Time Splitter

Chapter 1 Dream of Death

They were being watched. Something lurked in the shadows glaring malevolently at the couple who had hidden in the darkness. The girl couldn’t tell if the something was a ghost, a demon, or a real person, but she could sense the desire to kill.

She looked directly at Tatum. Shocked, he realized he was the ghost, the thing that was lurking, watching. The girl stared at him in horror then turned to her companion. OH MY GOD! STEWART! STEWART! she screamed as her friend slumped, dead, to the ground.

Tatum’s eyes were riveted on his brother’s dead body. He didn’t see the crowd rushing to the scene until someone ran right through a shadowy hooded figure that had crept up beside him. Like him, it was a spirit, but it was the source of the evil that the girl had felt, not Tatum. It was the thing that had killed Stewart.

STEWART! he screamed, sitting up in bed. Slowly his eyes adjusted to the darkness of his room. On his side, he could see the forms of his books, his computer, and the electronic gear he used in some of his experiments. On the other side of the room were Stewart’s empty bed and a few of his old toys.

Tatum hated these nightmares. They scared him. What was the phrase his father used? We must put aside the irrational and think about things in a logical way.

Tatum opened a phone app to a live-stream a local radio station and looked out the window at the first glimmer of dim light casting a feeble glow through the thickening clouds.

Expect light rain showers throughout the day with stronger rain, possibly thunderstorms killed by the hooded figure, beginning in the evening, the radio announcer droned.

No! Tatum clasped his hands over his ears. Then he assured himself, You’re coming out of a nightmare; it takes time for reason to dominate emotion. It was time to get ready for school.

Chapter 2 Could This Be Murder

My experiment’s been accepted by the BOES, Tatum Kelly ’ dad proudly announced to his family near the close of that same rainy spring day when came together that evening to share supper and news. Joseph Kelly ’ statement was met with stunned silence by his wife and son. Of course, we’ll stay here about a month while I get my research team together. Then we should go to Switzerland right after that to house hunt. We’ll be living there for a few years.

Finally, he noticed their lack of enthusiasm. What’s the matter? We’ve all been looking forward to this for a long time. He looked at his ten-year-old son. You and I’ve been working on this particle theory for years. Once we run our experiment through the Large Hadron Collider at Geneva, you won’t be just the son of Dr. Nobody, Professor at Never-Heard-of-It University. Our names will be forever emblazoned in the annals of physics as the discoverers of… He paused for effect as he lifted his hand to sweep it along a legendary marque. ...The Kelly Particle.

His mother finally spoke. I’m not sure that I can get a license to practice medicine over there on a moment’s notice. I’d have so much paperwork to fill out. I… I… just doesn't know.

It might take a little time, Joseph assured her. But, I’m sure the Swiss would be eager to accept a prominent physician like you at any hospital you choose. Carly, you know having my experiment approved by the BOES is critical. I’ll be regarded as one of the world’s leading physicists.

The BOES was a body of European scientists who ran the Large Hadron Collider. It was an expensive facility, many kilometers long that was designed to get sub-atomic particles moving really fast along a kind of track and then smash them and see what they did. Tatum’s dad had submitted one of the few applications to conduct an experiment using the Collider that had been accepted that year.

Carly Kelly persisted. I’m thrilled and want this honor for you as much as you want it for yourself, but… you know… I can’t leave here. I… I can’t leave this house. Mom was close to tears. This house was… you know… the last place I saw Stewart alive. She swept her hand toward an empty chair. Here at this table. He seemed so happy at breakfast that morning. She stopped and shook her head.

She sighed and continued. Everything here reminds me of him. Maybe you could go on ahead of us and we’ll follow in a few months when you find a house. I just need more time here.

Joseph scolded her. That’s exactly why we need to move. We won’t forget Stewart. We won’t stop loving him - not ever. But we need to go somewhere where we don’t set a place for him at the table or watch the T.V. shows that he liked, or keep his bed ready for him. Honestly, I think that we should move together. I don’t like the idea of leaving you two here with Stewart’s memory. Dad smiled and looked at Tatum. In light of Stewart’s death, we’re lucky to have such a grandchild.

