Worlds Within Read online

CHAPTER 6 - DINOSAUR DREAMS

  It was late the next morning when Toby finally woke up. He rolled over and tried to go back to sleep, but his stomach rumbled. Breakfast was usually several hours earlier, and his body was letting him know that it noticed missing that meal. He looked at the clock. 10:15. Munching on a snickerdoodle, he headed for the shower. Afterwards he sat down to write to Pete.

  The fantasy continues. You can use it in your English assignment, but don't blame me if they lock you up because they think you're on something!

  Well - I decided I should go help out the new friends. So I used the book and headed back to the other world?.

  He then told him the highlights of the evening's adventure.

  ?Jason is coming over tomorrow and we're going to shoot some hoops. Haha Bet you can't picture me shooting hoops! Or rescuing people. Or glowing in the dark. Maybe I'm just not getting enough sleep.

  Then he wrote a quick note to his parents thanking them for the meteorite. When he got downstairs he found a note from Janie asking him to dust, empty the dishwasher, and put the towels in the dryer. As he set the timer on the dryer, he briefly considered emptying the lint filter. Shrugging, he decided to get it next time around. How often could it need emptying anyway?

  He went back upstairs. Picking up the Swifter he started on the dusting. He hated dusting. It wouldn't be so bad if it wasn't for Janie's ornate knickknacks. She was always adding another cat to her abundant collection.

  There were cats made of wood, glass, pewter, ceramic, brass, plastic and even rock. Painted rocks. They were a result of another of Janie's senior classes at the community college. It was a big fad a few years ago to paint rocks to look like animals. It was a strange hobby, but she was actually pretty good at it in an abstract sort of way.

  There were a dozen of these around the house in all sizes and shapes. It made him think of the rock marmots and he wondered what they looked like. He hadn't seen any last night. As he dusted a cream colored rock, he thought it was a bad choice for making a cat. The shape of the rock made its ears look stubby.

  While he was busy cleaning up the house, the school board across town was meeting to clean up the school finances.

  The Chairman, Morris Simmons, called the meeting to order. "Priscilla, would you please read the audit report?"

  Priscilla Michaels stood smugly, and picked up a fat report.

  "Just the summary page will do," he said wearily.

  She looked disappointed, but laid down the heavy report. Then she proceeded to read just the two-page summary. There were numerous items that suggested fraud and misuse of funds. All the evidence started about the time when Will Carson was put in charge. Small conversations started all over the room.

  "We don't have enough firm evidence," Morris was saying. "We can't tarnish someone's reputation without proof." The room quieted down.

  "But it's all there in the audit report," Priscilla said.

  Others around the room shook their heads. They had to hear Will's side of the story. It was necessary to get reports from him. He deserved an opportunity to explain the problems found in the audit.

  Priscilla finally gave in. "Okay," she said, "but there are obviously things out of order, and we have to respond to the auditors. The last thing we want is the newspaper to get wind of this and run with the story. This Board put Carson in charge, and it will all come back to haunt us if there's a problem."

  With resignation Morris said, "Let's tell Will we need a full report. We'll meet on Friday and have him come to the meeting and explain everything."

  "I believe a formal letter is in order," Priscilla said. Morris was annoyed with her smugness. But as he looked around the table, everyone reluctantly agreed. A letter was sent summoning Carson to appear before the Board on Friday, and answer all the issues raised in the audit.

  Back at the Traverse house, Toby was unloading the dishwasher when Janie came home. She burst through the door waving an envelope in the air.

  Toby looked up. "Did you win the lottery?"

  "Better than that," she smirked. "I have two tickets to the new Science Center. I won the drawing at work today. Want to go?" She cocked her eyebrows invitingly.

  "You bet!" He had been hoping to go to the Science Center ever since it had opened a couple months ago.

  "We'll have to stop at the bank to get cash for lunch. Leave the dishes. We'll take care of them when we get back."

  Toby closed the half-emptied dishwasher, grabbed his jacket, and they raced to Janie's car. The customized 1967 vintage Volkswagen beetle had been repainted in a modern pearl yellow. Authenticity was of no interest to Janie. She was unapologetic about the changes she had made and referred to it as a customized antique.

  He always felt a little silly getting into the car. It made him think of climbing into an Easter egg. But the windows were tinted gold, and once inside he was hidden from the outside world.

  He sank down into the plush, sheepskin seat and fastened his seat belt. At his feet was a floor mat with a picture of a cat sunning itself in a garden. The highly polished wooden gearshift was made of holly and resembled carved ivory. The ball on the top was sculpted into a cat's head, and fit Janie's hand perfectly.

  There were digital readouts giving information on all the vitals of the engine. A touch screen had been installed in the oak veneer dash complete with speaker for a hands free cell phone.

  A state of the art CD player had been added with custom speakers, but Janie seldom needed recorded music. She usually provided the music herself. When they got to the intersection at the end of the street she asked, "How's it look your way?"

