"Will Hubbell - Cretaceous Sea" - читать интересную книгу автора (Hubbell Will)

times, but the softness of her features ran contrary to current tastes. It isn't a fashionable face, she
thought. Con assessed herself critically. My nose is wrong, my mouth's too big and my chestтАФforget
it't Then she stopped herself. It was a stupid game, and she hated when she gave in to it. If I don't like
the way I look, Daddy will be glad to pay to change me, Con reminded herself. Then I'd end up
looking like Sara.

TOM CLEMENTS STRUGGLED to hide the disappointment in his eyes as he looked at his younger
brother. He failed miserably. "Not going on the dig?" he said incredulously.

"It's not definite," said Rick, "but something's come up. I may not be available this summer."

Ever since their parents had died, Tom, who was twelve years older, had been both brother and father to
Rick. The summers they spent excavating fossils together were special times for them both. When they
had begun, Tom was a first-year graduate student at the university. Now he was an assistant professor of
paleontology.

"What's come up?"

"I can't tell."

Tom's face colored. "You haven't signed on with a commercial collector?"

"God, no!" said Rick. He hesitated a moment, weigh-ing the hurt in his brother's eyes against all the
lawyers' threats. Then, five days after he signed the nondisclosure agreement, he broke it. "I'll be in
trouble if this gets out. I've promised in writing I wouldn't discuss it."

"Discuss what?"

Rick looked around the faculty dining room nervously and lowered his voice. "Time travel," he
whispered.

"Time travel!" said Tom so loudly it made Rick wince.

"Keep it down," whispered Rick.

"This has got to be a joke," said Tom more quietly.

"No, it's serious," replied Rick, "I've been hired as a guide for a trip to the Upper Cretaceous. I've
already received airfare and a five-thousand-Euro advance on my salary. If it were some joke, would
they pay me an ad-vance?"

Tom appeared dumbfounded. After a long silence he said, "We need to talk about this seriously, but I've
got a class in a few minutes. Why don't you drop by my apartment this evening? I'll cook dinner."

"You've got to keep this secret."

"Don't worry," said Tom, "I've a reputation for sanity. I want to protect it."

"Okay, I'll see you at dinner." Rick got up to leave.