A Rift in Time

by Clark Graham

  “No.”

  She gave him a wry smile. “Then you’re not really a pilot, are you? Just trying to impress the girl?”

  “The plane I flew was top secret. You wouldn’t have heard about it.”

  She glanced at him sideways. “I like you. You get caught in a lie and you keep going with it. You just don’t give up, do you?”

  He leaned forward. “Maybe, just maybe, I’m not lying.”

  “Hmmf. I’ll get the cook to start your steak, flyboy.”

  He leaned back, feeling he had won that round. She came back a little while later and plunked down the steak and a glass of water in front of him. “I’m Diana. Do you have a name, flyboy?”

  “Felix, like the cat?”

  She leaned back. “What cat?”

  “Felix the cat. The cartoon?”

  “Never heard of it.”

  He looked down. “It may not be a thing yet. Never mind.”

  “A thing? You do talk strangely. Where are you from?”

  “San Bernardino, California.”

  “You’re a long way from home. How did you come to be here?”

  “I came in an airplane. One that crashed. It can’t be fixed so I’m stuck here.”

  She laughed. “You’re no longer a pilot then. You have no plane.”

  “I’m still a pilot. I don’t need a plane to be a pilot.”

  She put her finger on her chin. “Let me see, if someone flew a plane from California to New York City, you’d think I’d have heard it on the radio. I didn’t.”

  “I flew from Washington State, but remember, it was a top-secret plane.”

  She pointed at him. “You have me there. Enjoy your meal.”

  Round two to Felix. He smiled.

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  New York, New York

  1913

  Dalton stewed and stormed for a week. Are they going to send another one? Will they rescue me out of the water? I’d go if they rescued me out of the water or off that ship. Things had changed since he was on the ship. How many planes do they have, anyway?

  He should have talked to Felix longer. He just wanted to get rid of the guy. The neighbors complained about the firing of the machine gun in the middle of the night. He apologized. That was the end of it.

  Mary put her arm around him. “They have to run out of planes eventually, don’t they?”

  “I have to destroy the first one. They won’t copy it if it’s destroyed. Phillip said it was Ted that found it. I need to find him and stop him.”

  “Don’t stop him. Someone else will figure it out eventually. No, you have to destroy it.”

  He thought about it for a minute. “You’re right. I have to get there first. I should have asked Felix what year Ted pulls the plane from the ocean.”

  “He can’t have traveled far. He should be around the area you dropped him off.”

  “New York is a large place. It’s hard to find a needle in a haystack, even if you know about where the needle is.”

  “What are you going to do then?”

  “I can’t do much until the war is over, but afterward, I’ll destroy the machine. Meanwhile, I need to start melting the one in the barn down.”

  Felix went shopping at the street market around the corner from his new apartment. He couldn’t believe how quickly he was going through the money Dalton had given him. He needed a job, any job. It would allow him to invest the rest of the money instead of spending it. He knew just who to invest it in also. Then he would write a book or do something else to make himself famous. People in the future would know who he was and come rescue him when they built another time machine.

  He went down to the diner. He had to stop eating out every night. It was taking too much money, but he wanted to see the girl again.

  The restaurant was nearly empty when he walked in. Choosing his usual table, he sat down. Both sisters were there this time. Standing side by side, he could tell them apart. Diana was a little taller than her younger sister. It was the other one that came to his table though.

  “Can I help you?”

  “I was hoping Diana would be my server.”

  “Nope, this is my table during lunch.”

  “Where are Diana’s tables? I’ll sit at one of those.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Never mind, I’ll go get her.”

  She whispered something in Diana’s ear, and then walked away.

  “Something wrong with Cindy? You don’t like her?”

  “No, I just like you better.”

  She suppressed a smile. “You are forward, aren’t you, Felix?”

  “I don’t mean to be, it’s just that I really enjoyed our conversation the other day.”

  “Oh, well, thank you. What can I get you?”

  “I’ll have the chicken sandwich and the onion soup.”

  “A very good choice.”

  She turned to go back to the counter. “Wait,” he said. “I can’t afford to eat here every meal. Do you know where a guy could find a job?”

  “I do. We have a problem keeping dishwashers. Are you up to that. Twenty cents an hour and free food.”

  “I’ll take it.”

  A few minutes later, the man behind the counter came and sat at his table after putting the food down. “I’m Harry. I understand you’re our new dishwasher.”

  “I guess so. When can I start?”

  “There’s a stack of dishes back there now. I’d have to do them before I went home, but with you here, I won’t.” Harry glared at him. “It’s a desperate man that washes dishes just to meet a girl. What’s your interest in my daughter?”

  Felix swallowed. “I like your daughter. I would like to get to know her better.”

  “Her heart’s been broken before. I don’t want to see it broken again. Are you just passing through, or are you going to stick around a while?”

  “I’m stuck here, I’m afraid. I’ll be here for a long time.”

  Harry nodded. “Enjoy your meal.”

