It had been months since the sun had been seen. Winter had come into full effect over the Britain. The air was cold, and the only light source came behind the clouds. Rain only made the weather worse. With the cold air, the occasional night frosts occurred and roads became dangerous. Still, that didn't concern Captain Becker as he rode through the backcountry in a cab. He'd been sitting in the cab for nearly three hours, and not once had he thought about the weather.
The cab driver slowed down the vehicle. Becker looked out the front, spying massive steel barred gates. The gates opened slowly, allowing the car to enter the property. Becker stared out at the mansion. It was at least three stories high. He remembered from his interview the property itself was a good couple thousand acres total. The mansion was built of deep red bricks; white paned windows opened the mansion to extensive light, should the weather permit it. The grass was a rich green, reaching for miles across the property. The front door was a clear glass paned door to escape the weather.
The cab came to a stop in front of the mansion doors. Becker paid the driver and climbed out of the cab. He was greeted by a bitter winter breeze. He adjusted his coat and walked up to the doors. He entered the first set of door to escape the cool air. He knocked on the main doors and waited.
The doors opened to an elderly butler. "Whom shall I tell Mr. Lester is calling?"
"Captain Hilary Becker. I've been summoned." Becker answered.
The butler nodded and opened the door for Becker. He escorted Becker into to parlor of the mansion. The walls were lined with shelves of books and photographs. The butler left Becker in the parlor and began searching for Lester. Becker walked around the room, looking at the books and photos. There was an older photograph of a young Lester and his family. Becker could identify Lester, seeing as he was the only boy in his family.
"Well, Captain Becker." Called a voice.
Becker felt his insides freeze in hatred. He turned slowly. His eyes fell upon an older man. His once dark hair had turned grey with age and stress. He wore a dark grey suit, most likely Italian tailored. A dark blue button up shirt was tucked beneath the jacket.
"Or should I say Mr. Becker? How long has it been? Five years?" he asked.
"Since the accident, or the public humiliation, Mr. Burton?" Becker asked.
Burton chuckled lightly. "Well, you did sign a contract with the company to withhold what you saw."
"And the loss of numerous lives on the island meant nothing?" Becker asked. "Or the lives of the survivors who will be scarred for the rest of their lives?"
"Each one was compensated for their grief."
"Insult to injury." Becker stated.
Burton shook his head. "Impulsive and irrational as ever."
"One day you'll learn that you can't cover up the truth with money, Burton." Becker said.
Burton smiled lightly. "Possibly. Good day Captain." Burton turned and left the parlor.
Becker turned back from the door, still fuming in anger. He continued to scan the photos, hoping to get his mind of the man who had royally screwed him over, as well as the others. Then one caught his eye. It wasn't of Lester, but of his niece. Becker felt his heartbeat change. He stared at the photograph of her. She was stunning. Her reddish brown hair was held back by purple and white spotted scarf. She wore a light purple halter top. Smiling brightly at the cameraman, but there was more to the photo. Becker let his eyes follow her slender arms to the shoulder's she was holding onto. His shoulders. Becker took in his appearance. He was smiling as well, his right arm raised behind his head, holding her. He felt his lips twitch, almost turning up.
"One of my favorites."
Becker turned. James Lester stood in the door. The five years had changed him. His hair was just starting to grey. But he still wore his three piece suit and held his white cane in his hand. He walked further into the parlor, walking up to Becker's side.
"Australia, wasn't it?" Lester asked.
Becker turned back to the photo. "Yes sir."
"How many years ago was it? Five? Or was it four?"
"Four and a half." Becker answered.
"Ah yes. Jess' idea of therapy." Lester said.
Becker nodded.
"Well, no sense in drawing on the past." Lester said.
"Is there a reason you summoned for me?" Becker asked.
Lester nodded. "Right to the point when things get too personal. Yes, Captain, there is."
"You know I've been demoted and discharged, Mr. Lester." Becker said.
Lester turned from the pictures. "Yes, I know. I'm very sorry about that. One of the many reason's I asked for your presence today."
Becker followed Lester out of the parlor. They walked down the long hallway. The walls were lined with deep red wallpaper baring small linear patterns. Lester opened his office doors and entered first. Becker followed close behind him, closing the door behind him. Not much had changes since Becker had last stepped inside the office. Actually, nothing had changed. Lester massive desk was still settled on the far end of the office in front of the large glass window. The shelves were lines with cabinets and files. Lester seated himself behind his desk. Becker took the chair in front of the desk and waited. Lester organized several files on his desk before looking up at Becker.
"I heard you joined the police force." Lester said.
"Yes sir." Becker said.
"Do you enjoy it?"
"It pays the bills." Becker answered.
Lester nodded. "Well, that's on way of looking at it."
"Sir, if there was no reason to summon me-"
"Oh there is, Captain. There is." Lester said. He leaned back in his chair. "Captain, your work under my employment was the best I'd ever seen. Your ability to control your temper and those around you is an admirable quality."
