It was great seeing you during the two weeks when you came home on leave. We made memories that I will cherish forever. The ring you gave me is simply gorgeous. Although I wish you hadn’t spent so much money on it, I am proud and show it to all my friends and relatives. I do wish we knew when you will get to come home again. Waiting is hard, but during boot camp I was able to count out the days. Now, I must wait and wait without knowing when exactly I’ll see you again. Some boys stay overseas for long periods, even years. I hope it’s sooner for us.
But I will wait as long as it takes. Always faithfully yours.
PS: The youngest Watson boy, Doug, was killed in action in Europe. The fighting is bad over there. I think you were about his age. Most everyone in town is devastated. I figured you’d want to know and say a prayer for him and his family.
Twenty-Eight
Tanaka drove at speed down the muddy lane and kept an eye out for dinosaurs. He wasn’t sure whether the bull the T-Rex had killed was the same one he’d encountered before.
Glancing at the roadside vegetation, he watched for movement, fearing a Carnotaurus might rush from the jungle and charge into the scout vehicle. It would topple the small roadster and lead to certain death.
A light drizzle speckled the windshield and the wipers squeaked back and forth.
Rain danced on the soft top as he considered the perimeter they’d established at the fuel dumps. Moisture eased through the opening above the half-door, dampening his uniform and beading up on his uniform. The dark jungle appeared still; nothing moved within the orbs of his headlights. Tanaka relaxed a bit. Fate would meet him in battle with the Americans, not en route with another creature from the island.
A foot soldier appeared in the dim light far down the road. He ran with his rifle at port arms. The infantryman was double-timing back toward the garrison and seemed to bob in the headlights for a moment.
Vibrations shook the windshield. Tanaka slowed and the huge, knobby tires of the scout car dug into the muddy road and kept the vehicle steady.
More reverberations made the windshield tremble. The steering wheel juddered, and Tanaka braked, thinking the engine might malfunction. Decelerating, the Yonki came to a halt in the middle of the lane.
Everything turned quiet again. The soldier continued running down the roadway. Tanaka listened to the idling engine. It revved smoothly.
He stepped on the gas. The roadster jutted forward, and the engine compartment remained steady.
“Must have been a bumpy stretch,” said Tanaka.
Private Miura didn’t respond to the comment and sat mute in the passenger seat.
“What?” Tanaka looked over at the private.
A terrified look crossed the young soldier’s face.
Following the private’s line of vision, Tanaka spied a massive tree, rooted to the side of the road, with a trunk that rose up into the canopy of smaller trees. Over the adjacent trees, a menacing yellow eye blinked at him.
An enormous snout protruded from the leafy fronds of the palm trees.
The muzzle split open, revealing gigantic teeth. Rows of fangs dripped with saliva. Dread consumed the superior private.
Closing the distance to the dinosaur, Tanaka instinctively mashed on the brake, and suddenly brought the scout car to a stop. Miura flew into the dashboard and cracked his head on the windshield. The roadster grumbled and cast a faint glow over the soldier dashing from the beast lurking along the roadside.
The Tyrannosaurus Rex stood at the edge of the jungle and stared at the scout car. Footsteps sloshing through the mud resounded over the V-twin 2-cylinder engine. Canting its head, the dinosaur focused on the man running down the lane.
A predator, it broke after the fleeing soldier. Thunderous steps pounded over the earth.
Tremors shook the roadster and pitched the infantryman into the mud.
“Go!” Miura cried.
Tanaka registered the opportunity the distraction provided them. He hit the gas pedal, tires spinning, ripping up mud, and tore down the lane.
As the T-Rex snatched up its prey, the scout car whizzed around massive feet, with talons crimping the muddy soil. Crunching reverberated through the open window, as the beast snapped the infantryman’s bones. Blood sprayed the roadster.
A severed arm bounced off the hood, rolled up the windshield, ligaments flapping against the glass, then tumbled onto the roof. It jounced around, then skittered off and landed in the road. Tanaka checked the rearview mirror. Feasting on the soldier, the dinosaur didn’t pause until the limb rolled to a stop near its massive claws.
The movement caught its attention. It traced the path the arm had taken and finally locked its eyes on the scout car racing away.
Suddenly, the stout dinosaur gobbled up the rest of its fare, then broke after the speeding car. Tanaka looked back to the road ahead and accelerated. His body jerked back. Tightening his grip on the wheel, the little car picked up speed. Soon, the trees and shrubs along the road were just a blur, as the roadster sped along.
The steering wheel began to vibrate as the beast closed the distance.
Drifting from side to side, the car swayed with the undulating earth. He inhaled. Checking the dinosaur’s progress, it had stalked within thirty feet of them.
“Watch out!” Miura braced his hands on the dashboard.
Looking back to the road, they’d encountered a curve, and the left tires dipped into the shoulder. Palm fronds whapped into the open window, slapping Tanaka’s face with wet leaves. Tanaka steered to the right. And the car pulled from the gutter; it shot towards the opposite side of the road, headed at a large tree.
Tanaka cut the wheel to the left and the roadster veered towards the other side of the road; this time, they went hurtling in the direction of a culvert.
A channel of stormwater runoff flowed into a pipe running under the road.
Powerless to further adjust their direction, Tanaka pressed the pedal to the floor and increased speed. The car shot ahead.
“What are you doing?” Miura screamed.
“Hold on,” Tanaka replied, gripping the wheel tighter.
Miura clutched the dash. “You’re going to get us killed!”
Tanaka grinned as the roadster shot through the air. It landed in the soggy rivulet feeding the culvert. Churning tires spun, while the vehicle hung in place. Now, his stomach dropped in fear of not being able to escape.
“You’ve done it!” Miura chastened him.
“Just hold on.”
Slowing the engine down, Tanaka shifted into a lower gear and gently pressed the accelerator. The tires to the world’s first four-wheel drive all-terrain vehicle spun.
Vegetable matter and mud spat from the big rubber tires.
The T-Rex’s booming advance suddenly halted; a serene lull in its pursuit caused a shiver of terror to dart up Tanaka’s spine. The beast is upon us, he thought.
Pressing the gas pedal to the floor, the wheels reeled in the muck until one finally grabbed hold of a rock or firm clod of earth. Then, the little Yonki shot down the narrow ditch, covered with overgrowth.
Leaves batted the windshield and smacked both sides of the car. The vehicle jostled over the makeshift road, bouncing Tanaka and Miura out of their seats.
A giant roar blasted through the air from behind them.
Silence followed the outburst, and Tanaka hoped it wouldn’t chase the Yonki down the overgrown lane. Trepidation pricked at him like needles of heavy rain. The dinosaur stomped the ground, frustrated. And then, a mammoth thud resounded from the culvert, and a tremor undulated down the gullet, rippling the water away from the scout car.