by Jill Cooper
I lean in to kiss him. “I always have been. At least, when it comes to you.”
If Donovan is suspicious of my behavior, he doesn’t say so. He remains in bed, while I shower and change. I can feel his eyes on me as I slip into a pair of black skinny jeans.
“Don’t be late for your test. Are you sure this is the right time to meet Delilah? You have an awful lot on your plate.”
In the future, Donovan is so bitter about time travel, but I don’t see any of that here. It hasn’t festered yet, maybe it won’t until he makes his deal with the devil. “Promise.” I grab my sweater off the dresser before I lean in and kiss him good-bye. “And it is. I only need a few minutes to talk to her.”
Donovan’s forehead crinkles. “About what?”
I blow him a kiss on my way out. “I’ll see you tonight. Don’t start dinner without me!”
****
The streets of Boston are busy for an early morning. The sun begins to break through the trees as I hurry along the cobblestone streets to the Living Edge restaurant. Outside, waiters in white waist aprons pour glasses of water. I scoot past them just as my eyes fall upon a woman sitting at a table, her red hair in a French twist.
She’s in a yellow dress, wearing pearl earrings, and her lips are done up as red as her hair. I smile and she smiles back with a wave of her hand. “Lara!”
To see her alive again makes me so happy. I kiss her cheek as she rises to greet me. She smells like lavender, just as she always does. “Delilah, it’s been too long.”
A waiter comes and places a glass of orange juice at my place sitting and I suspect it’s alcohol-free. I’m still two years away from being able to legally drink—again. Thanking him, I scoot into my seat and notice the smirk on Delilah’s face.
Sipping my juice, I ask her, “What?”
“Oh, nothing. Just that you’re wearing a string on a particular finger that I’ve never seen before. Anything juicy you want to tell me?”
“I do, but it’s not about that, Delilah.”
“Oh, c’mon. What’s a little—.”
“It’s important, Delilah. Soon,” I fiddle with my napkin and Delilah watches as my fingers curl around the green cloth, “soon, you’ll meet a man. You’ll trust him, but you can’t. You can’t trust him when you meet him.”
Her eyes crinkle in disbelief, twisted with mischief. “Well, okay. I’ll bite. What’s his name?”
“Cameron Kincaid.” I rinse the bitter words with the sweetness of orange juice. I swallow hard.
“And you know about this how?”
“Don’t ask me that. Let’s just order breakfast, okay?”
Delilah shakes her head. “I’m afraid we can’t do that, Lara. If you’re…if you’re traveling through time again, it must be serious. I’m not going to let you go through this alone. Whatever it is, you can tell me.”
“I’m doing it to save your life.”
She leans back into her seat without meaning to and a gasp of air escapes her. A moment passes and then two. “Well, I don’t know about you, but I think I’m going to order the pancakes.”
I nod slowly. “A double stack.”
Delilah unfolds her napkin and covers her lap with it. “And then, Lara, we’re going to go up to my office and have a long talk. You’re going to tell me everything and we’re going to figure out what to do.”
I smile at her. She said everything I could’ve wished for. Maybe with her as my ally, we really could succeed at this thing.
****
After we finish breakfast, we move our meeting to her office in the TTPA. It’s a large office, with space for a desk and a sitting area. We sit on the white sofa in front of which is a glass coffee table with chrome legs. Behind us, large floor to ceiling windows gives us a panoramic view of Boston’s tallest skyscrapers.
We go over everything from beginning to end. Delilah sits back with her hands on her lap. “And this assassin…”
“My great niece from the future.” I laugh. “I know how it sounds, believe me.”
Delilah nods her head. “And I have nothing to go on but your word. No proof. No evidence.”
I stretch my fingers out on my lap. Maybe things aren’t going as well as I think they are.
“You’re lucky I’ve learned to rely on your judgment and your word.” Delilah leans forward and her bracelets clink together. “How is she doing this? The TTPA system…”
“Is set to a different frequency. My frequency. Hers is different.” It comes from Molly. I don’t say it, but I think it. “I’m at a severe disadvantage here, Delilah.”
