Marty risked another look. Biff was closing the garage doors! The two doors slammed together as Marty lifted his head to watch, followed -immediately - by a heavy click.
Marty didn’t like the sound of that click.
He got out of the car and moved to the doors. He tried to tug them open, but they wouldn’t budge. He pulled harder, hoping they were stuck, but they didn’t move at all. They weren’t stuck. Biff had locked them. That click meant there was a padlock on the other side.
He looked around the garage. The windows were tiny. They let in hardly any light at ail, and they were too small for even a child to get through. Marty was trapped in here!
And it was worse than that. Not only had Old Biff given his younger self the book, he had warned the teenager of the book’s true importance. What if the young Biff did go out and get a safe - how could Doc and Marty get the book back then? And the longer Biff was left alone with the book, the more chance he had to use it. Once Biff started to win, did that mean part - or all - of that terrible, Biff-controlled future might be inevitable?
Marty had to stop that from happening at almost any cost, not just for his family and friends, but all of Hill Valley.
There was only one thing left to do. He pulled the walkie-talkie from his jacket pocket and pressed the talk button.
‘Doc!’ he spoke softly but clearly, in case either of the Biffs were still around.
The speaker on Marty’s box crackled with a burst of static. ‘Marty!’ Doc’s voice came through a second later. ‘What’s the report?’
‘Biff has the book, the old man is gone, and I’m locked in Biffs garage!’ Marty replied succinctly.
‘Great Scott!’ Doc answered.
‘You’ve got to come and get me out!’ Marty insisted. He dug in his pocket, and retrieved the piece of paper where he had written down Biffs address when he got it from the phone book. ‘The address is 2311 Mason Street.’
‘Mason Street?’ Doc protested. ‘But that’s way over on the other side of town! I can’t drive the DeLorean there in the daylight! ’
And Biff would get away with the sports book.
‘Then walk, run, just get here any way you can. Doc!’
‘All right, Marty!’ Doc replied. ‘I’m comming.
Marty just hoped Doc would get here in time.
Chapter Sixteen
Marty paced back and forth like a caged anlmul. flu had been locked in this garage for hours. It had got!an dark outside while he waited. What could be taking Doc so long?
Someone banged on the outside of the garage door.
‘Doc?’ Marty called softly.
But the voice that answered wasn’t Doc's.
‘Who’s in there?’ Biff demanded angrily.
Jeez, now Marty had done it. He heard Biff unlock the padlock. Marty looked around the garage. Messy as it was, there was no place to hide in here. No place, that is, except for the floor of the back seat of the convertible.
Marty jumped in the back of the car just as Biff opened the door. He caught a glimpse of the other teen as he ducked out of sight. Biff had changed clothes. He now wore a black shirt, white tie and gray jacket, clothes that looked somehow familiar. Of course! Marty remembered. It was the night of the ‘Enchantment Under the Sea' dance.
‘Is somebody in here?’ Biff yelled. Marty could hear his footsteps on the concrete floor.
There was a burst of static from Marty’s walkie-talkie.
Marty yanked it from his pocket and turned the radio off. But the damage was done. Biff must have heard that.
Biff walked past the car.
‘Old man,' he called uncertainly, ‘are you still in here?’
Marty glanced up at Biffs retreating backside. There, shoved in Biffs waistband, was the Sports Almanac!
Marty heard laughter outside the garage.
Biff stopped, and then walked quickly out into the driveway.
‘Dammit, you kids!’ Biff yelled out into the darkness. ‘If I see you around here again, I’ll kill you both!’
Marty crouched down again as Biff stomped heavily back into the garage and got behind the wheel. Marty lifted himself up enough to see that Biff had put the Almanac down on the dashboard.
Now, if there was just some way he could reach it -
He ducked down quickly as Biff threw the car into reverse and gunned it back out of the driveway.
Somehow, Marty had to get that book. It was up to him now.
But what had happened to Doc?
Well, it had taken him a little while, and he had had to swerve at the last minute to avoid getting hit by that hot-rodding teenager, but he was here at last.
