Time's Edge

“As I discovered last night, Carrington Day is a Cyrist school. I don’t know if it’s officially owned by the Cyrists, but the party was held at the home of Eve Conwell. Her grandparents have this larger-than-life painting of Prudence in their living room, with her pregnant belly sticking out. It was like looking in a weird fun-house mirror.”

“So I take it you didn’t stay long,” Dad says.

“Correct. Trey needed to speak with this teacher who’s retiring from Briar Hill, but we left just after.”

“Harvey Tilson, right? He’s been out on sick leave since I started teaching.”

“Yes. Whoever decided to hold his retirement party and the Carrington Day welcome at the same time clearly didn’t ask for his input. He was livid. Said he’d spent decades researching those charlatans, and let’s just say he thinks the merger is a bad idea. That it’ll turn Briar Hill into a propaganda tool.”

“That probably is a risk for science, although I’d think it’s a bigger issue for social sciences. But I doubt it will affect my department. How would you politicize math?”

Co

We toss around a few more word problem possibilities. None of them are particularly fu

“Well,” Co

“No, it doesn’t. Eve’s memory wasn’t wiped—she remembered our encounter at the temple. And Prudence seems to be using her as a messenger. They’re watching me, and I don’t think Pru’s exactly happy with what she’s seeing. I don’t know if this has to do with me working with Kiernan or what, but Eve said my aunt was very concerned that I focus on my studies, instead of what she called ‘extracurricular activities.’ Which reminds me, have you noticed the blue van outside? The one that’s always parked at the curb?”

“You mean the one that belongs to the guy next door?” Co

“I guess. You’re sure about that? I’ve gotten a weird feeling . . .”

“Yes. I’ve talked to the guy. Kate, you know as well as I do that the Cyrists don’t need a surveillance van to see who’s coming and going. All they have to do is set up a stable point and have someone with the CHRONOS gene monitor it for activity.”

“Yes. But you can’t hear them. For that, you’d need the type of equipment that you might be able to hide in a van. But whether they’re watching from a van or a stable point doesn’t matter—either way, they’ll know if I’m not going to school. We’re in a state of truce right now. If they see me stepping out of line, things are going to heat up really, really fast.”

“All the more reason to hunker down and get this over with,” Co

Dad gives me a meaningful glance over his shoulder. Your call, don’t let him bully you.

“Maybe,” I say. “But school starts on Tuesday, which leaves today and Labor Day. I’m still researching the other two jumps, and there are only so many times I can repeat the same day. I pulled several seventy-two-hour days last week, and unless I start sleeping in the past or sleeping less than eight hours, it’s going to be hard to cram much more than three days into one twenty-four-hour slot. And that’s doubly true if I’m going to avoid bumping into myself. Since Katherine said that’s a bad idea and Kiernan’s pretty certain it’s a key reason Prudence is now several fries short of a Happy Meal, I’d kind of like to avoid it.”

“So you think it’s a good idea for you and Harry to just stroll into Briar Hill every day? Like nothing has happened?”

“I’m not sure we have a choice, Co

“Ick.”

“Or somewhere remote, and hope and pray they don’t find us,” he continues, giving me an a

Co

“Co

As I’m finishing the sentence, I realize there was a third thing. Be nice to your mother.

“It wasn’t Katherine,” I say softly.

Co

“Mom’s trip. I thought—”

“Why would you think Katherine was co

“And,” Dad adds, “if you thought that, why didn’t you say something earlier?”

“Well, Mom wouldn’t have gone if she thought it had anything to do with Katherine, and she was so happy about the grant. And I didn’t have any proof . . .”

“You definitely didn’t,” Co

“Something Prudence said at the Expo. I think maybe Prudence arranged the trip to be sure Mom is far away from here.”

Dad looks alarmed. “Then we need to let Deborah know. She could be in danger.”

I shake my head. It’s more of a gut feeling than anything solid, but I don’t believe Prudence would endanger Mom. She might be willing to let us think she would, but . . .

“Prudence won’t hurt her. Whatever she may think about Katherine, or about me for that matter, she doesn’t hold it against Mom. If anything, I think Prudence took Mom out of the picture to keep her safe. I don’t know about you, but I’m pretty okay with that, at least until this is all over.”

Dad still looks skeptical.

“That doesn’t mean I’m not going to call her right now,” I say, “because this kind of creeps me out.”

I put my plate in the sink and grab my tablet. That reminds me why I brought it downstairs in the first place, so I turn back to Co

“Like what?” Co

“Like me. Like Prudence. Obviously, when I’m at school being a good, little sheep, it doesn’t matter. But when I’m doing things that are potentially truce breaking, it’s kind of dumb not to use a little subterfuge. Hair color? Floppy hat? Fake glasses?”

They both nod, but I don’t think they get the full picture. Of course, they didn’t see the look the woman at the barbecue gave me when I bumped her plate. It was almost like I’d honored her by knocking fruit onto her shoe.

A phone rings, and Dad pulls his cell out of his pocket. “Oh. It’s my mom.”

For a weird moment, I think he means Evelyn, and then I realize it’s Grandma Keller. “Tell her hello for me,” I say as he heads into the living room.

I pull up the image search from earlier and slide the tablet over to Co