  "Okymyway," he answered.

  "Then hold on to your kabooska!" she called.

  "That's babushka!" he called back, bracing himself as she pulled out into traffic.

  "Whatever." She then launched into one of her silly songs sung to the tune of the William Tell Overture.

  "To the bank - to the bank - to the bank, bank, bank

  To the bank - to the bank - to the bank, bank, bank

  To the bank - to the bank - to the bank, bank, bank

  To the baaaank. To the bank, bank, bank!

  Take out all your money, spend it quickly in a bunch

  Take out all your money, spend it on a lovely lunch

  A lunch - a lunch - a very lovely lunch??.

  To the bank to the bank to the bank, bank, bank?."

  Toby joined in and they sang boisterously.

  When they arrived at the Science Center they parked next to a brown, mud-spattered jeep. They bypassed the long line of people waiting to purchase tickets, and went to the "Member's Only" entrance where they were greeted elegantly. They were ushered in, and given courtesy passes to the Planetarium. Once inside, they worked their way through all the presentations.

  First they stopped at the bed of nails. He lay down on the Plexiglas covering the nail points. Janie pushed a button. The shield lowered, leaving him suspended on thousands of sharp points. It didn't hurt because his weight was distributed evenly. Then the Plexiglas raised again, and he was able to get up unharmed.

  In the section about weather, there was a tall glass tube with a wheel outside. Toby cranked the wheel faster and faster, and finally was gratified to see a small tornado form inside the tube. They moved to the next display. It was a large bowl filled with fog created from dry ice. As he passed his hand through the fog, it was supposed to simulate the movement of clouds caused by changes in air currents. It reminded him of last night's trek through the Valley of Rocks with the mist swirling around his feet.

  He was glad to move on to the prehistoric area. A reproduction of a dinosaur trackway was the center attraction. The exhibit was a reproduction of a trail showing two sets of dinosaur tracks next to each other. One possible interpretation of the tracks was a meat eating allosaurus chasing a plant eating brachiosaurus. The outcome of the chase was portrayed at the end of the trail where life size models were shown in c
ombat.

  Toby said, "All this mayhem is making me hungry."

  "Well then it's off to the Jurassic Eatery," and they made their way to the cafeteria.

  Janie read from the menu. "Let's see what delicacies they offer here. There's a Brono Burger, Stegosaurus Salad, Fossil Fries, Primordial Soup - oh that sounds intriguing." Toby grimaced. She turned back to the menu. "Okay, we also have Spicy Pterodactyl Wings, Triceratops Chili, or perhaps you're a very hungry paleontologist and would like the T-Rex Platter?"

  "I think I'll just go with a Brono Burger and Fossil Fries," he said.

  "A bit cautious, but a good choice. I'll be healthy and go with the Stegosaurus Salad. Probably tastes like chicken. Interested in any Deep Fried Dino Eggs?"

  "The ones rolled in cinnamon sugar? Wouldn't want to pass those up," Toby said.

  After lunch they explored more exhibits, and finished with the planetarium show. They entered the dimly lit theatre and settled back in the reclining chairs.

  To his surprise, Nitika entered the room dressed in a Second Generation Star Trek uniform. In her musical voice she introduced the show. It started with the discoveries that were made by the Voyager space crafts a generation earlier. Then there were pictures from Pathfinder, the Mars Rovers, and speculation about the future.

  After the show, they stopped at the gift shop. Toby picked out a science kit with experiments on buoyancy and water tension. Janie chose a wooden carving of an endangered wild cat. Something else to dust, Toby thought with resignation. When they got to the checkout, Nitika was filling in for the cashier.

  "I didn't know you worked here," Janie said as she dug through her purse for her credit card.

  Nitika smiled. "Just one weekend a month. It's a nice break from the library, and I make a little extra money. It's an interesting place to work, and occasionally I get free IMAX tickets."

  "Really?" Toby said.

  "Sure," she laughed. "Perhaps I'll give you a couple so you and a friend can go sometime," she added.

  "That would be great," he said. Maybe he could invite Ressa he thought.

  "There's a new one coming out on the possibility of traveling to parallel worlds," Nitika continued. "That might be something that would interest you." She fingered her owl necklace. Her green eyes watched him closely.

  Toby looked away nervously. He was relieved when Janie interrupted by handing Nitika her credit card to pay for the purchases.

  On the way out they stopped at a penny-squashing machine.

  "You could get the saber-toothed tiger," Janie said as she squinted to read the writing on the display.

  "I think the solar system is a higher goal," Toby said.

  "hmmm? There's also a dinosaur track and Einstein."

  "Not Einstein," they both said together.

  "Okay, let's go with the solar system. It sort of takes in everything," Janie said as she dug in the bottom of her purse. She pulled out several dimes and a nickel before finding the two quarters and a penny required. Toby lined up the right picture, and turned the crank till the squashed penny fell in the cup.