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  New York, New York

  1913

  Felix was up to his elbows in suds when Diana walked into the kitchen. “Dry off, Daddy’s given us the rest of the day off.”

  He was fine with working hard. The free food and the company of Diana and Cindy made his days complete. He rinsed then dried his hands. “What’s the occasion?”

  “The diner is slow today. Cindy wants to work late so she can have tomorrow off, so we get to go out on the town.”

  “Great, let me get my jacket.”

  The two went arm in arm down the street. As they passed a restaurant, Diana sighed. “I’ve always wanted to eat there.”

  “Why don’t you then?”

  She shook her head. “Women don’t go to such places unaccompanied.”

  He shook his head. “Really? That sounds so archaic. Where I come from, women could not only eat where and when they wanted, they ran a lot of the restaurants.”

  “In California?”

  He swallowed. “It’s not so much a place, but a time. I can’t say more.”

  “You do talk in riddles.”

  “May I accompany you to this fine establishment?” He gave her a mock bow.

  “Really, could we go in? I would love that. Listen, I can pay, if you can’t afford it, I mean.”

  “I can afford it.” He smiled.

  She took his arm and they both walked in the door.

  The host nodded. “Do you have reservations?”

  “I didn’t know I needed them.”

  “Let me see.” The host flipped the page. “Oh, yes. We’ve had a cancellation. I do have a table for you.”

  “That would be wonderful.”

  As they sat down, the waiter brought them the menus. Diana gasped. “This place is hugely expensive. I didn’t know it was this bad. We can leave if you want to.”

  “It’s fine. If I can’t afford the bill, I can always wash dishes.”

  She giggled.

&nbs
p; A man standing over the table drew their attention.

  Dalton glared down at him. “I need to talk to you. Don’t leave the restaurant.” Then he went and sat down at a nearby table.

  “Who’s that?”

  Felix felt pale. He wondered what Dalton wanted and how he had tracked him down.

  “Who’s that?” she asked again.

  “Major Robert Dalton of the United States Air Force. He goes by Adalwolf in this century though.”

  “Air Force? This century? What are you talking about? What’s going on?”

  “I’ll tell you later. Right now, the food looks divine. We’ll worry about the Major afterward.”

  She took a deep breath. “Oh, okay. You’ll explain later.”

  They ordered and enjoyed their meal. When they left the restaurant, Dalton was waiting for them outside. “What year does Ted pull the plane from the ocean floor?”

  “1925.”

  “Okay, that gives me some time. How did he find it?”

  “Fishermen would go around it, so as not to lose their nets. What about me?”

  Mary gazed over at Diana. The poor girl was wide-eyed, listening to the men. Mary patted her hand. “There, there, dear.”

  “If it’s destroyed, will I go back to my own time? I mean, with the timeline change.”

  “No, the timeline change doesn’t affect you. You’re here, there’s no way you’ll get back once the plane is destroyed.”

  “I see,” Felix replied. “Thank you, Major. How did you find me?”

  “I wasn’t looking. I just happen to be eating here when you walked in. Mary and I come into the city once a week on the train for a night out.”

  “What happens now?”

  “Well, we have to get through the first World War, then I get the plane before the depression hits. How are you doing for money?”

  “I have a little less than half of what you gave me. I’ve settled down and gotten a job though so I’m not going through it very fast.”

  Dalton reached into his jacket and pulled out his wallet. “Here’s another five hundred. That should tide you over for a while. Where are you working?”

  “A diner down the street. I’m the dishwasher.”

  “You go from flying time machines to washing dishes.” Dalton shook his head. “If you need a better job, let me know.”

  “Will do, Sir.”

  Dalton and Mary left the couple in the middle of the street.

  Chapter Thirty

  New York, New York

  1913

  “You’re leaving? World war? 1925? Great Depression? What’s happening? What was that conversation all about? Who walks up and hands someone five hundred dollars?”

  He held out his hands to stop her. “Whoa, one question at a time.”

  She drew a deep breath. “You’re leaving?” She put her hands on her hips.

  “No, I’m not leaving and I wouldn’t have left without you anyway.”

  “So, where are we going, and who asked me if I wanted to go with you?”

  “It’s not a place, it’s a time.”

  Her eyes widened. “What time?”

  “I guess it doesn’t matter. There is no reason to keep it secret anymore. I’m not from this century.”

  “What?”

  “It hard to explain. That was Major Dalton.”

  “The man you hate?”

  “Well, yes and no. He is the reason I’m here, but he’s willing to help me out.”

  “Five hundred dollars’ worth.”

  “Well, more than that. Anyway. I can’t believe I’m telling you this. Dalton was sent on a mission to let a bad man die. He failed. I was sent to find out why he failed and bring him back. He destroyed the vehicle I traveled in, so I’m stuck here.”

  Folding her arms, she said, “Go on.”

  “That thing was a time machine.”

  “Oh, like the one H. G. Wells wrote about.”

  “Yes,” he smiled. “Only it’s real. It’s an airplane. I flew it here from Washington state to bring Dalton back with me, only he didn’t want to come. He destroyed the time machine. There is another one on the bottom of the ocean that will be found later on by a man named Ted. Dalton wants to destroy that one too.”