Her eyes flash to me. “I don’t know, Lara. The moment we start making exceptions… How does that separate us from those who would abuse time travel?”
“They went back in time and killed my father. They are manipulating the timeline. If we don’t break the rules to stop them, who knows where they’ll take this. I have to be able to fight them, Delilah.”
She sighs. “I can’t disable the monitor without people noticing, but I can put it on a delay. Give you more time to jump to where you need to go. Eventually, the ripple will show up on the monitors and it’ll be logged. Someone, somewhere, will realize what you’ve done.”
I nod. “As long as they can’t stop me, I don’t care.”
“What do you suggest I do? When this Cameron Kincaid comes looking for me?”
“He’ll be in your life soon, one way or another, he’ll find a way in. Watch him, but don’t spook him.”
“So, pretend I trust him? Sort of like a sting operation? Delicious, Lara.”
“This is serious.” I chastise her and raise my eyebrows. “It’s dangerous.”
“Exactly and who says you’re the one who should get to have all the fun.” Delilah leans back and crosses her legs. “I’ll keep in touch, but it’s best if you not come into the TTPA more than usual. We wouldn’t want to arouse suspicion.”
I’m glad I don’t have to explain that to her. I sling my purse over my shoulder and rush to stand. “One more thing. Think I can get into the security room before I go?”
Delilah sees me to the door. “Of course, what is it that you need?”
I think about Cassidy and the plan I’m about to enact. “I’m going to need a time travel blocker. The harness that the police use on anyone who might try to change the past. I’m going to need one of those.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
With the time travel restraint blocker tucked in my pocket, I do everything that Lara Montgomery would do. I go to class, I take my test, and I hang out with my friends. At four-thirty in the afternoon, I slide into a booth in my favorite coffee shop and sip my favorite mocha, sprinkled with cinnamon.
Donovan is on his way to meet me so we can jet over to see a movie and have dinner. Everything normal and everything calm. I can’t let on that I’m different or from the future, just in case Cameron is watching.
He could be anywhere and I won’t run the risk of having to start this game over. I’m exhausted already, just by going through the motions. Starting over isn’t part of my plan.
When my phone rings, I pull it from my purse. “Dad? Everything okay?”
“Of course. I just saw you called me about ten times while I was in an all-school meeting. I thought maybe something was wrong with you.”
“Me? No, I’m fine. I’m meeting Donovan soon to take in a movie.”
“Good. That’s good, honey. And how did your test turn out today?”
“Everything seemed to go fine. I’m pretty sure I knew the answers anyway. Like child’s play.”
“Glad to hear it. I’m headed home now. Thanks for checking up on your old man. You don’t have to, though. I’m doing fine now. Adjusted.”
“I know you are, Dad.” I smile as I see Donovan enter the coffee shop. I raise my hand and wave at him. Joy spreads across his face as he smiles at me and gives me a wave.
“No worrying about me.” Dad’s voice is stern. “But if you want to have dinner some
night this week, if you can handle your school work and have dinner, Don can come too.” Dad sighs. “I’m not very good at this, am I?”
“You’re fine, Dad. Dinner sounds great. Tomorrow night. Don and I will bring the wine.” I cringe as the words come out of my mouth.
“Wine?” Dad chuckles. “Yeah, I know soon you’ll be old enough to drink, but no reason to rub it in. Have a good night, sweetheart.”
Luckily, he’s good natured about my slip. That was a close one.
I end the phone call and rise up from my seat, wondering what is taking Donovan so long. Maybe there’s a long line at the counter. When I get closer to the front, through the crowd of people, I can make out Donovan standing beside a rack of coffee mugs for sale. His hands in his pockets, he’s relaxed as he talks to someone.
A female. A woman in a form-fitting red dress and crazy spike heels.
The way she stands and how her hair swishes as she shakes her head, I know who she is. It’s Cassidy.
