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

Chapter forty-five

Elena

This time when I give Kir his Entiac I measure out adose for this newcomer Daniel as well. We have little to say toeach other and it is too much to ask him to stay in his room foreight hours at a time, doing nothing. He is still a child. He doesnot yet know how to fill the expansive hours. He seems relievedwhen I offer him a small plastic cup of liquid, just the rightamount fuller than Kir’s.

I tuck them both into their beds, leavingKir’s door open so I can hear if I need to go to him again. I sitin my comfortable chair and I count to one thousand. Then I steelmyself and stand. My Varya has not visited as she should thisevening. She is avoiding us. But she needs to know about Kir. Shehas been avoiding the inevitable for too long. It’s time for her toface it. Though I know I don’t need to, I hold my breath as I walkthrough the shimmering curtain.

Chapter forty-six

Varya

Varya was unsteady on her feet as she placed the twoempty crystal glasses in the sink and reached for the top cabinet.Two paracetamols for her headache and two time tabs for herfatigue. As she placed the boxes on the counter, she heard a faintsizzling, followed by footsteps. She turned, her heart beating.

“Mama!” Varya stacked the paracetamol on topof the time tab case, guiltily hoping her mother didn’t notice.“Mama, what are you doing?” Alarm replaced the guilt as she glancedat the clock on the wall. “You don’t have much time left on yourChip.” She walked forward and tried to turn her mother around, toreturn her to the safety of the Time Lock. Elena sidestepped herdaughter and drew herself up to face her. Her several inches lessof height did nothing to diminish her authority.

“Then I’ve got plenty of time to talk somesense into my daughter.”

Elena pulled out a kitchen chair and satdown heavily. She nodded to the chair opposite her. Varya loweredherself into it obediently.

“What is it, Mama? What’s happened?”

“Kir has had another seizure.” She said itquietly and calmly but Varya shot up out of her seat and scrambledtoward the door. Elena put her arm out to block the doorway. “He’sokay for now; he’s asleep.” She pointed at the chair this time.“Sit.”

Varya sat but turned to the side, her weighton the balls of her feet, ready to leap up again at any moment.

“I may not be a fancy scientist like you,but I know a thing or two about life. And that, in there…” Elenapoked a finger towards the Time Lock. “That is no life for achild.” She let this sink in for a moment. “He needs other childrento play with, wind on his face, music in his ears. A frozen secondlasting for many years, this is no life for anyone. This isn’t alife at all.”

Varya sat, fidgeting and gazing longingly atthe doorway. “You don’t want to look after him anymore,” she saidsoftly, without turning. “Okay, I’m sorry. I’ll get someone else.Zoe has offered. She can look after them both. If you…”

Elena slapped her palm on the table. Varyaflinched.

“Don’t you dare misunderstand me, girl. Youknow that I would do anything for that little boy. I have doneeverything for our Kir.” She sighed, sorrow outweighing her anger.“But I’m not sure that you’re doing everything you cando.”

“I’m trying, Mama. I really am.”

“Have you asked him yet?”

Varya stilled. She wondered, if she stoppedbreathing altogether, whether her mother would go away and stoptorturing her. It was much easier when she thought of the Time Lockas a one-way door. Varya could leave whenever she wanted to, andher mother could not follow her.

“Soon. I will ask him soon. I just need alittle more time, there have been a few complications…”

“Sweetheart, you’re not listening to me,”Elena said, this time with tears in her eyes. “Our little boydoesn’t have much more time to spare. You need to make adecision.”

“While he’s alive there’s still hope.”

“While he’s alive he’s suffering and he’safraid, my dear girl. And by refusing to ask for help you’re makinghim suffer even more,” she said gently. “Either face his mortalitybravely and comfort him at the end or play your final cards now.Otherwise he’ll be gone, and you won’t have a chance to saygoodbye.”

Varya nodded and swallowed, blinkingrapidly.

“The time thieves are back, Mama.” Sheturned to show her face—and with it the full depth of her fear andgrief—to her mother. “It’s all my fault and I have to fix it. Ihave to fix it first before I can get help for Kir. Then, Ipromise, I’ll ask Sebastian for help.”

Elena nodded too, wanting so fiercely tobelieve her daughter’s words. Knowing that her daughter barelybelieved them herself.

“I’m sorry, my Varya. I know that you feellike you’re to blame for what these evil people do to children. Andyou believe that Kir’s illness is your fault. But just rememberthis: you are not the all-powerful God. You cannot takeresponsibility for such things. You are not the sun around whicheverything revolves. But you are Kir’s sun, and he wants his Mamato be with him very much.”

Elena glanced at the clock. Varya followedher gaze.

“I’ll get some medicine to try to stop theseizures for a while. Zoe will help, I’m sure. You go back to theTime Lock now, and keep yourself safe as well,” said Varya.

Elena stood and held out her arms to Varya.Varya walked forward and allowed herself to be enfolded for thesecond time that night. This time she found a sense of peace shehadn’t with Sebastian. Her mother knew all her faults and all hersecrets. She couldn’t hide anything from her, not really, unlikeSebastian. Elena moved back and held Varya at arm’s length. Shelooked at her for a moment, then shook her slightly.

“When this is all over, when you’ve curedour Kir, you’ll need to find a way to let me go, too. Rememberthat.”

Varya nodded and smiled weakly. “Not yetthough, Mama. Not yet.”

“Soon.”

Varya waited for the tell-tale sizzle thatlet her know her mother was safely back in suspended animation.Then she