  “I don’t believe a word you’re saying.” She turned around and stomped away.

  The next day at work, Diana gave him the cold shoulder. Cindy came back to the kitchen. “Did you two have a lover’s spat? You aren’t talking to each other.”

  “I ran into an old friend. She didn’t like what we were saying to each other. I tried to make it better, but it only made it worse.”

  “She never stays mad. Give her a day or two.”

  Felix was tired at quitting time. He walked down the street and headed toward his apartment, not noticing Diana was following him.

  “Tell me the truth.”

  He turned to face her. “About what?”

  “Let’s start with who are you?”

  “Felix Schmidt. I work for the CIA.”

  She stepped closer. “What’s the CIA?”

  “Central Intelligence Agency. Don’t bother looking it up. It doesn’t exist yet.”

  “How can you work for something that doesn’t exist?”

  “It does exist in my time.”

  She glared. “Now you’re talking in riddles.”

  “I was born in the year 2016 in California. I was hired by the CIA because I was a pilot. A very good pilot. They needed someone to fly an airplane with a time machine in it. There were two of us. I left the other man in the 1970s. He’s now stuck in that time. I came here to get Dalton, but he was expecting me and destroyed my time machine.”

  She stared at him for a few minutes, then said. “That’s impossible.”

  “I can’t prove it to you.” He held up a hand, “Wait, I can too. My cell phone. I turned it off because I couldn’t charge it in this century, but it should have enough battery power left to show you it. Come with me.”

  He walked to his apartment. She reluctantly followed. When he walked through the door, she stayed in the hall.

  “It’s not proper to be alone with a man in a flat.”

  “Okay, I’ll bring it to you.”

  Walking back into the hall, he showed her the phone. “This is a cell phone. It can talk to other cell phones. You carry it with you so people can get a hold of you.”

  She picked it up and looked at all sides. “Show me how it works.”

  When he turned it on she nearly jumped out of her skin. It vibrated and beeped. “Here is the home screen. A lot of these things I can’t do because there are no cell towers in this century. But I have some game apps.” He showed her a couple of games on it. She stood there wide-eyed.

  “How can it do all that?”

  “It must look like magic to you, but in my century, everyone has one of these, including school children. My battery power is down to twenty percent. I have to turn it off.”

  “I don’t know if I believe you yet, but I’m more open to it now that I’ve seen that.”

  “I’ll put this back and then walk you home.”

  Heading down the stairs and leaving out the front door, she commented, “Other things that Dalton said have been bothering me. For instance, what’s this about a World War? The First World War he called it.”

  “The Great War. That’s what they’ll call it. The war to end all wars. It’s so bad that millions of people die. The whole landscape of Europe is changed. It was so bad they said they’d never be another war, but the Second World War starts around twenty years later. It was worse than the first.”

  She put her hand to her heart. “My goodness. How can countries be so stupid to start a war so big?”

  “It will start small. Archduke Ferdinand will get assassinated by a separatist. That’s what starts the first war. The second one, historians say, was a continuation of the first.”

  She stopped walking and looked him in the eye. “You can stop it. You know how i
t begins. You can keep it from happening. You can save millions of lives.”

  “I can’t. I know how this timeline ends up. I don’t know how it would change. It could be far worse. Anyway, the countries of Europe are wanting to go at each other. If they don’t use Ferdinand as an excuse, they’ll find another.”

  She started walking again, but much slower than the first time. “I don’t understand. How could it be worse than the whole world at war.”

  “It wasn’t the whole world, just most of it.”

  Chapter Thirty-One

  New York, New York

  1913

  The next day at work, Diana came back to the kitchen to quiz Felix again. “What is the Great Depression that Dalton talked about?”

  “It’s where the stock market crashes and a lot of businesses will go bankrupt. The unemployment rate skyrockets with lots and lots of people are out of work.”

  “How can we stop that?”

  His felt his face flush. “We can’t, nor are we going to try. History has to take its course. It’s bad, but it could be worse.”

  “It could be better, too. We can stop a lot of the suffering. If we can stop the suffering, why wouldn’t we try?”

  He shook his head. “It’s good that you believe me, but we can’t change history. We barely survive in the timeline we end up in.”

  She stomped her foot. “Right, we barely survive, you said it yourself. I want a history we can thrive in. We can stop the World War, we can stop the Great Depression. Think about all of the things we can stop. We have to try.” She turned and marched out.

  Felix finished his shift, dried off his hands and headed towards the door.

  “Wait a minute.” Harry, Diana’s father blocked his way to the door. “Here’s your pay for the last two weeks. You do a good job.”

  “Thank you, Sir.”

  “I have to tell you one thing, before you get too serious with Diana. She’s a divorcee.” Harry stood there like he was expecting a bad reaction, some facial expression that would show Felix’s disapproval.

  “I knew that already.”

  “How did you know that? Oh, Cindy.”