The Space Mission Adventure (9 page)

The four friends dozed as the car headed north, speeding back toward Cincinnati, where more adventures awaited the Black Dinosaurs.

“THEY REALLY DO LOOK LIKE BEASTS, DON'T THEY,
mon?” Ziggy said in quiet appreciation of the snorting machines across the street.

The huge yellow backhoe looked almost graceful as it scooped dirt from an increasingly large hole. Its long neck dipped, scraped, and pulled huge clods of earth, pebbles and branches dangling from its claw teeth like the remains of a meal. It turned, swiveled, and spit the rocky clumps into the back of the dump trucks, which then ambled away like overburdened elephants.

“The man inside the cabin who's operating the
controls looks like one of those toy men we used to play with,” Rashawn observed.

“Look at the treads on those rollers, man,” Jerome said. “I bet that thing can roll over and stomp a whole army of toy builders.”

“You think they run on diesel fuel?” Rico asked.

“For sure, mon,” Ziggy replied. “Big rigs need heavy-duty food—just like I do. For dinner my mum is making sirloin steak covered with bananas! Yummy.”

“Yuck,” said Rashawn, who did not eat meat. “Just give me a big bowl of chili instead.”

“Whoa! Look at that! The crane is lifting that tree like it's a toothpick!” Jerome pointed out with excitement.

“Where will they take the tree?” Rico asked.

“I don't know, mon,” Ziggy answered. “Maybe they'll make a chair out of it. Or a house for someone to live in. Or maybe just a pile of wooden toothpicks.” He sighed.

“The trees were home to lots of creatures,” Rico continued glumly. “The birds and the snakes and the
raccoons and the deer that lived in those bushes and woods were happy living there. Now it's all just dirt so people can build apartments. It doesn't seem fair to me.”

“The animals will find another place to live, Rico,” Jerome said, trying to sound reassuring.

“Where?” Rico asked. “My mother told me they're building another new housing project a few blocks away. Pretty soon there won't be any place left for the creatures.”

The boys turned their attention to the street in front of them as they heard the harsh screeching of truck brakes, followed by a soft thud. The dirty yellow dump truck, full of rocks and debris from the work zone, had been rumbling slowly down the street when it stopped suddenly. The boys watched as the driver jumped out of the cab and ran to the side of the road.

“Oh, no!” cried Rico. “The truck hit a deer!”