Making time, p.1
Making Time, page 1
Making Time
Lost Time Book Two
Nicola Claire
Copyright © 2018, Nicola Claire
All Rights Reserved
© Cover Art by Cora Graphics
This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places and incidents are products of the writer's imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales or organisations is entirely coincidental.
All rights are reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the author.
ISBN: 978-0-473-44360-3
Created with Vellum
Contents
About the Author
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Also By Nicola Claire
Description
1. Shit
2. Where Was Mimi?
3. Not Again
4. And I Hit The Button
5. At Least It Wasn’t Russia
6. But Where Were They Now?
7. Nothing To See Here
8. Something’s Not Right
9. Willingly
10. Just Like That
11. Looks Like That Bullet Had Finally Caught Up With Me
12. Can’t Say I Didn’t Try
13. Ah, Maybe?
14. Why Did He Do This To Me?
15. Tell Me About Your Dream
16. It Was Kinda Like This
17. Too Late
18. This Could Be Quite Convenient
19. That Can’t Be Good
20. Out Of The Way!
21. We Could Still End This
22. And End It Now
23. Including My Family
24. I Started Running
25. I Could Handle Mikaela Pratt
26. It Would Seem So, Doctor
27. Are You All Right?
28. If Only I Could Scare Sergei Just As Easily
29. I Wasn’t Sure
30. Time Would Tell
31. Why?
32. You Get Used To It
33. Even I Knew That Was Wishful Thinking
34. Everyone Had History
35. Wiping Out Every Single Surgeon, Intern And Novitiate We Had
36. Are You OK, Mouse?
37. My Luck’s Not Been So Good, Jack
38. Not A Word, Novitiate
39. He Lied To Me
40. I’m Not The Mouse People Think I Am
41. So I Waited
42. Just What The Hell Had Sergei Done To This Time?
43. Mimi
44. Stop Calling Me Darling
45. What?
46. Hello, Jack
47. This Was A Surgeon’s Mess
48. And I Kissed Him Like He Was My Everything
49. In Or Out Of My Dreams
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About the Author
Nicola Claire lives in beautiful Taupo, New Zealand with her husband and two young boys.
She's tried her hand at being a paramedic, bank teller and medical sales representative, (not all necessarily in that order), but her love of writing keeps calling her back.
She has a passion for all things suspenseful, spiced up with a good dollop of romance, as long as they include strong characters - alpha males and capable females - and worlds which although make-believe are really quite believable in the end.
There's nothing better than getting caught up in a compelling, intriguing and romantic book.
When she's not writing or reading, she's out on her family boat at Lake Taupo, teaching her young boys to fish, showing them the beauty that surrounds them in nature and catching some delicious trout for dinner.
Creating rich worlds with dynamic characters and unexpected twists that shock and awe has been pure bliss for this author. And just as well, because there's a lot more story yet to tell...
For more information:
www.nicolaclairebooks.com
nicola@nicolaclairebooks.com
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Starter Library
Also By Nicola Claire
Kindred Series
Kindred
Blood Life Seeker
Forbidden Drink
Giver of Light
Dancing Dragon
Shadow's Light
Entwined With The Dark
Kiss Of The Dragon
Dreaming Of A Blood Red Christmas (Novella)
Mixed Blessing Mystery Series
Mixed Blessing
Dark Shadow
Rogue Vampire (Coming Soon)
Sweet Seduction Series
Sweet Seduction Sacrifice
Sweet Seduction Serenade
Sweet Seduction Shadow
Sweet Seduction Surrender
Sweet Seduction Shield
Sweet Seduction Sabotage
Sweet Seduction Stripped
Sweet Seduction Secrets
Sweet Seduction Sayonara
Elemental Awakening Series
The Tempting Touch Of Fire
The Soothing Scent Of Earth
The Chilling Change Of Air
The Tantalising Taste Of Water
The Eternal Edge Of Aether (Novella)
H.E.A.T. Series
A Flare Of Heat
A Touch Of Heat
A Twist Of Heat (Novella)
A Lick Of Heat (Coming Soon)
Citizen Saga
Elite
Cardinal
Citizen
Masked (Novella)
Wiped
Scarlet Suffragette Series
Fearless
Breathless
Heartless
Blood Enchanted Series
Blood Enchanted
Blood Entwined
Blood Enthralled (Coming Soon)
44 South Series
Southern Sunset
Southern Storm
Southern Strike (Coming Soon)
Lost Time Series
Losing Time
Making Time
Stitching Time (Coming Soon)
The Sector Fleet
Accelerating Universe
Apparent Brightness
Right Ascension
Zenith Point
For:
Mr Taffs, my high school History teacher,
who gave me a passion for the past
while guiding me through the present,
with a guitar on his hip, a smile on his face,
and the singing voice of an angel.
