bucks.”
We all laughed, even Roger. It was a good sign. Tempers had cooled.
“Okay, so maybe I’d have to make a few more trips than you, Barry. That’s fine. I’ll make a trip a day for a month, okay? Even if I only start with thirty bucks, if I double it every trip, within three weeks I’d be a millionaire.”
Barry sighed. “I guess you would at that. Seems kind of easy.” He knocked a few remaining pieces of dried mud off the machine. "I wonder how many trips you can take before it runs out of gas?"
“Easy? I don’t think so,” I said. “You have to take some currency that they used back then. You can’t show up in 1929 with dollar bills from now!”
“Yeah, good point.” Barry glanced at Roger. “Damned counterfeiter.”
Roger shrugged. “Guess I’ll be investing in gold, then. Like one of those guys on TV.”
“Gold bullion.” Barry sat back down at his desk. “Can’t use gold coins that are stamped with a modern year, either.”
“Well, whatever they said on them, gold is gold. It could have Mickey Mouse on it or the playmate of the month, anybody who knows it’s real gold would take it, hands down.”
“It’s tricky.” I went back to check the teapot. “There’s a lot to think about.”
“What about you, Peeky?” Melissa asked. “Where would you go?”
“Oh, I don’t know…”
“Oh, come on.” She twisted around to face me and put her arm over the back of the couch, resting her chin on it. Her big eyes looked up at me. “Don’t tell me you haven’t thought about it. It’s almost all I’ve thought about since Barry told us what it was.”
Sliding my hands into my pockets, I emerged from the kitchen to lean against one of the bar stools. I studied the floor for a moment. “I think it might be nice to go back in time, and...” I was surprised at how hard the words were to say out loud. “If my four-year-old daughter could meet her grandmother, back when she was alive. Back when she was young and healthy and full of life. Before the illnesses started dragging her down...” With each word, my voice became more strained. I glanced around at the others, reading their faces. All eyes were glued on me. “I have a picture of her on the boardwalk at the seaside. Back home, you know? It would be nice to see her like that again, so young and beautiful…” I swallowed hard. “That would be nice. I’d like my daughter to have met her then. To have had the chance to know her.”
The group was silent. The clock steadily ticked on the wall, making the only noise in the room.
“Oh, Peeky.” Melissa blinked back a tear.
“It’s okay.” I shrugged. “Life just… had other plans.”
Barry pursed his lips. “Sounds like it would be a nice trip, Peeky.”
I took a deep breath and glanced out the window at a moving truck that ambled along in front of apartment buildings and their green landscaping, so lush and perfect. Sometimes nothing here felt like home.
“Who’s first?” Roger asked.
Melissa eyed him. “Hmm?”
“Which one of us would get to take the first ride in our little time machine here?”
Barry sat up. “Me.”
“You?” Roger asked. “Why you?”
“Why not me?”
“Oh, I can think of a lot of reasons ‘why not you.’ For one thing, you let Findlay in on it. That alone probably rules you out just on general principle.”
Barry leaned back in his desk chair and folded his hands in his lap. “I’m sure you had someone else in mind. Huh? Like yourself, maybe?”
“Well, if you insist.” Roger stretched, patting his belly. “Besides, with my plan, we could at least finally have some funding for the department.”
“After you socked away a million or two for yourself first.” Melissa leaned forward. “Right, Roger?”
“Oh, of course.”
“Yeah, well, I think the person with the best idea should go first,” she said.
Barry drummed his thighs with his hands. “I wonder who you think has the best idea.”
“Hey,” Melissa
We all laughed, even Roger. It was a good sign. Tempers had cooled.
“Okay, so maybe I’d have to make a few more trips than you, Barry. That’s fine. I’ll make a trip a day for a month, okay? Even if I only start with thirty bucks, if I double it every trip, within three weeks I’d be a millionaire.”
Barry sighed. “I guess you would at that. Seems kind of easy.” He knocked a few remaining pieces of dried mud off the machine. "I wonder how many trips you can take before it runs out of gas?"
“Easy? I don’t think so,” I said. “You have to take some currency that they used back then. You can’t show up in 1929 with dollar bills from now!”
“Yeah, good point.” Barry glanced at Roger. “Damned counterfeiter.”
Roger shrugged. “Guess I’ll be investing in gold, then. Like one of those guys on TV.”
“Gold bullion.” Barry sat back down at his desk. “Can’t use gold coins that are stamped with a modern year, either.”
“Well, whatever they said on them, gold is gold. It could have Mickey Mouse on it or the playmate of the month, anybody who knows it’s real gold would take it, hands down.”
“It’s tricky.” I went back to check the teapot. “There’s a lot to think about.”
“What about you, Peeky?” Melissa asked. “Where would you go?”
“Oh, I don’t know…”
“Oh, come on.” She twisted around to face me and put her arm over the back of the couch, resting her chin on it. Her big eyes looked up at me. “Don’t tell me you haven’t thought about it. It’s almost all I’ve thought about since Barry told us what it was.”
Sliding my hands into my pockets, I emerged from the kitchen to lean against one of the bar stools. I studied the floor for a moment. “I think it might be nice to go back in time, and...” I was surprised at how hard the words were to say out loud. “If my four-year-old daughter could meet her grandmother, back when she was alive. Back when she was young and healthy and full of life. Before the illnesses started dragging her down...” With each word, my voice became more strained. I glanced around at the others, reading their faces. All eyes were glued on me. “I have a picture of her on the boardwalk at the seaside. Back home, you know? It would be nice to see her like that again, so young and beautiful…” I swallowed hard. “That would be nice. I’d like my daughter to have met her then. To have had the chance to know her.”
The group was silent. The clock steadily ticked on the wall, making the only noise in the room.
“Oh, Peeky.” Melissa blinked back a tear.
“It’s okay.” I shrugged. “Life just… had other plans.”
Barry pursed his lips. “Sounds like it would be a nice trip, Peeky.”
I took a deep breath and glanced out the window at a moving truck that ambled along in front of apartment buildings and their green landscaping, so lush and perfect. Sometimes nothing here felt like home.
“Who’s first?” Roger asked.
Melissa eyed him. “Hmm?”
“Which one of us would get to take the first ride in our little time machine here?”
Barry sat up. “Me.”
“You?” Roger asked. “Why you?”
“Why not me?”
“Oh, I can think of a lot of reasons ‘why not you.’ For one thing, you let Findlay in on it. That alone probably rules you out just on general principle.”
Barry leaned back in his desk chair and folded his hands in his lap. “I’m sure you had someone else in mind. Huh? Like yourself, maybe?”
“Well, if you insist.” Roger stretched, patting his belly. “Besides, with my plan, we could at least finally have some funding for the department.”
“After you socked away a million or two for yourself first.” Melissa leaned forward. “Right, Roger?”
“Oh, of course.”
“Yeah, well, I think the person with the best idea should go first,” she said.
Barry drummed his thighs with his hands. “I wonder who you think has the best idea.”
“Hey,” Melissa
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