‘Le Temps did a cut-and-paste with the sheep gene and the Leap gene and came up with a winner,’ I say.

This must be the sheap with an ‘e’ and an ‘a’. But it doesn’t look like it would win prizes. The sheap has pooed all over the floor. But it’s not its fault. It would rather be living in fields, not in a chemistry lab. I’m so glad the sheap is alive and not made into burgers and sold to those who can afford it.

We follow the Exit arrow upstairs that reminds me of the ones I came down in 2048 before I reached Le Temps’s office. As we get upstairs there’s bright daylight. Must be around lunchtime, when the sun comes round. The hall is the same as when we arrived at the centre and Millennia gave her opening address but there are screens all over the walls and the floor’s made of glass. MC2 blinks, tenses his body like he’s about to do the run-up to the long jump, but instead of disappearing, appearing, he doesn’t move.

‘Glitch! We’ll have to do this old skool. Room by room in case of guards. Leaps must be locked up someplace. GMT, check outdoors. We’ll do inside.’

It’s too quiet, like the place has been abandoned, and I wonder if we got the year wrong and we should be sometime else, like 2072. Maybe it’s a trap. Maybe Le Temps lied when he said work for me in 2100. MC2 walks down the white corridor, holding his Chronophone in front of him. Le Temps must have guards working here so people can’t come in the middle of the night and steal his prize sheap. All the rooms are empty. I keep thinking I hear noises but I can’t work out where they’re coming from.

‘Did Le Temps kill the Leaplings and bury—?’

GMT bursts into the centre like a firework.

‘Guys!’ she says. ‘Quick! There’s a lime-green car circling overhead!’

It’s a crash landing! Big Ben’s a great driver but he’s never flown a Ferrari in driverless mode. He lands in the wood, in the car, eyes closed. Fiona looks like someone’s given her a very strong hug. We all sprint over. I get there first. I look at him out of the corner of my eye in case there’s blood. I hope the flash of red I’m seeing is only the red hat. What if he’s dead? It would be all my fault if he was dead and had killed Fiona.