I applaud you!
“Fideliter”
Description
“Time is fluid. It is malleable. That is why we can mend it. But if we’re not careful, we can also influence it. If we’re in the incorrect location and time, stepping out of this Orion module could have drastic consequences on Time itself. We don’t break Time, Miss Wylde; we fix it.”
Recovering from shocking revelations regarding her family, Mimi Wylde settles into the position of Novitiate at the Royal Academy of Time Surgeons. But when a routine trip back in time goes disastrously wrong, stranding her in the past and sending her commanding officer into a future too bizarre to be believed, Mimi has to race against Time itself to fix things.
But there are consequences to surfing Time's waves, as Dr Jack Evans will attest to. So, when Mimi goes missing, and RATS comes under attack, he knows that Time has been tampered with. It doesn’t help that Orions are reappearing and disappearing with alarming frequency; complicating things. He knows who’s behind it, but can Jack stop him? And can he save Mimi and RATS before Time decides to step in?
Because if Time gets involved, the solution will be far worse than any of them can possibly imagine. The race is on, but who will win? RATS or Time or their mutual enemy?
"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams."
Eleanor Roosevelt
1
Shit
Mimi
That was the last time I was playing poker with Sally Groves while drinking a fifth of tequila. The woman was a card sharp. A verifiable Cincinnati Kid. Sod those innocent eyes and softly rounded vowels; Sally Groves possessed an evil inner core the devil would be proud of, and she'd well and truly unleashed her claws on me last night.
So, today I was suffering for my gullibility.
"Close the blasted hatch, Wylde," Sebastian Winchester growled. "Make yourself at least somewhat useful."
I suppressed the sigh that wanted out and did the good Surgeon's bidding. My eyes connected with Dean Jordan’s sympathetic ones outside Orion 3; our time travel machine of choice for today. The door closed with a resounding clank, and I spun the heavy wheel that secured it in place, then turned around to take in my teammates.
Sebastian sat in the commander’s chair, or in the case of RATS, the Surgeon’s chair. To his right sat Michael Jessop, the Intern on today’s flight. To the left was the Novitiate’s seat. My seat. At least, my seat for today.
I was never going to play for shift swaps ever again. At least with Sally.
“Coordinates check,” Jessop said, scratching at what looked to be a rash forming on the side of his neck.
I blinked at him, and he smiled shyly.
“Sit the hell down, Wylde,” Winchester growled.
I jumped and did his bidding - again - struggling to connect the buckle on my seatbelt. Over. Under. Under. What the eff had Sally said about securing seatbelts?
“For the love of all things holy would you help out Wylde, Jessop,” Winchester all but shouted into the MPCV.
“Yes, sir,” Jessop said with far more enthusiasm than the situation warranted.
“Right. Left. Under. Over,” he murmured, taking the seatbelt out of my hands.
I could smell his fried sausage and Worcestershire sauce from breakfast this morning. Mixed with orange juice and mint toothpaste. I nodded my head and turned my face away; my eyes landing on the main screen in the Crew Vehicle.
A massive sine wave stood centre stage, the peaks and troughs accentuated by the in-your-face rescue orange shade.
“Is this a category one rip, then?” I asked.
Jessop opened his mouth to reply when Winchester beat him to it.
“This will go a lot better for everyone if you just shut the fuck up.”
My eyes met Jessop’s. His cheeks were now a vibrant shade of crimson. He looked away and turned toward his seat, saying nothing. I crossed my arms over my chest and glared at the back of Winchester’s head. He ignored me, which was better than being yelled at, I guess.
“Input those coordinates, Jessop,” Winchester demanded.
“Yes, sir.”
