26
Thomas and Rachel returned with Clarence to his cabin to check on William. They found the cabin empty.
“He probably headed to the Natural Bridge,” Rachel suggested. “That’s where all this started and that’s what he was drawing in his notes.”
Unaware that the three of them were only thirty minutes behind both William and Sarah, they followed the same countryside to the Natural Bridge. Thomas was the first to spot the pair as they neared the entrance of the gorge and was alarmed to see Sarah coughing and waving her arms as William held a cloth to her forehead.
Thomas kicked at his horse. Clarence and Rachel followed on their horses at full gallop. William, hearing the horses racing in his direction, quickly turned, visions of armed men ready to attack formed in his mind. He was relieved to see it was a friendly and familiar group approaching.
“Sarah, are you alright?” Thomas shouted as he dismounted at her feet.
“William, if you have harmed this lady in any way I will personally deliver you to the law. I am sure they will let you share Matthew Bulow’s cell.”
Sarah, recovering from her fainting spell, responded: “Thomas, I am fine. William has not harmed me. Did you say Matthew is in jail? He did not return home last evening.”
Concern for her husband was noticeably missing in Sarah’s voice. She turned her attention instead, to Rachel, who had dismounted from her horse and was standing next to Clarence.
“Hello Rachel, I am glad to see you here with my brother.” And, then to Clarence:
“Clarence, I went to your cabin this morning, hoping to find you, but instead, I found William in your clothing. We came here together. He has just shared with me the most incredible revelation. So incredible it made me faint. Even now, I’m not certain I could stand on my own.”
Thomas was uneasy about William and Sarah having traveled to this place alone. He was also beginning to wonder what William was up to.
“What is it, William? Do you know the whereabouts of Daniel? Is he okay?”
“Thomas, I…”
William was dumbfounded. The reality that this man, who stood before him, was his own age and his biological father hit him like a speeding train. He was not sure if he should throw his arms around him or quickly pull Sarah away to insist that she not reveal his identity.
It was too late.
“Thomas, William…”
Sarah stopped and looked at William, who lowered his head slowly indicating no real objection to what she was about to announce.
“What I am trying to say is that… William is Daniel.”
Overcome with emotion, William heard Sarah but her voice was beginning to sound distant, as though her words were not really being spoken. He, too, felt somewhat removed from the scene, as he focused intently on Thomas’s face, on his father’s face. Clarence looked at Rachel, puzzled. Both remained silent, understanding that this was an important moment for their mutual siblings and this man they had been wondering so much about.
“Sarah, what are you saying? William, explain to me what Sarah is saying!”
Thomas was holding Sarah’s shoulders with both hands and turned to face William.
“Thomas, I am not sure how to explain this to you. I am trying to make sense of it myself.”
William turned to Clarence and Rachel. They remained silent and frozen in place. He looked from face to face, hoping to get some help to clarify his thoughts.
“Clarence, you recall Daniel disappearing without a trace from beneath this bridge?”
Clarence was not expecting to be asked to take part in William’s explanation, but he found the nerve to answer.
“When he vanished, there was no one around me to take Daniel.”
Clarence did not want to say anything else. He lowered his head as if to accept responsibility for Daniel’s disappearance. William continued.
“You must have thought you were losing your mind.” William took a moment to gaze directly into each person’s eyes. Slowly, he made contact with Clarence, Rachel and his parents, Thomas and Sarah. He wanted to make certain they believed his sincerity as he told what must have seemed an unbelievable tale.
“If I have come to you from the future, then anything is possible. I have theorized that Daniel was sent forward in time thirty years before I was sent back in time. I arrived here shortly after Daniel vanished, but that does not mean Daniel grew thirty years in a few hours. Daniel as a baby from this time is gone forever.”
Sarah was stronger now. She listened seriously, but without breaking down, to what William was telling them. Thomas’s attention was also rapt. He began to realize that he should not discount anything coming from a man who could be here from the future. Rachel and Clarence, less profoundly affected by William’s words, were equally enthralled. William knew he had everyone’s complete attention.
“This is my mother,” William said to himself, stopping his explanation to ponder the weight of his thoughts. Sarah’s voice now sounded different to him.
“Please continue, William.”
Sarah sounded so motherly to William that he felt comforted enough to continue. His eyes fixed on Sarah’s as he began to explain his story to the others.
“Daniel was transported in time to when I was found as a child his age. I was raised by adoptive parents and returned to visit this bridge with my family at my present age. Somehow, whatever phenomenon transported Daniel forward in time, transported me back to you. It’s ironic that Sarah’s husband almost killed his own son.”
William turned to look into Thomas’s eyes.
“Except that I am not! Fortunately for me, I’m not Matthew Bulow’s son, but rather…”
William sensed Sarah’s support and continued.
“I am your son, Thomas!”