Jurassic Time Riders

By S. M. Krantz

Kate Rogers and Dave Matheson scientists in the deep Congo have mysteriously disappeared. Matheson reappears on the Navajo Reservation critically injured and dies from a severe bacterial infection. Rogers is presumed lost until Dr. Edward Tevis, her director, contacts his employer James Larkin. Larkin is creator of a powerful quantum computer with specialized markers. Tevis tells Larkin his group tweaked the markers and he believes this caused a time vortex to open. Gwyn Stone, Larkins attorney, tells him that if bacteria that killed Matheson spread Interpol may bring international terrorism charges against him since no known antibiotic exists and convinces Larkin to send a party back to the Congo to get any remaining data. She contacts Seth Conner; a renowned paleontologist for advice, skeptical at first Conner is monetarily persuaded and goes with them. Kate Rogers feels all hope is lost until Seth Connor finds her. They search for a way to activate the vortex, or be lost forever in a prehistoric world.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Jun 10, 2016
• ISBN: 9781365186554

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Jurassic Time Riders

Jurassic Time Riders

S.M. Krantz

Jurassic Time Riders Copyright @ 2016 S.M. Krantz

All rights reserved.

Printed in the United States of America. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places, events and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Published by:

Phoenixcosmopolitan LLC Publishers

For more information contact:

[e-mail]

ISBN 978-1-365-18655-4

First Edition: June 2016

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Dedicated to Jaxon and Tori . . .

Chapter One

A

bsolute power of the thing, the energy of the event took Kate Rogers breath away. Literally, she could not breathe. She’d been pre-occupied with the overgrown fragments of carved effigies on the stone wall that she had found in a northeast section of the Congo rainforest, a largely unexplored region, and the next thing, wham!

To her, the air became as thick as water, compressed by an irresistible force of inconceivable might. It was as if the sunlight became condensed, concentrated not into greater brightness but into a rich golden densification, only it wasn’t sunlight, but rather bright glowing orbs of light changing into a substance she could neither feel nor smell, a shimmering coagulum that swelled, bent, buckled, and brought forth impossibilities.

Kate squeezed her eyes shut. Something was wrong, very wrong, with time, with the place, with everything. Wrong wasn’t the correct word; something about time had literally changed—the flow, the rules the purpose of it. The past, the present, and the future seemed as one, twisted together like spaghetti on a fork, then twisted tighter, tighter, until countless millennia were wound into a single instant.

When everything quit spinning she opened her eyes. The view Kate saw in front of her was still the dense jungle. That didn’t surprise her. What shocked her was instead of being in the jungle she was high above it on a six by eight foot ledge that jutted out from a rock cliff face. Kate looked down on the canopy of giant trees . . .  things like this can’t happen, right?

She turned around and saw her partner, Dave Matheson. He was standing just behind her, speechless, staring, shocked, and looking as disoriented as she was. Not knowing what else to do, Kate stepped close to the edge, only a single step and looked down. What she saw scared the hell out of her. There was a sheer drop-off, eight hundred feet, maybe more, straight down into the tree tops. She felt her vertigo shift. She looked away.

Then the full realization dawned on her, they were stranded. Had they been in the time it took to snap your fingers, transported from the dark jungle to this remote ledge on a sunlit rock cliff? The how and why was racing through her mind, but truthfully, Kate couldn’t answer those questions.

She didn’t know how much time had passed or what really happened, yet.

I can’t . . . this isn’t real, Dave said craning his neck upward at the imposing wall of rock. I can’t do this.

Can’t do what? There’s nowhere to go Dave. We have to go up. If you go down I suggest you watch your first step.

Up that? He said, It’s a solid rock face a hundred feet straight up for god’s sake and we have no climbing gear!

Kate said. Well, what do you propose? Stay here and die, or climb? I don’t know how we got here anymore than you do, but as a scientist I know science is never settled in regard to a subject. If my mind is closed to what may have happened here then I would cease to be a scientist.

Are you saying we were transported here through time? Dave said. I’m not saying that. I’m saying I don’t know what happened. Logic tells me something like that may have occurred . . . but I take this on face value. I’m getting out of here, get help. You do what you want, she said, but me, I’m climbing.

