ALEX AWOKE standing in front of the sink in her own bathroom. She gasped and hung on, fighting the nausea that threatened to unhinge her knees.
“Alexis Davenport! If you don’t open this door this instant, I’ll break it down!”
Thinking quickly, Alex opened the toilet lid and seat. She fumbled with the door lock and flung open the door. Keeping up the pretense that she was ill, Alex knelt down next to the toilet.
“Why didn’t you answer me?” her mom asked.
“Sorry, Mom. Having my head buried in the toilet makes it kind of difficult to talk.”
“Chandon is here and waiting for you. I suppose I’ll have to tell him you can’t make it.”
“No, I’ll tell him.”
Her mom nodded, then left, closing the door.
Alex cursed the timing of her return. A few more minutes and she wouldn’t have had to play sick to keep her mom from breaking down the door. She had been looking forward to the date with Chandon for so long. Now she had another reason to hate Stygian.
Stygian.
She very nearly vomited for real when the realization hit her that she may be dead very soon and wouldn’t be going on any dates with anyone. Ever.
Alex hurried to the living room and she nearly wept when she saw Chandon Rose standing there talking to her mom. He looked completely at ease. When he spotted her, his eyes held nothing but concern.
“Guess you’re not over the stomach bug, huh?” he asked.
Alex held her hands over her stomach and shook her head. “I’m really sorry. Maybe some other time?”
As Alex stood there, the impact of what she had done hit her like a bolt of lightning. Her legs started shaking and her vision narrowed. I think I might faint. She almost laughed at the calm voice. Her legs buckled and she pitched forward, right into Chandon’s arms.
“Let me help you to the couch.”
Alex barely heard his voice and was too distracted by the terror threatening to choke her to register that she was in his arms. She needed to get rid of him and get back to her room so she could email Gavin and text Jenn. And she had to somehow find a way to contact her uncle to warn him.
“Alex, do we need to go to the hospital?”
Her mom’s suggestions broke through her fear. The last thing she needed was to be in a hospital room away from her computer and phone.
“I’m okay. Just weak I think. Haven’t been able to eat much the last few days,” she said.
“Are you sure? You could have something worse than just a stomach bug,” her mom said.
“Mom, don’t overreact. I have been puking for days. It’s a wonder I didn’t pass out sooner than this.”
“There’s been some stuff going around school,” Chandon said.
Alex could have kissed him. Her mom glanced at Chandon and nodded. “Well, it’s off to bed with you, young lady. And if you aren’t showing signs of improvement by tomorrow, I’ll take you in to see the doctor.”
Alex nodded, eager to be back in her room. She regretted not being able to go on a date but her life was in danger. She didn’t have time to waste indulging in a romantic evening out.
She got off the couch slowly, still acting the part, but moving more confidently than she had before. “See? I don’t feel faint anymore. I’m fine,” she said as her mom reached out to her.
“I’ll see you Monday at school,” Chandon said as he made his way to the front door.
“I’m so sorry about this,’ Alex said.
“It’s no big. We’ll plan something for next weekend.”
If I’m even alive next weekend. “Sure thing!” Alex said a little too cheerfully, trying to beat down the morbid thought threatening to unhinge her legs again.
Her heart hurt as she watched Chandon walk out the front door. The unfairness of it all made her want to scream and throw something. All she wanted was to go out on a date and be a normal girl for the first time since she had found out she could travel back in time. She didn’t think it was too much to ask for. Apparently, the universe had other plans.
“Off to bed with you.”
Alex nodded to her mom and walked slowly back to her room, fighting the urge to sprint. Every second counted. For all she knew, Stygian was on some military jet on his way to kill her right now. And Alex knew it wasn’t a very long flight from Camp Pendleton to Grand Junction.
She grabbed her phone off the desk and carried it to her bed. Her fingers shook so badly she could barely dial Gavin’s number. Tears filled her eyes, blurring her vision.
“Alex! Is everything okay?”
At hearing Gavin’s voice, she finally gave in to her emotions. She somehow managed to tell Gavin about Stygian’s plan, his defeat, and his threat. She hoped her mom couldn’t hear her through the closed door.
“What do I do? He’s going to come here and kill me. How can I fight a guy that’s military trained?” Alex asked.
“You can’t. You don’t fight, Alex. You run.”
“Run where? And what about mom and Karen? My friends? Do I bring them all with me?”
“There’s no plan yet, Alex. I need time to think—”
“I don’t have time! For all I know he could be on his way here right now.”
Alex fought the urge to throw her phone against the wall. She had hoped Gavin would tell her exactly what to do. A mad man was coming for her, had probably already killed her uncle, and the one man she counted on to help her had no idea what to do.
“I know, Alex and I’m sorry. I wish I had an answer. My first instinct is to have you come with Sean and I to Scotland. He’ll never find you there. But you don’t have a passport and we can’t wait for you to get one.” Gavin sighed loudly. “You’re right about your family and friends. Do they all come? And for how long? And what do we tell them? The truth? A lie? What if they suggest calling the police? I doubt we could convince them of your ability to travel through time.”
Alex lay back against the headboard, the enormity of what she faced weighing on her shoulders. Gavin was right. There was no easy answer. She had been so focused on how Stygian was going to ruin her life that she hadn’t considered the implications to those around her and that there was no easy answer.
“I don’t know. I hadn’t thought of all that. All I can think about is my uncle lying dead in a jail cell.”
“This is all so unfair. A girl your age should never have to deal with this. But you are not alone, Alex. Do you hear me? You are not alone! Stygian will have to get through Sean and I before he gets to you. I’ll die before I let him touch you.”
His words brought another fresh onslaught of tears. Some of the terror left with the conviction in his voice and she felt a little better.
