A Journey Remembered

Synopsis: Evelyn Anderson is a Professor of History at her local university. Her lonely life gets turned upside down when her colleague, Professor Holbert, the science professor of the university, creates a time machine and sends her back in time to the 1880s. She’s forced to adapt to a world without modern conveniences, but as she makes friends working at a saloon and falls in love with a local ranch owner, she wonders if she can really settle down and live a normal life in a different time period, or if this is all a dream.

Chapter 1:

Evelyn Anderson sat in her usual spot at the University Starbucks early in the morning. She had been there since they opened at 5am grading papers. It was an average day for her, but for whatever reason she felt more morose than usual. She was a young professor, having graduated herself only a year before with a Masters in History, but she was an incredibly gifted student so the school sought after her once she had graduated. She had thought becoming a professor was going to turn into a successful career. But after a year of grading half-assed papers and teaching 8am classes that no one showed up for, she was beginning to wish she had chosen a different career path. Like working at a museum or pursuing archeology. But wishful thinking wasn’t going to change the fact that she only had half an hour to get to her first class. She ordered a hot tea to get her through the chilly autumn morning and went on her way. While she walked to her department, she was deep in thought about the project she had been working on for the past four months. She had been approached by a local Historian society who wanted her to write a paper on the real story of the migration west during the late 1800s. It was more than just romanticized cowboys and women in pretty dresses. It was survival of the fittest and many didn’t survive. She had enjoyed working on the paper, as westerns were her favorite films (even though they were nowhere near accurate) and she was hoping to be finished with it in the next few days. It was truly the only thing she had to look forward to. Everything else in her life was so dull, and yet she had had so much hope while she was in school. It made her feel miserable.

As Evelyn passed the science department she heard someone shout her name. When she snapped out of her thoughts, she looked at her watch and realized she had been walking too slow. She only had three minutes to make it to class. But the voice kept shouting her name, “Professor Anderson!” She turned quickly to see Professor Eugene Holbert rushing towards her. He quickly shouted, “If you have a moment Professor Anderson! I have a question for you!” She looked at her watch again and shouted back, “I’m so sorry Professor Holbert! I’m already late! Ask me later!” And ran off before he could reply. She was glad for the diversion from having to talk with Professor Holbert. He was a man in his sixties that had dedicated his life to science. He was a bit of an oddball and was difficult to talk to. Constantly interrupting and making comments that no one understood because he assumed everyone knew the inner workings of science and physics. She shuddered at the thought of having to have a full conversation with him later after teaching her class. She hurried and barely made it with thirty seconds to spare. 

When she finished teaching her class of four out of twenty students, Evelyn went to teach two more classes before being finished for the day. She enjoyed Tuesdays since she was typically finished with classes before noon and could go home to work on her paper. She would usually spend the rest of the day researching and continuing on discussing the old west. And she hoped that with a full afternoon free, she might be able to finish the paper that day. It would have to be edited by a colleague but the initial work was almost complete, and she couldn’t wait to be done. As Evelyn packed up and began her journey back to her car, she had forgotten all about the interaction with Professor Holbert from earlier. That is, until she heard her name being called as she passed the science department. She internally cringed but politely turned to greet the eager professor. He ran up, “Professor Anderson! I’m so glad I caught up with you! Do you have a moment?” With no pressing matters to attend to, Evelyn politely smiled, “Yes I have a few moments Professor Holbert. What can I do for you?” The professor gave a toothy smile and said with enthusiasm, “Oh wonderful! You see… I’m working on an experiment that I need some assistance with… someone with a historical background. I was wondering if you’d be able to assist me?” Evelyn tilted her head, curious about what he meant that he needed someone with a background in history, but he was definitely talking to the right professor. She thought for a moment, not really wanting to help with a science experiment, but she figured he only needed someone to talk through some historical context. Which she was perfect for. She smiled, “Well… I have to finish this paper for the Historical Society, but that shouldn’t take me too much longer! Once I’m finished with that I can help you Professor. Are you alright waiting?” He nodded enthusiastically with a smile, “Oh yes! It’s no pressing matter! Just let me know when you’re finished with your paper, and I’ll be glad to come calling! Thank you Professor Anderson!” Evelyn actually genuinely smiled for once, “It’s my pleasure Professor Holbert!” Then they parted ways as Evelyn made her way to her car. 

