do all that damage? Thank the Goddess he didn’t have time toexamine it. Derek wasn’t exactly Rambo. Every time he sees his own blood—and I mean a freaking paper cut—he faints. I didn’t want him to notice the horror on my face, so I kept talking as I wiggled my bag off my shoulder and laid it over his feet.
“Besides, you’re the one with the feathered girlfriend. Speaking of which, do you see her?” I chewed my lip, trying desperately to maneuver the tractor away from stray cars, antique lawn mowers, and small rodents. “Hope she doesn’t get hurt.”
Derek moved his head slightly. “I can hear her. But I don’t hear anything else.”
I listened. He was right. The pinging sounds had ceased. At least for the moment.
“Go, Liberty,” I said.
It was a bumpy ride for several minutes as we dodged a ghostly motorcycle, a rotting pontoon boat, and, ahead in the distance, some sort of metal sculpture shaped like a dinosaur. That dinosaur looked familiar.
I searched the recesses of my brain until I recalled a field trip I took as a child to what the teacher called Art in the Park. A local metalworks artist and welder who lived just off the highway welcomed classes to tour his property and his many works of art. It was all made from recycled metal such as wheel rims, bed frames, wrenches, farm equipment, saws—even tractor parts. It made sense now. He must have acquired a lot of the material from Scoog. From what I understood, he was popular with tourists from Chicago’s North Shore and trendy shop owners from Wicker Park, Logan Square, and Boystown.
We must have been close to his property.
Surely he would have a phone.
“Derek, what’s the name of that road?”
He pulled out a small film canister from his back pocket. With one flick, it transformed into an extended single-vision scope, like a ship’s captain might use.
“Does everyone shop at the spy store but me?” Aunt Lolly, I’d learned the hard way, loved that place.
“It’s filled with some cool stuff, let me tell you.” Derek winced in pain as he shifted his weight and angled his body forward. “Looks like Blue Diamond Drive.”
“Do you think the GPS will work on the phone without any network coverage?”
“If it can ping off a satellite, then sure.”
“Give it a try.”
I slowed the tractor down when we reached a dirt road. There were no cars coming as far as I could see and the dinosaur was farther away than I thought. The size had deceived me and I didn’t see a house or even a mailbox nearby.
“The GPS is not zeroing in on us, but it’s giving a map of the area. Looks like whatever was last plugged into it is lingering.”
“Do you see the road anywhere on there?”
“Yep. Looks like we’re about fifteen miles from town, and White Hope snakes around the other side of Blue Diamond.”
The phone beeped the low-battery cry.
“Turn it off. Can’t afford to lose any more juice right now,” I said.
I forged ahead, glancing often at Derek. He looked pale. “There should be a water in my bag. Might be some snacks too.”
The tractor bounced along the dirt road, the hum of the engine the only sound for miles. It was hotter than Hades’ oven inside so I asked Derek to open his window and I did the same. He handed me half the bottle of water and I accepted a sip but gave him the rest. I had no idea how much blood he had lost, but the stench of fear and our own body odor was enough to make anyone pass out at that point. For a moment, I considered tearing directly over to White Hope Road and just driving this behemoth mobile right down the center line, hoping someone would call the cops.
I spotted a domed house, fit for a hobbit, in a thicket of trees. It was flanked by two metal knights.
“Derek, is that an oasis or is that really a house?”
“It’s either a house or we’ve stumbled upon the lost land of Camelot.”
I smiled. “Let’s hope Merlin’s home.”
Chapter 16
The poor man came out of his home
“Besides, you’re the one with the feathered girlfriend. Speaking of which, do you see her?” I chewed my lip, trying desperately to maneuver the tractor away from stray cars, antique lawn mowers, and small rodents. “Hope she doesn’t get hurt.”
Derek moved his head slightly. “I can hear her. But I don’t hear anything else.”
I listened. He was right. The pinging sounds had ceased. At least for the moment.
“Go, Liberty,” I said.
It was a bumpy ride for several minutes as we dodged a ghostly motorcycle, a rotting pontoon boat, and, ahead in the distance, some sort of metal sculpture shaped like a dinosaur. That dinosaur looked familiar.
I searched the recesses of my brain until I recalled a field trip I took as a child to what the teacher called Art in the Park. A local metalworks artist and welder who lived just off the highway welcomed classes to tour his property and his many works of art. It was all made from recycled metal such as wheel rims, bed frames, wrenches, farm equipment, saws—even tractor parts. It made sense now. He must have acquired a lot of the material from Scoog. From what I understood, he was popular with tourists from Chicago’s North Shore and trendy shop owners from Wicker Park, Logan Square, and Boystown.
We must have been close to his property.
Surely he would have a phone.
“Derek, what’s the name of that road?”
He pulled out a small film canister from his back pocket. With one flick, it transformed into an extended single-vision scope, like a ship’s captain might use.
“Does everyone shop at the spy store but me?” Aunt Lolly, I’d learned the hard way, loved that place.
“It’s filled with some cool stuff, let me tell you.” Derek winced in pain as he shifted his weight and angled his body forward. “Looks like Blue Diamond Drive.”
“Do you think the GPS will work on the phone without any network coverage?”
“If it can ping off a satellite, then sure.”
“Give it a try.”
I slowed the tractor down when we reached a dirt road. There were no cars coming as far as I could see and the dinosaur was farther away than I thought. The size had deceived me and I didn’t see a house or even a mailbox nearby.
“The GPS is not zeroing in on us, but it’s giving a map of the area. Looks like whatever was last plugged into it is lingering.”
“Do you see the road anywhere on there?”
“Yep. Looks like we’re about fifteen miles from town, and White Hope snakes around the other side of Blue Diamond.”
The phone beeped the low-battery cry.
“Turn it off. Can’t afford to lose any more juice right now,” I said.
I forged ahead, glancing often at Derek. He looked pale. “There should be a water in my bag. Might be some snacks too.”
The tractor bounced along the dirt road, the hum of the engine the only sound for miles. It was hotter than Hades’ oven inside so I asked Derek to open his window and I did the same. He handed me half the bottle of water and I accepted a sip but gave him the rest. I had no idea how much blood he had lost, but the stench of fear and our own body odor was enough to make anyone pass out at that point. For a moment, I considered tearing directly over to White Hope Road and just driving this behemoth mobile right down the center line, hoping someone would call the cops.
I spotted a domed house, fit for a hobbit, in a thicket of trees. It was flanked by two metal knights.
“Derek, is that an oasis or is that really a house?”
“It’s either a house or we’ve stumbled upon the lost land of Camelot.”
I smiled. “Let’s hope Merlin’s home.”
Chapter 16
The poor man came out of his home
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