For a second there, we all looked at the drawings of the face, lost in our own thoughts, when…
“You guys?”
Mimi.
“I think he’s…he’s waking up.”
Suddenly all of us rushed out of the room to find Mimi had stood up and had stepped away from the Timekeeper.
He was groaning low in his throat, and by the time we were close enough, his eyes opened.
Wild. Rolling in his skull likehewas the one who was actually possessed now.
It was one of the strangest things I’d ever witnessed, and none of us had any clue what to do.
“Is he…okay?”
“Should we help him up?”
“This is a bad idea…”
“Let’s just leave—let’s just go before he stands up.”
“Shut up!”
“Hello?Can you see us here?” Anika even tried to wave her hands to get his attention, but…
Then his body moved.
He rolled to his side and was on his knees in the same motion—so, so strange, the way he moved—and then a massive back was in front of me, and a hand pushed me slightly back—March. I had to raise on my tiptoes to look over his shoulder, to see the way the Timekeeper’s head snapped toward the wall like we weren’t even there. Like he couldn’t even see us just five feet away from him.
“Time’s Teeth, he’smad…” someone whispered, and the Timekeeper stood up and went for the wall (again, in the same motion).
“No—stop!”
March was suddenly there just before he hit the wall with his shoulder. He wrapped an arm around the Timekeeper from behind and pulled him back with all his strength—which was entirelytoo muchstrength. The man was practically skin and bones, so heflewback much easier than March imagined, but Russ and Cook were there to catch him by the arms before he hit the ground.
My mind was racing, my heart hammering, and everyone was speaking at the same time—stop, hold on a minute—you’re hurting yourself—you’re not well—who are you?—what are you doing here all by yourself?—just stop for a second, stop!
The man finally spoke.
“Through,” he said, and it was like the word hurt to leave his lips. “Through, through—through!” And he tried to break free from the grip of the boys, and he did. They let go, onlybecause they were shocked to hear that voice, so dry and hoarse, but powerful at the same time.
The Timekeeper stood on his own, breathing heavily, hands fisted at his sides as he looked at the wall ahead. Always at the wall.
But his eyes blinked and his lips moved, though no sound left him now, and…
“I’ve seen him before,” I whispered absentmindedly.
Because I had.
And…
“No,” Levana said, shaking her head as we both moved a little to the side to see him better. “We’ve seen someone who looks like him. The Timekeeper who took us to the palace that day from the arena. Who…who put me in the carriage to leave.”
Every gear in me came to a halt as the name popped into my head. “Elida Hock.”
The Timekeeper’s eyes locked on mine while the others gasped and brought their hands to their mouths. While they all remembered.
