Flashforward

Theo glanced at the bomb. If he was reading the display properly, it had over fifty-five hours before it would explode. He was trying to think clearly; he'd had no idea just how u

"Exactly!"

"But that's crazy. The first jump has already happened. We all lived through it twenty-one years ago.

"We didn't all live through it," said Rusch sharply.

"Well, no, but — "

"Yes, it happened. But I'm going to undo that. I'm going to retroactively rewrite the last two decades."

Theo didn't want to argue with the man, but: "That's not possible."

"Yes, it is. I know it is. Don't you see? I've already succeeded."

"What?"

"What did everybody's visions have in common the first time?" asked Rusch.

"I don't — "

"Leisure-time activities! The vast majority of the population seemed to be having a holiday, a day-off. And why? Because they'd all been told to stay home from work that day, to stay safe and secure, because CERN was going to attempt to replicate the time displacement. But something happened — something caused that replication to be called off, too late for people to go back to work. And so humanity got an unexpected holiday."

"It's more likely that what we saw the first time was simply a version of reality in which the precognition event had never occurred."

"Nonsense," said Rusch. "Sure, we saw some people at work — shopkeepers, street vendors, police, and so on. But most businesses were closed, weren't they? You've heard the speculation — that some great holiday would exist on Wednesday, October 23, in 2030, celebrated across the globe. A universal disarmament day, maybe, or a first-contact-with-aliens day. But now it is 2030, and you know as well as I do that no such holiday exists. Everyone was off work, preparing for a time displacement that didn't come. But they'd had some advance warning that it wasn't going to come — meaning the news story that Large Hadron Collider had been damaged must have broken sometime earlier that day. Well, I've got my bomb set to go off two hours before the Sanduleak neutrinos will arrive."

"But if something like that was in the news, surely someone would have seen it in their vision. Someone would have reported it."

"Who would be sitting home watching the news two hours into an unexpected holiday?" asked Rusch. "No, I'm sure the scenario I've described is correct. I will succeed in disabling CERN; the consciousness of 2030 Earth will stay put precisely where it belongs, and the change will propagate backwards from this point, back twenty-one years, rewriting history. My dear Helena, and all the other people who died because of your arrogance, will get to live again."

"You can't kill me," said Theo. "And you can't keep me here for two days. People will notice I'm missing, and they'll come down here to look for me, and they'll find your bomb and disarm it."

"A good point," said Rusch. Carefully keeping the Glock trained on Theo, he backed toward his bomb. He retrieved it from inside the air pump, lifting it up by its suitcase handle. He must have noted Theo's expression. "Don't worry," said Rusch. "It's not delicate." He placed the bomb on the tu

"The bomb will go off in one hour," said Rusch. "It's earlier than I pla

They began to walk counterclockwise — toward the monorail — but before they'd gotten more than a dozen meters, Theo became conscious of a faint whine behind them. He turned around, and so did Rusch. Just rounding the curve of the tu

"Damn it," said Rusch. "Who's that?"

Jake Horowitz's red-and-gray hair was easy enough to make out, even at this distance, but the other person—

God! It looked like—

It was. Detective Helmut Drescher of Geneva's finest.

"I don't know," said Theo, pretending to squint.

The hovercart was rapidly approaching. Rusch looked left and right. There was so much equipment mounted on the sides of the tu

Drescher had his own gun drawn as the hovercart settled to the tu

"Who are you?" said Jake to Rusch.

"Careful!" blurted Theo. "He's got a gun."

Rusch looked panicked. A little bomb-planting was one thing, but hostage taking and potential murder was another. Still he jerked the Glock into Theo's side again. "That's right," said Rusch. "So back off."

Moot was now standing with legs spread for maximum stability, holding his own gun in both hands aimed directly at Rusch's heart. "I'm a police officer," said Moot. "Drop your weapon."

"Nein."

Moot's tone was absolutely even. "Drop your weapon or I will shoot."

Rusch's eyes darted left and right. "If you shoot, Dr. Procopides dies."

Theo's mind was racing. Had it gone down like this the first time? Rusch would have to shoot him not once, but three times, to match the vision. In a standoff like this, he might get one bullet into Theo's chest — not that it would take more — but surely as soon as he pulled the trigger the first time, Moot would blow Rusch away.

"Back off," said Rusch. "Back off!"

Jake looked as terrified as Theo felt, but Moot stood his ground. "Drop your weapon. You are under arrest."

Rusch's panic seemed to abate for a moment, as if he was simply stu

"The hell I can't," said Moot.

"What police force are you with?"

"Geneva's."

Rusch actually managed a small, panicked laugh. He jabbed Theo with the gun again. "Tell him where we are."

Theo's insides were churning. He didn't understand the question. "In the Large Hadron — "

Rusch jabbed again. "The country."

Theo felt his heart sinking. "Oh." Damn. God damn it. "We're in France," he said. "The border goes right across the tu

"So," said Rusch, looking at Moot, "you've got no jurisdiction here; Switzerland isn't an E.U. member. If you shoot me outside of your jurisdiction, that's murder."

Moot seemed to hesitate for a moment; the gun in his hand wavered. But then he brought it back to bear directly on Rusch's heart. "I will deal with whatever legalities there are after the fact," said Moot. "Drop your weapon now or I will shoot."

Rusch was standing so close to Theo that Theo could feel his breathing — rapid, shallow. The guy might hyperventilate.