Tears brim his eyes.
I know better than to cry in front of him, but I can’t help it. I’ve lost control of myself. I’m numb and barely functioning at this point. I’m helpless and trapped in my regrets. There’s nothing left for me to do but cry.
“We’ll figure this out,” he says. “It’ll be okay. I promise.”
I want to believe him, but I can’t. I can’t fix it. “Nothing’s okay.”
“Emma, please don’t cry,” he begs.
That only makes me cry harder. I’m a blubbering mess and I know I should stop because I don’t want him to feel any worse than he already does, but it’s comes out like a flood. I don’t think I’ll ever stop crying.
“I don’t know what else to do,” I say.
“I’ll figure it out.”
I want to believe that he can, but it’s hard when the truth seems impossible to find.
“Look at me,” he says. “I will figure this out. Trust me.”
I bite my lip and nod, trying to stop the tears. “Okay,” I say.
“Do me a favor. I want you to research the bridge. See ifthere’s ever been any other strange activity near it. Maybe you two weren’t the only ones to travel through time. Maybe there’s been others.”
He’s right. I’ve been so caught up in the fact that Mallory isn’t here I didn’t even think of that. I begin to calm down because he’s given me something else to focus on. Something tangible I can do to make a difference.
“I can do that,” I say. The heaviness in my heart eases with this glimpse of hope. Maybe we really can figure out what happened.
“Find out what you can and then come see me again tomorrow.”
“Okay. I will.”
He smiles through teary eyes. “I’ll be waiting.”
“How did it go?” Sam asks when I get back in the car.
“Can you bring me back tomorrow?”
“I’ll take that as it went well then,” he says.
“I guess so.”
He sighs. “I don’t get it. What’s going on?”
I can’t tell him because he won’t believe me. For all I know, I’ll scare him off and he’ll never take me to Myles again. I can’t risk that. Not when I know no one else will bring me to the prison.
“It’s complicated.”
He rolls his eyes. “I’ll say.”
I’m itching to look into the bridge, and I don’t think I can wait until I get home. “Can I use your phone?”
“No.”
“Please.”
“Look, we aren’t friends. The only reason I brought you here is because I promised Myles, okay?”
“I just need to look into something,” I say.