She’s already here. She’s either early, or right on time. There’s no way to know. I watch from a distance as Cassidy laughs and offers Donovan her hand. He shakes it and then she’s on her way out the door.
But first, she stops and throws me a glance over her shoulder. Cassidy waves her fingers at me and then presses her glossy ruby red lips together to blow me a kiss.
I thought I was sneaking around. I thought I was one step ahead of her, but I was wrong. She’s one step ahead of me and she wants to play this game. She wants me to try to catch her.
Catch me if you can? Hardly. Cassidy thinks she can outsmart me? It’s time to show her who invented this game in the first place.
Time to slip down into the wormhole.
****
I’m too quiet through dinner and on the ride home. While Donovan readies for bed, I pace back and forth and check all of the windows. Everything seems fine out there, but I don’t know where Cassidy is. Will she watch me? Or will she stick to the mission and go after my dad?
Can’t be sure. Not unless I can be at two places at the same time.
It’s a good thing I can be. Good thing I’m a time traveler.
Donovan comes out of the bathroom freshly showered. His hair is still moist and his gray t-shirt sticks to him in the most delightful way. “Ready for bed so soon?”
He smiles at me as he takes me in his arms. “What can I say? We’re old people already. You have that early morning class and I have an early flight with my dad.”
I’d forgotten that he’d gone on that business trip. My hands slid down his chest and I cuddle tightly against him.. There’s so much I want to say to him, now, before he goes. “Make me a promise? That no matter what happens, no matter how much we change, our love will always remain the same.”
Donovan strokes my back. “I can’t make that promise, Lara.”
With a start, I peer up at him.
He breaks out into a grin and touches my chin. “We’re only going to grow stronger. Together. Our love will evolve, but it’ll be better. Don’t be afraid of the future.” He wraps his arms snugly around me. “I’ve got you,” Donovan says. “We’ve got this. That, I can promise you.”
My heart shreds with grief for the future I know is coming. With a steady breath, I whisper in the comfort of his arms. “Then we’ll be okay. No matter how long we wait to get married and no matter where we live.”
“Amen to that!” Donovan claps his hands. “Who wants a bed time snack? Cookies?”
I nod. “Cookies.” He knows me well and I watch him hurry out of the bedroom. I take a deep breath and in that moment, the room starts to dissolve. It’s getting easier. I’m getting faster at slipping past the fabric of time and getting it to bend to my will.
I wish it wasn’t this easy. Almost.
Before my first experience in the cage, years ago, I first discovered how to time jump into my body. Past, present, and future. Now, it’s my preferred method of time travel, even if it does cause the worst headaches imaginable. But this time, this time I need a decoy.
This time I need to be at two places at the same time.
I take a deep breath and hear the shower turn on. When I open my eyes to gaze into the living room, I see myself standing by the window. Instead of staring outside, she’s looking right at me.
Lara lifts her hand and wiggles her fingers. I put my finger to my lips to keep her quiet and I rush over to the closet. Quickly, I dress in jeans and a gray hooded sweatshirt. After I slip on my sneakers, I grab the duffle bag she left prepared for me in the closet.
She meets me at the bedroom door. “Be careful,” she whispers.
“Once I have what we need, I’ll jump back into you. By morning, you’re going to have a hell of a headache.”
She nods and her eyes severely draw together. Serious. Do I always look so serious? I really need to work on that.
When the shower turns off, I step out into the living room and close the bedroom door softly. Through the cracks, I witness Donovan embracing Lara in the center of the room. I see his face as he holds her. That love, that tenderness, it’s real. I do more than just see it, I feel it in the center of my chest.
Don’t worry, Donovan. I have your back.
Time to change the future, by mucking in the past.
****
Slowly the room pulls away from me until I’m in darkness. In a matter of moments, a new setting begins to appear. First, there’s a dim sky on the cusp of sunset. Off in the distance, an orange glow peeks out from behind the trees. Brick and mortar buildings are added next, and one by one, people appear.
