“Hold her!” He gestured toward Tabitha.
“Go with him!” she hollered at Pauline. “Get him!”
“Tabitha, he can handle this. I need to know what happened. What you saw.”
A very stern looking woman came up and got in between them. “This young lady saved the day. She was crouched down and ran up behind and knocked him down from the feet. You wouldn’t believe it! He would have aimed that thing at Abby. I don’t know what that was, but it would knock you dead in a minute!” the woman exclaimed.
“Everything she said is true,” Tabitha added shakily. Her shirt was torn and her arm was scraped.
Pauline motioned for her to sit down in the back of the police vehicle. She did, but she left the door open, feeling trapped already.
Pauline turned to the woman. “Okay, it sounds like you’re saying you saw it all. Is this correct?”
The woman nodded.
“What is your name?”
“Vicky Merriwheather. I live at 1314 Galaxy Lane in the Arborville Apartments. Unit 5.”
“I’ll need you both to come to the station and give me a sworn statement. Was there anyone else that was with you who may have more information?”
“There was no one with me,” Tabitha answered.
“No, not with me either,” Vicky answered.
“Tabitha, was this the man you were so nervous about that day at the station?”
Tabitha nodded in reply.
“What do you know about that weapon he had?”
In answer, Tabitha tilted her head toward the other witness.
Pauline seemed to understand. “Shirley!” she called to another officer. “Please take Ms. Merriweather to your vehicle.” Once the woman was out of earshot, she instructed Tabitha to continue.
“She probably knows more than I do,” Tabitha whispered, pointing to Vicky.
“It’s a weapon reserved for the military,” Vicky said. “At least that’s what Maureen, another witness, said. It has been in existence for around twenty-five years. It should not be out in civilian areas. This man has broken so many laws, it’s unconscionable.”
“It already exists? Okay, yeah, maybe that makes sense. Things are getting all jumbled in my mind. Sorry. Anyway, I assure you, he is not in the military.” Tabitha laid her head back. She saw that other officers were arriving to help gather witnesses and take statements. Somewhere in the back of her head, she knew that Mahoney’s weapon could not be exactly the same as anything they’d ever seen.
“No, I didn’t think he was in the military,” Pauline commented. “The question is, how did he get his hands on this weapon?”
“What if I told you he had a hand in developing it? That he likely has perfected it, making it more dangerous than ever.”
Pauline nodded. “How do you know?”
“One would wonder; I know it seems strange. My husband studies all sorts of scientific concepts and is somewhat an inventor himself. He knows things about other inventors. One of his goals has been to try and get this guy caught in the act and have him put in jail where he belongs. Not because of some competition, but because this man, Dr. George Mahoney, is quite dangerous.”
“Yes, I’d love to know more of your husband, but we didn’t find much.”
“He is not in the spotlight. Maybe one day. But is that really important now?”
“Probably not. You look tired, Tabitha.”
“Hey, that’s just me these days. Please don’t lock me up again. I’m not sure I could sleep this time. And I really need to head home. I don’t think I’ve broken any laws. I’ve been trying to help.” She lowered her voice. “Potato woman predicted this, by the way.”
“Really?” Pauline’s eyebrows shot up. “What did she say?”
“She said, ‘Only you can stop it from happening. You know why the man is here.’ I couldn’t get any more information from her. It just seems sort of telling right now.”
“And then, it could be total coincidence.” A look of concern crossed her face. “You shouldn’t entertain such nonsense. She is not to be trusted, not on an even keel, if you ask me.”
Tabitha shook her head. Her response was not surprising. “Here’s a question I’d like to ask you.” She leaned forward. “Are there any men in your jail?”
“Really? I don’t know what you’re insinuating, since the chief of police is a woman, and the city commissioner is a woman. Okay, yes, there is one man. He is in long-term lockup. He’ll be there a while. And yes, we do have men coming through short-term now and then. However, you may have noticed, women far outnumber men in this city.”
