by Terry Segan
The old man recovered quicker than expected. “Tell me what happened. Were you there?”
The question took me by surprise. “No. We’ve been trying to piece things together—my Collector and I, that is. While searching the internet for details on the murder of Jimmy’s father, we found a newspaper article mentioning a man found dead a few blocks from the Jade Pagoda. He was never identified, but the picture is identical to the one on the license. I’m sorry, Paolo. It’s your son.
“Since my Collector only knows the one timeline, it seems Jason Chang was murdered regardless of your son being there or Carney’s interference.”
“I see,” he said and stared at the ceiling, his hands trembling.
Nothing I could say would soothe Paolo. But maybe I could gain information that might help stop Carney. “Would you be willing to answer a few questions about the process?”
His forehead wrinkled, then he shrugged and nodded for me to continue.
“How would Paolo, Jr., have brought his Photographer forward? Exactly how could he insure they both arrived safely through time?”
“Your Collector should have received this information from his grandfather. Did he not?”
“No. It seems Mr. Chang was reluctant to share much. We didn't know about the four family bloodlines until recently. Francois gave us quite a bit of information.”
“Ah, Francois is a good man. Very honorable. I haven’t seen him for years. How is he?”
“Another victim of Carney’s, I’m afraid. Did you know he’s Francois’ grandson?”
“What? How can that be?” he asked, jumping to his feet. He paced the room. “It is not possible someone so sinister could be related to that family.”
“It’s true. Please tell me. How can travel be done safely with two people?” I felt a twinge of guilt pushing him unfairly.
The lines on his face deepened. “As you wish. I don’t see the point but will share what I know. So long as both travelers have their hands firmly gripped together, the journey is successful. This is critical. If the hold is loosened at all, or only one hand each, then the passenger, as you could call her, does not make it.”
Thoughts of April’s horrible death flashed through my head. Jimmy’s description had been so vivid. The visions I’d conjured up could never be erased.
The old man stood by the other window with his back to me. I walked over to him and placed my hand on his shoulder. “Thank you. I know this is difficult for you.”
He turned to look at me, eyes still brimming with moisture.
“Would you like me to leave?” I didn’t want to, but felt every question inflicted more misery on this grieving man.
“Sami, you are a compassionate woman. Your Collector is a lucky man.”
I answered with a nod of thanks. He returned a sad smile. Having not been a parent, I could only imagine the harsh grief of losing a child, even one already grown.
Straightening his shoulders and regaining his composure, Paolo asked, “What else would you like to know? I wish to help you stop that demon from harming others.”
“Thank you.”
“Please, I need some fresh air. Shall we sit on the back patio and sip a bit of Cabernet? I could use some right now.”
“Sounds good to me,” I said, grateful as my throat felt parched.
He gestured for me to accompany him through the house to the kitchen at the back. Exiting out onto a beautiful, slate-tiled patio that overlooked an expanse of newly-mowed lawn, I inhaled the smell of fresh cut grass and sat on a cushioned chair beneath a green canopy.
Paolo disappeared into the house and returned a few minutes later carrying a wine decanter and two glasses. He set them down on the small table between the two chairs and poured a full glass for each of us. He handed me one and took the other for himself.
“To resolution,” he said, tapping his glass to mine.
“To resolution.” That seemed a fitting toast, and one I hoped we could all live up to soon.
Taking a seat, he asked, “What else would you like to know?”
“From what I’ve pieced together, you’re saying there are Four Family bloodlines involved in this process.”
He nodded.
“Including yours, I have met three of the families. For lack of a better description, they are the Chinese, French and Italian lineages. According to you the fourth one is English.”
“Yes, the British line has ended.”
“What do you mean ended?”
Twirling his wine glass, he answered. “Years back, there was a horrible fire in the family home in Surrey. All perished except for their young toddler, whom the nanny was able to rescue before the house became completely engulfed in flames. Two generations were wiped out, along with all the tools their family possessed for the process. The Family Slide was also destroyed in the blaze.”
“How sad. What happened to the child?”
“I believe she was sent to a distant relative here in the States, unaware of the process. Despite calling ourselves part of the Four Families, there are really only three now.”
That meant only three Family Slides remained. Carney possessed one, Chang had another, but where was the one Francois owned? I hoped we only needed two slides to trap Carney in time. Otherwise, there was no way to accomplish this task. Francois couldn’t have survived the gunshot wound which meant, wherever he departed from, the slide had either been retrieved or stolen. Since he wore the same outfit in 1979 as he had upon my return to the present, I guessed he left it somewhere in that year.
I couldn’t count on Jimmy getting all the necessary information from his grandfather. Hopefully Paolo possessed knowledge of everything Chang and Francois did. “I traveled back to the year 1979 to speak with Mr. Chang. He told me the only way to stop Carney is to trap him in time. Francois said it could only be done with the Family Slides. We need to set the same date, time and location, but no time span. What does that mean exactly?”
“The length of time the traveler would stay. You must set it to zero.”