Thank god she had her Variant 37 daypack with her and had the foresight to throw a few chocolate bars in it this morning. She wasn’t prepared for overnight and certainly didn’t have climbing essentials with her; chalk, salve, or safety gear. There had been no need, or at least she had thought.

It was all she could do to control the fear rising in her. She started climbing. Don’t look down, she told herself, as she reached her arm up to grab onto the closest ledge with her fingers. Rock climbing involved using muscles in her arms and legs, and for her to pull herself up this sheer rock face, it would take all of her strength and control. Kate was in very good physical shape. Her arms were strong, and her long-fingered hands had the gripping strength of a practiced climber. She couldn’t help Dave other than encourage him to follow her foot and hand holds.

Now half-way up her eyes burned, she squeezed them shut momentarily, and felt her equilibrium shift. She opened them, blinked rapidly, paused for a second then clung precariously to the face of the jagged rock. Her fingers were cut in places from the sharp rocks and moist from sweat.

They hurt; it made holding onto the cliff face difficult. Now her thighs and calves were cramping.

. . . Just deal with it; ignore the pain, she told herself.

A gust of hot wind came up and hit her body; she felt herself sway from the force of it. Kate pushed against the rock wall and desperately held on until it passed. Relieved she pressed her cheek against the warmth of the rock and tried to still her heavy breathing. She had to stay calm. Slowly she raised her arms, extending her fingers upward she reached for the next handhold clinging desperately to the jagged rock face as small pebbles broke free, then her hand slipped down. Sharp rock edges inflicted more cuts and scrapes. She gripped it again, gritted her teeth against the pain and pulled herself upward.

Her sleeveless blue Henley shirt was soaked with sour sweat. Short cropped black hair stuck flat to her head and glistened in the heat of the relentless hot sun. She was sweating both from the labor of the climb and from an increasing sense of vulnerability. As beads of perspiration rolled down her face, she took another deep breath then looked down under her arm. Dave, ten feet below her, was looking scared clinging to the wall.

Follow me, do what I do, put your fingers where I put mine, your toes in the same spot. Kate called down to him. Okay?

Dave didn’t answer. His backpack was heavy. He thought about ditching it but it held items he needed and he was in no mood to share them with Kate.

Sighing, he leaned into the rock face. Okay, I’m coming. He said. The top can’t be far now, is it? I can’t do this much longer!

I can’t tell. Kate yelled back down to him. Are you okay? She said. I’m exhausted. Dave said. Is the top much further?

I don’t know. Oh, wait I can see green, looks like about twenty more meters.  She said.

Thank God, oh thank God! He said.

She looked down again. He gave her a half-hearted smile.

The cliff face here is almost vertical and incredibly dangerous. The volcanic rock crumbles easily. Watch out, it’s friable.

Yeah, he replied. I already found that out.

As Kate neared the top of the cliff, the wind gusts became more frequent and blew harder, whistling in her ears, tugging at her clothes and more than once she was nearly sucked away from the rock face. Now she saw the dense foliage clearly growing right to the edge of the rock face.

Almost there, she thought. Almost.

She reached out and grabbed a firm hold on the rock ledge above her, hauling her small muscular frame up. And then, with a final heave, she pushed and pulled her body up over the top then collapsed, rolling in soft wet ferns. Still gasping, she looked back and saw Dave’s fingers and then he came over the top edge, easier than she did. He squatted on the mossy grass and then smiled triumphantly.

I made it; I made it. He mumbled. Have any idea where we are?

Kate said. No. But we’re not lost. I’m sure we’ll hear from Clark or Dana or Dr. Tevis any moment now.

She just wanted to keep the panic out. She wanted to believe nothing bad had happened. She did not want to think about how huge the plants were. She did not want to think about this being a more inhospitable place than the jungle she’d left behind.

We’re lost. Dave said matter-of-factly.

Kate didn’t answer him. She turned away and stared at the huge ferns that grew high up overhead her and tried to release her accumulated tension of the climb in long shuddering breaths. Her legs still burned fiercely. She looked around at the jungle more intently now. It was as thick as what had appeared below them on the ledge when she saw the huge trees.

This was a primal forest. And it looked undisturbed, not unusual from where she’d been, but different somehow. She could feel it.

They stayed still and listened to the sound of the wind, the rustle of the palm fronds that dripped water onto their faces.

