stronger. Stones are very powerful.” He looked at Amy’s scornful face and smiled a quick flick of a smile. “It’s even called Stone Hollow,” he said.
Amy shrugged. “It’s full of stones. The whole valley is full of those big, rough-looking boulders. Why should that one Stone be any different?”
“I don’t know why,” Jason said. “But it is. I think it does something to time. It’s like time moves in loops, big loops that go out and back, and sometimes the loops are very near each other. And there are places, only a few places, where there is a power that makes them pull together and touch, so that they run together for a little while. It’s something like that. I’ve heard about places like that before. I knew someone in Greece who had been to one.” He smiled at Amy and then went on walking, as if he’d said something perfectly sensible and made it all very clear.
“Jason Fitzmaurice,” Amy said, “that doesn’t make any sense, and you know it. What do you mean, it goes together for a while? What goes together?”
“The loops of time,” Jason said. “The power of the Stone draws the loops together, so for a little while it could be right now, 1938, and maybe a hundred years ago, all at the same time.”
“Oh,” Amy said, and for just a moment it seemed quite possible. It seemed almost sensible to believe that time could loop around so that the past could return—which could mean that the Indians Jason had seen could have been Indians who had lived in Taylor Valley a long long time ago and.... But then common sense came back, and Amy realized how silly it was to think there could be any truth in such a crazy idea.
“That’s nonsense,” she said. “You’re just making that up. This is 1938, and that’s the only time it is. And besides, Jason Fitzmaurice, if there are really places like that where the time runs together, how come other people don’t know about them? How come you’re the only one who knows about them?” Amy put her hands on her hips and looked at Jason triumphantly.
“People do know about them,” Jason said. “Lots of people. Only they call them different things. Some of them are called shrines or holy places.”
“Oh,” Amy said. “I know what you mean. Well, we don’t believe in things like that.”
“We?” Jason asked. “Who is ‘we’?”
“My family, and the people who go to our church.”
“How do they know that they don’t believe in things like that?”
“Because our church says we don’t,” Amy said.
“Oh,” Jason said. He nodded and went on walking, but after a moment he stopped again and said, “I don’t see how that can be.”
“Why not?” Amy said.
“Because believing is not something you can be told to do. Believing is something you have to find out for yourself. I don’t see how other people can tell you what you believe.”
“Well, they can,” Amy said. “They do it all the time.”
Either Jason couldn’t find any way to argue about that, or else, since they’d reached the steepest part of the climb, he had no breath left for arguing. They climbed hard and fast on the zigzag trail, and in only a few minutes they had reached the crest and were looking down again into Stone Hollow. Just as he had the week before, Caesar whined and trembled and then rushed ahead of them down the steep slope. By the time they reached the valley floor, he had disappeared into the old house.
“Do you want to go in?” Jason asked.
“Okay,” Amy said bravely. “Let’s go in just for a minute to see if anything’s changed.” This time she intended to walk right in without feeling frightened, and look at everything calmly and carefully.
As they were going up the stairs to the sagging porch, Caesar rushed past them on his way out of the house. They turned to watch him sniffing his way back and forth across the weed-grown yard.
“He keeps on looking,” Jason said.
“What for? What do you think he’s looking for?”
Jason
Amy shrugged. “It’s full of stones. The whole valley is full of those big, rough-looking boulders. Why should that one Stone be any different?”
“I don’t know why,” Jason said. “But it is. I think it does something to time. It’s like time moves in loops, big loops that go out and back, and sometimes the loops are very near each other. And there are places, only a few places, where there is a power that makes them pull together and touch, so that they run together for a little while. It’s something like that. I’ve heard about places like that before. I knew someone in Greece who had been to one.” He smiled at Amy and then went on walking, as if he’d said something perfectly sensible and made it all very clear.
“Jason Fitzmaurice,” Amy said, “that doesn’t make any sense, and you know it. What do you mean, it goes together for a while? What goes together?”
“The loops of time,” Jason said. “The power of the Stone draws the loops together, so for a little while it could be right now, 1938, and maybe a hundred years ago, all at the same time.”
“Oh,” Amy said, and for just a moment it seemed quite possible. It seemed almost sensible to believe that time could loop around so that the past could return—which could mean that the Indians Jason had seen could have been Indians who had lived in Taylor Valley a long long time ago and.... But then common sense came back, and Amy realized how silly it was to think there could be any truth in such a crazy idea.
“That’s nonsense,” she said. “You’re just making that up. This is 1938, and that’s the only time it is. And besides, Jason Fitzmaurice, if there are really places like that where the time runs together, how come other people don’t know about them? How come you’re the only one who knows about them?” Amy put her hands on her hips and looked at Jason triumphantly.
“People do know about them,” Jason said. “Lots of people. Only they call them different things. Some of them are called shrines or holy places.”
“Oh,” Amy said. “I know what you mean. Well, we don’t believe in things like that.”
“We?” Jason asked. “Who is ‘we’?”
“My family, and the people who go to our church.”
“How do they know that they don’t believe in things like that?”
“Because our church says we don’t,” Amy said.
“Oh,” Jason said. He nodded and went on walking, but after a moment he stopped again and said, “I don’t see how that can be.”
“Why not?” Amy said.
“Because believing is not something you can be told to do. Believing is something you have to find out for yourself. I don’t see how other people can tell you what you believe.”
“Well, they can,” Amy said. “They do it all the time.”
Either Jason couldn’t find any way to argue about that, or else, since they’d reached the steepest part of the climb, he had no breath left for arguing. They climbed hard and fast on the zigzag trail, and in only a few minutes they had reached the crest and were looking down again into Stone Hollow. Just as he had the week before, Caesar whined and trembled and then rushed ahead of them down the steep slope. By the time they reached the valley floor, he had disappeared into the old house.
“Do you want to go in?” Jason asked.
“Okay,” Amy said bravely. “Let’s go in just for a minute to see if anything’s changed.” This time she intended to walk right in without feeling frightened, and look at everything calmly and carefully.
As they were going up the stairs to the sagging porch, Caesar rushed past them on his way out of the house. They turned to watch him sniffing his way back and forth across the weed-grown yard.
“He keeps on looking,” Jason said.
“What for? What do you think he’s looking for?”
Jason
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