Read Online Old Bones by Gwen Molnar - Free Book Online Page B

Calgary.
    â€œYou planned anything for us to do tonight?” Casey wondered.
    â€œDad’s going to take us to Horsethief Canyon as soon as he can get away from the museum.”
    â€œThat’s great. I’ve been looking forward to seeing it.”
    Whenever Casey was free, he and Mandy would set off on an adventure. They’d bicycle north on the west bank of the Red Deer River, cross at Bleriot Ferry, the little motor–and-winch contraption said to be the busiest ferry in Alberta, and ride home along the east bank. Mandy’s bike was good, but the red one Casey’d bought with his first cheque was much better. It could do about anything. He loved that bike. Some nights he even dreamed about it.
    When they weren’t riding, they’d hitch rides with some of the museum staff — once south to the hoodoos to spend a couple of hours exploring among the odd mushroom-like sandstone formations sculptured over the centuries by wind and water erosion.
    Another time they went on part of a Centrosaurus bonebed hike in Dinosaur Provincial Park, one of the world’s largest dinosaur fields. Their guide on that trip said palaeontologists learned an enormous amount about the behaviour and lifestyle of dinosaurs from beds such as these.
    â€œThe whole place looks so uninhabited.” Sitting in the shade of a sandstone overhang, Mandy shivered. “You’d think there wouldn’t be any wildlife around here, but look.” She pointed to a mule deer finding what coolness it could in a coulee.
    â€œAnd there’s a scorpion right by your boot.” Casey pointed.
    Mandy quickly moved her foot.
    â€œBetter that than a rattlesnake, at least,” Mandy said. A comfortable silence surrounded them as the guide took the rest of the group further along the trail. “I’d like to go to Horseshoe Canyon again one of these days — it’s farther away than Horsethief where Dad’ll be driving us tonight. And I’d like to go to the LITTLE church they say ‘seats ten thousand people, six at a time.’ Want to come?”
    â€œSure,” Casey said, “I’ve never seen either one.”
    â€œHorsethief Canyon’s not open to the public at night,” Mandy explained, “but Dad says we can wander around the top of it while he has his meeting.”
    â€œAll right!” Casey gazed into space thinking maybe this time he’d find all the parts of a dinosaur tooth, or even a whole tooth, or …
    Mandy could read his mind. “A lot of people explore that site every day, so don’t get your hopes up on making a big find.”
    The view from the top of Horsethief Canyon was spectacular. They’d brought a couple of folding chairs and were comfortably taking in the sights. As with everywhere along the river valley, the walls of the canyon were earth tones of every variety: black, brown, ochre, tan.
    â€œLook at all those gullies and slashes,” Casey swept his hand from side to side. “I read that a horse thief could drag a horse into one of them and hide forever in that maze.”
    â€œEasy to believe,” Mandy said. “Let’s walk a little way down there.”
    â€œAre you sure you’ll be okay?”
    â€œWe’ll just take an easy hike,” Mandy said.
    â€œHow much time do we have before your dad picks us up?” Casey asked.
    Mandy checked her watch. “About two hours,” she told him. “It’ll stay light at least that long.”
    â€œUp here, maybe,” Casey observed, “not in the valley.”
    Casey climbed down toward a shadowy area that looked like a cave’s mouth.
    â€œThat cave looks pretty near,” he called back. “Let’s give it a look.”
    â€œIt’s almost too near,” Mandy said as she caught up with Casey. “And it’s only about four feet deep. I checked it out last time I was here and so has every other visitor to