Chapter 23 #2
“Just because you can’t imagine it doesn’t mean it won’t be good for you.
I couldn’t imagine time travel or living in Queen Victoria’s court, but here I am.
And I’m going to make the best of it while I’m here.
” I shake my purse, indicating the notes I have in there.
“If I go home, I can write about the time with amazing personal knowledge. And if I stay here, maybe I’ll still write a book.
Maybe ‘fiction’ about that future that will confuse scholars in my time.
The governess who predicted the internet.
And Netflix.” My eyes sparkle in mirth at the thought, a light spot in a stressful day.
The longer I’m away from home, the less I care about changing the timeline.
At this point, I’m just trying to survive.
“You are always thinking about the future.” He shakes his head. “Not just the future as in the time you are from, but the future of what you want to do in life.”
“It’s comforting to have a plan. It’s the responsible thing to do.”
“You cannot plan for everything.” He levels a look at me, referencing my unexpected time travel. “And great moments can happen when embracing the unplanned.”
“I’m genuinely not against fun. I’ve had fun with you. But sometimes you just have to focus on the boring stuff, so you have space to have fun. Like your impending marriage. Once you propose, you’ll get married and then you’ll be set to enjoy life again.”
Leo sighs. “I do not think there will be that much enjoyment after marriage. I would rather not think about that at all, actually.”
Before I can harass him more into fixing his life, a man approaches the door, slowing when he sees us. This is it. This must be Andrew. Blood flows to my muscles in preparation for action, for finding out what he knows and what I’ll do after.
Leo turns to see who stole my attention. “Ah, you must be Mr. Huxley.”
Andrew slows to a stop, wary about the people at his door who know who he is. And where he lives, clearly. “Can I help you?”
I don’t want to have the conversation out here, so I take the initiative to walk closer where I can whisper to him. “I would like to talk to you about a mutual interest we may have. Do you have some time right now?”
“I have classes in the afternoon.”
“Maybe we can take you to lunch? It would be nice to get out of these walls for a few hours.” Leo smiles charmingly.
“Who are you?” Andrew finds it easier than I do to resist Leo’s charm.
Leo inclines his head. “I am the Marquess of Basildon and this is Her Royal Highness Meera Chopra, an Indian princess and Queen Victoria’s ward.”
“And what is this about?” He does look somewhat impressed by our credentials, but not completely swayed.
“It would be easier to sit and explain it all to you.” And I still haven’t decided how much to tell him. Prison or Bedlam are still on the table, if word gets around I’m claiming to be from the future, after I lied to the monarch about where I’m from and my family. I want to avoid that.
“No. I am not going anywhere with you when you have given me so little information about what you want.” He opens the door, walks through it, and is about to close it again when I reach out to slap the wood, keeping the door open.
“I want to talk to you about time travel,” I say, a last-ditch effort. I might want to protect myself, but I want to go home more.
That causes a change in his demeanor. He immediately straightens and looks at me with renewed interest, his gaze sharp as he searches my face and then Leo’s.
“Well, now that is an interesting invitation. We can meet at the pub across the street. I’ll just drop my books off in the room.” He holds them up and turns to drop them off at his desk.
I sag in relief. “Perfect.”
I share a look with Leo, but he’s surprisingly stoic while I’m finally feeling lighter. I can’t analyze his emotions in this moment, when I’m feeling so many of my own, but it’s odd for the usually jovial man.
Andrew comes back out of his room and we walk out of the college and across the street to The Eagle, the pub where Watson and Crick are going to announce they discovered “the secret of life,” or the structure of DNA.
I mean, Rosalind Franklin discovered the facts that led to those two to figure out DNA and then you didn’t credit her, but okay. It’s still a piece of history.
The history of sexism.
And they do a solid fish and chips, I hear.
We order immediately and then fall into a silence until the food gets to the table.
Now that we’re at a place where I can get information, I don’t know how to start.
But I better, because Andrew is looking less than patient with the delay.
Still, it takes me until we start eating to build up the courage.
“We got your name from a librarian over at Bedford College in London. She said you were interested in time travel and were doing some studies on it from a physics standpoint.”
Do I tell him about me now? My hands start to shake and I hold off from giving that much information, my body clearly telling me not to.
“We’re interested in the concept and were hoping to get your take on where the field stands. So…is time travel real?”