The Time Hunters (Book 1 of the acclaimed series for children of all ages) (22 page)

Chapter 33

Harold’s
Lair

A moment later, Bertha appeared on the front lawn of
Bowen Hall. For a moment, relief flooded Becky and made her forget all the
amazing things she’d seen, the good and the bad. Even Joe seemed to have
stopped looking at her as though she’d grown a second head.

Nevertheless, she couldn’t help wonder what happened
outside the Red Caves. She’d never blacked out before. And besides, it wasn’t
as simple as that – the more she thought about it, the more fragmented but
distinct images entered her head. She remembered seeing the limousine’s window
smash; the Fleece flying towards her; the kitbag landing in her arms. In fact,
she hadn’t blacked out at all.

She could remember everything.

Her gaze fell onto the Golden Fleece. So this was
what the fuss was all about? She wanted to tear the bag open - to touch it - to
feel what sent Drake into such a wild frenzy. Just then, she was distracted by
a quiet, playful growl. Sabian was curled on Joe’s lap, clawing at his tunic. A
harsh reality struck her and she felt a raw, burning ache inside. Sabian would
never see his mother again.

He was an orphan.

‘I can’t believe Milly’s dead,’ Becky said quietly,
ruffling Sabian’s ears. Joe nodded gloomily. Then an idea sprang into her mind.
‘Uncle Percy - about Milly - couldn’t we - ’

‘Let’s worry about Milly later, shall we?’ Uncle
Percy said, rather too abruptly for Becky’s liking. ‘We have more pressing
matters to deal with.’ He leapt purposefully onto the grass.

More pressing matters?
Becky could have thumped him. She knew very well what had to be done. But she
also knew what it was like to grow up without a parent. Before she had a chance
to dwell on this, however, Joe slid open the door and leapt out.

Becky followed him. For the briefest of moments, she
forgot about Sabian and took a deep, satisfying breath. They were home. What an
adventure! They had found the Golden Fleece, befriended a vegetarian Minotaur,
met the legendary Argonauts, defeated a Hydra and discovered the identity of
the traveller. And even more incredible than that: her dad was alive.

As Becky stood there, an earsplitting shriek echoed
from the Hall. She jumped, startled. Turning quickly, she feared the worst.
Instead, she saw a beaming Maria waddle towards them, apron flapping, her
chubby hands waving madly. ‘Angels! Angels! You are back.’ Jacob followed close
behind, an equally broad smile on his face.

‘My little darlings, you are back and you are safe,’
Maria blubbered. ‘I told him.’ She wagged her finger at Uncle Percy. ‘I told
him you should be coming back when he came for that cat. Oh, I have been so
worried.’

‘We’re fine, Maria,’ Becky said, forcing a smile.

Maria released her and faced Joe. ‘And the young
master?’ She grabbed his head forcefully and pulled him to her chest. ‘Ooh, I
missed you so much.’

‘Hi, Maria,’ Joe said, turning bubblegum-pink as she
squeezed the life out of him.

Finally, Maria let go. She marched past Uncle Percy,
cast him a very nasty scowl, and embraced Will tenderly.

‘Our dad’s alive,’ Joe said excitedly.

‘What?’ Maria took a moment to absorb the
information. ‘Alive?’

Joe nodded.

‘He’s alive?’ Maria repeated. Then her face exploded
with delight. ‘D-did you hear that Jacob?’ Her eyes started to water. ‘Master
John is alive.
B-but how?’

‘That,
Maria,
is a very
long story,’ Uncle Percy said.

‘Is he here?’ Maria glanced at Bertha expecting him
to jump out at any moment.

‘No,’ Becky said. ‘But he is alive … somewhere.’

‘Uncle Percy’s going to find him,’ Joe said.

‘Of course he is,’ Maria replied, her voice quivering.
‘Oh, it is a wonderful day. I am so happy for you. Now, where is that big cat?
I have fresh sirloin for her.’

‘She’s dead,’ Becky stared at the ground.

Maria’s head jolted up. ‘She’s what?’

‘A man called Drake shot her,’ Becky replied.
‘The traveller.
The man who sent Otto
Kruger here.’

Maria glowered at Uncle Percy. ‘Is this true?’

