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“But not quickly enough for him,” Hale added. “In the twenty-first century, the planet endured devastating losses. Recovery, naturally, will take centuries. Darius thinks humans have had the reins too long.”
“You all seem to know Darius very well,” Dani remarked, her gaze on the smug little scientist.
He shot a glance at Swenson, who laughed bitterly.
“Of course we know him well,” she said. “What would you expect? His legacy is huge and monstrous. Every kindergartener knows his name, the twenty-first century’s mastermind of mass murder!” She paused, composing herself. “So you see why he has to be stopped? Completely stopped.”
Dani mulled this information over for a silent moment. “So I would have to kill him.”
Swenson leaned back in her chair. “Yes. You can never be sure what will happen in your so-called justice system. We can’t leave any room for doubt. The stakes are too high for both your world and for ours. And we may not get another chance.”
“To put this in perspective,” Moon said, “we have never taken on a mission like this before. This is our first. Of all the monsters in all of human history, we’ve targeted this one man.”
Dani looked from one to the other of them, still trying to figure out what this con was all about. “Yes, I could kill a man like that.”
“Good,” said Swenson. “Then that’s what we’re offering you. We don’t have anyone else to send right now. Nobody who’s right for the job anyway.”
“What I want to know,” Dani said, “is why you don’t just hire somebody, a hit man or whatever.”
Swenson licked her lips, looking like she was trying to formulate an answer. “It would be very hard to find someone here with the skill and predisposition to do this job, especially with so little time. Besides, this is a top secret installation. Very few people are aware of our ability to travel through time. It wouldn’t be wise to bring in anyone else unnecessarily. You already know about us, obviously.”
“Whether we like it or not,” added Moon.
Swenson frowned in his direction, then turned a gentler expression toward Dani. “You said you could do it and we think you might have a chance. You’re strong and know how to use a weapon. Like you said, you’re already on the case. You were working with Frank. You certainly know the historic city and how to work it to your advantage. Also, there’s another reason we’re considering your offer to go back. You can only return for a few days, you understand. After that, you’ll come back to us and live out your life here. I’m sure there are people you’ll miss in the twenty-first century.”
Dani thought of Gemma and Tucker, of her sister, brother, parents and friends. What if she really did have to leave them all? That was unimaginable and something she didn’t want to think about. She didn’t need to think about it. She was being manipulated, obviously lied to. She had to keep reminding herself that nothing she was being told could possibly be true.
“It would be your chance to say good-bye,” Swenson explained. “We thought that was the best we could do for you. You could see the people you love again, then the next time you transport out, you’ll do it with understanding, on your own terms. The way this happened, well, we’re very sorry and we feel that we can at least give you a chance to adjust to the idea by giving you a short trip back.”
“But, remember,” added Hale, “nobody will know you. To them, you’ll be a total stranger.”
An involuntary shudder took hold of Dani’s body. No! she cautioned herself. Don’t let them get under my skin.
She leaned back in her chair, shaking her head and pushing her doubts away. “This is the biggest can of bullshit I’ve ever heard. But you people do it well, I’ve got to say.”
Swenson smiled appreciatively. “Daniella, I understand your skepticism, but it doesn’t matter whether you believe us or not. If you agree to go home, you’ll see for yourself. And I’m certain you will want to help us stop Darius. You are, after all, a police officer. It’s your duty to protect the public from this monster. The only thing is, you won’t have time to mull it over, and you may find it difficult to rely on local law enforcement for help. It will be up to you to take him out, you alone. You’ll have no more than two weeks, so whatever you need to do back there, you’ll need to do it quickly.”
Moon slapped a palm on the table. “I don’t like any of this! This isn’t how it’s supposed to happen. You need to find somebody else. What about Dr. Hale here?” He leaned toward the delicate young scientist, who looked suddenly terrified and began to stutter.
“I’m the only one who knows how to operate the machine,” he blurted.
