For All the Evers

  When she went to bed Wednesday night, her tasks complete, she pictured two things: Thomas’ face and the unblinking eye of the security camera in room 514.

  Chapter 13

  Breaker

  Fallen had bandaged Thomas’ name and put on the required cream. She’d expected some regret when she woke the next morning, but she felt only exhilaration at the thought of showing Thomas what she had done to honor him—and relief that it would never wash away.

  When she got to work, Desta waggled her eyebrows from across the meeting room, so after the staff was dismissed, they lingered in the supply closet.

  “I’ve think I have a plan for you.” Desta pulled out her cell phone.

  “Thank God. Because I have no idea what to do.” Fallen leaned closer.

  “Well, the layout of 512 is exactly the same as 514. Let’s go there together now. You open the door, and we’ll recreate the angle of the security camera and snap a picture of what it sees.”

  Fallen perked up. This plan had merit. “Then I can run down to the business center and print out the picture…”

  Desta nodded. “At the end of our shift, I’ll flip the breaker, and you can go in and tape the picture to the ceiling.”

  “Then all Orbit sees is the undisturbed room?”

  “You can go have a nice nap, unmonitored.” Desta flashed her a knowing smile and fought off another bout of hacking cough.

  “You’re brilliant!” Fallen hugged the woman, yipping as her tattoo hit Desta’s shoulder.

  “What’d ya got there?” Desta nodded toward her inner arm.

  Fallen debated showing her what she’d done. But this was Desta… She rolled up her sleeve and pulled back the dressing.

  She whispered, “His signature.”

  Desta’s gaze was alarmed as she snapped it from the mark to Fallen’s eyes. “He was able to do this?”

  “Well, not the tattoo, but he signed my arm, and I just had the artist follow the lines, so it would never fade.” She re-covered it and readjusted her sleeve. Maybe it wasn’t a great idea to show her.

  “This is bad. Maybe you shouldn’t do the dream any more.” Desta started straightening her cart nervously.

  “Why? I thought it was a nice message from him to me here.” Now she felt a bit defensive.

  “It’s just…the room has been acting weird. And this is more proof of that. There should be no crossovers. I don’t know what Lad has… You get the white noise, right?”

  Fallen nodded.

  “When you’re treading on topics that could affect the past or the future, the noise stops your communication.” Desta bit her lip. “It’s a safety feature.”

  “What?” Fallen was thoroughly confused.

  “It’s just sometimes you’re not in the same time period as your love. You’re not meant to learn things that can affect how history happens.” Desta started rolling out her cart.

  “That’s some trippy crap. Are you telling me Thomas could be from the future?” Fallen felt like she was frozen to the ground.

  “Or the past.” Desta nodded.

  That was scary. Fallen felt small in the face of something so huge. Thomas could be living before or after her?

  “Come on. We still have to do work or we get fired.” Desta waved at Fallen until she took action, grabbing her own cart and following Desta to the birdcage. “And watch yourself. Not all cameras are as obvious as the one in 514.”

  Fallen took her advice and focused on small talk as they rode up to the fifth floor.

  Inside room 512, Fallen stood on the desk to replicate the view she imagined the security camera in 514 had. She took four photos in total. Desta made the phone disappear as Fallen hopped down.

  “You know what? I’ll print the pictures. I think the less out of the ordinary you do, the better.” Desta looked determined.

  “You’re sure? I don’t want you to get in trouble.”

  “It’ll be fine. No one will even see me, and as for the rest of this plan we’ve concocted, we have to throw the breakers from time to time for a lot of different reasons. I’ll say I thought there was a leak by an outlet. That’s one of the perks of being old. Everyone assumes you’re a little off.”

  Desta helped Fallen straighten the bedcover, both of them subconsciously programmed to clean.

  “I think Burt’s gone,” she added softly after a moment. “I assume he’s gone. But part of me hopes the room just ended our communication, and he’s still alive. When you’re over there, keep an ear out for him, okay?”