‘We haven’t time to think about that now,’ Uncle
Percy said urgently. ‘Will, might I ask you to get me the
Molivato
r and the
Bio-rifle
, please, we haven’t much
time.’

Will ran off in the direction of the Time Room.

Maria noticed Uncle Percy’s injured arm. ‘And you -
you are bleeding,’

‘It’s nothing,’ Uncle Percy said, entering a new set
of coordinates on the time-pad.

‘What are you doing?’ Becky asked.

‘I have to get the Fleece as far away from here as
possible.’

‘We’re leaving again?’ Becky said.

‘
We’re
not
,’ Uncle Percy said. ‘I am.’

‘I want to come,’ Joe said quickly.

‘And me,’ Becky added.

‘Absolutely not!’
Maria said sharply. ‘Come inside, I have made crumpets.’

‘Not this time,’ Uncle Percy replied.

‘We want to come,’ Becky pressed, ignoring Maria’s
scowl.

‘It’s not safe,’ Uncle Percy said.

‘Neither was Ancient Greece, but we’re still in one
piece.’

‘You have to take us,’ Joe pleaded.

Becky flashed her sweetest smile. ‘Besides, the
Fleece came to me. I’m its guardian. Apparently, I’m at one with the Gods.’

Uncle Percy couldn’t help but laugh. ‘Okay then, but
you’re to do exactly what I say. No questions asked.’

‘We will,’ Becky said eagerly.

Will appeared pulling a shiny contraption that resembled
an old fashioned vacuum cleaner; a gigantic silver rifle hung from his
shoulder.

‘Thanks, Will,’ Uncle Percy said, lifting the
Molivator into the campervan.

‘That’s a gun!’ Joe
said,
his eyes wide with surprise.

‘A bio-rifle,’ Uncle Percy replied, wedging the
rifle onto the passenger seat.
‘A tranquillizer gun.’

Becky stared at it with disbelief. It was the
biggest gun she had ever seen. ‘What’re you going to tranquillize: King Kong?’

‘Something
like
that,’
Uncle Percy muttered.

‘Where are we going?’ Joe asked.
‘The
North Pole?
The Himalayas?’

‘Somewhere far more tropical,’ Uncle Percy said.
‘London …’

Becky and Joe exchanged disappointed looks.

‘London’s about as tropical as Joe’s feet,’ Becky
said.

‘You’d be surprised,’ Uncle Percy replied. ‘Now,
there’s just one more thing I need to do.’ He bounded onto the driver’s seat,
started the engine and drove Bertha into the Time Room.

Becky and Joe followed, intrigued. They watched as
Uncle Percy hopped out and sat at a workstation. There was a loud click and a
steel partition dropped from the ceiling. With a faint buzz, it launched a broad
shaft of sapphire light onto the van. The light probed and prodded and skimmed every
inch of Bertha’s bodywork.

‘What’s happening?’ Joe whispered.

Becky shrugged. ‘Dunno.’

Uncle Percy watched the monitor closely; his face
flickered white as a stream of data crossed the screen. Then the words ‘
Unknown
device detected’
appeared
.

‘Very clever, Emerson,’ Uncle Percy muttered to
himself.
‘Very clever, indeed.’
His hand rummaged beneath
the front wheel trim. When he withdrew it, he was holding a shiny metal disc
that resembled a milk bottle top.

Becky approached him. ‘What is it?’

‘It’s a
chrono-tracer
,’
Uncle Percy replied.
‘And an old one, to boot.’

Becky looked puzzled.

‘A device for tracking time machines through time
and space,’ Uncle Percy explained. ‘I was wondering how Emerson was always one
step ahead of us, how he knew precisely when to send Otto Kruger to Bowen Hall.
This is how he’s been able to do it.’ He crushed it in his fingers.

‘But when did he put it there in the first place?’
Becky asked.

‘Well it was Emerson and some others who helped me
construct her fourteen years ago. He could’ve installed it then.’

A shiver ran down Becky’s spine. Emerson Drake had
been tracking Uncle Percy all that time. ‘Is it true what you said in the
caves… is he thick?’

