John grabbed his Bible, went back to his room and grabbed the pillowcases that contained his wet possessions, thankful that he hadn't unpacked. On their way through the facility, Matt explained the circumstances surrounding Matt's arrival- or rather, arrivals- at the hospital.

"I can't believe you searched through five centuries to find me!" John marveled.

Matt looked at him steadily. "It's not just the job, John, or even the timeline. You know that, right? One thing I've learned from this is that friends don't give up. Every time I wanted to, the Lord reminded me of the look on your face from that rear window, and I had to find you." They headed out of the P-Wing and down to the entrance of the facility. "They tested your canteen at the hospital. We took it from the locals as evidence. Your bloodwork was clean, but there was enough poison in the canteen to kill several people."

John hadn't even noticed it was missing from his things. "He put it in there before he sent me forward into the pond," John remembered.

"But I . . . I should have died. I drank from it too!"

John chuckled. "I always pray over anything I eat or drink; always have," he explained. "I asked God to bless it, and us, before we drank out of it that day."

Matt took a deep, cleansing breath before he opened his car door. "Even before I knew Him, God was protecting me!"

"He loves you."

"I know. Cathleen and Daniel are discipling me. If not for your prayers . . ."

"Wait, I'm not going to pray them now!"

Matt laughed off John's worry. "God is bigger than any timeline, John," he chided with affection.

John felt foolish. "Omniscience doesn't just mean everywhere, it means 'every-when'. I knew that."

Matt laughed and the joy was contagious. "I've had five centuries to learn that lesson," he told John.

Suddenly, as Matt pulled away from the facility, John remembered another critical piece of information. "Matt! Your device! Art said he cloned it."

Matt groaned and tapped on the car's terminal. "Looks like you're about to get to see my DTD office," he remarked. "I can't destroy my handheld, but as long as I don't use it, Art won't get anything out of it. All he knows from it is that I'm interviewing residents for a lead to your whereabouts."

John thoroughly enjoyed the drive. He and Matt laughed and joked together over everything, renewing what felt like an old friendship to John.

Once in Lima, Matt pulled up in front of an unassuming warehouse. He used his handheld to activate the overhead door to a garage bay that looked big enough for a tractor trailer to use. As soon as the door was high enough, Matt parked the car inside, closed the door and honked the horn once before he climbed out of the car. John followed suit. An elevator door slid open as a chime sounded.

Matt led the way into the elevator, wordlessly beckoning John to follow. After the door closed, Matt used his handheld to operate the elevator. There were no buttons inside at all, only a single speaker.

John grabbed the rail as the elevator moved horizontally, rather than downward, as he'd expected. Matt grinned. "It's a security feature," the agent explained. "I can get anyone I'm protecting to our destination without exposing us within the building."

John nodded, impressed. "Did you always want to be an agent?" he asked.

Matt nodded. "Ever since I knew it existed. My fiancé is an analyst here." He winked. "I met her at Dan and Cathleen's house church.

John reached out to shake his friend's hand. "Congratulations, I'm so happy for you! When is the wedding?"

"As soon as you're safely home, my friend." Matt winked as the door slid open, revealing an office with several desks at the far end, arranged to all face the center of the room.

John stepped off the elevator to find Daniel, Cathleen and two other people standing near the semi-circle of desks clustered at the left side of the wide room. The right side  boasted as many small couches, also arranged in a semicircle. A door stood opposite the elevator.

Daniel hurried over to shake John's hand, while everyone offered greetings. John was introduced to Ellie the analyst, and Agent-in-Charge Claiborne. Shaking Ellie's hand, John noticed that she wore an elegant diamond ring on her finger. He shot a pointed look at Matt, who grinned as he nodded, so John congratulated her as well before moving to greet Agent-in-Charge Claiborne, who invited John to call him 'Clay'.

Cathleen pointed to the opposite door after greeting John. "I took the liberty of grabbing you some clean clothes; they're in there. We weren't sure what Matt was going to find; I'm so glad Matt found you when he did! After he told us about what's been happening . . ."

John looked at them in confusion. "Are you Cathleen and Daniel from five days ago, or five years from now?"

Daniel threw back his head and laughed aloud. "Neither," Cathleen explained with a grin. "The elevator jumped you to us. Since we're Lima natives, and rookies besides, we can't bounce glibly through time the way Matt can."

"You two haven't been rookies for two years," Clay retorted, joining the banter. "Senior Agent Eldred, shall we begin?" There was a chorus of 'yessir' as everyone sobered.

John went to change out of the scrubs he was wearing and found a full bathroom behind the door Cathleen had indicated. After two days in the woods after a sweat-lodge-style car ride, John couldn't resist the chance for a brief, hot shower. When he left the bathroom, everyone stopped talking long enough to invite John to sit on a couch and join the discussion.

Matt and Ellie shared one couch and Daniel sat on another with his arm around his wife. Clay had a couch to himself, leaving the last one for John. Together, they agreed on a plan, but were forbidden by Clay from enacting it until everyone got a full night's sleep.

