Dinosaur Stakeout (18 page)

He gently removed Dr. Roost’s shoe and sock, noticing the mud on them. “I think I can lend you a clean pair of socks,” he said, slipping the one off her injured foot. “These are only good for the fire.”

“Not on your life,” Dr. Roost hooted. She grabbed it and tucked it into her pocket. “This is a specimen!”

Pederson grinned. “Sorry, I didn’t even think about that.”

He began winding an elastic bandage around her ankle. She grimaced as he tightened it, but didn’t ­complain.

“Where should we begin?” she looked at Daniel, when Pederson finished and gently laid her swollen, bandaged ankle on a chair with a pillow on ­it.

“How about we just hit the highlights for now?” Daniel raised his eyebrows at her and she nodded. Neither of them really wanted to tell about all the danger they’d been in. “First, we’ll tell you about finding the
Edmontosaurus
.”

Craig pulled up another chair and joined them, as Daniel and Mildred relayed their findings about the mother dinosaur and the ­nest.

Pederson became extremely excited. “So would you say this was our Roxanne?”

“I’m positive,” said ­Daniel.

“I agree,” said Dr. Roost. “But you can take a look for yourself.”

Daniel scooted over to his backpack and brought it to them. He fished out the camera and scanned the shots until he came to the right ones. He handed it over to his old ­friend.

Mr. Pederson’s face filled with wonder as he viewed one photograph after ­another.

“Amazing,” he said. “There are creatures here that no one knows anything about.” He clicked through several more. “Incredible.
Stygimoloch
in action. I always wondered what their thickened skulls were used for. Do you know how extraordinary these photos are?” He suddenly turned to Mildred and ­Daniel.

Their eyes sparkled in acknowledgment. “This will fuel and direct my research for years!”

“Our research,” Mildred ­said.

“Wait until you see all the things we collected.” Daniel stopped, his shoulders drooping. “Except, we had to leave Dr. Roost’s pack behind. Almost everything was in it.”

Dr. Roost looked as forlorn as Daniel felt. Then she said, “Never mind. We have a lot of it up here.” She pointed to her head. “We’ll just need to jot it down before we forget. The pictures will help.”

“I have a few things in my notebook,” admitted Daniel, “but only some maps, and notes, measurements, and sketches of the
Edmontosaurus
.”

“Well, at least that’s something,” Pederson said. He continued looking at the photos, constantly amazed by the number of species they’d ­captured.

Craig looked over his shoulder, totally enthralled. “Do you think I could learn how to do the kind of work you do?”

“I don’t see why not,” Mr. Pederson said. “In fact, I could help you get started. Of course, you’d have years of study ahead of you.”

“I’ll find a way somehow!” Craig ­vowed.

“Excellent! I’ll be looking forward to having you in the field,” said Pederson, rising and handing the camera over to Craig. “Many paleontologists get started by volunteering and doing work just like you are right now. Did you know it was an amateur that discovered Scotty, the
T
y
rannosaurus rex
at Eastend?”

“Really?” Craig bubbled over with ­enthusiasm.

“I could lend you some of my books too,” Daniel ­offered.

“Thanks.” Craig beamed at them, as Mildred Roost ­chuckled.

Pederson headed over to his little hotplate and turned it on to heat some water for ­tea.

“So what’s going on back at the farm and the dig?” asked Daniel, still fishing for ­information.

“Why don’t you just come out and ask what you want to know?” said Craig with a teasing grin. “No, no one knows where you are. Todd and I covered for you. He’s back at the farm right now, helping your dad with the haying. Your dad said he’s a good worker and he might be able to hire him for a few days.”

“Awesome!” Daniel answered. “Then will you continue helping at the dig?”

“Sure!” Craig answered. “Being fed by your mom is payment enough for me!”

They all ­laughed.

“So what’s happening with the tourists?”

“Lindsay and Jed have the hikes covered and the tours to the quarry don’t start for a while yet.”

