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“You shouldn’t,” Swenson said. “We gave you a double dose of phenethylamine this time so you can cope better with the physical shock. There will still be some disorientation, but it should be brief.”
Dani nodded. “I’m ready.”
Darius groaned and rolled his head to the side. The sedative was wearing off.
“Hurry up,” Swenson shot at Hale.
“Okay. Almost there. Get him into the machine. I just need a couple more minutes.”
Dani and Swenson each took hold of one of Darius’s arms and lifted him to his feet. He opened his eyes and looked at Dani without seeming to see her. They half dragged, half walked him into the time machine where they held him up between them.
“What exactly is going to happen?” Dani asked Swenson.
“We’ll travel together back to the moment you left your time. As soon as we materialize there, one of two scenarios will take place. The first possibility is that we will look at one another and realize we failed, which will be obvious because of how you’re dressed.”
Dani glanced down at her shirt and black jeans. “Huh?”
“You were wearing your uniform when you left your timeline. The second possibility is that we will succeed. You will resync with your time and immediately forget everything that happened since you left it. At that point, you will have Bryan’s transport beacon in your hand and it will be activated. I’ll have only a second or so to take it from you before you transport here like you did the first time. Once I take the beacon from you, I’ll disappear and you’ll have your life back.”
“This is so confusing. If we succeed and everything that’s happened since I picked up that beacon never happened, what about Darius and the beans? Did that happen?”
“It’s only your timeline that will change. Events will be altered for you and those whose lives you interact with, but not for us. We will simply go on from here. We’ll have the beans. Dr. Littleton will never see them. But it was never an important discovery in your time, so the loss is inconsequential.”
“Will you try to go back again to fix some of the things that went wrong this time? Like stopping Darius from killing Agent…I mean your husband?”
A wave of sadness passed across Swenson’s face. “No. It’s too dangerous. We have to be satisfied with getting the beans. That’s the main thing. If this experience has proven anything, it’s shown how unpredictable a trip into the past can be. After our first actual mission, two people have already lost their lives, Frank and Mr. Moon. Depending on the outcome of the trip we’re about to take, the count will be either three or four.” She inclined her head toward Darius, who was mumbling almost inaudibly, his eyes closed. “Truly, this has been a disaster. I’d be surprised if this project was allowed to continue at all. Even if it is, without Darius…” She glanced toward Hale, who was not facing them, but was obviously listening. “Let’s just say, we have a significant learning curve ahead of us.”
Darius stirred, looking from one to the other of them with bewilderment.
“Let’s go,” Swenson said firmly.
“What’s this?” Darius demanded, tugging his arm against Dani’s grip. She held on more tightly.
“Good luck!” Hale called to them. “I hope to see you soon, Pamela.” He pressed a button and the chamber began to rotate. Dani’s heart pounded fast.
“Stop!” Darius hollered, trying to pull away from the women holding him. But he was weakened by the sedative and they were both able to maintain their grip.
The chamber began to hum. The humming got louder and Dani felt dizzy. She closed her eyes, but even with them closed, she saw a bright flash of light through her eyelids. Her stomach lurched. Then everything spun out of control.
Chapter Thirty
Gemma tossed a manila folder carelessly on her desk. It slid into her pencil cup and knocked it over, sending pens and pencils skittering across the floor. She breathed out a shoulder-slumping sigh.
Lois removed her earbuds and looked up expectantly. “Didn’t Sylvester like your report?” she asked.
John Sylvestri was their boss, but Lois always called him Sylvester. One small way she wrested a bit of perceived power from a powerless situation. But, in reality, she had no power and no influence, and neither did Gemma. They were mere functionaries.
“He didn’t like it or not like it,” she said. “We never got that far.” She knelt to scoop up the items on the floor. “He gave me the wrong set of stats from the Midwest, so the whole thing’s a bust.”
“You mean you have to do it over?”
Gemma fell into her desk chair without answering.
“But I thought it was due this morning.”
“It was. So now I’m sure Sylvestri is marching down to the director’s office to tell him I screwed up and it’s going to be late.”
“Bastard,” muttered Lois.
Gemma logged into her computer.
“Aren’t you going to eat lunch? It’s nearly one thirty.”
“I guess so, yeah. The report’s already way late, after all. What’s another half hour, right?”
“You don’t sound angry,” observed Lois.
“No, I’m over being angry. Except maybe at myself.”
“Why?”
“I have to ask myself, why am I here? It’s not really Sylvestri’s fault that I’m spending my days on Excel spreadsheets instead of doing something more challenging.” She thought of what Dani had told her, about how she had her own business in the other timeline. She’d been thinking about that a lot.
“What do you want to do instead?” asked Lois.
Gemma fished a ramen noodle cup from her bag. She ripped the plastic off and peeled back the top cover. “I’m a nutritionist. I should be working with people directly to improve their eating habits, their health and their lives.”
Lois laughed, which perplexed Gemma. She turned to face her. “Look what you’re eating for lunch. You should start with yourself.”
Gemma shrugged. “I know, but it’s just so easy and I didn’t feel like doing anything this morning.” She filled her hot water pot and turned it on. It immediately began to gurgle.
