Those Who Wander

Carol shifted her nearly full shopping basket to her left hand.

Annoyed, she looked around for her husband, Glenn.

“Figures,” she muttered under her breath. 

Carol reached out with her free hand and picked up an oval wood-framed mirror. A sun and moon were etched in silver at the top and bottom of the frame. A tree and a sailing ship were on the left and right. 

“This is beautiful,” she said. “I’m surprised no one has bought it.”

“Bought what,” Glenn asked as he approached her from behind.

“Where have you been,” Carol asked as she handed him the basket.

“I was browsing,” Glenn said, taking the basket.

Carol snorted derisively. 

“Sure you were. You hate coming to these antique stores, so you wandered to the hobby shop across the plaza.”

Glenn smiled.

“Guity as charged.”

Glenn noticed the mirror and said, “That is a very nice piece.”

“It is,” Carol said as she traced the silver sun. “I think I am done. Let's grab an early dinner and head home.”

Carol lifted her finger from the etching, and she would have sworn that the metal pulsed with light. 

She looked hard at the design but dismissed it as a reflection of the lights in the shop. 

Glenn nodded, missing the moment.

“Lead the way, honey.”

Carol admired the mirror as it hung on the wall across from the master bedroom. This was the first place Glenn wanted to hang it. Carol had tried nearly every other spot on every other wall before finally deciding that Glenn had been right. 

“This is the perfect place for it,” she told Glenn as he walked past her to enter their bedroom.

He swatted her butt and said, “Told you so.”

Carol turned back to the mirror. As beautiful as it was, there was something eerie about it. It wasn’t malevolent, just odd. There seemed to be a sheen on the glass even when no light reflected from the mirror. Carol tried to dismiss the feeling she had just then, but she saw the same faint pulse of light that she saw in the antique shop. But this time, it came from the silver crescent moon. 

Something is not right here, she thought. 

“Hey Carol,” Glenn called.

Carol had been concentrating on the mirror so intently that she jumped.

She gathered herself and entered the bedroom.

Glenn was lying on his side, reading something on a piece of paper. 

He looked up as Carol sat next to him. 

“Did you see this? I assume it came with the mirror.”

Carol took the paper and read the words.

“Only think of a time or place to use this power. Choose wisely for you must stay an hour. The magic will return you at last, but only after that time has passed. Wherever you go on your journey, the silver signs are the key. ”

Glenn asked, “Do you know what this means?”

Carol shook her head.

“I have no idea.”

Carol reread the words, trying to see if there was some clue she was missing. She then stood up and paced the room. After a few circuits, she read the words aloud again.

“The silver signs are the key.”

Carol suddenly stopped pacing and walked into the hallway. 

“Glenn,” she called. “Come here and bring my shoes and purse.”

Her husband joined her and asked, “What is it?”

As Carol slipped her shoes on, she told Glenn about the pulses of light she had seen earlier. 

Glenn was skeptical but also intrigued.

“Do you think this is legit?”

Carol shrugged.

“There’s only one way to find out.”

She reached out and touched the silver sun.

“Put your fingers on the crescent moon.”

Glenn did so and asked, “Now what?”

Carla took Glenn’s hand and said, “Remember where we went for our last anniversary?”

Glenn nodded.

“Yeah, we went to Ashville.”

Carol closed her eyes. 

“Focus on the lake shore where we walked the last day we were there.”

Glenn closed his eyes and brought the image of the lake to his mind.

“Got it. Now what?”

Carol sighed almost pleaserably.

“Just let go.”

She allowed her consciousness to flow back to the lake shore. Carol could feel herself pull away from her body and speed toward the destination she held in her mind.

After what seemed like only seconds, Carol felt solid ground under her feet. The setting sun warmed her face, and the breeze from the lake played in her black and silver hair.

Glenn murmured, “Oh my God.”

Carol looked at Glenn and smiled. 

“It works! It really works!”

Glenn returned the smile and squeezed Carol’s hand.

“This is amazing”, he said. “We can go anywhere we want.”

He looked around at the people who were heading back to their cabins, then at the darkening sky. 

“How do we get back,” he asked. “The mirror is at our house in Texas.”

Carol turned to him, holding a small object in her hand.

“No,” she said. “it's right here.”

Carol showed Glenn the mirror. 

Glenn was amazed. The mirror, which he has estimated to measure about eight inches around, was now less than half that size. It was small enough to fit in his back pocket.

The silver that had been gleaming a few moments ago was now very dull. 

Glenn reached out and touched the faded silver.

“I bet that as time passes, these symbols will brighten again as the power recharges.”

Carol looked at the symbols and imagined a clock face over the mirror.

She smiled and said, “You are probably right.”