  Fallen nodded. She could ask around in those groups of blurry people, if she ever got to be in one again. Desta wished her well and promised to meet her in the hall outside 514 at 3:50 pm to give her a thumbs up or not.

  Fallen knew it was reckless to try to meet up with Thomas again. But she also knew she didn’t have a choice. He was worth the risks.

  She spent her day thinking about what Desta had said—that Thomas could be from another time. She realized what a delicate, hoping version of love she felt for him now that the already insurmountable circumstances of dreaming were complicated with the suggestion that her present might not be his as well.

  After her lunch break, Fallen checked in with Melanny, hoping for information on when Mr. Orbit would be back.

  “I’m just covering the fifth floor this week, right?” Fallen put a confused look on her face.

  Melanny exhaled as she looked over her glasses at Fallen. “I swear I could just sing ‘Row, Row, Row Your Boat’ and the same information would be conveyed.” She put down her pen. “Until further notice, no extra cleaning. The visit from Mr. Orbit is over.”

  Fallen nodded, assured that she would be alone in the room.

  As she turned away, she heard Melanny mutter, “You should know—you’re the one sleeping with him.”

  Fallen turned back to her and said, “Pardon?”

  Melanny shook her head. “Nothing. Talking to myself.”

  Fallen wanted to fight back, but more than that she wanted access to 514 until she could find Thomas. Which required being employed at the hotel. She swallowed her indignation and went back to work.

  At the appointed time, Fallen met Desta in the hall outside 514. The woman gave her a hidden thumbs-up as she passed her a printed picture, with little bits of tape ready for the ceiling in front of the camera. Fallen pushed her cart into the hall and pretended to wind her vacuum cord.

  Official policy said there were to be no carts in the hallway after check-in time, but everyone skirted that one.

  Fallen let herself into the room and pulled her cart in behind her. She didn’t bother to throw the bolt, or move the furniture, both of which she fully intended on doing as soon as the picture was affixed.

  When the power went off, she climbed the antique desk and soon had the picture in place. She said a silent prayer that it would pass for the interior of 514. She should have been more careful and scoped out the exact location of the pillows and chairs. She would next time—if she got a next time. Right now she focused on this time.

  She hopped down from the desk just as the lights blinked back on. Fire extinguishers beeped as they came online again. Now Fallen secured the room to her liking and felt her body rejoice as the otherworldly exhaustion began to creep from her toes up her legs. Fallen stretched on the bed, reviewing her mental checklist. She’d let Fenn know she’d be working late, so he wouldn’t worry. She briefly regretted not bringing a change of clothes. All she had here was her uniform.

  But it was only 4:00pm. So much Thomas time until midnight and the end of Thursday. She closed her eyes and let the rush take her.

  Not knowing where she would wake up was always disorienting, but Fallen tried to be prepared so she wouldn’t panic. This time, instead of waking up in a place she’d been before, she opened her eyes sitting at a gorgeously set table. Everyone around her was dressed for a black tie event. As she glanced around the room, an intense gaze locked on hers.

  Mr. Lad Orbit sat
across from her at the table.

  Her cheeks immediately flamed with guilt and fear, and Lad’s gaze stormed at her. His eyes were wild, before closing halfway. He held a steak knife in his fist, and the glimmer of silver captured her attention for a moment. When she dropped her gaze to her lap, she noticed she was still in her uniform. Shame joined her emotions as the other women at the table could pass for princesses in their elegant gowns.

  She swallowed hard and felt a foot tapping against her Payless Velcro sneaker. Lad was trying to get her attention. When the tapping became urgent, she looked at him.

  “Smile,” he mouthed.

  She did so, but halfheartedly until she saw a familiar form in waiter’s garb walk in with a tray.

  Her smile burst through now, matching the way her heart soared at the sight of Thomas. She had worried for a moment that it might only be Lad in this dream.

  She glanced back to find Lad enraged that she was smiling at Thomas.