Lois had a ham sandwich on white bread. Neither of them would make much of a poster child for the agency today.
A moment of silence passed while Lois ate and Gemma plotted another line of dots on her graph as she waited for the noodles to soften. When they were ready, she faced the wall, her back to Lois, and twirled the noodles onto a plastic fork, relishing the hot, slurpy saltiness of her forbidden meal. After a couple of bites, she stopped eating and sat back in her chair, remembering what Dani had told her about who she was in the other timeline. She had drive and passion. She had achieved something important. She couldn’t just keep dreaming and complaining day after day. She had to actually do something.
She turned to Lois. “You’re right. Why am I eating this? Starting tomorrow, I’ll make some effort to bring a better lunch. And then I’m going to start planning for a new career.”
“Doing what?”
“Improving the food served in hospitals and nursing homes. What we always talk about.”
Lois nodded appreciatively. “More power to you, girl!”
Gemma swiveled in her chair to look out the window. From this office on Harbor View Parkway, she had a view of the park across the street with its tranquil fountains and walking paths. Most of the trees were evergreens, but here and there was a maple, adding autumn color to the view. Maybe she would never see Dani again, nor would she ever know what it was like to be her life partner, but she did know that with Dani she would have been a better person. She would have faced life’s challenges with more resolve. She would have had more confidence and more optimism. She knew all of those attributes had to be within her even without Dani. Maybe Dani could replace Bloody Betty and be her new secret cheerleader, the voice she called on in times of need. She remembered Dani saying “I believe in you” and “I love you.” She would always remember and cherish those words. She felt for the gold chain around her neck and pulled the wedding ring into view, clasping it in her palm. She hoped Dani would be happy living in the future.
The scene out the window swam before her eyes, blurring into a mottled backdrop of green with dots of yellow and orange. She turned back to her desk and wiped a tear from her cheek. She reached for a Kleenex, but the box wasn’t where it always was. A wave of dizziness overcame her and she felt that her chair was tipping over. She grabbed the edge of her desk to keep herself upright. The disorientation was almost immediately over and everything was solid and certain again. Nothing seemed disturbed. The wall clock, showing the time as one thirty-eight, was still on the wall, as were her pictures and bookshelves. She glanced out the window at the busy street and the Burger King across the way. People were going about their business. Nobody seemed panicked.
“Shelley!” she called through the open door.
In two seconds, Shelley was in the room, an alarmed expression on her face, her short ruffled skirt looking as absurd as ever. “What is it?”
“Did we just have an earthquake?”
“I didn’t feel anything. Are you okay?”
Gemma nodded. “Yes. Everything’s fine. It must have been small, at least here. But why don’t you check on it anyway, in case it hit hard somewhere else?”
Shelley nodded and was about to leave, but then paused in the doorway. “I almost forgot to ask. How did it go this morning in San Raphael?”
Gemma felt a rush of triumph, remembering her morning. “I’m sure I’ve got the contract. I’ve been dying for you to get back from lunch so I could tell you.”
“Congratulations! That’s super. You’re heading for the big time, Ms. Mettler.”
“Thanks. I can’t wait to tell Dani. She’s never surprised. She always just says, ‘Told you so,’ but she’ll be thrilled anyway. I think I’ll take the rest of the afternoon off and swing by to see my mother before going home. Earthquakes always make me a little anxious.”
“I know what you mean. Let me check on that before you go.” Shelley returned to her office, and Gemma packed some folders into her briefcase, checked her email one more time, then logged out of the computer.
Shelley stuck her head back in. “No earthquakes reported in the Bay Area today, Gemma.”
“Hmmm. Okay. That’s good. I guess it was just me, then. A bit of vertigo.”
“You’re not pregnant, are you?” Shelley grinned.
“Not yet.” Gemma felt satisfaction at Shelley’s surprised gape. She hadn’t shared with Shelley her intentions of starting a family. She hadn’t told anybody, but the idea was growing more and more real in her mind, so it was time everybody started getting used to it.
* * *
Dani’s knees buckled and she nearly went down, assailed by dizziness and disorientation. For a split second, she didn’t know where she was or what was happening. She felt someone’s fingers pry her right hand open and wrench something from her grasp. She tried hard to focus on the person beside her. It was a woman with auburn hair and piercing brown eyes. In her hand was a small silver tube with glowing blue lights, the same object Dani had just picked up from the roof. The woman knelt beside Agent Bryan’s body and touched two fingers tenderly to his lips.
“Who are you?” Dani asked. “Where did you come from?”
The woman stood and faced her. She appeared to smile, then she nodded at Dani conspiratorially before disappearing in a burst of blinding white light. Dani instinctively shut her eyes. When she opened them, she was alone on the roof with Agent Bryan’s body.
Perkins burst from the stairwell and jogged to her side, his attention riveted on Bryan. “Is he…”
“He’s dead.”
“Darius?”
Dani nodded. Both of them scanned the roof for the suspect. “I already checked behind the HVAC units. He’s gotten off this roof somehow. I don’t know if he went down the fire escape or…”
“There he is!” Perkins yelled, pulling his weapon.