Becker sighed, and looked away. He didn't need to be reminded of his previous work, especially when it had brought him down very fast.
"Are you aware there is a second island under the ARC's supervision carrying creatures?" Lester asked.
Becker's head snapped back toward Lester. "I beg your pardon sir?"
Lester nodded. "You heard me correctly. You hadn't joined the company yet, but the dinosaurs were created on a separate island before moved into the park."
"I was unaware of that, sir." Becker said.
"Yes, well, up until a few days ago, no one was." Lester replied.
Becker frowned.
"A family sailing around the island came upon a few creatures." Lester explained. "And their young girl was injured. Not severely mind you, but the incident has brought the boards of the company seeing a different direction. They want to force me into early retirement and merge with Prospero Industries. I can't let that happen."
"What does this have to do with me?" Becker asked.
"I know your distaste for my brother-in-law runs under different circumstances than my own. However, I do understand you might wish to see him fail once in a while." Lester continued. "And in order to do that, I need a thorough report of the island inhabitants."
"You mean the creatures?" Becker asked.
Lester nodded. "After the storm past the park, is continued to the second island and wiped out everything. And since then, the dinosaurs have flourished. They've established herds and thrive without any outside interference."
"Wait, shouldn't they have all died with the enzyme deficiency?" Becker asked.
"Exactly. That's one of the thousand questions I need the team to answer." Lester replied.
"Team?" Becker repeated. "You're sending a team onto that island?"
"Yes, I am." Lester continued. "I've selected a number of gifted individuals of their field to survey the island and document the animals alive and thriving in their natural habitat."
Becker closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. He exhaled and opened his eyes once more. "Let's make sure I understand what you're saying. There is a second island inhabited by these creatures without fencing, and you want to send a small group of people in there and document them? Just who in their right mind would go?"
"I wondered that myself, Captain. Then I remembered I already knew them." Lester answered. He leaned forward and lifted a large stack of files from his desk, holding them out toward Becker.
Becker took the stack and opened the top file. He was met with the familiar young face of a professor's assistant. His hair was shorter than their last meeting, but there was no ignoring the goofy grin on the young man's face.
"Connor Temple, still working as Nick Cutter's assistant despite his paid student loans. He's agreed to be the secondary technician on the team." Lester began. "Then there's Matthew Anderson and his wife Emily. Both are lending their skills with the creatures. Thomas Gregory is our field equipment expert. There's a main video and photography expert. And I was hoping that you would offer your survival skills and be the final member of this team."
Becker shook his head slowly. "No. Never. I sacrificed years of my life for your company, lost my career, and suffered a year of therapy to recover from that damn bite. Why in the hell would I go to another island and relive that nightmare?" Becker rose from the chair and reached into his pocket. He retrieved his phone and started dialing the first number. "I'm going to call the others and talk them out of this, if I can. Who's the videographer on this team?"
"She came to me, you need to know that Becker." Lester answered.
There was something in the way Lester had spoken that concerned him. Something that was letting on more than he was saying. Becker turned. "Who did?"
Lester sighed deeply. "After the park, she needed something to occupy her time. Photography and videography became her new hobby and she excelled in it. The photographs of you and her are her best work yet."
Becker felt his heart rate increase. "You didn't send Jess!"
"Jessica Parker has the talent to bring these creatures into the light of the public and she is on this team." Lester informed.
Becker shook his head. "No." He dropped the files and redialed one of the numbers.
"Becker." Lester said. "She's already there."
Becker turned back toward Lester.
"The others are meeting her in two days." Lester explained.
Becker couldn't believe what he was hearing. He closed his eyes, as the office spun around him. Becker exhaled slowly. "You sent our niece to this island, alone?"
"You make it sound like she was forced into this." Lester snorted lightly. "After you and Jess lost touch, she was adamant on moving on with her life. She started looking for jobs that would send her around the world and capture it with her camera. And when she found out of Burton's attempt to buy the ARC, she wanted to help."
Becker opened his eyes and shook his head. "She has no experience."
"I beg to differ, as would she." Lester replied. "Jess handled herself very well on the last island. Besides, she isn't alone. Emily Anderson accompanied her there. And from my last call with them, they are more than handling themselves."
Becker took a deep breath. "If you want to show the world you suddenly changed your heart do whatever you want, but don't put other people's lives on the line the do it."
Lester shook his head. "If I remember correctly, Captain, you left her to make her own choices. This choice was hers and hers alone. I even tried to talk her out of it, but you know how stubborn Jess is. But believe me the research team-"
Becker held up his hand, silencing Lester. "It's not a research expedition anymore, it's a recovering operation and it's leaving today."
Becker turned and stormed out of the office.
Lester smirked lightly as Becker left his office. He picked up his phone and dialed quickly. "Matt, Lester. Yes he just left. I hope you have everything ready, he's leaving today."
ahhh...it's good to be back. here's the sequal i promised!