And then Kate heard another sound, distant, like the cry of a bird, but deeper, more resonant. As she listened, she heard it again and jerked her head towards Dave.

Did you hear that? She said her voice barely above a horse whisper. Dave frowned, a puzzled look on his face.

Kate put her finger to her lips. She pointed in the direction of the bird sound.

Dave shrugged his expression indifferent. He was unimpressed and saw no reason for concern.

Obviously this is a damn jungle Kate. It’s the Congo all kinds of sounds come from the Congo you know? I want to go, let’s try and locate something, find out where the hell we are. Get some help.

She was feeling uneasy.  Dave didn't understand what they were up against. She knew this was not the same Congo they’d been before. This jungle was thicker, older, she wasn’t sure how but it was different. Kate was always a cautious thinker, but this was increasingly causing her more concern, something wasn’t kosher; her instincts were on high alert and she knew this place held unspeakable danger.

They were alone. She felt it. And inexplicably she knew no help was coming for them, no one knew where they were. She took a deep breath and let it out slow. Even the air seemed different here. Heady, as if it had more oxygen in it.

We have no weapons. She said softly to Dave. Then she got to her feet and started walking.

Dave followed. You still have the marker Clark gave us? He said. I have mine.

No. I lost it on the climb. She said. It’s not important, it never did anything.

Clark said not to lose it. If we got lost he could find us with it. Dave said.

So he did. But we’re still lost. Kate said.

Her mind made a mental note of the contents of Dave’s backpack; e had carried the heavier one; flashlights, headphones for communication to their camps short-wave radio, wrist compass, dry socks, more chocolate and energy bars, extra underwear; it wasn’t much, but better than nothing.

Let me see the backpack.

What do you want? Tell me I’ll get it for you. He said. I want to see the bag.

I got personal things in there?

It’s the company’s stuff. I want to see it. No. He shook his head.

She glared at him. Whatever. Give me the wrist compass and the headphones then. She said. That’s childish. But she knew she couldn’t physically take it from him. What was he hiding?

Dave shrugged then dug into the pack and handed her the items.

Kate put the compass on and the headphones. She tried contacting the camp. It didn’t surprise her. She pushed the headphones down around her neck and the two of them started down a sloping hillside, away from the cliff struggling through the heavy foliage. Their clothes were soaked and they had no views; they were surrounded on all sides by dense jungle, and could see only a few yards ahead of them in any direction.

The fronds of the ferns were enormous, as long and broad as a man's body, the plants twenty feet tall, with rough spiky stalks and high above the ferns, a great canopy of trees blocked out most of the sunlight. They moved on in the shadows silently, the earth damp and spongy.

Kate paused often to consult her wrist compass; and to listen. They were heading west, down a steep slope. The terrain was like a series of ridges that led down to a basin and was steep, rugged, and treacherous. The sense of isolation she felt was palpable. There was no doubt in her mind any longer this was definitely a primordial world. Kate’s heart pounded contemplating what that meant as she continued down the slope, across a shallow marshy creek, and then up again.

Dave followed her closely.

Both of them stayed silent. It seemed that every move, every footstep, echoed in the silence. At the top of the next ridge, there was a break in the foliage, and they felt a welcome breeze. From that vantage point, they were able to see far off in the distance. They saw another rim of hard black cliffs ahead, which were probably miles away. Between here and the cliffs they saw nothing in front of them but gently undulating jungle.

Standing beside her, he said, Fantastic. Kate quickly shushed him.

Kate, he protested, pointing to the view. We’re alone here, except for the normal jungle animals.

What’s normal? She said shaking her head annoyed. It was obvious Dave had no idea what this place implied. He didn't understand but she did.

It was now very clear to her.

Kate poked him angrily, and shook her head again. Dave said, I’m feeling better. Watch out for snakes.

Then they heard the bird sound again, but closer this time. Boy, I’d like to see the bird making that sound. Dave said. She shushed him again.

At that moment, they heard another sound, a deep rumble, then the sound of hissing, like nothing they’d ever heard before, much too loud for any snake they knew existed, then an unearthly cry that arose from somewhere in the forest below them.

After a moment, the cry was answered, from yet another part of the forest. Dave's eyes widened.

Kate mouthed at him: Just birds?

Dave was silent. He bit his lip, and stared out at the forest.