Dani followed his aim to see a man in brown pants on the neighboring rooftop. He was staring at them, standing motionless in full view. His hands were empty. No weapon. He looked directly into Dani’s eyes, and she thought she could read ambivalence there. Was he going to give himself up?
“Stop!” Perkins commanded. “Put your hands in the air!”
“Dani,” hollered Darius across the gap between them. “Look at your clothes! Look at your clothes! It worked!” A triumphant smile broke out on his face and he clapped his hands together gleefully.
“What the hell is with this guy?” Perkins muttered. Then to Darius, he ordered, “Hands on your head, now!”
Dani glanced down at her uniform, confused. There was nothing to see, nothing out of the ordinary.
Instead of putting up his hands, Darius took off running, his body lurching like he was drunk. Perkins fired a shot and missed him, but the gunfire caused the suspect to turn and look their way, still running. He tripped over something and went flying. Dani gasped and watched as Darius landed on the lip of the roof and flipped over it, his body launching itself into the air. She and Perkins sprinted to the edge of their building and looked over. Several stories beneath them, in the alley below, the man lay on the pavement, his limbs crumpled into unnatural angles. Dani saw his leg jerk once, then he lay motionless. Within seconds, several police officers convened on the spot, but there was no sense of urgency below. Darius was obviously dead.
Chapter Thirty-One
After swinging by Palm Terrace to reassure herself that her mother was okay, Gemma drove home. She didn’t know why she felt disoriented, especially if there had been no earthquake. Maybe it was just the stress of the big meeting this morning. She’d been preparing for it for weeks and it had taken a lot out of her. She parked in her driveway and waved at her neighbor Joanne watering her flower boxes.
She walked up to the steps and put the key in the lock, marveling again at how smoothly the new deadbolt slid back. It was nice to have a handy person around, especially with an old house like this. From inside the apartment, she could hear Tucker barking in joyful anticipation of her arrival. She opened the door to greet him. He ran up and put his front paws on her leg, begging for attention. She scooped him into her arms and went into the bedroom to take off her shoes. Dani’s pajamas were on the floor by the bathroom where she had taken them off before her shower.
Gemma put Tucker down and picked up the pajamas with a sigh. “I’m not even going to try anymore,” she said. “She just can’t put anything where it belongs.” She looked at the dresser. One side belonged to her, the other to Dani. On the Gemma side, a few bottles, decorative boxes and a tray for her phone and money were carefully placed. On the other side, a chaotic jumble of coins, electronics cords and chargers, papers, photos, rubber bands, plastic bags, credit cards and a couple of magazines clearly told the story of their personalities. Gemma smiled to herself. “For better or worse,” she mumbled.
After changing into her house shoes, she went to the kitchen to wash the dishes from the morning. She remembered their argument and felt sorry. She’d been worried about her mother, about what would happen if she got kicked out of another nursing home. And she’d been tense because of her upcoming interview. She’d taken it out on Dani. But, really, Dani had done nothing wrong. She’d make it up to her tonight. They’d have a nice dinner out to celebrate her victory, then go to bed early. Gemma smiled to herself.
A half hour later Dani leaned over her shoulder in the kitchen and kissed her on the neck. When Gemma turned around, she saw that Dani was holding an African violet in a colorful little pot. The flowers were an intriguing shade of orange.
“Sorry for this morning,” she said, smiling repentantly.
Gemma took the plant. “It’s forgotten. Thank you for this. I love it. It’s a very unusual color.” She placed the pot next to the others on the windowsill, then turned around and kissed Dani, savoring her mouth deeply before stepping back. Tucker hopped around Dani’s legs expectantly. She leaned over and scratched behind his ears. “You miss me, boy?” she asked, laughing at his joyful expression.
When she stood up, she said, “So how did the interview go today?”
“Terrific!”
Dani grabbed her and swung her around in a circle, then set her down and kissed her. “I knew it.”
“I think they loved me.”
“Who wouldn’t love you? I’m so happy for you. For us. And so proud of you.”
“Thanks.” Gemma retrieved her glass of iced tea from the counter. “Do you want one of these?”
Dani nodded and sat at the kitchen table, stretching her arms above her head. “Tell me all about it.”
“I intend to.” Gemma filled a glass with ice. “I thought we could go out to dinner and I’ll talk your ear off, telling you how incredible I was.”
Dani chuckled.
“You’re home earlier than I thought you’d be. Did Rachel get her dress?”
“Oh, I called her and asked if we could do it tomorrow. I just couldn’t get away early today.”
When Gemma placed the glass of iced tea on the table, she noticed Dani rubbing her temple.
“What’s wrong? Aren’t you feeling well?”
“It’s nothing. Just a headache.”
“Do you want some aspirin?”
“No, thanks. I took some down at the station before I left. It’s better already.”
Gemma leaned against the counter, facing Dani. “How was your day?”
“It wasn’t great. We lost a man today.”
“Oh! Not again!”
“Not one of ours. An FBI agent. The one I told you about, the one who was after this Darius guy. That’s who shot him, actually.”
“Did you get him?”
“We did. He’s dead too. He fell off a building.”
“Oh, dear. I hope you didn’t see that.”