Clay explained to John that the nano-robotics used the body's kinetic energy for power. Doing so left the person in desperate need of food and rest, so jumping when a person was already tired left the person exhausted and not able to think clearly. After jumping so often after so little sleep, John had crashed in Art's car from exhaustion, though Art had thought he'd succumbed to the poison.

Cathleen and Daniel headed back home while Matt opened out one of the folding couches for John. Matt assured John that he was safe. The room had been built with the same protections as any P-Wing, so John could sleep without fear of waking up someplace else. When he was finished, Matt left to join Ellie in her office in order to replace Matt's compromised handheld.

John thanked Matt sincerely and made himself comfortable. It didn't take long for John to fall asleep. He hadn't even reached the 'amen' to his silent prayers. When he awoke, still on the same couch, John finished his prayers with thanksgiving for that blessing as well. It was the first time in a week that he'd been able to spend the entire night in a bed.

Clay arrived first. He came with John's breakfast and another set of clean clothes, identical to the ones Daniel had given him the first time. John couldn't help but take the opportunity for another hot shower after he'd eaten. Who knew when he'd get the opportunity again? Dressed in clean, comfortable clothing and a pair of decent shoes, John was more than ready to face whatever came next.

Matt arrived with John's backpack shortly before Daniel and Cathleen's arrival. Dressed exactly as he had been after leaving Rev James, John was ready for his part of the plan. Daniel and Cathleen came soon after Matt. Cathleen was all-business, every inch a warrior headed into battle. Daniel had a satchel slung over one shoulder.

"You have them? Matt asked Daniel. Daniel nodded once.

Cathleen put her hands on John's shoulders, commanding his full attention. "After the jump, you're going to feel confused and lethargic but I need you to focus on Arch. Look for him and watch him as if you're alone with him. Can you do that?"

John grinned, trying to lighten her mood. "Cath, I've jumped literally almost every day since this began. I've finally gotten a decent night's sleep and a couple of meals under my belt. Don't worry; God's got this!" He was startled when she pulled him close, holding him in a tight hug.

"God, please keep him safe," he barely heard her murmur before she released him. John thought of what Matt had said about her son, Mikey, and felt a stab of empathy for the hurting woman.

"He will, don't worry, okay?" he murmured, and hugged her back until she let go. Trying not to draw attention to the shine of tears he saw in her eyes, John headed for the elevator. Thankfully, everyone did the same.

In the elevator, no one said much. John started to feel nervous about the plan. God, please help us! His prayers continued throughout the car ride.

Since Daniel was driving and Cathleen sat beside him, Matt fiddled with his handheld in the back seat. He caught John's gaze on the screen and grinned, showing him what was on it. "It's the cloned phone," he explained. "I'm telling Clay how Cathleen and I are going back to the pond to prevent it from becoming a pond. The way I worded it, Arch will think you're still missing from when he left you in the state park. If I know Archie, he'll be along to stop us."

"Won't he be there anyway?" John asked.

Cathleen dropped her sun visor in order to use the mirror to see John, seated directly behind her. "The Archie who poisoned your canteen, yes; but not the one who left you in the wilderness. The laws about this kind of thing are complicated. We need the oldest version of Archibald Landry that we've encountered. It keeps L.E. officials from arresting children." Her scorn was muted, but John noticed it, nonetheless.

"I'm assuming Archie told you who he's trying to kill?" Daniel enquired. When John agreed, he explained. "It's one of the provisions in the law he's responsible for." His lips thinned. "Yet one more reason to halt time travel entirely."

John thought of the P-Wing residents. Not one of them would have argued the point. "How soon after all of this started, did the DTD come into being?" he asked.

"Almost immediately." The answer was Matt's. "But it wasn't soon enough."

"Agreed." Daniel's reply was immediate.

"So why not get a list of everyone sent forward in time as a way to conceal murder, take it to the DTD office as early in time as possible, explain what's going on and ask your predecessors for help?" John finished his thought. "I bet Maddy would be glad to help, if for no other reason than revenge."

"Maddy?"

"From the P-Wing."

Daniel nodded slowly. "It's an idea; I'll look into it. Thanks, John!"

"I'll pray for you, Daniel," John told him sincerely. "This is insanity!"

Together, everyone discussed Daniel's plan, until they arrived at their destination. Daniel took something that resembled a small poster tube from his satchel and handed out pieces of taffy that he shook out of it. When John reached for his, Daniel held onto it briefly. "These are the nanites, John. I wanted to be sure you know what you're eating."

John was touched by his kindness. It was the first time he'd been offered a choice rather than being 'dosed' with them. He met Daniel's eye and held his gaze for a moment. "Thanks, Daniel." He hoped Daniel understood.

Daniel nodded and let go of the taffy. "This is a small Faraday cage," he said of the tube. "It will protect our way home from . . . my other task." John only grinned, knowing exactly what he meant.

All too soon, John was tied to the concrete blocks and laying in the field, exactly as he had been on the night he fell asleep in the hay field. Everyone else retreated to their positions in order to carry out the plan. John closed his eyes. Okay, God. The rest is up to You.