“Yeah. I’ve seen that. So, you’ll probably imply that I should know the answer to this. Why wasn’t George Mahoney put into lock up like I was?”
Pauline struggled for an answer. “We placed you in lock up for your own safety. We needed to observe you as you were behaving erratically. To be sure you wouldn’t harm yourself or others. This George Mahoney character just didn’t pose such an implied threat.”
“Imaginary threat,” Tabitha snarled. “No, the threat he poses is all too real. One more question.”
Pauline nodded, patiently.
“Is the mayor of this city a woman?”
“No, the mayor is John Britton. What difference does it make?”
“To be honest, I’m not sure. I’m just not sure anymore. I was just curious, that’s all. Trust me, I’m ready to go home.”
“Just be patient,” Pauline answered. “You are a key witness, who has important background information. I think it is pertinent.”
Tabitha got out of the vehicle. “I just need to stand a little while. My knees are sore.”
“I hear that was quite a dive you took to knock him down.” She spoke with respect in her voice. It may have been the one reason she endured so many questions at once from Tabitha.
Miss Vicky Merriwheather walked up again.
“What about the owner?” She asked. “She told the guy he can’t park here. She may have seen some of the incident.”
“Does anyone know her name?”
“No, but I can describe what she looks like,” Vicky stated.
“Alright, I’ll need you to come with me inside. We need to find the owner. She will need to give a statement.” She called to the crowd, “Everybody, go home. The Mood Sim Center is closed down for the day. There is nothing more to see here. Unless you can give me a sworn statement by meeting me at the police station, you all need to go home to safety.”
Tabitha swiftly and stealthily stepped backward. By the time Pauline turned around again to tell her to follow, Tabitha was gone. There had been one brief moment in which she felt torn between helping them find Mahoney and making her escape to find her way back home. It didn’t last long. She couldn’t risk running into Mahoney and had hoped he truly did not see her in that crowd.
On the other side of town, a 1985 Honda Accura was zooming above the buildings. Reaching the outskirts of town, the driver pushed a button and set a date on his dashboard. The vehicle hit a speed threshold and quickly disappeared from sight. The gray haired man in the driver’s seat smiled. Like Tabitha, he was a fan of visiting 2047. She and Milt were the only reason he’d ever gone there in the first place. His test did not go as planned, but it did prove one thing: his weapon would work just as he had hoped. Now, he just needed to finish the experiment with living matter.
Chapter 14
Escaping the Escape
Weaving in and out of people in the crowd, Tabitha jogged down the street, hoping Pauline didn’t see which way she ran. Despite being told it was not safe and they should go home, people milled about, their voices excited and eyes wide with curiosity. They were stupid. But that didn’t matter, it only gave Tabitha more hiding spaces, more chances to blend in and not be found.
Considering Mahoney could still be around, she had every reason to be running. Then again, running would make her stand out to him. It was poss
ible he had not even known of her existence yet. She slowed to a steady walking pace, hoping to quickly make her way to the Envo.
There were too many things she didn’t and couldn’t know. What timeframe was this Mahoney from? He obviously had time-travelled in order to arrive here. Was this the Mahoney who had already met Milt? Did he learn his time travel abilities from Milt? Was that what had happened? Why else would a future Milt take a demoted position and turn him in? She knew Mahoney would be going back in time to use his weapon on the man who was eventually going to marry his love interest. So, did this serve as a trial run?
Slowing to catch her breath, Tabitha ducked into an alleyway, holding her chest. It hurt. Her breaths came in short, rapid bursts and she felt shaky. She extended a hand in front of her and noticed the slight tremor. She fought the worst thoughts that plagued her mind. A specter of a man from another time has once again followed me, causing mayhem and destruction. I had no idea he was here. I should never have come here. He may still be here. I’m afraid to turn the corner. How can I move ahead?
Calm down, she told herself. No one has died. You prevented it. It’s okay. You did it. This was the reason you were drawn here. This incident has nothing to do with the incident with Elise last time. We’ll never know why that happened.
