Reign of Chaos: Book 1: InGen

by Sassy Lil Scorpio

Time has passed since the successful inspection of Jurassic Park. Now an InGen employee is incarcerated for crimes against the company and John Hammond wants to clone a 16th species. A second InGen traitor begins to make his move and Lewis Dodgson assembles a team to invade Isla Nublar. Dodgson's #1 goal: destroy InGen. No matter what the cost and regardless of who gets hurt. {AU}

11. Welcome to the Jungle

Welcome to the Jungle

"This is a peculiar dinosaur species—but I want it," Lewis Dodgson held up a painting of the dinosaur.

The artist had interpreted the dinosaur as having light green skin and black stripes. Atop its head were red V-shaped double crests. The team surrounded Dodgson's desk in his office, getting their first glimpse of the dinosaur they would capture for their next assignment.

"We don't know if it really looked like that," Raúl Lopez said, rubbing his beard. "In the past, artists' renditions have been inaccurate."

"What do they have to base it on?" Roland Tembo asked, not hiding the annoyance in his voice. "They've been dead for millions of years so most times it's an educated guess."

"Correct," Dodgson said. "But there's computer technology these days that allow us to picture what these animals would've looked like," He nodded at Dennis Nedry, who yawned from the doorway. "Even better: InGen beat us to the punch and resurrected dinosaurs from the grave, so now we can borrow from them."

Dodgson put down the illustration and held up a manila envelop. He took out three photographs and passed one to Sonya Durant. She studied the picture, fascinated by the animal's unique appearance.

"This is what you want us to get?" she asked, holding it up.

"Yes, that's the one. Dilophosaurus."

Sonya was awestruck. "Where'd you get the photos? They're really good."

"Sources."

She passed the photo to Lopez. It showed an adult dilophosaur in the jungle crouched on her hind legs, drinking from a river. The animal had a long neck, a stiff tail for balance most likely, and thick leathery skin the color of lemon yellow with scattered black spots. V-shaped crests, the color of blood, ran from the top of the head. She's deadly and beautiful, Lopez thought.

"What sources?" Sonya pressed.

"Sources," Dodgson repeated. He winked.

Sonya shrugged. "If you say so, Lew."

Dodgson passed the remaining two photos around. Lopez watched the team's reactions to see if they shared his enthusiasm.

Tembo took one picture. "She's gorgeous; I'd love to mount her head in my trophy room back at Mombassa—especially with those red crests."

He passed the picture to Lawala.

"How tall do they get?" Lawala asked as he examined the photo. "This one is about ten feet."

"Ten feet is impressive," Lopez answered. So far, so good. Lawala was curious and Tembo showed his interest in his own twisted way. He smiled, excited about their next assignment. "We should make it a priority to get an adult dilophosaur like that one in the picture."

Lawala nodded and turned around to give Nedry the photo.

Nedry shook his head. "I'll pass."

Lopez stared at him in disbelief. Nedry, sensing Lopez's ire, offered him a toothy grin. What's keeping me from knocking that stupid grin off your face, Lopez thought, is that Dodgson's counting on me to make this trip successful. He hasn't told me yet, but I know it. He turned back to Dodgson, who gathered all the photos together.

"So that's what we'll do. You guys will borrow a dilophosaur—with no intention of returning it—and do me proud like you did last time," Dodgson said.

He could tell right away by looking at them who was interested. Lawala wore a smug grin across his face; the last time he and Tembo were teamed together, they delivered and outdid themselves, and were automatically on Dodgson's good side. Tembo cracked his knuckles, he would do it without pay as long as he could go after a tyrannosaur in the future. Sonya stared into space, contemplating the new assignment. Nedry yawned, but offered his usual cocky smile. Lopez frowned, deep in thought, but it was obvious that he was the most excited on the team. Dodgson returned to his desk and studied the illustration and photographs. Lopez definitely wants to do this, he thought.

"Paleontologists aren't sure about the function of the double crests—" Lopez started.

"I don't care what their function is, just get me one. Bring it here so we can study it."

Lopez nodded; already accustomed to Dodgson's demanding ways.

"When do we do this?" Sonya asked.

"You'll find out soon," Dodgson said, as he opened his office door. "I need a few words alone with Dr. Lopez."

The rest of the team trailed outside of the room leaving Lopez alone with Dodgson. Dodgson motioned for Lopez to close the door and again studied the illustration and photographs.

He's obsessed, Lopez thought as he closed the door. Then again, so am I.

"Raúl, I want you to be in charge of this assignment. You're going in the conference room later on to give the team a brief overview of your knowledge concerning this species. That way, you'll be prepared for tomorrow."

Lopez's eyes widened in shock, but inside, he was overjoyed that Dodgson trusted him enough to give him the supervisor role. This is my chance to show that I'm a damn good paleontologist. I'll get him a healthy adult dilophosaur that he and I can study for weeks on end. Then I can start writing my dissertation on actual living dinosaurs. My research won't be based on ancient bones anymore.

"We're going tomorrow?" he asked to make sure he had heard right the first time.

"Before the end of this week. It's Monday now. I want this mission accomplished before Saturday night. That's not too much to ask. I want it brought back like the other animal: alive and healthy. If it's dead, it's no good to us. We want to study a live specimen, not a smelly corpse."

Lopez nodded. "Understood." He started towards the door when Dodgson stopped him.

"Make sure you work with Dennis on this. He's the one you need the most because he knows how to work the island's security systems. Sonya, Roland and George are good, but without Dennis, the assignment can't be completed."

Lopez cringed. Why couldn't it be all about him? Why did someone else—especially Dennis—have to play a prominent role? Nedry's attitude infuriated Lopez. He doesn't have a passion for this field, Lopez thought angrily, and he—

"Am I clear?"

Lopez rolled his eyes when he heard the menacing tone in Dodgson's voice. He kept his hand on the doorknob and didn't turn around to face him. "Crystal, Dr. Dodgson."

"Good."

Lopez quickly left Dodgson's office, slamming the door behind him.

oOo

"George, help me with the projector," Lopez called from the front of the conference room. The rest of the team—Tembo, Sonya, and Nedry—watched with amusement as Lopez fumbled with the overhead projector. Lawala went to the front of the room and plugged in the projector, while Lopez pulled down the screen that was attached to the wall like a scroll.

"That should be good enough," Lawala said, flicking off the lights.

"Thanks," Lopez said.

He pressed the button on the projector and took out index cards that he had scribbled brief notes on. The screen showed the same animal they had seen in Dodgson's pictures. This is going to be great, he thought. No one was more excited than him.

"Okay, let's get started. I don't want you guys falling asleep on me," Lopez said and good-natured laughter followed.

"Fossils of the dinosaur known as dilophosaurus were discovered in Arizona back in 1942. Other remains were found in China. Dilophosaurus has been classified one of the earliest theropods. The species lived in the early Jurassic era; approximately two hundred one to one hundred eighty-nine million years ago. It is also a close relative of coelophysis. Like coelophysis—"

"How do you pronounce that again?" Tembo asked. "See-lee-oh-fie-sis?"

"See-loe-fie-sis," Lopez said. "Coelophysis is also a theropod and lived around the late Triassic period. Paleontologists believe that it's related to dilophosaur because they both have four fingers on each hand and clawed toes. The fourth finger was very small; it was called a 'dewclaw'. Coelophysis lived around the late Triassic era. Back to dilophosaurus. Based on fossils that have been discovered, they appear to have weak jaws. Paleontologists, like me," he added with a proud note, "suspect that they killed their prey with their clawed hands or scavenged carcasses."

"Interesting, but get to the good part," Sonya said. "Talk about the crests on its head." She patted her own head.

"I'm getting there, be patient." Lopez switched to a new image that showed the dilophosaur's skull. He was glad that they were impressed with the animal.

"Dilophosaur, like I said before, is in the theropod group. Theropods include meat-eaters of various sizes ranging from the tiny procompsognathus to the immense tyrannosaurus rex."

"Now that's what I'm talking about," Tembo said. "The tyrant lizard and the only one that really matters."

"Not this time," Lopez said.

"Next time," Lawala joked.

"We'll see. Theropods were carnivores with light builds and large heads and they had sharp bladelike teeth. Most of them had at least five vertebrae connected to the hip and they were bipedal—they walked on their two hind legs."

"Nice," Lawala said, intrigued. "This one sounds more like the challenge you're looking for, eh Roland?"

"We'll see," Tembo said. "It does sound—"

"Whoopy-doo," Nedry said. "How do you paleontologists know so much when all you got are dusty bones to study from?" He yawned and put his head down, bored from the lecture.

A heavy silence filled the conference room as everyone turned to him and then to Lopez to see his reaction. Dumbfounded, Lopez stared at Nedry for a full minute, before continuing his presentation.

"They also had an extra joint in the mandible," he continued in a strained voice.

"Explain further, Raúl," Sonya said.

"The mandible allowed the jaws to flex sideways so that they would be able to consume large pieces of food," he paused and then continued: "Theropods are divided into two groups, ceratosaurs and tetanurans. Dilophosaurs fall into the ceratosaur group—which goes back to the Jurassic era they lived in and their physical features. Most theropods had air pockets in the skull area, which brings us to the final part of the lecture." Lopez pointed at the screen. "The species is named for its crests. The name dilophosaurus translates to two-crested lizard. If you notice, the crests extend from the snout and along the top of its head. Paleontologists aren't sure what purpose they served although skeletal remains have revealed shallow pits and holes. It's assumed that the crests function as air sacs. Or they could've been used to send signals to one another and distinguish males from the females. And that concludes my lecture on dilophosaurus."

A round of applause followed. Lopez brightened as he turned off the projector.

"When are we leaving?" Sonya asked.

"Early in the morning. We have a boat to catch. Dodgson wants us to use the same transportation and equipment from the last trip. We're taking everything we need—including two jeeps and a large crate that would be able to carry the dinosaur over."

"I'm looking forward to it," Tembo said. "We've got plenty of firearms and ammo."

Lopez wrapped the extension cord and placed it next to the projector. It was then that he realized that Nedry hadn't said anything after the lecture had finished. Lopez soured when he saw Nedry sleeping on the table.

"Don't worry," Lawala said. "I'll make sure he's alert for tomorrow."

"He better be," Lopez said. He glared at Nedry, who was oblivious to the disgusted reactions around him.

"Come on, leave him," Tembo said.

They all exited the room, excited about what lay ahead of them.

oOo

"You're late," Lopez growled as Nedry boarded the vessel.

It was early in the morning; the sun had barely woken up for the new day. The air was saturated with the scent of the surrounding ocean. Seagulls cried in the air and the waves lapped against the dock. The anchor was raised and they started out towards their destination.

"So sue me," Nedry replied as he tossed his backpack down on the deck. He went over to Sonya and patted his cheek. "Give me a kiss 'cause I made it."

Sonya gave him a peck. "He's really pissed, you know."

"Good for him." Then he turned to Lopez. "Are we going to try to get along on this trip or are you going to huff and puff like a dragon on steroids?"

"Try," Lopez said and stomped off.

Tembo and Lawala stood nearby watching the brief confrontation. They gestured Sonya and Nedry to come over.

"Are we good to go?" Tembo asked.

Nedry knew what he referred to. "I'm going to crack down on their security when we get there. I like the suspense."

"The sooner, the better," Lawala said.

"You're right, George," Nedry said, grinning. "The sooner I can collect my million dollar paycheck, the better I'll be. I'm going down to the cabin to grab a Coke. You guys want anything?"

