Chapter 8
Time Glitch, and Other True Stories
Wednesday 17th November 2010
After Austin had finished his dinner, he went back upstairs to his room and turned on his computer. He’d told his mum and dad that he had some homework to do, but he’d already done that in lesson time. Although he hated lying to his parents, he knew that there was now more at stake than ever. His dad would have tried to understand, but his mum had already proved that she wasn’t having any of it.
He launched his web browser and typed in Jordan Baxter Disappearance, then hit search. In moments, he had a page of links in front of him, and looked to see how many there were. He was astounded to see that there were 50,000 of them. He clicked on the first link, which went to the BBC News website. It was a news article from the day after Jordan’s disappearance, and he skimmed through it, not learning anything new. Then he noticed a related link at the bottom of the article. It read Missing Persons Website, so he clicked on it. It opened in a new window, and Austin found the homepage of a website dedicated to finding missing people. Some of them had been missing for years. I guess there’s only so much the police can do, thought Austin, and then there’s nothing to do but wait.
Next, Austin typed in Time Hole, and was even more amazed to discover that there were over three million results. A lot of them were to do with stories and films, and more theories about the possibilities of time travel. But one particular link caught Austin’s eye. It was a collection of ‘true stories’ that people from around the world had submitted. He clicked on the link and it took him to a blog.
The post was called Time Glitch, and it was dated 6th November 2010. Instead of being told in the first person, it read as if somebody had been told it and had written it down afterwards. It was the tale of a young Canadian boy and his dad who went fishing one weekend. They rented a boat and rowed out to the middle of a lake. It was a hazy afternoon in late summer, and the lake was as still as a mirror. The only sound to be heard was the gentle lapping of the oars. The boy saw a bird in the sky and pointed to it.
‘Look, Dad! An eagle!’
His dad stopped rowing and turned his head to see. When he looked back, however, the boy had vanished. There had been no splash, no rocking of the boat, no yells. Nothing. He dived into the lake to look for the boy, but couldn’t find him, so he rowed back to shore and called the emergency services. The lake was soon swimming with divers, but the boy was not found.
He drove home to break the news to his wife, and promised to go back out there and search for their boy until he was found. True to his word, he searched the woods and shores of the lake every day. His story spread, and soon other people joined his efforts, but they were puzzled when he went out to the same spot in the lake every day at the same time. He sat there in absolute silence for an hour and then came back in. One of the volunteers asked why he did this.
‘I’ve just got this feeling,’ he said, ‘that if my boy comes back, he’s gonna return to the same spot at the same time that he left.’
The volunteers dismissed this eccentricity as a sign of the stress he was under, but exactly seven days after the boy had vanished, the man went out onto the lake as he normally did, and waited in silence in the same spot. Suddenly, there was a splash and a whoop of joy, and the volunteers saw him help a young boy into his boat.
‘Where did all these people come from?’ asked the boy, as his dad rowed them back to the shore. ‘They weren’t there a second ago.’
‘We’ve been here a week, son, looking for you.’
‘But I haven’t been anywhere, Dad!’
‘Apart from in the water…’
‘Yeah,’ said his son, ‘how did I fall in?’
His dad explained what had happened, but the boy refused to believe it. When they reached the shore, the volunteers were overjoyed to see him, and nothing was said about the mysterious re-appearance. They were just happy that the boy was safe and sound.
Underneath this story was a comment from the website administrator. It read: I didn’t believe this story when I first read it, so it almost didn’t make it onto the website. I did love it as a story, though, so I emailed the sender to ask him if he had any proof that this was real. A few moments later, the email was bounced back to me. The address was no longer valid. Fortunately, the sender had left a postal address and cell phone number, so I called it. The number was no longer in use, so I mailed him a letter. It came back a few days later with a ‘return to sender’ label on it. Undeterred, I looked up the story on his local newspaper’s website. On the right hand side was a rectangular box column with a link to several recent stories of interest, one of which read “local boy goes missing on fishing trip”. I clicked on it and it went to a page that said “Address not found”. Now, I don’t know about you, but this smells like a cover-up or something. So, I posted this story anyway. If you have any similar experiences, leave a comment.
Austin scrolled down the page, and discovered that amongst the many comments that read This is so not true and You must be a moron if you believe this, there were a few more stories from people who, like him, had been looking for some answers. One comment, from someone who chose to call themselves TheTimePilgrim, read: There is something very wrong with our planet. Our scientists have played God and now we’re reaping the rewards. Scour the internet if you don’t believe me, but be warned; you are being watched. They have breached the fourth dimension with their experiments. Pray that you will not be next. Underneath this comment was a reply, which read Ooh! I’m scared!
Austin scrolled further down, skim reading all the inane comments that people wasted their time writing, but then one name caught his eye. It was a comment from Ron Baxter, and had the current date next to it; 17th November 2010.
That’s Jordan’s dad, thought Austin. It must be! Trembling with excitement, he read the comment: My son disappeared two weeks ago today. There has been no phone call, no ransom note, nothing. He seemed to just vanish from the face of the earth. I know he’s not dead, I can feel it in my gut. But I also know that he’s not here. I can’t explain how I know this, but if you have had a similar experience, I just wanted to let you know that you’re not alone. If the above story is true, then it provides me with some sort of hope that one day my son will return.
Tears welled up in Austin’s eyes as he read this, and all the guilt he felt about Jordan’s disappearance re-surfaced. I’ve got to do something, he thought, and promptly shut down his computer. Quietly, he tiptoed down the stairs and put his shoes and coat on in the hallway. He could hear his mum and dad in the living room chatting about the programme they were watching on television. Ever so slowly, he turned the latch on the front door and opened it just wide enough to let himself out, closing it just as carefully behind him.
He took a step onto the path which led to the pavement, and the security light immediately came on. He quickly vaulted over the small brick wall that surrounded his front garden and crouched down low for a few moments. Then, he cautiously looked over the top of the wall to see if his parents were looking out of the window. They weren’t. Austin breathed a sigh of relief. Thank God for neighbourhood cats, he thought, and rose to his feet.
Now, thought Austin, as he started walking along Blackberry Crescent towards Oak Road, what was Jordan’s address again?
Last Supper
Monday 3rd November 2036
‘Supper’s up!’ said the soldier, and two of the three white-coated figures came forward with trays in their hands. The third brought in a collapsible table from the landing, and the other two put down the trays and started to off-load the plates of food.
‘It’s not exactly haute cuisine,’ said the third white-coated man, ‘but it’ll do, eh?’
Jordan came forward. He hadn’t realised just how hungry he was, and now the aroma of the food was making his mouth water. Austin joined him at the table as the first white-coated man finished off-loading his tray and left the room. He grabbed
a small white plate and handed it to Jordan.
‘Help yourself, Jordie mate,’ he said, ‘you must be starving.’
