"Great Times," Chapter 25

Copyright 2006, Terry F. Phillips Sr.
All rights reserved.

Chapter 25
The three found a department store, bought a few things to tide them over and got rooms in a nearby hotel.
Nights in a small railroad sleeper berth had not allowed them the rest they obtained in one night in the Roswell hotel.
In fact, they overslept. Each of the three had forgotten to ask to be awakened the next morning.
When Ted and Connie entered the hotel’s restaurant, they found Howard reading a newspaper.
“It seems our Mr. Brazel had a bit of excitement this week,” Howard said, tossing the paper across the table.
The story told of the crash of an unidentified flying object at the Brazel ranch. The same ranch where Eddie was working.
“Come on, “ Howard said. “I suspect Mr. Brazel will have lots of company this fine July day.”
The three found the taxi cab company and asked for the driver they had the night before. He was available and agreed to take them out to the Brazel ranch.
“Did you hear about all the excitement out there yesterday?” he asked. The driver was obviously more interested in talking than he was the day before. “UFO they call it. Little green men! I mean to tell you - it’s the most exciting thing that ever happened to this little town.”
When the yellow taxi arrived at the Brazel ranch, there were Air Force vehicles swarming over the place.
A guard would not let them drive past the gate.
“You folks with the press?” the young soldier asked. Without waiting for an answer he said, “You’ll be given all you need to know at the press conference. Might as well turn around and go back.”
“Whoever heard of a reporter riding in a taxi?” Howard grumbled. “Well, Miss Collins, what do you suggest we do now?”
Ted saw a civilian on a horse watching the crowd.
“He might be able to tell us something about Eddie,” Ted said.
“Excuse me,” Ted said, approaching the rider on horseback. “Can you give me some information?”
“I don’t know nothin’” the cowboy said and moved his horse in another direction.
“We’re not from the press,” Ted called out. “I’m looking for one of Mr. Brazel’s employees.”
“Oh, that’s different,” the cowboy said. “Happy to oblige. What do you want to know?”
He spat a mouthful of tobacco juice.
“We’re looking for a man named Eddie. Eddie Adams,” Ted said. “Man in town said he worked for Mr. Brazel.”
“Yeah,” the cowboy drawled. “Yeah, he did. But he cleared out right after the UFO crash. Weird sort of duck.”
“Did he say where he was going?” Ted asked.
“Yeah, he was pretty upset,” the cowboy told him. “Kept sayin’ how awful the crash was. How awful, what a waste of lives - almost like he knew who was aboard that thing, you know?
“Said somethin’ about goin on, that he would have to decide what to do next.”
“Do you know where he was going?” Ted asked again.
“No,” but I got the idee he might be going on west to California. See, I heard him say he was a singer and he thought he could find work in Los Angeles. Maybe Hollywood.
“Sure hope he’s OK because he sure can’t do much on a ranch. Guess the boss just felt sorry for him when he showed up.”
Ted thanked the cowboy and hurried back to the bus.
“Eddie was here, all right,” he told Connie and Howard. “But he left. The cowboy thinks he was headed to Los Angeles.”
“Good enough for me,” Howard said. “Driver, take us to Corona. We’ll catch the train there.”
To Connie he said, “My dear, we’ll look for Eddie in Los Angeles when we get there, but without a car, we have no idea where he might be. Let’s just hope he makes it. I have some friends in the movie industry. If he does try to find a job in Hollywood, they will hear about it.”
Soon, the trio found their bags and was on the train once more.
That night, the “cowboy” met Eddie at a pre-arranged location on the ranch.
“Your friends from Chicago are on their way west,” the cowboy told Eddie. “Our tracks are covered.”
“It’s a good thing you arrived early,” Eddie remarked. “Otherwise, I might not have given them the slip as easily.”
“Glad to help,” said the cowboy, a time traveler Eddie planned to meet in New Mexico.
“When are the others coming?” Eddie asked.
“On the Fourth – just like we planned before you jumped back to 1947. Are you staying to meet them?”
“No, not in my current condition,” Eddie said. “This effeminate façade I’m wearing doesn’t set well with these cowboys.”
The two grinned at their secret.
“Besides,” Eddie continued. “Since you brought the portable device to me, I can jump back to 2147 any time I please.
“Actually, I think I will go on west. After conquering Chicago radio, I’d like to try my luck on the Los Angeles nightclub circuit.”
“What if they find you?”
Eddie shrugged off the question, but was thinking it might be fun to take the 1947 gang to his world and see how they fare there.