They shook their heads. Nedry grabbed his backpack and left them standing on the deck.

oOo

"And here we are," Tembo said as he pulled up to the dilophosaur paddock.

They had arrived in a decent amount of time. Unlike their first assignment, there were no distractions. It was go in and take the dinosaur that Dodgson wanted. Tembo got out of pick-up truck and went with Sonya and Lopez. A jeep, driven by Lawala, pulled up next to the truck. Lawala got out, leaving Nedry in the passenger seat.

"Are the fences off?" Lopez asked.

"Not yet. I'm still working on it."

"Work faster."

Nedry glared at Lopez, annoyed at his insistence. Lopez stared back, expecting him to mutter a sarcastic retort and turned back to the enclosure. From behind the high steel electrified fences, two adult dilophosaurs walked towards the jungle river on their hind legs. One turned around and met Lopez's eyes. Lopez stared into the black eyes of the dinosaur. They were like coins of onyx, shiny and round. Their eyes pulled him in, as if daring him to hold his gaze.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Tembo said, as he checked to make sure his rifle was loaded with the proper ammunition.

"Why not?"

"Animals don't like to be stared at in the eyes. They feel threatened and sometimes they attack based on those instincts."

Lopez turned his attention back to the dilophosaur. She stayed in place and watched them. He wondered if the animal was aware of what was going on. Then she gave a soft hooting cry. Sounds like an owl, he thought.

"How long before we can take down these fences?"

"Another decade or so," Nedry said typing on his laptop without looking up.

Lopez sighed, exasperated. Suddenly, the loud chords of late 80s/early 90s rock blasted from the passenger's window. Guns N' Roses yelped about fun and games in the jungle.

"Damn it, turn that crap down!"

Nedry ignored him and kept typing.

Lopez stared at him, agitated. I can't believe this guy.

Sonya sang the song's lyrics as she examined the guns in the backseat. "Welcome to the jungle, we take it day by day, if you want it, you're gonna bleed, but it's the price to pay." She was still deciding which one to use when she saw Lopez glaring in her direction. "What's wrong?" she asked, eyebrows furrowed.

"And you're a very sexy girl that's very hard to please," Nedry sang off key in response.

Lopez closed his eyes and pretended he didn't hear Nedry's pitiful attempts to flirt with Sonya. "Nothing." He shook his head and watched the dilophosaurs from outside. "Just find what you need and get out here ASAP."

"Raúl, we gotta get through this fence," Lawala said, gesturing to the structure that simultaneously protected them and halted their progress.

Lopez nodded. "I know; but we're waiting on our computer nerd to put the finishing touches."

"I heard that," Nedry said.

"Continue," Lopez said, interested in Lawala's idea.

oOo

"Oh man, when do they stop?" Ray Arnold said, shaking his head. He watched the computer monitor inside the control room.

"What is it?" Robert Muldoon asked as he came over to Arnold's monitor.

Arnold tapped the monitor with his knuckles. "These jack-asses are back. They're down by the dilophosaur paddock doing God knows what."

Muldoon took a sip of liquor from his flask and quickly shoved it in his pocket.

"Better make sure John doesn't see that," Arnold said quietly.

"He won't." Muldoon kept his voice even.

"You want to go down there and see what they're doing?"

"Nope."

Arnold turned in his swiveling chair so that he was facing Muldoon. "So we're going to let them make off with another animal while John and Henry are away?"

"No, we'll let them play with the dilophosaurs since they think they're cute dinosaurs to take home to Daddy Dodgson."

"'Daddy Dodgson'?" Arnold laughed. "You're too much, Robert."

Muldoon didn't let on that he found his comment to be funny. He watched the monitor intensely. Lopez was talking to a tall muscular black man dressed in baggy army fatigues and a fitting black shirt. The black man wore a gold hoop in his right ear. Muldoon squinted at him, trying to place a name on the man's face.

"I know him," he said to himself.

Arnold looked from the screen to Muldoon and back again. "How can you know him? That's the first time you seen him. He was here last time, but you didn't tangle with him, Dr. Grant and Dr. Sattler did."

"I know him," Muldoon repeated, entranced by the image.

"From where?"

"My days as a hunting guide in Africa. I can't remember his first name. Last name is Lawala."

"Small world," Arnold said, lighting a cigarette.

"It is."

Arnold wanted to ask Muldoon about Lawala, but he could tell by his silence that he wouldn't discuss it further. Not now anyway.

"What if Dennis tries anything smart?"

"If that son of a bitch puts his hands on me—like he did last time—he gets escorted off the island in handcuffs."

Arnold puffed on his cigarette. "What about the rest of them?"

"Maybe the dilos will help us out and spit venom in their eyes."

"We can only hope."

oOo

"I was thinking about how we're going to do this," Lawala said. "When Dennis disables the fence, we can use these grappling hooks—we have five of them. That should be enough to yank the fence down. It's not as tall as the other fences in the park, so it's not impossible."

"Sounds perfect, George." Lopez nodded. "Good thing you're on our side."

"Damn right. Dodgson better pay up as good as he did last time."

Lawala approached the fence and observed the two dilophosaurs. They're nothing, he thought scornfully. Yank the fence down, shoot off a couple of darts at them, and it's a done deal. If Dr. Grant and Dr. Sattler meddle in our business again, they'll find themselves trapped in a cargo net like last time. Lawala grinned as he relieved the memory in his mind. He hoped they would show their faces just so he'd have the opportunity to embarrass them again.

"Presto," he heard from inside the jeep. Nedry cracked his knuckles and pointed at the fence. "Touch it, it's a regular fence. No more voltage."

Lawala picked up a stray branch from the ground. He backed away and tossed the branch at the fence.

Nothing.

"Alright Sonya, Roland, let's do what we do best," Lawala said.

They swung the grappling hooks high above the fence. The three hooks caught the thick wires of the fence. Two more to go. Sonya worked on one and got the fourth hook latched to the wires. She tried to do the same with the fifth hook, but missed.

"Damn it," she muttered.

She tried a second time, but missed again.

"Let a man show you how it's done," Lawala teased. He snatched the grappling hook from her and ignored her glare. "You throw like a girl—no offense, Sonya." Swinging it over his head, he concentrated on the fence's height and threw the grappling hook. It anchored to a tier near the top of the fence. Good enough.

"Ready?" Lawala asked.

Sonya and Tembo grabbed two ropes each and Lawala took the last one. Together, they pulled at the fence. It didn't budge. The hooks remained where they had been anchored, but the fence itself remained firm in the ground.

"Pull harder," Lopez ordered.

Still no progress.

"I have an idea," Nedry said, poking his head out the window.

"We don't want to hear it," Lopez said.

Nedry scowled. "Why don't you tie the ropes to the back of the jeep and I'll drive. You'll have more success that way. Those fences are anchored under the ground."

"Good thinking," Tembo said. He gathered the ropes, ready to try out the idea when Lopez blocked his path.

"Who's in charge here? Me or him?"

Tembo stared at Lopez, shocked by his sudden change of attitude. "What's your problem, Raúl? He gave us an idea to make this assignment easier."

Lopez shook his head. "Dr. Dodgson put me in charge, not him. He did his job. All he has to do now is sit back and relax, and keep his big mouth shut for the rest of the time that we're here."

"That's Dennis you're talking about, not me."

"The same goes for you: you follow my directives not the other way around."

Tembo's eyes narrowed to slits. "Don't even think of speaking to me in that tone of voice. I don't care if Dr. Dodgson left you or Barney the purple dinosaur in charge. You will never speak to me like I'm lower than the ground you stand on. Are you clear on that notion?"

Lopez swallowed the lump in his throat. The piercing look in Tembo's eyes frightened him, but he wouldn't let on that he was intimidated by him. "Fair enough, Roland."

"It is what it is," Tembo said coldly as he fastened the ropes to the jeep's bumper. He walked to the front. "Give it the gas, Dennis."

The jeep roared to life and the music was turned down. Before driving, Nedry stuck his head out again. "Did you guys want to shoot the lizard first? That way you can just go in and pick it up."

Tembo opened his mouth to respond, but Sonya beat him to it.

"Rolling Thunder and I made a bet earlier to see who'd get the dilo first. We're going in once the fence is down. We live for the danger, you know that."

Sonya snatched her gun from the holster and fired into the area. There was loud scurrying and stamping. The dilophosaurs inside emitted low hooting cries.

"They're miserable bitches. I can't wait to get in there and put a leash on them," she said.

Tembo nodded in agreement.

"Count me in on that bet," Lawala said.

"Bunch of cocky bastards," Nedry said shaking his head.

"Bad-ass." Sonya pronounced both words loudly. "We're bad-asses."

Everyone laughed, especially Lawala and Tembo since they all had mercenary backgrounds. Even Nedry was amused as he started driving away from the fence, putting the idea into action. Lopez watched; a blank expression on his face, as Nedry drove the jeep ten feet forward. The gigantic fence creaked and the started bending.

oOo

"Look at this! Can you believe them?" Arnold pointed at the monitor with his cigarette.

"I believe it," Muldoon said dryly.

"That fence is going to be hell to fix."

"I know."

"Where's Tim?"

Muldoon thought for a moment. "I think he's with Dr. Malcolm in the staff lodge."

Arnold rubbed his head. "We have to make sure he's safe. I don't want him or Lex in harm's way or we'll never hear the end of it from John. Robert, please find them."

Muldoon sighed. "Okay, I'm coming right back. I'll find out Dr. Sattler's whereabouts while I'm at it."

"Don't get Gennaro involved," Arnold quickly added.

"I wasn't planning on it."

He started towards the exit when Arnold called to him. "I reached her earlier. She's in the greenhouse with Lex taking care of her plants."

"Minding her business and staying out of trouble," Muldoon muttered. Arnold thought he sounded resentful. "I'll be back."

The door closed.

Arnold watched the monitor as if it were showing a daytime soap-opera.

oOo

"Good riddance to structure," Lopez said as Lawala slashed the ropes attached to the back of the jeep.

The fence was completely torn down and the metal bent and twisted. It took time to drag the fence away, but it wasn't as bad as it looked. Not that it mattered to the team. After all, the expense wasn't coming out of their paychecks.

With the fence gone, Lawala, Tembo, and Sonya had immediate access to the dilophosaurs. They crept through the dense green foliage, guns drawn and eyes and ears open. The two dilophosaurs stood watching them from the other side of the jungle river. Lopez stood next to the crate that the team had removed from the pick-up truck while Nedry took care of the fence. When the dinosaur was subdued and ready to go, it would be packed away in the crate, ready for shipping and delivery to Lewis Dodgson. Lopez guarded the paddock for any snooping park staff and kept his gaze on the dinosaurs across the river.

While Nedry had driven the jeep to remove the fence, they had taken bets on who would capture the dilophosaur. They were at it again.

"I bet a hundred thousand!" Sonya had said. "One shot between the eyes and she's ready to go home."

Lopez shook his head. "The animal has to be alive, otherwise she's worthless."

"Chill out, Raúl."

"I'll bring it in alive—for five hundred thousand dollars," Tembo said. "You'll owe me your next paycheck, Sonya."

Lawala had ridiculed Tembo's wager. "I'll take both of your paychecks and put a million on the line," he announced. "I'll wrestle that thing with my bare hands. I won't even have to use a bullet or a dart to bring it down."

