Chapter 8 - The Sister Who Was Never Born
# Chapter 8 - The Sister Who Was Never Born
The girl standing at the bottom of the staircase had Jack's eyes, Julian's face, and the calm expression of someone who had already watched them die.
"My name is Evelyn," she repeated. "And if you want to survive tonight, you need to stop trusting the people who call themselves your parents."
Julian immediately raised his sword.
"Move away from the door."
Evelyn glanced at the blade without the slightest sign of fear.
"Still carrying that thing everywhere?"
Julian froze.
"Do I know you?"
"Not anymore."
Jack tightened his grip on Eleanor's letter.
"What does that mean?"
Evelyn looked up at him.
"It means Grandmother was right. The Engine erased more than your memories."
She stepped aside, revealing the narrow hallway leading toward the basement.
"Come downstairs. We don't have much time."
Julian descended first, keeping his sword pointed toward her.
Jack followed cautiously.
He had grown up in this house. He knew every creaking floorboard, every crooked picture frame, every stain on the kitchen ceiling.
Yet suddenly it felt unfamiliar.
Dangerous.
Like a place that had been pretending to be his home.
"How did you get inside?" Jack asked.
Evelyn smiled sadly.
"I've always been here."
"That's impossible."
"Is it?"
She reached toward the wall beside the basement door.
A small section of wallpaper peeled away beneath her fingers, revealing a silver panel covered in unfamiliar symbols.
Jack stared.
He had walked past that wall thousands of times.
Never once had he noticed anything unusual.
Evelyn pressed her palm against the panel.
A blue light scanned her hand.
CHRONOLOGICAL IDENTITY CONFIRMED.
SUBJECT E-00.
ACCESS GRANTED.
Julian lowered his sword slightly.
"E-zero-zero?"
Evelyn nodded.
"The first successful subject."
Jack felt a chill.
"Jonathan was supposed to be the first."
"That's what they wanted you to believe."
The basement door unlocked with a metallic click.
Evelyn opened it.
Cold air rushed upward.
Jack smelled dust, old wood, and something else.
Antiseptic.
The same sharp chemical smell he remembered from the laboratory beneath the castle.
He stared into the darkness.
"Grandma kept a laboratory under our house?"
Evelyn shook her head.
"Not exactly."
She stepped onto the staircase.
"The house was built around it."
Julian glanced at Jack.
"Your childhood is becoming increasingly disturbing."
Jack gave a humorless laugh.
"You're telling me."
They descended.
The familiar basement was gone.
There were no cardboard boxes, no old washing machine, no shelves filled with Christmas decorations.
Instead, a long metal corridor stretched beneath the house.
White lights flickered overhead.
At the far end stood a circular door bearing the symbol of an unbroken hourglass.
Jack stopped.
"That symbol."
Evelyn turned.
"What about it?"
"The real Sarah wears it."
Evelyn's expression changed.
"Then she's found you."
Jack nodded.
"She says she's my mother."
Evelyn looked away.
"She is."
Jack felt a flicker of relief.
Then Evelyn added, "But that doesn't mean she knows what you are."
The relief vanished.
Julian stepped forward.
"Enough riddles. Who are you?"
Evelyn studied him.
For the first time, her composure cracked.
"Julian..."
"Answer me."
Her eyes filled with tears.
"I'm your sister."
Julian laughed sharply.
"No."
"Yes."
"I would remember having a sister."
Evelyn looked at him with unbearable sadness.
"You did."
Julian's smile disappeared.
She continued quietly.
"You used to call me Evie."
His sword lowered.
Jack looked between them.
"Julian?"
The other boy shook his head.
"I don't know her."
Evelyn reached into her coat.
Julian immediately raised his weapon again.
"Careful."
She withdrew a small silver object.
A toy soldier.
Its paint had faded, and one arm was missing.
Julian stared at it.
His expression changed.
"Where did you get that?"
Evelyn held it out.
"You gave it to me."
Julian didn't move.
"When?"
"On my sixth birthday."
His breathing became uneven.
Evelyn smiled through her tears.
"You told me it was a knight who would protect me whenever you couldn't."
Julian slowly reached for the toy.
His fingers trembled as he took it.
A memory struck him.
A sunlit courtyard.
A little girl laughing.
A wooden sword.
Someone calling his name.
Then darkness.
Julian staggered.
Jack caught his shoulder.