Frankly, Dad, Tatum spoke up. I agree with Mom. Stewart died in his schoolyard. I walk by there every day and wonder what happened to him.

His dad looked startled. Stewart was a bright boy and a popular one, but he went to Elmwood High. Tatum, who attended the Alfred Newman School for the Gifted, had to go six blocks out of his way to pass the place where Stewart’s body was found.

Dad interrupted him, See? That’s what bothers me about leaving you two here alone. He’s been dead for over two years and your grief’s still so fresh and intense…

My grief’s intense because no one’s found Stewart’s murderer yet, Tatum answered.

Murderer? Stewart wasn’t…

He was, Tatum said firmly. No one saw the perpetrator give Stewart a fatal dose of cocaine. But someone had to.

No, Son. his mother interjected. Stewart was only fifteen at the time of his death. Taking an accidental overdose of opiate is not uncommon for kids that age. Suicide is also not unusual. Mom looked like she wished she didn’t have to say it, but she was a pediatrician and was well aware of the mental torment that so many teens endured. Remember the note the police found on his iPad? ‘I’ve had it with this life!’

Tatum shook his head. I’m not convinced that my brother’s death was a suicide. At night, just before we’d go to sleep, Stewart would tell me lots of stuff about his life. He’d have told me about problems he was having at school. He would have said something if he were thinking about killing himself. Instead, he said things like he didn’t do drugs. Stewart hated anything to do with drugs, Tatum explained.

That’s right, Dad smiled at his wife. Remember, he even painted a Tatum on the school wall, ‘Drugs are for Mugs.’

Mom looked somewhat reassured in spite of her flowing tears.

What’s more, Tatum continued, anyone could have written something on his iPad while the police made their way to the schoolyard. The crime scene wasn’t protected the way it should’ve been. I’m convinced that someone killed my brother. And I want to stay here until I solve this mystery.

Dad frowned. Tatum was a thin boy and small for his age. His head was normal sized but it looked big perched on his little body. It was as though nature had put all it had into developing Tatum from the neck up and had no energy left to finish the rest of him.

If someone did kill Stewart, then it’s more important than ever that we stick together. I can’t leave you here alone while you delve into this mystery. The killer might decide to do you in if he thinks you’re getting too close to figuring out who did it.

Tatum thought a minute. Then I’ll figure it out before we leave. You said we had a month before we moved. Let me work on my project. If I haven’t figured it out by then, I’ll abandon my efforts.

Joseph looked at his son and his wife. Angela nodded. I think if I knew who killed Stewart, I could put a lot of this behind me. It would be easier for me to leave.

Okay, Son, Dad agreed. Give it everything you got, but remember - we leave in a month. No matter what.

Tatum glanced through the window. It looked like the rain was going to continue all night. I’ve got a lot of homework to do and then I want to work out some things first before I start investigating this mystery.

Chapter 3 Jungle Mode

The school year ended in a couple of days leaving Tatum free to dedicate every waking hour to the task. Since the police could not arrest anyone or failed to pursue the leads they had, Tatum figured that the only way to bring this case to a rightful conclusion was to reconstruct the crime in time. Tatum was ten years old going on thirty. He was as smart as could be - a child prodigy - and his parents were very proud of his accomplishments.

Tatum locked himself in his room day after day. He only came out to have his meals or to take a shower. During meals, Tatum asked his dad a constant stream of questions about the Hadron Collider and the experiments that they were doing there.

Dad, Tatum asked after a few days, did you read that article where some experimenters announced they’d found particles that could travel faster than light?

Yes, I did, Tatum. But it turns out they were wrong. They’d installed a GPS sensor wrong. That’s all. Nothing can travel faster than light. It turns out those particles don’t actually exist.

