Escape from the Past (33 page)

I remembered my first encounter with the dark-haired man who looked so much like Lancelot, had it not been for his stiff leg. I wondered what Lame Hans thought of me now that I’d been made squire. If he’d still call me
sirrah.
Bero had insisted it was a huge insult. Surely he didn’t still consider me a spy. But then he always looked grumpy.

Thinking of spy, I remembered Lippold, my cellmate on Rusteberg. Had he organized the escape? He’d seemed strangely aloof and not too caring about my fate. I made a mental note to ask Werner. Maybe he had an idea who’d set me free. Schwarzburg had to have been livid when his most fascinating prisoner had evaporated.

Who cared? I had no intention of ever seeing the man again.

“One more thing,” Werner finally yelled into the ruckus. “We have secured personal items who I believe belong to one of our newest squires.” He nodded at one of the maids who curtsied and approached me.

I stared in wonder at the old crusted jeans and my nerds shirt. In her hand, the maid held another item, my pocketknife.

“Our dressmaker was most kind to return it,” Werner said with a chuckle. “He was glad to keep his store after helping Schwarzburg.” The crowd booed. “And this tunic and curious leg garment were retrieved as well. Schwarzburg must’ve asked the dressmaker to make him one. He’d look like a parrot.” Laughter rang out.

So that’s what they thought of my fashion, I mused. They still
had a few hundred years to get used to it.

I stood up from my bench. “My Lord, I’d like to thank you for this great honor. I will work hard and study the art of battle to deserve your graciousness. And I thank you for finding my trinkets which I hold most dear.” Listen to me, I thought. I’m starting to sound medieval all right.

By the time, I returned to my room, I could barely stand. Afraid of falling asleep or making a fool of myself as the new squire, I’d gone lightly on the wine. It had been hard, everyone wanting to toast. But my body demanded rest. Tomorrow, I’d officially move to the horse barn with Bero and start the new exercise and training program. Enders would teach us to ride, sword-fight and shoot with bow and arrow. A future knight had to be strong.

I’d wanted to speak with Juliana, find out what she thought about my new role. And what she expected of me. To my frustration, she’d only stopped by once to congratulate me. Her hand had been like burning coals in mine and I’d wanted to pull her on my lap and kiss her. Instead she’d been distracted, helping with drink service and later accompanying Lady Clara to her room.

I’d find her first thing tomorrow. I also had to talk to Werner about Ott. The Lord didn’t know about the poisoning and Ott’s hate-filled threat. Werner would know what to do. I groaned with fatigue as I pulled off the robes when my sight fell on my old clothes.

I was suddenly melancholy. I’d lost my mother and everyone I’d known. Living without my dad had been bad enough. Strangely I was no longer mad at him or my mom. They had been good to me especially after the divorce. Even my dad had tried. A lump expanded in my throat and I swallowed it away. Never seeing them again was plain impossible to deal with.

But then, what good did it do to be sad and think about stuff you couldn’t change? I’d been stupid to play a game I didn’t
understand, stupid to want to impress Jimmy’s filthy rich father. I had a new life, in a castle at that. I had to be thankful for my new post. Even if I couldn’t share Bero’s enthusiasm, being a squire was pretty cool.

Overcome by sadness, I scrambled back out of bed and put on my old clothes, stuffing the wallet, knife and watch back into my pockets. I’d sleep in them tonight. Just once. Then I’d put them away. For good.

I blew out the candle and climbed into bed when a horrible weight began to squeeze my chest. It was as if I couldn’t lift my ribcage. My lungs were impossible to move outward to suck in air. I collapsed on the mattress. The heaviness grew until I thought I was suffocating. It was similar to Ott choking me, but there was nobody, just an invisible vise compressing my body, a crushing heaviness that got worse until stars exploded behind my eyelids and I thought I’d die. Maybe this
was
a heart attack.

Then, just as quickly, the weight vanished and I was able to breathe. I sighed in relief and fell asleep.

“Max?” the voice said. “You’ll be late for school.”

I blinked. It was pitch-black except for a low glow in the hall. “Stupid dreams,” I mumbled, turned to the wall and fell asleep again.

“Max, it’s almost seven,” the voice said. “Don’t you have an exam today?”

I jerked awake with a start. “What?”

A blinding light attacked my eyeballs and I yanked the blanket over my head.

