Dinosaur Stakeout Read Online Free

stick. Nothing happened. He drew ­back.
    Okay, he had to be directly touching it before anything could happen. He nudged at it again. The Velcro on the backpack held the cone fast against his soft proddings. He stabbed a third time, using more ­force.
    All at once it let go and flipped into the air. Daniel watched the cone rise as if in slow motion. It did a slow twirl and landed nearly touching his left foot. He jumped back with a little ­yelp.
    Just then, Craig thrust his head outside the hideout. He stopped short, causing Todd to holler at him from behind. Craig stared at Daniel, taking in the situation. He cowered back. Todd squeezed out past him and came to an abrupt ­halt.
    Daniel stood still, not daring to move. “Don’t touch it!” he ­yelled.
    “Is that from dinosaur time?” Todd asked in a low, scared ­voice.
    Daniel ­nodded.
    Craig shuddered. “Keep it away from me!”
    “You bet I will,” said Daniel. “I don’t want anyone to touch it. I just don’t know what to do about it yet!”
    “Where did it come from?” Craig’s voice ­quavered.
    Daniel explained his suspicions. Todd and Craig sidled away from the cone and moved behind ­Daniel.
    “How about burying it?” Todd ­asked.
    “But what if someone or some animal accidentally uncovered it?” Daniel ­asked.
    “Bury it really deep,” suggested ­Craig.
    “I wouldn’t trust that! We could get a big rain and then wind could erode the dirt away!” Daniel said. “That’s how many fossils came to be discovered.”
    “How about hiding it in there?” Craig pointed to Daniel’s hideout. “At least the weather wouldn’t get directly at it.”
    Daniel thought about it for a few moments, eyeing the Nelwins ­suspiciously.
    Todd spoke up. “We wouldn’t go looking for it. Promise!”
    Craig shook his head. “No way. We don’t want to be anywhere near it again!”
    “You’ll be the only one who knows where it is,” said ­Todd.
    “We won’t ever come back to your hideout again, either,” Craig ­promised.
    “That’s right!” Todd ­agreed.
    “Okay,” Daniel decided reluctantly. “Are you finished in there?”
    “Yes,” said ­Todd.
    “Get your stuff, and you can go back to the farm, while I figure out how to do this,” Daniel directed them. “Find my dad, and he’ll tell you what needs doing next.”
    The brothers scrambled back into the hideout and within moments had shoved out the tools and bags of garbage. Outside, they gathered everything into their arms and left. With barely a backward glance, they lit across the hills and soon disappeared from sight. They didn’t even wait to see what Daniel would do ­next.
    Daniel’s mind was on his precarious task. Would he be able to hide the cone safely without being flung back in ­time?

Chapter Three

    D aniel stood rooted to the spot for a few more minutes. How was he going to move the cone? Obviously, using a stick wasn’t reliable. Then he remembered an old garden trowel he had in his hideout. At least, he hoped it was still there. Carefully, he stepped around the pine cone and crawled into the dark recesses of his ­cave.
    Once he located the trowel, he scanned the walls. He found the perfect ­spot – ­a small crevice about halfway down the east wall that he could dig a little deeper. He worked away at it, forming a hole. Once this was accomplished, he crawled back ­outside.
    Cautiously, he edged the trowel under the dangerous cone until it rested in the middle. Daniel wiped away the sweat that was forming on his ­brow – ­knowing it wasn’t from the heat of the sun’s sharp rays. Grasping the trowel handle with two hands, he softly trod over to the hideout doorway. Gently, he pushed the trowel inside and set it down beside the door, making sure the cone was stable. He crawled inside, and slowly picked it up ­again.
    As he made his way to the freshly dug crevice, he held his breath. With great care, he tipped the trowel and let the pine cone slide into