The thought of stepping out of that alleyway made her heart want to burst out of her chest. It was almost beating that rapidly, and with each beat, felt like it was moving up to her throat. She took deep breaths. I did a brave thing, she thought. I’m not going to throw up.
Thinking that she had fulfilled a purpose here helped to calm Tabitha. She had been close to the point of hyper-ventilating. Peeking out of the alleyway, she looked left, then right, and saw nothing of concern. Still, the man could pop out from anywhere. She turned right in a slight jog, which got her all the way to the Envo. No more visits to the station. No defeating Mahoney, because maybe he was already gone. Have I done enough? Is he just gonna hide out and try it again? But why would he do that, now that his face has been seen? The wisest thing would be for him to get back to his own timeframe as well.
A brief fumbling of the keys as she looked both ways again. A swift opening of the door, ducking into the interior and slamming it shut, then locking it. A glimpse in the rearview mirror revealed a woman getting out of a police vehicle and walking toward the Envo.
“No!” Tabitha hit the dashboard, then got the key in the ignition and the Envo started. She would run, just like a fugitive of the law, escaping justice and punishment. She was a renegade and would not be caught. No way, she couldn’t let that happen. Her heart pounded rapidly in her chest again. She pushed her foot heavily on the gas pedal, and the Envo tore out of its parking place, speeding down the avenue. She had to swerve to avoid an oncoming truck and scraped against a parked car in the meantime. There would be a scratch for sure, but that would have to take care of itself later. Oddly, she noticed that the car she had nicked didn’t show a single sign of impact. It must have been built of some special material.
Determined to get out of there, she acted more than a little bit reckless. Not that she could help it. A heap of incriminations was piling up for her here in 2047 that would only result in delaying her even longer from getting home. Her stomach and legs were cramping up; she figured it must have been from the run, and maybe she hadn’t had enough water? She reached into the glove compartment for one of Milt’s liquid bursts and popped it in her mouth. The police vehicle still pursued her closely. She accelerated and began ascending, swerving again to avoid hover cars that were already in a line of traffic.
Unsure if Pauline still followed her, Tabitha got in line and sped up whenever she saw an in. Would the car get scratched again? Too bad. She had to hurry out of here. Briefly, she had a fleeting idea to turn on the radio. She hadn’t done so on this trip at all, which was unusual. Yet, there had been so much chatter in her brain, there was no room left for music in the background. She flipped on the radio to calm the inner noise. I should have done that a while ago, she thought. But all she got was talk, chatter about the attempted shooting with a device of annihilation. That’s what they called it, and it seemed pretty apt. Paranoia was sure to start in the city, and that was likely called for as well. Unless the calming mist kept all of those things at bay. She chuckled. Such an idyllic world gone bad.
There was a lot of traffic, and she needed to accelerate to get home. Tabitha pulled back the gear and ascended a little more. She went as long as she could in the sky of 2047, knowing she could get discovered in the sky of present time. There were fewer cars up here. Was she at a safe altitude? Could the Envo take it? Throwing caution to the wind, she maintained the altitude and a high speed to get back to her home state. A grab for the glove compartment produced another liquid burst, this one, with caffeine inside. It could only help.
Finally, the land below looked familiar and a sign announced ‘Alexandria, Virginia, below.’ There were still other vehicles in the sky, though not as many. She saw, out of the corner of her eye, what looked like another police vehicle. Had it followed her this far? This was about the spot where she had crossed over before. Now was the time. She inserted the wrench key into its appropriate spot on the steering column, hit the accelerator, and pushed the ‘boost’ button. A passenger not in the know would simply think the boost was for fuel injection.
A jolt, a bright light, and here she was, speeding through the sky without another vehicle in sight. She checked the time gauge and it read, as it should, 4:31 a.m., Dec. 27, 1999.