Doc wheeled the bike he’d bought a few hours ago into the driveway of 2311 Mason Street. That was the address Marty had given him? Yes, it definitely checked with what Doc had written down in his notebook. But then why was the garage door - the door Marty was supposed to be trapped behind - now sitting open?
Doc supposed this had something to do with how long it took him to get here. Well, it had taken him a little while to buy the bike, after he had figured out that was the best thing to do with what 1955 money he had left. Why, he hadn’t even taken the price tag off the bike, he had been in such a hurry. But then, of course, he needed to buy this hat he was wearing, for disguise purposes of course. Well, it wasn’t much of a disguise, just a hat, but then, Doc hadn’t had much time to buy it.
Even then, though, he would have gotten here earlier if he had been able to take a more direct route. He sighed. That was one of the problems with time travelling. A couple of the roads he had expected to take to get here hadn’t been built yet. And then his muscles had started to complain. That was another trouble with all this time travel - when you sat in a DeLorean all day long, you ended up neglecting much-needed exercise!
So he was a little late. He hoped Marty would understand. That is, if the lad was still here.
Doc pedalled right into the garage. There didn’t seem to be anybody around.
‘Marty?’he called.‘Marty?’
Doc realised then that Biff’s car was gone, too. Marty must have gotten out of here somehow - maybe he had hidden in the back of Biff’s car or something - and was once again on the trail of the Sports Almanac.
But that meant Marty could be anywhere in Hill Valley! Doc decided to try the walkie-talkie. He pulled the box from his pocket and pushed the ‘speak’ button.
‘Marty come in?’
There was no response. He tried it again. Still nothing.
‘Damn!’ What could have happened to the boy? Could he be out of walkie-talkie range? Could something be wrong with his two-way radio?
Doc decided it was useless to conjecture when he had insufficient information. Instead, he decided he would broadcast a message anyway, just in case Marty could hear him but couldn’t reply.
‘Marty,’ he said into the walkie-talkie, ‘if you receive this message, I’m at the garage, but I’ve obviously missed you. Therefore, I am returning to the DeLorean! Contact me when you can! Over and out!’
There was still no reply, and nothing else he could do. Doc turned the bike around, and started the long ride back across town.
Could Marty risk it?
Once Biff had gotten out of his driveway, he had turned the radio up, loud, and then floored it, so that the car was really moving. Marty decided he had to try. Between the radio and the air rushing by the open convertible top, Biff shouldn’t be able to hear anything going on in the back seat at all. Should he?
Marty pulled out the walkie-talkie and flipped it on. 'Yo, Doc!’ he called softly. ‘Come in, Doc!
‘Hello?’ Doc’s voice replied. ‘Marty? Come in?’
Doc’s voice was followed by an incredibly loud burst of static. Biff half turned toward the back seat with a ‘what the -’ expression on his face. He must have heard that! Marty turned the walkie-talkie down - way down. Biff looked back at the convertible's radio and started to fiddle with the knobs.' Marty realised
with relief that Biff must have thought the static came from up there. Biff ended up turning the radio up even louder.
Maybe, Marty thought, he should try to contact Doc again. He decided to wait a minute first - he didn’t want any more sudden noises to make Biff suspicious. He had to stay as inconspicuous as possible, until he could get that sports book.
Marty wasn’t answering his radio again. He must be somewhere where it was difficult to talk. Doc stuck his walkie-talkie back in his pocket. He would have to concentrate on his pedalling for now and hope that, if Marty called again, there would be something he could do to help.
’Great Scott!’ Doc exclaimed. He’d been so busy talking to Marty, he hadn’t realised where he had pedalled to.
He stopped the bike and stared.
He was in Courthouse Square, on that night in 1955 when this whole thing had begun. There it was in front of him, all the parts of the so-called ‘lightning experiment’ - in reality a set-up to return Marty and the time-machine back where they belonged, in 1985. If only he had left well enough alone after that! Oh well. It was no use cursing crossed wires. They had already saved themselves, and members of Marty’s family, more than once by using time travel. They would get through these problems, too - somehow.