“Did you sleep in your clothes?”

Ever so slowly, I pushed away my cover. Above me, with the ceiling light blazing, stood my mother.

“Mom?”

“What’s the matter with you?” She sounded exasperated. “What happened to you? Did you have a fight with Jimmy?”

I sat up in bed. I kept staring at my mother, the fine lines around her eyes, the made-up hair ready for work. I cleared my throat in search of something fitting to say. “Em, no, I was playing a game.”

With a sigh my mother glanced at the computer screen on my desk. “I wish your dad hadn’t bought you this. It’s such a bad influence. Better get in the shower.” She sniffed. “And air out your room, it stinks.”

I looked around, taking in my desk, the books on the shelf, the ceiling light, the photos on the wall, the Eminem poster. I was back in my room. I’d had a nightmare.

Sighing with relief I threw down the blankets. And stared.

My jeans were filthy, my T-shirt ripped and stained. My Nikes, which had been white once, looked gray. I undid the laces and stood up. This had not been a dream and certainly no computer game. At least none I’d ever played.

But why had my mother been so calm. I’d been gone for weeks.

Still, I was back. Back!

I dragged myself to the desk where screensaver bubbles slinked around the monitor. The mouse lay innocently next to it. I gingerly tipped a forefinger against it and the screen came to life.
Congratulations! You have mastered level one
it said benignly, the letters plastered across a stone gate. With a sigh, I pushed the eject button and yanked out the disk. I quickly hid it inside the case and threw it into my pack.

The bathroom smelled heavenly of soap and disinfectant. Clean towels, hot water. I stepped in front of the mirror and checked out my face. I looked thinner. My hair had grown an inch with a few nicks and cuts on my neck and cheek. I checked out my eyes: greenish-blue like the river I’d swum. They seemed older, filled with unique knowledge. I whistled and scrubbed until my skin turned lobster-red. Amazing. Hot clean water.

I quickly dressed and stepped into the kitchen. Fresh rolls, butter and homemade blackberry jam stood waiting next to a boiled egg.

“Back by one,” my mom said. “I’m glad it’s Saturday. Hope your test will go okay.”

“What test?” I said, plopping on my usual seat.

“Didn’t you say last night you had a math test this morning?”

I frowned. A long time ago, I’d gone to my room with nothing more on my mind than to squeeze a maximum number of hours gaming before my exam. “Right.”

Wait a minute. I jumped up and followed my mother into the hall. “What day is it?”

My mother’s eyes widened. “Saturday. What’s wrong?”

I shook my head in confusion. Without a word, I opened my arms and hugged her, mumbling,

“Thank you.”

“Max?”

I remained silent. A terrible thought took hold of me. What if I was dreaming right now? What if I was still in 1471? I shuddered.

“Are you sick?” My mom’s voice filtered through the fog of my worries.

I drew back. “Nothing. Just wanted to say thanks,” I said, clearing my throat. She looked older than I remembered.

With a quick squeeze she turned away. “See you this afternoon. Then we’ll talk.”

“I might call Dad today,” I yelled after her.

My mom abruptly turned, her eyes wide. “He’d love that.”

“Maybe we can do something together this weekend.”

To my surprise she hurried back and hugged me tight before rushing out the door.

I sauntered back into the kitchen, attacking the rolls. The kitchen clock said 7:25. Better hurry. The bus to Heiligenstadt came in ten minutes. I rushed to my room, marveling at the feel of clean laundry on my skin. Everything smelled so good.

In my room, I dug through my old jeans pocket for my wallet and ID. More out of habit, I stuck the watch into my pocket. 7:32. What? I stopped moving. The watch had not worked while I was gone.

It couldn’t be. The math test was today? I’d spent four or more weeks in the Middle Ages. But here nothing had changed. Nobody had missed me because to them I had slept in my bed. I had returned in the night, precisely at the time I’d left.

As I rode the bus to school, I thought of the impending exam. It was a joke compared to staring down Ott’s hate-filled eyes or nearly dying in the Duke’s rat-infested cell. What had rushed by in overwhelming succession now slowed down to a crawl. The memories of Juliana, Bero and Knight Werner returned with such clarity that I expected to hear their voices any second. They had become my family, however strange, however unreal. To me, they had been real. Hard to believe they were long dead—vanished
without a trace.