  She tried her best to take her eyes off of him. A chill on her décolleté alerted her to an outfit change, and she looked down to see a strapless gown with diagonal check details and a black wrap. It instantly made her feel more at ease, and a little proud, in the group of finely dressed people.

  Over her shoulder, a silver tray was presented. Thomas’ voice was love in her ear.

  “Now you fit in,” he murmured. “Better, you shine.”

  She took a champagne glass and nodded politely. Lad continued to watch her.

  He grabbed the champagne glass already in front of him and stood, clanging it with his dessert fork. The chime echoed throughout the dining room and caused a ripple effect through the others at dinner.

  “Ladies and gentleman! Please, can I have your attention? Please.”

  The people in the dream had sharper faces this time, but something was still a little off.

  Thomas set down his tray on a table by the door before turning back to her. She watched as he moved closer to one of the huge French windows and looked through it. He must have liked what he saw, because he reached up and unlatched it.

  Thomas met her gaze and mouthed, “Go to the bathroom.”

  Lad had been going on about choices and life and soul mates. She pushed her chair out. Leaving while he was mid-speech was probably poor form, but she was wasting time that was supposed to be spent with Thomas.

  As she stood, Lad gestured to her. She was careful to hide her tattoo with the wrap as the attention of the room focused on her. She wanted Thomas to see it when they were alone.

  “So all that to say…” Lad turned to her with a strange look in his eye. “Fallen has agreed to be my wife.”

  Wild applause met the announcement. Fallen bit her lip as Lad accepted hearty handshakes from the men next to him. The lady next to her stood and embraced her.

  “Where’s the ring?” She looked pointedly at Fallen’s empty left hand.

  She began to explain that there’d been a mistake as Lad worked his way around the table.

  “She doesn’t have one, Jane. Not yet.” He slid to one knee in front of her and grasped her hand. “To a strong forever.” He slipped the large, square engagement ring on her hand, holding it fast when she started to pull it away.

  “I’m sorry, Lad. I just don’t—”

  He interrupted her with a kiss, clutching her to him like a life preserver in a storm.

  She pushed at his chest, and the ice bucket thrown over them was a physical shock. Lad abruptly stepped away and brushed at his now-soaked tuxedo jacket. Thomas set the empty bucket at their feet.

  “So sorry, miss. Please come with me, and I’ll take you to a powder room. I’m sure the event coordinator has prepared for this kind of problem.” Thomas put his hand on her lower back and pointed with two fingers at the exit.

  Thomas beckoned another waiter over. When he was close, Fallen realized she could see him quite clearly, right down to his eye color. He was older and watched Fallen with great interest. She couldn’t help but think of Desta’s Burt. This one would be about the right age…

  “Sir, please see to it that the gentleman gets a fresh jacket. We can’t have the happy couple catching a chill on their big day.”

  Fallen watched as Thomas gave Lad a cheesy wink. In an instant, Lad looked ready to explode, but Thomas was already escorting her into the hall. “Miss, please step this way.”

  She couldn’t take her eyes off him. He was strong and in control. He seemed to anticipate that she would be distracted, so he helped her navigate the hall crowded with servers. He nodded to others before taking her in a roundabout way to the window she had seen him unlatch.

  If there was something sexier than watching him get them out of the building and away from Lad, she’d never seen it.

  He slipped out of the window and landed on a small roof, the only safe place to climb out from the second-story ballroom. She leaned out of the window as he turned to her and smiled. The moonlight highlighted him as he motioned for her.

  “Jump. I’ll catch you.” He held out his arms.

  Fallen looked over one shoulder then the other, seeing only servers and no sign of Lad. She turned and sat on the sill, pulling her heels close as she spun to dangle her feet out the window.

  He didn’t have to tell her twice. Fallen was 100% ready to jump out of windows to be with him.

  The sensation of falling took her breath away, but before the fear could fully form, his arms were locked around her.

  She gasped a bit at the impact, but he was already setting her on her feet. He jumped off the small roof and Fallen looked at the side of the building. It was massive. It seemed the panes of windows went on forever.

