Infinityglass

Chapter 27

Hallie

The rips were coming for me, their pull terrifying and seductive. Impossible to resist.

The veil floated a few tantalizing feet away from my mother, but even though she had her own exotic matter, she didn’t have duronium. Going with them was our only out. I’d just have to have faith that I’d come out on the other side.

And then Dune bellowed Poe’s name.

His knife flew through the air, slicing its way into my mother’s shoulder at the same time the veil swallowed her whole. She stumbled, gagging violently and clutching her head, her eyes rolling back.

As one, the rips swiveled their focus toward her.

Mother flew into the air as if jerked by an invisible string. Once there she floated, parallel to the ground. I would remember the look on her face for the rest of my life. Tears of furious defeat, and eyes wide with terror.

That’s when I realized this possession was different.

Because she was still in the veil. Dune was holding the current steady.

Her body absorbed the rips, and not just their faces. Their bodies, too. We watched as they consumed her. Witnessed her skin melt away, heard her bones break, as she assumed each form.

Every single rip on the boat entered the veil, one by one, reshaping my mother into their images as they did. When they were gone, there was a flash of light and a terrible ripping sound. One keening scream.

Darkness devoured it all, including the veil, leaving behind nothing but the steady sound of paddle wheels churning up the Mississippi.

I stared at the empty air.

I wanted to feel sorry, feel something, but I was numb. Dune put his hand on my arm. “Hallie?”

Then Poe was in front of me, reaching out.

The consequences of one simple touch registered a second before it could happen.

“Stop!” I threw myself against the rail. “Don’t touch me, either of you. Not until I get this necklace off.”

How long would I have to worry about accidentally killing someone I loved?

“She made sure it wasn’t going to come off easily. Fire’s the only thing that’s going to get through it.” Poe held up his hands. “If you want, I can take care of that.”

“Please.” I voiced my other concern. “When will the duronium be out of my system?”

“It shouldn’t take long, especially with your metabolism. You’ll burn it off. Be right back.”

Dune reached for me. In that second, I needed him to touch me more than I needed air in my lungs, but the fear of what I could’ve done by touching him or Poe weighed heavily.

“Just me,” he said. “I’ll move the second Poe comes back on deck.”

I threw myself into his arms, burying my face in his chest, squeezing his waist. Safe. Solid. My anchor.

“I don’t think she’s coming out of the veil,” I whispered, looking up at him.

The unusual sadness in his eyes told me he agreed. “I’m sorry for my part in it. I didn’t know what would happen, but I wasn’t expecting that. I can’t stop thinking that it could’ve been you, Hallie. It could’ve been you.”

“I know.” My mother had been an unwilling sacrifice. That was going to take years to unpack, and trying to deal with it now was pointless. I would focus on the present. “Is everyone okay? Carl—”

“He was on his way to the hospital, and everyone else is fine.”

Poe exited the cabin and conferred with one of the ship hands.

When he turned toward us, Dune let me go and took a step back.

“We’re headed back to shore.” Poe held up a tiny blowtorch. “Ready?”

“I’ll check in with Michael,” Dune said. “Be right back.”

“Stay where I can see you.” I sounded like his mom instead of his girlfriend, but I didn’t care. Was I his girlfriend? The word seemed too simple.

Dune nodded. I should’ve known he’d understand.

“I’m sorry, Hallie.” Poe shoved his free hand in his jeans pocket. “I don’t know what else to say.”

“How did you end up here?”

“Your dad asked for my help. That’s why I was on the boat. When you made him promise not to come straight home, he called me. Thank God Teague still thought I was on her side.”

I couldn’t stop looking at the place she’d been standing when she disappeared. “He was right to send you. I’ll have to tell him she’s dead.”

“Don’t think about it now.”

“I’ll think about it every day for the rest of my life.” I nodded at the blowtorch. “Ready?”

He fired it up. It looked like the kind chefs used to burn the sugar on crème brulees.

“Hold the pendant and use it to lift the chain. It’s going to get hot.”

I shuddered when Poe slipped a finger between the necklace and my skin.

“And Hallie, I didn’t mean anything I said. You know that, yeah?”

“I do.”

“I’m glad you two found each other, jealous even, except for the circumstances. Your grandchildren will never tire of the stories.”

The hiss of the blowtorch kept me from any commentary. The chain was unbearably hot, and the second I felt it give, I jerked it off my neck. “Thank you.”