The Envo descended outside her neighborhood, and soon she made it to her street. Getting closer, she opened the garage door, hoping the fan in the bedroom was muffling these sounds. Slowly, she eased the Envo into the garage and shut off its engine. She gathered the spare clothes she had taken with her and placed them in the washing machine, pouring in some soap and switching it on. The noise would be her alibi. Washing some clothes in the middle of the night. It could be explained. The car cover lay folded in a corner in the garage. No, it wasn’t on before. It would only make him look more closely. She dismissed the thought. She could still feel the effects of caffeine, but a fatigue was setting in. Carefully, she removed her shoes before opening the door leading into the house.
It was quiet, and all she could hear was the fan in the master bedroom. No, Milt was also snoring. There was that. The baby was stirring, but not crying. She reached into the closet, grabbed a nightshirt from the hook on the door, and went into the bathroom to change. There could be strange smells on her shirt, and with his keen senses, Milt would certainly notice.
Her face looked drawn and worn. The last events in 2047 were indeed trying. Still, she had risen to the occasion and had even saved a life. Maybe there was a reason she had to go there after all.
Finally, she tiptoed into bed and slipped the wrench key back into its place in the nightstand. Milt was still in a deep sleep. Lucky guy. So, she was right. She wouldn’t be missed. Of course, it was only about one minute of absentia. How could that hurt anything?
Chapter 15
Home
Had she been unfaithful, Tabitha would feel guilty. But she hadn’t, so why did she feel so bad? These thoughts stirred around in her head until she finally fell asleep, the muscles in her legs tingling the whole time, shouting at her that it was ALL too much.
It seemed only seconds later that the sunlight was pouring in through the window, a smell of eggs cooking was invading her nostrils, and she heard Peter’s happy sounds. Milt stood at their bedroom door, holding the baby, who was enjoying a bottle of formula. A smile touched the corners of her lips. She really had missed them. At the same time, she was hating the sunlight that poured in on her.
“You slept late today,” Milt said gently. “I was surprised. I heard you get up in the middle of the night, though, so I figured you must have had trouble getting to sleep. Breakfast is cooking. Can you take Peter? I need to get those eggs off the stove before they burn!”
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Tabitha sat up, eyes half closed, arms open to receive Peter into her arms. He squirmed. She opened her eyes wider, needing to pay attention.
“Milt, can you bring his baby swing in here. I really need more sleep.” The baby swing was good for helping him sleep. Which meant she could also get some sleep.
“Oh. Well, sure. Can I bring in your breakfast to you?”
How sweet, she thought. Oh, right. He didn’t even know she had been gone. She felt silly for forgetting that in her foggy, waking brain. Immediately, she felt a pang of guilt. How could she explain her fatigue when she couldn’t tell him of fleeing George Mahoney, fleeing Lieutenant Wilkes, running to escape her extended stay in the future? Not to mention the emotional stress of running into Mahoney…No, all Milt knew was that Tabitha had slept in late.
“I’m sorry, Milt. I don’t feel like eating right now, but thank you.”
“How about some juice? Milk? Coffee?”
“Yes, maybe some juice.” She lay back and let Peter lie next to her with her arm around him. He was soft and warm, his eyes looking up at her.
“Here, let me put him in the swing.” Milt took Peter from her and got him situated into the swing which he’d brought into the bedroom.
Tabitha practically drank the juice in one gulp and lay back again. “Thank you.”
“My, you were thirsty! Are you sure you don’t want some eggs?”
“No, Milt, no thanks. I just want to sleep some more.” She lay back and turned her back to him. This felt like the worst jetlag she’d ever encountered.
“Well, I need to leave for work now. Are you not feeling well?”
“Just tired, Milt. I’m not sick…I’ll be okay,” she mumbled.
Later that evening, Milt returned to a messy house with laundry on the sofa and spilled milk on the counter. That was not completely unusual, but he went into the bedroom and there lay Tabitha, sleeping. Peter was in the baby swing again. Milt figured they both had to have been up at some point, since Peter was wearing a different shirt.
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