Sliptime by Jeffrey Grode

Author:Jeffrey Grode [Grode, Jeffrey]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781718609440
Published: 2018-10-30T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 14

Patrick woke in the phased lab well rested. The cot creaked as he stood.

Visshhhh-click. Amorphous lay on the table.

“Good to see you, Amo. Feeling better?”

“My internal t-processor is 99% operational. The Gray repaired my internal components, but my legs are still damaged.”

“But how do you feel?”

Amo blinked. “Hmmm. I feel relieved to still be here.”

Patrick nodded. “Me too. I need to leave the lab for a while.” His heartbeat seemed elevated. Was he anxious about what, or whom, he might find in his house? “I’ll be back soon.”

“Commander?”

“Yes?”

“If I am not here when you return, it has been an honor knowing you.”

He laid his hand on Amo’s shoulder. “I will see you later, my friend.”

Patrick left the phased lab unsure of what he might find. The calendar book he’d left on the table in his cellar had been taken. After climbing the stairs to the kitchen, he walked around the house and saw the clutter the FBI had left for him. His front door had been battered open and then nailed shut to keep out the weather. What a mess. Jagged wooden splinters lay on the foyer floor. He knew what they were looking for, but felt sure they found nothing. The schema for his inventions and the phase detector were safely tucked away in his secure lab.

His eyes roamed through the house. The décor, the curtains, the pictures, the bedspreads were all the same as when he’d last been home. They were all remnants from his and Betty’s past, but nothing new to show Betty’s penchant for redecorating. Patrick let out a long sigh and felt a mixture of relief and disappointment.

Though his round trip to the past had been an extraordinary scientific breakthrough, he’d erred on the side of caution. He’d chosen to preserve the timeline—past, present, and future—by leaving his wife to her sad fate. Nonetheless, a silent desire nestled within his heart that she might have survived. She hadn’t, but even a small hope, if nurtured, may live for another day. In retrospect, he was thankful for the visit and tempted to see her again. He had the time.

Patrick plugged his cellphone into the charger. It read-Friday, 1:22 p.m. Time flowed faster outside his phased lab. Technically, he was late for work at the S&T lab. Should he call Caliban? Ha! Only if I want to be arrested.

Trying to bring order to his world, he replaced the cushions on the sofa and chairs, the drawers back into the dressers, and slid his mattress back onto the bed. He shaved, took a long shower, and changed clothes.

A large engine whined outside his home. Surprised, he peered through his front window and saw two black sedans parked in his snowy driveway. A truck with an empty flatbed trailer sat in the side yard. Wide tread tracks in the snow led from the trailer to the back of the house.

He hurried to the back window and saw a backhoe digging near the tree line, not far from where the temporary command bunker had been during the OHW.

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