Caroline beamed at Grace as she approached the gates of Westminster Abbey.
"Grace, darling! I'm so glad you could make it." She leaned in to air-kiss her cheeks before draining the last of her takeaway coffee. "Ever had one of these toffee nut things?" she asked, gesturing to the festive polystyrene cup. "To die for!" She tossed the empty cup into a nearby bin and straightened herself up: "Right then, are we ready?"
"Sure. But I've got to be back at the office within the hour or my boss will go insane."
This wasn't entirely true: Mr Barrie had announced that he was going to an important business meeting and wouldn't be back all day. By the look of the golf clubs he had tried to sneak out of his office without anybody noticing, Grace was sure she'd be fine if she stayed a little longer, but she didn't exactly wish to spend any more time with Caroline that she had to. She was an old friend, but she could be quite a handful, too.
"Seriously, Grace, you need to get yourself out of that place. You're kept on such a tight lead. It can't be fun, surely! You really should look for something else."
"I know," Grace muttered as they approached the visitors' entrance. She wasn't in the mood to explain everything to her. Instead, she admired the grand Gothic architecture as it towered above them, a dark cloud floating in the sky casting alluring shadows over its features. "It's really quite beautiful, isn't it?"
"What? Oh yeah, sure," Caroline replied as she fished into her bag for her change purse. "I can't believe they charge us to get in here."
"I know what you mean. It doesn't seem right to have to pay to enter a place of worship. I suppose it goes toward the upkeep though."
"You think? Honestly, I don't know what all the fuss is about, but I thought I should make the effort for Archie."
"Archie?"
"That's my boss. He's really sweet. And very cute!"
Caroline paid for her entry and Grace walked up behind her, relieved to find that it wasn't as expensive as she'd anticipated. Maybe this visit would encourage her to start seeing more of the tourist attractions in London. There had been time for her to seek out a few things during her university days, but when she started at Anchor she found she simply didn't have the strength to go gallivanting around London; all she wanted to do on her days off was curl up on the sofa in front of the television or lose herself in a good novel. She had to confess that she had been looking forward to getting out in the open today to explore the Abbey, just as she had promised herself she would do for months but had never bothered.
"What language would you like?" asked a man handing out guide leaflets.
"English please."
He gave them both a leaflet, offered them the digital guide that was included in their ticket price, and moved on to greet the next visitors.
"We definitely don't need to bother with the digital guide things,' said Caroline as she opened the floor plan in her leaflet. 'We can head straight to wherever it is that the kings and queens are buried and then we can leave. We won't waste any time, don't worry."
"Right, okay." Apparently, Grace wasn't going to see as much as she had hoped.
"Did you manage to bring the notes I'd asked you for, by the way?"
"I did, yes." She handed her an envelope containing several sheets of information about the history of the building and those laid to rest inside it. Some of the facts she'd already known but some she'd had to research. It had kept her mind occupied throughout the week, which she'd been quite thankful for. After the fears Andy had put in her about the dangers of Elizabethan England, she wasn't sure she'd be able to go through that door ever again.
They'd had a lovely evening though, despite her concerns. It must have been after ten o'clock by the time he announced he had to head off. They'd spent most of the time after the meal drinking and talking, and, at one point, playing with a bit of string to tease Bella. It hadn't been awkward in the office that week either, but then Grace questioned whether or not there was actually any ground for it to be uncomfortable. She still wasn't sure whether or not it was a proper date, or if Andy had just agreed to the evening so she could repay him for the time they'd spent together at the diner. Perhaps she should just come right out with it and ask him.
But since the conversation they'd had that night everything had started to feel like a dream. Perhaps it was because she was going out of her way to ignore the past, but she hardly noticed the door now anyway, and she wasn't cut out for this. She wasn't Gráinne O'Malley. As long as she kept convincing herself of that, then she was certain it would just go away and she'd never have to deal with it again. It was time for her to take a step back.
"I believe she's in here," Caroline said as she jabbed at the map, pointing to a space marked Henry VII's Lady Chapel.
"Where who is?"
"Queen Elizabeth I."
"That's who you're doing your project on?"
"I'm supposed to be looking at all the Tudor line and their relationship to contemporary London, but I thought she'd be a good place to start."
It must be a coincidence, Grace thought. They made their way around the building, manoeuvring around all the other tourists as they followed the marked route. They stopped at a monument rising from the floor. It was taller than either of them had expected, with bars all around it.
"It's quite large, isn't it?" remarked Caroline.
In the centre of it lay a marble carving of the Queen. The entire sculpture was all one colour, with the exception of her crown, which was incredibly detailed and well-crafted. She was well-protected, barricaded from interfering hands. Grace looked into the marble face, studying her features.
"It's quite creepy if you ask me," said Caroline, interrupting Grace's thoughts as she examined the face in front of her. "What was it she'd said? I have a king's body or something?"
Grace wasn't really listening. She was trying to comprehend the situation, fighting with herself to work out whether or not she could dismiss this coincidence without ignoring the obvious sign that lay right in front of her.
For weeks Grace had tried to force any thoughts of Queen Elizabeth I out of her mind. She had finally made the decision that she wanted nothing more to do with the situation and had determined to ignore the portal back to Clare Island.
And yet, she now found herself standing at the tomb of Elizabeth I. Her body wasn't in the sixteenth century anymore. She was right there, in Grace's own time. Even when carved on her own monument she still possessed a strong sense of power, but Grace couldn't help reminding herself of the fact that she no longer existed as a living person. Just like everybody else, she had faced her end. Nobody was immortal. As Grace looked upon the Queen's solid face, she realised what it was she was meant to see. She couldn't hide from it any longer. She knew what it was that she had to do. It was time for her to stop running.
She needed to speak with Queen Elizabeth I.