In the meantime, though, he was here, at the site of his first great triumph. Now, the sooner he got back to the DeLorean, the better, but - it wouldn’t hurt to relive this experience for just a minute, would it? As he recalled, it was Thomas Wolfe who had said ‘You can’t go home again’. Well, maybe you couldn’t, but if you had a time machine, you could get awfully damn close!
There it was, the wire running down from the clock tower to the lamppost, and the toolbox on the trailer, sitting next to the DeLorean hidden under the tarpaulin. It gave Doc a thrill just to see everything set up again. Wasn’t science wonderful?
Wait a minute - there on the tarp - that was his coat, or at least the coat he wore in 1955 - well, when he was originally in 1955. Whatever. He reached his hand forward to check the pocket. Yep. The letter was in there, the one Marty had written about Doc’s future. There was the envelope - ‘Do Not Open Until 1985!’ And Doc knew enough now to leave it there.
But it was time to get back on his bike and return to ; the DeLorean, before something else happened.
His walkie-talkie squelched to life.
‘Yo, Doc, come in!’ Marty called. ‘Are you there?’ Doc pulled the radio out of his pocket, quickly turning the volume down. He didn’t want the noise to attract any undue attention - especially around here.
‘Marty! ’ Doc whispered into the microphone. ‘What happened? I went to Biff’s house, but you weren’t there!’
‘You must have just missed me ,’ Marty whispered back. ‘I'm in the back of Biff's car. He's driving to the school.'
To the school? Doc didn't like the sound of that.
'Listen, Marty, we may have to abort this entire plan. It's getting much too dangerous.'
'Don't worry, Doc,' Marty reassured him. 'The book is on biff's dashboard. I'll be able to grab it as soon as we get to the "Enchantment Under the Sea" dance.'
What? This was even worse!
You’re going to the dance?' he asked, his voice growing louder as panic threatened to set in. ‘Marty, you must be extremely careful not to run into your other self!'
‘My other self?’ Marty asked.
‘Yes,' Doc continued, ‘remember? Your mother is on her way to that exact same dance with you! ’
‘Oh. ' Marty’s voice sounded a little surprised.
‘Yeah, that’s right! Hey, that’s cool. Doc. Maybe I’ll say hello to myself.'
‘No!’ Doc felt like he might have a heart attack. ‘Marty, whatever happens, you must not let your other self see you. The consequences could be disastrous!
‘Excuse me, sir!’ a voice said behind him - a voice that was disturbingly familiar. Where had he heard - Doc glanced behind him and saw himself - well, a different version of himself, circa 1955 - emerging from under the tarp. Yes! He remembered. He had worked inside the car on that night. And then he had - come out!
But this was terrible! Doc turned off the walkie-talkie and pulled his hat down over his head. Maybe, if he kept his back to his earlier version, the other Doc Brown would just go away.
But the other Doc Brown insisted on making contact. ‘Yes,’ he said, even louder than before, ‘you there, withthehat!’
For once, Doc Brown wished he didn't always have to be so stubborn - especially when he was younger!
Well, he had to d o something about this, didn't he?
Maybe, he thought, if he disguised his voice -
'Who, me? he asked gruffly.
'yeah,' his 1955 version answered. 'Be a pal and hand me a 3/8 inch wrench.'
To tighten the flux capacitor? But that was all wrong!
‘3/8?’ Doc replied just as gruffly as before. ‘Don’t you mean a 1/2 inch?’
‘Why,’ his 1955 self said in astonishment, ‘you’re right!’
Doc reached into the toolbox. He handed his 1955 version the correct wrench without turning around. But should he say something else? Maybe a little polite conversation would keep his younger self from getting suspicious.
‘I presume,’ Doc added, ‘you’re conducting some sort of weather experiment.’
‘That’s right!’ 1955 exclaimed, every bit as astonished as before. ‘How did you know that?’
‘Oh,’ Doc replied humbly (but still as gruffly as his voice could stand), ‘I happen to have a little experience in that area.’
