"What was she protecting us from?" Avery asked, folding her arms for a moment before dropping her arms and balling her hands into fists.
"She read our contracts," Wyatt said. "I think that is the key."
"But we can't go and read them," Avery said.
"Why not?" Wyatt asked turning back toward the space that would lead them to Jeremy, Aldan, and Brooke. He didn't expect an answer from Avery, and she didn't say anything.
They moved quietly back toward the others.
"You didn't find her, did you?" Jeremy asked as Wyatt followed Avery through the gap into the aisle where they hid.
"That resonance was close," Brooke said, stepping close to Wyatt as Avery angled toward Jeremy and Aldan.
"I don't like this," Aldan said. "Something is tearing apart our history."
"She said there was more coming," Wyatt said in response to Aldan's comment.
"What?" Aldan and Brooke asked at the same time.
Wyatt looked at Brooke. His mind ached with the leftover effects of the resonance. It was getting worse. "Hannah said more was coming," he said.
"We aren't sure what she meant," Avery said.
"Where did you see her?" Aldan pushed his way past Wyatt and headed toward the gap they had emerged through.
"She left," Wyatt said. "Didn't you feel the resonance?"
Aldan stopped and turned back, glaring at Wyatt. "Why would you let her leave?"
"Stop," Avery said, stepping between Aldan and Wyatt with her hands raised toward each of them. "Don't fight. It won't get us anywhere." She looked toward Aldan. "She was there speaking with Lenny for a moment and frustrated at what Lenny had told her. She said she could have protected him from what is coming."
"What does that mean?" Jeremy asked. "I don't want this anymore."
"Neither do I," Brooke said, but folded her arms. "But we're stuck. Whatever is going on won't stop just because we don't like it."
"She's right," Avery said, lowering her arms from between Wyatt and Aldan.
"I'm sorry," Wyatt said. "I wanted to run out there and see if she recognized me." It seemed like a good thing to say, even if it may have only been a thought he just had.
Aldan shook his head.
"But we know that Lenny is alive here," Wyatt said. "This is where he went to talk with us after we got back from stopping your old group. I think we should wait until he leaves and talk to him. He has to have some answers."
Brooke turned her gaze from Wyatt toward Aldan for a moment before turning and looking at Jeremy. "Do you think we would mess anything up by going and talking to him?"
Jeremy shook his head and rolled his eyes. "I don't think it would hurt things any worse than they already are."
"We might be able to warn him," Avery said.
"I think we just want some answers." Aldan shifted his stance from his right to left leg as he spoke. As he finished, he looked in the direction of the dormitory room. "How long do you think he was in there talking to us?"
"He should finish relatively soon," Brooke said.
"Yeah," Wyatt agreed. "He was only in there for a few minutes." He turned so he wasn't facing Aldan directly. "I say we follow him after he leaves."
"You think we can do that without being caught?" Avery asked. "All five of us tend to make a pretty large impression on people."
"Let's split up into groups," Avery suggested, eyeing Jeremy. Jeremy smiled at her suggestion and scooted closer to her.
Brooke looked over her shoulder at Wyatt. "Groups would work," Brooke said. "But remember, if any of us get into trouble, head back to April 4, 2090, at 8:00 pm."
Aldan was the first to nod his agreement before they separated. This time Aldan remained with Wyatt and Brooke, while Jeremy and Avery stepped around the shelves in the direction of the dormitory entrance.
"I think we should let them wait for Lenny," Aldan said quietly as Avery and Jeremy moved out of sight. "But we should go to his office."
Brooke nodded as Wyatt watched her. He found himself nodding also. "It seems like a great idea."
CHAPTER eleven
OUTSIDE LENNY'S OFFICE, NEAR R333PS,
SUNDAY, APRIL 2, 2090, 11:30 AM
Wyatt, Brooke, and Aldan made their way through the small gaps in the shelving toward the dormitory entrance. Lenny's office sat along a hallway beyond the other door in that wall. The doorway led into a hallway that wound around the outer edge of the dormitory.
