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A solitary wet drop is at the bottom of the pitcher.
It’s not enough. Not even close. But it’s something.
Another growing drop is dangling from the opening of the tube, getting heavier as the moisture builds.
“Is it Glow?” I ask, my voice breathless with excitement. “Did we do it right?”
“There’s only one way to find out.” Ellister leans forward and licks the droplet before it can fall.
He makes a sound like he’s hurt.
“What’s the matter?” I sure as hell hope we didn’t accidentally make some poison or something.
After smacking his lips, Ellister answers. “It’s hot. I think I burned my tongue.”
“Oh.” I deflate with relief. “Well? Do you feel anything? How long will it take before you know? Does it taste like we did it right?” I scrutinize the air behind him while I ask, “And if it’s Glow, is it going to send you swirling?”
My impatient interrogation makes him smile a little. “Give it some time to kick in. Sometimes it takes a minute. And no. That little amount might charge my power a bit, but I won’t be out of control. I’d need at least an ounce or two for that.”
I hold my breath as I wait. I’m wringing my hands, nibbling my lip, and hopping on the balls of my feet.
In the seconds that pass, I watch another drop gather, and I mentally calculate how long it will take to accumulate enough Glow for Ellister to travel to the future.
To be on the safe side, we should probably plan to produce double his original estimate. It’d be a good idea to have three or four ounces at our disposal, just in case he needs to time travel more than once.
“What happens if we don’t make enough?” I ask. “Would we get stuck in a vortex?”
Ellister chuckles like my concern is silly. “No. We’d just get dumped wherever and whenever my energy runs out.”
“Would that be okay?”
“As long as we make it past the time the universe splits, yes. However, living very far from your own era on Earth isn’t advisable. The human realm is extremely sensitive to magical shifts. I suspect we would severely disrupt many outcomes if we show up in the past, previous to your original birth date.”
“When you say ‘severely disrupt outcomes,’ do you mean you think if we interfered with the past, there’s a good chance certain people might not even be born?” It’s easy to conclude because of all the time travel movies I’ve seen. “People like my parents.”
“I’m almost certain of it. The reason our presence in Valora isn’t detrimental to this world is because this is where my magic originated. It belongs here. There’s order in the chaos of my power. As long as you and I don’t come into contact with very influential people, we won’t disturb the future. But know this, Hannah.” His eyes get dark, his voice low and serious. “I’ll do what I must to save you. If that means altering the future, in your world or in mine, then so be it.”
In a blink, I picture a world without my mom and dad. Without Jack. Without Cody or Cathy or so many of the customers I’ve come to know.
I think about the barn packed full at my fundraiser, and I can’t imagine one face missing—not even Faith’s.
Another plink comes as the new drop is added to the pitcher, and my excitement inflates.
At approximately one drop a minute… while fighting against possible evaporation in this heat… It’s going to take 48-72 hours, but we already assumed that.
The important thing is that it’s happening.
At least, I hope it is. I’m still waiting on Ellister’s confirmation.
When he grins triumphantly at me, I squeak out a happy noise.
“We did it?” I clasp my hands together. “We made Glow?”
“Youdid it, Hannah. You fucking did it!” Ellister lunges for me.
Forgetting about the rules he set, he picks me up, swings me around, and plants excessive kisses on my face.
Beyond happy, I laugh against his mouth. “We’re going home. We’re going to get to go home.”