Once she got to her car and began putting her things in the passenger’s seat, she heard another voice calling out her name. This one didn’t make her cringe, however, as a bouncing, bleached blonde haired woman ran up to her. Followed by a tall, black haired, body builder of a man. Evelyn smiled, “Maddie… Jason… what’s up?” The curly haired blonde had a huge grin on her face as she replied, “Jay and I are going to see a reshowing of Alien in theaters tonight! You should come with us!” Evelyn gave her a knowing smile and shook her head, “Maddie you know I don’t do scary movies… besides I’m almost done with my paper. I have to work on it tonight.” Madison rolled her eyes, “That’s been your excuse every day for the last 6 months! Come on Evie! You never hang out anymore… and we don’t have to see a scary movie! You can pick… just come with us.” Evelyn looked up to see the annoyed look on Jason’s face and smiled. She grabbed Madison’s hands and said looking her in the eyes, “This weekend, when I’m finished with the paper, I will spend the whole of Saturday with you doing whatever you want. Deal?” Maddie’s green eyes twinkled as her smile got wider, “Deal! But promise me you’ll at least finish the paper before the week is over… You’ve been working way too much.” Evelyn chuckled at her very true statement, “Alright I promise.” Maddie giggled as she and her boyfriend went off to their own car. Evelyn got in her light blue beetle and drove off to her tiny studio apartment. 

That night, Evelyn had been so frustrated by the rest of her day that she ended up spending almost twelve hours working on her paper. She managed to finish it and go through a review before sending it in to her editor. When she finally sent in the paper, it was past midnight. She sighed, realizing she had to get up again in six hours, and decided it was time to go to sleep. She logged out of her computer and went through her bedtime routine. As she brushed her teeth, she looked in the mirror. She really was emotionally exhausted from all the work she had been doing lately. Some part of her realized that Maddie was right and she needed a break. But another part of her simply didn’t want to exist any longer. She had no family, Maddie was her only friend. Even as a successful professor of History, she felt like a failure. She took a deep breath and decided to call her therapist in the morning before slipping into bed and falling into a deep sleep. 

What Evelyn didn’t realize was that someone had hacked into her computer and saw that she had sent in her paper. The person showed up at her apartment in the middle of the night in the alleyway. He didn’t need to break into her apartment. Just get up to her window. So once he snuck up to her bedroom window, he grabbed his science experiment from his bag. Carefully he aimed the gun at Evelyn and prepped for ignition. He smiled, knowing she would be the last one. She would survive this, he knew she would. He aimed the gun and fired with a quiet pinging noise. He looked up to see she was gone from her bed. He smiled and hurried off to his lab to run tests and ensure that the experiment was a success. 

Evelyn awoke to the sound of horses neighing loudly. She opened her eyes, confused. She thought for a moment that she had left her phone on and was playing a video or something. But when she opened her eyes, it only confused her more. She was in some sort of wooden room with two windows, one facing the sky and the other pushed up against the grass. There were two benches on either side of the room and Evelyn was laying against the side that had fallen to the ground. She couldn’t even process what was going on before the door opened on the side facing the sky. A man she didn’t recognize peeked in. He had a look of shock on his face as he said, “Are you alright Miss Anderson?!” She looked up at him with shock written on her face. How did he know her name? She cleared her throat, “Uh… I think so…” He reached a hand in, “Well let’s get you out of there to be sure! Then we can push the coach back upright.” She tilted her head, ‘coach?’ she thought as she reached for the man’s hand. He pulled her out and helped her to a nearby tree where she could sit down and collect herself. 

