Chain Reactions Page 28

“There’s a museum, though, called the American Museum of Science and Energy that has lots of the artifacts. Do you want to tour it?” Diana asked.

  “This says they have a Calutron machine and one of the Flat Tops open for viewing. Isn’t that where you and Nora lived?” Brooke asked.

  “I suppose a once-through for old-times-sake wouldn’t hurt.”

  Diana secured their visitor passes and they took the elevator to the second floor. When they reached the Calutron machine, Mary stopped short. “It’s been a long time since I saw one of those. You know, all they told us girls was to keep this needle here…” She tapped the glass cover over the meter. “…between this setting and this setting. That was it. I got really good at it, I can tell you that.”

  Her hand trembled over the knob. “I didn’t know that what I was doing was creating the enriched uranium for the atomic bomb. None of us knew.”

  “You believed Nora knew.”

  She nodded. “Yes. I figured she had to have known.” She shook her head as if clearing the cobwebs. She moved forward, briefly glancing at the displays. “I’m sorry, girls. I could use some air.”

  Brooke led them to an area with a sign that indicated they were going outside. When she opened the door, there below them at the bottom of a stairway, was a flat-topped, square building, only slightly larger than a hut.

  “That was where we lived.”

  “You lived in that?”

  She nodded. “Or one just like it.”

  “It says we can go inside,” Diana said. “Do you want to see it?”

  She swayed. “I suppose I could show you girls how we lived.”

  “Will you be all right on the stairs?”

  “If you’ll support me.”

  Brooke moved to her side as she gripped the railing on the other side. They made their way slowly down until they reached the ground.

  Mary stepped into the living room and stopped. For a long time she said nothing. “Well, Nora. It’s just like no time has passed at all. There you are, over on the end of the sofa, teaching me how to read properly.”

  “You didn’t know how to read?” Diana asked.

  “I knew some. But I was dyslexic, although I didn’t know it then. Nora was so patient with me. She taught me some tricks so that the words made sense. She really encouraged me to go back to school. She’s the reason I ended up getting a degree in library sciences. Truly, I owe her so much.”

  The house was tiny, with a small kitchen with an electric stove, a double sink, and an icebox. There were two bedrooms, one slightly larger than the other. The bigger bedroom boasted a full-size bed.

  “This was our room,” Mary said. “Technically, it was Nora’s room, but this is where we slept together every night. My clothes lived in the other room. I never thought I’d see this place again.”

  “Are you okay?” Brooke asked.

  “You know, I am. Despite how it ended, I learned about life in this place. And I learned about love. Nora taught me that. She was seven years older than me and so much wiser and smarter. I’m a much better person for having known her.”

  Brooke caught Diana’s attention behind Mary’s back. “She looks tired,” Brooke mouthed.

  Diana nodded. “Maybe we should get going. We still have to bury Aunt Nora’s ashes.”

  “Oh. Of course.” Mary wiped away a tear. “I’m ready.”

  Diana retrieved the car and got it as close as she could so that Mary didn’t have far to walk. They drove in silence except for Mary giving Diana directions.

  “It’s up there.” She pointed and Diana followed the direction of her finger. “That’s The-Chapel-on-the-Hill. I can’t believe it’s still standing.”

  Diana parked the car and they got out. Mary walked ahead of them. Diana whispered to Brooke, “Do you think she’s okay?”

  “I think it’s a really emotional day for her, but she seems to be holding up well. I don’t want to tax her too much more, though.”

  “This is where Nora plowed me over.” Mary turned to them. Her face looked years younger. “I was minding my own business and she came flying down that hill, and bam! She ran right over me.”

  “That’s what she meant by ‘This is where it began,’” Diana said.

  “Yes,” Mary answered. “This is where it began for both of us.”

  “Do you know where she would want us to bury her ashes?”

  “See that big tree to the left of the front doors?” Mary pointed to a grove of old-growth trees. “That was our spot. Whenever we had something special to celebrate, we would come here and picnic under that tree.”

  “Do you think that’s where Aunt Nora meant for us to bury her?”

  Mary smiled. “I’m certain of it.”

  Brooke ran back to the car and grabbed the small trowel they’d purchased at a local hardware store. “You know this is probably illegal, right?”

  “This was what Aunt Nora wanted.”

  Mary nodded. “Trust me, we did worse things under the cover of these trees.”

  “Mary!”

  “Well, we did.”

  Quickly, Diana selected a patch of dirt directly under the tree Mary indicated. She dug a shallow hole as Brooke kept watch. When she finished, she stood.

  Brooke handed the container of ashes to Mary. “Do you want to do the honors?”

  “Let’s do it together,” she said to Diana.

  Diana stepped forward and helped her empty the bag into the hole, and then she replaced the dirt. She turned to Mary. “We should say—”

  “My darling, Nora. I’m so, so sorry. I hope you can forgive me.” Mary held back a sob. “I know I caused you so much pain. I think that’s why I haven’t come back until now. But I know, too, that in this place we were the happiest either of us has ever been. I loved you then, and I love you still. I know you are at peace, and I pray that when my time comes, I’ll see you again, standing strong and proud, waiting for me to come home to you. I promise I will.”

  Brooke held Diana as she cried.

  “Goodbye, Aunt Nora. I love you. You taught me so much. I hope I’m half the scientist, half the human being you were. Rest well, and thank you for the gifts. Thank you for teaching me how to open my heart to love again. Thank you for not-so-subtly pushing me into Brooke’s arms. Thank you for letting us meet your Mary. Thank you for everything.”

