Prisoner in Time (Time travel) by Christopher David Petersen Page B

before darkness?”
     
    “Look around you. Do you see any street lights?”
     
    Geoff scanned the area and instantly understood. No further words were required.
     
    The hours passed and soon the worn path expanded into a large dirt road. As they neared the city of Chattanooga, small farms began to appear. With each residence they spotted, the two moved into the woods and skirted its perimeter, avoiding detection by the cover of trees. Farmers in their fields worked their plows unsuspecting.
     
    As the two crossed over a large hill and worked their way down into the valley, the small city of Chattanooga appeared. Geoff viewed it with amazement.
     
    “Wow! So that’s what Chattanooga looked like a hundred and fifty years ago,” he said aloud.
     
    “Pretty amazing, isn’t it?” David asked.
     
    “I don’t recognize any of it,” he responded.
     
    “Only the river is unchanged,” David added.
     
    “So where’re we headed?” Geoff asked, still scanning the old city.
     
    “It’s going to get pretty cold tonight. I’ve been looking for shelter but haven’t found anything that looks suitable yet,” David replied, with growing concern.
     
    “What exactly are we looking for?”
     
    “Well, we don’t have any matches, so lighting a fire isn’t an option. I’m thinking the best we can do is try to stay out of the wind to keep warm.”
     
    “So where do we go to stay out of the wind?” Geoff persisted.
     
    David pointed to a distant farm. As the two took in the layout of the property, David guessed at the buildings’ usages.
     
    “There’s the main farmhouse,” he said.
     
    “That’s not much of a house… more like a shack,” Geoff commented.
     
    “Most of the farmers around here were very poor. They didn’t live in large, expensive homes,” David responded, then pointed to another building. “See that smaller shack near the edge of the fencing?”
     
    Geoff nodded simply.
     
    “If I’m not mistaken, that’s probably a corn crib or hen house. When it gets dark, we’ll sneak into one and spend the night. It won’t be comfortable, but at least we’ll have some shelter,” he suggested.
     
    “What if the farmer hears us?”
     
    “We run and hope he misses,” David answered.
     
    “Misses?”
     
    “Farmers shoot thieves, Geoff. If they see us running from their henhouse, I’m pretty sure they’ll shoot first and ask questions later,”
     
    “Wow, that sucks,” he shot back in surprise.
     
    “Yes Geoff, it really does suck,” David responded, sarcastically. “Ok, let’s head into the woods and wait until it gets dark.”
     
    With a simple nod from Geoff, David made his way into the woods. As he walked, he stopped and listened for tell-tale sounds of humanity. Hearing nothing, he continued on, Geoff following close behind. An hour later, David spotted a stone wall that ran from the woods to the farmhouse. He turned and followed it. As he approached the edge of the woods, he stopped and stared out over the farmer’s field.
     
    “Ok, I think this is a good place to stop. We can wait it out here until dark, then run across the field to one of those shacks.”
     
    “Damn, it’s getting cold already,” he said, still scanning the area.
     
    David looked at Geoff. The teen wore a pair of jeans, a t-shirt and a light fleece jacket. Rubbing his own exposed arms to stay warm, he crouched down next to the wall to stay out of the wind.
     
    “Be thankful you’re dressed so warmly. I only have on a pair of scrubs… and they’re short sleeved at that,” David responded, now blowing his hot breath into his hands.
     
    Geoff stared at David for a moment and felt a measure of sympathy for the man that was now helping him. He thought of offering him his jacket, but suddenly, images of his brother’s tragic death flooded his mind and reminded him of his purpose and of the man who couldn’t save him. Stepping a few feet away, he callously placed his hands in his pockets