Ryan nodded. “Sure. I’d love to meet him.”
“That’s great. He’ll be home from school momentarily. If you help me, we can have the house clean before he arrives.”
Ryan looked at the clock on the wall. It was just after 2, which meant they had an hour. Ryan didn’t think it was possible, but he would give it a try, anyway. They tackled the kitchen first, washing everything between dishes and the floor.
By the time that room was finished, Charles entered the room. “Dad, what’s going on?” he asked.
Tom stopped mid-wiping down the wall next to the table. It was the last thing in the room. “Is it after 3 already?” He looked at Ryan. “Charles, I’d like you to meet a new friend.”
A sudden feeling of pride came over Ryan as he heard Tom calling him a friend. Maybe keeping Tom alive and becoming friends with the man would be more than enough to change the course Charles would be on. He held onto that hope as he smiled. “Hello, Charles. It’s nice to meet you.” He held out his hand to shake his—a sign of respect in any time period.
“Hey. I have a lot of homework, Dad. Is it all right if I just go upstairs?”
Tom tossed the rag on the table in a disappointed gesture. “Fine. Be cleaned up for dinner.”
“Yes, sir.” Charles disappeared into the next room.
Tom’s head lowered. “I’m sorry about him. I think he’s more depressed about his mother than I am.”
“Give him time. Just having you around is going to make a difference.” Ryan was sure about it.
“I’m sure it will. I never thought about how my death would affect him. This past year has taken its toll on me, and I just haven’t been able to think beyond that. Knowing that he has a hard time due to my death shows he did love me. That’s enough to try. Don’t you think?”
“I do.” Ryan decided to change the subject. Bring the feelings in the room up in tempo just a little. “So, what would you like to tackle next?”
“Oh, I don’t know. So many things went to Hell after she left. I can’t believe I let it go like this.”
Ryan approached Tom and placed his hand on his shoulder. He looked him straight in the eye. “You had something beautiful with your wife. It was devastating when she left—I understand that. You’re still going through a funk. It’s not going to go away overnight. But it does take work.”
“How is it, you know so much about this, Ryan?”
“Like I said before, I’ve been through this just like you. I became a better man because of the struggles my parents went through. They taught me that we didn’t have to be together to be a family. And seeing them finally be happy made a huge imprint on my life.”
“That’s good to know. I’m going to do that. I’m going to show my son how happy I can be. I’m going to do my best to show him how happy he can be too.”
“That’s good.”
They spent the rest of the day cleaning the house. Ryan continued speaking to him about picking up his life and making things better for him and Charles. He made Tom laugh several times by acting silly, which wasn’t part of his typical personality, but he was warming up to the man, so he felt more comfortable with him. Letting loose did both of them some good.
Later in the evening, Tom asked Ryan if he could stay for dinner—a sort of celebration for a new life they were about to begin. Ryan accepted and helped with the process. He enjoyed the meal so much that he had three helpings. Ryan couldn’t remember when he ate so much.
As Ryan stood by the front door, ready to leave, his shoulder began hurting something fierce. He realized he had over-done it with all the work he helped Tom with.
“I can help you with that, my good friend.”
“Really?” Ryan was almost excited that Tom had something to take away the pain. He waited as he left the room, and a moment later returned with something in his hand.
“Take this and call your doctor in the morning,” he told him with a laugh.
“Thank you, Tom.” As he drank down some water and swallowed the pills, Ryan thought of some activities Tom could do with Charles. He remembered a friend of his from his childhood who had gone through a divorce and used his experience to aid Tom.
As he walked out of the front door, Ryan set his device to jump time back to the year 2022, but he decided to jump to the day after to see if his trip to the year 2215 had done the trick. The mall was closed from all of the damage but there was a team of officers on duty, taking reports even though it had been 24 hours since the battle, as they called it.
Ryan flashed his ID and asked what had happened. They didn’t know enough facts to really say much—only that there were a few deaths and that it was going to take a long time for the repairs to be made. Ryan was in shock over what he heard.