It had spiraled down between Tembo and Lawala trying to outdo each other with Sonya instigating. Nedry had returned to check up on his handy-work. The fence was taken care of giving Sonya, Tembo, and Lawala the entrance they needed to hunt down the dilophosaur. Nedry pulled into the paddock next to the crate. He rolled down the window and watched with Lopez as the team hunted the dilophosaurs. One dilophosaur emitted the same hooting cry again. It sounded mournful, sad.

"I wonder what the sound means," Lopez murmured.

"It means she's hungry," Nedry said, chomping on a candy bar. "Want a bite?" he held out the chocolate to Lopez.

"What is it?"

"Payday."

"How appropriate."

"You know me, I'm always on point."

Lopez didn't bother to answer. He walked into the paddock to get a better glimpse at the dinosaur. "She's beautiful."

He took out Dodgson's photo from his pocket and compared it to what he saw in front of him. The v-shaped crests ran along from the eyes to the nose and met above the head. A tender feeling came over him as he watched the dilophosaur on the right, crouch on her hind legs over the river for a drink. He wished he had a camera. It was truly a precious moment, one that he may never witness again.

Nedry scoffed. "She's ugly."

Lopez ignored him. Nedry couldn't appreciate seeing animals in the wild and in their habitats. That's what makes me better than you. He focused his attention on the jungle river twenty feet in front of him. Lopez started towards it, meeting Lawala and Tembo halfway, and Sonya who was ahead of them.

oOo

"Is our bet still on?" Tembo asked as he crept past crowds of ferns and bushes.

To his right, Lawala checked the chamber of his gun. "Damn straight it is."

A metallic click resounded in Lawala's ear and he saw Tembo take aim.

"Ready when you are, George."

Lawala nodded. "We have to catch up to Sonya, she's beating us."

"Not happening in this lifetime," Tembo growled and moved forward as he stalked his prey.

They were closer than before. The animals stared dumbly at the men not reacting to them, but every so often, the taller dilophosaur on the left hooted softly. A sudden rapid thunder of bullets filled the air and the dinosaurs jerked around searching for the source of the sound.

"SONYA!" Lopez shouted.

Sonya turned around and saw Lopez waving his arms around. "Just checking to see if my guns are good!" she yelled back. "Fully loaded!"

She continued hunting the dilophosaurs on the other side of the river. Between her and them, the river was ten feet wide at most. It didn't appear to be deep. She could probably reach the other side in no time.

"Don't do that again, Lara Croft. You almost made me choke on my candy," Nedry joked.

"Sorry, Dennis the Menace." Sonya blew him a kiss.

Nedry pretended to grab the invisible kiss and patted his cheek. "All better now!"

Sonya nodded and kissed the gun's barrel. She shoved one gun in thigh her holster and crept forward with the other one drawn out. Behind her, Tembo and Lawala were making scraping sounds, it annoyed her. Men, they don't know how to hunt like a woman. You have to do it delicately, swiftly, and—

Suddenly Lawala was rushing past her on the right side. He hopped over upturned roots and brushed vines out of his face. He splashed in the water and waited patiently with his gun. Tembo joined him, rushing past Sonya's left side. Both men were in the river up to their knees, only five feet away from the dilophosaurs. The animals, sensing danger, backed away from the river. Their hooting was louder and insistent. Tembo and Lawala grinned. They had cornered their prey and were ready to take it down. Behind them, the jeep rumbled to life and stopped halfway in the jungle.

Furious, Lopez turned around and gestured wildly at Nedry. "What are you doing? Stay where you are!"

"Who are you yelling at?" Nedry asked as he turned off the engine. "I know it's not me—"

"WHAT THE HELL!" Tembo shouted and Lopez then turned to see what happened.

He was so caught up with yelling at Nedry, that he didn't see the frills fan out from the dilophosaur's v-shaped crest. A faint rattling noise sounded and it came from the direction across the river—where the dilophosaurs stood.

Lopez's eyes widened in shock as the dinosaur stood at its full height—ten feet. It was one thing to see the ten foot dilophosaur in the photograph and an entire experience to see it in front of his eyes. It was intimidating and frightening. The docility had disappeared and was replaced by a fatal fury. The frills were wide open and the color of reddish-orange flames. The animal snapped its neck and something flew from it.

He turned around and saw Nedry open the door and scuttle back inside the jeep.

Lopez saw why.

On the driver's side window, a glob of something had hit it.

The something was black and gooey looking. Like toxic slime or oozing tar.

Lopez whistled softly. "Wow."

There was a long silence punctuated by the movement of the trees blowing softly in the wind followed by another hooting cry. The dinosaur snapped its head again and a second glob smacked the jeep's hood. Nedry sat inside the jeep, stupefied by the black slimy glob on the glass. He rolled down his window staring at the dinosaur's goo.

"Oh my God—it spits! That's disgusting!" he shouted. "You didn't tell us it spits!"

Lopez waited to see what would happen. In front of him, Tembo lay on the ground, flat on his stomach and Sonya lay on her back with her gun close to her chest. Both were extremely shocked and breathed hard, trying to keep calm. Lawala glanced at Lopez; he was the only mercenary on his feet. They both looked at each other for a moment, Lopez wondered if Lawala was still going to go through with the assignment and capture the dilophosaur.

Lawala nodded once giving Lopez the answer he wanted.

oOo

Lawala inched towards the dilophosaur. Her frills shook violently and the animal growled at him. She opened her mouth revealing long rows of sharp teeth and hooted urgently.

"You're coming with me, bitch. Dead or alive," Lawala whispered.

He took aim with his rifle, and squinted, making sure he had the dinosaur directly in his sight. I'm not going back empty-handed, he thought. I'm not one to disappoint myself—screw Dodgson, this is about my pride. Lawala gritted his teeth as his finger closed around the trigger and his heart battered against his chest. Softly at first, then louder and faster as if it were begging to be set free from its ribcage prison. This is what I live for.

"Good-bye sweetheart."

His finger squeezed the trigger and he felt his body shudder.

The dilophosaur gave a half-roar and half-hoot. It was as if she was expressing anger at the intruders. The ground trembled beneath Lawala as the dinosaur collapsed to the ground. Lawala kept still for a long time, his eyes closed. Finally, he looked around the foliage. In front of him, the dilophosaur he had shot lay in the river, snorting and breathing hard, the hard thick body quivered; its green tongue hanging limply. The shiny onyx eyes stared up at Lawala, lifeless and tired. The jungle river had reddened from the dilophosaur's blood and he felt nauseous and proud. In the back of his mind, he heard Lopez's voice from the meeting:

If it's dead, it's no good to us. We want to study a live specimen, not a smelly corpse.

He sounds exactly like the boss, Lawala thought. He'd bet his million dollars from before that the words came from Dodgson first and that Lopez was mimicking him.

If they want a live specimen, then that's what they'll get. Lawala exhaled slowly and wiped the perspiration from his forehead. The sun was high in the sky and made its heat felt through the thick jungles of Jurassic Park. Catching his breath, Lawala glanced behind him. Tembo and Sonya lay on the ground motionless and held their firearms closely as if afraid the guns would grow legs and run away. They watched him to see what he would do next.

"She's mine," Lawala said triumphantly and pounded his chest with pride. "You owe me, Roland."

Tembo nodded quickly.

"You too, Sonya."

Sonya shrugged. She looked past Lawala and mouthed a message to him.

"What's that, girly? I know you lost the bet, don't be bitter," Lawala let out a throaty laugh. "It's okay; you can pay me back later—in more ways than one."

Sonya's blue eyes lit up like a light bulb in a dark room.

Lawala smiled down at her and then looked behind him. There had been another dilophosaur in the area when they first arrived. If he could get that one—jump and tackle it down, then Sonya or Tembo could tranquilize it and they'd be on their way to Cupertino to show off their prize to Dodgson. The idea was crazy, but he'd seen people wrestle with alligators and crocodiles, so why not a dinosaur?

Ready to search for the animal, Lawala chuckled and turned around—and felt a glob of sticky foam smack directly in his eyes.

oOo

It was mid-afternoon when Lawala's anguished scream shattered the peace in the park.

Ellie Sattler and Lex Murphy left the greenhouse behind them and were driving towards the visitor center when they heard it. It was an awful and long wail, full of pain and regret. Ellie looked to her left and saw Lex wince. She heard it too, Ellie thought.

"Are you going to see where it came from?" Lex asked.

Ellie shook her head. "No, we're going straight to the visitor center just to be on the safe side."

Lex nodded, but wondered what had happened to make someone in the park scream like the world had crashed on their shoulders. "It came from over there," she said, pointing to the right of the road, hoping that would make Ellie change her mind. "I think its further north."

Ellie thought for a moment. She steered in the direction and headed towards the dilophosaur paddock.

oOo

Sonya pressed her hands tightly over her ears. "Shit," she mumbled.

Lawala wouldn't stop screaming and it was making her ears ring. Each agonizing scream of pain was louder than the last. Shut up, shut up, she thought. She got up slowly and heard the sound of scuffling and splashing. A gun shot pierced the air followed by a low roar. Ahead of her, Tembo raced towards the second dilophosaur.

Sonya glanced at him and then at Lawala who waved his arms around frantically. His eyes were covered with the thick black viscous goop. Sonya tried to grab his arms to calm him down, but Lawala swung out and punched her jaw. Damn it. She rubbed her jaw and watched him, unsure of what to do. Then it occurred to her: he was blind. The dinosaur had blinded him with its spit. She looked on as Lawala howled in pain and saw that Tembo had already brought down the second dilophosaur. Dodgson said he wanted a live dinosaur specimen and that was their assignment. But George—

She heard a car door slam. There was shouting and she turned in the direction where Lopez stood. He was stiff as a statue and in a trance, completely mesmerized by the dilophosaur and what it had done to Lawala. Nedry shouted in his face and pointed at Lawala. Lopez walked forward, ignoring him. Everything's happening in slow motion like it's not even real, she thought. I'm sure there's something he can take to get rid of the pain. Glancing at the dinosaur again, she saw Tembo's mouth move and then his words hit her like sharp knives.

"SONYA! Get your ass over here and help me with the damn lizard!"

She looked quickly at Lawala who was still screaming and then joined Tembo in the river, her mind made up as to what was more important.

oOo

"WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?! CAN'T YOU SEE HE'S IN PAIN! WE HAVE TO LEAVE! YOU DIDN'T SAY ANYTHING ABOUT THIS LIZARD SPITTING NASTY SALIVA!"

Lopez rolled his eyes as Nedry's voice grew more alarmed with each passing second. Nedry took a deep breath and tried to control his anger from seeing Lopez act nonchalant. The emergency situation grew worse with Lawala's painful screams and wails. Worst of all, no one was doing anything about it.

"Raúl, stop playing! I know you can hear me. This is serious—what if he dies? We came here to kidnap a lizard and now one of our own is hurt. How can you stand there like this! Damn you, say something!"

Finally, Lopez spoke. His voice was cryptic and he sounded like he was reading from a textbook. "Paleontologists have speculated that some dinosaurs were poisonous. We know now that dilophosaurus is one of them."

"Stop it!" Nedry demanded. "George needs our help."

"Spitting blinding venom to disable its prey, I find it fascinating."

"Fascinating?! You find it fascinating?"

"Calm down."

"FASCINATE THIS!"

Nedry punched Lopez in the face, blood spewed out from his nose.