Jordan looked at the plates of food on the table. There were boiled potatoes, beetroots, tomatoes, some badly-sliced bread, and a plate of roasted meat. Jordan eyed the meat suspiciously, then picked a piece up and sniffed at it.
‘What’re you doing, Jordie?’ asked his father. ‘If they wanted us dead, they’d have shot us, not poisoned us!’
Jordan turned to his dad. ‘It’s not that,’ he said, ‘it’s what some of the soldiers were saying.’
‘Oh, you don’t want to take any notice of them,’ said Zoë, coming forward to the table, ‘they’re just messing around. Isn’t that right, Ron?’
Ron nodded. ‘Zoë’s right, Jordie,’ he said, ‘now tuck in. We don’t know when we’ll eat next.’
Jordan helped himself to some meat, potatoes and tomatoes. He picked up a plastic knife and fork, and then brought the plate over to Ron. ‘There you go, dad,’ he said. ‘I didn’t put any beetroot on there, ‘cos you don’t like it.’
‘Thanks, Jordie,’ said his dad.
Pretty soon, everyone was munching away at their surprise meal. This is alright for cat, thought Jordan. He turned to Austin and said, ‘So what were you gonna say?’
‘Oh yes,’ Austin replied, ‘what’s been happening for the last twenty-six years.’
‘Not that we know much,’ said Ron, ‘except for rumours and conspiracies.’
‘Your dad’s right,’ said Austin. ‘Since the big melt hit in ‘28, the government have been less than forthcoming about what’s what.’
‘Were they ever?’ said Ron.
‘Probably not,’ said Zoë.
‘Anyway,’ continued Austin, ‘as I told you earlier, the polar ice-caps melted, and all the low-lying ground, almost everywhere in the world, became flooded. It felt like it happened overnight. There were earthquakes, and tsunamis, and millions of people were made homeless. About as many again died. The army stepped in immediately, and got as many people to higher ground as possible. They were pretty well prepared for once.’
‘Too well-prepared, if you ask me,’ said Ron. ‘It was as if they’d been expecting it to happen.’
‘Yeah,’ agreed Zoë, ‘I think you’re right, there. They’d been melting slowly for a while, but then suddenly it was, like, whoosh!’
Jordan tried to imagine what it must have been like, attempting to escape all the water. Dad had to do that all on his own, he thought. I shoulda been there.
‘But things had been going wrong before that,’ said Austin. ‘Our time hole isn’t the only one, Jordan.’
‘Really? How many are there?’
‘It’s not certain, ‘cos you can’t see them, or feel them. You can only deal with the aftermath.’
‘I still reckon it was that hadron collider experiment,’ said Ron, putting his plate on the floor. ‘That was delicious. My compliments to the cook.’
‘We don’t know that for sure,’ said Austin.
‘We don’t know anything for sure,’ said Ron. ‘But it’s a mighty big coincidence that the first time hole appeared shortly after it had achieved success.’
‘Well, whatever caused the time holes to appear, there have been more and more of them as time has gone on,’ said Austin, ‘but from what I can gather, ours was probably the first.’
Jordan finished his mouthful, then put his plate back on the table. He wiped his hands on his trousers, then went over to Austin and held out his hand. Austin frowned, then smiled.
‘What’s that for, Jordan? I don’t think I deserve to shake your hand.’
‘Yeah, you do,’ said Jordan, keeping his hand extended, ‘you came back for me twice, even though I called you names and that. I wanna say thanks, and sorry.’
‘Okay, Jordan,’ said Austin, and shook hands with his former enemy.
‘Your glow’s changed!’ said Aurie and Alice together.
‘Really?’ said Austin.
‘When you shook hands with Jordan,’ said Aurie. ‘Your glow changed from sparkly white to black.’
‘Both of us?’ asked Jordan. The two girls nodded enthusiastically. Jordan looked at Zoë, who was deep in thought.
‘What are you thinking?’ he asked.
Zoë crouched down by the two girls. ‘Can you see other people’s glows, too?’ she asked.
The two girls nodded again. Zoë looked up at Austin, and then at Jordan. ‘I think they can see auras.’ She looked back at the girls. ‘What colour is my glow, girls?’
Aurie and Alice said, ‘dark red.’
Zoë pointed at Ron. The girls looked carefully at him and then said, ‘It was dark blue first, but now its brighter.’
‘What do you think it means?’ said Austin.
‘I used to know all about auras,’ replied Zoë, ‘but its ages since I studied them, so I’ve probably forgotten more than I remember.’
‘Try,’ said Austin.
‘Okay. Well, black and white auras are quite unusual, but one of them, black I think, absorbs energy, and the other one reflects it… I think.’
Jordan felt Austin’s eyes looking at him, and looked back. Austin seemed to be looking right through him. Jordan waved his hand at him. Without changing his focus, Austin grinned, then narrowed his eyes.
‘The lights’re on,’ said Jordan, ‘but there ain’t nobody home.’
Austin chuckled. ‘On the contrary, my dear Watson,’ he said, ‘the lights are not merely on, they’ve been turned up to full glow!’
Jordan grinned. He likes Sherlock Holmes, he thought, remembering the film he‘d watched with his dad, and the laughter they’d shared. He glanced at Ron, who nodded, smiling. We could’ve been friends all this time. He sat back down on the bed and raised his bare foot up to Austin. ‘This is a game, ain’t it?’ he asked, pointing at his wiggling toes.
Austin frowned. ‘No, it’s your foot.’
‘I thought it was a game.’
‘Have you lost it, Jordan? It’s a foot.’
‘The game is a foot?’
Austin froze, then his face cracked and he chuckled. He shook his head, and rolled his eyes. ‘Oh, good grief,’ he said. ‘That’s terrible!’
‘No,’ said Jordan, putting his foot back down, ‘it’s a foot!’
‘So what have you come up with?’ asked Zoë.
‘Just random thoughts fusing together,’ said Austin. ‘Fact: These time holes, whatever they are, cannot be seen. Correct?’
Jordan nodded. ‘Yeah. Well, I didn’t see it.’
‘Fact: They only seem to work on particular people.’
‘Or they only appear when certain people are in its vicinity,’ said Ron. ‘Go on…’
‘Good point,’ said Austin. ‘So, when we went through… perhaps we absorbed some energy or something from it. I don’t know. But Aurie can see auras. She saw our ‘glows’ change when we shook hands…’
‘…So p’rhaps she can see time holes too!’ Jordan blurted out. ‘Yes!’ he shouted, and held up his palm towards Austin. ‘High five!’ he said.
Austin frowned for a second, then said ‘Oh, yes,’ and smacked Jordan’s palm. ‘High five! Sorry, I haven’t heard that expression in quite a few years.’
‘People don’t high five any more?’ asked Jordan.
‘There’s nothing to high five about,’ said Austin. ‘Until now, that is.’