‘Yes, well,' 1955 explained, pleased to find a colleague, I'm hoping to see some lightning tonight although the weatherman says there’s not going to be any rain.'
‘Oh,’ Doc reassured him, ‘there’ll be rain, all right. And wind, thunder, lightning -' He couldn’t help but chuckle. ‘It’s gonna be one hell of a storm.’
He heard the rustle of the tarp as his 1955 self prepared to go back into the car.
‘Well, nice talking to you,’ 1955 said. ‘Maybe we’ll bump into each other again sometime in the future.'
‘Or the past,’ Doc added, once his younger self was gone and he was safely back on his bike.
Still, he had met his younger self, and they both had survived. He could only hope that Marty would be as lucky.
Chapter Seventeen
Biff stopped the car. Even in the well behind the seat, Marty could see the upper storey of the high school across the parking lot. Biff climbed out. Marty waited a minute, then cautiously raised his head so he could see over the side of the convertible.
Biff was headed for the back entrance to the gym. God! Marty thought. He never thought he would say this, but he was really glad to see Hill Valley High whole again, and not that bombed-out hulk he’d found in that other 1985.
Wait a minute! Biff had left the sports book behind. It was still sitting on the dashboard. Marty couldn’t believe his luck. All he had to do was lift himself up a little bit more, then reach forward and -
Marty ducked as Biff turned around and headed back toward the car. Biff grabbed the Almanac, and stuck it once more in the back of his pants, then walked toward the gym again.
Marty climbed out of the car once Biff had crossed the parking area, then ran and hid behind one of the pillars by the school’s back door. He knew he never should have expected this to be easy. Marty would just have to keep Biff in sight, and wait to make his move.
Biff walked quickly to a fire door at the back of the gym. A couple of other students walked over as Biff tried the door.
‘Hold it there, Biff!’ one of the students called.
‘Yeah, Biff,’ the other guy added. ‘We can’t let you in without a ticket.’
Biff held his right fist up to the two other guys.
‘I got five tickets right here.’
The other two guys took off. Biff opened the fire door, and went into the dance the back way.
Marty decided he should follow h
im. The two student guards were long gone, and the fire door opened easily. He stepped through, and found himself in the same alcove where he’d had that heart-to-heart talk with his future parents - the one about being nice when your son sets fire to the rug.
But there was no time to think about that now. He walked through another doorway and found himself at the rear of the gym, a gym all decked out for the ‘Enchantment Under the Sea’ dance.
Marty quickly ducked into the shadows behind refreshment table. Wow. Here he was again at the same dance - back in 1955. Talk about déjà vu! He'd been so worried about getting the Sports Almanac back, it hadn’t hit him until now - but he was back in the exact same place and time he’d been - when was it? Marty realised he couldn’t figure out exactly how long ago it was since he had been here. When you had a machine like Doc’s flying DeLorean, time sort of lost its meaning.
This was the same dance that he had come to with Lorraine, when he was here as ‘Calvin Klein'. It all happened because his mother-to-be had wound up with a crush on Calvin, and wouldn’t pay attention to George, Marty’s future father. But if George and Lorraine never dated, then they would never marry and Marty and his brother and sister would never born! Something had to be done, and fast, or Marty wouldn’t have even existed!
Marty had come up with this plan for George Mcfly to discover Calvin trying to take advantage Lorraine in a car. George would end up punching Calvin/Marty out, and would end up being a hero in Lorraine’s eyes. George and Lorraine would fall love and get married, Marty would get born, a everything would turn out fine.
That was the plan, anyway. But then Biff had gotten into the act, and tried to take advantage of Lorraine. So George had ended up punching Biff out! That had changed everything, for the better. At least until now.
But, Marty reminded himself grimly, unless he could get the sports book away from Biff, everything would change all over again!
And it wasn’t even as simple as that anymore. Who knew how the earlier version of Marty would react, i he happened to meet his future self face to face Marty would have to be careful around George and Lorraine, too, or he could mess up everything all over again. So he had to be doubly cautious going after Biff.
Back to the Future Part II Page 13