The Edge of Forever (28 page)

I close my eyes and clasp the necklace. I’d give anything to get back to where I was. Erase the last few minutes I witnessed.

Then blackness swallows me.

The first thing I do when I come to is puke. Footsteps run down the hallway, and the door bursts open. “Oh, sweet heavens!” Aunt Grace shrieks as she rushes to me, her face pale.

Mrs. Randolph hovers in the doorway, looking horrified. Her hand flutters to her chest and she asks, “Do you want me to call 9-1-1?”

“I don’t know. Maybe I should take her to the hospital myself.”

I jolt up when I hear those words. I want to tell her about the hallucination, but hearing the word hospital makes me realize I don’t want to go there. If I am dying, I’ll have to spend enough time there in the future. “I’m fine, Aunt Grace. I’m just nervous.”

She makes a
tsk
-ing sound and helps me stand. “That cheeseburger probably didn’t help. You need soup.”

Mrs. Randolph chimes in, “Oh yes, that’ll make everything better.”

If only that were true.

Aunt Grace escorts me back to the truck like I’m an invalid. As I wait for her to climb in the driver’s side, I can’t help but wonder if I should have told her what I saw.

I wonder what I’ll see next if the hallucinations continue.

35

ALORA

MAY 16, 2013

I
t’s almost three o’clock when I wake from my nap. I stretch on the soft covers, feeling a little better, but then the incident at the bakery ignites in my mind.

Instant bad mood.

The room seems to shrink. I grab the bag with my sketchbook and head out to the river. At least I don’t have to worry about running into Trevor.

I’m almost done with a sketch of me and the other Alora when Bridger emerges from the woods. Heat rushes through me as I remember the kiss from last week. I don’t know why, but he’s been distant since it happened, and that hurts so much. I thought he was starting to like me in
that
way. I guess he changed his mind.

“Hey, I’ve been looking for you,” he says when he reaches me. “Grace told me you weren’t feeling well.”

“I’m okay now. I just needed a nap.”

“That’s good.”

“Yeah.”

I wait for him to say something else, but he just clasps his hands behind his back and rocks on his heels. I don’t like how awkward he acts around me now. Even though he’s only been here for a month, it feels like we’ve been friends forever. But that amazing and awful kiss changed everything. I shift my gaze from him.

“What are you drawing?” he finally asks.

I snap the book shut and slip it into my bag. “It’s nothing.”

Bridger sits next to me and stares at his hands, which he’s rubbing together. “I’m sorry.”

“For what?” I ask, startled.

“For last week. I shouldn’t have kissed you. I took advantage of you.” He’s still won’t look at me.

And now I feel even worse. So he thinks he’s to blame for my awful mood. Sure, the kiss unnerved me, but I did like it.

“Don’t apologize,” I say, drawing my legs to my chest. “The kiss was nice.” Just great, that sounded super lame. Who says a kiss is nice? “No, it was more than nice. It was really sweet.”

That didn’t sound much better.

Bridger finally looks my way, offering a tentative smile. “I’m glad. I thought you hated me.”

“I couldn’t hate you for that. Not when I enjoyed it.” Yeah, I wish I could take that last sentence back.

He gives a light laugh and stares at his hands again. “Me too.”

More awkward silence. I want to go back to being comfortable around him, being myself. I need to make things right. “I’m sorry I didn’t talk to you much at breakfast. I was worried about my appointment. And then I had another blackout.”

His head snaps in my direction. “What? Did you wake up somewhere else again?”

I’m not sure I want to tell anyone about this latest incident. It’s still burning in my mind, a reminder something is very wrong with me.

“No, I stayed in the same place.”

“That’s not so bad,” he says, looking hopeful. “You must not have been out very long.”

“Yeah, but . . .” I start and then stop. I want to kick myself for almost blurting out what happened next. It’s one thing to black out and not remember how you get from one place to another. It’s crazy territory when you think you can see yourself from several weeks in the past. I hope he didn’t notice the slip.

“But what?” he asks, his expression full of concern. I feel my resolve starting to slip. Maybe he won’t think I’m crazy. Maybe he’ll still want to be my friend.

