Drew removed his baseball cap and scratched his bald scalp. “You mean that whole thing about how it’s impossible to go back in time because you might meet your parents and prevent them from meeting, thus preventing you from ever being born and thus from being there in the first place? Sounds like that classic sci-fi movie, Back to the Future.”
“Precisely,” said Simon. “You see, if I’m right and the computer virus I create can be sent back in time through EMB to the distant past, and change the frequency of the alien transmission, then a week ago, we would never have seen that message, never had gotten EMB to establish a portal, and thus everything in the past week would just never have happened.”
“And we’d be back to the moment just before Steve discovered the signal, only this time he won’t, and we end up on a different timeline to this one,” completed Sheri.
“Bloody good work,” said the professor, unscrewing yet another bottle of Johnny Walker that he’d magically summoned from his bag. He filled his glass, made a slight salute, then took a decent slug.
Simon said, “That’s assuming I can do that all in the next, um …” he glanced at his watch, “… nine and a half hours.”
“What about our memories of what’s just happened to us over the last week?” Janine asked.
“Nothing would’ve happened, so there won’t be any memories,” Steve said. “Think of how you reboot your computer to an earlier date when you want to erase viruses or clean up the hard drive. That’s what will happen with us, one giant reboot to an earlier date.”
Sheri saw Janine take Jack’s hand and squeeze it. A tear rolled down the reporter’s cheek and she realized how close the two of them had become. If Simon was successful, then Jack and Janine’s relationship might never have existed. She felt for the woman, who she’d warmed to over the past day. Janine really wasn’t the pushy, arrogant reporter she’d met a week ago. It would be a bittersweet victory for Janine, but unfortunately there was no alternative.
“Okay. I have to start on my virus now, or we don’t stand a chance in hell,” said Simon.
“Hell might be a preferred alternative if this nightmare continues,” said the professor, slumping back into his chair, his bloodshot eyes glazing over.
CHAPTER EIGHTY-FIVE
“It is with great regret that I bring you this tragic news coming to you live from the White House. At precisely 7.45 pm tonight, President O’Brien experienced a cardiac arrest, and despite desperate measures to revive him, was pronounced dead by a team of his physicians at 8.32 pm. Our heartfelt sympathy goes out to the first lady, Gabriella, and their daughter, Samantha. As our viewers might well have been aware, the President slipped into a coma only days ago for no apparent reason. Investigations are now in progress, looking into whether foul play was involved. Unconfirmed reports coming out of the White House suggest that a conspiracy against the O’Brien administration may have existed, and efforts are underway to confirm or dispel this rumor. On a similar note General Smith, who has taken over leadership since the President took ill, is said to be caught up at NASA headquarters attempting to resolve these unprecedented problems that have plagued the planet since EMB went online just two weeks ago. We’ve attempted to contact him for further information, but sources say he’s in constant meetings with EMB scientists and has been unavailable for comment. There is also no update yet about the Russian–Chinese missile threat to take out the EMB facilities, so we can assume that this is still imminent if EMB is not shut down by the deadline in roughly six hours’ time.
Meanwhile, power has been lost right across most of the east coast for reasons that remain unclear, and the military is finding it more and more difficult to control the looting and rioting that has been taking place nationwide. Tidal surges of biblical proportions have begun inundating both seaboards at a rate of 1.2 miles per day, and as you all would’ve noticed, our clocks are no longer to be trusted with the time. Scientists have informed me that the Earth’s orbital speed of rotation has increased, due to the increased gravitational effect the moon is having on the planet as it moves closer to the Earth. So yes, it’s not an optical illusion. That big Moon you’re seeing in the sky is really moving closer to the Earth, by roughly 1242 miles per day. Scientists assure me, however, that they’re working around the clock to resolve this nightmare situation, which is now almost certain to have been related to the EMB project. I will continue to update the nation as more news comes to hand. My heart goes out to all of you at this tragic time. This is Susan Moore, signing off from CNNA.”
