Page 69 of The Devouring Time

Someone pulls the helmet off—Adrian, of course, looking down at me with his brows drawn into a worried frown. Dr. Dane crouches at the machine beside us, a side panel now open and smoke seeping out.

“Blast—it overloaded,” she says.

“Are you all right?” Adrian takes my hands and pulls me to my feet, looking as though he wants to embrace me but is holding back because of our audience. “You were shouting.”

“I heard a voice. That is, I heard a lot of voices, but one sounded clearer. I thought it was talking to me…but I’m not sure.”

“That seems unlikely.” Dr. Dane rises to her feet, dusting off her hands. “Though I suppose if another version of the machine had you or someone else hooked into it, the timelines might be near enough to communicate…” Her brow furrows. “This bears further investigation…after I’ve fixed the machine.”

We return to the lower levels, where Dr. Dane takes her leave of us. “It would have been nice if the machine had worked better,” Helen says as we head out of the building. “Maybe we could have figured out what to do next.”

“Or would there be too many variables?” Adrian counters.

“At least we could weight the dice, as she put it.” Helen pauses as we reach the bottom of the stairs and the sidewalk, currently empty of students. Most classes must be over for the day. “We should probably go back to my apartment, and⁠—”

She’s interrupted by the sound of a motor. A black car speeds toward us, coming to a screeching halt on the curb. The passenger window is rolled down, and a blond woman about Helen’s age leans out. She wears a flat cap and a man’s tweed jacket. In one hand she holds a slender wand wrapped with silver wire and polished stones.

“Helen,” she says by way of greeting. “Get in the car—all of you. Don’t make me ask twice.”

46

Helen folds her arms over her chest. “Mary. I should have known you’d turn up like a bad penny.”

I’m sick of being threatened. “Who the devil are you?”

Mary’s attention goes to Adrian. “I see your hand reaching. If you touch your gun, I’ll set fire to the powder and blow it to smithereens. Probably won’t be too good for your internal organs, given where you’re carrying it.”

Adrian freezes. The wand in her hand—she must be a sorceress like Helen. I briefly consider running up the steps behind us, but the moment to escape, if it ever existed, is past.

So I plow ahead instead. “What do you want from us? Tell me now, or we’re not going anywhere with you.”

Rather than answer directly, she says, “Look me in the eye.”

I glare into her pale blue irises. Maybe if she’s distracted with me, Helen can do something magical.

“By the dark gods, he’s human,” Helen snaps.

Mary sits back, seeming surprised. “You’re right, he is. I guess I owe Dorset an apology.” She considers me a moment. “Maybe you, I suppose, depending on when you were returned.”

Adrian stiffens beside me. “You’re one of the people who’ve been trying to kill us. Like that Irvin fellow in New York.”

“May he rest in dreams forever,” Mary agrees. “I took a shot at you through a window, then chased the two of you down the road that night, with some of my friends.” She tilts her head back slightly, as if to indicate the silent man behind the steering wheel.

I’m torn between outrage and the need for answers. “You know about the Swarm. You oppose them. So do we.”

“We shouldn’t talk about it here.” Mary glances around, as though someone might be spying. “Get in the car.”

“Like hell,” Helen replies.

Mary snorts. “Come on, Hellion. It’ll be like old times.” She winks in my direction. “We roomed together in college.”

It’s clear Helen doesn’t trust Mary. But we need answers—and allies, even if they were trying to kill us not long ago. “If we come with you, are you going to try to murder me?”

Mary looks incredulous. “Why would I do that? I thought you were still one of them. Now I know you aren’t.”

“That didn’t stop Irvin,” Adrian points out coldly.

“Well, he always was a bit of an idiot.” Mary gestures at the back seat with her wand. “I really don’t want to resort to threats, when we’re getting along so well.”