“Thanks!” Daniel said, relieved. He wouldn’t be totally off the hook with his parents, but at least they weren’t overly concerned about where he ­was.

“By the way, young man,” Pederson came over and stared down at Daniel. “I don’t ever want you to time travel again!”

“Well, but I didn’t do it on purpose to start with,” stammered ­Daniel.

“No, but this last time you did.” Pederson shook his head. “I don’t even want to think about what could have happened to you. Did you ever think about what it would do to your parents if you simply disappeared?”

Daniel stared down at his feet, not knowing what to say. He realized he actually hadn’t considered their feelings or what they would think or do if he never came back. He’d only reacted to the sheer excitement and wonder of the opportunity to time ­travel.

“You have great parents. They love you very much. I want you to think about them too.”

“That’s true, Daniel,” Craig said. “You don’t know how lucky you are. You have a wonderful mother and a dad who treats you nice.”

“You’re right, Mr. Pederson,” said Daniel, quietly. He had a great deal to think about. He didn’t want to hurt anyone. His mother, his dad, even Cheryl would be crushed if he ­disappeared.

“I would be devastated too if you time travelled again and didn’t come back. How could I ever face your parents, knowing the truth and not being able to do anything about it?” Pederson’s eyes glistened as he ­spoke.

Daniel suddenly realized how much he meant to Mr. Pederson and how close he felt to this special old man, as if Pederson were his grandfather. He really was old and vulnerable, thought Daniel, recalling how he’d panicked when he’d come across Mr. Pederson lying prone at the quarry, and he was alone. Daniel slipped an arm around Mr. Pederson’s waist and gave him a quick ­squeeze.

Daniel understood what Ole Pederson was saying about being aware of other people’s reactions, but he also knew how important these trips were. Maybe he could go again when he was older. Or maybe he could figure out ways to make it safe. Daniel glanced over at Craig and saw that he was probably thinking the same ­thing.

When he stepped back, Daniel said, “I sure appreciate what you’ve said, sir, but I think what we’re accomplishing is important too.”

“It certainly is, lad,” agreed Pederson. “But it’s just too dangerous for you or anyone else to go there again.”

“But these trips are too important to give up,” Craig broke in. “Just imagine what else could be discovered.”

“We could take proper equipment next time,” Daniel offered. “There must be a way to make it safer to go.”

“Now whoa, boys. Let’s not get carried away. For you, there is no next time!”

“I agree, Ole. There’s no way they should be going anywhere near there again,” Dr. Roost interjected. “But it might be okay for you and me to go, because we’re old and don’t really have anyone who’d be hurt if we never came back.”

“
I’d
be hurt if you didn’t come back!” Daniel stared from one to the ­other.

“I don’t have any family, but what about your son and grandchildren?” Pederson asked ­Mildred.

“I don’t see them much anyway and they expect me to die some day,” she ­said.

Pederson objected. “None of us should be going, least of all you, Daniel. If something happened to you, I couldn’t forgive myself.”

Daniel could see the struggle within his old friend, the helplessness he felt, and the guilt he’d dwell on if they never ­returned.

“The question is academic anyway,” said Mildred. “Daniel dropped the cone. We had to leave it behind to get home. There is no mechanism for getting back.”

Daniel nodded sadly. Then he remembered the prehistoric leaf in his notebook. He glanced around to see if anyone had noticed his reaction, but Mr. Pederson was busy making the tea and Mildred was rearranging herself in the chair. Craig, however, watched him ­intently.

Daniel sat ­poker-­faced, not daring to speak or make any movement that would confirm Craig’s suspicions. Then Craig raised his eyebrow and Daniel knew Craig had realized there was a way for them to travel again. He also knew Craig wouldn’t say ­anything.

Pederson arrived with the tea and began distributing teacups around his small wooden table. He poured a cup for Dr. Roost and rested it within easy reach for ­her.

“So Daniel, let’s have a look at that notebook of yours. I’d love to see the sketches of the
Edmontosaurus
.”

