Maria looked up at the sky, just listening to the calls of the dinosaurs around her. Ripper was calling out from the yard, wanting to join in on the nightly chorus. She barely glanced over when Owen settled down on the bench beside her, his long legs stretching out onto the sandy ground below. The two sat there for a long moment, taking it all in before he let out a sigh.
"You ever miss it?" He asked. "This, everything. We used to do this all the time back at the park, just sitting and listening to them call."
"Outside of the paddock," Maria recalled, the memories flashing through her mind. "The three of us, and our… our girls."
"Our girls," Owen said with a nod. He let out another sigh before looking at her. "What were you called to the mainland for." It wasn't a question, he either knew already and wanted her to say it or he expected her to just come out with it. Most likely the former, Owen wasn't one to command her like that.
"Wu is at it again," she said with a heavy sigh and nodded to the journal and files that laid between them. She had came out here originally to get some fresh air and take a break, her head hurting too much from trying to pick out puzzles from an already puzzling book. "And apparently he and the FBI want me to track him down only… I can't."
"Of course you can," Owen said as he took a look at the book. "I have the utmost faith in you."
"Thanks, but it's misplaced," Maria said as she looked at the book with disdain. "I'm no geneticist. More than half of his entries make sense to me," she said as she looked back over the yard.
"How hard can it be? Let's see," Owen flipped open a page and looked at it, brows immediately furrowing. "Ah… hmm…"
"If it makes you feel better, Claire did the exact same thing," Maria said with a chuckle as she took the infernal book back from him. She idly flipped through the pages, not really reading it. "It's part journal part evil scientist equations."
"Maybe it's not the equations you need to pay attention to," Owen suggested as he rubbed his temple. "Maybe it's the journal entries themselves."
"Yeah, I thought that too but they're also confusing," she admitted. "They don't ever mention anything of substance, anything that could be a clue."
"Well, if it was something obvious then they wouldn't ask you to do it," Owen pointed out. He leaned back and looked at the files and glanced up at her. "Claire told me the gist of them, can I?"
"Yeah, go ahead," Maria said with a shrug as she began reading the journal, not really taking it in at this point. She could hear his sharp intake of breath as he took it all in, and she could practically feel his anger radiating. "It's horrible," she agreed without him saying a word.
"How could he condone this?" Owen asked as he looked up at her. "I don't even recognize half of these dinosaurs, how did he manage to create them?"
"I'm not surprised about that part," Maria said as she looked up. "When Billy went to Isla Sorna he said it was teaming with species undocumented in InGen's database. Someone was creating dinosaurs and releasing… them." She looked back to the journal and flipped to the page marked by the scrap paper that Wu had written on.
Maria will know.
"Isla Sorna," Maria breathed as the gears began to turn in her head. "That has to be it," she said as she turned to face Owen. "His lab has to be on Isla Sorna."
"Not to sow doubts, but how do you figure that?" Owen asked as he placed the files back down on to the bench.
"Because he's done it before, he gets the backing he needs and goes to a place already furnished with the equipment he needs. No people, save for a few workers, to get in the way and he can spend time just experimenting and releasing whatever is viable," Maria explained as she stood and placed her hands on the back of her neck. "It has to be it," she said, trying to convince herself.
Owen stood and took his place next to her, hands on his hips as he took in the yard around him. "Makes sense," he allowed. "Especially if it's a habit of his. What sort of dinosaurs was it last time?"
"Spinosaurus," came the immediate answer. Billy still had nightmares regarding the sailed assailant that hunted them across the island. It was why she was so glad that they didn't add the spino to the Park before everything went down. If that one was as crazy as he made her out to be, Maria had no doubts that a new one would have been crazier. "A few others, the ceratosaurus and I believe the ankylosaurus weren't on the original list."
Owen nodded, "and the journal?"
Maria paused and glanced at it. "Maybe it holds different clues, like what to expect, maybe a confession?" She let out a disappointed sigh. "I ran with that, didn't I?"
"Not without good cause," Owen reassured as he drew her into a side hug. The two of them stood there for a few moments, taking in the starlight and the dying calls of the dinosaurs around them as they drifted to sleep. "You aren't alone in this," he said finally. "Whatever you need, we're here too."
Maria nodded, eyes falling onto the barn. She couldn't see Ripper in the darkness, but knew he was most likely asleep by now. "Never thought it'd be like this," she said softly. "Thought this would be gone forever."
