The Time Heiress (30 page)

“Evie,” said Professor Carver, his voice strained. She turned to look at him. “Are you sure? Only six months? You really only want us to leave the portal here six more months? You’ve donated so much money to the MIT Chronology Department. There’s plenty of money available for us to leave it open a year, even two.”

“No, Elton. If I’m not back in six months, I’m never coming back. And according to Ms. Klein’s painting, I’m not.”

“It’s just so…final.”

“I know what I’m doing.”

She kissed him on the cheek, hugged Jake, and said good-bye. She took a step toward Cassandra, feeling the weight of the many gold coins sewn into the lining of her petticoats. She thought of it as the dowry she’d bring to Caleb to ensure a comfortable life for their future. She’d tell him it was her inheritance.

She looked into Cassandra’s eyes and squeezed her hand, taking a moment to memorize her friend’s face, and felt Cassandra press something into her palm. Opening it, she found a ruby ring in a gold filigree setting. She raised her eyebrows in question.

“Ben gave it to me in England. I thought that if I ever met one of his descendents, I’d give it to them. That time has come,” Cassandra said, tears in her eyes.

“Good-bye,” Evie whispered.

She stepped inside the booth. Moments later, she was gone.

*****

On a mild October evening, Cassandra wandered through the gallery in Soho where the newly discovered paintings of a nineteenth century artist named Evelyn Bay were on display. She stopped in front of one—it was a depiction of a dance, a ball, and was painted mostly in shades of black and white, except for a few splashes of color: accents on the dresses of the women who seemed to be spinning in motion on the static canvas. Most of the people in the painting were dark-skinned, and the women’s white dresses were in the antebellum fashion. The men wore black. No faces were distinguishable. The impressionistic haze made everything seem to blend together until you took a step back, then the party came suddenly into focus. One couple stood out, a young man and woman, the man dark complexioned, the woman much lighter. They were the focus of the swirling textures and the eye could not help but be drawn to them.

Cassandra marveled that although you could not see the expressions on their faces, their presence exuded love. Her eye wandered to the edge of the canvas where a pale man and woman clung together in the dance. The man was tall, the woman auburn haired. They were the only people in the picture with white skin. The longer Cassandra stood and took in it in, the happier she felt. The artist had captured it all so beautifully. Cassandra felt that the torch had now been passed, that Evie had become the ultimate traveler, going farther and deeper into history than she herself ever would.

Cassandra felt a slight melancholy nagging at the corner of her mind. When she focused on it, she realized it stemmed from the great disappointment she felt in Nick, that he had turned out to be so different from the man she’d first met in England. He had eluded all attempts to locate him, essentially disappearing from society. But Professor Carver had made sure that his crime was exposed within the scientific community. He would be ostracized for good.

She sought to shake off the unpleasant thoughts. She did not want to be sad tonight. She had grieved for Thaddeus Evans, but finally came to terms with the fact that, however he died, by now he would have been dead for more than two centuries. There was no use in continuing to mourn for him.

As a great comfort, she had her work, her family, and her friends. She looked around the room to see that each of the scientists of the team was now there, including James. They had plans to all go to Delmonico’s to celebrate the opening of the show together. They gathered near the exit, commenting and exclaiming on the ten beautiful works of art that were there on display. Cassandra flung open the gallery doors, took in the bustling sight of Broadway, and stepped out into the brisk, New York City night.