“Jesus Christ. I don’t believe it. That maniac you have sitting there in your office killed the President!” said Steve over the vidcom to Wesley.
“Tell me about it, it’s taking every ounce of strength and motivation I have to restrain myself from going into my office and strangling him.”
“What really gets me though,” said Steve, “is that you can’t punish someone for something that hasn’t happened, so if Simon gets us back, he gets off scot-free and he’ll be back planning his little coup, with all of us blissfully unaware of it all over again.”
“Damn, I wish there was a way for us to remember some of this so we can stop him when we go back,” said Wesley.
“I’m afraid Simon’s right,” said Sheri. “There’s no way of that happening. Speaking of which, how’s he coming along with the patch?”
Wesley took a sip of his coffee. “He’s written the program he thinks will alter the frequency of the other dimension’s internet transmission. Now he needs to somehow package it as a virus that will spread rapidly and attack every possible computer terminal they have without their knowledge. Apparently that’s the difficult part. He said about three hours, roughly.”
“Excellent,” said Steve. “Well within our window.”
Sheri felt the blood drain from her face. “Maybe not. Steve you’d better come over and look at this.” She’d become a nervous wreck these past few days.
“What is it, hon?”
“Take a look at these numbers. Drew’s been doing some calculations, measuring the lunar distance and looking at weight and how it’s been changing.”
“And …?”
“And the numbers are showing that not only is gravity still increasing, but it’s doing so exponentially. If this continues, in roughly five hours we’ll be looking at a fifteen-hour day, and in ten hours we may even be looking at a ten-hour day. That’s also going to screw up our tidal predictions and put water at NASA HQ in only two hours from now.”
“Jesus! Are you sure of Drew’s calculations?” asked Steve.
“One hundred percent. I’ve checked and rechecked the data. Mother Nature is one step ahead of us again.”
Steve paced, placing his hand over his mouth, stopping for thought. “Is there any way we can divert the water?”
“I’ve no idea. Wesley, what do you think?”
Wesley shrugged his shoulders. “We don’t have the infrastructure to do that on a good day.”
“Can you ask Simon whether there’s any chance of an earlier ETA?” Sheri asked.
“I just did. He seemed to think that even three hours might be pushing it.”
Steve sighed and shut his eyes. “I can’t believe we’ve come this far, only to be beaten ten feet from the finish line!”
Sheri noticed his breathing becoming strained and irregular. She walked over to him and rubbed his shoulders. He was as stiff as a two-day-old corpse. “Hey. Calm down. I’m the one who normally freaks out.” She smiled at him, hoping to ease his tension, even though her own heart was pounding away at light speed.
He took her hand and squeezed it tightly. It was cold and clammy. “Let’s think about this,” he said.
Sheri dragged in a breath and decided that it was time. Time to say the unspeakable, time to concede. “As much as I can’t bear to say this, I think I must. It might be time to pull the plug, go home and be with our loved ones. Spend some quality time with them while we wait for the inevitable.” Chlo
e’s face came to mind, and she almost lost it. Choking back tears she added, “Perhaps something miraculous will happen, and the new laws will somehow stabilize.” She didn’t believe that for a second, but it felt better to say it than not to.
“Even if they do, hon,” said Steve, who had continued his pacing. “What then?”
“Then we learn to adapt to a new way of life. A new beginning. I hate to admit defeat, but I don’t think there’s a way around this one.”
“What will happen once the water hits the EMB complex?” asked Janine, her eyes misting over.
“All hell will break loose,” said Sheri. “As anyone knows, water and electricity don’t mix well together, and with that unprecedented amount of stored charge, we’d need to evacuate an area of more than six miles in radius to prevent electrocution of staff and public.”
“If that’s true,” said Steve, “then maybe we need to start evacuating the area now. Perhaps Wesley and you guys up there need to get out ASAP.”
Wesley’s surprised mask that he constantly wore made it difficult for Sheri to read what he thought of such an idea. He turned around to face Simon, who was so busy with his computer that he didn’t even bother to look up. “So, what do you say?”