‘There’s something that’s been nagging at my mind,’ said Ron. Everyone turned to him. ‘It’s what ‘Alice’ over there said before this conversation began.’
‘Oh, yeah, dad!’ said Jordan. ‘I said we couldn’t change nothing, and she said we could.’
Ron nodded. ‘Exactly. Going through a time hole may have given her the ability to see auras. But the thing is, she knows the future, because she’s lived it. If she says we can change things, then at some point soon… we’re going to find out if we can!’
Jordan’s Dad
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br /> Wednesday 17th November 2010
Austin arrived at Jordan’s house after a nervous eight minutes. Between keeping an eye out for mysterious black vans, and worrying about what he would say to Jordan’s dad when he met him, Austin had felt as if the journey would never end. But now he stood under the lamp-post outside No. 13 Poplar Close, his breath like billowing clouds of smoke in the lamp’s eager glare, his hands thrust deeply into his coat pockets for warmth.
No. 13 was a terraced house with blue paint on the walls, and old, wooden-framed windows, whose paint was peeling off in places. The front door had scratches on it, that looked to Austin as if they’d been made on purpose. The front garden, or what there was of it, consisted of a small patch of grass and a rose bush. The grass was overgrown, and had died off in patches. Austin looked at the window. The curtains were drawn inside, but there was a slight chink in them, through which a dim light shone. It flickered slightly, and Austin guessed it was probably the light of a television. So, Jordan’s dad is in, he thought. What do I say? What if he tries to beat me up or something? He might kidnap me and hold me for ransom. This was a bad idea.
But Austin still stood there, looking at the house. His mind told him to turn away and go back home, and to stop being so ridiculous, but his body refused to budge. Then the light through the curtains suddenly went out, and moments later the light in the hallway came on. Austin held his breath, his stomach turning in knots. Then a light turned on upstairs and Austin realised that Jordan’s dad was probably going to bed. The silhouette of a figure came to the upstairs window to close the curtains, and then it stopped, and Austin felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise.
He’s looking at me! He’s looking right at me! Austin tried to move, but found he was rooted to the spot. He was too afraid to look away from the figure, in case it was gone when he looked back. The figure pulled the curtains quickly and then moments later the upstairs light went out again. Austin breathed a sigh of relief, but then quickly drew his breath in again, because the front door suddenly opened and Jordan’s dad came out.
‘Jordan?’ he said. ‘Is that you?’
Of all the things Austin thought Jordan’s dad would say to him, this was definitely not one of them. It was also the worst thing he could have said.
‘No,’ said Austin quietly, ‘I’m Austin. I go to Jordan’s school.’
‘Austin?’ repeated Jordan’s dad. ‘You’re the kid my lad was with when he...’
Jordan’s dad came forward suddenly, and Austin braced himself for whatever punishment the man decided to deal out, but no punch, no pincer-like grasp of the throat, no lifting by the scruff of the neck came. Instead, Jordan’s dad put one hand on Austin’s shoulder, and said, ‘I think you’d better come in, lad. I’ve been waiting for you to arrive.’
Jordan’s dad came into the living room carrying a hot mug of tea and gave it to Austin, who cradled it in his hands, letting the warmth seep into his ice-cold fingers.
‘Thank-you, Mr Baxter,’ he said.
‘Call me Ron,’ said Jordan’s dad, as he sat down in the armchair opposite Austin. ‘Now, perhaps you’d care to tell me what you’re doing here?’
Austin felt a chill, as Ron’s tone suddenly changed from gentle to something a little more edgy. The grateful ease and security Austin had felt as Jordan’s dad had welcomed him into his home now dissipated. He realised that he was alone in a complete stranger’s home, and what’s more, nobody knew he was there.
‘I want some answers, Austin,’ said Ron, drumming his fingers on the arm of his chair. ‘Nobody has been able to give me any since Jordan disappeared. Not the police, not the school, not anybody. What was my son doing in an abandoned house? And why was he chasing you?’
I shouldn’t have come, thought Austin. How can I tell him the truth?
‘Dammit, Austin, tell me!’ shouted Ron, and slammed his fist down on the arm of the chair, making a dust cloud explode around it.
Austin jumped at this sudden anger, and spilt tea over his hands. The hot liquid scalded him and he dropped the cup, which bounced off the carpet, spilling everywhere.
‘I’m sorry, I’m sorry,’ said Austin, his hands shaking, as he knelt down to pick up the mug.
‘Leave it,’ barked Ron, as he rose from the armchair, and left the room, returning moments later with some kitchen towel. He knelt down and mopped up the liquid. Austin didn’t take his eyes off Ron for a second. He wondered whether he’d ever see home again. Ron looked up at him, and Austin expected him to attack at any moment, but instead he saw tears in the man’s eyes.
‘I’m sorry,’ said Ron. ‘It’s just the not knowing. The not understanding. It drives you mad. I think about it constantly. Every waking moment. Every sleeping moment. Where is my son, Austin? If you have any idea, you must tell me!’
‘I saw your comment on the time glitch blog,’ said Austin, trying not to betray the tremor in his voice, ‘so I had to come and tell you what I know.’
‘You read that, too?’ asked Ron, sitting back in his armchair. ‘I didn’t know whether to believe it or not. It sounded so ridiculous, but at this point, I’m willing to consider anything.’
‘I don’t know whether that story was true or not,’ said Austin, ‘but from what I’ve experienced, it should be.’
‘You experienced a time glitch?’
‘Sort of, yeah,’ said Austin. ‘In that abandoned house, I went through some sort of time hole, and it took me back in time 13 minutes.’
‘Back in time?’ said Ron. ‘And Jordan followed you in, right?’
Austin nodded. ‘And he disappeared through the same time hole.’
‘I see,’ said Ron. ‘So do you think he’s gone back in time, too?’
‘I don’t know,’ said Austin. ‘I don’t think so. I mean, otherwise he’d have come back here, and you’d have had two of him for a while!’
Austin saw Ron’s expression turn grim again. ‘Are you winding me up?’ he said. ‘Cos if you are…’
‘I’m not, honest,’ said Austin quickly. ‘I know it’s hard to believe, but it’s like Sherlock Holmes said…’
Ron snorted. ‘You mean eliminating the impossible?’
Austin nodded.
‘But this rather makes a fool of our dear Holmes, doesn’t it? I mean, time travel? Come on, Austin. This is the real world. Time travel isn’t possible. Is it?’
‘I’ve got no reason to lie to you, Mr Baxter,’ said Austin, who couldn’t quite bring himself to call Jordan’s dad by his first name. It didn’t seem right. ‘I think Jordan went forward in time, not back.’
Austin waited for a response from Ron, counting his heartbeats, so loudly they thumped in his chest. Eventually, Jordan’s dad said, ‘But how far?’
