Waters of Oblivion

Chapter 14.2: The Pursuit

The Governor's Palace was first on Reine's list of things to see in Colonial Williamsburg.

Its Georgian lavishness was unique in early eighteenth century America, and by the time they'd toured all three floors, stables, carriage house, kitchen, and English gardens, she was even more excited about seeing the rest of the historic attractions,. However, Gabe was unusually quiet and obviously already losing interest.

She hoped to reclaim his attention as they left the rest of their tour group behind and exited the gates of the building. "Ready for some ale in the tavern?" she asked.

His eyes finally lit up. "Absolutely. Is that's what's next on your agenda?"

"I can shuffle some things around. We'll already be in the center of the town there anyway, so we can just decide what to do then," she said.

"Are you sure? I know you put a lot of thought into it." He put an arm around her.

"Do you really think of me as being so anal that it would matter?"

"Of course not. I just . . . oh, look over there. A man in a funny hat." He pointed across the street at one of the re-enactors.

They both laughed. Not at the man or at each other, but at themselves. Reine accepted that she had a certain need to control the things around her, but it didn't mean she was worse for it. On the other hand, Gabe had also realized that even though she'd gained this insight about herself, Reine still didn't like others - including him - to blatantly point it out.

It was easy enough for him to get around it with either avoidance or a quick joke. He usually chose the latter.

Heading toward the tavern, they strolled down a tree lined, dirt street, passing small, yet colorful houses.

"Were these here during colonial times?" Gabe asked, pointing up at the trees.

"I don't think so. I'm pretty sure I read somewhere that all of this land used to be rather empty. These elms were only planted for the tourists less than a hundred years ago," she said.

"So, you're like five times older than them." He nudged her with his elbow.

Reine rolled her eyes. She'd already done the mental math, and it was probably closer to six. "Have you changed the way you feel about that?"

"About what? Your age? I think you're perfect." He bent down mid-stride and kissed her gently on the lips. "You're beautiful, smart, and rich. I'm the luckiest guy in the world."

She sighed. That's not what she had meant, and hopefully he realized that. They'd have to revisit this conversation soon, but only when he was willing to take it seriously. And obviously, that wasn't going to be today.

They continued on in silence. When they'd been walking for almost ten minutes, Gabe grew impatient. "Are we there yet?" he asked like a five year-old.

She tried to keep pace and look at the map at the same time. "Almost. I think. We should be able to see the tavern from this church up on the corner."

The red, brick building was just a few hundred feet to their right. Its tall, white steeple towered over the surrounding shuttered, colonial style houses. The church entrance was on the far side, facing the main street of old Williamsburg. A crowd was gathered on the sidewalk in front, a clear indication something was about to begin.

Going around the throng of tourists, Reine checked her map one more time against their current location. She'd always been bad with directions, as the previous night's GPS fiasco had proven.

"I think it's . . . that one." She pointed to a blue-gray building diagonally across the street.

A costumed group coming from that same direction blocked their path. A powdered wig wearing minister - the prayer book in his hands gave him away - led a young couple and their families directly toward them. Surrounded by onlookers on both sides and with the brick wall of the churchyard behind, Reine and Gabe were stuck between the church entrance and the coming wedding party.