I closed my eyes, and Tavish and Albie appeared behind my lids. They waited for me in 1742. If I chose them, I’d be turning my back on whatever task the gods wanted me to complete. I could unravel every event I’d set in motion. Chloe, Halina, Georgie… The Curse might never exist. Or it might exist and then never get broken.
But if I chose the gods, I’d lose Tavish and Albie.
“How much time do I have to decide?” I asked.
“None.”
I took the bag. The velvet was warm and soft like it had been sitting in the sun.
“One jump left,” the chronomancer said.
I looked down at it, my vision blurring.
One jump.
One choice.
“Your recklessness is a curse,”my father said in my memory.“One that will get you killed if you don’t learn to curb your impulses.”
Mum’s voice followed.“Your mates will want you for you. Fate always sees to that.”
Tavish and Albie were my fate. We were meant to be together.
In my mind’s eye, Tavish stared down at me with possessiveness that stole my breath.“I won’t let you go, Portia. I’ll follow you through time if I have to.”
I had to believe him. I had to.
“I’ll go forward,” I whispered.
Somewhere in the city, a church bell chimed. For a second, the sound of a hundred ticking clocks filled the alley. Then silence fell.
The chronomancer stepped back, his coat the same plum color as the velvet bag. He turned and headed toward the street.
“Wait!” I called.
He stopped and looked over his shoulder. The air around him warped, and the edges of his coat blurred.
“Quickly, please,” he said. “I’m already late.”
“I’m doing this because it’s my duty,” I said. “But I won’t abandon the men I love. Iwillfind my mates. And I won’t need any magic from you or the gods to do it.”
The hint of a smile touched his mouth. “Time will tell,” he said softly.
Then he was gone.
I clutched the bag in both hands. At the end of the alley, humans and traffic streamed up and down the street. Taxis passed in flashes of yellow.
The bag was lighter than before.
Just one jump left.
And then I would find my mates. I’d wait as long as it took. I’d search for centuries if I had to. And once I found what fate had promised me, I’d set the world on fire to claim them.
Taking a deep breath, I opened the bag.
The world twisted, and I spun into chaos.
Chapter
