Maybe an hour later, they heard a repetitious scuffling, plodding sound and looked up at each other.
“Jed!” they said in unison. He always made a great deal of noise, so you could tell when he was around.
Moments later, his blond curls appeared over the hilltop. Besides his backpack, he carried a small cooler. Mom had found a way to send lunch!
“Hi, guys! I’m here at last,” he said, plopping the cooler onto the ground, and sliding it down the hill to the walkway above them.
Daniel ran to catch it to make sure it didn’t tumble into the trench. Jed made his way down the uneven path to the their work site.
“Finding anything interesting?” asked Jed curiously, peering into the pit.
Pederson gave Daniel a warning glance.
“It’s always interesting,” said Daniel. “I’m working on a small tooth and Mr. Pederson has a rib or something over there.”
“Great!” Jed said. “What would you like me to do first?”
Pederson stood up. “How about in this area here?”
Pederson walked over to a slightly lower level from where he and Daniel worked. This area needed to be cleared before they could start the more delicate, detailed work. It was also one they wanted the visitors to be able to experiment with.
“I’ll get you some tools.” Pederson handed Jed a small shovel and a brush.
“I’ll be careful,” Jed said, anticipating a lecture from Pederson.
Jed chattered non-stop as he worked, asking Daniel what had happened since the night before. Daniel filled him in on the police investigation. Then Jed told him about the questions they’d asked Lucy and him.
“Good thing we were there to back you up this time!” Jed said.
“Yeah, maybe now they’ll be able to stop them hassling people.”
Jed stood up in sudden realization. “But, yikes, they’ll really be after you now that you turned them in!”
“I know,” Daniel said, wishing he’d never laid eyes on them in his whole life. “Maybe I’ll have to move,” he said, half-joking. The other half of him was seriously considering it.
As he stood there, he took off his cap and wiped the sweat and dust from his forehead. The sun was right at high noon, and his stomach said it was time for lunch. He headed towards the food cooler, motioning to the others along the way. Pederson grunted and picked a little more at something. Then he joined the boys on the walkway, where they sat with their feet dangling over the edge.
As they chomped down the fresh ham and cheese with garden lettuce sandwiches Mom had packed for them, they stared at the panoramic vista of sharp hills within the steep valley. There was a lot of land to search for fossils.
“Boggles the mind, doesn’t it?” Pederson said aloud, expressing how they all felt.
Daniel handed out the boxes of juice and some carrot sticks, saving the yummy-looking chocolate cake for last. He noticed Mom had also sent extra bottles of water, and some granola bars for later.
After lunch they set back to work in earnest. But before they went back to their special spots, Pederson had them make sure everything was ready for the weekend’s first visitors. Then he had each of them practise their tour guide spiel until he was confident they could carry it through without any hesitations.
“Great work, boys,” Pederson praised them. “We’ll have Lucy go through it first thing tomorrow. Now, anyone have any questions before we get back to digging?”
“No, sir,” Jed said, picking up his shovel.
Daniel shook his head. “Nor me. Time to get back to the fun work.” He stepped carefully back over to his place. Focused on his work again, he was hardly aware of all the pain niggling throughout his body.
Daniel and Jed quit work about three, satisfied that they’d done as much as they could for the day in preparation for the weekend. Pederson preferred to stay behind and work on his pet project.
“Before you go, though, let’s take a look at the work we accomplished today.”
Daniel and Jed joined Pederson and could see several more uncovered ribs. Pederson didn’t do any explaining. Then they moved on to Daniel’s teeth. He’d exposed several more in a curved row. All of them were fairly small. When they reached Jed’s area, he shuffled uneasily.
“I sort of thought this might be something,” he said, pointing to some strange scratchy markings he’d brushed clear of debris. “But I guess it’s only my imagination.”
“What did you think it was, lad?” Pederson questioned him closely.
“Some kind of footprints, like bird prints or something, but that couldn’t be right, could it?” Jed’s face flushed with embarrassment.
“Why not?” Pederson asked.
Jed shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t know enough about paleontology,” he said.