Lopez caressed his beard and snapped out of his trance. He looked around at his surroundings, the luscious jungle, the tall green ferns, the thick vines, and the jungle river that gurgled several feet away. In front of him, Tembo got the dinosaur to the ground and Sonya fired at nearby dilophosaurs, to ensure they'd stay back.

"Are you going to help him or just stand there?"

Lopez glared hatefully at him. "You're not in charge," he snarled.

Frustrated, Nedry threw his hands in the air. "Stop power-tripping. This isn't about who's in charge. George needs our help, what the hell happened to him?! You should know."

"You have eyes to see or are you blind too?" Lopez realized the meaning of what he said and busted out laughing. "I'm sorry, that was bad."

Nedry's eyes widened behind his glasses and he shook his head. With a heavy heart, he went to Lawala, knowing what he had to do.

oOo

Lawala would've heard Nedry shouting at Lopez, if his screams didn't drown everything out. He tried to calm himself down, but it was impossible. The pain was unbearable. From the moment the dilophosaur spat in his eyes, it felt like heated needles were being pressed into his eyeballs. He tried dousing his eyes with water from the jungle river, but the more water he threw in his face, the worse it stung like a hive of bees stinging his skin and eyes repeatedly. Then Lawala tried opening his eyes and received the worst fright in his entire life.

Blackness. Empty blackness with flashing spots of light.

The dinosaur had blinded him with its venomous saliva.

Despite his screams, he wondered vaguely if there was a cure, a solution that he could take to dissolve the poisonous spit. Lawala was in the middle of sinking further into his never-ending fear when he felt his arms pinned at his sides. With all his strength, he lashed out and his clenched fist connected with someone's jaw. He had no idea who it was and he was sorry if he hurt the person, but he knew he would feel sorrier for himself if Fate decided that he never saw with his own eyes again.

Lawala's throat grew sore from screaming. He breathed rapidly and his head pounded with a new headache. It felt like an iron weight dropped on his skull, crushing it into fragments that stabbed his forehead. Dizzy with fear, he staggered against a tree and threw up. The sour stench of vomit invaded his nostrils and he threw up again, this time on his clothes. His throat was thick with vomit and bitter saliva; he couldn't scream anymore.

Lawala stumbled and then felt his arms pinned at his sides again. He struggled against the hold, but felt himself grow weaker. The grip didn't loosen, but held him tighter and he stopped fighting against whoever held him.

"Stop it, we're getting you help," a voice said. "How many fingers am I holding up?"

Lawala shook his head violently.

"It's going to be okay," the voice continued and Lawala thought it sounded like Nedry; he had a distinct voice. "Take a deep breath and calm down—I know that's easier said than done."

Lawala did the best he could to turn in the direction of the voice.

"I'm taking you to the jeep."

A hand grabbed his wrist and led him forward. His feet sank in the soft mud, but he continued onward, slightly relieved that he was finally getting assistance.

"Is it painful?" The voiced asked and Lawala heard a genuine note of concern.

"Extremely," he answered and realized it was the first time he had spoken clearly since the attack.

"I don't know why Henry cloned lizards that spit poison. Maybe he didn't realize it at the time," the voice said casually.

Despite the excruciating pain and extreme terror he was experiencing, Lawala forced himself to smile. Nedry was the only one he knew that constantly referred to Lopez's beloved dinosaurs as "lizards." He was also amazed at how every noise around him had heightened. He heard a car door open and felt his body lifted and placed into a seat. Lawala laid his head back on the leather cushion and breathed slowly. Nedry leaned over him and the seatbelt was pressed against his chest. There was a faint click as the seatbelt secured him in the passenger side. The window on his side was rolled down and then the door slammed shut. Then he heard Nedry get in the seat next to him and slam the door. A low click sounded in front of him and keys jingled, followed by the deep rumbling noise as the jeep was started. Lawala felt himself in motion and suddenly the jeep halted. His back hit the seat and he heard another vehicle pull up and the sound of a window reeling down.

"You again!" a woman's voice said incredulously.

Lawala recognized Ellie Sattler's voice, she sounded angry.

"Yeah, it's me again."

"What the hell are you doing here?"

"I'd love to sit and chat with you about why I came to visit this beautiful island paradise, but my friend needs immediate medical attention."

Lawala smiled when he heard Nedry's biting tone mixed with calm words.

"Hello Alexis," Nedry said sweetly.

"Hello Mr. Nedry." Lawala heard the tension in Lex's voice. It sounded like she had forced herself to speak.

"How's your grandpa?"

Silence followed.

"Lex, Mr. Nedry asked you a question," Ellie said rigidly.

"He's fine."

"Good to know."

More silence.

Stop yapping and get me the hell out of here, Lawala wanted to shout, but he couldn't bring himself to whisper a syllable.

Then Ellie spoke, her voice softer. "What happened to him?"

"The stupid lizard blinded him with science. I don't know if there's a cure, but I'm heading to the visitor center to find out. Care to help?"

"Not really. Not after the crap you, him, and your scumbag team pulled here last time."

Lawala pictured Ellie pointing at them like a prosecutor pointing at a guilty defendant.

"I prize your honesty, really I do, but I gotta get going."

Ellie sighed. "I'll let them know you're on your way there."

"Thanks, Dr. Sattler."

Then the jeep was in motion again and Lawala heard Ellie drive off.

"Well, that's that. You okay, George?"

"I'm as good as can be expected." Then a weird question dawned on him. He had no idea why he asked it. Maybe to take his mind off the intense pain. "What's my codename?"

The jeep made a sharp turn and Lawala grabbed the seatbelt.

"Codename?"

"Yeah. Earlier you called Sonya 'Lara Croft' and she in turn christened you 'Dennis the Menace."

Nedry laughed as he steered the jeep. "That's me; I'm a menace…to InGen and Lopez too, if you really want the God honest truth. But for you, hmmm, how does 'Beast Master' sound?"

Lawala coughed and offered a half-hearted smile.

"I take that as a yes, you like the new name."

Lawala nodded.

"Good, we're almost there, Beast Master. Take it easy."

They didn't speak for the rest of the time in the jeep.

oOo

"I just got word from Dr. Sattler that he's on his way," Muldoon said. He sat back in his swiveling chair and propped up his legs on the desk in the control room.

"He is?" Arnold asked, hoping it wasn't true. He turned off the computer video monitors.

"Yeah, someone got injured. I think she said it was Lawala."

Arnold observed the indifferent manner in which Muldoon spoke. Didn't Lawala mean something to him if he knew him from the past? From the way Muldoon carried on, it didn't seem like it. Then again, Muldoon gave off that impression sometimes to throw people off. He was a serious level-headed man and never showed his fear or anger unless he was pushed far enough.

"He better not storm through here expecting us to help him." Arnold stubbed his cigarette in the ashtray next to his keyboard.

There was a sudden loud banging from outside the control room.

Arnold and Muldoon glanced at each other, silently daring each other to answer the door. Muldoon took off his fedora and placed it on the desk. The banging continued.

"God help us all," Muldoon muttered.

Arnold sighed. He reached under his desk to press a button and the control room buzzed open. The button was used to grant visitors access to the control room and a precaution in case the staff's security cards failed.

Nedry rushed into the control room and pulled Lawala along. He caught his breath and gestured wildly at Lawala whose eyes were covered with what appeared to be black molasses.

"You have to help him! The stupid lizard spat goop in his eyes and now he can't see anything and he's in lots of pain. You have to do something!"

Arnold stared through Nedry as if he were glass.

Muldoon watched silently. He sniffed and wrinkled his nose. A sharp odor permeated the control room. It smelled like dried vomit. He saw that Arnold smelled it too because he kept turning his head, searching for the source of the stench. It's the dilophosaur's saliva, Muldoon thought. And Lawala's shirt was stained with sticky vomit.

"Who says we have to help you with anything?" Arnold asked coldly.

Nedry looked at Arnold as if he had four legs and ten arms. "He's been attacked by that thing—you can't just leave him like this!"

"Maybe we can; after all, you trespassed on private property." Arnold stood up from his computer console.

"Meaning what?"

"Meaning you're not welcome here. Meaning we don't have to do a damn thing for you or him."

"Son of a bitch, you wouldn't."

Arnold lit a cigarette and puffed in his direction. "I would."

Nedry stared at him, not saying a word.

Muldoon watched the panic sweep over Nedry's face. He focused on Lawala who stood silent, listening to everything that transpired.

"That's wrong, Ray, and you know it," Nedry said quietly. He waited, wanting to say more and then turned around to leave the control room when Muldoon spoke.

"We'll help you."

Arnold whipped around, shocked by Muldoon's pronouncement.

"You will?" Nedry asked slowly, not sure if his ears had heard right.

"We'll get him the medical attention he needs…on one condition."

"What is it? He doesn't have all day," Nedry snapped.

"Turn yourself in."

Nedry's jaw dropped.

Muldoon maintained his stolid position.

"You wanna do the honors, Robert?" Nedry held out his wrists. "Stupid jerk."

"I would in a heartbeat."

"You have a huge stick up your righteous-ass. Are you still waiting for Ray to pull it out for you?"

"You better check your tone if you still want us to help your friend," Arnold warned.

Nedry rolled his eyes as if Arnold's words were air. Lawala groaned and he snatched his wrist ready to lead him out of the control room.

"When was he hit?" Muldoon asked.

Arnold watched Muldoon closely. It was obvious that he had softened up, but not to the point where he was clay for Nedry to mold. Muldoon kept glancing at Lawala between his conversations with Nedry. He's concerned, Arnold thought, even if he doesn't say it straight out.

"A half hour ago."

"I see."

"How much time does he have?"

"We have anti-venin in the park to dissolve the poison. He was hit in the last thirty minutes, so I'd say he has an hour and a half."

Nedry pushed open the control room's door. "Then we have to get it right away."

"It's all over the park just in case."

Nedry sighed. "Look, he needs your help. I'm not playing this game with you today. If you can call Gerry to get this poison out of his eyes, I'll leave the island—I swear. I'm asking for you to help George. Why can't you understand that?"

Silence in the control room.

"Call Gerry," Muldoon said. "Tell him to come to the visitor center right away."

Arnold nodded. "Will do." He dialed Harding's number on the phone and waited.

Muldoon took the lead out of the control room. Nedry followed him pulling Lawala gently along.

"Meet us down in the emergency bunker," Muldoon called over his shoulder.

oOo

Why did Dennis have to be so hostile and defiant? Lawala thought as he felt himself lifted into the air and laid out on a gurney. To quell his fears, they had told him where they were taking him and what exactly was going to happen. Lawala was thankful for their assistance. He didn't want to hear anymore squabbling. In the control room, Nedry had argued enough with the two men—Robert and Ray.

He knew Nedry had been doing the best he could given the circumstances, but the more he argued in the control room, the more Lawala was afraid that the park staff wouldn't help him. He wanted to shout at Nedry to shut up, because you didn't get anywhere by being rude and arrogant. If they had left him to suffer with the pain and blindness, he would've accepted his part in bringing about his fate. Thankfully, they had decided to give him the help he needed.

Lawala exhaled slowly when he felt straps pulled taut across his chest, arms, and legs. His eyes were still ablaze with sharp pain. Empty black space was all he could see. Lawala exhaled again, slower than before, and clenched his fists.

He heard voices above him. Nedry's, the man who had said they didn't have to help since they had trespassed on private property—Ray Arnold. Lawala recognized his voice now. There was another man's voice who spoke quickly about applying the anti-venin. Lawala tried to match the voice with a person, but he couldn't. He didn't think he had met this man before. That must be "Gerry."