“Check engines,” Winchester added.
“Engines, check.”
“Check controls.”
“Controls, check.”
“Start automatic ground launcher sequence.”
“Ground launch sequencer is go for auto sequence launch.”
I snorted. I didn't mean to. Jack never used such archaic launch language when I flew with him. At the most, he’d say something like, “Ready?” Rafe’s launch sequence, on the other hand, involved cheerfully slung directives such as, “Buckle up! This could get bumpy.”
But neither of them ever went through this rigmarole.
“Something on your mind, Wylde?” Winchester demanded.
“No, sir,” I said sweetly.
“Then shut up,” he threw over his shoulder.
“Sir. Yes, sir,” I said and saluted.
Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Jessop had now gone a ghostly shade of white. Winchester hesitated with his hand over the launch button. His shoulders hunched. His back rigid. Any second now, steam would start emitting from both ears.
He turned in his seat and stared at me; a derisive look on his face. Sebastian Winchester was a good looking man; tall, dark hair, strong jawline, crystal blue eyes. But right then, he was giving Sally’s inner devil a run for her money.
I swallowed past a dry throat and attempted a self-deprecating smile.
“You seem to be under the false impression,” Winchester said snidely, “that you have something to offer the Royal Academy of Time Surgeons. But you are nothing of note, Miss Wylde. You have no more skill than a layperson on the street. Your presence at RATS is purely because you are out of time. You are neither educated nor naturally talented, and sleeping with a senior Surgeon will not aid you in your climb to the top.”
“I’m not…”
“Don’t interrupt me!” he snarled. “I can make your life here very difficult should I so choose. So tread very carefully, Miss Wylde. And pull your bloody head in! You are not a real Time Surgeon. You are nothing but a trick of time travel, a causal loop we have never encountered before.”
I sat very still in my seat. Jessop looked at his hands as they rested in his lap. Winchester drilled me with a look of distrust that bordered on disgust.
“I have my orders,” he said in a deceptively soft voice. “And I will follow them. But one step out of line from you and I will send you back where you came from and to hell with Clive Crawford. Chief Surgeon or no, I will not tolerate insubordination on my Crew Vehicle. Do I make myself clear?”
“Crystal,” I said.
He looked at me for a moment longer and then turned back to the console.
The sine wave had grown. The international orange shade seemed to throb with menace.
“Time?” Winchester said; obviously to Jessop and not me.
I picked at fluff on my overalls and tried to blink away the tears that were threatening.
“1982,” Jessop replied.
“Good. Let’s do this.”
And then Winchester hit the launch button.
Outside a nebula would have been forming. Red and green and vibrant yellows. A cloud of space-like debris floating around the Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle, shrouding it in a thousand sparkling stars. The sound of rocket engines roared, my ears popped, then a weight pressed me back in my seat and silence descended.
It didn’t matter how many times I did this; I never got used to space travel. Or as close to space travel as I could get. There was still an International Space Station orbiting Earth in this time. But space flight was not for the public. Not that the Royal Academy of Time Surgeons was considered a private enterprise. We were subject to governmental oversight and NASA enquiries just like any contractor to the Space Program. But we were not the public.
We were Time Surgeons. Surgeons of Time. Our role was to fix rips in Time. Mend them. Catch them. Stitch them. Make them. It didn't matter if Time was damaged, we were sent back to repair it.
And somehow I had ended up out of my own time and in this strangely compelling one. Mending rips.
The silence spread as the stars wrapped around us and then weightlessness invaded. I watched as my arm lifted up and floated beside me. A pen hung suspended in the air at Jessop’s side. Winchester’s slicked back hair lifted off his head in slow motion; his good looks improving as his scowl was turned into a neutral smile.
Then the Orion hit a wall or a bump in the Time Wave, and my body was yanked sideways. Cupboard doors sprang open. An oxygen bottle fell out of its binds. Glass cracked. Metal screeched. The Orion groaned as the rockets strained and an explosion that made my ears ring sounded out.
My seatbelt held, digging into my stomach and hips and shoulders, making it hard to breathe. I blinked back water from my eyes, trying to lift a hand to my face, but the weight of unseen g-forces made that impossible.
Then a drop of blood floated free from my skin and spun lazily before my blurry eyes.
