The cat was pestering Nigel again and he pushed it away. It made a growling noise at Nigel and he froze. Had they heard him?
Thank God, no they hadn’t. He saw the other Nigel program the machine to go back 3 minutes. The cat was also looking over at the other Nigel and the machine now, its curiosity piqued as well.
The other Nigel stood on the machine with a flourish and activated it. He disappeared. Natalie and Raymond waited for a minute or two and then started to get concerned.
Nigel sensed his opportunity and began to think on his feet. He rung the doorbell.
“Nigel?” exclaimed Natalie.
“Yes, it’s me. It was a success but the machine was a write-off. I went back in time!” said Nigel lying.
“Well it’s good you succeeded, Nigel. Shame about the machine though,” said Raymond pushing his way alongside Natalie at the door.
“Well, it worked and I think I can build a new one. You will get to go back in time Raymond!”
“Let’s have a beer to celebrate!” exclaimed Raymond.
With that they went inside and relaxed. Thankfully the other Nigel had left the keys to his van with Natalie and in it he found plans for the machine.
Over the next few months Nigel worked on a new platform based time machine copying the original design.
After several months, on a cold November’s day, Nigel unveiled his new machine to Raymond and Natalie.
“It’s very simple to operate,” said Nigel, showing the controls to Raymond.
“Yes, I understand,” nodded Raymond.
“Going back to change Hitler’s destiny is a massive change. I’d prefer if we tried a smaller change first,” said Nigel looking at Raymond.
“Do you want me to go back and save my sister first?”
“Yes, I think that would be a good idea. I’ve proved it works, so go back and save your sister.”
“Great. I’ll get my things!” With that Raymond left to go upstairs. Natalie looked a bit concerned.
“Is that thing safe Nigel?” asked Natalie.
“It won’t kill him but there is always a risk he won’t come back. We don’t really know what happens with proper time travel,” said Nigel.
“Hmm. Well, he is keen to go. To be honest things aren’t good between us. I think he would far rather have his sister back than spend time with me,” moaned Natalie.
Raymond returned carrying a bag and asked Nigel if he could use the machine. Nigel waved him onto the machine. Raymond activated it. That was the last that was seen of Raymond Deville, in this reality at least.
Natalie got over Raymond surprisingly quickly. She and Nigel became close over the next year and eventually got married. They moved to a nice house in the suburbs and Nigel began to enjoy life again.
One summer’s day, Nigel was happily sitting in the garden when he heard a scream come from inside the house. Rushing inside he saw Natalie being held at gunpoint by a tall man in a uniform. Another smaller man pointed a gun at Nigel. Everything about these two men made no sense. Their clothes looked like black Nazi uniforms - but they were holding futuristic weapons similar to Raymond’s.
The man pointing the gun at Nigel spoke in broken English: “You come with us - Nigel Saunders.”
Nigel despaired. “Leave her alone!” he shouted at the men holding Natalie hostage.
In a strange dialect of German the small man spoke to the other man. “We don’t need the woman - just the man - let her go. We know where they live.”
On hearing this Natalie was released and thrown to one side by the tall man.
The short man, still aiming his gun at Nigel, looked him directly in the eyes and spoke. “Come with us, Nigel Saunders. We want you to fix our time machine.”
Thank you for reading Timeshock: I Want My Life Back. This book is the first book in the Timeshock series.
If you enjoyed this book then please leave a review. While it is not necessary to leave a review, they are very much appreciated. You can leave a review here:
http://www.stonehampress.com/ts1nook_reviews.html
The next book in the series is Timeshock: The Fourth Reich, which you can find via the following link:
http://www.stonehampress.com/ts2nook.html
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