Daniel bent to take a closer look. There was something peculiar about the markings and about the way Pederson queried Jed. He opened his eyes wide in surprise. They were birdlike prints! Daniel was about to agree with Jed, when Pederson motioned him to be silent.
“Show me them.” Pederson suggested.
Jed got down on his hands and knees and began pointing out the markings; where they began and where they ended, as far as he’d cleared the ground. As he moved along, he gained more confidence.
“Tell me what made you think they might be prints.” Pederson eyed him in all seriousness.
Jed studied them and thought about the question. “Well, they seem to go in a consistent pattern, for one thing.”
“Good,” Pederson said, encouraging him to continue. “What else?”
“I guess they reminded me of chicken prints in the mud. But that puzzled me too, because they seem too tiny.”
“Very good, Jed!” Pederson clapped him on the back. “You’ve got it right. They are small, but there were birdlike creatures that size, and they certainly are consistent.”
“Do you know what made them?” Jed asked, keenly interested.
“Not yet, but we’ll keep working on them to see if we can figure them out. This could be quite a rare find!”
“All right!” said Jed, excited that he’d found something so unusual. “Wait until I tell everyone!”
“Whoa, now, Jed. Hang on a moment,” Pederson calmed him down. “That’s my first rule of paleontology. You keep things to yourself until you know a little more about them.” He gave Jed a stern look. “Do you think you can do that, at least for a couple of days?”
Jed squirmed with his conscience. “I can sure promise to try!”
“Okay,” said Pederson, raising his eyebrows. He seemed to know that was the best Jed could do.
“I’ll be back first thing tomorrow!” Jed said, gathering up his tools and laying them in an orderly fashion beside his station.
“Daniel, how about we rope this section off now, and keep it especially for Jed?”
Daniel nodded in agreement. “You bet!” He knew what an honour it was for Jed to be singled out and acknowledged in this way.
They accomplished the task in short order and prepared to leave Pederson to his work. Daniel made sure the site was clean from their lunch, and tucked his tools under the tarp. Then he loaded his rock hammer and other belongings into his backpack and put it on.
“You sure you don’t want to come back with us?” Daniel asked, a little concerned about the old man being left on his own.
“I’ll be fine here,” Pederson said, digging out his camera. He was going to record the day’s work. “But I’ll see you first thing in the morning right back here!”
“You bet,” Jed said, clambering out of the quarry in a flurry of excitement.
“Sure will,” Daniel said, certain that Pederson would have a special piece of information to show them by then.
Daniel grabbed the food cooler and followed Jed. The container felt light now, but he wondered how Jed had carried it so far.
“Your dad carried it to that hill over there.” Jed pointed to the closest one several hundred metre
s away. “He made sure I knew where to find you!”
Daniel laughed.
“Can you believe it?” Jed asked, his voice up several notches. “I actually found something good!”
“Great work, Jedlock!” Daniel shook his friend’s hand. “Now you’re a bona fide paleontologist.”
“I never knew how exciting it could be,” Jed said, his eyes glowing with pleasure. “Do you think we could look at some of your books and see if we can figure out what it might be?”
“Sure can!” Daniel said, pleased with his friend’s sudden enthusiasm.
They followed a little gully and then headed up another hillside. Just as they reached the top, Daniel grabbed Jed’s arm.
“Look, over there!” He pointed towards the left where two figures walked furtively over the crest of a hill and disappeared. “I’d swear that was the Nelwins! I thought they would have been arrested or something by now.”
Jed stood beside him, worried. “Let’s not go looking for trouble,” he said, pulling Daniel in another direction.
“But they’re headed in the direction of my hideout!” Daniel shrugged Jed’s hand off his arm. “I can’t let them find it. Who knows what they’ll destroy!”
Daniel dropped the cooler and started running.
Chapter Eleven
Daniel heard Jed panting behind him as he tried to keep pace, but Daniel didn’t slow down at all. He had to reach his hideout before the Nelwins! His backpack felt heavy and slapped his back as he ran, but he couldn’t take time to remove it. By the time he reached the peak of the hill, his head pounded and he ached all over again. But he couldn’t stop!