“You’re saying these slides allow you to set a time span longer or shorter than twenty-four hours?”
A fire glowed in Paolo’s eyes. “Yes.” He touched my hand. “Carney must be stopped.”
I now knew he would freely give me any information he had. “How do we set two locations on one? Does the slide allow that?”
“Not one slide. You need two. Two family slides need to be used. You must set the same date and time on both, the allotted time set to zero, and the same location on each one. That is the only way he will be trapped at the time and location of your choosing.”
“So, you believe this process will stop him from returning?”
“It has been said that is the only way to trap someone from the four bloodlines. Never have I heard of it being necessary, until now.”
I leaned back into the cushion of my chair with an exasperated sigh. “You don’t know if it will work?”
“As I said, it has never been tried. That is simply the information passed down to each new generation. Obviously, those who created all this believed it would be needed at some point.”
“Who did create this whole process?”
“That has never been disclosed to any of us. It is an advanced creation which outdates the technology we know today and a mystery that, I am afraid, will never be answered.”
I sipped my wine, staring across the lawn at its beautiful border of neatly trimmed hedges. Sprawls of flower beds scattered throughout the yard in splashes of color. Knowing what lay ahead of us, I couldn’t enjoy the peaceful setting. A bush of crimson roses reminded me of Francois’ blood seeping across my porch.
“What happens to someone when this process is carried out?”
Paolo was nearly to the bottom of his glass and reached to pour another. He tilted the bottle toward me first. I declined, having drank little of mine. His hand slipped, and the decanter clinked against my glass, but didn’t break it.
Aft
er refilling his glass, he answered. “It is said he is trapped forever and cannot return.”
“I see. So, first Jimmy and I have to acquire two family slides.”
The man studied me for a moment. I crinkled my face wondering what he found fascinating.
“Yes. You were hoping for a more, how shall I say, final solution?”
He read me well. “You mean I was hoping it would kill him?”
He nodded. “Performing murder by your own hand does not seem like something you are capable of doing.”
The thought of shooting Carney the way he had his own grandfather, made me believe I could. In the end, if I didn’t possess the ability to take a life, this horror would never be finished. Trapping him in time was a solution I could follow through on. Where would I find two of the remaining three slides? That seemed to be the biggest hurdle before us. The next would be to locate Carney.
The fear of his having stolen the Chang Family Slide from Paolo, Jr., haunted me. I clung to the hope that Jason Chang had not been willing to part with it. If he did surrender the device to Paolo, it could mean that Carney possessed two of the remaining three. If that were the case, we might need to locate the one used by Francois.
Glancing at my host, I noticed his glass was already half empty. Despite putting forth a noble effort, his stamina waned. His face had paled and bore a worn-out expression. I knew this conversation had drained him more than he would admit.
Setting my glass on the table, I stood. “I believe I’ve taken up enough of your time, Paolo. Thank you for the information.”
He graciously took my extended hand and brushed the back of it with his lips in the old-world style. “It has been a pleasure meeting you, Sami. Thank you for the details about Junior. I pray you and your Collector are able to stop that evil man.”
“I hope so. Wish me luck on finding the slides. If you have any suggestions, please let me know.” I reached into the purse still slung across my shoulder and retrieved a business card. Handing it to him, I said, “Here’s my number. I’ll show myself out.”
He studied it. “Your last name is Manchester?” He asked it as if the name meant something to him.
“Yes.” I waited for him to go on.
Staring at the card a moment longer, his mouth puckered as if to ask another question. Instead, he leaned back in his chair, his gaze shifting to the yard as he raised the wine glass toward his lips. After taking a sip he said, “Good luck, Sami.”
Chapter 24
The entire night and following morning dragged. I tried my best to fill the minutes before Jimmy returned from 1984. Anxious to hear what his grandfather might have told him, I also couldn’t wait to share what Paolo knew.
As the seconds ticked down, I waited on the couch in my studio. Jimmy materialized, looking worn out and clutching something wrapped in green silk. His gaze settled on my face. I was sure he tried to assess whether I was furious or relieved.
He walked over and sat beside me. Without a word I took his cheeks in my hands and kissed him on the lips. “Welcome home, honey.”
“Sami, I’m sorry…”
“Shhhh. You’ve already said that.”
“I know, but please understand I…”
“No,” I said holding up my hand. “You did what you felt best. As usual, it involved taking care of me. How can I fault you for that?”
Caressing my cheek, he said, “You still amaze me. Just when I think I have it all figured out, you add another twist on things.” He chuckled, “Thank you for not removing my head.”
“You’re welcome,” I brushed his lips with mine. “Now, tell me everything.”
“Well, Grandfather was none too pleased that I’d misused the slides. He tried to blame you and I wouldn’t have it.”
I laughed. “You’re my hero.”
“It took several hours to get any information out of him. He told me all this meddling in time could lead to more tragedy.”
“Did he know what happened to Francois?”
