Page 18 of Trapped By Clocks and Hearts

“Well, good.” She nodded approval before shrugging offhandedly. “I don’t think I can fall in love anyway. At least not like normal people do.”

I mocked, “Are you not ‘normal people’?”

“I’m a genius.” Her answer seemed like a reflex response.

Her response fell into the silence as I kept her gaze but she didn’t seem to want to look away.

A faint keening caught my ears.

I almost ignored it. But in the next moment, a tiny fragment of a spark flared from the work table.

Eyes widening, I didn’t stop to think before I lunged to grab Allie and hauled us both to the floor as a flash of light accompanied a BOOM!

I cocooned her in my arms as we landed on the floor with a hard thump.

Scrap paper, sawdust, and shards of glass pattered down like rain for a few long moments.

When the only sound around us had reverted to the lone ticking of my clock, Allie met my just-as-stunned gaze through the lingering smoke as she panted beneath me. None too casually, she blew her disheveled hair out of her face. “Holy crap, that was close.”

I pushed up on my arms above her. “What the hell was that?” I yelled in her face. “Are you working with explosives down here? Do you realize what could have happened if that had blown up in your face? What else are you even working on?”

Sitting up to dust herself off, Allie made a face. “Those were probably just the volatile chemicals I mixed by accident. What is the big deal? All experiments come with their own set of risks.”

Rage nearly burst out of my chest. The stupid, stubborn girl didn’t even realize what could have happened!

I jumped to straighten up with a growl. “This is totally unacceptable.”

I waved one hand, and in a blink, the condition of the cramped studio returned to its original state. A dusty boiler sat across a modest but neatly made bed in the sparsely furnished space, amidst the backdrop of the inner workings of the giant timepiece visibly moving in a mechanic rhythm in tune to the hollow echoes of the ticking clock, and all of Allie’s scribblings and whatever equipment she had lugged in there disappeared.

Allie threw up her arms in indignant complaint. “What the—? Where’s all my stuff?”

I moved to stalk away.

She called out after me, “Hey! I thought we agreed we were going to cooperate with each other?”

“By that, I meant I will come up with a plan and you will follow my instructions,” I corrected. “Did you forget I needed you alive?” I gave her another glare. “I can’t have you toying around with any of this dangerous science nonsense. I forbid it.”

“You forbid it?” Allie echoed in incredulity. “You’re such a jerk!”

Ignoring her attempt to give chase, I whirled on my heel and apparated away with a poof.

Chapter 6 - The Bad Guy

Chez was crazy to suggest that I cooperate with that strange girl.

In all my centuries of existence, I had always worked alone.

Always.

The incident with the explosion was my punishment for thinking otherwise.

I didn’t need anyone else’s help. Besides, normal humans were incredibly fickle creatures. Not to mention all their capacity for any action would always be hindered by emotions. Such things made one weak.

I clutched at my chest again.

The heart inside me was full of disquiet. It was making me even more tetchy than usual. Notwithstanding the more frequent bouts of anger, I was beginning to succumb to mood swings, finding it difficult to concentrate on my work—on anything. Adding fuel to the fire, my temperament was getting so volatile that it was no longer practical to receive any more companions.

Allie had also been making it a point to ignore me altogether. She wouldn’t touch her trays of food. She would sulkily work through the night with her noisy machines and loud banging.