Then there was the other man.

He instantly recognized this particular man from the moment he spoke. Lawala knew that bass voice anywhere. Memories of hunting in Africa flooded his mind when he listened to him speak. The man had a thick accent and a serious tone whenever he spoke. It was this voice that Nedry had quarreled with. He had words with Arnold, but it wasn't the same. Lawala vowed to find out why Nedry had a conflict with the man. It was long and drawn out, as if they hated each other in another lifetime and carried their animosity over to the next phase. What was his name? Lawala wondered. Robert. Robert what? His last name slipped Lawala's memory. When he least expected it—

"Okay, I need you to open your eyes as wide as you can," a low voice told him. "It's going to be painful, but you have to do it."

It sounded like the fourth man: Gerry Harding.

Lawala nodded. He was willing to do anything to get rid of the pain and regain his sight. He blinked and felt his eyelids weighed down by the thick saliva.

"Open your eyes," the voice said again.

Lawala opened his eyes wide. His heart bounced in his chest when he was met with the unrelenting blackness of being blind. He ignored the stabbing pain and swallowed the growing lump of terror in his throat.

"This'll sting for just a minute, but I promise it's not as bad as the dilo saliva."

"What's in it?" Lawala choked out.

"Several chemicals that are known to dissolve most reptilian poisons. I can't think of the names off the top of my head, but trust me, it works. We've used it on maintenance workers who've been in your shoes. Take a deep breath and relax. The worst has passed."

Lawala exhaled and inhaled in a steady rhythm. He allowed himself to sink into the gurney. Then he felt a tiny droplet in his left eye. It was cool and ticklish. Four more droplets were administered. Lawala instinctively shut his eye.

"Keep your left eye open for one more second."

Three more droplets and then Lawala felt a lukewarm cloth placed over his left eye.

"Hold that, Robert," Harding directed.

Lawala felt a hand press down on the cloth. He heard the sound of footsteps and figured Harding had moved around in the room. He sensed Harding lean over him on his right side.

"We're going to repeat the process. Nothing to it…"

Lawala felt the cold droplets again, this time in his right eye. A damp cloth was placed on his right eye and held in place.

"How much longer?" Nedry asked.

"Be patient and wait," Arnold snapped.

Lawala pictured Harding looking at his watch. It was strange how his imagination provided vivid images of what was taking place to make up for the loss of his sight.

"Five minutes. The solution will dissolve the saliva, thin it down so that it comes right off. It'll kill off the toxins that cause the blindness."

They waited.

These are the five longest minutes of my entire life, Lawala thought.

It seemed like an hour had passed when Harding finally told Muldoon to remove the cloth. The cloth was gently rubbed against his eyes and slowly the thick goo thinned, as Harding said it would. Both cloths were removed and Lawala blinked. It felt like the Sandman had paid a visit and put tiny sand particles around the eyes. Lawala blinked again and his heart skipped several beats. He was able to make out the ceiling; it was off-white like dairy eggs. A faint light hung overhead and grew brighter every moment. Then Lawala's eyes watered with tears and he blinked them away. A lone tear rolled down his cheek.

"That's a side-effect," Harding said. "It's the solution and your joy at seeing the world again. You're going to be fine."

Lawala twisted in the gurney to see him so he could thank him for restoring his sight. Every second, the images in the room grew sharper and brighter. He heard water running from a faucet from behind.

"Hello George," a voice said above him.

Lawala looked up, thankful that he could finally see everyone around him. As his brown eyes met the piercing blue ones, he was finally able to remember the man's name.

"Robert Muldoon?"

"George Lawala."

"It's been so long…"

"It has."

"My name's Dennis Nedry and we've been here long enough."

Lawala turned in his direction and saw Nedry glaring at Muldoon, who ignored him. Muldoon leaned over and undid the straps that held Lawala down to the gurney. He sat up and took in the entire room: it was a medium sized bunker that could hold twenty people at most. Incandescent lights were attached to the ceiling giving the room a strange glow. Two beds, one dresser, a refrigerator, and three filing cabinets. There was a glass case of various rifles and guns, canisters and rockets. Must be Muldoon's, Lawala thought smiling. Muldoon loves weapons, he never has enough.

"You've outdone your welcome. It's time for you to leave," Arnold said to Nedry.

Lawala glanced at him and Arnold nodded in return as if to say: yeah that goes for you and Dennis, now get out. He got off the gurney and approached Harding, his arm outstretched. He wanted to thank him for his generosity. Harding has his back turned; he was still washing his hands. Nedry stepped in front of Lawala.

"You thanked him and wished him well. It's time to say good-bye to this miserable place," he said, blocking Lawala's path.

Lawala sighed. He wanted to stay around and speak to Muldoon. Catch up with him about what's new and reminisce about their rivalry in Africa. It was a friendly rivalry that had turned ugly because of their power struggle, Lawala knew. Despite their past, he was still shocked to see Muldoon. When they had last parted ways, it had been on amiable terms. Lawala wanted to leave on the same note this time around.

"Five minutes, Dennis," he asked and rubbed his eyes. Nedry stepped out of his way. "Thank you. Robert, good to see you after all this time," Lawala started. He stopped when he saw Muldoon's cold stare directed at Nedry.

"Good to see you too. It's time you leave now."

Lawala was taken back by his frosty response, but let it go. It's between these two and it's better to leave it that way. He started towards the door with Nedry when he heard Muldoon ask:

"Where's the rest of your team?"

"They're still at the dilophosaur paddock. Why?" Lawala wondered.

"We're going with you," Muldoon said and he took out a ring of keys that were used to access the weapons inside the glass case.

Lawala nodded.

"You're the nosiest bastard," Nedry said. "Mind your damn business!"

"This park is my business," Muldoon said. "Let's go."

Lawala heard Nedry mutter under his breath: "Get a life, you kiss-ass bastard."

oOo

Harding drove in silence. Lawala and Muldoon sat in the backseat, talking awkwardly. Arnold had chosen to stay behind in the control room ("Wise man," Muldoon had told him.) Harding glanced in the rearview mirror and saw the jeep behind him. Nedry chose to drive back in the same jeep that he drove Lawala in. It worked out since it kept him and Muldoon from exchanging heated words and physical blows. Harding had a feeling that one day a fight would break out between Muldoon and Nedry. There was too much tension and animosity between them and it was bound to happen sooner or later. He suspected Muldoon felt the same way, which would explain why he wanted the Biosyn team off the island as soon as possible.

They soon came upon the dilophosaur paddock and trampled over the destroyed electrified fence. Harding parked nearby. Nedry parked inside the enclosure and got out. He and Lawala went ahead while Muldoon and Harding stayed several feet back talking quietly.

"You did well back there, Robert," Harding said.

"Thanks," Muldoon said as he watched Nedry go into the paddock with Lawala.

"I know it's not easy with Dennis and his stupid games."

"It never will be."

"But you know, he really shocked me today," Harding continued. "That was big on his part to bring Lawala in."

Muldoon shook his head. "If it was the InGen staff, he wouldn't give a damn about our welfare."

Harding shielded his eyes from the glaring sun."He's not—"

"He only cares about himself," Muldoon cut him off. "He wants to see his money at the end of the day, screw anybody who gets hurt. Why do you think George was brought to us? So that he could make himself look good. Don't be fooled by his bloody antics."

Harding didn't say anything as Muldoon marched into the paddock. He heard honking and hooting coming from inside the enclosure. He followed Muldoon and heard what was agitating the dinosaurs (aside from the earlier human intrusion): an argument between Nedry and Lopez.

oOo

"We're not doing this, Raúl," Nedry said, pointing at the dilophosaur. He glanced at Tembo, who rested one boot on the sedated dinosaur. The animal lay on its side, motionless ever since Sonya and he had tranquilized it. The rest of the animals in the paddock were scattered throughout the dense jungle, frightened and incensed to attack. "And what are you doing?"

"This is my triumphant pose."

"Really? More like your poacher pose."

Nedry went back to arguing with Lopez and missed the glare Tembo shot in his direction. "Maybe you didn't hear me the first time: we're not doing this."

"Yes, we are," Lopez growled. "We came here for a reason and that dinosaur is it."

"Then why the hold up?"

Lopez pouted like a five-year-old being told by his insistent mother that he had to finish his homework before going outside to play. "Because I want another one, that's why."

"You got what you came for, now let's go."

"I want another one."

"You're not getting another one and we're not taking that spitting lizard with us anyway. We'll tell Dodgson the mission was aborted."

"Like hell we are."

Lopez stood face to face with Nedry, daring him to defy his wishes. Nedry kicked the dilophosaur's head and Lopez pushed him back.

"Don't touch her!"

"Or what? What are you going to do about it? Call the animal rights activists because I'm abusing your stupid lizard!"

"Don't do that," Lopez whispered.

"I'll do it if I feel like it." Nedry kicked the dilophosaur again.

Tembo said, "It's not right to kick an animal when she's down."

"Yeah, look who's talking," Nedry snapped. "That's what Raúl did while George was in pain. So shut up."

"Who are you telling to shut up?" Tembo snarled. "Don't start something you can't finish, Dennis."

"I'm telling you to shut up—and you too, Dr. Lopez."

"I'm taking her with me," Lopez said.

"No, you're not."

"I am."

"Not if I can help it."

Lopez chuckled. "You have no idea what I'll do to get her off this island."

"I don't want to know. All I know is we're not taking her. She's staying right here with her spitting pals."

Muldoon watched Nedry and Lopez argue, intrigued. Harding also observed silently. They were like the audience at a Broadway play, hypnotized by the dramatic scene played out in front them.

Lopez gestured for Sonya to come over. "Sonya, you and Roland can place the specimen in the holding box. Is she tranquilized enough to make the full trip?"

"She's taking some zzzz's. She'll behave herself the entire trip. If not, then she gets another dosage." She went over to Lawala, who stood back watching everyone. "We missed you Georgy-Porgy, how're your eyes?"

"Great now that I can look at you," Lawala said.

Sonya pursed her lips. "You missed it, you were so busy hollering and whooping that you missed the action!"

"I was a part of the action."

"Yeah but…" Sonya glanced at Tembo, who kept his boot pressed on the dilophosaur's neck. "Roland and I will tell you later. Right, Rolling Thunder?"

"Sure thing," Tembo said.

Muldoon found himself growing irritated just watching Tembo. Why did he have to pose like that? As if the dinosaur was a conquest, a prize to be won. The animal lay helpless at his feet and he seemed to take great joy in the fact that he could stand over it. Harding suddenly elbowed Muldoon and pointed in Lopez's and Nedry's direction. Their arguing was getting louder and it was obvious that they weren't going to compromise with each other.

"I know why this issue bothers you, Dennis. It's because the dinosaur reminds you of yourself. It's all psychological really," Lopez tapped his temples indicating his brain.

"The stupid lizard reminds me of myself, yeah okay. Tell me another one."

"It does." Lopez nodded. "The dinosaur was locked up and then we came to free it. Just like when you were locked up and Sonya and I came to free you. You had some anxiety because you were used to being caged like an animal. You wanted to stay locked up, right?"

"That's low," Harding said, shaking his head. "That's wrong of him to even bring that up."

