Running Out Of Time

At the bottom of the tunnel is a door leading to an indoor hallway. Jessie marvels at the modern lighting she sees as a “miracle” (41). She runs into two guards and narrowly escapes by hiding under a stagecoach in a storage room. Before fleeing into a restroom, she overhears the guards talking about the Clifton tourist site being closed down soon. Jessie hides and falls asleep in a bathroom stall as Ma instructed her to do.

The next morning, Jessie wakes to find another girl in the bathroom who seems confused by Jessie’s gawking at the modern sink. Jessie emerges into the main room of the Clifton tourist site and sees children her age milling about. A chaperone leading a field trip mistakes Jessie for one of her students; Jessie is forced to join the group to avoid being caught.

As she walks with the group, she studies the children’s clothing and has trouble adjusting to all the new noise. Jessie notices “futuristic” photographs depicting the Clifton villagers, Jessie’s former neighbors. The tour guide, Mrs. Spurning, wears period clothing and explains the story behind Clifton Village—the original story Ma told Jessie. Jessie realizes the tourists are being lied to about the recent, potentially-lethal changes to Clifton.