: Mr. Meltsner

Patrick was alone in the kitchen of the Imperial Hotel. He was on rice ball number 602. He heard a low humming noise. He wondered what it was.

Patrick moved in the direction of the sound. It was coming from the garden patio. He went outside.

The white, modern Imagination Station appeared. It was in the exact place the car Imagination Station had stood. An old man in a suit with a bow tie sat in the car. He waved when he saw Patrick.

The old man got out of the machine slowly. His shoulders slouched. He had on round, wire-rimmed glasses.

“Greetings, Patrick!” the old man said.

His voice seemed strangely familiar to Patrick.

“Who are you?” Patrick asked.

The man smiled. He said, “Who else? I am none other than your old friend Eugene Meltsner!” The man took a couple of steps toward Patrick.

Patrick’s eyes opened in surprise. “You really are old!” Patrick said. “And your hair is white!”

Eugene spread his arms wide. He started to shuffle toward Patrick. “Kindly don’t force me to walk all the way to you,” Eugene said.

Patrick stepped forward and gave his friend a hug.

“You walk slowly. And you kind of stoop now too,” Patrick said. “Should I call you Mr. Meltsner?”

Eugene laughed. “It would seem appropriate,” he said. “It’s been forty-nine years since you saw me in the jail cell.”

Patrick scrunched his eyebrows. “We’ve never aged in an adventure before,” he said. “You’re much older, but I’m not. What happened?”

“It’s a lengthy narrative,” Eugene said. “I’ll tell it to you once we find Beth. She should be with Nikola Tesla in Manhattan. That’s what my computer says. I’ve been waiting for you two to appear in my time line.”

“How did you know I was here?” Patrick said. “The tsunami from the Tokyo earthquake interrupted our trip to New York.”

“I was able to trace the Model T Imagination Station’s movements,” Eugene said. “I still have my laptop and figured out how to charge it. As soon as I saw the Model T land here, I attempted to communicate with you to give you the message about Mr. Tesla. Did you hear it?”

“Part of it,” said Patrick. “But Mr. Tesla hit the controls while you were talking. I think he might have broken the speakers. All we heard was that we needed his help. But we shouldn’t let him use the machine. Since he was already in it, we figured Beth should take him back to New York.”

“Ah,” muttered Eugene. “Now it all makes sense.”

The Imagination Station started to make a low humming sound.

“It’s time to go,” Eugene said. He motioned toward the modern Imagination Station. “Mr. Tesla has access to the Model T Imagination Station. We have to make sure he doesn’t keep it too long or . . .”

“Or what?” Patrick asked.

“I shudder to think of it,” Eugene said. “Nikola Tesla is one of the most brilliant men who ever lived. But he won’t understand the power source Mr. Whittaker invented. It could blow up if Tesla tinkers with it.”

“Can’t we go back to Whit’s End and fix the machines there?” Patrick asked. “I don’t trust either of the Imagination Stations.”

Eugene shook his head. “I’m sorry,” he said. “The machines will stay in 1923 until they’re repaired. We can travel to places, but we can’t travel to a specific year.”

Patrick heard voices coming from the hotel grounds. “Will anyone be able to see us leave?” he asked.

“Unfortunately yes,” Eugene said. “Everyone in 1923 will be able to see the machine appear and disappear. It’s a minor glitch, if you will. Nothing really when you consider the risks I’ve taken.”

“Risks? What risks?” Patrick asked.

“I needn’t get into all of them now. One was coming here where everyone can see us,” Eugene said. “Let’s depart before someone comes and asks what we’re doing.”

Patrick helped Eugene get inside the Imagination Station. Then Patrick climbed into the machine and shut the door.

“I wish I could say good-bye to Mr. Inumaru,” Patrick said. “I’ll be gone when he gets back to the kitchen. He might think I ran away from my job rolling rice balls. I had 9,398 left to make.”

“You can write him a letter,” Eugene said. “They do have mail in 1923.”

Patrick settled into the comfortable seat. He looked at the dashboard. The red button in the middle was flashing. He pushed it.

The Imagination Station started to shake. Then it rumbled. It seemed to move forward. Patrick shut his eyes. It felt like a roller coaster out of control.

The machine whirled.

Suddenly everything went black.