I looked back over my shoulder at the tiny bundle in my mother’s arms. What would I sacrifice to keep her safe?
“Yeah,” I said. “I guess it was.”
“We were sore worried.” Phoebe lay curled next to me on the starched hospital sheets. “When you and Bran just popped in like that.”
I nodded, though the motion made my head hurt. Still, it was nothing compared with the sharp throb in my chest, as if my heart had been scooped out and replaced with a tangled ball of needles.
“I was down in the watch room,” Doug, his bulk perched awkwardly on a tiny rolling stool, explained, “when suddenly every line on the monitors turned red. That’s when I knew you must’ve found the Nonius Stone. It was the only explanation. I flew down and powered up the machines. There was this enormous blast that rocked the whole house. Then the two of you just . . . appeared.”
The glance that passed between him and Collum set my teeth on edge. “What?” I asked. “What’s wrong?”
Collum still looked washed out after minor surgery to repair the damage to his arm. He’d be in a sling for a few weeks, but the doctors thought there would be no permanent damage.
“There’s a problem with the Tesla device,” Doug said. “The diagnostics show some damage. I can’t know for sure. I think it’ll go for a couple more voyages, but nothing is certain.”
Phoebe raised herself up on an elbow and looked at me, her small, freckled face so serious. “Cheese an’ crackers, Hope. When you did that—gave up your lodestone—I’ve never been so scared,” she said. “I don’t know that I could’ve done it.”
“Reckless.” Collum rose and moved to the edge of the bed. “Stupid. Rash.” A ghost of a smile flickered over his mouth as he reached down to squeeze my hand. “And the bravest thing I’ve ever seen.”
Lucinda was waiting for me at the kitchen table when Mac brought me home to Christopher Manor.
“Sit,” she said. “Please.”
Strangely numb, I shuffled over and slid onto the wooden bench across from her. Deep purple ringed her eyes beneath a matching plum-colored turban. Her face seemed thinner, the skin tinged yellow and pulled tight across her broad cheekbones.
Two days earlier, Mac, perched quietly in a straight-backed chair by my hospital bed, had finally told us what was ailing my aunt. “Lu don’t want a fuss made, mind,” he said, “so keep your opinions to yerself.”
Apparently, while on a trip to the thirteenth century, Lucinda had picked up a blood disorder that had no modern equivalent. Akin to a rare kind of leukemia, it did not respond to any known treatment. They’d researched all they could, but there was little information to find. A dear friend of Lucinda’s, a doctor in Edinburgh, knew all about the Viators and was doing all she could. But at this point, Mac said, only frequent blood transfusions were staving off the inevitable.
“I want you to know that I was quite impressed with the job you did,” my aunt said. “This mission was a success, in no small part due to your efforts. You protected the members of your team. You brought your mother back. And you’ve kept the Nonius Stone out of Celia’s hands.” I couldn’t be sure, but I thought I saw pride skim over her features. “In quite a unique fashion, I must say.”
Frowning, I remembered the moment the Nonius had slipped from Bran’s fingers and tumbled away into the Dim.
“You must realize, however, that it’s likely the stone will reenter the timeline somewhere,” Lucinda went on.
I nodded. I’d already thought of that, wondered about it.
“Celia’s clever,” Lucinda said. “She’ll realize it soon enough. And she’s brought in some hard men who will stop at nothing to locate the stone. Her mind, you see, is warped by jealousy. We tried to help her once, to make her feel part of us, but she just couldn’t accept it.”
Lucinda sat straighter in her chair. “Our task now is to ensure that the Timeslippers never get their hands on the Nonius Stone. For without our interference, I fear they may alter the timeline in ways we cannot imagine.”
Silence fell between us as I remembered the little Carlyle girls, lost forever by one thoughtless act. Yes, Celia had to be stopped.
Lucinda was watching me carefully. “Hope,” she said, “you have proven your abilities beyond anything we expected. I have spoken with your mother, and though it frightens her, she believes it is your right to make up your own mind.”
“About what?”
“We could use someone with your knowledge and unique gifts.” Lucinda’s blunt fingers gripped the edge of the table. “I’m asking you to join the Viators, Hope.”
I stared down at the table. The offer spun before me, tantalizing and horrifying all at once. Could I actually go through that hell again? What kind of insane person would even think of choosing such a life?
Without waiting for a response, Aunt Lucinda slid off the bench. “I’ll give you some time to think it over.” At the door, she turned. “But might I make a suggestion?” She glanced at the silvery glass of the kitchen window. “The river is especially lovely by moonlight. Perhaps you should consider taking a ride.”