loud and clear. “Emma! Emma it works! I tell you, starting over here in the Hub has been just a delight! This is Dr. Waldo, Emma, my child, and I’ve found a way to connect into your cellular phone system! It worked! It worked!” Emma had heard Dr. Waldo shouting out to unseen colleagues: “It worked, my friends! It worked!”

  “Dr. Waldo, are you in the Hub?” she had asked.

  “I am in the Hub, Emma! I am in the Hub, calling you from my new Hub phone! It works anywhere in the multiverse! Well, that is, I should say, it works for calls to both Lero and Earth. Your Earth. Beyond that, we have not yet completed testing. Small sample size, I suppose. Say, now, I meant to tell you, Vik is getting help back at Lero, you saved him, young lady, he sends his thanks, that he does. His family too. They have come to visit him and to get to know him again. It’s tough going, you can imagine, certainly, yes, but they are grateful and asked me to tell you they are grateful, and so I tell you, they are grateful. Now that aside, I have figured out the coordinates of the other Charlie’s Earth, and I believe, I do believe we are ready to send him back. Would you three come over as soon as you can, please? Say your goodbyes—that is, the other Charlie should say his goodbyes—you’ll be staying here—bring the young man here, all of you, come when you can.”

  “All right. We’ll be right there.”

  As the trio drove to the lighthouse, Emma hoped this would not be their last visit to the Hub. With Vik back at Lero, working with specialists to help him recover and reconnect, Emma wasn’t sure there was a need for her and Charlie anymore. Her heart dropped every time she thought about it. What’s more, would she see Eve or Milo again? Their mission was done. Would they return to their regular lives back home?

  The three drove along in silence, each lost in his or her own thoughts until they reached the lighthouse.

  “Charlie, you handsome devil, it’s been great getting to know you,” Charlie said to Parallel Charlie, as they made their way into the lobby. “You’re my kind of guy.” He slapped his parallel self on the back.

  Parallel Charlie returned the slap. “For some reason, I can’t help but like you, too, Charlie. You’re an upstanding citizen, a paragon of virtue, an exemplary example of a human being.”

  Emma rolled her eyes.

  “Emma,” said Parallel Charlie. “Seriously, what do I say? It was quite a ride. I’m glad we met. You’re a pretty special person.”

  She blushed, and punched him in the shoulder. “Be nice to your sister,” she said, softly. “I’ll bet she’s pretty special too.” Even though she’d always have her own Charlie—she hoped—she would miss Parallel Charlie.

  Parallel Charlie nodded and gave his would-be sister a hug.

  The group entered the storage room. As soon as the door behind them closed, the door to the Hub opened. Dr. Waldo had been watching and waiting for them on the newly created security cameras.

  Emma and the Charlies stepped out onto the blue grass, and looked around them in amazement.

  “My, my! Look what you’ve done to the place!” said Charlie. “Dr. Waldo, you work fast!”

  The remodel was by no means complete, but Dr. Waldo had brought in a few fellow scientists who, under his direction, had helped him start to rebuild. Immediately in front of the entrance Dr. Waldo had first and foremost reconstructed the science lab area so he and his colleagues could get back to work. Off in the distance stood the cabins where Milo and Eve had lived. And to the left of the lab area, on a small patch of ground, stood a two-dimensional elephant, quietly picking at fragrant fruit from a tall three-dimensional tree.

  “Rupert!” cried Charlie, a huge grin spreading ear to ear. “You brought back Rupert!”

  “One can never forget the elephant in the room!” said Dr. Waldo with delight. “My dear friend Rupert, great company, could not have a Hub without him. The rest,” he said, looking around at the emptiness, the space where his Experimental Building had been, everything that was now gone, “the rest will come with time. I can’t begin to remember everything I had put into the building. Thought, of course, and the Secret Garden, which will probably start planting itself the moment I have it ready again, but beyond that, I just can’t remember much. I shall simply have to start from scratch.” He lifted his arms to the sky. “Start from Scratch! I hadn’t thought of that one before! A Start from Scratch room in the Experimental Building, what would that be, what would that be …”

  Ask me to help you rebuild, thought Emma, please ask me. “Do you have a map of the building as it used to exist?” she asked the scientist.

  Dr. Waldo nodded solemnly. “That, dear Emma, would have been a very good idea.”

  The door behind them opened again, and Eve, Milo, and Ben entered the Hub.

  “You called?” said Ben, laughing. He saw Emma and gave her a special smile.

  “Can you believe it?” said Emma. “Everything he has to do and he starts by figuring out how to call us.” She turned to Dr. Waldo. “You’re going to miss us, you know.”

  “Why?” said Dr. Waldo, a sparkle in his eye. “Why would I miss you? Are you going somewhere?”

  Emma stared at him, absorbing the implications.

  “What about you guys,” said Ben to Eve. “Going home?”