To the South, they saw a place where the tops of the trees began to move, a whole section of forest that suddenly seemed to come alive, as if brushed by wind. But the rest of the forest was not moving.

It was not the wind.

Both of them stared at the trees but they didn’t see anything else. Then, they heard more cries, lasting nearly a minute, and then silence descended again.

Kate moved off the ridge and headed down the jungle slope, going deeper into the interior. She was moving forward quickly, looking at the ground, watching for snakes, especially after that hissing they had heard when she heard a low whistle sound, coming from behind her. She turned and saw Dave pointing to the left.

Kate doubled back, pushed through the fronds, and followed Dave as he moved south. In a few moments, they came upon a trail in the dirt, overgrown with grass and ferns closely on each side, but clearly recognizable as a game trail. It led off into the jungle.

Of course they would follow it. Their progress would be much faster now. In silence, they moved down the trail carefully. In places, it was deeply rutted as if heavy animals had been walking over it.

A lot of animals.

Dave grunted lightly ahead of her and swore softly.

She saw him lifting his foot gingerly; he had stepped up to mid-ankle in a pile of fresh green animal-droppings.

Kate kept on walking but her senses heightened. Some kind of large animal inhabited this forest and from the size of the pile of crap it was huge. That thought made her very uncomfortable.

Dave scraped his boot clean on the stem of a fern.

As Kate passed the droppings noticing they appeared composed of chewed digested green material. Likely the plants around here, the smell was nasty. She stopped and looked over the spoor. The droppings were well formed, at least twelve centimeters in diameter and definitely left behind by some huge herbivore, something much bigger than a jungle elephant.

Dave had circled back after he noticed she stopped. He was stood silent, but his eyes were still wide.

Still think this is just birds? She said to him, her voice barely above a whisper.

What the hell could have made that pile of crap? Dave said. His voice sounded worried.

She quickly shushed him with a shake of her head.

They continued on. They saw signs of more herbivore droppings along the trail. Obviously there had been more than one of these animals that moved through here. They came to a fast running stream with muddy banks on both sides. Here they paused.

Kate saw clear three-toed footprints in the mud, some of them quite large.

Dave put the palm of his hand down with his fingers spread wide and it fit easily inside one of the prints, with room to spare.

What the…? Dave said his eyes holding the look of fear.

He had finally come to the same realization she had. They were no longer in their world. She reached out and touched his arm.

Pull it together, stay close. Kate said from between her gritted teeth. Yeah, he said shakily.

They waited at the stream, listening to the gentle gurgle of the water. She turned, and caught a glimpse of movement from the corner of her eye.

Something small and brown had scurried across the mud of the riverbank.

Something about the size of a rat.

Dave grunted out in surprise and then it was gone, disappearing in foliage.

Kate moved forward then crouched down in the mud by the stream. She peered at the footprints left by the tiny animal. The footprints were three- toed, like the tracks of a bird. She saw more three-toed tracks, including some bigger ones, which were several inches across.

Uneasiness filled her. She was becoming much more aware of what this environment held and it was scaring the hell out of her.

Dave came over and squatted down beside her then slipped his backpack off and rubbed his shoulders.

I don’t want to think this, but, I’ve seen tracks like this before, he said, his voice barely above a whisper now. Fossilized in the Colorado Purgatoire River Basin, the ancient stone shoreline where Dinosaur tracks are frozen in time. But these prints are fresh, right here in the mud! Made by living animals! Living! Do you know what this means? His voice rose in a high pitched whisper.

Yes I do. She said. Keep your voice down, I expect sound carries here real well.

Dave didn’t pay any attention. He kept saying things like, My god; this is incredible; I can’t believe this; it’s dinosaurs . . . honest to god dinosaurs!

Still sitting on his haunches, Dave heard a soft squeak coming from somewhere to his right. Looking over, he saw the ferns moving slightly. He bent over to examine the movement more closely.

When he did, Kate took that opportunity to pick up his backpack and slip it on over the top of her smaller daypack.

Dave immediately reacted when he saw what she did. Give me that. I’ll carry it. He said.

It’s my turn to carry the load, she said matter-of-factly.

Still uneasy, she stood up and hopped across the stream away from him and backed up a few paces into thick ferns to hide. She squatted down and watched Dave.