Everyone is frozen in time. The couple sitting on a park bench, a pair of college students kissing by a rose bush, a child bouncing a ball beneath an awning, all are motionless. I move between them all to get a better view of the coffee shop. Just inside the door, Donovan stands. His hands are in his pockets, relaxed as ever as he speaks to Cassidy.
I can see her profile and her pretend smile. It angers me and disheartens me all at the same time. She’s frozen, but I don’t know how long that’ll last, so I find a hiding spot behind a vending cart where she won’t spot me, and push play on time.
Everyone comes to life in an instant and no one is the wiser, unaware that anything has happened to them at all. I tuck my hair into my hood and wait. Cassidy emerges from the restaurant and turns her head to blow a kiss at the other Lara. With a roll of her hips, she saunters off. She walks with such confidence and precision, it startles me. I remember how she looked back in the cage.
I saw the terror. The tears.
Somewhere that woman is lost inside of her. I just have to find her. Bring her out.
Creeping out from my hiding spot, I follow Cassidy down the street. I’m careful not to follow too close behind, to avoid the risk of being caught. When she turns left down a street littered with Italian restaurants, I wait to follow her.
It’s a good thing too, because standing under a red canopy I can make out Cameron. He’s here too. Cassidy goes right over to him and Cameron takes her hand and kisses her fingers. Then she leans in and they share a tender moment. As real as anything I’d ever seen.
Distant relative or not, he’s a pervert. A sick son-of-a-bitch. I’m going to make him pay for what he’s done to her. To all of us. But it seems I’m going to have to wait, as they step into the restaurant for what I’m guessing is dinner. Cameron ushers her in, his hand on her lower back right above her ass.
As if he owns her.
I squat down in the shadows, getting comfortable as I unzip my duffle bag. It’s a good thing other Lara thought to pack me granola bars. I’m going to be here awhile.
****
When they leave the restaurant, I’m surprised that they part ways. Cameron goes to a waiting car and Cassidy heads towards me, on her way home—or so I guess. I slink further back into the dark and my back presses up against the brick wall of another restaurant.
There’s a whiff of whiskey as she walks by and true to the
scent, I watch her stumble slightly as she rounds the corner. Cassidy’s had too much to drink and that can only work to my advantage. I grab something from my duffle bag before hurrying to follow her.
For a few blocks, she goes straight, but then she crosses the street, turning left. We’re close to a gas station, but she walks past it, fluffing her hair. Cassidy continues for a few more blocks then she turns left again. The road is residential, lined with brownstones. She slows down as she reaches one of the houses. Maybe it’s her home, but when she leans over a planter making a gagging noise, I’m pretty sure she’s just going to be sick.
She grabs onto the planter, but nothing comes from her mouth. If it did, I would have heard it. No, she grabs something and I realize Cassidy’s been playing me. She knew she was being followed the whole time.
When she spins, her electrical sticks are glowing in the dark, I lift my hand and freeze time. Cassidy moves as if she’s running through molasses. Her face is frozen in a scrunch of anger, her mouth open to yell. Eventually, she’ll get to me, if I let her.
I stick my taser against her side and slowly her face morphs in pain. I allow time to speed forward to normal and Cassidy falls onto the ground. “You bitch!” Cassidy screams at me and struggles to get back up.
Sticking her again, this time against her neck, Cassidy falls back and her body convulses. Funny, I thought that only happened in the movies, but then I realize that something else is wrong. The electrical current must have triggered something else. Her head bangs against the sidewalk and I realize she’s having a seizure.
I drop to the ground and cradle her head on my lap to keep her steady. “Easy,” I whisper and stroke her hair back. “Easy, Cass…easy.”
She’s gagging on her tongue and I depress it the best I can. I hold her face firm, but gently. “Hang in there. It’s going to be okay.”
Cassidy’s eyes blink slowly and a tear drips from one of them. “No…” she shakes her head and then her eyes close again. Her body needs rest and now I don’t know what to do.
