Cretaceous Sea

'No, there's something else. We'll need to climb down to the beach.' They climbed down and sat on the sand away from the surf. The sand was still warm, and the air was mild. Everything was peaceful.

'Nobody has experienced the world like this for thousands of years,' said Rick in a hushed voice. They watched the waves for a while; then, Rick pointed to the surf. 'Here they come.' Con started as she saw something moving in the water. Rick gently touched her shoulder, and in a calm voice said, 'It's okay. The mother sea turtles are coming to lay their eggs.' As if by some secret signal, the surf became filled with dark, flat domes, moving like living stones through the foam. Soon pale, dark-eyed heads and long, curved front flippers became visible. Con watched in fascination as the turtles struggled up onto the beach. Their shells were about two feet long and leathery- appearing. Despite their ungainly motion on the land, the creatures' streamlined forms gave them a certain grace.

'Will we scare them away if we move?' asked Con.

'They'll ignore us,' assured Rick.

Con got up and approached a turtle. The animal kept up her relentless struggle against the sand even when Con touched her. She found something noble in the creature's dedication to bring its young into the world. Soon, she was surrounded by turtles. 'This is so incredible!' she exclaimed. 'Nothing seems to stop them.'

'Sea turtles survived into the beginning of our cen-tury,' said Rick with a touch of melancholy. 'There might even be a few left, ancient ones still searching for vanished beaches.' Con picked her way among the moving turtles back to Rick. 'How did you know they'd be here?' she asked.

'I saw their trails this morning. I've seen fossilized tracks just like them.' Con felt Rick's infectious excitement. 'This place is really special to you,' she said.

'Let me show it to you! Joe can fly us all over. We'll keep you safe. Just don't let this opportunity pass by.'

'What about the others?'

Rick made a face. 'They act as if this place is just a hotel. They don't seem to give a damn.'

'So, you noticed,' said Con.

'But you're different.'

A turtle stopped just inches from Con's foot and started digging a hole in the sand with her rear flippers. It was slow work. 'Can we stay here until she lays her eggs?'

Rick smiled to himself. 'I wouldn't miss it for the world.'

IT WAS LATE when Con returned to her quarters. While the turtles had labored, she and Rick had talked. Gradu-ally Con had let her guard down as Rick provided the sympathetic ear she so desperately needed. Now, she felt unburdened and pleasantly sleepy. Tomorrow beckoned with a promise of adventure and escape. Daddy and Sara can rot, I'll be soaring over a new world!

Con had pulled open the curtains, so she left the lights off and entered the small storeroom to change. In the darkness, a thin yellow light caught her eye. There seemed to be something glowing beneath a crack in the plaster. Con's curiosity got the better of her sleepiness. She climbed onto the wooden dresser and dug her nails into the crack. A small slab of plaster flaked off to reveal what appeared to be a portion of a symbol. It glowed brightly on a glassy black surface.

Con got off the dresser, found her nail file, and climbed back up. She slipped the point of the file between the plaster and the smooth surface beneath. The plaster fell away easily. Con pried away the plaster to expose a glassy black rectangle inset into a stone wall. Within it, a strange design glowed in the dark: Con climbed down and looked at it. Some of the elements in the design changed. The rightmost pair changed rap-idly, while the third from the right changed more slowly, and the remaining ones did not change at all. The purpose of the design eluded Con. She was too tired to dwell on the puzzle for long. She went to bed and soon was peace-fully asleep.

11

RICK WOKE UP FEELING VERY PLEASED WITH HIMSELF. HE

had managed to pull it off and win Con over. He was still a little amazed by his feat. Apparently, he possessed hidden charms he wasn't aware of. Now Green would get off his case. He could remain on Montana Isle and explore the world around it.

The previous night had improved his opinion of Con. She might be a little screwed up, but he figured that was to be expected. John Greighton didn't seem like much of a father. Rick didn't understand why she gave a damn about what he thought; yet in a perverse way, she did. That's her problem, he thought. At least she's not a snob like him. It wouldn't be too hard to put up with her, especially since she was his passport to the Cretaceous. Rick figured that as long as he kept Con busy, Green would let him do anything he wanted. He planned to keep her very busy.

The aroma of James's camp coffee wafted through the mesh of the sleeping tent's window. Rick rose and quickly