Time Slip by ML Banner Read Free Book Online Page B

may have been seconds or minutes; he wasn’t sure how long he had been unconscious, but it couldn’t have been too long because he was staring at the same early-morning sky, soon to be pushed aside by the sunrise. The glare from the complex’s light-sensitive spotlights was uncomfortable. He must have taken quite a jolt from the fence, but he felt okay otherwise. At least he wouldn’t have to figure out how to turn the power back on. He snickered at this thought, lying on his back, staring at the sky, as if he were leisurely stargazing with friends on a warm summer evening.
    Worry about being caught and his throbbing arm shook the cobwebs from his head. He leaned up and looked down, chin on chest, and was horrified to see his arm was such a mess. Making quick use of his T-shirt to bandage his bloody arm, he could see it looked worse than it felt.
    He made himself small and ran to the back of the complex, aiming for the back door, hoping he hadn’t yet been seen. His mind and body, still somewhat wobbly, followed the shadows as they bounced and raced forward and then back each time he crossed the path of the spotlights on either side of the fence. Reaching the rear door to Dr. Ron’s office, he was relieved to find it was still unlocked, the way he had left it earlier this morning. It also meant that the police hadn’t been back here—another good sign. From a closet Monty grabbed one of Dr. Ron’s lab coats and made for the laboratory, his arm now aching. If he could get done what he needed to next, and not get caught, he would have to go get stitches.
    Monty looked at his watch, trying to remember when he set up his diversion for the police and wondering when it would go off. Better get moving . With some luck, he only had the one police officer to contend with, and that fellow should be occupied by the diversion, assuming he wasn’t inside. Monty pulled on the bookcase, just enough to peek into the laboratory. It looked clear. He bounded up the stairs to the double doors and peered through the hardened small windows. No one there, either. After securing the doors, he pushed the nearby desk over, just as Ron and he had done to the outside door yesterday. He ran down the stairs and set up. Where was the diversion ?
    It didn’t take long: he only had to slip in the hard drive and prep two drones—he figured he’d be lucky if he had time to open the time slip once: it took just as long to prep two.
    Everything was ready. His right forefinger shook in anticipation of his diversion and his aching arm. The diversion… if it ever went off, it was going to be costly to him. He sure hoped it was worth it.
    When he heard it, he cringed.

Chapter 21
    Aug 10 (04:42)
     
    One moment, a denim blue Porsche 911, Monty’s pride and joy, sat quietly near the portion of the fence closest to the frontage road, waiting for its owner to return. In the daylight, it might have been conspicuous, with jumper cables attached to the fence on one end and to a crowbar jammed in the car’s fuel port on the other end. But in the darkness of the pre-dawn hours, the soon-to-be-diversion was practically invisible.
    The next moment a rolling fireball erupted out of its interior, shooting the German Sonnenland soft-top skyward, a flaming mass that then fell, doing somersaults. The police officer who was now standing post in front of the door of Stoneridge Research Lab nearly fell over, not from the force of the blast, but from being startled. He ran to the blast to offer assistance, afraid someone might have been inside.
    ~~~
    The man bit down hard on his cigarette, his second-to-last one, when the blast erupted almost right in front of him. He realized now that Dr. Stoneridge had set up a diversion and must be in his lab. He tossed out his cigarette, stepped on it, and then stopped as he saw the officer running toward him, the burning car between them.
    He calmly strolled toward the running officer, who glared at him, perhaps for not assisting