‘This sounds crazy,’ said Austin, ‘but I think it was 13 something…’
‘13?’ said Ron, ‘what, minutes? Like you? No, of course not. He’d be here.’
‘It’s not days either,’ said Austin, ‘or he’d have been back days ago.’
‘So it could be weeks, or months?’
Austin nodded. ‘Or years,’ he said.
‘Years? Oh God, I hope not.’
Austin swallowed hard. He tried to imagine what it was like to have a missing son. It’s bad enough with a missing enemy, he thought, so a missing son must be horrible.
‘I don’t think I can take this in,’ said Ron, eventually. ‘If he’d been kidnapped, or killed… at least I’d know. At least I’d have some sort of closure.’
‘Don’t talk like that, Mr Baxter. He’s alive, I know it!’
‘It’s alright for you!’ shouted Ron, suddenly angry again. ‘It’s not your mum or dad or sister missing! You just led my son in there and let him disappear! My son! He never did anything to you..!’
‘Yes he did!’ Austin blurted, suddenly feeling a strength of will he didn’t know he had. It’s one thing to feel guilty, he thought grimly, but another thing entirely to be blamed! ‘He made my life
a misery! He made fun of me, kicked me, tripped me up, stole my lunch money. You name it, he did it!’
‘So you lured him into a trap, did you?’ said Ron, getting up from the chair. He loomed over Austin, but Austin was not having any of it.
‘No, I didn’t! He was a bully, Mr Baxter. Your son was a bully, and he got what he deserved!’
As soon as Austin had said the words, he knew that he no longer meant them, but it was too late to undo it. Ron pointed an accusing finger at him, and was visibly shaking. Not for the first time that evening, Austin feared for his safety.
‘Take that back!’ roared Ron. ‘Take it back now!’
‘I’m sorry,’ said Austin, with as much calm as he could muster, ‘nobody deserves what happened to Jordan. But he was a bully. I’m sorry, but that’s the truth.’
Austin could see that Ron was trying to calm himself down; his breathing was deep and slow, and he held clenched fists by his side, looking upwards at a spot on the ceiling. Slowly, though, Austin saw that Jordan’s dad had regained his composure, and when he sank back into his armchair, Austin realised that he’d been holding his breath. He let it out in a long sigh, then sat back down again.
‘I can’t understand it,’ Ron said, ‘I brought that boy up to be… good.’
‘I don’t know what I did,’ said Austin, ‘but he never liked me. Not since…’
‘Not since what?’
‘Since I didn’t want to play football with him during the summer.’
‘But that’s no reason to bully someone,’ said Ron.
There was an awkward silence between them then. They both looked away from each other, and Austin looked at Jordan’s living room. He saw the old-fashioned armchairs, and the dilapidated settee with its sunken cushions, and threadbare upholstery. He saw books and DVDs piled precariously on the patchy carpet. He looked at the old fireplace, with its fake log-fire, and the layers of dust on the mantelpiece. This is what its like to be lonely, he thought.
‘I’m sorry, Austin,’ said Ron. ‘If Jordan bullied you, then I’m truly sorry. So… what’s the plan?’
‘The plan?’ repeated Austin.
‘Yeah, the plan,’ said Ron. ‘Do we go and see this time hole now, or wait for daylight?’
Mind the Gap
Monday 3rd November 2036
It began as a low hum, barely noticeable above the chatter in the room. It was the two girls who noticed it first, but since everyone else in the room was busy talking, it wasn’t until the hum became a rumble that Jordan picked it out. He looked at the far wall, then down at the two girls, and he watched as they ran, in tandem, over to the wall and pressed their left ears to it. It’s like watching synchronised swimming, he thought, only without the water. Then, the girls’ actions brought the sound to the attention of Austin, Zoë and Ron.
‘What is it?’ asked Ron, and Jordan saw that he was straining to hear. It reminded him that his dad wasn’t as young now as he had been when he’d woken up this morning. Only it ain’t the same morning, he thought. Not by a long shot.
‘It sounds like a lift,’ said Austin.
‘A lift?’ said Zoë, ‘in a farmhouse?’
Jordan laughed. ‘A lift in a farmhouse!’ he chuckled.
‘It’s coming up!’ exclaimed the two girls, their left ears still pressed against the wall. Alice stood away, and looked at Aurie. Not for the first time, Jordan felt the hair on the back of his forearms prickle. Aurie stood away from the wall, too, and they both looked at their parents.
‘They’re coming to get us,’ they said, and looked towards the door.
Jordan started to panic, but told himself that whatever happened, he was with his dad now, and as long as that continued, everything would be okay. He backed away from the door until he reached Ron, who was still sitting in the armchair. Jordan stretched his hand out and Ron grabbed it tightly.
‘Who’s coming to get us?’ asked Zoë, beckoning to the two girls. They came over to her, and she put a hand on each of their shoulders. Jordan noticed that Alice had become significantly paler, and was starting to tremble. The sound grew louder.
‘It’s definitely a hydraulic lift,’ said Austin. He looked at Jordan, and shrugged. Jordan smiled and shrugged back. Then, there was the sound of some brakes, a loud clunk, and what sounded like something metallic shunting open. Everyone looked at each other and then at the door. Outside, they could hear low voices, and then Jordan jumped as a bolt was slid noisily back.
The door opened, and two soldiers came in. He recognised one of them as Mildew, the soldier who had kindly provided him with the spare clothes he wore now. Mildew nodded his head at him, but he didn’t smile. Jordan didn’t recognise the other soldier, but Alice did. She whimpered and hid behind her mum.
‘Time to go, people,’ he said. ‘Grab your stuff and come with us.’
Jordan suddenly realised that he’d left his school uniform in the bathroom, and looked down at his bare feet. He remembered dropping his shoes and socks, and looked over to where he had stood when he came in the room, but they weren’t there any more. He looked around for them frantically. Wherever they were about to be taken, he knew he’d need something warm on his feet.
‘Looking for these?’ said Ron. Jordan glanced round at his dad, who held them in his left hand, smiling. Jordan took them gratefully, and started to put them on. The socks were still damp, but they were warm. Dad must’ve put them on the radiator, he thought, as he hastily shoved his feet into his shoes.
‘If your feet are cosy, it’s not me you’ve got to thank,’ said Ron, ‘it’s Zoë!’
Jordan looked over at Zoë, but she was too busy comforting Alice to notice.
‘Get a move on,’ said the soldier, ‘we’ve a schedule to keep.’
‘Where are we going?’ asked Austin, as he moved towards the door.
‘You’ll see,’ said the soldier, and stood aside for his prisoners. Austin stopped beside him, and looked him right in the eyes.
‘We’re not going anywhere until you tell us,’ he said, and stood his ground.
The soldier leant forward, until his face was inches away from Austin’s. ‘Unless you want two black eyes, Mister Baker,’ he said in a low guttural growl, ‘I suggest you keep moving.’
