CHAPTER#10

"Aha!" Tink pointed to the corner of the map. "Tink remember! Big remember!"

"Remember what?" Following her finger, he saw a string of letters and numbers written in the upper corner of the map. "Is that a code for how to get in?"

"Nope!" Grinning, Tink rolled up the map. "Is numbers for the Library!"

"The library?" Mike frowned. "You got this map from a library?"

"The Library, library in house! Tink see numbers before, but still forget. Remember when husband say how to get in. Map come from Library, stuck in Vault after..." Tink glazed over again. "Tink no remember that part. But maybe Library know how to open cave!"

"Tink, that's awesome! Let's go right now!" Stepping back, he expected Tink to jump down from the chair. She remained in place, scratching her head.

"Tink no remember how to get to Library." Scowling at the table, she closed her eyes. "Tink remember red book. Red book lead to Library. But don't know where red book is."

"Fuck," Mike whispered, sincerely hoping that the red book hadn't been out in the garage.

"Is ok. We just look through house for books." Tink jumped down, leaving her crossbow on the table. Bending over, she pulled the box of Pop-tarts from the bag. "Maybe eat these now too." She ripped the wrapper with her teeth and shoved the first one in her face, handing Mike the second. "Husband come, much look with Tink."

Mike sighed, setting the hammer down on the table, then followed her into the living room, tucking his Pop-tart in his back pocket.

-

Dana set the small box of tools on her desk, moving her textbook to the floor. She had taken the tools from her school, sneaking in to avoid the eyes of classmates she was already struggling to remember. Every step through those long, college halls brought up a flood of memories of the person she used to be, the Dana of yesteryear. Stepping into the maker space, the hum of 3-D printers was punctuated by the sounds of a dremel being used by a student who was trying to cut through a small, aluminum tube.

She deliberately ignored the south side of the room. The memorial for Alex was still pinned to the wall, directly over the workstation where they had met as freshman. Dana deliberately closed the door on that particular memory, focusing instead on the mental list in her head. Now those tools were spread out on the table before her, small tools that she couldn't afford on her own.

Gears from inside the clock were spread out before her. Upon opening the clock first thing this morning, she had discovered that something had damaged most of the moving parts inside. Teeth were missing from gears, and more than a couple of them had been broken in half. She wasn't certain how the inside of a grandfather clock could take such damage, but was determined to do her best.

She had unrolled a piece of butcher paper across her desk, using it to trace pieces, label where they came from, and even tape them in place. She set up the wire holder she had borrowed, a device with a magnifying glass meant for delicate soldering work. Clipping one of the smaller gears in place, she was able to look at where one of the teeth had broken off.

"Strange," she muttered, examining the surface of the gear. Whatever had ripped the tooth off had taken it completely. Removing the gear, she put it back inside its outline, and wrote the word score underneath. Using calipers, she made a few quick measurements of one of the surviving teeth, writing next to it. She had access to some metal 3D printer ribbon, the good stuff, and was fully convinced she could print a new tooth for the gear and epoxy it on.

Her world faded to black, her entire focus on the job before her. She put on a visor with a magnifying glass and a light to get a good peek behind the clock face, checking for more missing parts. The exploded diagram on the butcher paper was clearly missing a few necessary gears for the clock itself to work, and she needed to find the others. Poking around with a long pair of tweezers, she was able to find a missing spring when her phone went off in her pocket.

"Shit," she muttered, staring at the screen. What had felt like maybe an hour had been nearly five, and she needed to get ready for her delivery job. Stripping in place, she slid into her work outfit, wondering if Mike would order something tonight. She made a mental note to drop by his place anyway and give him an update on the clock if she was on his side of town. Shoving her way out into the cool, open air of the world, she looked back at her apartment.

The clock appeared in her mind, calling to her. She knew this was the start of an obsession, she could feel it in her bones. Maybe after she finished fixing it, she would keep it for a few days, just to properly enjoy it before giving it back. Backing down the driveway, it was on her mind so much that her eyes tricked her into thinking it was watching her go from her bedroom window.

-

The search began in the front room. The good news was that, since Jenny had trashed the place last week, everything had been uncovered in order to repair the damage. Mike checked underneath the furniture just to be sure, hoping to spot this book that Tink was convinced would lead them to the library.

"How big of a book are we talking about Tink?' Mike asked, picking up an ashtray. It looked like the kind that was purchased for a relative on a trip, then never used. "Textbook, dictionary, diary maybe?"

"Husband find red book. What more does husband need know?" Tink had pulled a loose brick from beneath the mantle, revealing an empty depression behind it. "Find red book, tell Tink."