Page 61 of Right Place, Right Time
‘But if you look on YouTube, you can actually find people like Professor Brian Cox explaining for the lay person how time travel into the future could be achieved.’
I nod.
‘So it’s not just for science-fiction films and television shows. It’s actually a proven … well, not actually proven, but a well-known theory.’
‘OK …’
‘You’re taking this a lot better than I thought you would,’ Barney says suspiciously, tilting his head. ‘Are you all right?’
‘I’m a bit tired today, but nothing to worry about. Go on.’
‘Right, so as far as I can see, the notebooks are trying to prove the same theory, but with the addition that time travel into the past might be equally as possible.’
I swallow hard. ‘And do any of the notebooks actually prove this theory? Or is it just conjecture?’
‘That’s it – I don’t think they could prove it. All the equations are trying to, but they never quite get there.’
‘I see.’
‘All right, what’s going on?’ Barney folds his arms. ‘I’ve just told you that someone was trying to prove that time travel could be achieved in some secret notebooks you and Adam discovered, and you’re not even a little bit shocked? I expected sceptical at the very least.’
‘As strange as this may seem, Barney, I think you might be right.’
I explain to Barney what happened last night. About us figuring out the combination, and then getting into the room, and finally what we found.
‘This is insane,’ Barney says when I’m finished. ‘Whathaveyou both uncovered?’
‘I really don’t know, Barney. Whatever it is, I’m getting more and more worried by it all as each day passes.’
‘Morning,’ Adam says, putting his head around the open door. ‘What are you two discussing so intently?’
I quickly catch Adam up on Barney’s theory.
‘I hate to admit it,’ Adam says, like me remaining much calmer than expected. ‘As crazy as it sounds, the thought has crossed my mind too.’
Barney looks between the two of us. ‘I can’t believe this,’ he says, shaking his head. ‘I thought when I came here today, I was going to be laughed out of the shop. But instead I find the two of you are agreeing with everything I say!’
‘The whole thing is mad – yes,’ Adam says, looking at me. ‘But I don’t think either of us can deny the evidence. Can we, Eve?’
I shake my head.
‘The question is, what are we to do with all this information? We have the notebooks that you’ve deciphered for us, Barney, the combination to the lock on the hidden room, all these reports – that didn’t really make any sense to me – did they to you, Eve?’ he asks, turning to me.
‘Not a lot.’
‘And finally some strange photos of both our great-grandparents. So what do we do with all this information?’
‘Do we have todoanything?’ I ask. ‘You know I love history, but sometimes things are better left alone. We’ve found out what is behind the locked door now. Perhaps we should leave it be.’
‘But what about thestory, Eve?’ Adam says. ‘You told me you loved the story behind items from the past. This has more of a story here than in one of your old tea sets over there. In fact, there’s not only a story, there’s a whole great mystery. Don’t you want to find out what it is and put the story to that painting over there, and that clock.’ He gestures to them both. ‘And what about the hidden room – there must be tons of stories of things that went on down there. It was clearly something top secret. Everything we’ve discovered has been related to the Second World War or earlier.’
I think about this.
‘Did you say before that the numbers to open the locked door were both your birthdays, plus the 616 I’d told you about?’ Barney asks suddenly.
‘Yes, they were,’ Adam replies. ‘You were spot on with that comic-book reference in the doodle.’
‘But I told you that Earth wasn’t referred to as 616 in Marvel comics until the eighties. So unless those numbers are referencing something else, that combination can’t have been set on the door until then, maybe even later.’
