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hello to the travelers walking beside it, ignoring their amazed cries, for she thought she spotted the rear of her family's wagon rounding a bend ahead. In a moment, she was sure; a familiar figure in a blue flowered dress trudged alongside. "Lucy!" Abby shouted. |
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Lucy stopped and stiffened. She pivoted, eyes wide in shock. Despite the shadow cast over her face by her bonnet, Abby could see her mouth form the word "Abby!" |
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In moments they were in each other's arms, laughing and crying and talking at once. Lucy pulled away first, her brown eyes sparkling. "I thought I would never see you again." She looked Abby up and down. "You look fine. A mite peaked, perhaps, but very well for someone lost in the desert for almost two weeks." |
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Or in the future for nearly a month, Abby thought. But Lucy's journal had been accurate despite the disparity in time, which was yet another inexplicable aspect of her adventure. |
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Single file along the turning trail, the two hastened to catch up to the rolling wagon. Abby's long skirts swished beside her feet. She missed the easy freedom of blue jeans, but now that she had returned to a time in which she was too uncomfortably often the subject of gossip, she wanted to invite no more by daring to wear men's clothing. Her head seemed heavy and confined beneath the bun tucked inside her bonnet. |
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Her sister asked, "Where have you been, Abby?" |
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Abby knew that she must not say. Lucy would |
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