Stealing Time by Rebecca Bowyer (acx book reading .txt) 📕

he can’t get to thelocation just yet. He won’t tell me where it is.”

Elena smiled. “That’s our Reginald, alwaystrying to protect everyone.”

Marisa took a cleaned dish and wiped in slowcircles. “He wants to talk to you.”

“Oh?”

“Something about making plans for thefuture.”

“Ah, yes. The future.” Elena placed the lastplate on the draining board, dried her hands and sat back down atthe table.

“He wants me to bring him to youtonight.”

Elena sighed. “Yes, yes. Bring him in. I’llmake sure the children are asleep.”

Marisa gathered the clean plates in her armsand bit her lip. “What plans are you making, Elena?”

Elena waved her away. “Nothing you need toworry about now. Just know that, when the time comes, we won’tforget about you.”

Marisa frowned and opened her mouth toprotest but then sighed and closed it again. Elena was every bit asstubborn as her daughter.

“I’ll be back with Reg in three hours,then,” she finally said.

Chapter thirty-four

Daniel

“Nanna, Nanna! I won snakes and ladders! And now I’mready for my Entiac!” Kir came racing around the corner of theliving room and crashed into his grandmother’s knees. He giggledand placed his head in her lap.

Elena sighed and reached behind her for alarge brown bottle which sat on top of the piano.

“Has Yappy Dog cleaned his teeth?” sheasked.

“Yes!” shouted Kir.

“And has Teresa the Wonder Sheep gone to thetoilet?” Elena poked the boy in the side gently. He collapsed onthe floor in a puddle of giggles.

“Yes!” he cried, elated.

Elena took a deep breath but then held itand winked at Daniel. Kir sat up and blinked rapidly at her,expectantly.

“Rooster!” she called out. “Rooster, haveyou chosen a bedtime story?” She cupped her hand around her ear.Kir listened intently as well. Daniel looked around, unsure whatwas happening. Elena leaned forward, her chin almost touching herknees. “Rooster says he wants to read Goodnight Moon. Thatokay with you?” she whispered.

Kir nodded and held both hands up to hismouth, as though he could stuff his laughter back in. “Yes,” hewhispered, leaning forward, and touching her forehead.

Elena stood up suddenly, bottle in hand.“Then off to bed we go!” To Daniel she said, “I’ll be back in aboutten minutes.”

Daniel sat and waited, listening to Kir’slaughter settle down. Elena’s words became progressively softer andthen morphed into a lullaby. Eventually, there was silence.

“What’s Entiac?” he asked her when shereturned to her chair.

She regarded him as though she’d forgottenhe was there, then closed her eyes.

“It stands for Night-Time In A Cup.”

“Oh.”

She opened both eyes again and looked at himcuriously. “Do you feel tired?”

“A little,” he admitted. It wasn’t a hugeneed for sleep, more a weariness born of confusion and stress.

“I’m sorry, then. You will probably feel alittle tired until you leave the Time Lock, if that’s how you camein.” She sighed and shut her eyes again. “Entiac is a sleepingdraught. Kir came into the Time Lock shortly after he’d woken upfrom a nap, and about an hour after he’d taken medication whichstopped the symptoms of his illness. Especially the pain. Thedownside, for me, is that it means his energy never runs down.”

“He’s always that bouncy?”

She nodded and sighed softly. “He’s alwaysthat bouncy.”

“But you came in tired?”

Elena shook her head. “No, I came in as wellrested as a sixty-four-year-old can be. I don’t get particularlytired either. But I do get worn down. I love that little boy likenothing else, but even I can’t answer his incessant questions everyminute of every hour for years on end.” She raised her eyebrows athim pointedly. “Perhaps you’d like a rest too?”

“Oh. Yes, I’m sure a rest would be good.” Hestood quickly, feeling as though he’d been caught doing somethinghe shouldn’t. “I’ll, um, go to my room then.”

Elena nodded her approval. “I’ll let youknow when to come out. If you prefer a sleeping draught—some‘Entiac’ as Kir calls it—let me know.”

He shook his head. He’d had enough of beingdrugged and losing time these past few days.

“Good night, then,” said Daniel, glancingover Elena’s shoulder at the bright sunlight streaming through thewindow.

“Good night.”

Sometime later—maybe half an hour, maybethree times that, it was hard to tell—Daniel thought he smelledsomething odd, like burning plastic. He removed the headphones hewas wearing and listened. He heard nothing and the smell seemed togrow fainter the more he breathed it in. He frowned and put theheadphones back on, watching episodes on an old DVD player of akids’ cartoon from five years ago. It was enough to keep his mindfrom straying for the moment, but he hoped his mum or Varya couldfind him some more age-appropriate viewing when they next came tovisit. He had no idea how long he would be stranded here, and noidea how much time had passed outside the Time Lock either. Hechewed his lip again and turned the volume up, determined not tothink about it.

They were all treating him like he mightshatter at any moment, as though he’d gone through a traumaticexperience. There hadn’t been a spare moment to explain to themthat, actually, he didn’t really remember anything. He rememberedbeing at school, hearing the bell ringing but after that it was ablank screen until he showed up at his own front door. At first,when he saw his mother’s panicked face, he thought something hadgone wrong at the hospital, another kid had died maybe. His mumalways told people she dealt with it just fine, it was part of thejob, she was glad she could make their passing a little morecomfortable, a little more dignified. But he always knew when thestrain was becoming too much. He’d stopped asking, though, when hehadn’t been able to get proper answers from her. In the end, askingonly brought more attention down on his own head, as though itcould have been him lying in that hospital bed, the life ebbing outof him.

And now… now, it was him.

He didn’t feel any different. Nothing hurt,there was no distress. He supposed he should feel fear at his closescrape with death. But it was such an intangible idea, that hecould no longer exist in just a few hours if he stepped outside ofthe Time Lock.

The Time Lock itself was what had himabsolutely fascinated. He’d always got the