  The young woman with the impossibly blonde hair shook her head. “I guess you could say we got a little hooked on adventure. There’s more to be done. Besides,” she added quietly, looking at her father, “we’re still looking for my mom.”

  “You’re looking for your mom?” said Charlie.

  Emma nudged him quietly and said, “I’ll explain later.”

  Parallel Charlie hugged everyone, giving Emma another extra long hug, said his goodbyes, and walked back into the elevator. Before closing the Hub door behind him, Dr. Waldo handed Parallel Charlie a phone.

  “I’ve put the Hub on speed dial,” said Dr. Waldo. “Call when you get there.” With a nod and a wink, he closed the door. He entered coordinates into the panel on the Hub side of the elevator, and sent Parallel Charlie on his way.

  The group waited in silence. This was new. How long would it take to confirm travel across universes?

  A minute later, Dr. Waldo’s pocket started to ring.

  He pulled out a phone, just like the one he’d given Parallel Charlie. “You arrived safely? You’re sure it’s your Earth? Well that’s fantastic, young man! No
w you be good, stay in touch, come visit, I do love visitors, you take care now! All right, goodbye, goodbye!”

  That night, Charlie and Emma borrowed Ed’s truck again and went back to the camping spot they now considered their own. In Earth time, they’d been there only a few days ago, but it felt like a lifetime.

  “Do you think Eve will find her mother?” said Charlie, lying on a pile of thick blankets, pillows, and sleeping bags in the bed of the truck.

  “I don’t know. I hope so,” said Emma, lying on her back next to him, gazing at the darkening sky and the stars that were just starting to twinkle in the darkness, wondering what all might be out there. She’d seen so much, and yet relatively speaking, she’d seen next to nothing. There was not just one universe to be explored, but infinite universes. Her mind couldn’t help but wander, and wonder.

  “I hope we can come back here next summer,” said Charlie. “Not just for the lighthouse, but because I like it here.”

  “Me too,” said Emma. Ben had called her after they’d all said goodbye to Parallel Charlie, after she and Charlie had returned to the cabin. He’d started by talking about how he, too, hoped to do more work with Dr. Waldo and the other scientists in the Hub, and ended by asking if she might like to join him for a movie night down at Wishing Rock, his town. She’d said yes, and had been glowing ever since. But more than that, she felt drawn to the Hub. Doethine had said that the elevator had found her because it wanted to be found. Emma felt the same way about the Hub. Dr. Waldo never did ask her to help, not yet anyway, and she knew the Hub wasn’t hers, and yet …

  She stared up at the stars. She could never remember the constellations, so she started connecting the dots into her own configurations. “Look,” she said, pointing at a pattern of stars. “It looks like Rupert.”

  Charlie laughed.

  Emma’s phone rang. Caller ID identified the caller: the Hub.

  “Emma, come quick, I need you!” said an excited but breathless Dr. Waldo on the other end.

  Emma looked at Charlie and grinned.

  “Dr. Waldo, we are on our way!”

  the secret of the dark galaxy stone

  THE ADVENTURE CONTINUES! Find out what happens next for Emma, Charlie, Ben, Eve, Chuck, Dr. Waldo, and all the rest in The Secret of the Dark Galaxy Stone!

  “This was such a well-written sci-fi book where the author creates multiple imaginative worlds. If you like reading about time travel, other dimensions, alien planets, and parallel universes, this book is definitely for you. You will not be disappointed if you take a chance on this book!” — V. Howard

  Teens Emma and Charlie have returned to Balky Point for their winter break, and are reunited with friends Eve and Ben. This time the group is unraveling clues on their quest to find Eve's mother, but first they must track down Dr. Waldo, who has mysteriously gone missing. Their travels once again take them to far-flung places, from the other side of the Earth, to another ghost planet, to a world filled with beings they could not have imagined. Meanwhile, Emma is troubled by news that her method of travel in the past may have threatened her life, and is confronted with revelations of what lies in her future. Buy The Secret of the Dark Galaxy Stone now on Amazon!

  connect

  If you loved The Universes Inside the Lighthouse, tell your friends and let Pam know! Send a tweet to @pamstucky, or drop a note at facebook.com/pamstuckyauthor.

  Stay tuned for more Balky Point Adventures! Be among the first to know when a new story is coming out by signing up for Pam’s mailing list at www.pamstucky.com!

  acknowledgments

  It takes a village to write a book—or at least to aid and support the writer as she writes it.

  Writing about the universe(s) meant I needed a pro to turn to for some space-related questions. Much gratitude to Thomas Vaughan (and his PhD in Physics) for his knowledge of all things space, because even though I don’t expect to be able to construct a world that is scientifically likely, I wanted to at least try to create worlds that were scientifically possible. Thank you, Thomas, for willingly sharing your knowledge on planets, suns, habitable zones, and more.

  And, when I create new worlds, that means the planets (the major ones, anyway) need names! Thank you to Samantha Stucky (a fellow list-maker) for brainstorming and helping me come up with a name for the planet Lero.