He ignored Wesley.
“Simon?”
He glanced up, removed his glasses and rubbed his eyes. “I say yes to evacuating the public and all non-essential staff from the building, but no to evacuating us. I think I can do it. I’m making steady progress and although it’s going to be a shockingly close call, I think I can have the virus ready to go soon.”
“What about the water?” asked Wesley.
“The way things are constantly changing, I think we’ve got to believe that we’ll catch a break. We can’t just give up, at least not yet.”
“Okay, let’s put it to a vote,” said Wesley. “All those in favor of staying to complete the task, raise your hands.”
Wesley, Simon, Steve and Janine put up their hands.
“All those in favor of everyone evacuating the building and returning home, raise their hands.”
Sheri, Jack and Drew raised theirs more hesitantly.
“Looks like we stay, then,” said Wesley.
“Hey what about you, Professor?” asked Sheri, nudging him. The professor gave a grunt, then opened his eyes and looked around, seemingly startled and confused, as if he’d just awoken from a general anesthetic. Sheri had to repeat the question.
“I abstain. Besides which, my dear, I don’t think I’m in quite the correct state of mind to be making any decisions, let alone one regarding the end of the world.”
CHAPTER EIGHTY-SIX
“Okay, then,” continued Wesley, “I’m going to evacuate the rest of the building.” He turned to face the general, who was shuffling around his office yelling at someone on his phone. “The general is going to send an order to his men to evacuate the surrounding six-mile radius. Aren’t you, General?”
The general, who’d been pacing around in the glass office like a trapped goldfish swimming endlessly around its bowl, covered his phone and said, “Are you a goddamn moron? And risk those nutters outside setting the building alight? Right now we’re stretched so thinly that I barely have enough staff to protect us, let alone the building. I’m currently trying to bring in more reinforcements. When and if they arrive, then I might actually be able to get on with evacuating the public.” He lifted his chin in defiance. “That’s the best I can do. Take it or leave it.”
Wesley shook his head. “Put a rush on it, then. Show us all your infinite power, General! This place is about to get exceptionally dangerous.”
“I’m not an idiot, Lieutenant, and I don’t need a running commentary from you,” he replied sharply, his face glistening with perspiration.
Steve saw the general as a child who had broken something important, been caught and was now throwing toys out of his cot in defiance of his punishment. The man was a real piece of work.
His eyes wandered over to the large bay window where the sun was beginning to set in the west, even though it was officially just going on two pm. He could have sworn that the sun appeared larger, although well aware of optical illusions, he dismissed that as being unlikely. Nevertheless, he decided it was worth checking out. The aurora was now glowing unbelievably bright, the darkening sky transforming from a pinkish hue to an emerald-green lustre.
It was a serene yet unnerving sight, one which he didn’t allow himself to enjoy. Instead, he entered some numbers into the computer and confirmed what he already knew.
The moon was the least of their problems.
Never mind the water, the shift in the magnetic poles, the colossal tides, or even the change in the climate. There was something much more terrifying to contemplate—the sun. The great giver of life was about to take on the role of extinguisher of all life. In about two days’ time, give or take a few hours, the sun would be close enough to the Earth that the heat generated would boil away the oceans and raise the temperature of the planet by 392 degrees Fahrenheit. Before then, however, fires across the planet would extinguish all land-based life forms, as the Earth drifted out of the “goldilocks zone,” gravity pulling her tightly toward her star, Sol.
He felt sick to his stomach. They had to make this work. Oh dear god, please make this work.
CHAPTER EIGHTY-SEVEN
After Janine and Jack finished up with their brief public-awareness broadcast to the world, they collapsed onto adjacent couches. It had been an exhausting twenty-four hours filled with espionage, emotional highs and lows and all of it clouded by the uncertainty of what was to eventuate.
