Last Chance (10 page)

Walter reached into his pocket and pulled out one last item. “I almost forgot to give you this watch.” Walter placed a fairly large watch on Matthew’s wrist. It was silver with a shiny, almost glistening look to it.

Matthew asked, “Is this some type of special time watch that helps us know how much time we have to get back to the tunnel?”

Walter, astonished, replied, “Actually, that’s exactly what it is, and more. You see the four buttons on the side; each has a special trait that you will learn about later. I want you to pay close attention to this button on the top of the watch.”

Walter pointed to a triangular button that had a small flap covering it. “This button should only be pushed in an emergency situation, and it can only be pressed once.”

Connor motioned to Matthew and said, “Maybe I should hold on to it for you?”

Walter shook his head and said, “No, the watch is for Matthew.” Matthew looked down at the face of the watch and saw a counter regressing from 336. Walter grabbed Matthew’s wrist and said, “That is 336 hours from the time you go through the tunnel to when you need to be coming home. If you’re down to zero, you’ll be stuck in the past and the future will be as it is now—ruined.”

April asked a final question. “Anything else we need to know before we leave?”

Walter pulled his hand up to his goatee and said, “Yes, one last thing. Remember what you’re there to do. Get the pendant and get home. We want to make sure that things stay as close to actual events of the time as possible. Any major changes could be a disaster to current time.”

Walter hugged April. The two boys got a hearty handshake. “All I can do is wish you luck and safety.” Walter moved back to the control panel, pushed a couple of buttons, and the R tunnel wall lit up as bright as the youngest star in the sky. “It’s time.”

April took one hand of each of the boys, and they slowly made their way to the light of the tunnel. Connor yelled to Walter, “Is this going to hurt?”

Walter screamed back, “Probably!” In the blink of an eye, the Chance family was gone.

Chapter 8

will work for food

The kaleidoscope of colors and images overpowered the senses as Matthew, Connor, and April entered the R tunnel. Matthew looked to his right and saw April grasping his hand. The flow of light and sound surrounded Matthew as if trapped inside of a rolling disco ball. Matthew looked to his left and observed random images of time as they passed all around him.

Bright illumination intermixed with the reflections of people and places that had long since passed away. Matthew found it difficult to know whether he or the tunnel was moving. It was hard to tell how much time passed while in the vortex. The three members of the Chance family looked at one another and wondered when the psychedelic slide show would end.

Suddenly, as if someone had flicked the power off to a television set, all three of them were lying on their backs, surrounded by the sweet smell of fresh flowers and grass. Matthew looked up and noticed the bushy overgrowth of tall maple trees as the sun peeked through gaps in the leaves. The awkward shape of a cactus tree caught his attention, and he tried to pick himself up from the ground.

April got up from the ground first and said, “OK, that was weird. You boys all right?”

Connor popped up and replied, “I feel like an alien charm is filling me up with goodness and feelings of the supernatural kind.”

April replied, “I’ll take that as a yes. How about you Matthew?”

Matthew pushed himself up from a seated position and wandered around the area. He spotted a small cave covered up just behind him. The cave hid the flashing lights and images that made up the tunnel. He took a deep breath and said, “The tunnel should be hidden well in that cave.” Matthew looked down at his watch. “We have just over 335 hours to do what we need to do.”

April opened up her backpack, full of papers and notebooks sent by Mr. Wainright. She leaned back against the stump of an old tree and opened a notebook titled, “OPEN ME FIRST.” April read through the first few paragraphs and chuckled.

Connor asked, “What’s so funny?”

April looked up from the page and explained, “Nothing really—it’s just that the first sentence on this page says that if we are reading this first sentence, that means we didn’t blow up on the trip through the tunnel.”

Connor replied, “Nice to know his confidence was so high.”

Matthew asked, “OK, so what are we supposed to do now, Mom?”

April thought,
Mom! Hearing that will never get old
. The boys noticed her grin and knew the significance of a “mom” comment.

“Based on what Walter gave us, it looks like we’re in the middle of a state park called Spicewater.” She explained that there should be a creek and small lake located just north of their location. They needed to find the creek and follow it east until they arrived at the park’s main office.

They all stood still and concentrated on the sound of running water. Matthew and Connor both exclaimed, “I hear it!” Matthew pointed in a direction that could only be described as down a hill and to the east of the tunnel.