“Wait, Daniel,” Jed pleaded from several yards behind him. “You can’t take them on yourself!”
Ignoring Jed, Daniel raced on, stumbling over hill-ocks of grass and avoiding gopher holes and cacti. He wove down the grassy hill swiftly, almost close to falling several times. His lungs ached with each breath he took, but still he forged ahead. The scent of sage wafted into his nostrils as he ran.
Over the next rise, he stopped for a moment, bending over with his hands on his knees, breathing hard while he surveyed the scene below. The two figures rummaging around were definitely the Nelwins! And they were almost at his hideout!
Taking in big gulps of air, he ran forward. He wasn’t sure what he’d do when he got to them, but he couldn’t let them inside! They were using big sticks to poke into piles of branches and into holes in the ground. Only a few more yards and they’d be at the base of the two hills where his hideout lay! And then it would only be a few minutes before they’d discover the entrance!
He could hear the rhythmic thud of his footsteps in his ears, which might mean the Nelwins would notice him too, if he got much closer. He spotted a small clump of bushes and dived into them. Catching his breath, he plotted the best way down without being seen. Jed arrived and flopped onto the ground beside him.
“I didn’t know you could move so fast!” Jed wheezed. “Now what?”
“That’s what I’m trying to figure out.” Daniel studied the coulee. “I think we can zigzag our way down.” He pointed out the low spots and some bushes and outcroppings where they might go unseen until they could surprise them. “If they see us first, though, we’re dinosaur grub!”
Stealthily, Daniel and Jed made their way down the slope one at a time, crouching behind whatever cover they could find. The Nelwins were busy poking and prodding around the hideout and didn’t hear their quiet approach.
“Hey, look at this!” Craig yanked at a branch. “I think there’s something here!”
Excitedly, the two threw down their poking sticks. In quick, easy movements, they pulled branches and debris out of the way, throwing them aside into a random pile. Moments later, they’d revealed the entrance. Daniel beckoned Jed to hurry as he neared the bushes by the cave.
“Yahoo! Dino boy can’t stop us now!” Todd shouted. The two dropped to the ground and crawled inside.
“Just what do you think you’re doing?” yelled Daniel behind them.
“Oooh! Dino boy’s here!” Craig taunted him from inside the hideout. “We’re scared now.”
“Get out of there!” Jed hollered beside Daniel.
“Oh, great,” said Craig sarcastically, “Dino boy’s nerd friend is here too.”
“Oooh. We’re shaking in our boots!” Todd mocked them from the doorway.
They could hear some shuffling going on. Obviously, the Nelwins were pawing through his belongings.
“Come out of there!” Daniel demanded, worried about what they’d wreck.
“Yeah, come out and face us!” Jed added, looking over at Daniel with fear on his face. He mouthed, “Now what do we do?”
Daniel looked around for something to defend himself with. He pulled a couple of branches off the pile by the doorway and handed one to Jed. They positioned themselves ready for battle at the entrance. Neither one of them was a scrapper, nor did they have an inkling about how they were going to defend themselves. Daniel felt his chest tighten. He gripped the branch tighter and took a warrior stance like one he’d seen in the Terminator movies.
“Come out now!” Daniel ordered, feeling anger rise from the pit of his stomach.
Laughter radiated from inside the hideout.
The Nelwins found them amusing! Daniel gritted his teeth, and yelled, “This is your last chance!”
More laughter!
“Come and get us,” guffawed Todd weakly, bursting into more laughter.
“Whoa, look at this!” Craig said to his brother. “Weird markings on these ones. Let me see your knife, Todd. Maybe I can add a few more scratches on them.”
That did it! Daniel dropped the branch without thinking clearly and charged inside. Craig sat on the stump in the middle of the cave, clawing through Daniel’s fossil rocks. Todd kicked at the belongings along the wall.
“What a pile of useless junk!” Todd picked up a snakeskin. When he saw Daniel, he snapped it in two.
