Paradigm Rift: Book One of the Back to Normal Series by Randy McWilson Read Free Book Online

down and exited through the back door, making sure to lock it as well.
    The foul stench of hot antifreeze assaulted him immediately. He glanced over at the car as radiator fluid drained upon the ground forming a tiny green river and volumes of steam rose above the hood. Saving a dog’s life had cost him the regrettable loss of his easy ticket out of town.
    He paused to consider his options. Flush brick buildings on the near side and towering shade trees straight ahead lined the narrow chasm, and Denver moved to his right along the tree line. About half a block down, a break in the trees revealed another short alley to his left and he took it, picking up his pace. He fished his phone out with some difficulty, hoping against hope for even a single bar.
    But, hope disappointed. Nothing .
    The shaded corridor dumped out onto another uptown street. A handful of vintage-era shoppers and an occasional dog-walker littered either side of the lane. Denver hesitated as a few more classic cars cruised by. He did a quick reconnaissance, looking for the location of surveillance cameras, on the light poles, and even along the tops of the buildings. The only thing he spotted of interest was a small restaurant across the road with a large, picture window. AMANDA’S DINER was painted across it in a gentle curve with two-tone lettering and a small OPEN sign dangled on the front door just to its left.
    He crossed the street, attempting to be casual, and kept his head down. Denver had the irrational impression that everyone was staring at him, but no one seemed to be paying any attention to the out of breath newcomer.
    A dull jingle from a broken bell announced his arrival to the diner, and none of the smattering of patrons even bothered to look up, except for one little girl in the nearest booth. She leaned out from behind the seat and smiled at him with a tiny wave, clutching a rag doll that was actually more rag than doll.
    Denver caught her eye and managed to force a grin back. About the same age as my Jasmine. She held up her doll proudly, and then a momma’s hand snapped her back into a more proper posture. Denver scanned the area, looking for exits and vantage points as he sized the place up. He glanced back out the window. Business as usual out there. Odd.
    He grabbed a seat at the long bar as far from the front window as possible. He figured he could hop over the counter and make a break through the kitchen if he was forced to. Denver reached around to ensure that his gun wasn’t showing.
     
    That little piece of steel was his ultimate back up plan if things went south.

Journal entry number 25
    Monday, April 22, 1946

    I can’t wait to visit the new Flamingo Casino. It just opened about 6 months ago. It looked great as we were coming in on the bus.
     
    Hopefully Sin City will turn into Cash City for Ken and me. We need money to live on, and we will need large sums of money (eventually) for time-travel research. What better way to acquire large sums of money than gambling? We have weighed the pros and cons of this effect on the time-stream, and we feel like this will be a minimal impact on the future.
     
    Our plan is to hit multiple casinos and bet on sports. Ken is a bit of a sports buff, and he knows the outcomes of a lot of games. I think we could spend a few weeks here and rake in a small fortune.
     
    They say the house always wins.
     
    Well—the house never met Ken and me.

CHAPTER 9
    She had peered through that smudged window in the swinging kitchen door at least a thousand times. Every time the bell on the front door clanged, waitress Katie Long peered out. She was always looking for something, never sure what to expect, and never sure what she wanted it to be.
    But today, she was intrigued, and grew far more certain that she might have found what she had been missing. Katie was so caught up in the moment that she didn’t even notice the close approach of fellow-waitress, Beverly Welker.
    She examined Katie and then