"No grace? No womanhood? Ah, beastly creature!"
-Titus Andronicus, Act II Scene III
The island rose out of the ocean like a gleaming emerald – a promise of better things to come. It was so far away from everything; a little more in tune with the ebb and flow of life. She was used to being away from creature comforts. She detested the noise and hum of civilization. This was way she liked it. Here, she could work in relative solitude. The humidity on the other hand was a completely different issue. She was a long way from North Dakota in every aspect. It would be difficult to be away from her parents for so long and unfortunately, she could not tell them exactly were she or what she was doing there until the park was officially made public. In order for them not to worry, she told them she would be in South African preserve. It was a likely story and her parents bought it; she wanted to go there for some time. What they didn't know is that she left her long sought after government job that had given her a little more pay and security. There was no way she could turn down Mr. Hammond's offer at this. It was unprecedented and she was honored to be a part of it. She couldn't wait to see them. When she was a child, models tyrannosaurs rex, brachiosaurs and triceratops stood on her bookshelf alongside the arc of modern animal figures she had collected. To her, they were all one in the same. And now, in a way, they were. The pilot had warned her about the occasional wind sheer on the way down, but it wasn't too bad this time. Grabbing her duffle bag and her faithful duck cloth backpack, she thanked the pilot. Leaning up against a waiting jeep, a plump middle aged man gave her a welcoming smile.
"Hey, Lauren. How was the trip?"
"Dr. Harding. Good to finally meet ya." She said shaking his hand.
"Gerry," he replied "We're very informal here." He tossed her bag into the back.
"Sure thing. Yeah, trip down here wasn't bad. Damn it's hot."
Harding chuckled.
"You get used to it."
"Yeah, It's gonna take a lot of getting used to, that's for sure."
"Come on. I'll introduce you to the crew and let you get settled in."
"Ok. Sounds good." She replied.
Harding smiled, amused by her North Dakotan accent.
"I'm glad you took the job, Lauren. You came highly recommended from a friend of mine."
"Couldn't say no."
"I told myself the same thing when Hammond's people tracked me down."
"How many your staff?" she asked looking up at the canopy as it went by.
"So far, myself and Sue McRae. I'm hoping to get another vet on soon and some techs would be nice. But things are just getting up and running, so it will probably take some time," he paused "Oh, and Robert Muldoon does quite a lot of work with us and we share office space."
"Muldoon? From Kenya Muldoon?"
"The very same."
"You don't say? Thought he was somethin' that the hippies just made up to bitch about."
Harding broke out laughing.
"Ah, Rob's probably more of a conservationist than you and I. Though he does have his controversies," he paused. "I heard you do too."
"Yeah, let's just say I'm not that particularly popular with ranchers. Hard for some to understand because my dad is one. Government just ignores me."
"Doing what's right for a species is sometimes not that easy. I learned that in a hurry with the condors."
She nodded in agreement. Harding, an expert on birds, was quietly instrumental in preserving the the last few remaining California Condors while he was in San Diego.
"So, this is where the magic happens; the brains of the operation."
"I guess the best place to show you first is the genetics lab; or as I like to call it, the little shop of horrors."
He led her inside. Harding put in a code and the door unlocked. The lab was buzzing with white lab coats; their eyes fixated on their clipboards.
"Hey all," he announced. For a brief moment, they turned their attention to him. "This is Dr. Lauren Booth. Our newest vet."
She was greeting with a mumbled chorus of hey and hi. Then, it was back to business.
"Rest of us are a bit friendlier," he whispered. "Have a look."
Harding brought her over to some incubating eggs.
"Holy shit!" she exclaimed. "Never in my life would I ever expect to see a dinosaur egg." She gingerly touched the shell.
"What comes out is far more interesting." One of the scientists said.
"Dr. Henry Wo, our chief geneticist," he said to Booth. "So, what do you have in the stew pot today?"
"Stegosaurus."
Booth smiled, still not completely believing this was real.
"Don't get so excited. They'll be our problem later." Harding teased. "Ok, more people to meet."
Leading her further down the hall, he brought her to the control room. One man was busy clacking away at his keyboard, a cigarette dangling out of the side of his mouth.
"John, Dr. Lauren Booth, new vet. Ray Arnold."