Jordan gulped, but his gaze was glued to Austin. Austin didn’t back down. Jordan realised how much his nemesis had changed. No more running away from confrontation. What was it that dad says? He thought, he’s found his backbone at last…
Then, suddenly, there was a gun pointing in Austin’s face, and the stand-off ended as quickly as it had begun. Aurie screamed, and that was enough to deter Austin from further defiance. He sullenly walked through the doorway onto the landing, followed by Zoë and the two girls. The soldier put the gun back into its holster, and beckoned for Jordan and his dad to follow.
‘Are you okay, Dad?’ said Jordan, as Ron struggled to his feet.
‘Arthritis, Jordie,’ said Ron, ‘I’ve had it for about a decade now. But I’m okay; it just takes time to get moving these days.’
He walked, with the aid of his cane, to the door, and stopped beside the soldier.
‘Everyone hates a bully,’ he said to him, then turned and beckoned to Jordan, who quickly joined his side. They walked together through the doorway and joined the others.
The second soldier came out of the room and closed the door behind him. Mildew was now at the front, and led the way down the small, cramped corridor towards the back of the house. Jordan couldn’t see much, as Austin, Zoë and the two girls were in front of him, but they all stopped abruptly, and then Jordan heard the same metallic shunting sound. It sounds like a lift door opening, he thought, and seconds later he was proved correct, as they were all herded into a cramped metallic space where the wall should have been.
Jordan helped his dad into the lift, and turned to face the landing again as the second solider stepped in and the door clumsily started to shut. The last thing Jordan saw before they were
encased in metal was the apologetic face of Mildew, whose face disappeared behind the lift door. Then, there was a lurch, and Jordan found himself flung against the side of the lift. One of the girls screeched loudly, and he could hear Zoë calming her down.
‘For God’s sake, isn’t there a light in here?’
The second solider declined to answer. Jordan recognised his dad’s irritated voice, but there was an edge of fear to it, too. They were moving now; descending. But there’s only upstairs and downstairs, thought Jordan. What’s the point in a lift? Their journey, however, was not as short as all that. The lift carried on descending, and Jordan imagined for a moment that he was a secret agent being taken to the villain’s underground lair. Only in those films, he thought, the hero’s lift has a light in it.
‘Alice says we’re going to catch a train,’ said Aurie, ‘is that true, Mummy?’
‘I don’t know, darling,’ Zoë replied. ‘It might be.’
‘It must be,’ Jordan replied, ‘she’s done it once already, remember?’
‘Shush, Jordie,’ said his dad, ‘we don’t know anything for sure.’
After that, everyone went silent, until the lift came to an abrupt halt, and the doors clanked and clanged, then shunted open again. Two soldiers flanked the exit, their backs to the occupants. The second soldier stepped out first and the other soldiers saluted him.
‘At ease, boys,’ said the soldier, saluting back. ‘Now come on out, folks. We’re going on a little ride.’
Jordan stepped out first, and could hear the others following him, but he was too busy taking in his surroundings. They were on a dimly lit platform that reminded him of the London Underground, only without the colourful posters, the overhead digital information display, and of course, the announcements. In front of him was a train, which had come to a stop mere inches from the rough-hewn rock face to his left. There were no buffers in place to stop it from crashing, and it was obvious the train had seen better days. The red, white and blue paint barely emerged from beneath the rust and grime that had accumulated over the years.
The soldier led the way down the platform and then stopped beside a set of red doors. He punched the ‘open’ button with the side of his fist, and there was a loud hiss as the doors slid open with a painful squeal.
‘Get on,’ said the soldier, then looked down at the divide between the edge of the platform and the entrance to the train. He said, without a trace of irony or humour, ‘Mind the gap.’
Jordan helped his dad on board and they all stepped inside the carriage. The doors squealed shut behind them, and the soldier hopped on just before they finished closing.
‘Sit down,’ he said, ‘we’re in for a long ride.’
‘Go on, dad,’ said Jordan, and Ron gratefully sat down on one of the seats. A cloud of dust rose from the cushion. Aurie laughed and clambered up onto the seat next to Ron, deliberately bumping down onto the cushion, so she could make a cloud of dust, too. Alice had gone very quiet again, and clung to Zoë’s side. She wouldn’t sit down when Zoë asked her, so Zoë remained standing.
The train lurched forward suddenly, and started to move. The lights dimmed slightly, then slowly became brighter again as the train gathered speed. Jordan looked out of the window just as the platform disappeared and the darkness of a tunnel enveloped them. He listened to the clackity-clack rhythm of the wheels on the tracks for a few moments, then looked back at everyone in the carriage.
It seemed to Jordan that whatever connection the two girls had shared was now gone, as they no longer spoke or acted simultaneously. He looked in Austin’s direction. He saw that he was staring at the soldier, who was standing next to the doors, leaning against the glass pane that rose above the end of the seat. If the soldier was aware of this, he didn’t show it. He merely took a packet of cigarettes from the pocket of his trousers and withdrew one slowly.
‘What’s your name, soldier?’ said Austin.
Jordan watched the soldier, as he tapped the cigarette against the packet then lifted it to his mouth. He didn’t answer. Instead, he put the packet away and withdrew a lighter from another pocket. He put it to the cigarette and flicked the flint, producing a bright flame that quickly lit the end. He drew a deep breath in, then blew a cloud of smoke at Austin.
Jordan gulped, and looked at Austin’s expression. To his credit, Austin remained calm, and gently brushed away the smoke with his hand, then looked down at Jordan and rolled his eyes. Jordan smirked.
‘Sit down, Mister Baker,’ said the soldier, from between clenched teeth, ‘we don’t want any accidents, do we?’
Jordan watched as Austin took a deep breath, and then sat down. He beckoned to Jordan to do the same, and he sat down on the next vacant seat.
‘Come on, Alice,’ said Zoë, ‘everyone else is sitting down, so how about us?’
Alice let go of Zoë’s leg, and allowed her mum to sit down. She then stretched her arms out, and Zoë picked her up and sat her on her lap. ‘There,’ she said, ‘not so bad, now, is it?’
Alice shook her head, but remained silent. She looked at Jordan, and then fixed her gaze on the carriage in front of them. Jordan looked in the same direction, and then looked back at Alice again.
‘What’re you looking at, Alice?’ he asked her.
She continued to stare ahead of her, blinking only when she had to. Without removing her gaze, she replied, ‘It’s coming. It’s coming soon.’
Jordan frowned. ‘What’s coming?’ he asked.
‘It’s coming to get me!’ she said, and a single tear rolled down her cheek.