Swenson stood, calm and self-assured, and said, “Daniella, do you mind stepping into the hallway for a moment?” She flashed Dani a smile meant to be reassuring, but it was bordered by the hard, cold edge of resolve. She could hardly hold the smile for more than a heartbeat. Swenson was nothing if not cool.
Dani left the room. The door slid shut behind her. She stood outside it for a few moments. Whatever was going on inside was inaudible. She looked down the curved, featureless hallway in both directions. What’s to stop me from walking right out of here? she asked herself. Whatever this con was about, she didn’t like it and didn’t intend to fall for it. Why not just leave?
Having come from the left, she decided to head right. New territory. She jogged until she had lost sight of the conference room, passing identical doors along the way, meeting nobody. How did they not get lost in here? she wondered. She reached a Y junction and randomly chose to go left. Shortly after the junction, she came to a metal door. There was a label above it that said “Exit.” This is the one, she thought. The door didn’t open automatically like the others. She pushed on it. There was no response. A panel on the wall contained six buttons. One of them said “Open.” Simple enough, she thought, then pressed it.
A beam of soft white light passed over her face. Then a buzzer sounded and a section of the ceiling opened above her. Before she could retreat, a greenish light enveloped her, freezing her in place. She struggled, but all of her strength was sufficient to move her body only a fraction of an inch. She tried to move her hand toward the wall, pushing as hard as she could and achieving a paltry result. She was like a mosquito caught in a drop of amber.
The buzzer still sounded, but it was muffled by the force surrounding her. She struggled a moment longer, but soon realized there was no point. As soon as she let her body go limp, she saw Hale, Moon and Swenson running toward her. They stopped six feet away, Moon panting and the other two gazing with displeasure at her.
“I told you we couldn’t trust her,” said Moon, his voice sounding wavy and distant.
“Unfortunately,” Swenson replied, “we have no choice. She’s all we’ve got right now. Once she realizes the truth, I believe she’ll do the right thing.”
Chapter Seven
The first thing Dani was aware of was a dog barking in the distance. Then the moist cool cushion under her body. She had a splitting headache and felt like she might throw up if she moved a muscle, even an eyelid muscle. Finally, the unmistakable smell of bubblegum roused her from the deep nothingness she inhabited. She managed to coax one eyelid open. Inches from her face, a pair of clear azure eyes peered down at her from a cherubic face, puckered mouth working rhythmically on a wad of gum. Dani opened the other eye. The girl was about seven, her face framed by blond curls. A tiny silver unicorn suspended from her neck swung within a micron of Dani’s nose. A pea-sized pink bubble appeared between the girl’s lips, then grew steadily larger until it was the size of a lime. It popped and she swept the remnants back into her mouth with her tongue.
“Are you okay?” she asked in a small, sweet voice. Then she sat back to observe.
Dani looked past the girl. A canopy of trees above formed a lacework of sunshine. Well-maintained grass stretched out in all directions. She nodded at the girl.
“I thought you were dead,” she said matter-of-factly.
Dani put a hand to her forehead. “No. I just feel like it.” With effort, she sat and pulled her knees up to her chin.
The girl held Dani’s cap in one hand. She thrust it toward her. “Are you a policewoman?”
“A police officer, yes.” She took the cap and brushed a few blades of dry grass from it. “My name’s Dani. What’s yours?”
“Bailey.”
Dani squinted at the park-like landscape. She could hear cars honking and music playing nearby. And the dog was still barking. “Where are we?”
“Bunny Meadow.”
Dani knew the place. Golden Gate Park, San Francisco. She gingerly rose to her feet, pushing through a wave of nausea. “Thank you for your concern, Bailey. Are your parents nearby?”
The girl pointed vaguely toward a group of people with lawn chairs, a well-stocked picnic table and a volleyball net.
“Why don’t you go on over there? I need to get back to work.” Dani ran a hand through her hair, then set her cap gently over it.
“You sure you’re okay?”
“I will be.” Dani flashed her a smile to reassure her.
“Bye!” Bailey ran across the lawn to her family.
