CHAPTER ONE
The chisel clattered along the polished wooden floor, spinning several times before coming to rest in a corner. Andi buried her face in her hands and let out a groan of despair. She had been working on this fossil for eight weeks, and still felt no closer to finishing than when she started. Every spare moment had been spent meticulously scratching and tapping at the rock, trying to reveal the priceless treasure underneath. Treasure that no living creature had seen in over 100 million years.
Andi slumped onto the desk, scattering her tools onto the ground. Her coarse auburn hair flopped over her freckly forearms, and she breathed deeply. The stale, wooden smell of the museum filled her lungs. From all around her, thousands of …show more content…
Alexa took it weakly. ‘So, what’s going on here today?’ Andi asked eagerly.
‘I’m not even sure myself, to be honest’ admitted Alexa, lowering her voice, ‘The professor’s been building up to this day for weeks, he’s barely eaten or slept, he’s not been home in 8 days. Whatever it is, I hope it’s worth your time coming’. With that, she passed Andi and the professor, and the puzzling machine, to file some papers away in a desk. Andi watched her as she worked. She was about 25, with deep red-purple hair that bunched around her slender shoulders, her pale face shrouded in a veil of heavy makeup, the traces of which were smeared across the long sleeves of her grey pullover.
Before she could return, there was a knock and the lab door opened, unceremoniously shoving Andi out of the way to reveal a young man in his late teens or early twenties. ‘Hey,’ he smiled at Dr Fossick, then at Alexa. Without introducing himself to Andi, he took up a position leaning against the door. His black hiking boots crossed over grey camouflage-patterned combat pants that hung loosely over his thin, wiry frame. His arms crossed over a plastic, black bubble vest in white, casual shirt …show more content…
‘Professor?’ she whispered, ‘can I do anything for you?’. He sat bolt upright. The professor was an unassuming man, perhaps in his late fifties. He wore a brown woollen cardigan over a crumpled checked dress-shirt and grey slacks. He showed her the tablet, and as her eyes scanned the screen, her features relaxed. Her lips parted, and she ran her tongue over her teeth. ‘My God,’ she said. The professor nodded, gazing at her expressionless face like a child would while its mother examined its homework. ‘Will it work?’ she asked, emotionlessly. The professor did not speak, he simply took the tablet, gazing into Alexa’s wide green eyes. Turning his attention back to the screen, he began to tap and arrange his digital masterpiece. Andi was getting impatient. She wanted to demand an explanation, or at least a clue, but for the moment she kept mum and watched. As the professor finished, his work slowed, and he gazed up at the machine. Turning to look at Alexa, he offered her the tablet. ‘Me?’ she asked. He nodded softly. Alexa took the tablet and pressed it
The chisel clattered along the polished wooden floor, spinning several times before coming to rest in a corner. Andi buried her face in her hands and let out a groan of despair. She had been working on this fossil for eight weeks, and still felt no closer to finishing than when she started. Every spare moment had been spent meticulously scratching and tapping at the rock, trying to reveal the priceless treasure underneath. Treasure that no living creature had seen in over 100 million years.
Andi slumped onto the desk, scattering her tools onto the ground. Her coarse auburn hair flopped over her freckly forearms, and she breathed deeply. The stale, wooden smell of the museum filled her lungs. From all around her, thousands of …show more content…
Alexa took it weakly. ‘So, what’s going on here today?’ Andi asked eagerly.
‘I’m not even sure myself, to be honest’ admitted Alexa, lowering her voice, ‘The professor’s been building up to this day for weeks, he’s barely eaten or slept, he’s not been home in 8 days. Whatever it is, I hope it’s worth your time coming’. With that, she passed Andi and the professor, and the puzzling machine, to file some papers away in a desk. Andi watched her as she worked. She was about 25, with deep red-purple hair that bunched around her slender shoulders, her pale face shrouded in a veil of heavy makeup, the traces of which were smeared across the long sleeves of her grey pullover.
Before she could return, there was a knock and the lab door opened, unceremoniously shoving Andi out of the way to reveal a young man in his late teens or early twenties. ‘Hey,’ he smiled at Dr Fossick, then at Alexa. Without introducing himself to Andi, he took up a position leaning against the door. His black hiking boots crossed over grey camouflage-patterned combat pants that hung loosely over his thin, wiry frame. His arms crossed over a plastic, black bubble vest in white, casual shirt …show more content…
‘Professor?’ she whispered, ‘can I do anything for you?’. He sat bolt upright. The professor was an unassuming man, perhaps in his late fifties. He wore a brown woollen cardigan over a crumpled checked dress-shirt and grey slacks. He showed her the tablet, and as her eyes scanned the screen, her features relaxed. Her lips parted, and she ran her tongue over her teeth. ‘My God,’ she said. The professor nodded, gazing at her expressionless face like a child would while its mother examined its homework. ‘Will it work?’ she asked, emotionlessly. The professor did not speak, he simply took the tablet, gazing into Alexa’s wide green eyes. Turning his attention back to the screen, he began to tap and arrange his digital masterpiece. Andi was getting impatient. She wanted to demand an explanation, or at least a clue, but for the moment she kept mum and watched. As the professor finished, his work slowed, and he gazed up at the machine. Turning to look at Alexa, he offered her the tablet. ‘Me?’ she asked. He nodded softly. Alexa took the tablet and pressed it