Yesterday's Gone: Season Three (THE POST-APOCALYPTIC SERIAL THRILLER)

returned from what he said was the other world, he seemed refreshed, almost like a new boy. Will wondered where he was getting his energy, and if he were somehow pulling from the mind of his doppelganger to make himself stronger.
    Will theorized that if Luca could truly establish tangible interaction on another world, maybe he could return with evidence. It was a crazy long shot and utterly ridiculous, but wasn’t that always the way — today’s science was yesterday’s magic? Luca certainly seemed to be waving a wand.
    “Are you ready?”
    Luca nodded as he returned to his bed, wiping water from his lips with the back of his hand. He sat on the edge of his bed, legs folded.
    “And I can bring back anything I want?”
    Will said, “Whatever you want, Luca. I think the more special it is to you, the more likely you’ll be able to bring it back with you. But don’t tell me. Let it be a surprise.”
    Will didn’t really believe that it mattered what Luca brought back — the idea was to keep Luca from planting any thoughts in Will’s mind to taint the results.
    Luca said, “Okay, Dad. Should I go now?”
    Will swallowed. Luca had vanished twice in his sleep, including the first time a few weeks ago, when Will saw him appear before him on his return trip. Both times had been during the boy’s sleep and Luca had been unable to stop himself from leaving.
    Last week, Will was able to get Luca to do it again, that time in a controlled setting while the boy was awake.
    An uneasy knot returned to his throat, and he hoped he wasn’t putting Luca in harm’s way. At the same time, he had to figure out what was happening and help Luca learn to control it — if that were even possible. The last thing they needed was for Luca to teleport in the middle of a crowded room and draw attention to himself. He’d be in a room on Level Seven within an hour, and there would be nothing Will could do to keep it from his bosses.
    They would learn to control it together. But for now Will had to know where Luca was going. A parallel world? Back in time? Or was he even really going somewhere else? Perhaps, Will speculated, Luca was removing himself temporarily from their dimension but not really going anywhere, outside of a mental trip.
    Will told himself that this test was best for Luca and said, “Yes. Go now. I’ll be waiting right here.”
    “Okay,” Luca said, squeezing his eyes shut. He went blurry for a moment, as if two images of Luca’s had merged into one and were trying to separate from one another before both of them vanished.
    Will stared, stunned, and put his hand on the bed where Luca had been.
    Will waited through 20 minutes of silence until Luca finally appeared, standing in the bedroom, cradling a framed photograph of his family. As Luca held it out, Will could clearly see this the boy in the photo was the same age as Luca now — an impossibility if he’d time traveled. That Luca would have been six years old or younger, not eight.
    Will gasped. “Oh my,” he said, nearly leaping from his chair. “This can’t be.”
    Luca looked down at the photo and a tear splashed onto the glass. Will dropped to his knees beside the boy. “It’s okay, buddy,” he said. “You don’t have to be sad.” Will ignored the impossible to focus on the reality of Luca’s obvious pain.
    “But they’re all still alive,” he said. “All of them, even Anna.”
    “I know,” Will said, patting Luca’s head.
    “I miss them so much.” He started to sob.
    “I know,” Will repeated, now rocking Luca back and forth.
    “I don’t want to go back there,” he sobbed into Will’s shirt. “Ever again. It hurts too much.”
    “Okay, you don’t have to go back,” Will said, scooping Luca up in his arms and carrying him to the living room where they plopped down on the long L-shaped black sofa. Will wanted to ask him questions about the trip, what he’d seen, but Will had the only answer he needed at the moment — the framed photo that Will sat on the floor, just out of Luca’s sight.
    “Goodness,” Will said, rubbing his aching lower back. “We’re both getting too old, too fast.” He smiled. “Difference is, you’re getting bigger and I’m getting smaller, or at least a whole lot weaker.” He laughed. “I’m not sure how much longer I’m going to be able to keep that up! So you better enjoy it while it lasts.”
    The maybe of a smile flickered on Luca’s face, the first chink in the armor of his