  People ask all the time about my writing habits. Most often I write at home or at the library, but when I really need to get inspired and give my story a big push … I head to Happy Hour at Arnie’s in Edmonds. Thank you to Christian Johnson (maker of the best lemon drops anywhere), Cynthia Bieneasz, Tina Nadeau, Vanessa Tripp, and all the rest at Arnie’s for so kindly and graciously indulging me as I sit at the table in the corner, stare out at the waterfront, and write.

  An enormous thank you to Beth Stucky, Susan Dunn, Danae Powers, Damian McGinty, and Lisa Sivertson for reading partial or full early drafts of this story. Your input, wisdom, comments, ideas, and encouragement are priceless.

  Additionally, I am grateful to theoretical physicist and string theorist Brian Greene for positing multiverses. If you’re interested in hearing his thoughts, check out his interview with Radiolab, “The (Multi) Universe(s),” dated Tuesday, August 12, 2008: http://www.radiolab.org/story/91859-the-multi-universes/.

  Some of the ideas in this book about shame and loneliness have been inspired or enhanced by the work of Dr. Brené Brown. I highly recommend all her books and am grateful for her insights.

  And, of course, thank you to the fabulous, generous, thoughtful, wonderful multitudes of people who encourage and believe in me, all along the journey. We are not alone.

  more by pam stucky

  FICTION

  Mystery

  Death at Glacier Lake

  The Balky Point Adventures (MG/YA sci-fi)

  The Universes Inside the Lighthouse

  The Secret of the Dark Galaxy Stone

  The Wishing Rock series (adult contemporary)

  (novels with recipes)

  Letters from Wishing Rock

  The Wishing Rock Theory of Life

  The Tides of Wishing Rock

  NONFICTION

  The Pam on the Map series (travel inspiration)

  (wit & wanderlust)

  Pam on the Map: Seattle Day Trips

  Pam on the Map: Iceland

  Pam on the Map: Ireland (retrospective)

  Pam on the Map: Switzerland (retrospective)

  From the Wishing Rock Kitchens: Recipes from the Series

  Find purchasing links and more information at

  www.pamstucky.com

  twitter.com/pamstucky

  facebook.com/pamstuckyauthor

  pinterest.com/pamstucky

  Death at Glacier Lake (mystery)

  “This is a neat little mystery with the rare virtue that the setting and characters are as interesting as the unfolding story... A reflective tone, with heart and insight into human frailty and strength, made this a very worthwhile read.” — Amazon reader

  Pam’s first mystery, written in a traditional “whodunit” style, has already captivated fans of this popular genre. For two decades, the lush, isolated forests of the North Cascades have hidden a secret. Now, twenty years later, a mysterious contest has brought Mindy Harris back to the area she thought she’d left behind forever. A seemingly innocent creative design firm shows up for a company retreat, but all goes awry when one of their own turns up dead. Was it an accident? Murder? And how does the unsolved mystery from twenty years ago play into it all?

  Find out more about Death at Glacier Lake.

  The Balky Point Adventures (MG/YA sci-fi)

  “Aliens, infinite universes, ghosts AND time travel ... a winning literary combination if ever there was one.” — Just One More Chapter reviews

  This smart and unforgettable middle grade / young adult science fiction adventure series takes teens Emma, Charlie, Eve, and Ben, along with brilliant but quirky Dr. Waldo and a host of others, on adventures t
hrough time and space. Inspired the timeless wonder and fantasy of A Wrinkle in Time, with just a dash of Doctor Who, the Balky Point Adventures are for readers of all ages who love a good romp through the imaginative marvels of the universes, delivered with heart and wonder. Exciting and imaginative, courageous and thought-provoking, this series commends the strength of compassion, and the inherent power within each person to change the world ... or the universe.

  Includes: The Universes Inside the Lighthouse, The Secret of the Dark Galaxy Stone.

  Find out more about the Balky Point Adventures series.

  The Wishing Rock series (contemporary fiction)

  “It was just what the doctor ordered, fresh, quirky, funny in places and seasoned with wisdom. Light without being frivolous, it follows the story of a woman trying to find someone to fill her desire for true love and family.” — Tahlia Newland, author

  Wishing Rock, Washington, on Dogwinkle Island—don’t look for it on a map; you won’t find it there. The only place you can find this town is in your heart—and in the books in the Wishing Rock series!

  The Wishing Rock books take us to the fictional town of Wishing Rock, in which all the town’s residents live in the same building. In this Northern Exposure-esque slice-of-life series, letters between the neighbors and their friends chronicle the twists and turns of the characters’ daily lives, and are interspersed with recipes tried and tested by the characters themselves. These novels, filled with wit, wisdom, and recipes, take characters on adventures far and near, and ultimately offer up insightful exploration of the ideas of community, relationships, happiness, hope, forgiveness, risk, trust, and love.