“Gangs were at war here. There was one survivor, and he won’t speak to any of us. Maybe you can give it a try, but I doubt he’ll speak to you either.” The officer was young, so Ryan assumed he was a rookie. He was much younger than any of the agents from his era. He learned that agents that young could make stupid mistakes, which was a good reason why they had to study for 10 years before being put in the agency. He always thought it made sense. So many laws had changed over the years.
Ryan followed the officer to the security office where his eyes quickly laid eyes on Charles. He was the only survivor? That meant he had failed. He couldn’t believe it. “Where were the others found?” he asked the officer in front of Charles. His eyes never moved. Anger began to fill his heart.
“They were over here.” He left the room and led Ryan to the center of the mall. The area was boarded up with large white panels. Bullet holes covered the panels. He peeked inside as the officer opened a door. He pulled the yellow tape down in the process.
Ryan walked into the large space, taking note of everything he saw. A chalk outline of two bodies revealed where two bodies had fallen. He knew who those bodies belonged to—Billie and Marcus. He wondered where Ray was, but couldn’t ask about it.
“There was another body found in the hall over there,” the officer pointed across the way toward the employee hall. Ryan knew the area because that was where he had left them. This wasn’t Ray’s fight, and the bastard died anyway. He hung his head with the news.
When the officer left him alone, he picked up Marcus’s phone, which was right next to where the bodies had been found. He was glad it was still there. He knew of someone who would be able to provide some assistance, and Marcus had the number saved in his contacts. Ryan smiled, knowing that his friend was always saving numbers, even when he didn’t need them anymore.
He set the device and left, going further into the past.
Chapter Thirty-Six
Billie stood in front of the large box, amazed how much was there. There was a crowbar on top of one of the wooden boxes, so she picked it up and lifted the top off. Marcus joined her and removed the first weapon. There was a note in the box, so Billie read it out loud. “Hey, just wanted to let you know I’m all right. I’ll be joining you two soon enough, but I had a few things to take care of first, like saving a man from killing himself. Don’t have too much fun before I get there, Marcus. Ha ha. And it’s signed by Ryan.”
“So, he’s learned how to time travel without a time chamber. He’s going to lose his job for sure when this is over.” Marcus didn’t sound very happy. She couldn’t believe the man.
“Marcus, stop. He’s doing what he thinks is best. You two steal cars and you think traveling through time in a different manner is wrong?” She held her voice low enough to be hidden, but loud enough to show him how serious she was. And she was angry with him. She tossed the note on the floor.
Marcus turned his head toward the front of the space. “We steal cars because we have to. It was part of our training. That’s one thing we’re allowed to do. Do you want to know why we’re not supposed to travel without a chamber? It’s dangerous, Billie. I’ve seen firsthand what happens to a person’s body. Ryan is playing with fire and he’s go
ing to get burned. If not, he’ll be released from duty. So, either way, he’s doing a major thing.”
“But what if it’s all he’s got?” She turned away from him, so she didn’t have to look him in the eye. Even with the dimmed space, she could see more than she wanted.
“I know where you are.” Charles said over the intercoms. He spoke in a singing fashion, that got Billie’s attention. “Come out!” As Charles spoke those words, people began knocking on the walls on all sides, causing Billie to jump.
Fear creeped back into her mind as the banging surrounded them on all 4 sides. She felt like death was knocking on her door, and it wasn’t going to be long before that door was torn down. There were so many of them that it sounded like thunder. How was one man with experience and one woman with no background going to stop all of them? This was the moment she began doubting Marcus could save her. This was the moment when fear had her paralyzed, wishing he had just killed her already, so this would be over.
Billie looked around the darkened room. She couldn’t find anywhere to hide. Even the boxes were too small for a person to fit inside. “What do you suppose we do now?” She hadn’t meant to say it like that, but she was beyond rattled, and she’d never felt this terrified before.
