Since there was little danger of the group being picked off by a serial killer, zombies, velociraptors or the like, they decided to split up. Knowing that Presidents Arthur and Tyler had wanted to go to Washington, D.C., the guys would go to the nearest train station. Lily pointed out that Arthur had been interested in modern events so the girls should go to the newspaper factory, or whatever. Blair elaborated on the plan a little bit and suggested the public library was closer, so maybe they should check that instead.
The city library was one of those libraries that had remained unchanged in the last couple of decades. Like the bridge, a couple streets, and the city itself, the library was named after the town founder: Jonathan Mainville. A building with so much history and dignity was likely easy to spot for outsiders, thought Blair when she and Lily arrived. There it is. Right in between a tattoo parlor and a sports bar. Also there was a sports bar across the street.
Lily and Blair walked into the entrance and looked in opposite directions. Their gazes went upwards to the three visible levels and around 180 degrees; so many books, so few people. Blair suggested they split up, if one of them sees a suspicious guy, call the other.
Blair would walk all the way to the periodicals before she remembered she didn’t have a phone. Dammit. And just like that, Blair felt more alone in the world than she ever had since she quit writing poetry in high school. She wasn’t necessarily afraid, just unconnected. Not having a phone had been liberating over the last couple of days, but now the vacation was over. Blair turned around and went back to the entryway. When she couldn’t see Lily, Blair figured out they should have formed a plan. Aside from not being able to find each other, they could end up checking the same places twice. Okay, thought Blair, I went to that side so Lily must have just gone to the other side. That was the only direction that made sense.
Unfortunately Lily had gone up to the second floor. As Blair had stayed on the first floor, it only made sense to go up to the next floor, thought Lily. Blair didn’t have a cell phone, but apparently she didn’t care. Being alone gave Lily time to think about other things. I wonder what Mitch and them are doing right now. I could call them, see if they found any presidents. Maybe the other presidents are all together. Some of them are probably friends. They might even be like Blair and me, she thought. Except they’d be guys. And old. And dead. Well, kind of. Lily knew that splitting up in the library was more efficient but had kind of hoped Blair and her could have done this search together. Lily also doubted these books were in any real order. Wait. Wait. Wait.
Lily saw an old guy kind of dressed like John Tyler had been. Except this guy reading a book on the ground had thin, mangy hair down to his ears. Not willing to be so crazy as to ask strangers if they’ve ever been President of the United States, Lily went back the way she came to find Blair. Maybe ten minutes later, Blair and Lily approached the man.
His name was James Polk and he was reading about the Mexican-American War. Just days ago he had received word that Mexico refused to meet the American diplomat. Was this grounds for war? Probably not, but the issue weighed heavily on his mind. That was probably why he was dreaming right now. A surprisingly real dream that he couldn’t wake up from. The book open in front of him, like the dozen other books on the ground surrounding him, claimed Mexican soldiers would cross the Rio Grande days later and kill American troops on American soil. Polk wasn’t a mystic man so wasn’t ready to take advice from a dream, but also didn’t want to turn away a sign. Things got a little bit more confusing for him when two young ladies approached him and asked a question he had never been asked before. Yes, yes he was the President of the United States of America.
In Polk’s mind, Blair and Lily were dressed liked a boy and hooker, respectively. But Polk also knew they couldn’t help it. They were just characters in his dream so he didn’t scold them. Blair and Lily explained the situation to Polk but apparently couldn’t get him to understand the urgency. They didn’t know who was missing or where the possibly missing people possibly were. Lily mentioned they already sent back John Tyler, which made Polk laugh. John Tyler?
-Yeah. Was he from your time?
-Indeed he was. But how can I know you’re truthful?
-How can we prove it?
-What was he like?
-Easily the most cantankerous man I’ve ever met.
-Aw, so you have met him.
Lily added, yeah, and he was kind of a jerk. Figuring they had proven themselves as president caretakers, Lily thought about how to be as inspirational as Seph. She got real animated real fast.
-Come on, come on! We have to go! Or the universe will explode!
-Why, asked Polk.
-Because you traveled in time! We only have a few minutes!
-Why?
-Tyler and Arthur started running.
-Why?
-Because--the universe…it’ll explode.
-That doesn’t seem likely.
Polk walked away from the girls, hoping they’d let him think in peace. This was just like the Van Buren problem in ’44. Play two moves ahead. Think. Sure I’m not dreaming?
-Yeah, you are awake. Over a hundred years in the future.
-Maybe two hundred years in the future, added Lily.
-I don’t think it’s two hundred, corrected Blair.
-Do you not know what year it is, asked Polk.
-No. We just don’t know exactly when you were president.
Odd, thought Polk. I would have figured women would be allowed an education by my lifetime. Or at least the century mark. That was beside the point though. These ladies had at least a basic understanding of their world and had friends who probably knew more. But Polk knew he was the only one who could think like a very, very confused time traveler--or a slightly confused president.
-Are you missing President George Washington?
-No. Not him.
-Thomas Jefferson?
-No, I don’t think so.
-Andrew Jackson?
-Don’t know.
-Okay. Forget searching by people. Think of places.
-Wait. Are you helping us?
-Yes. The responsibility of a president doesn’t stop at the Constitution.
Blair considered calling Seph with a phone she didn’t have but then realized his answer wouldn’t matter even if she got a message to him by way of carrier pigeon. Searching the city with a former president was more exciting than searching the city without a former president. And Polk didn’t seem too crazy, though he wanted to take several of the Mexican-American War books, now convinced they were accurate windows into his, and the country’s, future. Lily stopped him, saying that they couldn’t afford all these books.
Polk was fairly convinced the books were free, but Lily assured him that nothing in the world was free. Polk dropped the books and the matter. Like Polk, Blair didn’t know if Lily was joking, lying or confused, but also didn’t feel the attention was worth the effort. Moving along discussion, Polk suggested they think in the worst case scenarios. A president unfamiliar with where (and when) he was would almost certainly act like a lunatic. An undignified idiot.
-Mr. President, did you even have idiots in your time?
-You mean, did we mock people?
-Yeah.
Polk thought about the 1844 campaign.
-No, we didn’t call our opponents idiots. But we did say they were from Kentucky.
Blair smiled. Presidents were too sane to be crazy. But they could be jerks. She knew where they were going next.
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