find a crossing or, more accurately, a spiral and use it to travel to the past and back to the present.”
“How do you make the calculations?”
“I built a machine, a computerized space-time machine. I call it a Temporatus. With it I can find a TIF and cross into another temporal slipstream to arrive at a specific time and place.”
“So you’ve traveled to the past?”
He nodded his head. “Twice.
“The first time…” he faltered and then drew in a deep breath. “The first time, Odette, was from a different present… a… a present where the American Agitators, or rather the Founding Fathers, succeeded in starting a revolution and winning. We should be sitting in the Empire State Building. In Manhattan. In New York State. In the United States of America.”
“Odell,” she barely whispered and looked around furtively. “The Americans were put down. Almost all of the Agitators were captured and hung.”
“No they weren’t. In the prime timeline, the real present, the American Revolution gave birth to a democratic movement that swept through Europe. France soon followed suit. You can’t imagine the profound effect it had on the world.”
Odette stared off into the distance and murmured, “ ‘We have it in our power to begin the world over again.’ ”
“What!”
“A quote by Thomas—”
“Paine! I know!” he whispered intensely. “But how do you know?”
She looked at him dazed. “I found some of his work in an old portable writing desk I bought at a street market a few years ago.” Her eyes came back into focus. “While refurbishing it, I sprung a lever and found a false bottom. There were several pamphlets and papers within. All of them written by Thomas Paine.”
“Good God! Where are they now?”
“I put them back in the desk. I figured they’d be safe there.” She grasped his hand fervently. “I’d never even heard of Thomas Paine. Every school kid learns about the American Agitators—traitors like Washington and Jefferson. But Paine… his writings… I could tell they were important. They left me breathless. But it’s like he never existed.”
“He existed alright. His words, like Jefferson’s, Adam’s, and Franklin’s gave voice to the revolution and much more.”
“Franklin?”
“Benjamin Franklin.”
She made a sound like a cross between a snort and a laugh. “Benjamin Franklin? The funny little inventor fellow? But he died long before the American Agitators.”
“He wasn’t supposed to. His death in London is what started this timeline. It’s part of what changed everything.”
A boisterous cheer from the partygoers interrupted them. Odette peered out from between the leaves of the potted plants and saw a group of elaborately dressed men and women sweep majestically into the room.
“It looks like the haut ton has decided to grace us with their presence,” she informed Odell sarcastically. “I can just make out the French Ambassador’s son, but I really can’t see anyone else.” She let the leaves fall back into place. “What kind of world did these revolutions create?”
“I won’t lie to you. It wasn’t a perfect world by far.” He hesitated, searching for the right words. “But it was a world of possibilities… a world of potential. Not this stagnant, wasted society we live in now.” He sneered in the direction of the frivolous aristocrats gathered around the bar.
“It gave men and women rights unheard of before. Monarchies and aristocracies were things of the past. The remnants of these structures hung on. But they were decorations… meaningless. They lacked any true power.”
“Democracy,” Odette quietly mouthed the outlawed word.
He nodded solemnly. “Yes, democracy. In all its messy glory.”
Odette swiveled her head around. “Where’s that blasted waiter? I want another drink.”
Odell pushed a glass of water toward her. “I need you with a clear head.”
“Oh my head’s clear, but it seems my wits are
“How do you make the calculations?”
“I built a machine, a computerized space-time machine. I call it a Temporatus. With it I can find a TIF and cross into another temporal slipstream to arrive at a specific time and place.”
“So you’ve traveled to the past?”
He nodded his head. “Twice.
“The first time…” he faltered and then drew in a deep breath. “The first time, Odette, was from a different present… a… a present where the American Agitators, or rather the Founding Fathers, succeeded in starting a revolution and winning. We should be sitting in the Empire State Building. In Manhattan. In New York State. In the United States of America.”
“Odell,” she barely whispered and looked around furtively. “The Americans were put down. Almost all of the Agitators were captured and hung.”
“No they weren’t. In the prime timeline, the real present, the American Revolution gave birth to a democratic movement that swept through Europe. France soon followed suit. You can’t imagine the profound effect it had on the world.”
Odette stared off into the distance and murmured, “ ‘We have it in our power to begin the world over again.’ ”
“What!”
“A quote by Thomas—”
“Paine! I know!” he whispered intensely. “But how do you know?”
She looked at him dazed. “I found some of his work in an old portable writing desk I bought at a street market a few years ago.” Her eyes came back into focus. “While refurbishing it, I sprung a lever and found a false bottom. There were several pamphlets and papers within. All of them written by Thomas Paine.”
“Good God! Where are they now?”
“I put them back in the desk. I figured they’d be safe there.” She grasped his hand fervently. “I’d never even heard of Thomas Paine. Every school kid learns about the American Agitators—traitors like Washington and Jefferson. But Paine… his writings… I could tell they were important. They left me breathless. But it’s like he never existed.”
“He existed alright. His words, like Jefferson’s, Adam’s, and Franklin’s gave voice to the revolution and much more.”
“Franklin?”
“Benjamin Franklin.”
She made a sound like a cross between a snort and a laugh. “Benjamin Franklin? The funny little inventor fellow? But he died long before the American Agitators.”
“He wasn’t supposed to. His death in London is what started this timeline. It’s part of what changed everything.”
A boisterous cheer from the partygoers interrupted them. Odette peered out from between the leaves of the potted plants and saw a group of elaborately dressed men and women sweep majestically into the room.
“It looks like the haut ton has decided to grace us with their presence,” she informed Odell sarcastically. “I can just make out the French Ambassador’s son, but I really can’t see anyone else.” She let the leaves fall back into place. “What kind of world did these revolutions create?”
“I won’t lie to you. It wasn’t a perfect world by far.” He hesitated, searching for the right words. “But it was a world of possibilities… a world of potential. Not this stagnant, wasted society we live in now.” He sneered in the direction of the frivolous aristocrats gathered around the bar.
“It gave men and women rights unheard of before. Monarchies and aristocracies were things of the past. The remnants of these structures hung on. But they were decorations… meaningless. They lacked any true power.”
“Democracy,” Odette quietly mouthed the outlawed word.
He nodded solemnly. “Yes, democracy. In all its messy glory.”
Odette swiveled her head around. “Where’s that blasted waiter? I want another drink.”
Odell pushed a glass of water toward her. “I need you with a clear head.”
“Oh my head’s clear, but it seems my wits are
Similar Books