Dani stood where she was, trying to remember what had happened. This reminded her of her college days, waking up with a raging hangover in some strange place with no idea how she’d gotten there. But that hadn’t happened in a long time. She hardly ever drank these days and when she did, she didn’t drink much. So what was she doing here, passed out flat on her back in a public park?
In a sudden panic, she reached for her holster. Her duty weapon was in place and still secured. She heaved a sigh of relief, then stepped toward the road, her legs weak and unsteady. When she reached the sidewalk, she walked toward the Panhandle, fighting the fog in her mind and trying to piece together the events of the day.
She and Perkins had been on patrol. They’d pulled over an elderly man driving erratically. Some kind of medical issue. Mr. Cavanaugh, that was his name. An ambulance took him to the hospital. About a quarter after one, dispatch issued a call for assistance from Agent Bryan, the FBI man in charge of the Genepac Industries task force. He was in pursuit of the suspect, Leo Darius. She and Perkins had responded. She remembered racing up the stairs of a ten-story apartment building. When she got to the top, Bryan was lying on the roof, shot once in the chest, his blood pooling around him.
After that, things got fuzzy.
She took out her phone to see what time it was. Three o’clock, Monday, October 3. Had that been only an hour and a half ago? It seemed so much longer.
When she reached Stanyan Street, she automatically looked for Old Gustav and his pony Comet. Their spot was vacant. Gus’s sign, offering pony cart rides in the park, wasn’t there either, but there were a few pieces of shattered red and yellow wood in the gutter. The pony cart? Had something happened to Gus’s cart?
She heard the strains of a bluesy saxophone nearby. She followed it to where a young man sat on a low wall blowing on the horn, his eyes nearly closed, his face adorned with a nose ring and a precisely trimmed goatee. His instrument case was open on the sidewalk. There were a few dollar bills and some coins on the blue velvet lining of the case. When he opened his eyes, he acknowledged her with a nod but continued to play. She waited for the song to end.
“How’d you like it, Officer?” he asked.
“Nice. I haven’t seen you here before.”
“I move around.” He hopped off the wall. “Is there a problem?”
“No, no problem. I was wondering if you’d seen an old man with a pony and cart. He’s usually right there on that corner giving rides. His name is Gus.”
The young man’s smile faded. “Gus, right. I don’t think he’s coming back, at least not for a while.”
“What do you mean?”
“It was…yikes.” He bared his teeth, then shook his head gloomily. “I saw it myself. It was right there, earlier today. I guess you didn’t hear about it.”
Dani tensed with dread. “What happened?”
“A car ran up on the curb and plowed right into them. Demolished the cart.”
“Oh, my God!”
“Yeah, it was a mess. I ran over and tried to help. The little horse was hurt and the old man was crying, trying to comfort her. I don’t know if she had a broken leg or what. He, Gus, that is, had a cut on his face, but I don’t think he was hurt too badly because he kept arguing with the ambulance guys that he wanted to go with the pony instead of to the hospital.”
Poor Gus, Dani thought. Poor Comet!
“The old dude driving the car was acting nuts. Like he didn’t know what was going on. He must have passed out or something and lost control of the car. His name was Cavanaugh, I think. He wasn’t hurt from the accident, but they took him to the hospital too because of how he was acting.”
“Cavanaugh?” The feeling of dread turned into a profound chill running up Dani’s spine. “What did the car look like?”
“It was a tan Toyota Camry. Old guy like that shouldn’t be driving. He was so mixed-up, he didn’t know where he was. I’m not even sure he knew he’d just run over somebody.”
Dani felt pretty mixed-up herself. “This happened this morning?”
The musician nodded. “About eleven forty, forty-five. Just a little before noon. I hope the horse is okay.”
Dani stared at Gus’s corner, remembering how she and Perkins had pulled Mr. Cavanaugh over and sent him away in an ambulance. That was eleven thirty this morning. At eleven forty, forty-five or even noon, he wasn’t in his car, wasn’t driving. He was being treated at the hospital. But it couldn’t have been another Mr. Cavanaugh in the same type of car with the same type of disorientation.