I think they were wrong about being wrong, Tatum said matter of fact as he pushed his thick glasses back up his nose. Here, look at this equation that I figured out today. Tatum shoved a Big Chief notebook to his father, who took it and nodded sagely.

See, Dad? According to Einstein’s Theory of Relativity, the faster a person moves, the more time slows down for them. If people move at the speed of light - time completely stops moving. The faster you move, the slower time moves - get it? he said glancing at his Mom as though trying to include her in the conversation. She nodded.

His dad nodded too, but he was getting confused. He still didn’t see how all of these random things tied together.

Now think about this. When you travel at the speed of light - time stands still. So, if you go faster than the speed of light time should move backward, right? I’ve worked it out right here. Tatum pointed to another part of his mathematical formula.

Those particles that were moving faster than the speed of light. They exist all right. I proved it right here. Dad followed Tatum’s finger to another part of the page. "See, Mom, they’re not racing around the house or anything. They’re racing around inside of an atom but they’re running really fast.

See, Dad, they’re traveling in time from our future to our past. We can only ‘see’ them when they’re occupying the same point in time that we are.

Dad frowned at the paper. He gave up trying to look like he was following what his son was saying. Tatum didn’t seem to notice. Here’s the part where I’ve proven that we must be moving in order for time to exist. He glanced at his mother. If we’re not moving then time doesn’t move either.

But we’re not moving, right now, Tatum and time are passing, his mother countered.

Oh yes, we are! Tatum exclaimed. Right now our sun is blasting through space at fifty thousand miles per hour and we are being sucked along behind it whirling around in its trailing vortex…

Suddenly Tatum stopped and smacked his forehead, Of course. Two years ago is millions of miles back there. I’ve got to add that to my equation. He jumped up from the table and hurried to his room slamming the door behind him.

I’m afraid I didn’t understand a bit of what he said, Tatum’s mom remarked to her husband.

Would you mind filling me in.

I didn’t understand much of it, Dad answered.

But wasn’t he talking about quantum physics? That’s your specialty.

Joseph Kelly worked as a professor of physics at the Ohio Valley Technical Institute. The school was a first-class science training facility, which attracted the nation’s best teachers and scientists.

He scratched his chin and thought for a moment. Carly, do you know the IQ of an average gorilla?

Carly shook her head. I’m not sure what you’re getting at.

I read an article one time that said when you give a gorilla an adapted human IQ test, they score around 50. Of course, they can’t know, so they have to test their skill at putting round pegs in round holes and square pegs in square holes - that sort of thing.

Yes. I use a Stanford-Banet test like that sometimes to check the IQ of toddlers if their parents are worried. Carly answered still looking puzzled.

An average person has an I.Q. of 100. And you have an I.Q. of around 140 - near genius.

So I’ve been told.

And I have an I.Q. of 150 - a certified genius.

You’ve reminded me of that on several occasions. Thank you. Carly smiled at Joseph to let him know she didn’t mind - much.

So my I.Q. is around 100 points higher than a gorilla's.

That must make you feel warm all over.

It means that I wouldn’t try to discuss one of my physics experiments with a monkey.

Ape. she corrected him.

And you wouldn’t try to discuss a complicated medical procedure with an ape.

Humans are apes, but I certainly wouldn’t attempt to talk to a gorilla about my practice. But I still don’t see…

Tatum’s I.Q. is around 100 points higher than mine. When he talks about his physics calculations to me, I feel like a gorilla trying to understand him.

But Tatum’s been tested. His I.Q. is 160. That makes him one of the smartest people in the world. But there have been other geniuses with higher scores than that. Einstein is estimated to have had an I.Q. around 165…

I think Tatum deliberately missed questions to make himself appear less intelligent than he really is.

Why would he do that? his mother asked.

I don’t know. Maybe even in his high school peer group, there’s such a thing as being too smart. Remember he’s only ten and already ahead of most of the gifted teens in his class.

"But what makes you think he has