Mr Pilgrim
Wednesday 17th November 2010
Austin didn’t quite know what to say. It had only been a few hours since he had last visited the time hole, and seen the men in the black van. He’d decided there and then to keep a wide berth between himself and No. 13 Oak Road. What’s the use of going back in time by 13 minutes anyway? He’d thought to himself, as if trying to justify his fear. But now, Jordan’s dad wanted to see the scene of the crime, and he didn’t feel as if he could refuse.
‘Well, I suppose we could go now, if you like,’ he said.
‘Excellent!’ replied Ron, and rose from his armchair and stretched. ‘I’ll just get my coat.’
‘But why haven’t you been there before?’ asked Austin.
Ron opened the sitting room door and turned back to his guest. ‘Oh, I have,’ he said, and disappeared round the corner. Austin heard the sound of a cupboard door being opened, and a wire hanger jangling on a metal rail. ‘I went there when they were searching through the rubble,’ came a muffled voice, ‘but as you know, they didn’t find him there, and I didn’t know about the time holes then.’
‘But you knew about me then?’
Ron re-appeared at the doorway. ‘About your involvement, you mean? Yes, I knew.’
‘So why didn’t you come round and ask me or something?’ said Austin, as he followed Ron into the hallway.
‘I did,’ said Ron, opening the front door and stepping outside, ‘but it was while you were at school.’ He waited for Austin to come through and then shut the door. It stuck slightly, as the wood had swollen in the cold, damp November weather. Ron gave it a practiced tug, and it shut properly.
‘Mum and Dad never told me!’
‘Well, I’m not surprised,’ said Ron, ‘I was quite upset, and they probably didn’t want to frighten you. ’
Austin led the way down Hawthorn Avenue, thrusting his hands back inside his pockets, and pulling his coat tighter round him. ‘We may not be able to get in there anymore, and you can’t see it anyway,’ he said, ‘so this might be a waste of time.’
‘Time’s what I’ve got plenty of, by the looks of things,’ said Ron.
They walked to the junction of Hawthorn Avenue with Oak Road, and Austin crossed to the right side and crept up to the corner. Ron followed. ‘Why are we creeping around?’ he asked. ‘It’s only a building site.’
‘Last time I was here,
’ said Austin, ‘there were men here, and they had a black van.’
‘So? said Ron, as he joined Austin, who was peering cautiously round the side of the building.
‘They were taking some sort of readings on these machines. They weren’t builders. I think they were from the government or something.’
‘You’ve been reading too many thrillers, Austin,’ Ron scoffed, and started to cross the street.
Austin panicked. ‘Come back!’ he whispered, as loudly as he could, but Ron ignored him and kept going. Austin was too scared to go after him, so all he could do was watch, as Ron walked ever closer to the fencing around the demolished No. 13. He felt the familiar pull towards the site, but resisted it, knowing it would only lead to trouble. Why did I bring him here? He thought. All I need is for him to go missing now.
Austin watched as Ron tried the gate, which was locked, of course. Then, Ron grabbed a hold of the top of the gate with both hands, and hoisted himself up as far as he could go, peering over the top of the fence. He let go, and dusted himself down, then turned to look back in Austin’s direction and shrugged. He looked back at the gate, then over to Austin again, and wagged a finger in the air, as if to say A-ha! I’ve got it! He suddenly kicked out at the gate with his right foot. The noise echoed through the night air, and Austin ducked back round the corner in fright, heart thumping.
He heard another kick, and then a third, followed by a different sort of impact, as the gate flung open against the fence. Austin couldn’t bare to look, but couldn’t run either. He waited, crouching against the wall of the corner house, eyes tightly shut. There was silence for a while, and Austin wondered why nobody had woken up, why he’d not heard angry shouts from bedroom windows.
He dared himself to look round the corner, and when he did he saw Ron emerging from the gateway. Jordan’s dad beckoned for Austin to go over, and so he took a deep breath, steeled himself, and emerged into the street.
‘Austin, you’ve got to come and have a look at this place,’ said Ron, as Austin reached his side.
‘What, it’s just rubble isn’t it?’ he said, glancing round nervously to see if anybody was looking. No sign of any black van at the moment, he thought with relief.
‘Oh no,’ said Ron, ‘it’s far from being rubble.’ With that, he disappeared back through the gateway and Austin followed. He had expected to see a building site, but what met his eyes was something else entirely. All the rubble from the demolished No.13 had been removed, and a new concrete foundation had been laid. As far as Austin could judge, it was exactly the same size and shape as the old house had been. As Austin walked nearer to it, he could distinguish some sort of markings on the concrete, but it was too dark to see what they were clearly.
But that wasn’t the oddest thing about the place; there were posts sticking out of the ground at regular intervals, and together they encircled the foundations. It reminded Austin of a stone circle he had seen on his holiday in Cornwall a few years back. His dad had told him that long ago, Druids had met in these stone circles to perform magical ceremonies, and Austin wondered if this was the equivalent of a modern stone circle, but with the aim of conjuring up a hole in time.
‘You don’t have a torch with you, do you?’ asked Ron.
‘No,’ said Austin, reaching into his coat pocket, ‘but I do have my phone. It’s got a light on it.’ He turned the mobile phone on, pressed a few keys, and it lit up like a torch.
‘Shine it onto the concrete, would you?’ Ron asked.
Austin did so, and the markings became a little clearer. ‘I could take a photo of it, if you like,’ he offered.
‘Good idea,’ said Ron, ‘then we can take a closer look at it later.’
Austin pressed a few more keys, and then aimed the phone at the foundations. There was a bright flash as the phone took a picture, and then Austin looked at the result on his phone screen. He showed it to Ron.
‘That looks like a floor-plan,’ said Jordan’s dad.
Austin looked closely, and realised it was the original blueprint of the old No.13. All the rooms were carefully laid out, which meant it would be quite easy for him to find out exactly where the time hole was.
Ron stepped onto the concrete and took a few steps forward. ‘I guess this would be the main hallway,’ he said, and scraped his shoes over one of the lines. A cloud of dust rose and Austin caught sight of a red light shimmering through the particles in the air. It was horizontal to the concrete floor, and a few inches above its surface.
‘Mr Baxter, we have to get out of here now,’ he said.
‘Why?’ said Ron. ‘What’s wrong?’
‘I think you’ve just set off an alarm of some sort,’ he said, and pointed to the specks of red light still visible as the dust settled.
‘Oh dear,’ said Ron, and stepped off the foundations quickly. ‘Perhaps you’re right,’ he said.
Austin caught something moving from the corner of his vision, and looked up at the far right of the fence. On top of a long pole, which protruded from the corner post of the fence, was a CCTV camera. ‘I think we’ve been watched since we got in here,’ he said.
‘You’re absolutely right young man,’ said a voice that sounded like liquid metal if it could speak. Austin turned towards the voice, and saw three men in black suits entering the plot via the open gate. The man in front was older and stouter than the other two, who looked and behaved like bodyguards. He had greying hair, and pale skin.