“Least I could do.” Poe gave me a quick kiss on top of the head and disappeared into the cabin.

“What are you going to do with it?” Dune slid his phone back in his pocket and leaned against the railing.

“Get rid of it.” It was about an inch and a half long, with flower detailing, and an empty setting meant for a stone. Morning sunlight shone off the metal and I caught a hint of shadow. “It’s two pieces. Should I open it?”

“If you want to.” He nodded and took a step closer. “Just be careful.”

I twisted the top of the cylinder. It gave a little, so I applied more force. The lid came off. “There’s something inside.”

Shaking, I emptied the contents into my palm. An hourglass, no bigger than a safety pin. It hummed against my skin.

Dune stared at it for a long moment before meeting my eyes.

“Mom implied I needed this to transfer abilities. I believe you’re looking at the result of your quest,” I whispered.

“No.” He shook his head. “My quest led me to you.”

I slid the hourglass back into its secret home and replaced the lid.

“You sure you don’t want it?” I dangled the pendant from the chain, studying his face.

“I already have everything I want.”

I kissed him, long and hard. Together we walked to the boat railing.

I balled the chain and pendant up, made a wish, and threw them both into the Mississippi.

Dune, March

I met her in front of Saint Louis Cathedral. “Hurry!” Hallie dragged me across Jackson Square. “They’ve been waiting for twenty minutes already.”

“I told you I forgot my wallet and had to go back to the apartment. This is way different from the first time you saw them.”

“Heck, yeah! We’re planning a trip to Hawaii.” She tugged on my hand a little harder. “I’m excited, and you’re as slow as molasses.”

“You’re on the phone or video chat with Em or Lily every day, and you have been for the past three months. We didn’t decide on Hawaii until last week. What were you all talking about all the other times?”

“Hush.”

She silenced me with a kiss, but I started up again as soon as it was over.

“You didn’t give in and tell them about your Newcomb acceptance, did you?” I asked.

“No. Did you tell them about Tulane?”

“Nope.” Just Liam, but he didn’t count, since the information had been part of my resignation letter. He’d given the school transfer and my new job his full blessing. Things were about to change at Chronos.

“Rip alert.” Hallie squeezed my hand. “A pirate, I believe. At four o’clock. Do you see him?”

I searched the crowd. “I don’t.”

“Good.”

Liam, Grace, Michael, and Emerson claimed the rips were back to normal, at least as normal as they’d ever been. Hallie could still see them, but only one at a time, and they only noticed her if she approached them directly.

I wasn’t done with the Skroll. There were still more passages to translate. After the continuum calmed down, we’d learned that an Infinityglass had the power to return individual rips to their places in time.

“Still want to try to send one back?” I asked.

“Eventually.” She gave me a shoulder bump. “But not today. You ready to steer a cruise ship with your mind?”

“I’m willing to walk on the beach with you, but only if you hold my hand.”

“Deal.” She turned to face me, raised up on her toes.

It didn’t mater that we were on the sidewalk, in full view and in the way of locals and tourists alike. When our lips touched, I was lost to everything but her.

“Dune! Dune!” I heard my name and pulled away from Hallie. We both scanned the crowd this time.

“Nate!” He was racing across Jackson Square, faster than he should be, as usual. I didn’t even attempt to be cool. A man hug and a few back slaps later, I heard Hallie clear her throat.

“I see you there.” Nate’s grin had cheeky written all over it as he turned toward her. “I thought my bestie was exaggerating when he told me how sexalicious you are in person. I thought you were a hottie through a computer screen.”

“Nate,” I warned. “I did not use that word.”

“I think I need details of this conversation,” Hallie said.

“Wouldn’t take very much to persuade me to give them to you.”

“Stop. Now.” I tried for stern, but my face gave me away. “I’ll tell my secrets when I’m ready.”

“I’m Nate.” He held out his hand. “And I know all his secrets, in case you’re ready before he is.”

“I’m Hallie. When do I get to see your dance moves?”

“B-boy. More tricks than moves.” He did a couple, and the crowd around us applauded. Show-off.

“Maybe we can trade knowledge on that, too,” Hallie said, after Nate finished taking his bows.

“Let’s cut Dune out of the picture completely. Run away with me, and we’ll live off the tips people put in our upturned fedoras.”

Hallie laughed, wide open, and I watched Nate fall in love. I couldn’t blame him.

