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Back Dark Stars Save as PDF
Chapters (51)
  1. Cover
  2. Dedication
  3. Part One
  4. 1
  5. 2
  6. 3
  7. 4
  8. 5
  9. 6
  10. 7
  11. 8
  12. 9
  13. 10
  14. 11
  15. 12
  16. Part Two
  17. 13
  18. 14
  19. 15
  20. 16
  21. 17
  22. 18
  23. 19
  24. Part Three
  25. 20
  26. 21
  27. 22
  28. 23
  29. 24
  30. 25
  31. 26
  32. 27
  33. 28
  34. 29
  35. 30
  36. Part Four
  37. 31
  38. 32
  39. 33
  40. 34
  41. 35
  42. 36
  43. 37
  44. 38
  45. Part Five
  46. 39
  47. Acknowledgments
  48. About the Author
  49. Books by Danielle Rollins
  50. Back Ad
  51. About the Publisher

Dorothy glowered back at her. She wasn’t fooled. Everything that was happening on the docks could be heard through the thin door that separated them from the Dead Rabbit’s halls. Eliza came out here to show Dorothy she’d been made.

Eliza’s eyes moved over the shadows gathered thickly around the dock, casually, as though she were only glancing around her surroundings.

I don’t see you, she seemed to say, but I know you’re there.

Cursing her misstep, Dorothy slipped back into the shadows, turned down the docks—

Almost instantly, someone grabbed her from behind.

LOG ENTRY—SEPTEMBER 22, 2074

22:07 HOURS

THE WORKSHOP

I’ve only just returned to my present timeline, and I’m currently alone in my workshop, where I might finally let myself ruminate on all that I have seen.

Getting back wasn’t nearly as difficult as I imagined it might be. Once I made my way back to the Cascadia subduction zone, I felt that same tug, just below my naval, where I’d injected the EM. A current, Tesla had called it. I found that I could resist by tensing the muscles in my body. But if I let myself go loose—not just physically, but mentally as well—the world sort of floated away and I was able to . . .

Well, following Tesla’s river metaphor, I suppose that drift is the best word I can come up with to describe the sensation. It felt almost exactly like lying in the water and allowing the current to pull you along.

I was lucky. The current of time took me right back to where I’d left. Navigating to a specific point in history or to a new point in history or the future is completely outside of my realm of abilities right now.

This new mode of travel will require quite a bit more research before it is as capable as the standard form of time travel.

I shall experiment further in the morning.

For now—sleep.

15

Dorothy was dragged into the darkness, one arm wrapped around her torso, holding her own arms to her side, while the other gripped her face, a hand pressed against her mouth to keep her from screaming. Fear roared up inside of her, blotting out everything else.

Had Mac found her? Or one of the Cirkus Freaks? Or . . .

Oh God, was it Regan Rose?

She felt like her legs might go out beneath her. She couldn’t face torture again. She couldn’t. She gathered what remained of her strength and tried to twist out of the grip—

A voice hissed in her ear. “Knock it off, will you?”

She froze.

That voice. She knew that voice.

Her captor dragged her down the docks and around a corner before, finally, releasing his grip. Dorothy whirled around, squinting in the dim light. It took a long moment for the familiar features to separate from the shadows.