Austin looked up at Ron, who was now standing beside him. Ron mouthed sorry to him, and smiled. Austin smiled back, mouthing it’s okay, but he had to acknowledge to himself that it didn’t feel okay at all. His heart was pounding in his chest, and his mouth had gone dry. He found it difficult to swallow, and he pushed down the panic that was welling up inside him.
‘Take your readings boys,’ said the older man, ‘I think we may have some interesting results tonight.’
The two men brought out what looked to Austin like large mobile phones, and when they switched them on, Austin felt the same tingling sensation, as if he had pins and needles. The ‘phones’ gave off the familiar high-pitched oscillating sound he’d heard earlier that day, and when the two men pointed them towards him, the sound changed rapidly from an oscillation, to an intermittent beep. The beep turned to a continuous sound as the two men came closer towards him. Austin felt as if his skin was being pricked again with nails.
‘Stop it!’ he said, ‘that hurts!’
The older man said gently, ‘Okay boys, you heard him,’ and they switched the devices off. He came forward, and Ron stepped in front of Austin, who peered out from behind Ron’s back as the older man stopped, and held his hands up. ‘It’s okay, Mr Baxter, we’re not here to hurt him.’
The next few seconds happened very quickly, but Austin saw it in slow motion. The older man still had his hands up by his chest, in a non-threatening gesture, but he suddenly made a very quick beckoning signal with the fingers of his right hand, and one of the two other men came forward and grabbed Ron by the shoulders, twisting him round, and then dragging him away to the side, where he was held in an arm lock, the man’s spare hand cupping Ron’s mouth to stop him shouting out.
‘As I said, we’re not here to hurt him,’ said the older man, ‘but I didn’t say anything about not hurting you.’
Austin watched in terror as the man holding Ron tightened his grip. A muffled scream came from beneath his large hand, and Austin could see that Ron’s eyes were tightly shut in pain. The older man nodded to him, and the man loosened his grip on Ron just enough to stop the pain. Austin felt weak, as if he could faint at any second, but he willed himself to stay firm, if only for Ron’s sake. He fought back the tears that wanted to come. Time to grow up, he thought. You started this mess, now deal with it.
‘What do you want, Mr…?’ he said.
‘Pilgrim,’ said the older man, completing his sentence. ‘Department of Missing Persons.’
Mr Pilgrim took a step tow
ards Austin, and offered him his hand in greeting. Austin quickly stepped back.
‘I’m not here to hurt you,’ said Mr Pilgrim again, ‘you’re far too precious for that.’
‘What do you mean, precious?’ he asked.
‘I think you know,’ said Mr Pilgrim, who turned to the other man and nodded gently. The man went over to the post nearest the gate, and brought out what Austin assumed to be a bunch of keys from his jacket pocket. He selected one and inserted it into the post. There was a click, then a hum, and the rest of the posts came to life. Austin stood there transfixed by the sight that now greeted his eyes. The posts emitted red lasers that criss-crossed at different angles and heights, bouncing off other posts and making an intricate pattern of lasers across the concrete foundations. But there was one section that remained untouched by the lasers. Austin could not make out its exact shape, for it seemed to be in constant flux, but he quickly realised that it was in the exact spot where the kitchen doorway had been, before the old No.13 had been demolished.
It’s the time hole, he thought. He looked at Ron, whose expression had changed from pain to awe. The man holding him loosened his grip in surprise, and Ron took his chance. He bit the man’s hand, who yelped in pain.
‘Run through it, Austin!’ he yelled, and then the man punched him in the back, and he arched backwards before falling to the ground.
Austin turned and ran towards the time hole. As he hurried over the concrete, he heard Pilgrim shout to the other man, who leapt onto the concrete in pursuit. As he reached the fluctuating gap in the lasers, he heard the man coming dangerously close. Then he felt a hand on his coat, and a scream, just as a familiar wave of nausea came over him. His vision blurred, his stomach knotted, his head burned, and his muscles went taut and then relaxed, and he fell forwards onto the concrete.
He lay there for a moment, catching his breath, and then he realised that nobody had hold of him. As his vision started to clear, he noticed it was now daylight and there was nobody else around. He could hear bird song, and the far-away sound of traffic. And there was something just to his left. It was lying beside him, in a pool of some sort of liquid. Red liquid. Austin concentrated hard and focused his eyes, then immediately wished that he hadn’t, for beside him was a pool of blood, and in the centre…was a hand.
A Ripple in the Air
Monday 3rd November 2036
Jordan instinctively stood back from Alice. He didn’t mean to, but the inevitability of her situation weighed heavily on his shoulders. She had been through this once already, and now she was reliving it. I know what that feels like, he thought.
He looked at Aurie, who seemed oblivious to her doppelgänger’s alarm. She was clambering about on the seats, pressing her lips up onto the glass pane and breathing condensation onto it.
‘Stop that, Aurie!’ said Zoë, ‘you don’t know what’s been on there. It can’t have been washed for years! Now come back and sit down.’
Aurie pouted, crossed her arms and looked down at the floor of the carriage. ‘She’s not sitting down,’ she said, pointing at Alice, who was standing in the middle of the train floor, staring transfixed at the far end of the carriage.
‘Alice,’ said Austin, ‘come and sit down, love.’ If she heard her father, Alice didn’t acknowledge. Her gaze never left the carriage in front, not even for an instant.
Whatever’s coming, Jordan thought, it’s got her scared silly. He made himself step forwards again, and he lightly touched her on the shoulder. The effect was like an electric charge; she sprang to life and immediately ran towards the end of the carriage, where the door that led to the next carriage was slightly ajar.
‘Alice!’ cried Austin and Zoë together, but she ignored them both. She flung the door open. The noise of the tube train became louder as she looked down the length of the next carriage, teetering on the edge between one carriage and the next.
Jordan looked over at the soldier, who was calmly smoking his cigarette. Well, you’re useless, he thought, and ran after Alice. But before he could even reach the end of the carriage, he heard a shriek and she came tearing towards him again. She jumped up into his arms and sent him staggering backwards. She clung on to him, and Jordan could feel her little fingers gripping his arms tightly. He realised that her arm was no longer in the sling. He turned round to see Austin coming up towards him.
‘What’s wrong, Alice?’ he asked.
‘It’s coming!’ she said, frantically. ‘It’s coming now!’
‘What’s coming?’ said Austin. ‘What is it?’
‘Perhaps it’s the time hole?’ said Ron.