Glenn looked around the shore again. 

“Where was that bar we found when we were here last year?”

“You mean Drake’s Roost.”

Glenn looked for the sign but could not find it. A young couple was passing them, and Glenn asked them for directions. The young man laughed.

“Sorry to tell you this, but you are on the wrong side of the lake.”

He pointed across the water to where a faint yellow glow could be seen.

Glenn laughed as well.

“Thanks anyway,” he said.

The young man said, “If you hurry, you can still catch the last ferry. It’s only about a five-minute walk from here.”

He motioned to a dock a few dozen yards from where they stood.

Glenn thanked him, and he and Carol jogged to the dock. They made the ferry with only two minutes to spare. 

Carol and Glenn sat on a bench facing the stern and watched the wake of the ferry as it slid through the water.

They did not talk much. Both were still in awe of the impossibility of their present situation. 

Carol took Glenn’s hand and said, “This is truly unbelievable.”

Glenn nodded.

“You can say that again.”

Carol laughed as she said, “I’m probably nuts for saying this, but I am already thinking about where to go next.”

Glenn shook his head.

“Let’s ensure we can return before making more travel plans.”

Carol kissed Glenn’s cheek and settled against his shoulder.

“Good point,” she said.

Glenn clapped for the latest singer, then swallowed the last of his beer. 

“Go figure, we show up on karaoke night,” he said to Carol.

She laughed and replied, “I did not check the event schedule, sorry.”

Glenn pushed his bottle away from him. 

“Do you happen to have the time, honey?”

Carol smiled as she reached into her purse. She held up the mirror and saw that three of the four silver markings were shining. The silver sun was just regaining its luster.

“Almost time to go,” Carol said, slipping the mirror back into her purse.

Glenn nodded. 

“Would you like another drink,” he asked.

Carol nodded, then said, “Let's take it to go.”

Glenn ordered another round and asked for their tab.

After leaving the bar, they walked down the main street, looking into the windows of the closed shops.

Glenn stopped in front of a clothing store and admired a suit displayed in the window. He placed his hands behind his back and sighed.

Carol rubbed his back and asked, “What's on your mind?”

Glenn glanced at Carol and then focused on the suit again.

“The note that came with the mirror said we can think of any time or place.”

Carol moved to stand in front of Glenn. 

“Yes, it did. What are you getting at?”

He hung his head.

“I want to see my father again. But I want to see him before he went into hospice. When he was still the strong man I remember.”

Carol slipped her arms around Glenn’s waist.

“We can do that. The mirror brought us here; why can’t it take us back to that time?”

Glenn kissed Carol and said, “Thank you.”

Carol laid her head on his chest. 

“This power is not mine. It belongs to both of us.”

She turned Glenn’s head to look him in the eyes.

“Let’s make a vow to one another. We will only use this mirror together; just like we did tonight.”

Glenn nodded his head. “I promise.”

They sealed their vow with a kiss. 

Carol reached into her purse and took the mirror out to show Glenn. All four symbols glowed with a faint light.

“I guess we can go home,” Glenn said.

They touched the symbols as they did before and Carol pictured their bedroom. She felt herself begin to drift as she did before, but something was wrong. Carol felt something pull at her, trying to take her in another direction. She concentrated harder on the image of her bedroom. Carol felt her path correct, but she still felt a tug, although it was not as strong. Just before Carol felt the sensation of leaving her present location, she heard something. It was a voice, a voice she knew well. It was Glenn.

I’m sorry. Come find me at my dad’s place; three years before.

Carol was back in her bedroom. She was alone. Glenn was in another place and time. The thoughts of his father were fresh in his mind, and the mirror had done its work and taken him there. 

“Dammit, Glenn!”

Carol was furious. She reached into her purse, intending to shatter the mirror. She felt around, but it was not there. She dumped her purse contents onto the bed, but it did not fall out.

Acting on a hunch, she walked into the hallway.

The mirror hung on the wall in the same place she and Glenn had placed it before their journey. The four silver etchings were dull, their power exhausted for the next hour.   

“Glenn, you promised me,” she said around a sob. 

Carol slid down the wall and sat on the floor. Her anger at Glenn nearly pushed her to carry out her desire to break the mirror. But she knew that she would never get him back if she did. 

Her rage faded as she thought more about Glenn’s motivation. He didn’t go to see some old flame; he wanted to see his father before he was too sick to remember who Glenn was. Carol made a decision, and feeling good about it, she got off the floor and took a shower. Carol felt refreshed and got into bed with a new resolve. She would not go after Glenn right away. Carol would allow him time with his father before she went to recover him. She smiled as she thought of their reunion. 

 In her anger, Carol failed to notice a small crack at the edge of the glass.