Muldoon nodded, but was unsure of what he really felt. He could hear himself saying the same words, but the way Lopez said it—it got under his skin and he couldn't understand why. Nedry stared blankly at Lopez. He was obviously upset, and for the first time since Muldoon could remember, Nedry was silent. Then as they watched, amazed, Lopez pointed out what happened in a loud voice for everyone to hear.

"I found your Achilles Heel. Don't like to be reminded of your incarceration, do you?" Lopez grinned. "I'm locked up, they won't let me out."

Nedry chewed his lower lip and then met Muldoon's gaze. "What are you looking at, jack-ass?!"

Muldoon said nothing and Harding shook his head again.

"So does the dilophosaur remind you of yourself?" Lopez asked.

"You're full of crap," Nedry said in a low voice.

"We're going to start packing up our parcel for delivery."

"Alright Captain Ahab, you and the Crocodile Hunter." Nedry pointed at Tembo. "Take back the stupid lizard, because I'm not touching it."

Lopez started towards the team when he heard gunshot close by. He spun around, searching for the source. It was Muldoon.

"Get out and stay the hell out!" Muldoon shouted.

"We're gettin' out, but we ain't stayin' out!" Sonya yelled back.

"Get out—NOW!"

"Or else?" Lopez dared.

"I'm calling the Costa Rican police to come over here and arrest all of you."

Tembo grabbed the animal's tail and dragged it over to the large open crate. Sonya and Lawala joined him in lifting up the dinosaur.

"What are you going to arrest us for?" Tembo asked as he neared Muldoon.

"Trespassing on private property and disturbing the peace."

"Like there's ever any peace in this place," Nedry muttered.

Tembo narrowed his eyes suspiciously and then sneered. "Robert Muldoon, we're both pros in our field of work. I've heard a lot about you—you're the so-called great white hunter from Kenya. The name's Roland Tembo. Our reputations precede us."

"You're a poacher in the bush," Muldoon said, glaring at him.

"So the rumor goes." Tembo held out his hand. "Let's shake on it."

"Let's not."

Tembo took a step back, repelled by Muldoon's iciness. "Now that we've finally had a chance to meet face to face, I can tell that you're nobody special. I could have your job here."

Muldoon said nothing, but the tight expression never left his face.

Tembo, with Lawala's assistance, tied the dinosaur's hind legs together and then wrapped thick twine around its jaws to keep them closed. Lopez and Sonya held the crate open. The dilophosaur was shoved and locked in. Two holes the size of saucers had been cut on each side so that air could circumvent in the small space. Sonya, Lopez, and Tembo mounted the crate onto the back of the truck, with Lopez getting in the driver's seat. Nedry and Lawala got into the same jeep, ready to leave the island.

Harding and Muldoon watched silently. Both wondered how they would tell Hammond about what happened and without communicating it aloud they knew the answer already: they wouldn't tell Hammond anything. Muldoon knew it was wrong, but Arnold and he had agreed last time that Hammond could never be told the actual truth of what was going on when he and Henry Wu weren't there. He'd be infuriated and we'd never hear the end of it, Muldoon thought. Or worse, he would blame us for not watching his park. He looked up when he heard the jeep start. Nedry sat in the driver's seat, next to Lawala. He turned to Muldoon, a wide smirk on his face.

"Robert, when was the last time you really washed your face?"

Muldoon furrowed his eyebrows, confused by what Nedry meant.

"I ask because you stink of Hammond's shit. You've been kissing his ass too much. I'm just telling you for your own good."

Nedry snickered and Muldoon watched him, irritated by his childish humor. Then he came up with his own comeback.

"Are your knees tired from being in the same position? Did Dodgson buy you knee pads to make it easier for you and him?"

Nedry's jaw dropped as if he couldn't believe that Muldoon, of all people, would dare imply that he was doing more than simply working for Dodgson. "You dirty bastard," Nedry growled, as he turned on the ignition. "Go change Hammond's diaper—and while you're at it, dance ballet in the raptor pen."

"Do me a favor and test the electrified fence. The staff and I want to make sure that it's really ten thousand volts. You'll get a dollar for each volt."

Nedry yawned and stretched his arms. "I'd love to test it, but not today. Some other day when I feel like it. We're leaving now, you big bully."

Tembo's jeep followed, driven by Lopez. Sonya blew a kiss to Muldoon. I know her too, Muldoon thought. I'm running into everyone from my past. Both jeeps drove down the dirt road and headed towards the east dock.

Harding watched until they disappeared and then turned to Muldoon. "What a day," he murmured.

"And it isn't even over yet," Muldoon said. "Let's head back to the visitor center. They'll need our help there."

Muldoon drove back and Harding sat on the passenger side. Harding was shocked by everything he saw today, but something didn't make sense.

"Why didn't you pursue it? It doesn't seem like you to give up."

Muldoon kept his eyes on the road. "I didn't give up. They'll be back again and next time we'll be ready for them. They may have gotten away today, but next time is the last time they pull this game."

"What about John?"

Muldoon sighed and shook his head. "He can't know about this."

"Again, you're keeping it from him?" There was a note of disbelief in Harding's voice.

"We don't have a choice."

"That's not true."

"It is. It's damned if you do, damned if you don't. I choose 'don't.'"

Harding stared at Muldoon, not believing what he was saying. "You can't be serious, Robert. He's going to see that fence and ask about it, just as he did with Henry's lab."

"Don't remind me."

"But if you tell him—"

"I'm not saying a bloody word. If we tell him what happened, he'll flip out and blame us. If we don't, then he doesn't have to know—and that works for me."

Harding nodded and they rode in silence to the visitor center. Both men knew they had to repair the fence before Hammond saw it.

oOo

They boarded the large vessel that had been paid for courtesy of Biosyn. As Isla Nublar's east dock receded in the distance, Lopez went down into the cabin to check up on the dilophosaur. He had requested that everyone watch the dinosaur. Take turns; rotate shifts, as long as it was still breathing by the time they reached Cupertino.

Lawala watched Lopez race downstairs and then turned to Tembo and Sonya who devoured oranges. Nedry stood next to him, staring out into the ocean.

"You don't know what you missed," Sonya said through a mouthful of orange. She swallowed and wiped her mouth. "Want one, Georgy?" She ripped the skin off another orange.

Lawala shook his head. "I'm not hungry after today."

"Dennis?" Sonya held the fruit to him.

"No."

"Suit yourself." She bit into the fruit and spat the seeds into the water.

"You were a great distraction," Tembo said, as he carefully sliced off the orange's skin with a knife. "You know that, right?"

Lawala gestured to himself as if questioning Tembo's words.

"Yes you; I'm talking to you. Who else?" Tembo munched on his orange; the juices slid down his chin. "It was a thrill a minute—"

"A second!" Sonya said, pumping her fist in the air. "I love that feeling when you don't know if you're going to make it out alive. Death is screaming in your face and you're shouting back—that's the life!"

Tembo nodded in agreement.

"By the way, George…you scream like a girl." She elbowed him playfully in the ribs.

Nedry took off his glasses and wiped them. He pretended not to listen, although he was alert of the conversation taking place around him.

Yeah, it was fun, Lawala thought, annoyed by Tembo's and Sonya's superficial behavior. He felt a tinge of bitterness and swallowed it down. His incident made the mission more exciting for them. Would you feel the same way if it had been you? The question was on his tongue to ask Tembo and Sonya, but he thought better of it. Then he wondered if he was upset that he had lost the bet.

"One million dollars," he muttered, shaking his head.

"You were so busy screaming like a banshee and Dennis was trying to help you. That brought us time to corner the dilo." Tembo slapped Lawala's back in a friendly gesture. "Any distraction is good. This was better than the lousy interview," he said, referring to Howard King.

Lawala looked at him, an amused glint in his eye. "Don't mention it," he said and heard Nedry sigh.

"What's your problem?" Tembo asked, gesturing with the orange. "You're mad because you weren't the center of attention. We know how much you love fighting with Muldoon. There's always next time, right?"

"Next time, he's all yours," Nedry said. He stormed off to the bow of the large vessel.

Sonya watched him leave and a candy sweet smile beamed across her face.

"We love you, George. Don't scare us like that again. We need you around when we do these insane heists for Lew."

"There's always next time," Lawala said in a low voice. "Excuse me."

He left Sonya standing with Tembo. They watched him head towards the bow.

"You know, that was the most exciting hunt I've had in a long time," Tembo said, watching Lawala. He turned to Sonya. "It's good to see a woman who can carry her weight in the bush."

"I'm the best guide period—never mind 'best female guide of the Tanganyika'."

"You think so?"

"I know so."

"How much do you want to wager for that one?"

"I'm calling the shots and trust me; you won't be able to pay up."

Tembo was pleasantly startled. "That's what you think, Sonya."

He put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close. Sonya glanced at it and leaned close towards his face. She smelled the earth on his skin and his adrenaline. It was a sweaty smell and she loved it. Sonya pushed his hand off and went down to the cabin. She turned around to grin at him and then continued. Tembo decided to follower her…slowly, but surely.

"I'm going on a woman-hunt."

oOo

Lawala approached Nedry who leaned over the deck. He looked like he wanted to be alone, but he turned around when he heard Lawala's light footsteps.

"You're good," Lawala said.

Nedry shrugged. "It's nothing. Being locked up makes you hypersensitive to sounds around you."

"Same with being blind," Lawala said.

He reflected on Nedry's words. Why did Lopez pull that with him? It wasn't necessary. Lopez is a jack-ass, he thought. He joined Nedry, but knew to keep his distance.

"How're your eyes?" Nedry asked. He kept his gaze on the calm ocean.

"They're good—thanks for asking."

Nedry nodded.

"I wanted to know…" Lawala said slowly. How could he approach this without pissing Nedry off?

"As long as it's not your typical 'what's it like being in the slammer' type question, you can ask whatever the hell you like."

"Not a problem. I wasn't going to ask that."

"Oh."

Lawala thought he sounded shocked and relieved. He pressed forward. "Why don't you and Robert Muldoon get along?"

Nedry didn't say anything for a moment. He fixed his collar, refusing to look at Lawala. "You're close to him, aren't you?"

"Don't answer question with a question," Lawala said, picking at the paint peeling off the deck's railing.

"What do you want me to tell you? That we're best friends who exchanged baseball cards when we were in diapers?"

"Why did you argue with him?"

"Because he was being his usual self—a holier-than-thou shithead."

"He helped me."

"After him and I exchanged words, yeah, that's when he helped you."

"You didn't have to do that," Lawala said.

"I did. Be thankful that you can see again."

An awkward moment of silence. The ocean's waves rose and fell in even rhythm.

"I don't understand why you argued with him afterwards," Lawala emphasized.

Nedry shrugged. "That? He loves it; trust me, it's all in fun."

I don't believe that for one second, Lawala thought, folding his arms across his chest. The determination and fierceness he had possessed earlier when pursuing the dinosaur had diminished and now Nedry's flippancy annoyed him. He was capable of badgering Nedry to the point where he could get the info he wanted, but he had no desire to press him to that point. At the same time, he wouldn't allow him to badmouth Muldoon.

"He's not what you say he is."

"Then what is he?" Nedry asked. "He's your friend, isn't he? You and him have a shared past, ancient history. He was lost, but now found. Someone light up the fireworks."

Lawala shook his head. "You have so much hatred and bitterness towards him."

Nedry laughed. "You have no idea." Then he saw the solemn expression on Lawala's face. "I'm sorry. I know he means a lot to you, God knows why."

