Chapter 7

Shadows still stretched across the median of I-5 as Cameron headed south. It was Saturday again, and again he was on the road to Seattle. The previous weekend had included a fair amount of frustration because the stores that carried the specialized items required to construct the portal were all closed by the time he and Leia had made the decision to go ahead with it. This time Cameron carried a list compiled by Leia. One column identified stores and the other the specific items needed from each. The back of the truck wasn't exactly full when he pulled into the mall lot just before shift change but everything on the list was included.

They went straight from the bookstore to Leia's place when she got off work.

"I've already got a delivery order in on chinese so we can get right to work on building the portal," she announced. "I'm thinking that the back of my closet door is the best place. It isn't likely that anybody like my roomie or my landlord would try stepping through it while wearing the sapphire ring. Anyway, its a logical place for a mirror."

Having already discussed this, Cameron had purchased, per the e-mailed instructions from Malcolm, a wooden door with a 3/4 sized space for window glass sized to fit the closet. The list also included glass for the door, the seven metallic films required and spray lacquer to isolate the layers from each other electrically. Leia held the door in place while Cameron marked off the locations for hinges and latch. They had decided to disguise the door as much as possible by painting to match the existing colors so that was the next job - paint the door frame before the glass went in.

With the door resting on saw horses, Leia placed the glass and glazed it. It only took Cameron an hour to mount the hinges. Meanwhile, Leia had to wait an hour for the spray lacquer to cure between each metallic layer. The upshot was that by the time Cameron had the door ready to install, Leia had only gotten the gold and aluminum layers applied and was going to have to wait an hour before proceeding - perfect time for dinner, especially since the delivery driver had shown up 10 minutes prior.

"This is taking longer than I thought it would," said Leia around a mouthful of sweet and sour pork.

"Yeah, but I can't think of any way to speed it up. Let's see if we can get the next two layers on tonight, that'll leave three for tomorrow and if we start first thing it should be done by mid afternoon."

As they were spraying the lacquer on the platinum layer Leia said, " Ok, tonight I'm still a damsel in distress. This time the man who advertised for a tutor for his children turned out to have "borrowed" the children I met when I interviewed for the job. He really plans on forcing me to sign indenture papers making me an employee of his brothel chain. I am locked up in a room somewhere on short rations until I give in. Rescue me!"

Sunday afternoon. Leia held the old closet door while Cameron knocked out the hinge pins. Setting the door aside, Cameron pointed out that they needed to save it because they certainly weren't going to donate the work they had just done to another tenant if Leia had to move. It only took five minutes for Cameron to transfer the hinge plates from the old door to the portal door and a couple of more to hold the portal in place while Leia dropped in the pins and drove them home.

For a minute they just stood looking at the finished job and then each other. Leia pulled a ring box out of her pocket, "Time for the ultimate test." Sliding the ring on his finger, she kissed him. "I have reservations at Sir Scott's at 7 PM at which time I expect a full report." She stepped back and shut the closet door on Cameron.

Cameron nervously fingered the ring as he contemplated the dull bronze of the portal mirror in the dim light of the closet. He stepped through into a plain white room. White walls, white carpeted floor, a white couch fronted by a white coffee table and two white chairs only relieved by the bold black letters on a sheet of paper sitting on the coffee table - WELCOME.

He sensed a pressure change more than heard the door which opened in the opposite wall to admit a stately older woman. Gray hair, good figure but a few crows feet around the eyes indicated that she might be about 60. "Good afternoon, I am Elizabeth Caretaker Supervisor. I have the honor of meeting whom?"