Time Riders

CHAPTER 5

2001, New York

She was screaming, at least that’s what she thought the sound was. It mighthave been her. It might have been the sound of a wing tearing itself from the plane.

It might even have been the stewardess; she wasn’t sure.

A terrifying dropping sensation, dropping away into darkness.

‘No-o-o-o-o!’ she found herself crying with a voice that sounded like the raggeddeath-squeal of a slaughtered pig.

She lurched suddenly and violently.

‘Oh Jay-zus-Christ-Almighty!’ a male voice beside her gasped.

Maddy’s eyes opened wide and locked on to a flickering light bulb dangling from a brickceiling, then on to the rusty springs of a grubby bunk bed directly above her. Finally, to herright, her eyes drifted to the smooth face of a young man sitting on a scruffy metal-framedbed across from her, dressed in what looked like a waiter’s uniform.

‘Jay-zus-Christ-Almighty, you made me jump there,’ he uttered. ‘One secondyou were sleeping all peaceful, the next you’re up like a screamin’banshee.’

Maddy felt her breath rattling like a startled moth caught in a wire cage. Wheezing, shelooked down and saw she was still clasping her inhaler, just as she had been a moment agoaboard the plane. She took a long pull on it and then managed to find enough air in her lungsto sit up slowly.

‘I’m dead. I must be dead.’

The young man managed a weak and awkward smile. ‘Me too… I think.’

They looked at each other for a moment. ‘I wonder,’ he said, ‘do you think-?’

‘That this is heaven?’ she finished his question. ‘No such thing. If thereis… then it looks a bit rubbish to me.’ The bunk bed in which she was lyingcreaked with movement from above. Maddy looked up at the springs and mattress.

‘Is there somebody else up there?’

Liam nodded. ‘Yeah, a young dark-skinned girl. She’s asleep.’

‘Her name’s Saleena,’ a voice called out of the darkness.

They both jerked round to look out into the gloom beyond the light thrown down from the barebulb.

They heard footsteps on the hard concrete floor, and then, faintly at first, they saw a manemerge from the darkness, carrying a tray.

‘Coffee?’ asked the old man.

‘Oh my God!’ gasped Maddy, recognizing the face.

Liam’s jaw dropped. ‘You! You’re the man on deck E.’

‘That’s right,’ he replied calmly. ‘My name’sFoster.’

He joined them, setting the tray of chipped mugs and a carton of doughnuts on the floorbetween the beds. He sat on the bed next to Liam.

‘And you’re Madelaine Carter, and you’re Liam O’Connor.’ Henodded towards the top bunk. ‘The girl up there’s Sal Vikram. She’s onlyyoung, thirteen. The poor girl will be terrified when she comes to. Here.’ He handedLiam and Maddy a mug of coffee. ‘You could both probably do with a littlepick-me-up.’

‘Mr Foster, is it?’ asked Liam.

He smiled. ‘Foster… Mr Foster, I’m not fussed.’

‘Mr Foster, where are we?’

Maddy nodded. ‘I should be dead. There’s no way youcould’ve got me off that plane. No way.’

Foster turned to her. ‘Time travel, remember?’

She narrowed her eyes. ‘But that’s impossible.’

‘No, it’s not — ’ he shook his head — ‘unfortunately.’

‘What’s time travel?’ asked Liam.

Maddy cocked her head at him. ‘You’re kidding me, right?’

‘Go easy on the lad,’ said Foster. ‘He’s from 1912. They didn’thave much in the way of sci-fi shows and comics back then.’

She turned back to Liam, looking more closely at his clothes: not a waiter, but aship’s steward. She spotted White Star Lines stitched on abreast pocket.

‘1912? You’re serious?’

‘Very,’ added Foster. ‘Liam here was aboard the Titanic.’

Her mouth flopped open.

‘What?’ Liam looked confused. ‘Why’re you staring at me likethat?’ he asked her.

‘Because, Liam,’ said Foster, ‘you’re from Ireland a hundred yearsago.’ The old man laughed. ‘And she’s from New York, the year2010.’

Liam’s dark eyebrows lifted in unison.

‘And Saleena Vikram, up there on the top bunk, she’s from Mumbai, India, theyear… 2026.’ Foster offered a grin that made his old face crinkle like greaseproofpaper. ‘And as for me, well — ’ he smiled — ‘let’s say Icome from Never-neverland.’

Maddy leaned forward. ‘Oh my God, come on, when? The twenty-second century? Furtheron?’

His smile told her nothing.

‘Do they have spaceships in your time? Has mankind colonized the solar system? Has warpdrive been invented yet — ?’

He held a hand up to shush her. ‘Another time, perhaps. Right now there are moreimportant things to attend to.’

Before either of them could reply, they heard a stirring from the bunk bedabove them.

‘She’s coming round,’ said Foster. ‘She’ll be even moredisorientated, more frightened, than either of you.’

Maddy slurped a hot mouthful of coffee from the mug in her hands. ‘I seriously doubtthat.’

The girl’s murmuring turned to a frightened whimpering that quickly intensified. Fosterstood up and leaned over the top bunk.

‘Shhh… it’s OK, Saleena,’ he cooed reassuringly. ‘It’sall over. You’re safe now.’

The girl’s mewling voice became a sudden shrill shriek as her eyes snapped open and shesat stiffly upright on the bunk.

Foster held her narrow shoulders firmly. ‘Saleena.’ He spoke quickly and softly.‘You’re safe; no one can hurt you here. It’s over.’

The girl’s breath came in short stuttering gasps. Her eyes, thickly rimmed with darkeyeliner, widened behind a drooping black fringe that slanted across her narrow face. Theydarted from one thing to another, for the moment it seemed making sense of absolutelynothing.

‘It’s over, Saleena,’ said Foster again. ‘You’re safenow.’

Her gaze settled on the old man. She flicked her fringe away from an almost ashen face; hercoffee-coloured skin was drained to an almost corpse-like grey.

Liam stood up and peered over the edge of the bunk, cocking a bemused eyebrow at her strangeappearance: a dark hooded top with some scruffy wording splashed in neon orange across it;thin drainpipe jeans ripped and patched, with patches on top of patches; and boots that lookedtwo sizes too big for her, laced up past her ankles… And a small stud pierced her upperlip.

‘Uh…’ He did a double take before extending a hand in greeting. ‘Myname’s Liam O’Connor. Pleased to — ’

‘Give her a moment, Liam,’ said Foster. ‘Just amoment… her extraction was particularly traumatic.’

‘Is it you?’ Her voice was small, shaken, uncertain. ‘The man… theman in the flames.’

‘That’s right.’ He smiled warmly. ‘It’s me, Saleena.’

‘Sal,’ she replied. ‘Sal… Only my mum and dad call meSaleena.’

‘Sal, then,’ he said, helping her up. She swung her legs over the side of thebunk and silently studied the other two: a boy dressed like a hotel porter, and a lank-hairedteenage girl with glasses.

‘Hey,’ said Maddy, ‘welcome to Weirdsville.’

‘Just give her a bit of room there. Let her catch her breath.’

‘You got an odd accent, so you have,’ said Liam curiously to Sal.

‘That’s rich,’ snorted Maddy, ‘coming from you.’

‘She’s from a city called Mumbai, in India, Liam. You’d know it asBombay.’

‘But she speaks English, so she does.’

‘Well, duh,’ said Maddy, rolling her eyes, ‘they all do. It’s abilingual nation.’