Chapter 24
1894
"There it is," a voice said in the dark of a cave. Flashlights beams danced back and forth across a pulled back tarp covering the object of their search.
"Damned good hiding place!" A second voice said. "The mineral deposits in the ground around here had it completely camouflaged from scanners. You think old Fogg knew that?"
"Not a chance," Dr. Nance said. He shined his light on the outer hull of the vehicle. "Just good luck on his part." He found the outer door, opened it. "Wow!" He and his engineer stood at the entrance, just staring at the controls and odd hardware. "I wonder how often he used her after he knew about us?"
His engineer made a quick survey of the controls. "If the thing had an on-board computer, we would know in minutes. It's all mechanical, so no telling?"
After the timeline had been protected and Dr. Nance had informed Phileas Fogg that his actions had worked, new information had been found in their scans of the time jumps originating in the 1800's. The analysts found trail traces in France and upper London slightly different from the signatures found around Fogg's London townhouse and country home. It was indisputable proof of the existence of two other time travel crafts. One had been used at least two or three times beyond their first contact with Phileas Fogg.
The timekeepers only knew about one craft Phileas Fogg had tried to dispose of. They immediately searched for them. Standard scans came up empty. Dr. Nance had wanted to go directly to Fogg to demand the vehicles, but Dr. Parker and Hatfield had vetoed him. In retrospect, Nance wondered if his colleagues had been in awe of the guy. Only now, after Fogg's death, had they authorized him to go into the past and do a field-search.
"It's certainly a beauty," Nance's engineer said, giving a low whistle. "Elegant even."
Nance agreed. "By the dirt on the tarp and the thickness of the weeds and roots obscuring the entrance, I'd say this craft hasn't been touched in decades. That's good. The less the better."
As the engineer did his work, Nance mentally tipped his hat to the Fogg family, from Phileas Fogg down to those who helped end World War II. Lacinda Fogg had been part of a team of specialists who had cracked the enigma machine's secrets. Later that year, Lacinda married Benjamin Egerton, producing four sons and two daughters who had ensured the noble Sutherland line into the next century. And one of those noble progenies, oddly enough, was the scientist who laid the groundwork for the official discovery of time travel.
There had been another Fogg on that team, Roberta Fogg. She was the one Phileas Fogg had saved in France. She was a mystery. They had no good background information on her from before the time she had joined that organization or after. Just one more anonymous soul passing through history.
Loren Fogg, Lacinda's brother, had married after the war, producing five children of his own. All of them followed the family tradition, marching into government service, continuing to keep England safe and sound. Both siblings had lived well into their eighties.
The engineer closed an access hatch and stood. "Let's get a transporter fix on this baby and get it out of here."
The End