"Hey!"
Julian pressed a hand against his forehead.
"I remember..."
Evelyn stepped closer.
"Julian?"
He stared at her.
"There was a garden."
She nodded.
"Yes."
"A fountain shaped like a lion."
"Yes."
"And you fell into it."
Evelyn laughed through her tears.
"You pushed me."
Julian's face twisted.
"I thought you drowned."
The words escaped him before he could stop them.
Evelyn went still.
Jack looked at her.
"What happened?"
She lowered her gaze.
"That's what they told him."
Julian stared at her.
"Who?"
"Everyone."
The corridor lights flickered.
Evelyn looked toward the circular door.
"We need to move."
Jack stepped in front of her.
"Not until you explain."
She hesitated.
Then nodded.
"Eight hundred years ago, the Hourglass Engine began failing. The royal council believed Jonathan's consciousness could stabilize it."
Jack nodded.
"We know that."
"But Jonathan wasn't the first person connected to the Engine."
She touched the silver mark on her neck.
"I was."
Julian stared at her.
"How?"
Evelyn looked toward the circular door.
"Because I was born outside the kingdom's timeline."
Jack frowned.
"What does that mean?"
"My mother crossed between worlds while she was pregnant."
Jack felt his stomach tighten.
"Sarah?"
Evelyn nodded.
"The real Sarah."
Julian looked stunned.
"Then we're..."
"Family," Evelyn whispered.
Jack stared at her.
The real Sarah had never mentioned a daughter.
Neither had the replica.
And Eleanor's letter had called Evelyn the child who was never recorded.
"Why hide you?" Jack asked.
Evelyn's expression darkened.
"Because I could do something the others couldn't."
She raised her hand.
The corridor lights stopped flickering.
A droplet of water hanging from a leaking pipe froze in midair.
Jack stared.
Evelyn moved her fingers.
The droplet traveled backward into the pipe.
Then time resumed.
Julian stepped away.
"What was that?"
Evelyn lowered her hand.
"I can reverse small events without using the Engine."
Jack felt his pulse accelerate.
"Like Jonathan?"
She shook her head.
"Jonathan controls the Engine. I can act outside it."
Julian looked toward the door.
"And Eleanor knew?"
"She discovered it when I was little."
Evelyn's expression became distant.
"At first, she was fascinated. She thought I might be the answer to the kingdom's collapse."
Jack swallowed.
"And then?"
"Then Voss found out."
The name made Julian's jaw tighten.
Evelyn continued.
"He wanted to connect me permanently to the Engine. He believed my abilities could stabilize every timeline at once."
Jack stared at her.
"Would it have worked?"
"Perhaps."
"Then why didn't they try?"
Evelyn's voice became cold.
"They did."
Silence settled over the corridor.
Julian slowly lowered the toy soldier.
"What happened?"
Evelyn looked at him.
"I died."
Jack felt a chill.
"But you're standing here."
She nodded.
"Because I reversed it."
Julian stared.
"You reversed your own death?"
"Not completely."
Evelyn touched the mark on her neck.
"When Voss activated the machine, my body stopped aging normally. I became trapped between moments."
Jack looked at her.
"How long?"
Her expression was unreadable.
"Long enough to watch six versions of my brothers die."
Julian closed his eyes.
Jack felt sick.
"Why didn't you save them?"
Evelyn's face crumpled.
"I tried."
Her voice broke.
"Every time."
For the first time, she looked fourteen.
Not mysterious.
Not powerful.
Just a frightened girl carrying too much grief.
"The first time, I stopped the executioner. The Engine killed the prince anyway."
She swallowed.
"The second time, I destroyed the execution chamber. The entire castle collapsed."
Julian stared at her.
"The third?"
"I convinced Sarah to hide him."
Jack felt his heartbeat quicken.
"What happened?"
Evelyn looked directly at him.
"Eleanor found him."
The corridor became painfully quiet.
Jack remembered the hologram.
His grandmother standing behind the executioner.
The black key.
The order to kill the boy.
"Grandma was trying to stop the Engine?" he asked.
Evelyn nodded slowly.
"Sometimes."
Jack frowned.
"Sometimes?"
Evelyn looked away.
"She changed."
Julian stepped closer.
"How?"
Evelyn hesitated.
"Every time she traveled between timelines, she remembered what happened in the others."
Jack nodded.
"Like you."