  She could see a figure outlined in one, the chandeliers behind him giving his silhouette blurry edges.

  She knew it was Lad, even though she couldn’t see his face. She turned and jumped again, and again Thomas caught her.

  They began running to the road, and she had to hold up her long dress to keep from tripping.

  Thomas laughed about their getaway while pulling her along. When they’d gotten around the bend, he pulled her behind a tree and kissed her before she could even catch her breath.

  “Okay, it seems Lad’s taking quite an active role in these dreams. I’m going to think of a place I haven’t been in a long, long time to take us. Maybe we can evade him for a while?” Thomas drew her into a hug and closed an eye.

  Fallen put her hands on his chest, wanting to feel his heartbeat under her hands. The rustle of his clothes, the dimple in his cheek when he smiled—all these details she wanted to catalog to prove to herself, yet again, that he was real.

  “Okay. I did it,” he announced. “We have a little hike. I want to take you to the treehouse my brothers and I built when we were kids.”

  Fallen gave her outfit a makeover, sad to see the stylish gown go, but glad she wasn’t wet anymore. Then she tried to take off the ring Lad had put on her finger. She tugged and tugged, but it wouldn’t budge. She gave Thomas a pleading stare. He put her hand to his mouth and kissed her palm before flipping it over.

  “You have to be gentle with yourself.” He used the utmost patience to slowly wiggle it from her finger, helping her finally get it over her knuckle. He held the ring out to her.

  Fallen took it and chucked it behind her like a bride would her bouquet.

  Thomas laughed and pointed in the distance at a tree. “I just found shelter so I can ravish you without interruption.”

  She’d pictured a slab of plywood as a floor with a matching one as the roof, but when they drew near the tree he’d pointed out, she saw that it contained a rather impressive structure.

  The treehouse had a doorway and windows, and an old-fashioned ladder leaned against the trunk.

  Thomas helped her up, following close behind her as she took the steps in her pedal pusher high-waisted jeans. She’d topped them with a red checked button down tied at her middle over a white tank. When he’d spoken of a treehouse, she’d gotten a picni
c vibe and dressed the part. Her high ponytail swung as she climbed up to the lofted wooden house in a huge oak tree.

  Thomas climbed in behind her and offered her his hand as she got to her feet.

  “This is cute.” She loved seeing a part of his childhood—anything to make him more real.

  Thomas patted the wall, running his hand over the names carved there.

  “God, I wonder how they are today. I miss the hell outta them.”

  She came closer and stepped into his space as he wrapped an arm around her. She ran her finger over the names as well, lingering on his.

  “How old were you guys when you made this?”

  “Oh, I was about thirteen. That would make Eddie fifteen and Johnny twelve. Johnny made us laugh, but he was no goddamn help—always cracking jokes and setting up pranks. He’d take the ladder down all the time. And Eddie and I would threaten to beat him up if he didn’t put it back. He would say, ‘If I put it back, you’ll beat me up then, too.’ And he was right. We would. They can both fight well enough now. I hope it helps them wherever they are.”

  Fallen wanted to ask about them, but the words wouldn’t come. Luckily, Thomas continued.

  “All three of us serving at the same time. Ma could barely handle the news, still torn up from my father’s death. She thought for sure that fate was done with her, you know?”

  Fallen saw worry and sadness pass over his face. She hugged him. He kissed her forehead and hummed a bit.

  Was he at a loss for words like she was?

  Then Thomas started to talk. “It had been ten years since Dad’s heart attack, the night we decided.”

  Fallen imagined a pile of fluffy blankets and pillows on the floor. She stepped away from him, and he sat down so she could curl between his legs.

  “We knew she’d take it hard,” he continued, “but one day when Ma was at the salon, getting her hair done, the three of us discussed the need to do our duty. We couldn’t have the conversation without looking at the portrait of our father in his dress uniform over the mantel. We wanted to make him proud—or at least the memory of him proud, but I couldn’t imagine the cost for our mother. Still, we agreed that day to enlist.”