Jordan suddenly felt queasy with fear, and his stomach felt tight. He looked into Austin’s eyes and saw that he could feel it, too. With mounting horror, he realised what the familiar sensation was. The next few moments passed in slow motion for Jordan. Everything happened at once: Zoë came forward to take Alice. The soldier dropped his cigarette, and stamped on the end with his boot as Austin turned and reached for the alarm cord to stop the train. Aurie looked up and started to scream. The soldier came forward to try and stop Austin from pulling the cord as Zoë reached Jordan’s side. Austin pulled the cord as the soldier lunged at him. The train’s brakes engaged suddenly, and Aurie was flung forwards into the air. Jordan looked up as he and Alice were pulled back into Zoë’s arms. The soldier knocked Austin’s hand away from the cord, and Austin came crashing down onto the floor of the carriage as his daughter sailed over him. Jordan watched helpless as Aurie seemed to fly over their heads. He didn’t hit the brakes that hard, he thought.
Then he noticed a ripple in the air, and Aurie was sucked into nothing. The screech of the brakes was deafening, but Zoë’s scream drowned everything out.
The train shuddered to a halt, and Austin scrambled to his feet. Alice still clung to Jordan, and Zoë had her hand over her mouth in shock, gazing at the space where only seconds ago her daughter had been. The soldier clambered to his feet, muttering under his breath.
‘Where’s she gone?’ said Zoë, frantically. ‘Where’s she gone?’
‘Through a time hole,’ said the soldier, matter-of-factly.
Jordan met Austin’s eyes. He knows about time holes, he thought, and knew that Austin was thinking the same thing.
‘What do you mean, a time hole?’ said Austin.
‘Don’t play innocent with me, Mr Baker,’ said the soldier. ‘We know all about you and Jordan, and you know why, too.’
Jordan looked at Austin and frowned. What does he mean? he thought. What are you hiding, Austin?
‘I really don’t know what -’ began Austin, but before he could finish his sentence, Zoë stalked up to him and grabbed his arm.
‘What are you doing?’ she asked Austin, and Jordan could see the mixture of fear and anger in her eyes. His gaze flickered between the two of them, in case he missed something important. ‘Our daughter has disappeared into thin air and you’re playing stupid games!’
Alice squirmed in Jordan’s arms, and he let go of her. She quickly scrambled to her feet and rushed to her mother’s side. She tugged on her jeans and Zoë looked down at her.
‘It’s okay, Mummy,’ she said, ‘I’m still here!’
Jordan felt a lump in his throat, and tears threatened his eyes, but he held them back. He watched from the tube train floor as Zoë picked up her daughter and gave her a hug. Seconds later, Austin joined in. Jordan saw him mouth ‘sorry’ to Zoë, who smiled gently at her husband.
Suddenly, the door at the end of the carriage was slammed open and several soldiers, fully armed, came running in. Jordan quickly rose to his feet. As he did so he looked to see where their soldier was. He was leaning against one of the glass screens, and was in the midst of tapping the end of a fresh cigarette.
‘Everything okay, Sir?’ said the young soldier in the lead.
The soldier nodded his head. ‘As okay as it can be, considering one of our ‘guests’ has disappeared through a time hole.’
> ‘Sir?’
‘You’ll notice the happy couple now have only one daughter…’
The young soldier looked quickly at Austin and Zoë, then back at his superior officer. Jordan wondered how much he knew, and whether he thought the gruff sergeant was winding him up. The soldier decided that his Sergeant was telling him the truth, took it in his stride, and ordered the other soldiers to stand down. His walkie-talkie sprang into life at that moment, and he quickly answered it as his team turned to leave the carriage. Jordan heard him say that it was okay and for the driver to get going again. The train jerked into life a few seconds later and they were soon on their way.
Jordan went over to his dad and sat down next to him. ‘Are you okay, Dad?’ he asked.
Ron nodded. ‘At my age, Jordan, you learn to take a back seat when necessary.’
‘This is bizarre,’ said Austin, and Jordan looked up at him. He was stroking Alice’s hair. Jordan noticed that Alice had recovered her composure, and was happily cradled in her mother’s arms. ‘I thought one of my daughters had disappeared, when I only ever had one! Isn’t that right, Alice?’
‘I’m Aurie, Daddy. I was only Alice when there were two of me!’
Zoë laughed. ‘Out of the mouths of babes,’ she said. ‘It sounds so simple when she says it.’
‘Maybe it is simple,’ said Ron, ‘and we just make it complicated.’
Austin grinned. ‘Between you and Aurie, I think you’ve got it sorted,’ he said.
Jordan smiled to himself. He felt like his dad was the eye of the hurricane; when he was close to him, everything was calm, whilst all around him was chaos. Then he noticed that Aurie was holding onto her mum with both arms around her neck, and it reminded him of her sling.
‘Aurie?’ he asked, and she looked at him with a frown. ‘How come your broken arm’s better?’
‘Oh, yes!’ exclaimed Austin. ‘Jordan’s got a good point there, Ali- I mean, Aurie. Whatever happened to me breaking your arm?’
Aurie hid her head in Zoë’s chest. Zoë raise her eyebrows. ‘Aurie?’ she said. ‘Have you been telling fibs?’
Aurie shook her head, but wouldn’t look up.
‘Aurie?’ repeated Zoë. ‘Tell us the truth now. You’re not in trouble.’
‘I caught her,’ said the Sergeant, suddenly. Everyone looked his way. ‘When she came out the other side of the time hole, I caught her, or rather she collided with me and her arm hit the butt of the rifle I was holding at the time. It didn’t break, but it was bruised quite badly. We put it in a sling to be safe.’
‘Why didn’t you tell us?’ said Austin. ‘We could’ve been ready.’
‘I didn’t know when she would go through,’ he said, matter-of-factly.
‘When exactly did you catch her?’ asked Zoë.
The soldier looked at his watch.
‘Exactly 13 hours ago,’ he said.
If he noticed the stunned looks from everyone else in the carriage, he didn’t acknowledge it. He merely lit his cigarette and took a long drag.
Jordan’s mind was reeling from this new information. Austin was 13 minutes into the past, I’m 13 years into the future, and now Aurie’s 13 hours in the past. He looked at his dad, who seemed to be deep in thought, his hands resting on his walking stick again.
‘Dad?’
Ron looked up and smiled. He suddenly appeared very old and tired. ‘Yes, Jordie?’
‘Did you ever go through the time hole?’
Ron shook his head. ‘No. No, I didn’t. But I think I know what you’re getting at…’
Jordan grinned. He loved it when he and his dad were so in tune with each other. It was almost as if they’d never been apart.
‘I think I do, too,’ said Austin. ‘Aurie and I went into the past, and you went into the future, all in 13 something or other. So we’ve had minutes and hours and years, but no days or weeks.’
Jordan nodded in agreement. ‘Or months,’ he added.
‘Or seconds,’ said Zoë.
‘Yeah,’ said Austin, ‘but there’s something you don’t know, Jordan.’
‘Yeah?’ said Jordan, ‘what?’
‘I went through the time hole again after you’d disappeared. Somebody was trying to stop me, and he grabbed me just as I went through. When I came round from the journey, I discovered that part of him had come through with me…’
Time Holes: 13 Page 9