"I'll explain—"

"Some other day over roasted marshmallows," Nedry grinned and Lawala couldn't tell if he was laughing at him. "Your friend Robert—he's better off…"

"Better off what?" Lawala demanded.

"Better off drinking himself into a drunken stupor. Either that or fighting against his beloved raptors. He loves those dumb lizards."

Lawala glared at him. This wasn't the same Nedry who had helped him earlier.

"Speaking of which…" Nedry turned around quickly as if looking for something. "Wait here—I'm going to take care of that stupid lizard."

Lawala watched as he went downstairs into the cabin where the dinosaur was being held in its crate. What did Nedry plan on doing? Nedry returned, grinning wickedly.

"You got a tranquilizer gun? I'm gonna put her to sleep. Lopez will never notice."

Lawala glanced around the boat's deck and then bent down to retrieve his gun. He checked to make sure there were enough darts inside.

"Here," he said not looking at Nedry. He was furious with him for the biting tone he had used against Muldoon. Later on, I'll get the truth from him, Lawala thought and stared at the ocean that seemed to never end. The best way to thank Nedry was to give him his gun—so that he could take care of the "lizard". "And this is off the record."

"Of course." Nedry snatched the gun. "Be right back."

oOo

In the control room, Muldoon held Ellie's and Arnold's attention as he described the argument between Lopez and Nedry. Lex sat at Nedry's old workstation, playing solitaire on the computer. Harding had interjected to explain the situation in one word: riveting. Afterwards, he had left the control room to get dinner from the cafeteria.

"You should've seen the way they were biting each other's head off. They were like two raptors snapping and snarling at each other," Muldoon said.

Arnold snapped his lighter over a new cigarette. "I find it interesting that you compare them to raptors," he said.

"That's what it was like. Gerry was there. He'd tell you the same thing."

Arnold nodded and typed idly on his keyboard. Glancing at the video monitor, he saw the maintenance team still hadn't arrived at the paddock to repair the fence. Two hours had passed since the Biosyn team left and as soon as Muldoon and Harding had arrived in the control room, he had called up the maintenance team. They need to get a move on it before John returns, Arnold thought. Then he remembered that most of the maintenance staff wasn't on the island today. Muldoon had probably forgotten too, especially with getting help for Lawala. As for the dinosaurs, surprisingly, none of the dilophosaurs had left their area. For once, God is on our side, Arnold tapped his cigarette over the ashtray.

"Were you there, Ellie?" he asked.

Ellie stood near the entrance to the control room. "Not when they were arguing. I was there after Lawala got hit with the dilo saliva." She shrugged; not wanting to be involved in the situation. What will John say? She thought. That question plagued her mind and everyone else's, although nobody approached that topic directly. Maybe it's because Lex is listening.

"It was amazing," Muldoon said. "They were shredding each other to bits."

"No shit," Arnold replied. "Dennis isn't as sweet as a cupcake, so I'm not surprised that he got into it with someone from Biosyn."

"Yeah, but Lopez threw Nedry's incarceration in his face."

Arnold turned in his swiveling chair to Muldoon. "Are you for real?"

"I'm dead serious, that's when Dennis got quiet."

Arnold nodded. "That's probably a sore spot with him."

"It definitely is."

There was a sudden knock on the control room and Arnold's face blossomed new wrinkles when he saw who it was. Muldoon glanced over his shoulder and then looked at Arnold and Ellie.

"Bloody hell. Now we're going to hear about it."

Ellie turned around and saw John Hammond fumbling in his pocket for his security card. She closed her eyes not wanting to see Hammond at that moment. There was no telling if he'd seen the dilophosaur paddock. When did he get in? Nobody, not even Harding, had alerted them. That was strange, she thought. Henry's with him—so is Alan—

Hammond entered the control room, leaning on his cane. Henry Wu and Alan Grant trailed behind him. Muldoon and Arnold refused to look in their direction. Ellie glanced at Grant and he pretended to see right through her.

"Hi Grandpa," Lex said, smiling. She pulled away from the workstation and hugged Hammond briefly.

"Lex, dinner is prepared in the cafeteria. You run along; I'll meet with you shortly. Dr. Grant, why don't you go with her?"

Lex met Ellie's eyes to ask her if she was joining them. Ellie shook her head and Lex left the control room with Grant.

Hammond padded around the room and sat down in a swiveling chair catching his breath.

"Are you okay, Mr. Ham—" Wu started, but Hammond shook his head and clutched his cane.

"I'm fine, Henry, just fine. Take a seat. We all need to have a quick meeting." Wu sat next to Hammond.

Arnold, Ellie, and Muldoon glanced at each other.

"How was Sorna?" Ellie asked casually, hoping that Hammond would respond just as calmly.

"It was wonderful." His watery blue eyes swam behind his glasses and then froze over. "Henry and I are making lots of progress."

Wu nodded in agreement. "Dr. Grant was on site to provide his expertise."

"That's great to hear," Arnold said. He stubbed his cigarette in an ashtray and lit a new one.

"Don't smoke in my presence," Hammond said sharply.

Arnold blinked, surprised by Hammond's request, but honored it. He stubbed the new cigarette in the same ashtray and folded his hands on his lap. He's never said anything about it before. He probably knows about the fence...

"Now…I want answers from each of you," Hammond said slowly. "What happened down by the dilophosaur paddock today? I drove around with Henry and Dr. Grant only to find that section completely off from the rest of the park."

'Completely off' is putting it mildly, Muldoon thought as he felt his chest tighten with anxiety. He wished he could take a quick drink of liquor from his flask, but he knew he couldn't do it in front of Hammond.

"What happened down there today?" The ice in Hammond's voice had not melted.

Arnold stared at the floor and Muldoon stood with a blank expression.

"Well? What happened?"

"The fences," Ellie started. "They short circuited."

Hammond shook his head violently. "Dr. Sattler, this doesn't concern you. I appreciate you trying to explain what happened, but I'd like to know from my employees." He saw the stunned look on her face and quickly amended his words. "Taking care of this park is not your responsibility. It's theirs. Don't put it on your shoulders."

Ellie nodded and tied her blonde hair into a ponytail to distract herself from the heavy tension in the control room. I should've left with Lex. She hated to be involved in situations that involved the park staff versus John Hammond. She knew from past experience that it could get ugly. Last time, she had witnessed Hammond talk down to them in the cafeteria in front of everyone. He had a tender grandfatherly side to him, but he was also capable of being a cold corporate bully, who would shred his employees to smithereens to get his point across.

"That fence didn't just short circuit; it's been trampled over and destroyed," Hammond continued. "Is anyone going to explain this to me?"

Arnold and Muldoon remained silent.

No, because no answer will satisfy you, Ellie realized. If Robert says Biosyn invaded, then you'll ask why they weren't stopped. If Ray says it was an accident, you'll badger him and claim that there's no such thing as accidents on this island, even though you know you've had plenty of them. She sighed in frustration; it was the only sound in the control room.

Hammond glared at Arnold and Muldoon, oblivious to Ellie's sighing.

"We could've had numerous injuries today if those animals decided to roam around the park. Why wasn't anything done about this?"

There were injuries today, Arnold wanted to blurt out. He hated hearing the impatient tone in Hammond's voice. He glanced at Wu, who sat in Lex's chair, quiet and observing the situation. You're lucky you weren't here for this Henry, Arnold thought.

"Because if I had tranquilized all of them, you would complain nonstop about how I'm hurting your precious animals," Muldoon finally said.

Hammond's jaw dropped from hearing his boldness. "Do you know who you're speaking to? Do you know who I am?"

"Yes, Mr. Hammond, I know—"

"No, you don't know. If you knew you wouldn't be speaking to me in that tone."

"There wasn't anything in offensive in my tone."

Hammond bolted from the chair and rose up and down on the balls of his feet, as he did whenever he was angry. "Have you forgotten that you work for me?"

"No, I haven't forgotten," Muldoon said, trying to keep his temper in check. He studied the control room's floor pattern.

"What do I pay you for if you're not going to take care of my park and animals? I have Ray smoking a pack a day and you drinking your disgusting liquor—and on the job no less."

Muldoon's head snapped up. John knew?!

"I don't pay you to be a drunk," Hammond said coldly. "And I don't pay you to be a chain-smoker." He pointed at Arnold. "I pay you both to do your jobs as the park warden and chief engineer. If you can't do it or if the job is too stressful for you to handle, then turn your papers in. I'm not having this. I want that fence fixed within the hour. I don't know how long that fence was allowed to stay like that, but that's totally unacceptable and it's not happening again."

Hammond left the control room and slammed the door behind him.

Wu looked up. "Is there anything I can do to help?" he asked.

Muldoon shook his head. "No, we'll handle it. It's not your problem, so don't worry about it, but thanks Henry."

"No problem." Wu smiled.

Arnold dissected the cigarette he was going to light up. "So much for sending Dennis off the island in cuffs."

Muldoon digested what Arnold said and remembered what he said earlier. "I had forgotten about that." He shrugged. "He left with his party, so whatever." He took out his flask and was about to gulp down his liquor when Ellie approached him.

"I could use a drink too," she said.

Muldoon glanced at his flask and then handed it to her. "Finish it off. I'm filling it up with rum when you're through."

Ellie nodded, took a sip, and wiped her mouth. She gave him the flask. "Thanks, I needed that. You guys are coming to dinner?"

"We'll see you in a bit," Arnold said.

"Don't let it get you down. You have to take working for Hammond and living on this island day by day or it'll drive you crazy," Ellie said and smiled sadly as she left the control room. Muldoon stared after her and then scratched his head in thought.

"What happened today?" Wu asked. "Hammond was really on a rampage."

"When isn't he?" Muldoon muttered.

"Had a run in with Dennis and his gang," Arnold said, lighting a new cigarette.

"Again?" Wu's eyes widened in shock.

"Again," Muldoon said. "Once wasn't enough for him."

"Is my lab in good shape?"

"He wasn't near it—we weren't, I mean."

Wu sighed in relief. He remembered the last time he and Hammond had went to Isla Sorna to clone the new dinosaur species. When they had returned, his lab was in shambles.

"What's the deal with you and Lawala?" Arnold asked, puffing on his cigarette.

Muldoon thought about his question. He hadn't seen Lawala for years and he never would've expected to see him show up on Isla Nublar with Nedry and Biosyn. "I'll tell you some other time," he said. "Right now, I could use a vacation."

"We all could."

"I won't be able to take one until I get this fence fixed and ensure that the raptors are extinct again." Muldoon took out his walkie-talkie and opened the door. "I'll be on line one," he left the control room.

Arnold put his headset on.

"I take it I didn't miss anything," Wu said with half humor.

"Nothing except the daily dose of chaos that's the norm here," Arnold said. "Give me a few and I'll catch you up on the details."

Wu nodded. "Absolutely," he said and watched the monitor with Arnold.

oOo

Dodgson opened the door to the conference room. The team quietly filed in, each person kept to themselves. They had arrived from their mission two days ago. Howard King, Dodgson's personal assistant came in last, holding a black suitcase. The team sat down and Dodgson pointed at the middle of the long table. King silently placed the suitcase in clear sight for the team to see. Then he left the room.

"You can split your prize evenly," Dodgson said. He watched them carefully to see their reaction.

No one moved.

Dodgson closed the door and then turned back to the group.

Silence reigned.

"Fine, I'll do it," Nedry said. He reached across the table and yanked the suitcase. There was a loud metallic click.

