Cretaceous Sea

'Daddy said that I couldn't tell anyone. I had to promise in writing that I wouldn't.' The suspicion on her mother's face changed to alarm. 'Not even me? What are you two up to?'

'It's just a trip, a little vacation.'

'To where? For how long? Why the secrecy?'

Con sighed. 'It's nothing to worry about, Mom. I'll be gone less than a day. If you hadn't caught me, you'd have never missed me.'

Con's mother looked dubious. 'That's a lot more than one day's worth of clothes.' She picked up a sleeveless top from off the bed. 'It looks like you're going someplace warm.'

'It's some new hush-hush technology. We all had to prom-ise to keep it secret, even Daddy. It's like an instant vacation. I'll be gone only seconds, literally. I wasn't even supposed to tell you this much.'

'That's nonsense. Don't lie to me.'

'I'm not,' said Con. 'I know it sounds crazy. I have a hard time believing it myself. Look, if it's going to be a hassle, I'll just stay here. This was all Daddy's idea.'

'Then you should go,' said Mother.

'But I thought...'

'It's important to maintain good relations with your father. You're his only child. You should be his heir.'

'Don't start, Mom.'

'He owes you that! Besides, I only want what's best for you.'

'I don't care about being an heiress, I just want to be myself,' said Con.

'And you will be. But to the world, you'll always be John Greighton's daughter. You can't escape that, so you might as well benefit from it. It won't compromise you to accept your due.'

'I don't need anything.'

'Not even a new face?'

'Mom! We've been through this before. My face is fine.'

'It's not very fashionable. Why seem common? All your friends...'

'All my friends look the same now!'

'Stylish,' retorted Con's mother, 'that's what they look. I told your father when he named you

'Constance' it would make you old-fashioned.'

'You used to tell me it'd make me rich, like my ancestor that discovered all that gold.'

'Oh yes,' said Mother, 'the family legend. Well, you don't have to look like a nineteenth-century woman, just because you're named after one.'

'Mom, could we stop this. If you want me to go, I need to weigh these so I can finish packing.' Mother held up a swimsuit, saying, ' This certainly isn't going to put you over your limit.'

'We're going to an island, there'll only be the three of us.'

'The three of you?'

'He's taking Sara,' said Con.

'The new one? What's she like?'

'We didn't talk much. She seems fairly young. She looks a lot like Daddy's last wife.'

'The next one will probably be younger than you,' said Mother.