Gaga came into the kitchen just then with a basketful of laundry. She plopped herself down at the end of the table and started folding. Everyone stared at her like she was an alien that had just joined them for a meal.
“Why are you all staring at me like that?” Gaga asked. “Am I interrupting a secret meeting?”
“No, of course not!” Mr. Hudson said a bit too loudly. Mrs. Hudson gave him an exasperated look. He was perhaps a worse liar than Matt.
Gaga adjusted her square-framed glasses and squinted at the globe full of stickers. “Are you having a geography lesson or something?”
“Yep,” said Corey, spinning the globe. “We just love our geography. Can’t get enough.”
Gaga frowned. “Matthew, don’t you go trying to turn my grandchildren into a bunch of nerds like you. Let them have a little fun, will you?”
Mr. Hudson looked highly affronted. “They think geography is fun, don’t you, kids?”
“Yep!” “Yes!” “Can’t get enough.” They all chirped perhaps a little too enthusiastically. Gaga looked dubious.
“We were just learning about Antarctica,” Ruby said.
“Antarctica!” Gaga blurted. “Oh my Lord, that reminds me. You would not believe the things I was hearing on the news this morning. They found a family of penguins wandering around in the middle of the Gobi Desert! Can you believe it? Unbelievable. And if that wasn’t enough, a blizzard hit Jamaica! Tourists are actually asking for refunds.”
Matt glanced at his mom. Her eyes flickered toward him for just a moment. He wondered if these were signs of Vincent’s new powers, of him meddling with time. How else could a flightless Antarctic bird suddenly end up almost ten thousand miles away, on a completely different continent? What else could explain a snowstorm in a tropical climate? They seemed like sure signs of glitches in the timeline. But the bigger question was, why hadn’t Vincent tried to do anything to them yet? When would they have to face him again? Because it was surely a question of when and not if. The one “if” in question was if they would stand any chance against him now that he had the Aeternum.
“I’m telling you, the world is going to pieces,” Gaga continued. “Scientists are beside themselves, trying to explain everything with climate change or whatever. Then of course there’s always the preacher who says the world is coming to an end and we’re all doomed, and I say what’s the difference? Recycle and repent. Doesn’t hurt to try both.”
“Amen,” said Uncle Chuck.
“Oh, Chuck, I meant to tell you,” Gaga said. “I just saw some strange fissures in the vineyard. Maybe it was caused by that ridiculous storm, or maybe we have a mole again. Will you take a look?”
“Sure thing, Mrs. Hudson.” Uncle Chuck put on his fishing hat and sunglasses and hurried outside as though he couldn’t wait to get away.
“Everything’s going to pieces around here,” Gaga said, shaking her head.
Matt looked out the cracked window and watched his uncle walk into the ruined vineyard. Half the grapevines had been uprooted and scattered all over. Where there had been a quaint little cottage on the eastern end of the vineyard, there was now nothing more than a pile of wood surrounding a toilet. Gaga thought all the damage had been caused by a freak storm. Everyone else knew it had something to do with their recent time travels. Only Matt knew the whole truth. Just after they’d returned from Asilah three days ago, Matt had found a note pinned with a dagger to the willow by the pond.
This is only the beginning, it read.
Matt had thrown the dagger in the pond but kept the note. He had not shown it to the rest of his family. For one, he didn’t know what the note meant, exactly. It was ominous and threatening, but too vague to get any real sense for what to expect or prepare for. It was just enough to send Matt’s mind in endless spirals, thinking of all the things Captain Vincent could do now that he had the Aeternum. Discard all of them in different centuries. Kill his parents. Make it so none of them were ever born. Throw them all into a pit to rot. And that was the other reason Matt didn’t share the note with his family. It would only add to everyone’s anxiety, and they had enough already. Too much. Matt felt for his compass, still resting on his chest beneath his shirt. All that power and still he was helpless. He wished he knew what to do!
“Well, you all have fun with your geography lesson,” Gaga said, standing up with her basket of laundry. “Let me know when you’re ready to actually go somewhere and then I’ll gain some interest.”
After Gaga was gone, Mr. Hudson spun the globe around, tracing a finger over the little gold stars. “If only I had the map,” said Mr. Hudson for the thousandth time. He used to have a map that showed the Vermillion’s location at any given time, but Captain Vincent had it now. He seemed to hold all the aces.
But Matt still had his compass. Vincent wouldn’t be where he was now if it weren’t for that. Matt had invented it, after all, so didn’t that put him at the advantage? It seemed a logical conclusion, and yet Matt felt like the underdog here. But there had to be something they could do . . .
“Wait a second . . . ,” Matt said, as a realization suddenly donned on him. “What if . . . ?” He didn’t finish his thought. He pulled his compass out from beneath his shirt, lifted it over his head and set it on the table.
“Mateo?” his mom said. “What is it?”
“Jia, do you have a small Phillips screwdriver, some tweezers, and maybe a pin or needle?”
Jia rifled through her pocketed vest until she produced the requested items. Matt took the