Just like the first walk through that hallway, Wyatt noticed everything felt damp. The mildew and moldy odor of the area outside the door grew inside that hallway. That was part of the time travel that Wyatt didn't understand. They had all the time they needed to fix and clean the hallway, but it looked like the people working for the Machina had simply forgotten about it.
The thin lights spaced evenly along the ceiling offered enough light that he caught himself watching Brooke's movements ahead of him across the damp floor. She was slender and pretty, and the lighting at times silhouetted her against the concrete walls.
Wyatt thought he heard water dripping somewhere, but that might have just been his mind.
They moved along until they reached an intersection where Brooke looked over her shoulder at him. Her face lit with a smile as he forced his eyes up to look at her.
"Do you think we should wait for him to come back before we go to his office?" Brooke asked, her voice low. "Or do we wait in his office?" She pointed along the intersection hallways with both hands.
To their right stood the hallway that led toward the server room for the Machina. Those servers contained only a portion of the Machina, and they were guarded. On their left the hallway led toward other rooms, the first of which was Lenny's office.
"Which way are you thinking?" Wyatt asked Brooke.
"We should wait in his office," Aldan answered from behind him. "How else can we make sure we get the chance to speak with him?"
Wyatt had forgotten Aldan had come with them. He felt his face growing hot as Brooke's smile landed on him again.
"He knows who we are," Brooke said. "I think we can wait in his office without much trouble." She started walking to their left.
"I hope he doesn't have a heart attack," Aldan said. "These changes are almost too much for me."
Wyatt shook his head and followed Brooke.
Lenny's office door was recessed slightly into the concrete of the wall. The solid door had a window beside it, set into the concrete wall. Looking through that clear window, he saw the cherry wood desk facing the door, and two fabric-covered metal chairs sitting in front of it. behind the desk were two narrow bookcases that normally had their shelves loaded with odds and ends. They looked empty. On the wall behind the desk a small window looked out over the loading docks.
Aldan reached around beside Wyatt and opened the door. It wasn't locked. Wyatt remembered it hadn't been locked any other time they had come this way.
"I think Lenny will be surprised to see us," Aldan said as he stepped in.
Brooke followed him, but Wyatt remained outside for a moment longer. He thought he heard approaching footsteps and conversation. The sounds sent his heart racing. In the narrow, concrete hallway, the sound seemed to carry strangely. Rather than being swallowed up by the cardboard boxes and stacks of goods that filled the warehouse, the concrete echoed differently.
"Don't just stand out there," Aldan said, holding the door as Brooke entered. "It would be better to be caught waiting for him inside than out here."
Wyatt turned and looked back along the hallway they had followed and agreed. He stepped through the doorway and into the office. A momentary dizziness reminded him that he was not in the same time as the warehouse hallway outside. In a previous visit, Lenny had mentioned his warehouse office was set in 2039. Brooke moved toward the cherry wood desk. She ran her fingers along the top of the desk before turning to face them.
"It's cleaner than the last time we were here," Brooke said. "There aren't any keys to the server here
."
Wyatt took a moment to realize she meant the small red cards that had been there days earlier, back when he and the others had used them to enter the Machina's server room. "The connection band and the tablet we collected for him are gone also." he pointed toward the nearly empty bookcase behind the desk.
"It's hard to tell if anything has changed," Brooke said, stepping around the desk and moving toward the bookcase.
"What are you looking for?" Wyatt said. "We don't want to upset Lenny when he comes." He felt his heart beating faster as sweat formed on his temples. Out of the three of them, he felt the most worried about the upcoming meeting with Lenny.
Brooke smiled at his comment and turned back toward the bookcase. "It's clean and dust free," she said. "That makes it hard to tell if anything was there."
Aldan stepped out of line of the window to the side of the door. "I think he is here," he said as the door opened.
Lenny opened the door and stopped abruptly. He stared at each of them for a few seconds. Wyatt couldn't determine if he saw anger or any other emotion in the older man's face. he simply stood there.