Daniel hesitated, just for a moment. He couldn’t let anyone see the notebook until he’d removed the leaf, but he couldn’t do that with everyone watching him. Before he could figure out what to do, the room became quiet. He looked up to find everyone staring at ­him.

In the stunned silence that followed, Daniel tried to cover up his blunder, but it was no ­use.

“You have something that will transport you back to the past again, don’t you?” Dr. Roost jabbed him with her ­cane.

“Daniel?” Mr. Pederson stared at him intently. “Is this true?”

Daniel nodded ­reluctantly.

“Then we really could go.” Pederson looked at ­Mildred.

Dr. Roost’s eyes lit up. “We’d have the research trip of a lifetime.”

Daniel shook his head. “Oh no you don’t! This last trip was bad enough.”

“If you’re going, I’m going too,” Craig piped ­up.

“No one’s going!” declared Daniel. There was no way he wanted to let the old couple go on their own, nor Craig. And he sure wasn’t ready to go ­again.

“Of course not, Daniel,” agreed Mr. Pederson. “We have plenty of material to study right now, and it is too dangerous for any of us to go. It’s totally out of the question.”

“Exactly,” Daniel ­said.

Everyone sipped at their tea, lost in their own thoughts. Dr. Roost and Ole Pederson snuck glances at one another with little smiles. Craig picked up the camera again, scanning through the ­images.

While everyone was distracted, Daniel tucked his notebook into his backpack. He had to think of somewhere safe to tuck the leaf away. Until then he wasn’t willing to open the notebook again. He was too exhausted to even think about the possibility of returning to the ­past.

Ole Pederson broke the quiet, “But to see the dinosaurs…”

Mildred cut him off. “We’ll see.” She patted his ­hand.

Daniel ­sighed.

Vocabulary/Descriptions

T
he material about paleontology found throughout this novel comes mostly from the Cretaceous Period. A brief description of some of the terms used follows, with their pronunciations. The Frenchman River Valley, where this story takes place, is located in the southwest area of ­Saskatchewan.

TERMS

cretaceous period
(cree-TAY-shus):

The Cretaceous Period, 146 to 65 million years ago, was the latter part of the Mesozoic era when great dinosaurs roamed the land and huge flying reptiles ruled the skies. A variety of smaller mammals and creatures also populated the earth and seas. The world was one of tropical temperatures all year round. Flowering plants and trees made their first widespread appearance, creating bright, beautiful places with their reds, yellows, and purples. Before that time, there were only the browns and greens of trees and ferns and the blues of the skies and ­seas.

Note:
Creta is the Latin word for chalk. The Cretaceous Period is named for the chalky rock from southeastern England that was the first Cretaceous Period sediment ­studied.

k-t mass extinction:

K-­T stands for ­Cretaceous-­Tertiary. “K” is for Kreide – a German word meaning chalk, the sediment layer from that time. “T” is for Tertiary, the geological period that followed the Cretaceous Period. About 65 million years ago, it is believed that all land animals over 25 kg (55 pounds) went extinct, as well as many smaller organisms. This included the obliteration of the dinosaurs, pterosaurs, large sea creatures like the plesiosaurs and mosasaurs, as well as ammonites, some bird families, and various fishes and other marine species. There are many theories as to why this mass extinction occurred, but many scientists favour the one of an extraterrestrial body, a meteor, or asteroid hitting the ­earth.

paleontology ­
(PAY-­lee-­on-­TALL-­o-­gee):

Paleontology is the branch of geology and biology that deals with the prehistoric forms of life through the study of plant and animal ­fossils.

tertiary period
­(TUR-­sheer-­ee):

The Tertiary Period is the name for a portion of the most recent geological era known as the Cenozoic Era, also known as the “Age of Mammals,” which lasted from about 65 to 2 million years ago. The term Tertiary was coined about the middle of the eighteenth century and refers to a particular layer of sedimentary deposits. Many mammals developed during that time, including primitive whales, rodents, pigs, cats, rhinos, and others familiar to us ­today.