I exited the bus, watching the kids of my high school meander toward school. Some were chatting, some still asleep. How good they had it: lots of clothes, smart phones and laptops, not to mention plenty of food, modern medicine and Facebook. A few weeks ago I’d worried what everyone thought of me, my clothes, my haircut and my weird American accent. I’d been nervous and ready to escape reality as soon as I reached my computer. Now I didn’t care what anyone thought.

“Max, wait,” Jimmy shouted from the street. “I studied half the night,” he panted as he drew near. “How was the game?”

I opened my mouth and closed it. When I was stuck in the Middle Ages, I’d often thought of what to say to Jimmy and his father. How they’d ruined my life, exposed me to lethal situations and made every day living hell. I’d been angry, sad and miserable. Right now, I was only thinking of doe eyes and soft brown hair, Bero’s squinting muck and his squirrel-fast movements. The blue intensity of Werner’s gaze.

I shook my head. “Come over after school. By the way,” I said as Jimmy plopped behind his desk. “Why did you call me?”

“When was that?” Jimmy said, his face puzzled.

“Last night. After I got home. You called twice.”

Jimmy shook his head. “I never called. I studied till one a.m.”

I frowned. I could’ve sworn the number on my cell had been Jimmy’s home.
Herr
Hildebrand entered the room. Better get a grip and force my brain into math mode.

“Tell me,” Jimmy said when he showed up in my room later that day.

“Tell you what?”

“You didn’t play.” Jimmy stopped in the doorframe.

“Look at me,” I said. “Do you notice anything?”

“What. You’ve got a few scratches on your face, bags under your eyes. So what you didn’t sleep well and you had a fight with
your cat.”

“Very funny.” I pulled the disc case from my pack. “Here. Take it back.”

“You can’t be serious. You really didn’t play.” Jimmy slumped into the only available chair.

“Did
you
?”

“I told you I did.” Jimmy sounded annoyed.

“But did you really play? Like
in
the game.” For the first time I felt uneasy. I’d never had a reason not to trust Jimmy. But the phone calls had positively come from Jimmy’s house and something just didn’t make sense.

“
In
the game. What on earth are you talking about?”

I sighed. “When you played, where did you go? What year?”

“The Middle Ages. Who cares when.”

“What did you see?”

“A bunch of knights fighting a battle, a castle. The usual stuff.”

“Did you meet Werner von Hanstein.”

Jimmy shrugged. “Meet? They all looked the same. Dudes in armor fighting, you know.”

I thought of Knight Werner. Impossible to forget. I shook my head.

“Did you play the master level?”

Jimmy squinted. “Father didn’t want to give me the game at all. But when I mentioned how you were helping me with math, he seemed more willing.” Jimmy paused, his forehead scrunched into horizontal folds of concentration. “He was really insistent I only play the starter level. I had to promise to be careful.

“You could’ve told me that.”

“You were pushing me,” Jimmy said. “Besides, it was late and I worried about the test.”

With a sigh I slumped on my bed, my back against the wall. Jimmy stared. “You didn’t.”

“Yep.”

Jimmy leaned forward in his chair. “What happened? Tell
me.”

I took a deep breath. “I was gone for more than four weeks. Really gone.” I paused, bathing in Jimmy’s expression of wonder.

“What do you mean
really gone
?”

“The game sucked me into the real Middle Ages. I was right here, in Bornhagen, except it was 1471. There were woods then, oaks two hundred feet tall and wild animals.”

“So you hung out in the woods for a few weeks?”

“Very funny,” I said. “I wish.”

Little by little, I recounted my adventure, the people I’d met, the girl, the great knight of Hanstein. Every few minutes, Jimmy stopped me to ask more details. “I can’t believe it.”

“You don’t believe me?”

Jimmy wiggled around on his chair. “I do, but it sounds so crazy. How could you’ve been gone for that long and never be missed here? I mean we just practiced math last night.”

“I practiced math weeks ago. When I entered the game, my watch stopped and it turned back on when I returned. I left at 9:47 last night. Nobody realized I was gone, not even my mom. Because I returned at the same time. After I had all my stuff back, my clothes and wallet. And after I’d been made a squire.

Jimmy stared at me. “You were really a squire?”

“I traveled through time, but no matter how real it felt and how much I suffered through it, nothing has come with me to prove it.”