Connor said, “But I actually heard it first.”

April replied, “It doesn’t matter who heard it first; it only matters that we find it.”

The family took off down the hill. They were almost to the bottom when Matthew asked, “How are we gonna find the tunnel again when it’s time to go home?” April opened her notebook again and stopped the boys’ progress.

“You’re right; I should have read farther down the page. Walter says that your watch has a locator function that can be used to mark the position of the tunnel. It says that you can point the watch at the location you want to find later and just push this button and it stores it for later.”

April showed Matthew the button and Matthew turned his wrist toward the opening of the small cave. The watch emitted a small red beam. It hit the face of the cave opening and then disappeared. A small icon blinked on the face of the watch that stated “Store 1.” He looked over at Connor. “I guess it worked.”

April added, “Based on Walter’s description, all we have to do is hit that icon when it’s time to get to the tunnel, and the watch will lead us there.”

Matthew replied, “We’ll just look for the area close to the cactus tree.”

Connor asked, “What cactus tree?”

The Chances continued their trek to the creek. They jumped over logs, dodged mud holes, and listened for the sounds of rushing water. Birds rattled the tree limbs and took off and landed in unison with the family’s steps. Matthew and Connor helped their mother maneuver through the thick woods.

They reached the creek in a short time and Connor asked, “Does anyone know which way is east?”

Matthew’s watch had a compass, so he tried to navigate. “Yeah, we need to follow the creek downstream, per the watch.”

Connor grabbed Matthew’s wrist and exclaimed, “Dang! I should have gotten a watch, too. I get dibs on the first gadget thing that Walter said is in your bag.”

April walked in between the two boys and put her arms around them. “Let’s get going; I’m not sure how far we are from this office, and I don’t want to get caught out here in the dark.”

The family walked alongside the park’s creek and were amazed at all they saw. The wonderful colors of the changing leaves on the trees were all around them. The slight noises, cracks, and pops of the woods around them kept their senses awake and in tune with their surroundings. April said, “It’s so beautiful here; it’s even nicer than the park back home.” It was a perfect fall day in the state of Georgia.

They followed the creek until they ran into a large, sparkling lake. There were hundreds of people on the water in boats, and ducks landed with little effort along the edges of the banks. In all, the Chances had completed their walk in less than thirty minutes. They were only a few minutes away from the park office, as Connor pointed out.

“That must be it!” he exclaimed.

Matthew asked, “How do you know?”

Connor pointed to a sign just a few feet ahead that read “Park Office” and had an arrow pointing to the building. “I can read, you moron.”

Before they left the lakeshore, Matthew asked, “What are those people in the boats doing with those long sticks?”

Connor didn’t know, so they both looked to April for an explanation. April opened her notebook and hoped to find an answer. Instead of answering, she changed the subject. “We need to get up to that office and see if we can get a ride into town. It looks like we’re going to Atlanta.”

Connor asked, “Is that the name of a town or are we looking for someone named Atlanta?”

Matthew took the opportunity and repaid the moron comment. “Now who’s the stupid one? Don’t you remember anything we read?” Connor shrugged his shoulders.

“Atlanta was a really big city back then. There were no districts, just cities. I think the smaller areas are called towns.”

April chimed in. “That’s right; I think our district is really close to where Atlanta was located back then.”

Connor rolled his eyes. “Fine, it’s a city then; let’s just figure out how to get there.”

April led the boys up a narrow path to the park office. She saw a park ranger loading up some gear into the back of an old red-and-white pickup truck. April approached the ranger and asked, “Excuse me, sir, can you tell me if there is any way to get a ride into Atlanta from here?”

The ranger turned around and the family was flashed by a name tag that read “Joe.” He had a comforting smile that ran from ear to ear. “Well, yes, ma’am, there’s a bus that runs from here to the city every couple of hours you can catch a ride on.”

The southern accent of the ranger was startling but endearing to the Chance family. “Only two bucks apiece for the ride.”

April replied, “Two bucks, you say. Well, that’s not bad at all. Do you happen to know when the next bus arrives?”

Joe took a look out over the lake. “Most of the fishermen have finished up for the day and there are only a few boats on the water, so it’s about five. There should be another bus in about fifteen minutes.”

Matthew took Connor by the shirt sleeve and whispered, “Fishing…of course…I read about that.”