"Not exactly."
She looked toward the circular door.
"Eleanor wasn't born with that ability. She stole it."
Jack felt cold.
"From who?"
Evelyn touched her own chest.
"Me."
Julian's expression hardened.
"What did she do?"
Evelyn looked down.
"When I was seven, she performed a procedure. She said it would protect me."
Her voice trembled.
"She removed part of my consciousness and used it to create the first Observer."
Jack stared at her.
"Grandma?"
Evelyn nodded.
"After that, she could travel between timelines without being rewritten."
Julian clenched his fists.
"And you?"
Evelyn gave a small, broken smile.
"I couldn't leave this place."
Jack looked around.
The hidden corridor.
The sealed door.
The house built above it.
"She kept you here?"
"For years."
"Why?"
"Because she was afraid Voss would find me."
Jack felt anger rising.
"She could have told me!"
Evelyn looked at him.
"She wanted to."
"Then why didn't she?"
"Because every time you learned about me, the Engine found you."
Jack fell silent.
Evelyn continued.
"Your grandmother believed ignorance was the only way to keep you alive."
Julian laughed bitterly.
"That seems to be everyone's favorite excuse."
Evelyn looked at him.
"You're right."
The honesty surprised him.
She stepped toward the circular door.
"Come. There's something you need to see."
She placed her hand against the panel.
The door opened.
Beyond it was a vast underground chamber.
Jack stopped breathing.
Hundreds of glass cylinders lined the walls.
Most were empty.
Some contained strange metallic objects.
Others held fragments of clothing, photographs, and personal belongings.
At the center stood a massive circular table.
Above it floated a holographic map of countless branching timelines.
Jack approached slowly.
"What is this?"
Evelyn looked at the map.
"Grandmother's archive."
Julian stared at the glowing branches.
"How many timelines are there?"
Evelyn hesitated.
"Thousands."
Jack felt dizzy.
Thousands of worlds.
Thousands of possible lives.
He looked closer.
Some branches showed the medieval kingdom.
Others showed modern cities.
Some showed empty landscapes.
And several showed Brookfield.
His hometown.
But something was wrong.
In one timeline, Brookfield was destroyed by fire.
In another, the streets were empty.
In a third, the entire town was covered in snow beneath a black sky.
Jack stepped backward.
"Those are all my world?"
Evelyn nodded.
"Different outcomes."
He looked toward the brightest branch.
The one marked with his name.
JACK VALE — ACTIVE TIMELINE.
Beneath it appeared a date.
His fourteenth birthday.
Jack swallowed.
"What happens after that?"
Evelyn said nothing.
He touched the projection.
The image expanded.
Brookfield appeared.
Then the sky split.
The castle emerged.
The two worlds collided.
And everything vanished.
Jack stumbled backward.
"No."
Evelyn lowered her gaze.
"That's the future Jonathan is creating."
Julian stared at the destruction.
"Then we stop him."
Evelyn shook her head.
"Jonathan isn't the true threat."
Jack turned sharply.
"What?"
She pointed toward the center of the hologram.
A dark circle appeared beneath every timeline.
At its center was a single symbol.
An unbroken hourglass.
"Someone has been guiding every version of these events."
Jack frowned.
"Voss?"
"No."
"Grandma?"
Evelyn hesitated.
"She tried to stop it."
Julian stepped closer.
"Then who?"
Evelyn touched the hologram.
A hidden recording appeared.
The image showed the Hourglass Engine's original construction.
Scientists worked around a massive machine.
Sarah stood beside Edmund.
Voss supervised from a raised platform.
And at the center stood a young woman.
She had dark hair.
Grey eyes.
A silver pendant.
Jack stared.
"Sarah?"
Evelyn shook her head.
"No."
The woman turned toward the camera.
Her face was identical to Sarah's.
But her eyes were bright blue.
Jack felt a chill.
"Another copy?"
Evelyn's voice trembled.
"The original architect."
The recording's audio activated.
The woman spoke.
"Project Hourglass has reached its final stage."
Voss approached her.
"Are the royal vessels ready?"
"Almost."
"And the Observer?"
"She remains unaware of her purpose."
Jack looked toward Evelyn.
The girl had gone pale.
The recording continued.
Voss lowered his voice.
"What about the seventh child?"
The woman smiled.
"He will be the key."
Jack's stomach tightened.