"Welcome aboard." He said shaking her hand.
"What high school did Hammond pull you out from?" the orbitus man from the other computer station asked.
"And that's Dennis Nedry." Harding sighed.
"Actually, he got me from Fish and Game."
Nedry gave an annoying laugh.
"He got you with the sweet talk too, huh? It's almost enough to make you forget about the piss poor pay."
"I thought you said the rest were more friendly." She whispered.
"I forgot to mention him, sorry. He's an ass."
"Yeah, well, he's got a big one, so it kinda balances out."
"Let's all meet up for a drink later. Some of us gotta work for a living." Arnold muttered. He also noticed the way Nedry was staring at her and that disgusted him. Harding patted his shoulder in sympathy. Promptly shepparding her out to avoid Nedry's glances, he then introduced her to the engineering department and after being looked at like a scrumptious piece of meat there as well, Harding finally lead her to their lab and office.
"We have more equipment on the way but it's pretty sparse right now," he paused. "Hey, Sue."
"Hi ya, Rookie." She said cheerfully coming over to greet her.
"Lauren Booth," She said with a handshake.
"Sue's forte is alligators and crocs." Harding remarked.
"I guess you and I like to live dangerously." Booth said.
"Yeah, maybe that's why we're still single. Ger told you got to play with wolves and bears in Yellowstone. Gotta tell me more later," she paused "But that's a scout camp compared to this."
McRae had a thick New Zealand accent, bronzed skin and shoulder length dirty blond hair pulled back in a pony tail. She was a little older than Booth, and much like her, she looked sturdy, hardy and above all, tough.
"Is Rob around?" Harding inquired.
"No, Hammond called."
"Too bad," he turned to Booth. "Well, I'll let you get settled in. We're basically the only ones that go out into all of the park, so make sure you familiarize yourself with the map. Maybe go have a look around."
"For sure."
"No raptors though. Not until tomorrow. Rob knows more about them than anyone, so I want him there with you."
"I need a chaperone for my first date?" Booth asked sarcastically.
"Let's just say I don't want this first date to go bad, ok?" he said.
"Awwww, Ger. You're such a good Work-Dad." McRae teased.
"Fine. I'll catch you guys later. I've got friggen' dinosaurs to see."
Hadrosaurids had always been one of her favorites. She thought them to be the cutest of the dinosaurs. Booth was serenaded to their evening calls while the sky changed to vibrant reds and yellows with the setting sun. Comfortable in the long sweet grasses on a rise overlooking the lake, she felt at complete peace and wondered if this was all in fact a dream. She wrote down a few more lines in her field journal. Although Booth came here to become an expert on the care of Jurassic Park's carnivores, she also needed to have a general knowledge of all the other species as well. She suddenly lost her train of thought. He had a such presence about him; one so strong, she knew he was behind her. She turned over her shoulder and smiled warmly at him.
"You must be Robert Muldoon."
"My reputation precedes me." he replied settling down besides her.
"Lauren Booth." She said offering her hand.
"Pleasure." He purred. Muldoon was impressive. Tall, broad shoulders, distinguished; he defiantly grabbed her attention.
Damn, his touch was electrifying.
"Cool it, girl." Her rational mind demanded.
"Just taking notes," she paused "I can't believe they're real." She nervously brushing a stray piece of hair behind her ear.
"Well, these are the ones I don't mind at all. They're kinda like really, really big sheep. A little smarter. Sometimes they let you pat 'em, but they need to be in the mood. I wouldn't recommend it with anything else around here though."
"Damn. And I had such aspirations that the Rex was completely docile and we'd get along just fine." She said rolling her eyes.
"The only thing she likes is her stomach," he exhaled. "I have to tell you, I read your paper on the reintroduction of wolves. I appreciate what you had to say.
"Well, at least you did. It got passed around from one pencil pushers' desk to another."
"That's usually the case around here too."
"Harding's tossing me from the frying pan into the fire. I get to meet the kids in the morning."
"I'll be there with you."
"I'm looking forward to it," she stammered "See - seeing the raptors."
Muldoon gave a slight grin.
"Do you want to get a coffee? I would like to ask you more about pack behavior."
"I'd like that."