As she lay down, she recognized a song that Drew had left playing on his old laptop. It stirred vivid memories and transported her back six years, to a date she’d had with Adam in a small Italian restaurant on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. Janine had been in New York to receive a junior journalism award and had met up with Adam who she’d been dating seriously for about three months. The song “Heart of Mine” was playing when Adam reached across the table and gently touched her hand. It was exactly at that moment, with that song playing in the background, that she had fallen in love with him. Her stomach did a U-turn as reality kicked in. She was no longer living in that wondrous moment, but was now a pathetic victim trapped in a nightmare from which there seemed to be no escape. Her attention turned toward Jack, who she still had ambivalent feelings for. “Jack, do you think we’re going to make it?”
Jack was lying with his injured foot resting on a wooden chair. He looked at her with a deep frown. “I was kind of hoping you’d tell me that.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Janine Fuller. I’ve experienced war, deep-sea diving, parachuting. For heaven’s sake, I’ve even climbed Everest, but nothing has made me feel more alive than I have with you these past few days … and it’s because of you. It’s all because of you. I know it sounds creepy and clichéd, but it’s true.”
Janine felt her heart skip a beat. She had to look away. “Come on, Jack, I’m just a screwed-up girl with a zillion issues. How can you possibly feel that way about me? Besides which, we’ve only known each other for a few days.”
“I don’t know, I just do. There’s absolutely no doubt in my mind how much I care for you.” His cheeks took on a crimson hue. “My only concern is that it’s unrequited.” He paused, then looked straight at her, his blue eyes intense and probing. “Am I correct?”
Janine, who had her knees drawn up closely to her chest, tried once again to avoid eye contact. She’d rather be interviewing a dangerous terrorist, or reporting from a building that was about to collapse in on her than have to answer that question right at that moment. “It’s complicated, Jack. I … I just can’t let myself go down that path again. It nearly destroyed me once before, besides which, what’s the point anyhow? We’re all going to die in a couple of hours or be reborn a week ago before I met you. Either way, there’s not going to be an us.”
Ja
ck shuffled off the couch. Careful not to put weight on his injured ankle, he hopped over to Janine and sat down on the floor next to her. He stole a cushion to support his leg, then grabbed Janine firmly by the chin and pulled her face up toward his. Before she knew it, he had her in a tight embrace, his lips pressing warmly against her own. A tingling sensation washed through her. It was deliciously pleasurable and she savored the moment before she found the willpower to pull away.
“Not a good kisser?” he asked, raising his eyebrows.
“No, quite the opposite. Too good, Jack, too good for me.”
“For god’s sake, Janine, for once in your life, allow yourself a little bit of happiness. You’ve given so much of your life to others, to your sister especially, now it’s time to claim some of that back for yourself. You’ve got to let go, even if it’s just to give us a couple of hours together …” Jack paused, ran a finger gently down her face and then hesitantly asked, “Janine, what happened?”
“With what?” she said, though she knew precisely what he meant.
“With your cat. Who do you think? With your ex.”
“You mean Adam? It’s a long story. How much time do you have?”
“I believe about two hours, give or take a few minutes,” he said.
She gazed into his sparkling, earnest eyes, then looked around to make sure they were alone. “Okay, we met six years ago. I had just graduated as a junior reporter at the top of my class and had begun working on some basic stories at one of the local papers. I was doing well, and steadily climbing the journalistic ladder. In fact, I’d just won a scholarship to Oxford to continue my studies part-time, while being offered a junior presenting position with the BBC. It was an opportunity that any young budding reporter would’ve given their eye teeth for.”
“And?”
“And then I met him at a charity event.” She took in a deep breath. It was hard to say his name out loud. “Adam was charming, gorgeous, intelligent and everything a girl could possibly want in a man. He wined and dined me, told me how much he adored and cared for me and then popped the question after three months of intense dating. Love really is blind, Jack, because as good as I am at recognizing the badness in someone, this time I failed miserably.” She gave a shrug. “It was Kath who pulled me aside one day and begged me to reconsider, or at least to give it more time.”
The Waterhole Page 36