“You left me at Cristela’s,” I say around the lump in my throat. Crouching, I wrap another jump rope between his ankles and the basketball pole. Archie’s lowered the gun and is watching us intently. “What made you leave? Did a voice appear in your head? Or did you think…I would try to kill you again?”

“The first one,” he says. “My older self came to me. He asked me to help you.” He reaches out his fingers again, this time grazing the top of my head. It’s as though he’s taking each and every opportunity to touch me. The pressure on my scalp is almost imperceptible, and yet I know I’ll never forget the sensation as long as I live.

“Has he ever come to you before?” I whisper.

“Nah. This was the first time he’s appeared. I think he visits me in the future? I’m not really sure.” Bandit wiggles his jaw, as though he needs to shake the words loose. “He explained about the virus. The deaths. His and Malice’s failed missions.” He stops again. Swallows hard. “He asked me to ease your burden. To kill Archie…or myself. Obviously, I have a vested interest in staying alive. But my older self said either option would do.” He moves his shoulders. “Too bad Archie knew I was coming.”

I finish the knot and stand. My hands are chilled, but my heart is warm. So I was right. The only reason he’s here now is because the future Bandit loves me.

“More, Malice,” Archie calls. “Another jump rope each at his hands and feet.”

Picking up another plastic cord, I repeat the process of tying his wrists. I try to leave some slack while knotting the rope tightly enough to make Archie happy. But it’s hard to tell if I succeed.

“The future Bandit had already reached his quota of trips,” I murmur. Archie’s staring. He probably hears every word we say. I don’t care. If this is my last chance to have this conversation, I won’t back away because of a deluded desire for privacy. “If he time traveled any more, his mind would come apart.”

“Yes.” The word is as slow and reluctant as the sap dripping out of a Vermont sugar maple. “This was his last gift to you. His first and final request to me. At the end of our conversation, his consciousness…shattered. That’s the best way I can describe it. It broke in a million pieces, and the light I felt in my head disappeared. Not like it traveled back to the future but like it was…snuffed out.”

My breath catches. My heart stops. Time itself comes to a screeching halt. “He…died?”

Bandit turns his head so that he’s looking directly at me. His expression is calm, although his eyes are freaked. “Yes.”