JUDITH SILVERTHORNEPublicationsDinosaur BreakoutExcerpt:Daniel quickened his pace through the ravine to the bottom of the hill, circling the stand of trees. He stopped short. There had been another flash of something moving! Something too large to be Dactyl. Besides, his golden retriever had disappeared over the hills ages before, dive-bombing after a rabbit. Dactyl stayed true to his nature and namesake, the Pterodactyl. "Who's there?" He listened carefully. No response. "Is anyone there?" Nothing. He shook his head and turned along the coulee that led to his hideout. Snap! The little hairs on the back of his neck bristled. The sound came from the trees behind him as if something, or someone, had stepped on some dry twigs. Daniel took a quick breath and veered to his right, in the opposite direction from his hideout, pretending he'd intended on going that way all along. He had no intention of letting any outsiders know the location of his secret hideout. It was his special place; where he housed his private dinosaur fossils and rocks, and he had some important business to take care of, which he wanted to do away from prying eyes. "Dactyl! Here boy! Dactyl!" he called urgently, but no answering bark came. Someone must be following him! He was sure there were no large dangerous animals lurking anywhere around the district. Daniel felt his stomach muscles tighten. He had to discover who was out there! Ever since he and his neighbour, Ole Pederson, had revealed their dinosaur findings and the adventures they'd had a year and a half earlier, the location of Daniel's hideout had been a target for speculation. Especially with the kids from school. Daniel had made his best friend Jed promise to keep quiet about its whereabouts. But it was only a matter of time before Jed let the information slip accidentally. His whole family had a habit of blurting out confidences without thinking. The good thing was that Jed was directionally challenged and wouldn't be able to find it easily again on his own. He couldn't find his way out of a potato gunnysack unless someone led him. And he'd only been to Daniel's hideout once before. But Daniel didn't trust the Nelwin brothers or their friends. He had to lose whoever was behind him, and fast. Suddenly, he spotted a pile of rocks a couple of metres up a hillside. Quickly, he headed towards them, weaving this way and that as if he were searching for something on the ground. At one point, he picked up a small round stone. Then making sure no one could see him from below, he ducked behind the outcropping. Adjusting his backpack into a more comfortable position, he crouched and waited. Moments later, he heard the scuffling of hurrying feet coming towards him. His heart thumped rapidly inside his chest. He tried to slow his breathing and not make a sound. His legs stiffened and he readied to leap with the stone in his hand. As the scuffling came closer, he recalled his first meeting with old man Pederson. What if the person following him was huge and strong? Maybe he'd be better off hiding instead of attacking until he knew whom he was up against. The footsteps slowed and Daniel eased himself farther behind the outcropping of rocks, as quiet as his mother cat Marble waiting for a bird to land within pouncing distance. Just as he thought the person was going to stop and search his hiding place, the footsteps accelerated past him. Daniel waited a few moments until he judged them far enough away, then peeked around the edge. Craig Nelwin! He'd know him anywhere. Whew! That was a close one! Daniel eased himself onto his knees and waited for him to disappear. Craig was a beefy fifteen-year-old bent on making the world revolve around his whims. He had repeated Grade Eight classes this past year and had a perpetual chip on his shoulder. He seemed bent on taking any of his problems out on Daniel. Especially since Daniel had become famous locally for his part in the recent paleontology discoveries in the area. It was odd, though, that Craig's older brother, Todd, wasn't with him. The one rarely went anywhere without the other. Daniel brushed the rock dust off his pants and walked around the stone pile. A solid body blocked his way. Todd. The tall chunky sixteen year old, muscular from heaving bales, was no one to tangle with! Daniel gulped. Todd's brooding eyes glared at him from his sneering face. "Think you're pretty smart, eh, Dino boy?" Todd shoved him backwards with his meaty hands. He was bigger and meaner than his brother. Daniel braced his feet and stood his ground, clutching the stone in his hand. "I don't know what you mean. " Daniel tried to brush past him, but Todd gave him a harder shove. This time Daniel slid backwards and he reached frantically to grab hold of the rocks. Before he connected, Todd slammed his huge hands into Daniel's chest again. Suddenly from behind, Daniel's feet were kicked out from under him. He toppled backwards. Craig had returned! Daniel felt himself falling, and then an excruciating pain as the back of his head smashed onto a rock. Then he heard a sharp ringing in his ears and everything went black. * * * Daniel lay on something damp and smooth. He grabbed a handful and held it above his face. Wet silt! Some peculiar things circled high in the air above him like giant pelicans. Slowly, he eased himself up on his elbow conscious of his throbbing head. He was on a muddy beach of some sort right next to a large body of water that stretched as far as he could see. Reeds in the shallows swayed gently in the warm breeze. That's when he noticed large indentations scattered all over the mud at the water's edge. He sat up and gasped. Giant footprints! And he was lying in one! Behind him, a dense wooded area echoed peculiar screeching sounds. Although it looked like a normal forest at first glance, when he studied it, he recognized pines, yews, and magnolia trees with huge blossoms. There also seemed to be sycamores and ferns, and some kind of berry bushes. At the edge of the shore, what looked like a Cimolopteryx preened itself. A prehistoric shorebird—how could that be? The knock on the head must have altered his thoughts somehow. Maybe he was unconscious and dreaming? Daniel closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Cautiously he opened them again, but the view hadn't changed. A loud screech came from directly overhead. He became aware of his heart thumping loudly in his chest like the steady beat of the drum in a marching band. Gently he touched the sore spot on the back of his head and felt something sticky. When he looked at his fingers, he found blood. This was too real! Daniel willed himself to wake up. He pinched his arms and legs. Nothing changed. He was still on the muddy beach, amid numerous large, weirdly-shaped footprints. He heard a droning sound growing louder, and a giant dragonfly drifted into view. Its iridescent yellowish wings spanned over half a metre across, sprouting from a brilliant blue abdomen attached to a bright green thorax. It hovered for a few seconds, staring at him with beady dark eyes, then disappeared into the trees. Daniel gaped in disbelief!
Back to Publications – Dinosaur Breakout
|