Marcus picked up a rifle. Some kind of automatic one, she wasn’t sure what kind. He loaded it and pulled back the lever. He told her once that was how a bullet was put into the chamber to be fired. The rest would follow automatically. She could hear those words in her mind as she watched him prepare the weapon. “Now, we fight back.” He tossed another weapon at her. “Once we begin shooting, we’ll be able to see our targets through the holes.”
“So, I should just shoot in their direction until then?”
“Yep.” He raised his arm and pulled the trigger. A loud bang filled the room. The banging from the copies stopped. Marcus rushed to the wall and peeked through the hole in the wall where the bullet flew through. “They’re running.”
Billie pulled in a long breath and stepped forward. Marcus stepped to the side, and she peeked through the hole. They were running in the other direction. Were they taking cover? Or were they just trying to get their attention? Billie wasn’t sure and she hated being trapped like this.
What was Marcus’s plan? Why would he deliberately put them in this position? She knew in her heart that he hadn’t known the mall wouldn’t be a safe place. She knew he didn’t have any intention of this happening. She could feel it, but now they were stuck because Charles was smarter. That man did know.
Ryan knew something, too. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have put the weapons in the room with them. He knew they were sitting ducks. “Oh, God. We’re going to die,” she finally said as it sank in. That was why Ryan sent them the weapons. He must have traveled into her future and saw them dead. He knew the truth, so he was giving them a way out. If he knew it, then it must have been the truth. Her destiny was to be killed at her brother’s hand, no matter what she or anyone else did. Charles was not going to be stopped. She wanted to collapse and let the tears come, but she couldn’t move anymore. Thinking someone was going to die was one thing, but knowing it—that was a different kind of poison.
Marcus turned her around and pulled her away from the wall. “We’re not going to die, Billie.” He was no longer whispering.
She didn’t even try to keep her voice down. “But we are. Don’t you see? Ryan knew it, that’s why he planted these weapons. He was trying to give us a fighting chance. We’re going to die.”
“I don’t believe that. We got this, Billie. Don’t give up.” Marcus looked at the ceiling.
Billie looked up, trying to see what he was looking at. She couldn’t figure it out. Finally, she asked. He gazed into her eyes and simply smiled. Billie felt confused. She didn’t have a clue what he was thinking and was afraid to ask.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Marcus’s mind began working overtime. Billie was panicking with due reason. He understood how she felt, but she was going to hyperventilate if something wasn’t done. He wasn’t going to allow her to die from Charles’s hands or from the fear of it. He would take a bullet if it meant she wouldn’t. As he looked around the space, his mind began to reveal something. Ryan must have traveled to a few days later, so he knew they would need help. He was happy about that, even though he didn’t agree with his methods. But it also meant they would begin shooting at, this boarded room. They would have to move to higher ground. He didn’t know how much time they would have, so they would have to move quickly. Billie asked him what he was doing, so he looked at her and smiled. She just stared at him, maybe in shock. He didn’t know. He decided to explain as quickly as his words could pierce his lips.
“We ambush them.”
“How?”
“We know that they’re going to start shooting at us. So, we let them. When they come in here to check it out, we fire back.”
“Is it going to work?”
“Going to have to.” Come on, I’m going to need your help.”
They returned to the area of the ceiling where they entered the space. Billie climbed up. Marcus began handing her as many weapons as he could. As the fifth automatic was pulled up, Ryan appeared. It caught Marcus off guard, so he jumped causing Billie to drop the weapon. Ryan caught it preventing it from discharging.
“Where the Hell did you come from?” Marcus asked.
“Sorry. What’s going on?”
“We don’t have much time; we need to get up there.”
Ryan looked up, then at the hole in the wall. He rushed over to the wall and peeked through the hole. Then returned to Marcus and handed him the weapon. “I think an ambush is the best bet. We need to hurry though—they are setting up to attack.”
“All right. Billie, I’m going to hand you some ammo now. Make some room because we’re coming up next.”
“Okay.”
