“But Wilderness Lodge is still there.” She glanced at him. “And the Columbia Glacier. And most importantly, the Valdez Museum. I’d love to spend some time going through the archives. They have an amazing collection of old photographs. Most of them are available online, but I’m sure Douglas could help us focus on the year of the quake.”
A glint of hope came into Peter’s eyes. “Does that mean you’ll come with me?”
“I think it does.” She felt a fresh flow of energy. “We should get going.”
Not wanting to waste another second talking about it, they turned and headed toward the tram.
PART III
THE BEAUTY
CHAPTER 27
Gwen and Peter boarded a Boeing 737-700, and for nearly two hours in the window seat, Gwen looked down at rugged, snowcapped mountains, lush evergreen forests, and serpentine rivers.
Peter arranged for a rental car at the airport in Anchorage, as it seemed wise to travel in Valerie’s footsteps. Frank Brown wouldn’t come to chauffeur them to Valdez, but the route was the same. They drove northeast around Prince William Sound and the epicenter of the quake at the mouth of College Fjord, fifteen miles below the earth’s surface.
With Peter behind the wheel, they made good time and stopped for lunch in Glenallen. They continued onward to Thompson Pass, a snowy gap in the Chugach Mountains, where they pulled over and stepped out of the car to marvel at the Worthington Glacier.
They both stood hushed and spellbound.
“I’ve never seen a glacier before,” Peter said, watching it glisten in the bright sunshine. “Not in real life.”
“Me neither,” Gwen replied. “It’s quite something, isn’t it?”
They lingered awhile so that Peter could set up his tripod and telephoto lens and take photographs in the changing light.
Gwen was content with a few selfies on her phone.
When Peter was satisfied with the shots he’d taken, they got back into the car and continued their journey. Later, as they were nearingValdez, Gwen’s phone vibrated in her pocket. She pulled it out and looked at it.
“This is the third time today.”
“Another photo from Eric?” Peter asked as he steered around a gentle bend in the road.
“Yes, and this one is him holding the world’s ugliest vase. It was a wedding gift from his eccentric aunt, and we laughed every time we pulled it out of the cupboard where we kept it hidden unless she was coming over.” Gwen held the phone up, but Peter could only glance briefly as he drove.
“That’s him?” Peter asked. “Your ex?”
“Yes. That’s Eric.”
She stared at the picture for a few seconds. It was odd to see him smiling at her—as if they were still best friends and nothing had ever gone wrong.
“He wants to remind you of happier times,” Peter said.
“Yes,” she agreed.
“Did you tell him you were going to Valdez?” Peter asked.
Gwen slid her phone back into her purse. “No. He thinks I’m still in Juneau.” She gazed out the window at the passing forest on the outskirts of the town. “I’ll tell him later when I feel like responding. I just don’t want to get into anything now. I don’t want to answer questions about when I’m coming home, because I have no idea.” She turned to Peter. “There’s probably a lot we need to discover here. We might want to stay awhile.”
But was she doing it again? Looking for a distraction? Avoiding the difficult reality of the present?
They drove on, picking up speed on a downward slope toward Valdez and Wilderness Lodge, where they had two rooms booked and dinner reservations at seven.
Wilderness Lodge, by 2017, had become one of the premier excursions for every major cruise line that visited Prince William Sound. The new owners had retained the rustic charm of the original hotel facilities. The lobby still boasted the same floor-to-ceiling stone fireplace and golden pine timbers, but the red checkered upholstery had been refreshed and updated. The dining room also upheld its original style, but the kitchen had been expanded and modernized with stainless steel worktables; cutting-edge, energy-efficient appliances; and a zone-style configuration. In 2010, a new pub called Crab Cabin had been constructed as an expansion of the dock. It hosted crab feasts for the cruise ship visitors during the day, followed by a whale-watching-and-glacier tour on theWanderer II—a 110-foot wheelchair-accessible vessel with heated cabins and multiple viewing decks.
Gwen and Peter pulled into the parking lot, got out of the car, and gazed up at the lodge with wonderment.
