“Then why did you set Rita up as bait?For what?”
Rita was amused to see how easily he did clueless.
Stella looked annoyed, her gaze slanting toward Alastair, but then she must have realized how pointless secrets were in this dystopian place.
“We had reason to believe there were others traveling through time.”
Alastor’s head jerked up.“What?”His whole face came alive.
“It was after you left,” Stella said, with just a hint of “aren’t you sorry now?”
“It could have been the Graven kid.And Ness.”He sagged back, winded.“Trying to get back.”
The name echoed around inside Rita’s head and even Con’s gaze jerked her way.
“Graven?”Con asked.
“Toby Graven.”Alastor spat the name out as if it were poison.
Con looked at Rita, his brows arched, but he didn’t ask.Rita was relieved he didn’t ask.This was not the moment to be related to anyone named Graven.She shrugged as if she didn’t know.And she didn’t, at least, not all of it.Toby?
The name echoed inside her head, spoken in a high, young voice.
“So they could be trying to get home,” Rita said, surprised at how calm she sounded.She was aware that Stella looked at her, but she didn’t out her, at least for now.
“And you made sure they couldn’t,” Stella pointed out, her glance moving pointedly around the square.
Rita found she couldn’t look at Stella, not while wondering if she planned to out her just out of malice.She turned the Butterfly Device over and ran her finger along the cracked lid or cover.It almost seemed as if a light gleamed briefly under it.She tensed, glanced around, but Alastor and Stella were glaring at each other.
Con was pacing again, but he turned, as if he sensed something and came and sat down next to her.
She lifted the cover and saw just a tiny swirl of color at the very center of the splintered dome.
Con grabbed her arm, as if he knew she was going to do it.
She shouldn’t.But she did.
She touched the center with the tip of her finger.
It had been so long since the last time wave, Ty had pretty much quit watching for them, but this one was hard to miss.
It rolled down the highway straight toward them.
“Hold on,” he shouted, gripping the wheel.It looked big enough to flip them over several times.
Ness had time to gasp.If Alice made a sound, he didn’t hear it.
The wave rolled over them.It rocked the camper from side to side and at one point, he thought they were airborne, but they didn’t turn over.
When it passed, they were on a narrow highway and it only took a few seconds to regain control and straighten the camper.
Thankfully there was no other traffic either behind or ahead of them.
But it wasn’t the highway they’d been on.If he had to guess where they were?He pulled to the side of the road and studied the mountains.
He was pretty sure they were in Nevada.
They might even be within an hour or so driving distance from the silo, except for one very large problem.