“Is there any way for me to contact my uncle?” she asked.
“I don’t think so. I will look into it and see what I can find but unless he’s out of the brig, I doubt he can have phone calls.”
Alex sighed miserably. “I thought so.”
“Try to get some rest and I’ll call you in the morning. I doubt Stygian can come after you tonight. People can’t just up and leave a military base whenever they feel like it. It will take a little time for Stygian and Poder to come up with a plan that won’t arouse suspicions.”
“I guess so. But being in the military didn’t stop them from killing someone and framing my uncle.”
“I promise that I will have a plan by tomorrow.”
They said their good-byes and Alex hung up. She called Jenn next.
“Oh my God, Alex, what are you going to do? Are you really going to wait for tomorrow? I know Gavin is old and wise and all but I wouldn’t put it past this Stygian guy to say ‘screw it’ to military protocol,” Jenn said.
“I agree. But what do I do? I had to play sick so it’s not like I can leave the house.”
“Alex, you may have to leave anyway. You can deal with being grounded after this guy is stopped.”
“How do I stop him? Let’s face it. The only way this will be over is if Stygian and Poder are dead. Are you going to be the one to do it?” Alex asked.
“If it was my life on the line, I think I could, yeah,” Jenn said hesitantly.
“And how do I go up against two grown men with all that military training? Stygian could probably kill me without me even seeing him.”
“You gotta tell your mom, Alex. Seriously. You guys all have to get the hell out.”
“If we do manage to kill them, what then? You think we can just walk away and live life happily ever after? We’ll go to jail, Jenn,” Alex’s voice broke.
“I don’t know. Maybe your uncle can help once he’s free—”
“My uncle is probably dead already!” Alex sobbed.
“Oh, Alex, I don’t know what to do or how to help. Do you want me to sneak over? Run away with you? Say the word and it’s done.”
Alex chuckled through her tears. “Thanks, Jenn.”
“I’m serious about running away. You can’t stay there and hope that someone else figures things out. He could be on his way right now.”
“I know. But running away?” Alex bit her lip, fear clenching her abdominal muscles and making her feel queasy.
“You travel back in time and you worry about packing a bag and taking off?” Jenn asked.
“Where would we go?”
“I don’t know. Maybe Amy’s house?”
“I guess so. But that could put her at risk. And what do I do about mom? I bet he would kill her too.”
Jenn sighed. “This is why you just need to fess up. It’s the only way to keep her safe.”
“I’d have to tell Karen too. If he knows where I live, he’ll know where Mark and Karen live.”
“If only we could call your uncle and see if Stygian is still on base,” Jenn said.
Alex sat up. “I can’t call my uncle but I can damn sure travel and try to find out.”
“Don’t you end up back in the past somewhere? How will that help us? You need to know if he’s there now.”
“I have to do something! Maybe I can try to focus on traveling back only a few hours or something.”
“Yeah, I guess. Just seems like a waste of time.”
Alex wanted to push the idea but she knew Jenn was right. She was putting off the decision to tell her mom her secret and putting off leaving home to run for their lives.
She sat back against her bed and closed her eyes. She hated to admit it, but she had to come up with a decision on her own. No one was going to come swooping in to save the day. It was all on her shoulders. Alex glanced out the window at the deepening shadows and decided to wait until the next day to make a decision about what she was going to do.
***
Chandon walked dejectedly to his car. He had been looking forward to his date with Alex and having to cancel bummed him out.
There was something about Alex he couldn’t quite put his finger on. He had felt it the moment he laid eyes on her. It was like he’d known her his whole life, that he knew all her deepest secrets. Every fiber of his being wanted to be near her.
His instincts screamed that there was something going on that didn’t add up. It was perfectly believable that Alex had a stomach bug and was not feeling well enough to go out. Her demeanor seemed to suggest that as well.
Yet he didn’t believe her. And he didn’t know why.
As he sat in the car gazing at Alex’s front door, he thought there was another explanation for her “symptoms.” And even though he couldn’t prove it, he knew that he was right.
Alex hadn’t been ill; she’d been terrified.
***
Mark stared at Matt Schmidt, his lawyer, unable to believe his ears.
“Did you hear what I just said? You’re a free man.”
“How? I thought it was going to take a while to get through the evidence.”
“All they needed was to compare handwriting and your hand size to the bruises on the Lance Corporal Jensen’s throat. That alone is enough to prove you didn’t kill her. There isn’t enough evidence to hold you.”
Mark sat in the interview room, the same one he sat in when he had first been arrested. He knew he would be found innocent, he just didn’t think it would be this quick.
“What about Lane Stygian? Did you check on him?” Mark asked.
Matt rubbed the back of his head and looked uncomfortable. “It appears he has gone AWOL. The MPs are searching the base but no one has seen him for hours.”
Mark jumped up. “I have to get out of here. My niece is in danger.”
Matt gave Mark a sideways look. “Why would your niece be in danger?”
“I can’t explain. You would take me and lock me up in a loony bin. But trust me when I say that Stygian is going after my niece.” Mark paced the small room.
“You are free to leave any time you want. If Lane Stygian presents a danger to your niece, then you need to call the local authorities.”
Mark nodded. “Thanks for everything. And don’t forget what I told you about Max Poder. He’s behind all of this. Someone needs to keep an eye on him.”
“I don’t see how we can do anything without direct evidence linking him to Lance Corporal Jensen’s death,” Matt said.
“Then we’ll have to find some,” Mark said as he walked out if the interview room.
It seemed to take hours to get his possessions back and to make his way back to his quarters. It seemed as though everyone he passed had heard about his release and wanted to offer their congratulations. By the time Mark reached his home, he was nearly ready to scream at the next person that tried to stop him.
He dialed Alex’s number, praying he wasn’t too late.