I swallow and take a deep breath. Bridger smiles encouragingly, so I tell him what happened.

But by the time I’m finished, he’s not smiling anymore. He’s still as a stone.

“What’s wrong?” I ask.

“I . . . it’s just,” he begins, rubbing the back of his neck, “I wasn’t expecting to hear that.”

“Yeah, it freaked me out too.”

“I can imagine. Look, I’ve got to go. There’s something I need to do.”

My stomach sinks as he hurries away. I feel so completely and utterly stupid for telling him the truth, so naive for trusting him. I wish I could take it all back.

As I watch him melt into the forest, anger punctures through the hurt. How could he act all concerned and then just leave? Running away with some lame excuse isn’t going to cut it. I snatch up my backpack and sprint after him, shouting his name. He ignores me at first, but I keep at it, determined to make him stop.

“What’s your problem?” I ask when I catch up to him. “Why did you want to know what’s going on with me and then take off the minute I told you?”

“It’s not like that. I remembered something I have to do.” He can’t look me in the eye again.

“Right, and I’m a fairy princess. I don’t expect you to understand what I’m going through, but don’t treat me like this. Whatever’s wrong with me isn’t contagious.”

His face reddens. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you.”

“Whatever,” I mutter. “I know you think I’m nuts, but you could’ve at least had the decency to not run off. I mean, do you think I like having this happen to me? I didn’t choose this.”

Bridger’s face is a flurry of emotion. “I know you can’t help it. It’s something you were born with.”

My heart does this weird thud. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

He doesn’t say anything for several uncomfortable seconds. “What if you weren’t hallucinating at the bakery?”

I snort. “Okay, and if I wasn’t hallucinating, then what was it?”

“What if I said you traveled back in time?”

My mouth drops open.

He rushes on, “You said before you blacked out that you wished you could go back to before all this started, right?”

“Yeah, so?”

“So, that could’ve been the trigger to send you back in time.” He steps back and raises his eyebrows at me, as if taunting me.

I’m not taking that bait. I jab him in the chest with my finger. “You must think I’m an idiot.”

“No, I don’t,” he says, frowning.

“Yes, you do. I mean, really,
time travel
? That’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard. If you think I’m crazy, then say it to my face. Don’t make up a stupid story.”

“But I’m not . . .”

I brush past him. “Save it,” I hiss over my shoulder. “And don’t worry about having to be around me anymore. I have no interest in continuing this so-called friendship.”

36

BRIDGER

MAY 17, 2013

I
t’s a little after two in the morning when I make my move. I activate my uniform cloak and slip out of my room. The silence is suffocating as I creep down the hallway. My mind is still reeling from the knowledge that Alora is a Space Bender
and
a Time Bender. A Dual Talent.

They’re not supposed to exist.

When I stop at Alora’s door, my pulse spikes. Fure, I hate doing this. But if I’m going to shift to 2146 to get a Mind Redeemer, I’m not leaving without the Jewill. Future tech can’t remain in this time. And if I can’t return, at least I’ll know the Jewill can’t be used to alter the timeline.

Before I can change my mind, I twist the door handle. It’s locked. Figures. I pull a pin out of my pocket and within seconds, the door is open. Careful to not make any noises, I slip in through the cracked door.

I survey the room before moving. It smells like Alora—full of that lavender sent that always clings to her. I shove aside the guilt for invading her room yet again. Then I stay still until my eyes adjust to the darkness.

I don’t even bother searching the room. I only need two things.

The first is easy. I find Alora’s small bag and ease the sketchbook out. I take the book to the moonlit window and rip out the first drawing of Colonel Fairbanks and the dark-haired woman that I find. The tear sounds thunderous, and my eyes flick to Alora. She doesn’t move. Relieved, I slide the paper in my pocket and return the sketchbook. Then I turn my attention to Alora again. And the Jewill.

Alora is curled up, and her blankets are wrapped around her like a cocoon. This is not going to be easy. My hand trembles as it hovers over her.

Steady, steady, steady,
I say to myself as I peel back the blanket. It feels like I’m moving in slow motion. Slowly, her neck is revealed. I let out a small sigh when I spot the Jewill around her neck. Now to get the thing off.