"Hello," Brooke said, turning and smiling at Lenny.
Lenny swallowed and licked his lips. "Should I come back later?" he asked.
"No," Aldan said, stepping closer to the door and motioning for Lenny to enter. "We're here to talk with you."
Lenny watched him for a moment before his eyes scanned back toward Wyatt's. "Is this because of something I did?" he asked. "Did I send you back here to talk to me?"
"No," Wyatt said as Aldan closed the door, forcing Lenny to enter farther. "We need your help."
"We think you can help us," Brooke said.
"Things are falling apart in a few days," Aldan said, and Wyatt feared he would tell Lenny that he disappeared.
"We had some immediate trouble and figured you might be able to assist us," Wyatt said as Lenny raised his hands.
"Wait a moment," Lenny said. He looked at Brooke. "Why don't you step back around my desk and have a seat. Let's see what you need help with."
Brooke's smile failed for a moment, but she moved around the table and sat in one of the chairs. Aldan crossed to stand behind her, motioning for Wyatt to take the seat beside her. With only two chairs, Aldan seemed to have decided he would stand for the meeting.
Lenny moved around to his side of the desk and lowered himself into the leather chair with an audible sigh. "Are you sure meeting with me like this won't cause any troubles?" he asked, spreading his hands across the top of the table. "Before you answer that question, remember that anything you say may cause an issue for your future."
Wyatt shook his head and glanced over his right shoulder at Aldan. Aldan folded his arms and looked at the wall to his right. Wyatt could feel their plan unraveling. Lenny was supposed to have the answers, but how many other problems would they cause by talking to him?
"I think we're okay," Brooke said as the door to the office opened and Avery and Jeremy entered.
"You haven't started yet, have you?" Avery said, sounding breathless. "Don't say too much."
"Smart move," Lenny said, smiling. "I like the way you are thinking."
"But we need to know what is going on," Aldan said.
"Do you think he would know anything about that?" Avery said. "He hasn't seen what we experienced yet." She stopped beside Wyatt, looking down at him.
Her look made Wyatt feel awkward and whether it was her intent or not, Wyatt rose to his feet and motioned toward the chair.
Avery chuckled, smiled, and sat in the chair he had vacated.
"Quiet for a moment," Lenny said. "There are some things I do not need to hear. Don't tell me about your struggles in the future because it might change mine."
Wyatt shook his head and stepped back from the chairs for a moment. He watched the bookcase, trying to piece together what they could discuss with Lenny. "If we can't ask you about how we fix the future, what can we ask you?"
Lenny's smile returned and he lowered his hands into his lap. "I like that question also," he said. "I've seen from your recent mission, the one I saw you just finish, that you know how to change the future. Has your past been changed now?"
The question hit home for Wyatt. He started to shake his head and Lenny watched him. That look made him reconsider. The special warehouse was a prime example of his past changing. Seeing the way Gene struggled to remember Hannah also shot into his mind. He looked down and shook his head.
"So, you have seen it change?" Lenny asked. "What are you going to do about it?"
"We need help," Avery said. "We were hoping you would have an idea of how we would change it back."
"How many times has it changed?" Lenny asked, raising his hands. "I'm just messing with you, mostly. I don't think any of us will understand how many times it has changed."
"Doesn't the Machina know?" Brooke asked. "Couldn't we ask it for help."
Lenny's smile faded and his eyes shifted toward her. She almost seemed to deflate under the older man's gaze. Lenny no longer smiled.
"The Machina knows anything that was recorded," Lenny said after a moment's pause.
"But if the cameras were destroyed, it wouldn't know," Aldan said. "The cameras were damaged in that last area we visited." When Wyatt and the others looked at him, he seemed to try and elaborate. "The special place that we visited had all the cameras damaged."
"But that had to happen after the other damage," Brooke said.
"Careful," Lenny said, leaning back in his chair. "These are dangerously close to things I shouldn't hear."