Okay, when you’re tired I’ll carry it again . . . you don’t need two of them. He said turning his attention back to ferns.

They both stayed still, waiting. After a moment, an animal that was about a foot tall peeked out from among the fronds. It had a long slender snout that came to a sharp point, like a common crow, except thinner, with a slender body, very slender black birdlike legs, and a long rigid black and white striped tail.

The little animal’s tail reminded Kate of a small lemur.

Hair covered its body which probably indicated it was warm-blooded, she thought. The small creature was bipedal with cute stumpy but powerfully built looking arms that had little claw like fingers on the ends. The main color of its lithe body was a gray brown mixture. Its head was black and white with a cream color underbelly. Round smallish eyes were set on each side of its head. They were yellow. It made a chirping sound and didn’t seem to mind them at all.

They both stayed motionless, hardly daring to breathe.

My god, this is a dinosaur, Dave thought, it’s a real dinosaur! It was startling to be confronted by a living, breathing dinosaur, and one of such small stature. It was quite beautiful. He couldn’t take his eyes off it. He was simply entranced.

Then the little dinosaur ventured farther out from the protection of the fronds. Dave could see it clearly now. It was a little bigger than he had first thought, maybe fifteen inches tall.

Kate thought it was about two and a half feet long. She saw its little rib cage moving as the animal breathed and smelled them. It waved its tiny forearms in the air at them and chirped at them repeatedly.

Then Dave did something that worried her. Slowly, very slowly, he extended his hand out.

The creature made a squeak, but did not run. If anything it seemed curious, cocking its head the way very small animals do, as Dave's hand came closer, it appeared to get more curious. Finally his fingers touched the little animal’s beak.

The small animal stood up straight on its hind legs, balancing with its outstretched tail, like a bird. Showing no sign of fear, it allowed Dave’s fingers to stroke its head. It sniffed at his fingers. Dave smiled, thoroughly charmed.

It has feathers! He said in amazement.

Kate was just as entranced. I’d be careful. It probably has teeth. She said still hidden by the huge ferns.

Then the little creature hissed in annoyance, and disappeared into the palms. Dave blinked, unable to understand why.

Then they smelled a foul odor, and heard a heavy rustling in the bushes on the other side of the game trail. There was a grunting sound then a sound like heavy breathing, then more rustling.

For a brief moment, Kate remembered all carnivores in the wild liked to hunt near streambeds, attacking animals when they were vulnerable, as they bent over to drink. But the recognition came too late; they were so stupid!

She heard a terrifying high-pitched cry and watched in horror as Dave started screaming as his body was being hauled away, back into the bushes.

Dave struggled; the bushes shook fiercely.

Kate jumped up and started to reach for him to try and pull him back when she caught a glimpse of a single large foot, a long curving sickle-like claw carried high. Then the foot pulled back, she shrank back into the shadows as the bushes continued to shake. Suddenly, the forest erupted in frightening animal roars all around her. She had a glimpse of a large animal as it charged at her.

Kate Rogers leapt to her feet and screamed. She burst from the ferns fleeing, feeling an adrenaline surge of pure panic, feeling her heart pounding, not knowing where to go, or what to do, but running for her life knowing only that it was hopeless.

She felt a heavy weight force her to her knees down into the mud. Something had hold of the backpack and was tearing it apart. Kate managed to wiggle out of it then rolled over before scrambling to her feet and running again. It was in that moment she realized she was about to die.

Chapter Two

W

HY DID WE COME THIS WAY? Charles Waters thought as he gripped the steering wheel tighter. His knuckles were white as he fought to keep his new Land Rover on the road as it slid a hard right before veering off to the left as they zigzagged down the muddy road.

He felt he was losing control of the situation. He could feel a headache coming on over his right eye then it corkscrewed across his forehead.

The rain kept pouring down in heavy sheets. It ran over the windshield, so hard and heavy, the cars wipers couldn’t keep up. It was making it nearly impossible to see.

This mud is like wet cement, I’ve never seen anything like it before. He said to his wife Teresa who sat next to him in the passenger seat.

Teresa ran an online business from their home selling her own line of jewelry. She had wanted to go to a few trading posts on the Navajo Indian Reservation to purchase Sleeping Beauty Turquoise and Obsidian stones she needed for her new designs.

