“How longexactly?” Parker yells, and I wince.
“Almost ten months,” I say, so softly I’m surprised he hears. He draws in a sharp breath. “It took McGregor much longer. I’ve been jumping forward a month or so at a time, checking in and tracking his progress. Giving him blood.” Mariella’s blood, but Parker doesn’t need to know that. “I want to take you to him now.” His frown eases as my words sink in. “Parker, if this works, McGregor says you’ll have your traveling back tonight.”
His eyes flash, but he keeps his arms crossed. “Fine,” he mutters, stepping toward me.
We stare at each other for a moment as the downpour eases. His strong jaw flexes, the glow in his eyes lacking their tint of amusement.
“I missed you,” I say.
“Obviously not enough,” he grumbles.
“If it’s any consolation, it’s been a brutal year. And no matter what happens after this, I don’t want us to go our separate ways.” The words spill out of me. I’d planned to wait until his powers were restored, but what if it doesn’twork? I need him to know, no matter what, he can trust me the way I trust him.
“What?” he says. His wide eyes search mine.
I wipe the dark, wet strands of hair from my face. “My parents abandoned me as a baby, so I’ve always thought… I was meant to be alone. Like some fucked-up part of me thought it was what I deserved. Then we went to Neurovida and I got comfortable, and Matthews screwed us over, and Flame—I couldn’t let anyone in and risk being abandoned again. I thought being alone would be easier… I was wrong. I’m sorry for pushing you away. And…” I force the last words out, low and rushed. “You’re my family too.”
He’s silent for a moment, his light brown eyes boring into mine. He tilts his head, cocking a wet brow. “You haven’t turned soft, have you?”
A smile tugs at my lips. “I mean, if I’m begging to have you back, my situation’s obviously dire.”
“Obviously.” The corner of his mouth kicks up into a smirk, one I’ve deeply missed, but it fades. “Rose, there’s something I need to tell you.”
“Okay.” I’m ready. Whatever Parker’s plan is, I trust him.
“When I get my powers back…” He runs a hand through his hair. “I want to reunite the Alphas.”
Warmth rushes through my chest. He wants us all together again. It might not be the same as before, but—
“Yes,” I say. This is far better than anything I’d anticipated. I was expecting Parker to tell me he was staying in the past with Ella or had some crazy plan to bring her with us back to our time. But this? It’s a dream come true.
“Allthe Alphas. Besides Matthews,” he adds. “And I want to go back to Neurovida.”
“But—they shot at us, Parker. They think we’re traitors. We can’t go back.”
“We’ll expose Matthews before he turns Neurovida against us,” Parker says, his eyes wide. “Beforeeverything.”
“What?” I stare at him.
“I want to change the past,” he says.
And there it is.The secret he’s kept from the moment he saw Ella. The heat in my chest dissipates. “You can’t. It’s impossible.”
“We don’t know that,” he argues, stepping toward me.
“Yes. We do. It’s the first thing we learned at Neurovida,” I say.
“But what if they were wrong?” His eager eyes search mine. “I believe there’s a reason we have this gift, Rose, other than to sit around and rewatch our lives. A reason each time traveler has special skills that are unique only to them.”
“What if there’s not? How many memories are you going to damage before you accept defeat? How long are you going to spend playing God?”
His voice lowers. “As long as it takes to save her.”
My stomach drops with my exhale. “Parker—I’m fucking tired. I just want to go somewhere that feels remotely safe andexistfor a while. I don’t want to spend the rest of my life meddling in the past.” I turn away from him. “I’m not cut out for it.”
“I’ll carry you,” he says, placing a hand on my shoulder. “You won’t have to travel anymore. I’ll do it for you. You can rest.”
I shake my head. “What you’re asking… it’s a pipe dream.”