Am I losing my mind? Dani wondered. The sax player seated himself again. As he started to play, she walked quickly away, disturbed by what had happened to Gus, not just because it was a horrible blow to the old man, but because of how impossible it was that it had happened at all.
Anxiety crept over her skull as unsettling images played across her consciousness. She was gradually remembering the dream she’d been having while lying in Golden Gate Park. It was wild. She’d been in a strange circular building where the rooms had no windows. The people, there were four of them, wore unusual clothing and little doodads like Bluetooth earpieces. Frank Bryan, the FBI man who’d been shot, was one of their colleagues, they said. He was a man from the future. He’d been sent back in time to kill an evil genius named Leo Darius before he could commit the atrocities history attributed to him. Classic sci-fi stuff. Dani was a sucker for movies like that. She and Gemma had watched Planet of the Apes, the original one, just a couple of weeks ago.
She shook her head. Funny how your subconscious weaves bits of reality into your dreams. For sure, Agent Bryan had been in her thoughts. The disturbing image of his bloody body was vivid in her mind. But she still couldn’t remember what had happened between that moment and the moment when she had awakened in the park.
Suddenly all she could think of was the comfort of hearing her wife’s voice. She pulled out her phone again and speed-dialed Gemma’s office. Nothing happened. She then pressed the code for home. Same thing. She opened the address book. It was empty. There were no names, no numbers. She checked her text messages. Nothing. Not only were there no new messages, but there were no messages at all. She clicked on the icon for photos. That folder was empty as well. All her nutty selfies and pictures of Gemma and Tucker were gone. Had she wiped out all her data during whatever this drunk-like blackout was? Or had somebody else wiped her phone?
She dialed Gemma’s cell number manually and waited anxiously for her voice, but the phone didn’t dial. Checking the display, she saw the message, “No Service.” How could that be? Her service was paid automatically each month. Irritated, she tucked the phone into a compartment of her duty belt. There was something else there. She removed a silver tube from the pouch. On the side of it were three translucent blue windows. She recognized the object. She had picked it up on the roof beside Agent Bryan’s body.
As she stared at the device, she remembered that this too had made its way into her dream. The nerdy young man, Dr. Gavin Hale, had told her it was a transport beacon, that it would return her to the future. “Turn the top of the device clockwise. That will turn it on. To activate it, cover the pinhole at the top with your thumb. Once you do that, you will be transported instantly back through the time portal.”
She was frustrated that she was remembering more and more details of the dream, but nothing more about actual events.
She stared hard at the device. Obviously not a ticket to the future. Then what was it? Some kind of flashlight? She considered rotating the top to open it, but decided against it and put it away. She’d take a look at it later.
The silver tube made her wonder if she could still be dreaming. Listening to traffic, she realized there was nothing at all dreamlike about her surroundings. The sidewalk felt solid beneath her feet. She decided to walk to the Richmond Station and find out what had happened in the last couple of hours. It was unlikely, but maybe Agent Bryan had survived his wound. Maybe Leo Darius had been apprehended and was behind bars.
She walked past the familiar landmarks of her life. The reassuring sights and sounds around her made her feel better. Everything was fine. Everything was normal. There was a logical explanation as to how she had ended up in Golden Gate Park under the scrutiny of a seven-year-old girl.
At the door of the station, she met Bradley Nelson on his way out. “Hey, Brad, how’s it going?” she called. He looked at her pointedly, wrinkling his brow, no recognition on his face. Then he gave up and said, “Hey,” before walking off. She stood just outside the station door, a slow chill moving down the length of her body. He didn’t recognize me, she realized. How was that possible? They’d known one another two years. They saw each other every day at the morning briefing and sometimes more than once a day. She turned to look at herself in the reflection of the glass and saw what she always saw, a tall, slender, fine-looking woman in a police uniform.
