A TOWI IN TIME

Part 2

At the entrance, he stopped. He remembered what the mysterious old man in the gray toga told him moments before. He stood there, frozen, torn between his burning curiosity and a frigid warning. A buzzing noise, a flash and a few crackles accompanied by a loud, tortured squeal issued from the darkness inside the tunnel with no top. A smell like the pungent odor of ozone that an old electric motor gives off while it’s running, only much stronger, wrinkled his nostrils. Then, everything fell silent, except for the noise of the traffic behind him and the insistent honking of a dissonant, wounded-cow horn that he knew was Rachel’s ancient VW. Well, this time she would have to wait.

A piece of one of the alley’s larger rodent residents rolled out and bumped to a stop at his feet. It appeared to have been torn apart and turned…inside out. Although it was a warm evening, Steiner shivered with a sudden cold that pervaded his body as the words of the TOWI holy man returned to him.

“My God, that…that could have been me.”

He turned and, once again, threaded his way through the traffic that was backing up because of a failed illegal left turn attempt at the clogged intersection. He reached his daughter’s car, out of breath. Rachel opened her window. He leaned down and planted a quick kiss on her forehead.

“And just where have you been, Papa?”

“Hi, Sweetheart. And you’re a fine one to be asking where I’ve been, Miss Never-on-time,” he said between short gulps of thick city air. “Listen, why don’t you go on home and I’ll see you there, later. Right now, I…I have a little side trip I need to make. I’ll be along soon, don’t you worry.”

His daughter frowned. “How will you — ?”

“I’ll take the subway. Maybe a bus — or a cab. I’ll be okay.”

“Busses and subways are dangerous down here. Especially on the weekend after dark. And taxis are expensive and hard to find in this area on Friday nights, Papa.”

“I was raised in this neighborhood, remember? I’ll be fine.”

“This isn’t like you, Papa. What’s up? No, don’t tell me. Let me guess. You’ve found a new girlfriend?” she said, grinning weakly.

“No, Baby, nothing like that. I have a kindness to repay and I think…I just think I need to go to a TOWI temple this evening….”

“A TOWI temple? You haven’t been even close to a shul, much less a TOWI temple in twenty-five years. Why — ?”

“You heard me, Babes. Now, run along home.”

#

“Your bungling is going to cost us one of these days, Gamnan.”

“There is nothing to worry about, Director. The TOWI guise had the indigenous beast completely fooled. It even thought I might be recruiting members for our — How do you say it? — religion.”

“I was not referring to the animal, you idiot. I am specifically talking about your casual approach to dimension bending and tinkering with the temporal fields. Flippant disregard for the rules. Rules that were carefully crafted to avoid what you may wind up doing if you don’t stop your tinkering. Our cover as another religious order is foolproof only because of their foolish willingness to accept such superstitions, but if anyone with the slightest amount of knowledge connected to an ability to think witnesses one of your botched antics, we will be exposed and you will be responsible for ruining the purpose of our mission. I will have no more of that, Gamnan. Do you understand?”

Another burst unannounced into the room. He appeared breathless. His light blue lung sacks expanding in nervous little jerks on his sides.

“What is it now?” Director said.

“One of the outer guards just advised me that there is a local animal at the door. It says it wants to join us for the service tonight. What is a service, Eminent Director?”