The woman looked directly into the camera.
"And when he reaches fourteen, the worlds will finally become one."
The recording ended.
Silence filled the chamber.
Jack stared at the empty projection.
"Who was she?"
Evelyn swallowed.
"Her name was Seraphine."
Julian frowned.
"Another Sarah?"
Evelyn shook her head.
"Sarah was created from her."
Jack felt the room tilt.
"What?"
"The real Sarah. The replica Sarah. Every version of her."
Evelyn's voice grew quieter.
"They were all derived from Seraphine's original consciousness."
Jack stared at her.
"Then who is Seraphine?"
Evelyn looked toward the holographic map.
"The woman who built the first Engine."
Julian stepped closer.
"And where is she now?"
Evelyn hesitated.
Then whispered, "Inside it."
Jack felt cold.
"Inside the Hourglass Engine?"
Evelyn nodded.
"Jonathan thinks he's controlling it."
She looked directly at Jack.
"But Seraphine has been controlling him."
The chamber lights flickered.
A warning appeared across the holographic map.
UNAUTHORIZED OBSERVER DETECTED.
Evelyn's face drained of color.
"No."
Jack turned.
"What?"
The warning changed.
ARCHIVE CONNECTION ESTABLISHED.
REMOTE ACCESS: SERAPHINE.
Every screen in the chamber turned black.
Then a woman's face appeared.
Dark hair.
Grey eyes that slowly turned blue.
She smiled.
"Hello, Evelyn."
Evelyn staggered backward.
Julian raised his sword.
Jack stood frozen.
The woman on the screen looked directly at him.
"And hello, my seventh prince."
Her smile widened.
"I see you've finally found your sister."
Evelyn stepped in front of Jack.
"Leave him alone."
Seraphine laughed softly.
"Oh, my dear child."
Her eyes glowed.
"Did you really think I didn't know where you were?"
The chamber began shaking.
The holographic timelines collapsed into a single glowing line.
Jack's smartwatch vibrated violently.
CHRONOLOGICAL OVERRIDE INITIATED.
PRIMARY OBJECTIVE: RETRIEVE SUBJECT E-00.
Evelyn looked at the screen.
For the first time, she seemed truly terrified.
"Jack, run."
He stared at her.
"What?"
"RUN!"
The floor split open.
A column of blue light erupted beneath Evelyn.
She screamed as her feet lifted from the ground.
Julian lunged toward her.
"EVIE!"
He grabbed her hand.
For one moment, he held her.
Then the silver mark around his neck ignited.
He cried out.
Jack rushed forward.
"Julian!"
Evelyn looked at him through her tears.
"Don't let her take you!"
The blue light intensified.
Julian lost his grip.
Evelyn vanished.
The chamber fell silent.
Jack stared at the empty space.
"No..."
Julian collapsed to his knees.
The toy soldier slipped from his hand.
He looked up at the screen.
Seraphine smiled.
"One child recovered."
Jack felt rage rise through his grief.
"Bring her back!"
Seraphine tilted her head.
"Of course."
Hope flashed through him.
Then she continued.
"All you have to do is come to the Engine."
Julian slowly stood.
His silver eyes burned with hatred.
"You're going to regret this."
Seraphine laughed.
"Perhaps."
She looked toward Jack.
"But before you decide what to do, there is something your sister neglected to mention."
Jack stared at her.
"What?"
Seraphine's expression became almost tender.
"Evelyn was not the only child hidden from the Engine."
A new image appeared.
A hospital room.
A newborn baby.
A woman holding him.
Eleanor.
Jack recognized the scene from the earlier recording.
But this time, the camera moved.
Beside the first crib stood another.
Inside lay a second newborn.
Jack stared.
Two babies.
Both identical.
Seraphine smiled.
"Your grandmother didn't save one child, Jack."
The image shifted.
One baby was carried away.
The other remained.
Seraphine's voice softened.
"She saved two."
Jack's throat tightened.
"Who is the other one?"
The image changed again.
A modern classroom.
Students sitting at desks.
A boy with messy dark hair laughing beside a window.
Jack recognized the room.
Westbridge School.
His classroom.
The camera moved closer.
The boy turned.
Jack stopped breathing.
It was his best friend.
Noah.
Seraphine's smile widened.
"Your brother has been living beside you for fourteen years."
Jack stared at the screen.
"And unlike you, he remembers everything."