In the back, strapped into her car seat, was their two year old daughter, Abigale, Abby for short who was sleeping peacefully.

Charles threw the transmission on the fly into four wheel drive then spun the steering wheel keeping his foot on the gas. Conditions on the road kept getting worse in this part of the reservation that encompassed most of northern Arizona.

Waters, a thirty-year-old investment specialist from St. Paul, Minn., was deeply regretting this whole trip. They planned this route so they could stop at the trading posts before driving on into Phoenix to visit with his mother to celebrate her sixty-fifth birthday with her on June 4 which was tomorrow. At this rate we’re never going to make it, he thought.

Now he thought angrily, why hadn’t he just stayed on the highway? They’d be half-way there by now. But Teresa thought the stones she wanted would be cheaper to purchase from one of the local trading posts and be of better quality. They could have easily found the same stones in a store in Gallup or even Window Rock, Charles thought, but he had wanted to please his wife.

Charles was one of those gifted people, with a brilliant analytical mind but not at all practical over common everyday things like gas, water and directions. His tank was half-empty, and now his fifty-five-thousand dollar car with world renowned four wheel drive capability just might get stuck in the middle of nowhere, if he couldn’t keep it moving.

To their left they could still see the mountains of Colorado in the distance. His route was supposed to take him across Navajoland, from the four corners area, into Chinle, then on to the Hubbell Trading Post in Ganado, Arizona. Charles knew they could connect with I-40 at Gallup then drive on into Flagstaff where they would connect with interstate I-17 taking them into Phoenix.

It had seemed like a good plan at the time, saving a couple hours of travel time, but weather had not been factored in, and when it started to rain it soon became a cloudburst. He was heading towards Kayenta but in all the commotion had somehow missed Route 89 S and blew on past it. Charles turned onto a dirt road to try and get back on track and that was a huge mistake.

Damn it, why hadn’t he just turned around then back-tracked, he thought, at least he’d know where he was. Now the landscape was getting more progressively barren and they’d seen nothing at all, not a sign, not a mile post marker, not even a fence. Just empty desert with the occasional herd of horses, lots of sheep, cows sprinkled here and there, they saw a small Buffalo herd, some Llamas, and of course the mud.

Teresa, he said, I don’t know where we’re at, at all.

Teresa was bent over the map, tracing the route with her finger. There looks like a junction up ahead, she said. The map says 89 S is close to the Kayenta turnoff.

"How can you tell anything? There are no road markers but I think I just saw a sign for Chilchinbito.

Looks like we’re headed to Rough Rock. Shit." He said.

How could we miss a major road like that? she said.

I don't know. Waters stared at the road ahead. But there's nothing out here. Mom is expecting us to be in Phoenix tonight.

I know, Teresa said.

The Land Rover bumped and rolled like a bucking bronco sliding down the road until finally coming to the crossroads. The map showed absolutely no road names or any markers. Finally they found a paved road. Charles turned on it he didn’t care where it was heading.

This has got to take us to some sort of settlement. He said. There’s so few paved roads out here.

Once on the paved road, a single truck, a big black dually passed them going the opposite direction. That had been a good sign but it was over half hour ago and nothing since then. Now it was noon, the rain stopped and the clouds cleared up leaving a bright blue sky with a hot sun glaring down. The mud on the road was starting to dry up. It was eerie how everything changed so quickly out here, he thought. Now looking down the road and he thought he saw houses or sometimes people, but always when he came closer, there was nothing there. I’m seeing things, he thought.

Finally Waters sighed and said. "We’ve definitely taken a wrong turn again, that’s the sign for the Rough Rock School. I’m going to turn around head back towards Kayenta see if I can find the turn off.

If they’d just put up road signs out here, it sure would make it easier to get around."

I think if you just keep going straight on this road we’ll eventually get to Many Farms. Then we can go into Chinle and from there head into Dilcon and into Flagstaff according to this map. So give it a few more miles, but I really wanted the stones . . . she said softly.

How many more miles is Many Farms?

I don't know. It’s a ways but at least we’ll know where we are. Abigale is awake and she’s fussy. I have to change and feed her. I think Chinle has a few fast food places, maybe we can stop and eat something. Teresa said.

Let's decide the distance and see what our better route is. Charles said.