Saving Yesterday (TimeShifters Book 1) Read Online Free Page A

into a pack of them. Surprised, they tumble like unsteady bowling pins. Without hesitation, he lunges at the one holding me. He lands a punch to the creature’s temple and it howls and spits, releasing me.
    Ten minutes ago, I might have been afraid of Michael’s intentions, but I’ll take the company of a possible murderer to whatever these other creatures are.
    Wide-eyed, Michael crashes forward and shoves me. “Run!”
    He doesn’t have to tell me twice.
    Like I’m on the starting blocks at the State Championship, I take off. Michael’s right at my heels, but the others—the shadow people—thunder after us. Branches snap and animals charge away as the otherworldly beings thud over bushes in our wake. Wet dirt and decaying leaves churn under our feet, shrouding us in a dense, earthy smell. I turn to the left, away from where the creatures first came from, but Michael snags my arm.
    With a jerk, he shouts, “Not that way! Run toward the portal.”
    Portal?
    There’s no time to ask, or waver, so I follow. A minute later, we arrive at the mouth of another clearing. The ground is unnervingly bare. In the center is a tree that once probably stood proud and tall, but now it’s half fallen. Its trunk forms a near-perfect arch, which illuminates as we draw near. The glow in the center ripples like water. Static zips through the air.
    Michael’s almost there, almost running into the space under the arch. But a searing pain around my wrist stops me. The bracelet begins to heat up.
    “Michael…?” He doesn’t stop. “Michael!”
    He hears me now and twists around. “Hurry.”
    The ground behind me shakes. The shadow people have found us. Their chests heave from either exertion or  anger.
    I stumble toward Michael, and he catches me by my elbows. My hands splay across his chest. I feel the rapid pound of his heart. That’s when he catches sight of my bracelet, which is now shining.
    His brow rises. “It can’t … I don’t believe….”
    He throws his arms around me. When I freeze in time, he’s there with me. The shadow people reach for us, but they miss as we fade. Their wails echo as the air around us closes in. Tight. Muggy. I hate this.
    Once again I feel a strong tug and the sensation of falling. For a moment, there is no sound at all, yet in a flurry something—maybe other people traveling in time—brushes against us in the blackness. There’s a murmuring that I didn’t notice last time. What are they saying? The words whoosh by too quickly.
    Just as quickly as it starts, it stops. We collapse against something hard and cold, stone—a building.
    “I didn’t think that would work. It shouldn’t have.” Michael’s beside me. “It never has before.”
    I blink rapidly. It’s so bright outside. Voices mixed with the sound of traffic draws me out of my daze.
    Michael’s already on his feet when I finally clear my vision, his hand thrust toward me. “Come on, we need to get you out of sight.”
    Rejecting his help, I shove up from the ground on my own. My breath catches in my throat. Moments ago we were in the middle of the country, but before me now sprawls a city. That, or it’s the set from an old black-and-white movie. Horses pulling carriages clomp down the cobblestone street, a boy on a bicycle with a messenger bag whips around us, and a policeman in a heavy-looking coat directs traffic on the corner. Old-fashioned cars on thin tires rumble through the intersection. The sun, close to high noon, pulses heat over the edge of the buildings that line the street.
    “Where are we?” I don’t even try to hide the awe in my voice. A million questions spring to my mind, but I can’t find the words to voice them. This is all too weird. My brain actually hurts a little. Possibly an effect of time travel—that, or it’s just plain tired of trying to wrap itself around the situation.
    Michael points to a sign in the road. Wall Street . Then he ducks beside some stairs and motions for me to follow.