I try not to focus on her face as I brush her hair aside, but my eyes won’t cooperate. I take in her profile, the way she’s breathing softly. She frowns and makes a sad sound. She must be dreaming something bad.

I hope it’s not because of me.

The thing is, I never meant to hurt Alora. What was I thinking? Blurting out that she’s a Time Bender. No wonder she acted the way she did. Stuff like that is science fiction in this century. I wish she would’ve let me go when I walked away. But she couldn’t leave it alone and, for once, sticking to the truth backfired.

Suddenly Alora turns. I have to jump away to keep from getting hit. She kicks at her blanket and then settles on her back. One arm is slung over her head, the other resting by her side. The chain trails down the side of her neck.

My fingers touch the smooth surface of the black stone pendant. I can’t help but wonder again, how did her father get this? Did Colonel Fairbanks accidentally leave it behind?

Alora moans, and I release the pendant. She turns once again, facing away from me. This time I feel a sense of relief. I can see the clasp. I don’t know how, but I manage to unfasten the chain and slide it out from under her neck. I barely get if off her neck when Alora jolts upright, her eyes wide. Her arms flail out and hit my chest.

She screams.

A piercing, blood-chilling scream that could probably shatter glass.

I lurch away from Alora and look down at my body. I’m terrified my cloak’s gone, but it’s still activated.

Footsteps pound across the hallway. Then Grace pushes the door to the bedroom open. Alora has stopped screaming. She’s clutching the blanket to her chest.

“What’s the matter, sweetie?” Grace asks.

“I thought someone was in here. I
felt
someone.” Alora’s eyes are huge.

Even though Alora can’t see me, I look away from her. This isn’t right. I shouldn’t be in here.

“You must’ve been dreaming,” Grace says in a soothing voice.

Then Alora feels around her throat. “My necklace,” she breathes.

That’s my cue to get out. But I stand in the doorway, watching Alora frantically search through her sheets for the Jewill. Grace asks her what she’s talking about.

I’m certain the key to why my father wanted to save her is locked in her subconscious. I’m certain it’s because she’s a Dual Talent. I just don’t know why that would be so important to people in my time. It’s not like Alora could ever shift to the future. Time Benders can only travel to the past and back to their own present time. I have to get a Mind Redeemer to help her remember.

I drink in every part of her with my eyes. If I’m going to do this, I’m going tonight. And since Mind Redeemers are secured at the Department of Temporal Affairs and the Academy, along with Chronobands, I might not be able to get one.

I might not be able to make it back.

This could be the last time I see her. I want to tell her goodbye. I want to feel her again, maybe get one last kiss. But I can’t do that when she hates me.

I have to content myself with a silent goodbye, and then I walk out of the room. Possibly forever.

37

BRIDGER

APRIL 22, 2146

A
cool blast of air encases me as soon as I emerge from the Void. I’m in an abandoned sector of Old Denver. The day is bright and clear, like it was when I left 2013. The difference is that moments ago, the area was warm and alive with people. Now, it’s like a graveyard.

I suck in several deep breaths. Then I deactivate my DataLink and the cloak. I feel exposed, but I can’t risk getting tracked again. Government shuttles have sensors to detect them. If one happens to pass over me, it’ll automatically cross-reference approved missions that require cloaks.

As I set off in the direction of New Denver, I reach into my pocket and clasp Alora’s Jewill. How she must have hated me when she realized I took it. I think back to the minutes after I left her room. I stopped long enough to grab my portacase before leaving the house. Then I had to fight off more guilt when I stole Grace’s truck. That was hard. They trusted me and look what I did to them.

I abandoned the truck once I got to Athens so I could take a bus to Denver. At least I left my remaining cash in the truck. I hope Grace accepts—accepted—it as an apology. Anyway, I figured it would be better to shift here. General Anderson will keep the Willow Creek area staked out until I’m captured.

Yeah, it seems like I’m piling on the regrets. But I can’t worry about what I’ve done. I have to focus on getting a Mind Redeemer and restoring Alora’s memories. I’ll do everything I can to get back there. Because in the back of my mind, another idea hatched while I was on the never-ending bus ride to Denver. It teased me at first, gradually burning brighter and brighter.