Wrought Iron, Book 1 of Merlin's Message

Chapter 3 - Misdirection

The four left Loomis' office quietly. By some unspoken agreement, they walked towards the Crow Café', named as it was for some obscure and forgotten reason.

"Man. One goof, and the summer's shot! I had plans." Mike griped.

"Oh, stop whining, and man up," Taeko cut in. "We all had plans. I'm going to miss nationals for Kendo. What great thing were you going to do this summer?"

"I got an uncle with a condo down on the Gulf Coast. It was gonna be great! Barbeque and babes in bikinis! All gone!" Mike lamented.

"You're such a perv," Taeko sniped. "What about you, Gavin?"

"ROTC was sending me to Germany for a month," Gavin answered.

"Oh, that's so cool," Hannah gushed.

"Well, what about you," Mike asked Hannah.

"Oh. I was supposed to do clinicals at the hospital ER. But I wasn't much looking forward to it."

"Somehow, I just can't get my head around you working on trauma victims."

"Don't be judgy, Michael," Hannah quipped.

They reached the campus coffee shop.

"I'll get the drinks. On me today," Gavin offered. He did not feel like sitting down yet. Energy flowed through his bloodstream, and his legs were restless.

"Thanks, bro," Mike cheered, irrepressible as always.

"You're a gentleman, Gavin," Hannah complimented. "Unlike some other people I know." She looked at Mike.

"Ouch!"

Taeko ignored Mike, looked around the crowded room, and suggested, "Why don't we sit outside? It's starting to cool off."

Mike shrugged. Gavin inclined his head. Hannah piped, "Okay."

They found a spot on the grass under a sprawling oak and watched the antics of the other students for a minute. Sunlight dappled in shifting beams through the leafy canopy. The grass was lush and cool to sit on.

Gavin came out with a cardboard drink caddy and passed cups around. Hannah got a mango smoothie, Taeko a green tea, Mike an iced tea, and the last cup he kept, a tall black coffee to which he had added a pinch of salt.

"So, what's the deal?" Mike started. "Why does the Medieval Studies guy want us to go on a dig in the Grand Canyon? And are we going to talk about how professor Loony did, in fact, tell us in detail how and where to do the catapult thing? What kind of weird joke is this?"

"To answer the first question, maybe it's a possible cross-over site with some kind of pre-Colombian contact with Europe," Gavin guessed. "And, yeah, it sure looks like the professor is orchestrating all this. But why? I'd have gone on a dig if he'd asked."

"All of us would have spent time at a dig if he'd asked. Or maybe the dig is just punishment," Taeko deadpanned.

"Punishment for what? Oh, I so hate camping," Hannah moaned. "Everything is so dirty and all, and I'm sure there'll be all kinds of bugs and, well, ew."

Mike chuckled. "Hannah. Come on. It'll beat working in an ER, won't it?"

"That's different. There's nothing icky about helping hurt people. Not as I see it anyway. That doesn't mean I want to spend the summer living in the dirt! And I'll still have to do my clinicals to graduate."

"Man. This is a hose job!" Mike accused.

"No matter," Taeko cut in. "We don't seem to have a choice about what sort of dig it is or anything else. Whatever Loomis is up to, we all heard the Dean. It's either go on a dig or throw the last three years in the dumpster. Today is Friday, and we're leaving Monday. We need to get it together."