When she sat down, she looked up at the man. She guessed he was in his mid 50s, and he was wearing old fashioned slacks that were patched up in random places along with a button up shirt and brown leather vest. Everything about his attire and hairstyle looked so… western. Then Evelyn looked up at the coach as her eyes widened. He wasn’t just saying coach… he literally meant a stagecoach. With horses and everything. Things were starting to make sense in her head… while also making less sense at the same time. She looked at the man, who probably asked for the second time, if there was anything she needed before he pulled the stage back up from its side. She shook her head, “No I’ll be fine. Thank you.” He nodded and turned to get the stagecoach pushed upright with the help of some neighborly farm hands. Evelyn took that moment to assess her condition. She was a bit roughed up, but nothing seemed to be injured or broken. Her clothes, on the other hand, were completely foreign to her. She was wearing an ugly brown dress with brown boots that seemed to be in terrible condition, but as she looked at the stage and saw two bags sitting off to the side, she assumed it was the best she had. The man from before came over with a brown shawl, “This is yours ma’am. You’re gonna need it in this chilly weather.” Evelyn thanked him and wrapped the shawl around her shoulders as he went back to the stage. She observed that the leaves were changing colors, indicating that it was around the same time of year as when she had gone to sleep in her apartment. But the question begged… where… or when was she? She thought for a while that perhaps she was dreaming… but everything seemed too detailed and clear for her to be dreaming. 

About twenty minutes later, the stage had been pulled upright and it seemed that the horses were uninjured. The stage driver came over to Evelyn and said, “Alright Miss Anderson… The coach is all set to continue. Only those blasted robbers did quite a number… Luckily we’re near a town so we’ll head there to fix up the damages and rest the horses.” Evelyn nodded, “Thank you.” The man sighed as he continued sheepishly, “I’m sorry but the robbers got away with all my money so I won’t be able to take you to San Francisco… or pay you back the money you spent for this trip…” She gave him an honest smile, “That’s alright sir. If you can take me to the next town, that should be fine. I didn’t have a set plan for San Francisco anyway. I’m sorry you lost everything.” The man smiled, “Oh I’ll be alright, miss! Got insurance on this rig anyhow. I’ll just have to speak to the sheriff of Old Ashton Town when we get there…” He reached out his hand, “Let me help you get back on the stage and we’ll get moving!” She took his hand and thanked him as he led her back into the stagecoach. 

When Evelyn got settled in the coach, the driver began the journey to town. Evelyn looked down and saw a leather satchel on the floor. Assuming it belonged to her in this crazy world, she opened it and began looking for clues as to how she got here. What she found was a leather bound journal and an old fashioned ink set. She opened the journal and realized the first page had a message addressed to her. 

She began reading, ‘Dear Miss Evelyn Anderson, I’m sure you’re very confused right now, but let me explain. I’ve discovered a new technology that allows me to send people back in time. I’ve been trying my hardest to get people who want to test out my new time machine, but no one thus far has been able to adapt to the time changes. That’s why I came to you! I figured someone who has spent the last year studying the west would be able to adapt! I set everything up for you so when you arrive in the new town, find a job as a saloon girl. From there, you’re free to do whatever you wish! This is a chance for you to start a new life away from the modern world. Embrace it! For I will go on to become the greatest scientist who ever lived! Enjoy your new life. 

Signed Professor Holbert. 

P.s. I have not discovered a way to bring people back from the past as I must be present for my technology to work. So there’s no way for you to come back! 

Evelyn took a deep, calming breath, as she felt her heart race. It was all clear to her now why Professor Holbert had required historical assistance on his experiment, but she felt tricked. He hadn’t given her any details, but she also didn’t ask. She wanted to be angry, but there was also a part of her that was curious about this new life. Her depression had certainly been calling for a new change, but a life without technology wasn’t what she had in mind. Regardless she was stuck here now, so as she took more calming breaths, she began to think through her next steps. If she dwelled on the details, she would likely spiral into a panic attack. Instead, she decided to only focus on what she could control. Like surviving in a world without indoor bathrooms, technology, and rights for women. She closed her eyes and fought tears as she realized she was in serious trouble.