Uncle Percy gave a heavy sigh. ‘Unfortunately not, I
only said that because I know how arrogant he can be, attacking his
intellectual vanity was the only weapon I had at the time. Make no mistakes
about it … Emerson Drake is a brilliant man, a genius. And if he possesses his
own Gerathnium, the world as we know it is in great danger.’

He hit another key and two enormous blocks of
Gerathnium landed with a
flump
in the
slot beside the terminal.

‘And what about dad?’
Becky asked. ‘How will we ever find him?’

Uncle Percy gave her a kindly smile. ‘The wonderful
thing is he’s alive, and, from the sounds of it, Emerson will make sure he
stays alive, at all costs. He needs him. I don’t know why … I don’t know what
your father knows … but I know this, if Emerson has kept him alive for all this
time, then it must be something significant. Now, I swear to you, that I will
do everything in my power to find him. I will devote the rest of my life to
finding him, if need be.’ He inserted the Gerathnium into the rear slot. ‘Fancy
sitting up front with me?’

Becky and Joe jumped eagerly into Bertha and settled
themselves on the front seat. Uncle Percy joined them.

‘So how far back are we going?’ Joe said.

The campervan shuddered as a power surge swelled
from below. Uncle Percy winked at Joe. ‘One hundred and sixty two million
years…’

*

A moment later, they materialised on a beach.

However, Becky had never seen an English beach quite
like it. Stretching plains of white sand faded into a shallow crystal blue sea
and soaring palm trees lined the coastline. It looked like a desert island.
‘Exactly what part of London are we in?’

‘Piccadilly Circus, I believe,’ Uncle Percy replied,
opening the door and climbing out.

‘Will we see a T Rex?’ Joe asked hopefully.

‘I’m afraid not, Joe. They won’t exist for millions
of years.’ He hoisted the Bio-rifle onto his shoulder.

Becky suddenly felt nervous. ‘What will we see?’

Uncle Percy grinned. ‘Who knows? Joe, would you
carry the Fleece for me, please?’ Uncle Percy wheeled the Molivator onto the
sand.

‘Course.’
Joe heaved the kitbag over his shoulder.

‘What exactly does it do?’ Becky said, nodding at
the Molivator.

‘It’s a digging tool.’ Uncle Percy disappeared into
the palm trees. ‘Follow me.’

Becky and Joe trailed close behind. As the soft sand
merged into hard topsoil, they found themselves in a dense forest surrounded by
ferns and conifer trees. After a few minutes of walking, Joe spoke, ‘Where we
going?’

‘We’re visiting an old friend of mine, Uncle Percy
replied. ‘I call him Harold.’

‘A time traveller?’
Becky asked, although somehow she knew she wasn’t going to be that lucky.

‘A Megalosaurus.’

Becky’s stomach sank. She had no idea what a
Megalosaurus was, but judging by the size of the gun in Uncle Percy’s hands,
she knew it wouldn’t be small and fluffy. Then she saw something that made her
feel sick. Propped between two trees, like the leftovers of a gigantic
Christmas dinner, were the bloody remains of a dinosaur; small remnants of
flesh hung from its bones and hundreds of flies buzzed around it.

Becky stifled a wretch.

Joe, on the other hand, was fascinated. ‘That was a
Stegosaurus, right?’

‘Excellent, Joe,’ Uncle Percy said. ‘Harold’s
breakfast, I imagine.’

‘That’s gross,’ Becky slurred, covering her nose
with her hand.

Uncle Percy came to a sudden halt. He raised his
hand, gesturing them to stop. ‘We’re here…’

Becky froze. Glancing back at the Stegosaurus, she
thought the Bio-rifle wasn’t anywhere near big enough.

Uncle Percy buried the butt of the rifle into his
shoulder. His eyes glanced from side to side, and he waited. Seconds passed.

Just then, Becky heard movement from the undergrowth.
Her stomach lurched with terror as a giant head appeared. Steadily, the Megalosaurus
rose to its full height, arched its neck and roared deafeningly.

‘Hi, Harold,’ Uncle Percy took aim. ‘Bye, Harold.’ He
fired. A huge dart pierced the dinosaur’s neck. The Megalosaurus froze with
shock. Then it staggered to the left and fell backwards, crashing into the
ferns behind.