  "Ah, here we are," Janie said triumphantly as Toby picked up the elongated penny and examined it. "Enough for the saber-toothed," and she handed him more change.

  Toby grinned, and cranked out the tiger coin. Another feline to add to the pride, he thought.

  It was late when they got home. After a supper of leftover lasagna, they watched a show on public TV about how the dinosaurs were destroyed by a meteor hitting the earth.

  When Toby went to bed he dreamed he was in the Valley of Rocks, and riding on some kind of large animal. It had a long neck and very large legs. It was some kind of dinosaur. He looked down. On the path far below he could see Janie's rock cats. They were scampering around the feet of his dinosaur. He wondered if he should go down and dust them, but couldn't remember where he put the Swifter.

  Then he heard the snapping and crashing of tree branches. He glanced back and saw the large gaping jaws of an Allosaurus reaching for him. Its tongue lay between rows of large sharp teeth. He heard a hiss, and its hot breath swept over him. He yelled, and sat up in bed.

  A soft glow of moonlight pooled on the floor. He ducked as something flew past the window blocking the light for a moment. Probably just an owl he thought. The house was quiet. He must not have yelled out loud.

  He lay back down, and felt his heartbeat return to normal. As he drifted off to sleep again, he faintly heard his name being called. It was dark, and he was lying on something round and thick. He thought it might be the neck of a dinosaur, but it felt cold. The clouds parted, and he was covered in moonlight. He saw he was on the top of one of the boulders in the Valley of Rocks. The piece he was lying on stretched out like a finger over the path.

  He heard his name called again. Looking up he saw a Pterodactyl. A woman was perched on its neck. Her long hair floated out behind her. She was calling his name. As they got closer he could see patches of mud on the brown leathery skin of the flying dinosaur. The woman leaned down and reached out her hand. Something glittered at her neck. Closing his eyes, he ducked his head. He felt strong fingers on his arm pulling him up. When he opened his eyes, he was clinging to the feathers of a great eagle with the woman riding behind him. He woke up clutching the sheet tightly. It was quite a while before he went back to sleep.

  The next morning Toby was still tired when he went downstairs for their traditional Sunday breakfast. Sunlight was shining brightly through the windows. The kitchen was already filled with the sweet odor of waffles cooking. He slid into his chair just as the light on the waffle iron slowly faded out followed by a faint 'click' indicating the waffle was ready. Janie expertly loosened the waffle and lifted it out. Steam rose from the plate as she placed it in front of him. He slathered on the margarine and smothered it in syrup. All memory of his dreams of the night before was forgotten as the waffles melted in his mouth.

  After breakfast they drove the five miles to church. As they entered the sanctuary the organ was playing softly. They walked down the long aisle, and sat about half way back. The music swelled majestically as the choir filed in. Surprised, he saw the Davis twins in the front row. It was hard to imagine them being able to stop giggling long enough to get through a whole song.

  The choir began to sing, and the congregation was enveloped in the rich sound. He scanned the rest of the choir and focused on Mrs. Hightower. She was singing enthusiastically, her head bobbing with the beat. Toby imagined the notes springing out of her mouth in a rainbow of colors. Eighth notes, quarter notes, whole notes, all bouncing off the walls and floating up to the high ceiling where they hovered, creating a faint echo. Everyone stood and joined the choir in the hymn. As the last notes faded they were seated.

  Half way through the sermon Toby's mind began to drift. He looked around and spotted Alice by her dangling mushroom earrings. Across the aisle, Mr. Hernandez sat next to his wife. His arm was draped behind her on the back of the pew and he looked like he might start whistling at any moment.

  The minister's voice seemed far away. It was warm, and he struggled to stay awake. He looked at the stained glass windows. They were not elaborate pictures, but just many small squares of different colored glass. He tried to find a pattern to the colors.

  Then the minister's voice seeped through into his consciousness. He was talking about Zacchaeus the tax collector.

  "?and Zacchaeus said, if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount."

  Toby sat up suddenly awake. What was he going to do about the book? If he kept it, wasn't that stealing? And if he returned it, he wouldn't be able to go back to the other world. He knew that wasn't a good reason to keep the book. But giving it back also meant Carson might find out about the picture and how it worked. Who knows what he might do there? They already had a bad governor. They didn't need another tyrant. If he admitted he had the book, would Carson suspend him? He could just hide it in Carson's office
, but how long would it stay hidden. That would be returning the book, but would it keep Carson from using it. And how would he even get into the office to hide it?

  Across town, Will Carson was having thoughts of his own. On Friday, Buz and his buddies had told him about chasing Toby. Arnie was really on edge about not finding Toby at the locker.

  "The door was swinging back and forth, and he just wasn't there," Arnie had said.

  Magnus had laughed, "Little runt just disappeared into thin air."

  Carson had sent them away disgusted. Now he was reconsidering their story. The only explanation was that Toby had the book, and must have figured out how the picture worked. He had to get that book back. He might need to disappear himself.