“Okay, kids, let’s go. Everyone’s waiting. Betcha can’t keep up.” He took off.

“We can try.” Hallie grabbed my hand.

When we reached Café du Monde, we found Em, Michael, Kaleb, Lily, Nate, Ava, and Poe at an outside table. All seven of them were covered in varied amounts of powdered sugar.

“You’re here!” Em dropped her beignet but held on to her coffee as Hallie hugged her. Lily, less sugary than everyone else, was next.

Once they’d settled down, I pointed to the only girl still seated. “This is Ava.”

“Hi, Ava.” Hallie knew about Ava’s past with Jack. She’d been the one to insist that Nate and Ava be a part of the Hawaii trip, claiming everyone who’d been affected by him deserved a vacation. “I heard you dance, too. Pointe?”

“Mostly contemporary.” Ava’s hands twisted in her lap, and she looked like she didn’t know what to do once the words were out.

“You know, I love contemporary.” Hallie took the empty seat next to Ava. “You’ll have to come to my studio for a dance play date. If that doesn’t sound lame.”

“It doesn’t. It sounds like … fun.” An Ava smile was a rare thing, but Hallie scored one. A few short months ago, Hallie had been the quiet girl at the table. Now she was taking the initiative to draw Ava out.

Kaleb cleared his throat, redirecting the conversation, probably to spare Ava. “My dad says hello, and ‘sends his regrets’ for the Hawaii trip. Mom’s at ninety-nine percent, and he’s not willing to risk the remaining one. Neither am I, and not just so I can take Lily for long walks on the beach without supervision.”

Lily rolled her eyes, but followed up with a kiss to Kaleb’s cheek.

“Down two chaperones.” Nate gave a fist pump. “I like it.”

“No,” Em said. “Down four. Dru’s doctor doesn’t want her to travel, so she and Thomas are staying home so she can rest up before her due date next month.”

Michael and Emerson exchanged a look that wasn’t hard to decode. Endless, unelectrified nature in Hawaii meant a lot of opportunities for two people who couldn’t touch without setting off sparks.

“I think as long as we avoid wayward tiki idols and hungry sharks, we’ll be fine.” Michael swiped the last beignet from the paper plate on the table. “Now we just have to talk plane tickets.”

“I have a solution for that, but it comes with a complication.” Hallie said. “Dad wants to pay for all of them, but only if he gets to come, too.”

No one said anything for a few seconds. Then Nate let out a whoop.

“Please and thank you, yes!” He stood up and did some sort of hip move that looked painful and obscene at the same time. “I’m an orphan, you know. Please, please let Daddy Warbucks know that if he needs a son, I’m not of legal age for two and-a-half more years. I could grow into a strapping young man.”

“You’d have to eat a cow a day to come anywhere close to strapping.” I held up my hands when Nate used the empty paper plate as a frisbee and aimed it toward my head. He missed, and a shower of powdered sugar headed for Ava.

Poe jumped out of his seat and took most of it in the chest.

“Did I stop it?” he asked her. “I tried.”

“I’m fine, but you’re kind of a mess.” Ava grabbed a couple of napkins and tried to help him clean up, but ended up making it worse.

“Believe it or not, the mess is bigger on the inside. Kind of like the TARDIS.”

When Ava laughed, Poe stared at her as if he’d been struck dumb.

There was a moment. My suspicions were confirmed when Hallie’s elbow slammed into my ribs.

“We obviously need more beignets.” I pulled Hallie out of her seat. “This round’s on me.”

She managed to wait until we were out of earshot. Probably. “Did you see that? With Ava and Poe?”

“I can barely breathe from the elbow jab you gave me, so yes.”

“I can’t believe this is my life,” she said. “It’s like one of those teen shows with superpowers and pretty people. And kissing. Lots of kissing.”

“Happy?” I asked.

“You don’t even know.” Joy lit her eyes. “I have everything I’ve ever wanted. Almost.”

I knew she was thinking about her mother.

“I’m learning to let go. Looking forward to the future. To our future.”

I took stock as the bells of the Saint Louis Cathedral pealed through the spring air.

My friends sat at the table, still laughing over the powdered sugar explosion.

Less than a mile away, the Mississippi flowed, holding secrets and sorrows, buried for eternity. Gone, but not forgotten, like so many people I’d loved.

Hallie stood by my side. My reason for breathing, and the answer to every question I’d ever have.

“I couldn’t be happier,” I said.

And this was only the beginning.