Sonya and Tembo sat next to each other and whispered quietly as they watched Nedry flip open the suitcase. Lopez looked bored and Lawala yawned.

Suddenly, Nedry slammed the suitcase shut and shoved it back to the middle of the table. "Is this some kind of joke?"

Dodgson didn't respond.

The rest of the team was puzzled. Lopez sighed and reopened the suitcase. Tembo, Sonya, and Lawala leaned over.

Five American one dollar bills lay face up. George Washington's mint green image stared back at them.

"What the hell, Lew?" Tembo snapped.

"Where's our cash?" Lopez asked; his face paled in shock. "We got you what you wanted—"

"Sit the fuck down!" Dodgson pointed at Lopez who had stood up from his seat and approached him. "You sit down right now and I'll be more than happy to explain."

Sonya blinked when she heard the razor edge in Dodgson's tone. He wasn't pleased, to say the least. Lawala waited to see what Dodgson would say. Nedry shook his head in disbelief.

"You ripped us off!" Lopez complained. "After all the trash we went through because of him." He pointed at Nedry.

"You point the finger at me and the thumb points back at you, dumb-ass," Nedry said icily.

"You want to talk about being ripped off, Raúl?" Dodgson asked and Lopez looked at him when he heard his name. "I'll tell you what being ripped off is. It's when you send a team, the best there is, to do a simple assignment, and they bring back crap. That's what being ripped off is." Dodgson's gray eyes glistened dangerously behind his black shades.

"How can you say that after we brought you a healthy dilophosaur," Lopez continued. "Didn't you see her? We put her in the animal unit in the cage."

"Stop whining," Nedry said, smirking.

Lopez glared at him and bit his lip.

"Both of you shut the fuck up," Dodgson demanded. Then in a calm voice, he said, "Yes, I saw her. Let me make one thing clear to you—to all of you. I thought I was crystal about this before, but apparently I was wrong."

Silence.

"When I send you out on these missions to Isla Nublar, I expect you to come back with a live dinosaur. Is that hard to understand?"

"No, Dr. Dodgson, but if you'd allow us to explain," Lopez started again, but Dodgson shook his head.

"It has to be alive. No excuses."

"We did, don't we still get paid?" Sonya asked.

"You don't get paid unless you bring a live specimen back," Dodgson fired. "No live animal, no pay."

"That's impossible," Lopez whispered. "She was alive."

"'Was' is correct. Because she's not anymore," Dodgson said and turned around to leave the conference room. Let them sit there and think about what they've done.

"What about Lawala's injury?" Nedry asked. "Doesn't he get compensation?"

"I wasn't aware," Dodgson said coldly. He turned around and fished in his wallet. "Here," he said and slammed a ten dollar bill on the table next to Lawala. "That should cover it." Then he stormed out of the room leaving the team in shocked silence.

"This doesn't make sense," Lopez said. "I know that animal was breathing when we brought her over."

Tembo looked from Nedry to Lopez. Then he glanced at Sonya. Do you feel what's about to happen? He mouthed to her. Sonya nodded. Oh yeah, she definitely feels it.

"Forget it, Raúl. We'll get another one next time."

"That's not the point. When did this happen?"

Nedry got up. "I couldn't do it when we were on the boat, so I did it later. You were guarding Lulu the Lizard with your life so when we got to headquarters, I pumped her full of tranquilizer darts."

Sonya and Tembo exchanged a knowing glance. Lawala picked up the ten dollar bill and examined it.

"Son of a bitch," Lopez growled. His hands clenched into threatening fists.

"Son of a lizard," Nedry said, trying to hold back a laugh. He headed towards the door. He opened it and then turned back. "Sorry guys, we knew that animal was poisonous and I said it from the get-go: we're not bringing back a stupid-spitting-poison-lizard."

Nedry was ready to leave when Lopez bolted from his seat and slammed the door closed before he could walk out.

"Who gave it to you?"

"Gave me what?"

"You know what I'm talking about. The gun that killed our dinosaur."

Nedry rolled his eyes. "I got it from heaven."

"Don't play with me, Dennis or I swear—"

Sonya got up and grabbed Lopez's arm to pull him back. He shoved her roughly and her back slammed into the wall.

"You know what? Screw you both. I'm outta here." Sonya didn't look behind her as she slammed the door behind her.

"See, look what you did," Nedry said, pointing at the door that Sonya just slammed.

Lopez grabbed his finger and shoved it to the side.

Nedry's dark eyes lit up with shock. He took his glasses off and put them in his coat pocket. "Don't touch me," he said in a low voice. "Don't put your hands anywhere near me."

"Or what? You'll knock out my teeth? If you even spit at me, I'll press charges against you." He glared at Nedry, who started rolling up his sleeves. "Then you can go back to sniffing crack with your cellmate."

"You piece of—" Nedry raised a fist when Tembo brought it down.

"You both need to back off each other," he said, pushing Lopez and Nedry away. He stood between the, playing the mediator role.

Finally, Lawala made his way over. He stared at the ground and then lifted his head and met Lopez's furious glare. It wasn't like him to be this humbled, but after what happened with his near-blindness, Lawala knew he couldn't act any other way.

"Raúl, it was me, okay? I gave him the gun. You can be pissed off as much as you like, but it's a done deal."

Lopez whirled around, his eyes widened in disbelief. "Why?" he asked shrilly. "How could you do this?"

Lawala shook his head not saying anything.

"You know how much this meant to me." Lopez sounded hurt. Then his voice tightened. "You did this on purpose to get back at me—because of what happened today. I was going to get you help, George. You know I was."

"That's bullshit," Nedry said. "You cared more about the lizard than what happened to him."

"No one asked for your input."

"No one had to."

"You want a reward so that you'll shut up? Roland, give him Lawala's ten dollar bill. We know Dennis needs cash to motivate him."

Tembo chortled and Nedry shot him and Lopez a murderous glare. Lopez reached into his pocket and pulled out a dollar bill. "Here, I know how much it means to you," he crumpled up the bill and threw it at Nedry. It fell to the ground and Nedry stared at it, refusing to pick it up. Lopez turned back to Lawala.

"That was wrong, George. Giving him the gun just like that."

Lawala shrugged his shoulders. "You'll get over it."

"I will, but next time—"

"There won't be next time if you keep flapping your lips," Lawala threatened. He had heard enough and reached the end of his line. It was bad enough that Lopez didn't help him out earlier and then for Dodgson to give him the ten dollar bill like it would compensate for what happened. He was thoroughly disgusted.

Lopez pointed at Nedry. "This is your fault. This assignment could've been a success if it weren't for you trying to hog the spotlight. I'd keep going, but how about we find another place to speak."

"I don't want to be in the same room as you," Nedry said. "That's a scary thought. You might kill me."

"Not might. I would."

Lawala said, "Sometimes I wonder, out of you two, whose worse."

Nedry looked surprised and Lopez was obviously annoyed. Before he left the room, he ripped up the ten dollar bill that Dodgson had given him and threw the green pieces in the air. Then he exited, glad to be away from everyone. Lawala had things that weighed on his mind, none that he cared to share to anybody.

"After you." Tembo gestured for Nedry to exit first.

Nedry left the conference room.

Tembo watched him go into a meeting room down the hall and then turned to Lopez. "What do you want to go after next time?"

Lopez thought for a moment. "I dunno; it has to be something good, a real challenge."

"Something similar to our dilophosaurus as long as it doesn't spit."

"We'll talk more about this later. Right now, I have a nerd to hunt for."

Lopez left the room and Tembo watched as he quickened his pace, each step louder than the last. What a day…and what a shame to lose that dinosaur. But it was nothing compared to what Tembo wanted to go after. He'd have to wait, but when the chance presented itself, he'd stop at nothing to go after his prime target: a full grown tyrannosaurus rex. Tembo wanted to experience again the thrill of the hunt that Sonya had boasted about earlier. Too bad about what happened today, but hey, accidents happen. Next time, there will be no screw-ups, he thought. Especially none on Biosyn's side.

oOo

Lopez followed Nedry into a smaller meeting room on the same floor. Right now would be the perfect time to confront this arrogant nerd, he thought. Nedry sat down and pulled out a candy bar from his coat pocket. Staring at the wall and oblivious to Lopez who took a seat across from him, he munched on the chocolate angrily. Lopez watched him and waited patiently.

"Speak," Nedry said.

"For future reference—don't ever botch up my assignments again. I know you wished that Dodgson had put you in charge."

Nedry made a face as if he had swallowed cold oatmeal. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"C'mon Dennis, we both know you're jealous of my position."

Nedry shook his head. "There are things I feel towards you based on what happened today and trust me: jealousy is not one of them."

"I'm in charge—"

"—was in charge. Get it straight, Raúl."

"If there's a problem you come to me."

"Oh, I came to you alright. I shouted in your face and that really solved the problem, didn't it?"

Lopez drummed his fingers on the table. "You're in no position to take things into your own hands."

"And you're in no position to speak to me like you own my every move."

Lopez blinked.

"I did what I had to do because you were too busy drooling at that stupid lizard."

"It's called a dilophosaurus. Repeat after me: die-loh-foh-saw-rus."

"I don't care what it's called."

"You should care; especially if—"

Nedry pointed at Lopez. "You can shut your trap right now. George was in lots of pain and if I didn't get help for him, that spit would've made him permanently blind."

"You were worried about him getting hurt?" He thought about it.

"Not getting. He was hurt."

"Do you want a medal for your kind deed? How about a purple heart?"

"No, I want you to realize that you behaved like a total jack-ass today for no reason." Nedry saw that Lopez wasn't going to reply. He got up and opened the door and stopped.

"Funny how you had an issue with Lawala's injuries…yet last time we paid a visit to the Isla Nublar, you assaulted Robert Muldoon."

Nedry turned around and Lopez swore he saw a shadow pass over his face. "That's different," he said quietly.

"What makes it different? Oh, I know—you deliberately went after him. It wasn't a freak accident. Care to explain your behavior?"

"It's personal; he ruined my life."

"'It's personal; he ruined my life.' Excuses."

"Whatever."

"I have some advice to you, from one professional to another—"

"Keep it to yourself."

Lopez smiled at seeing Nedry agitated. "Keep your personal and professional life separate. Don't bring it to work. No one wants to hear about Muldoon or whoever's on your blame list."

"Thanks for the unsolicited advice."

"My pleasure, I'm always happy to help out a fellow colleague." He tapped Nedry's shoulder in a friendly, but completely false gesture. Nedry took one glance at his hand and shoved it away. Lopez stepped towards the doorway. "And by the way, just so we're on the same page…the next time you undermine my authority will be your last. I don't appreciate having my toes stepped on."

Nedry stood eye to eye with Lopez. "Then expect them to be stomped on in the near future."

Nedry left the room and Lopez watched him like a raptor stalking its prey. Pure hatred lit up his eyes. Then he grinned. That's what you think, you pathetic son of a bitch.

oOo

Dodgson didn't make a request for a dinosaur until three months later. When he finally did, no one, not even Ian Malcolm, could have predicted what would happen. The end results would resound like a gong's echo in the quietest of nights; and for the Biosyn and InGen staff, things would never be the same again.

---

Author's Notes: Lyrics in this chapter that are quoted and alluded to are "Welcome to the Jungle" by Guns N' Roses and "Locked Up" by Akon. I'm just giving credit where it's due. :-)

--Sassy Lil Scorpio