Daniel felt a sharp spurt of anger. He attacked Todd barehanded. But the older brother threw him off as if he were a small, bothersome bug. Daniel scraped his knees against the stones Craig had dumped on the ground. Daniel quickly dusted himself off as best he could. He felt the stinging cuts on his hands and knees. As he clenched his hands, preparing to attack, he noticed Jed poking his head inside, letting his eyes adjust to the light.
Craig sniggered. “Bonus! Dino boy and his moron sidekick are going to take us on!”
Jed rushed to Daniel’s side. “Why don’t you just leave!” he suggested more defiantly than he felt. “You’ve done enough damage!”
“Not finished yet!” Todd snarled, kicking stones at Daniel and Jed.
“Yeah, “ said Craig belligerently. “We still have a few more things to look at.” He bent to tip over another pail of stones. “Not that there’s anything worthwhile here!”
“Get off my property now!” Daniel demanded through clenched teeth, staring fiercely at the Nelwins.
Jed stood up taller beside Daniel and took a deep breath in preparation for a fight.
Neither of the Nelwins budged.
“Please just leave, before someone gets hurt again!” Jed implored the Nelwins.
“It’s payback time!” Todd said, challenging them.
Then Craig pinned Daniel to the wall, while Todd viciously knocked over Daniel’s pile of bones, tore pages out of his research book, and ripped at his stashes of snacks, pocketing them. He spied the collection of arrowheads.
“Maybe these are worth something?” Todd said, grabbing the arrowheads and stuffing them into his pockets.
As if watching everything in slow motion, Daniel thought about how lucky he was that his tools were still at the site. They probably would have stolen them, too, if they figured they were of value.
As Daniel struggled against Craig, Jed jumped at Craig and grabbed at his arms, hoping to release Daniel. Out of the corner of his eye, Daniel could see Todd stomping on his b
ird’s nest.
“That’ll teach you to get us into trouble!” Todd sneered at him, as he tossed other belongings around the cave.
“Yeah,” Craig added, bashing at Jed, who went flying. “Like we need the cops on our case!” He released Daniel abruptly and stepped aside.
“This is just the beginning!” The two brothers surveyed the scene, happy with the mess they’d strewn about the place.
Daniel stood rooted one moment, looking in horror at the chaos, while everyone attempted to catch their breath.
For a split second it was as if time froze.
An instant later, Daniel snapped! He rushed at the Nelwins, grabbing Todd’s arm to swing him around towards the entrance.
Jed closed in on Craig, but was grabbed again by Craig’s beefy arms and flung against the cave wall. He let out a loud whoof of air and sat dazed on the floor for a few seconds. Meanwhile, Daniel struggled with Todd, who flung him aside like a chunk of driftwood.
Suddenly, Daniel remembered the piece of bark under the pot lid, just as Craig Nelwin reached for it.
“What’s this?” Craig lifted the lid.
“No!!” screamed Daniel, flying at Craig to push him aside. At that exact moment, Todd grabbed at Daniel’s arm. They all connected just as Craig picked up the chunk of bark.
A sharp sizzling sound rent the air, along with Jed’s piercing scream.
~
SPLASH!
Daniel, Craig, and Todd landed in a shallow, muddy pool of water. Craig sat on the bottom, clutching the bark, totally speechless, with his mouth hanging open. Todd still clung to Daniel’s arm, gaping in disbelief at a heavily armoured Ankylosaurus, pawing the moist ground with its hooves only a few feet in front of them. A pterosaur-like creature screeched overhead.
Daniel recovered first, realizing they’d all been transported back into prehistoric time. A half second later, he remembered about the piece of bark and sprang to snatch it from Craig’s hand. But Todd still held his arm and instinctively tightened his grip when Daniel moved. Or maybe he clung in reaction to sheer terror!
As Daniel tried to shake free, Todd made a low, guttural sound and turned to stare at Daniel, his eyes wide in shock. With a forceful jerk, Daniel freed himself and scrambled to his feet. He yanked at Craig’s arm.
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