“Yes,” he said grasping both my hands. “As we suspected, he died shortly after returning. When Grandfather didn’t hear from him after his journey to see you, he went to Francois’ house in a suburb north of San Francisco, using a spare key to gain entry.
“His body lay sprawled in the studio. From the blood stains across the carpet, it appeared Francois had dragged himself over to the fireplace. Beside him were the remains of his holder and slide. He must have used the last of his strength to smash them with a poker.”
“It was one of the Family Slides, wasn’t it?”
He released my hands. “Yes.”
“That only leaves two. And Carney has one of them.”
His eyes widened with surprise. “How could you know that?”
“We’ll get to that after. I did quite a bit of research on my own. What’s that?” I asked, pointing at the bundle resting in his lap.
“Grandfather was reluctant to part with this. Finally, he agreed we needed to end this horror. He planned to put a stop to everything, and never intended to give me this before he died. That’s why he never passed on the history of our family and the others either.”
As Jimmy spoke, he slowly unwrapped the scarf to reveal a slide permanently secured in a dark wooden holder. He pointed to the three spinning dials at the bottom. “These knobs allow you to pick the month, day and year for the date you want to land; the hours and minutes for the time; and allotted hours and minutes for the duration you want to be gone.”
“It’s your family slide.”
“Yes.”
“How do you set the location?”
“You have to press the button in front of the space that shows the location and speak it, then the name of the location will be displayed.”
I nodded, fascinated that this antiquated looking device possessed such an advanced technology. Made me wonder again who really created these things.
“To trap Carney, Grandfather told me we must set the time and place, leaving the length of time at zero. That would leave him back in time, never to return. But only if we did it with two slides. He said Carney has been using a family slide that is not his own. We need to secure that one too for this to work.”
I picked up the device to examine it, turning the frame around and sideways. It appeared no different from the slides we used for the Betrotheds, except for the permanent holder. I assumed the two components together were the catalyst for allowing the traveler unlimited jumps. With the information Paolo gave me about the four bloodlines not getting stuck in a time they visited more than once, it left Carney with limitless options. “We finally have the means to put a stop to his murderous spree—if we can find Carney and his slide, then use it against him.”
“Yes. Now tell me what you’ve been up to and how is it you suddenly know there are only two?”
We sat in the studio while I filled him in on everything from finding Paolo’s driver’s license to my conversation with the senior Fortuno. Most of it was new information to Jimmy, so it seemed Mr. Chang had remained tight-lipped about the whole process and what had already happened in the past.
“Sami, you took a big risk going to that man’s house. What if he had turned as evil as Carney?”
“No more of a risk than your going back to talk to your grandfather,” I said stubbornly.
“How can you compare the two? The Fortuno family is a complete unknown. Please promise you won’t do anything like that again.”
“Guess we’re even,” I said with a playful smirk.
He acquiesced. “Touché. No more solo journeys without the other’s permission. Agreed?”
“I love you,” I said, kissing him again.
Putting his hand under my chin and tilting my face, he returned the gentle kiss. I wrapped my arms around his waist, laid my head on his shoulder and savored his familiar smell.
When we parted, he stood up. “Let’s secure this.”
I followed him into the office where he placed the slide insi
de the safe and locked it. Before leaving, I played Stella’s message from the other day on the answering machine.
“What do you think?” I asked. “Could she be number twenty-nine?”
“As much as I want to quit, we need to fulfill our obligation. Give her a call tomorrow and feel her out. With only two Suitors left, let’s hope she’s a match for one. It’s a bit out of the ordinary though, having someone connected to a previous Betrothed. Do you think Dede told her the real story?”
“No, she couldn’t have,” I said. “The call came in during Dede’s first meeting with Milton. When Dede told Stella about my studio services, she wouldn’t have known about the process yet.”
“What are your instincts saying?”
“I’ll call her tomorrow.”
He turned to me. “Okay. You know, I keep thinking…”
“What?”
Jimmy swiped his hand through his hair. “Paolo told you my lineage allows me to visit the same place as many times as I want without getting stuck?”
“That’s what he said. Why?”
“Nothing concrete. Right now, we need to figure out how to find Carney. None of this can work unless we have his slide too.”
Jimmy went up to the bedroom to change clothes. Even though we chose to live apart, we both had clothes at each other’s homes. With all the love he and I felt for each other, we were too independent for a common home and neither had an interest in marriage. This arrangement worked for us.
Returning downstairs, wearing slacks and a white button-down shirt, Jimmy found me in the kitchen putting on the tea kettle. His car keys jangled in his hand.
I looked up. “Going somewhere?”
Holding up his cell phone, he said, “Unfortunately, I need to attend to my day job. I’m going into the office for a few hours.”
“Coming back for dinner?” I asked, putting the second mug back into the cupboard.
“Probably not. I’m really beat. We both had a busy twenty-four hours, and I need time to sort through all this new information.”
“Okay. I’ll let you know how things go with Stella. When do you pick up Dede’s credentials?”