Wyatt glared at Lenny, wanting to force the older man to help, but shook his anger away. Lenny was right. They had already lost him in their future. He had vanished.
"How many people are in our group that just finished their mission?" Avery asked.
Lenny smiled and nodded. "Will that make a difference?"
"Answer her question," Aldan said, unfolding his arms and grabbing the back of the chair where Brooke sat.
Brooke shifted forward and glared back at Aldan over her left shoulder. "Calm down," she said. "We don't want to ruin any chance we have of fixing this."
Lenny shook his head and watched Avery and Wyatt again. He didn't answer Avery's question. When his eyes landed on Wyatt, he asked another question. "How do you know your past has been changed?" He held up his hands and continued. "I mean, without telling what you saw in the present you came from, what has changed in your past?"
Wyatt looked at Brooke. She looked at Avery then Jeremy before looking back at Aldan who had raised his arms off the back of her chair.
"It can't be that hard," Lenny said. "What was your first mission?"
Wyatt found it hard to make sense of that question. He struggled inside his mind to find the answer. Several options presented themselves. "I remember you sending us back to gather letters from people in the warehouse." That had to be the first mission Lenny meant. That had happened right after he and the others had been selected.
"Wrong," Lenny said.
"We went to an empty street and a car almost killed me," Avery said.
"No," Lenny said. "Keep thinking about it. It's important and will illustrate my point. None of you have the same first memories."
"I think I remember that car in the deserted street," Wyatt said. "You sent us to block the street, but there was nothing there."
Lenny nodded. "But that was not your first mission."
"Don't look at me," Aldan said. "I've had a few more missions than you have."
"Yet you still visit your haven," Lenny said. "If you hadn't constantly done that, you would be nearly the same age as the rest."
Aldan folded his arms and let out a long sigh. "There's just too much to this time travel not to go and find a quiet place."
"I understand," Lenny said. "I've been feeling the same way, lately."
"Why would you feel the same way?" Brooke asked. "You are not a future fixer like we are."
Lenny laugh
ed and pushed his chair back from the desk. "You're right," Lenny said. "But how many times do you think I get visits like this?"
Wyatt must have given Lenny the most confused expression because Lenny focused in on him. He had to say something, but all he could think of was the other versions of Avery and Hannah that had spoken with Lenny. He tried to blink away that older Hannah's words, but they would not leave. "What was she going to protect you from?" he asked. "She told you she could have protected you from what is coming. What was it?"
Lenny's face turned white as ash as his smile vanished and his mouth hung open.
"What have you done to us?" Aldan asked, stepping around the right side of Brooke's chair to get closer to the desk. He leaned down over the desk. "What haven't you told us?"
Lenny slid his chair back even farther, before rising to his feet. "I don't know what she was talking about," he said. "I've never seen that woman before." The normally smiling and happy man looked white as a ghost as he stumbled backward and stuttered his words.
Wyatt shook his head and scowled at Lenny. "You have seen her before," he said. Stepping around the left side of the chair, trying to block any escape Lenny might have.
"The resonance is going to ruin us all," Lenny said. "Look at you. You've come here to attack me about knowing a woman I have never seen before."
Wyatt felt a hand on his right shoulder and stopped his approach. At the same time, he saw Jeremy stepping around Aldan's left side.
"Whatever has happened to us has already happened here," Jeremy said. He grabbed Aldan and pulled him back. Aldan shook his head but allowed Jeremy to pull him back.
Wyatt felt the same frustration with the situation, but Brooke stood beside him, holding his arm. "Mr. Janson," she started, "what would you do in our situation?"
Lenny stopped moving backward. Part of that, Wyatt saw, was the wall, but it looked like Lenny had listened to Brooke's question. He shook his head and looked at Wyatt. "It seems most of you still remember that trip to the business park in 2089." He looked from Wyatt to the others for a moment. "If you really want my help or my suggestion, begin there. If that is the earliest most of you can remember, that is a place that hasn't been affected too much yet."
Dissonance (The Machina of Time Book 2) Page 10