Joe pointed to a bench at the front of the office and said, “Just wait over by the bench and take bus number 2212. It’ll get you back to civilization. If you need anything else, just ask for Ranger Joe Walley.” April thanked the young ranger and motioned for the boys to follow her.

April said, “OK, boys, I’m pretty sure I saw some numbers on some green pieces of paper in my bag. That’s probably the two bucks that the ranger was talking about for the bus, but I have one question.”

Matthew interrupted his mother. “Let me guess? What’s a bus?”

April furled her brow and glared back at Matthew. “I know what a bus is; it’s like a transport with no rails. What I wanted to ask was if you noticed anything strange about that man, Ranger Joe?”

Connor asked his mother, “Did
you
notice anything strange?”

“Just that he was so nice and helpful. He had on a uniform and everything, just like one of the security team members back home.”

Matthew looked to his mother as they reached the bench and said, “Maybe men in uniform are just nicer in 1984.”

There were others waiting by the benches when the Chances arrived. There was an older couple with a child, probably no more than six or seven years old, looking through a pamphlet about the park. The young girl sat on the older gentleman’s lap as he pointed out things on the map they had seen earlier in the day.

The young girl wore a bright yellow-and-white sundress with white, strapped sandals. She giggled as she recognized pictures of animals and sites in the park. April noticed that the bottom of the dress was wet. “She just got a little too close to the edge of the lake.”

April was startled. “I’m sorry, were you talking to me?”

The older woman replied, “Yes, I couldn’t help but notice you staring at my granddaughter’s dress; she accidently dipped it in the water a little earlier. She can be a handful sometimes.”

April smiled as she asked, “So, this is your granddaughter and you made a day of it at the park?”

The older woman moved close to April and said, “Yes, this is my granddaughter, Cassie, and my husband, Glen.”

“My name is Nancy.” She leaned into April and said, “Cassie’s parents, my daughter and son-in-law, were killed in a car wreck a few months ago, so Cassie lives with us now.”

April replied, “That’s awful. I’m so sorry for your loss.”

Nancy’s face frowned and her wrinkled skin drooped to the corners of her mouth. “Yes, it has been difficult on all of us, so we try to take some weekend trips, just to try to enjoy the day with Cassie.”

Connor listened in on April’s conversation and interrupted. “So, they just let you have Cassie, even though you’re so old?”

April snapped at Connor. “Don’t be rude to this nice woman!”

Connor stepped back and said, “I didn’t mean any disrespect, ma’am. I just figured she would be better off with younger guardians, that’s all.”

Nancy, perplexed by the young boy’s comment, replied, “Well, young man, I think Cassie belongs with her family, not some strangers who don’t even know her. We’ll be OK; we raised our daughter and we can raise our granddaughter.”

Matthew eased over to Cassie and her grandfather and asked the little girl, “Did you have a good time at the park today?”

The little girl looked up from the pamphlet and shyly nodded yes. Glen asked Matthew what he thought of the park. Matthew smirked and said, “I wish we could’ve stayed longer and done some fishing, but we need to be getting home.”

“I’m sorry to have been so rude. My name is April and these are my sons, Matthew and Connor.” April continued to get a sense of satisfaction from calling them her sons.

Glen extended his hand to Matthew and said, “Well, it’s nice to meet you folks. So, where are you from? You sure don’t sound like you’re from around these parts. If I had to guess, I would say you’re from up North.”

April looked confused, and she almost blurted out Sector 37. Her mind raced as she struggled to remember the name of the town that they were supposed to be from. All of a sudden, a bus pulled into the parking lot across from the benches. April said, “Oh, look, I see the number 2212 on the side of the, um, the um…”

Matthew intervened, “Bus?”

Glen said, “It sure is, but that isn’t ours. We’re taking the 2213.”

The bus pulled to the curb and opened its doors. April noticed the paper money that two other passengers used to pay for the trip and she started to dig into her bag. Nancy tapped her on the arm and said, “I hope you and your boys get home safely; it was very nice to meet you.” April returned the comment and motioned the boys to get on the bus.

As they loaded on, the driver said, “That’ll be six dollars for Atlanta, station 2.”

April pulled out a stash of money and counted out six singles to give to the large, sweaty driver. The bills included several tens, twenties, and hundreds.

The driver looked at April, astonished by what he saw. “Good grief, lady! You shouldn’t be pulling out that kind of cash when you get into the city; you’ll get your throat slit.”