Marcus stood on the box as Ryan handed him a box of ammunition. He handed it to Billie. When they had enough in the ceiling, Marcus and Ryan climbed up. They remained as still as possible as they waited. Time seemed to stand still as they sat there in the ceiling. And then without warning, they could hear them. The guns were loud. The bullets hit the walls, piercing them and flew under their feet. He began to realize if one of those bullets hit a box of ammo, it would blow so he shifted to move further away. He signaled the others to follow him. As he passed a weapon, he pulled it over his shoulder and crawled a little further. He had a box of ammo in each hand and pulled the weapons with his wrists, with each motion as he crawled.
They managed to make it about twenty or thirty feet away when a single bullet hit a box of ammo. A small explosion tore through the room, opening up the ceiling. All three of them lost their footing and fell with the ceiling tiles. Luckily the fountain was under them, so they fell into the water with a loud slap, water spilled out in waves. Marcus bounced on the top ring, rolled off it, hit the second, rolled onto the third and final level of the fountain. Billie landed on him, and Ryan landed somewhere on the other side. It caught the copies by surprise because now they were behind them.
Marcus smiled at Billie, slid her off his body, and stood up as one of the weapons slid around on his arm with one rapid movement. He took off the safety, pulled the trigger, and fired his weapon in one swift motion. He hit Charles as he watched him go down, followed by another copy. He didn’t care which Charles was hit, as long as one of them was, but he kept firing. When the clip was empty, he tossed the weapon down and pulled another one off his shoulder while keeping Billie down.
He glanced over at Ryan and saw that he was firing a weapon of his own.
Each copy of Charles that had a gun of his own began firing back at them. He pushed Billie down further. The fountain was cased in metals and cement, so it would offer a little protection if she stayed low enough. He stood over her, shielding her the best he could.
Marcus felt a sting in his upper leg and dropped a little. He regained his balance, shifted to point
his weapon in the direction he had been shot from and fired his weapon. Three copies dropped to the floor.
He glanced over at Ryan as he continued to fire his automatic weapon. Ryan put another clip into his weapon and began firing. He was missing more than he was hitting. That didn’t seem right, since Ryan was a better marksman than he was.
Marcus looked over at the copies that Ryan had been shooting at. They were disappearing and then reappearing in other locations. Here they were, firing in one direction, not watching their backs. He turned around to cover the other side just as five copies appeared right on top of them. It was like he knew where they would appear. One of them was hit and went down as he disappeared. He remained standing over Billie as he replaced his clip and began firing again. None of them had been kill-shots, but they were slowing down.
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Charles sat in front of the monitors. He picked up his radio and ordered his copies to attack. They were a safe distance from the boarded store. When he heard the explosion, he jumped out of his chair, knocking it over. He watched the monitors, half-expecting Marcus and Billie to be dead. When he saw them fly out of the ceiling, he yelled at the screens. He threw up his arms and yelled into the radio. “They are behind you! Shoot them!”
He knew he should have asked his older versions to help him. Some of his past-selves appeared dumb and slow. He couldn’t remember being like that once in his life. As they were shooting at each other, Charles glanced at his hand and noticed something was wrong. It was becoming transparent.
“No, no. This isn’t right.” He picked up the time unit and rushed out of the office. New memories had begun filling his mind, so he knew what had happened. He arrived in the year 2215. It was the year he witnessed his father commit suicide, but now he was remembering things about his father that couldn’t have happened.
He walked through the front door. “Dad.” There was no answer. He walked through the house, expecting to see him on the floor. The house was clean, everything was put in order. That wasn’t right. After his mother left, his dad just gave up on things. He wouldn’t have cleaned the house. As more memories filled his mind, Charles became dizzy. He sat down on the floral-patterned sofa and held his head. The room spun around him as he sat there. By the fourth time around, his dad appeared before him. He couldn’t tell where he’d come from. He was just there. His face looked strange as the spell slowly came down. He could see him clearly now. He was alive. “Dad?”
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