  Diana turned into Brooke’s embrace. Brooke extended her arms and pulled Mary in, as well. Together, the three of them bid a final farewell to Nora.

  As they walked slowly back down the hill, the sun peeked out from the clouds and shone down on them. No doubt that was Aunt Nora, Diana decided, smiling down at the tableau.

  THE END

  Want to learn more about Nora’s journey?

  Coming in 2019:

  Secrets Well Kept

  The extraordinary love story of

  Nora Lindstrom

  Mary Trask

  Acknowledgments

  The impetus for Chain Reactions began with my wife, Cheryl, dropping a book on my desk along with a note that read, “I think there might be a story here.” The book was the non-fiction New York Times best-seller, The Girls of Atomic City, by Denise Kiernan.

  I read the synopsis, thumbed through the book, and was immediately hooked. Later the same day, I opened an e-mail from our favorite local bookstore to discover that Kiernan would be appearing at the bookstore that night. Talk about a sign!

  Cheryl and I went to Kiernan’s talk, met her, and I was even more determined than before that I wanted to write a fictional novel about the Atomic City girls.

  I kept asking myself the same question: “How would I feel if I discovered, after the fact (as these girls did), that my work helped us win the war, but killed thousands of innocent people?” From that question was born the character, Nora Lindstrom, and the core concept for this novel.

  As part of my research for the book, Cheryl and I drove to Oak Ridge, Tennessee, and toured the American Museum of Science and Energy. We
took in all the exhibits, drove around the town, and I realized that I didn’t want to write one book about the Atomic City girls—I envisioned two books. Chain Reactions is the first book. Secrets Well Kept, the prequel that chronicles Nora’s World War II experience in full, will appear later this year.

  I often explain that while writing a book is a solitary pursuit, producing a book is not. My gratitude, as always, to those individuals who so willingly give of their time and expertise to help me get it right.

  To Dr. Michael Rosenblum, Director of the Rosenblum Lab at the MD Anderson Cancer Center, many thanks for timely and expert tips and leads. Thank you for reading through the pertinent sections of the manuscript. But most of all, thank you for your friendship.

  To Professors Will Banks and Lia Uribe, thanks for answering my urgent questions about academia and grants. Your input helped me ensure accuracy and plausibility.

  To my amazing nephew, Seth, who is busy becoming the world’s best veterinarian, thank you for talking to me about your research on epilepsy. Your passion for finding a cure and your commitment to making this world a better place gives me hope for our future.

  To Dr. Jenni Levy, one of my oldest friends, thank you for everything, but in this case, a special thank you for your compassionate and passionate care and advocacy for hospice patients and caregivers. I hope that together we’ve dispelled some myths and shibboleths in these pages.

  To my dear friends, Anne Geary and Bev Prescott, thank you for your time and insights into your adopted cities. You helped me make Philadelphia and Cambridge come alive on the page.

  It is true that a book is only as good as the collaboration between author and editor. To my editor, Ann Roberts, thank you for making me the best I can be. This is the beginning of a beautiful relationship.

  To my wonderful first readers, thank you for reading. Your comments and questions provide me with invaluable feedback as I endeavor to make every book the very best book I’ve ever written.

  To my little sister of choice, Ann “Thumper” McMan, thank you for another marvelous cover. When I sought you out six years ago and asked you to design my covers, I had no idea I’d be getting such a dear, dear friend in the bargain.

  Finally, to you the readers, thank you for your continued love and support. No author can make a living at this without you. You rock!

  Lynn Ames

  2019

  About the Author

  Lynn Ames is the best-selling author of The Price of Fame, The Cost of Commitment, The Value of Valor, One ~ Love, Heartsong, Eyes on the Stars, Beyond Instinct, Above Reproach, All That Lies Within, Bright Lights of Summer, Final Cut, Great Bones, Chain Reactions, and one of five authors of the collection Outsiders. She also is the writer/director/producer of the history-making documentary, “Extra Innings: The Real Story Behind the Bright Lights of Summer.” This historically important documentary chronicles, for the first time ever in her own words, the real-life story of Hall-of-Famer Dot Wilkinson and the heyday of women’s softball.

  Lynn’s fiction has garnered her a multitude of awards and honors, including five Goldie awards, the coveted Ann Bannon Popular Fiction Award (for All That Lies Within), and the Arizona Book Award for Best Gay/Lesbian book. Lynn is a two-time Lambda Literary Award (Lammy) Finalist and winner of a Rainbow Award for Lesbian Romance. All That Lies Within was additionally honored as one of the top ten lesbian books overall of 2013.

  Ms. Ames is the founder of Phoenix Rising Press. She is also a former press secretary to the New York state senate minority leader and spokesperson for the nation’s third-largest prison system. For more than half a decade, she was an award-winning broadcast journalist. She has been editor of a critically acclaimed national magazine and a nationally recognized speaker and public relations professional with a particular expertise in image, crisis communications planning, and crisis management.

  For additional information please visit her website at www.lynnames.com, or e-mail her at lynnames@lynnames.com. You can also friend Lynn on Facebook and follow her on Twitter.

  Published by

  Phoenix Rising Press

  Phoenix, AZ

  Lynn Ames books are available in multiple formats through www.lynnames.com, from your favorite local bookstore, or through other online venues.