“Do you know what that does?” Phillips asked.
“I do not.”
“You do not?” Phillips asked suspiciously. “How is that so when you created this device?”
Jasper looked sharply at Phillips. “Of what are you accusing me, sir?”
“I’m accusing you of working with Jack to create a device that allows one to travel through time by mere thought.”
Jasper looked at Phillips shocked. He wasn’t sure he could answer. He had a difficult time believing he was actually having this conversation and more than that, he didn’t know where he would begin in answering that question.
Phillips watched Jasper closely, waiting patiently for Jasper’s words. Jasper recognized that Phillips expected an answer and did his best to find a starting point. “I have not seen that device before.”
“So how is it that I possess this item and it allows me to travel through time?” Phillips interjected, not wanting to give Jasper time to control the conversation through denial.
Jasper’s mouth fell open. “You have traveled through time?”
“I have, with this device.”
“And you got the device where?”
“I took it off a man in France in 1897.”
Jasper was completely unprepared for this discussion. He considered how open he should be. Years ago, he had moved on past Jack. He decided if he was not going to be imbedded again, he should be frank. He didn’t get the impression from Phillips that he was attempting to trap him or even accuse him of a crime. He decided to follow his instincts. “How much do you know?”
“I know nearly everything. But I have not yet heard your side.”
Jasper put his head down. “It’s true that we used science to create a method of traveling through time. But that method did not consist of that device. The item that Jack and I created was implanted into Jack’s brain.”
Phillips nodded. “Go on.”
“You said you recovered this device in 1897? It that your original time frame?” Jasper thought on this for a moment and a realization came to him. “Your name is Phillips. Dr. Bagster Phillips? You were working the Ripper case.”
“I was. And I still am. I’m looking for your friend Jack. Jack the Ripper. Have you seen him?”
Phillips may not be accusing Jasper of a crime in the present day but that did not mean he wasn’t investigating his involvement in the crimes of Jack the Ripper. Jasper didn’t want Phillips thinking he had something to do with it.
Phillips guessed Jasper’s thoughts and smiled. “You don’t have to worry. I’m not here for you. Everything I know about you indicates that you were not part of Jack’s plan to become the Ripper.” He looked very sharply at Jasper. “I am correct in saying that?”
Jasper looked at Phillips, allowing his eyes to be read. “You are correct in saying that. I tried to stop him. I tried to shoot him. But he vanished just before the bullet struck and I have not seen him since.”
Phillips looked at Jasper a moment longer. He knew that Jasper was telling the truth. “I’ve been chasing Jack for many years. Too many.”
“So Jack is still alive?”
“He’s still alive. And he is still killing. I would like to stop him. But before I can, I need to know where he is before he gets there. Every time, I have been too late. There has only been one time that I was close enough to kill him but I bungled it. And…”
“And what?” Jasper asked when Phillips didn’t finish.
“I’m afraid I have involved two innocent individuals in the process. But that can’t be helped now. What one can affect is what one does going forward. I need to get ahead of Jack so I can stop him. Is there something you can tell me about him that would help with this?”
Jasper wasn’t sure what Phillips meant by the two innocent individuals but he let it go. “There is something,” Jasper offered. “After Jack disappeared, for many years I would find newspaper articles or handwritten notes inside of my postbox. They were always about some murder that had occurred throughout history. I had no doubt they had been left there for me by Jack.”
“I see,” Phillips replied, nodding for Jasper to continue.
“At first they were about miscellaneous murders. But the most recent items – they stopped about two years ago – were about American Presidents. The most current of those focused on Woodrow Wilson. I think Jack was planning on killing him.”
“Why did he leave those for you? Do you have any idea?”
A very sober expression came across Jasper’s face. “You’ve only known Jack as a man who slaughters the innocent. I know a different Jack. He and I have been friends for many years. He was my best mate. There was much to like about him before our experiment. I loved him as a brother. But then he changed.
“I believe that somewhere inside of him, the person that he was is still there. The new arrogant side of him wanted to brag to me about what he was doing but I also believe the true him was reaching out to me hoping that I could stop what he had become and help him.”
Phillips wrote all of this down in his journal. When he had finished, he rose and offered his hand to Jasper. “I want to thank you. This has been very helpful. I’m sorry about your friend and what I must do.”
Jasper took his hand and nodded. “Both Jack and I understand to what it must eventually come. Good luck to you.”
After he left Jasper’ house, Phillips traveled to 1921 London. He knew that from February 21 to March 12 of that year, the city would host the London Conference to discuss the problems that had