"Not being alone or…" Owen didn't have to say anymore, he knew the answer. "I told you, I had forgiven you long ago."
"Doesn't take back what I said to you," Maria said with a shake of her head. "We've been over it many times since the Manor, it still doesn't change."
"So we'll have to move on," Owen said simply. "We stick together, like a pack is supposed to," he added, nudging her a little with a smile.
Maira let out a little laugh and returned the smile. "Like a pack is supposed to," she agreed, allowing him to take her back inside after she grabbed the journal and files. She glanced at the cover of the journal, a feeling of loss holding her heart heavy. She didn't know what to make of this turn of events, a part of her felt that this was all a ruse on Wu's part to give him time to disappear completely again. Give the smart stuff to a trainer and it's a get out of jail free card.
But… a part of her felt like she was on the right track. As Owen said, if it was obvious then the FBI wouldn't have called her in for help. Henry was smart, he wouldn't have left his journal behind if it held valuable information that could find him. Which meant it was likely a personal tidbit that she knew of, knowledge that not many knew of in the world.
She had to call Billy, get his opinion on the matter before one of the agents called to check in. She hoped she was wrong, but her gut was one of the most reliable things at her disposal. And it was screaming that Isla Sorna was the key.
Calling home was always nerve wracking to some degree. Her parents would assume the worst and believe it was Claire or Owen calling to tell them that Maria's luck had run out with Ripper. Her brothers would always demand proof that she wasn't hurt so phone calls became video chats real quick to the point she just stopped using the phone all together for them. She missed them all, however, despite their protectiveness. The Brennan's were a tight knit bunch, they looked after each other and those they adopted into the clan.
Maria ran a hand through her hair as she waited for Billy to pick up the video request. She knew he had to be awake by now, and he didn't have work for the next few months due to Dr. Grant not have a dig coming up. She drummed her fingers against the desk, leg bouncing as she waited. Oh, she was going to let him have it when he picked up.
"'ello," Billy greeted finally, eyes scrunching as he yawned.
"You were supposed to have been awake hours ago," Maria said with a scowl, she let her fingers and leg calm down and stretched. "I've been waiting to ask you something."
"Aw, my little sister still needs her big brother's advice," Billy said, placing a hand over his heart before growing serious. "What's up?"
"Isla Sorna," she said, wincing as she saw the brief flash of terror come across his face at the mention of the island. He did well, hiding his pain for the world to see. But to her, to the rest of the family, they knew better. He didn't come off that island without his physical and mental scars. "I know," she said softly, sympathetically. "But some things came up and I need… I need your help," she pleaded gently.
"Of course I'll help," Billy said as if the option not to was on the table. "What came up, was it Ripper?"
"No, but it's Wu," she said as she looked at her brother, wishing he was here. "He's at it again, creating dinosaurs. They almost had him, the FBI, but he got away and now he's off the grid. Of course, he left some evidence behind that says I know something."
"And obviously you don't," Billy added.
"Not explicitly," Maria said with pursed lips. "I have a hunch from talking with Owen last night. Henry, he's been cloning dinosaurs unapproved by InGen and Masrani Global. And it made me remember back in 2001, when you went to that island. There were dinosaurs there too, undocumented."
"You think he has a base in Isla Sorna," Billy stated, leaning back in his chair. He was quiet a few moments as he thought it over. "That's... Entirely possible," he said finally. "We didn't see a functioning lab there, one that wasn't overtaken by the jungle. But we also didn't explore the entire island," he looked at his younger sister and leaned forward. "What could make the FBI so concerned about Wu making dinosaurs again, besides the obvious."
"He has another indoraptor," Maria breathed, and Billy's eyes shot wide. "Not a new one, he, it, is the same age as Ripper. And it's dangerous," she said with a shake of her head. "They want to get there and neutralize it."
"And by that you mean…"
"Destroy," Maria whispered.
"Jesus," Billy breathed as he leaned back in his chair again. "And you're okay with that?"
"I don't have the choice," Maria said defensively. "And even if I did… I … " she shook her head. "The amount of abuse, the lack of training that it's received… the poor thing is too damaged to function properly without loss of life."
"Christ," he ran a hand over his face as he looked to the side. "I'll come up there," he said finally. "Help you through this."
"What?" Maria looked at him in surprise. "Billy, you can't just-"
"I can and am," he said with a shrug. "I've been wanting to come up for weeks now. This just gives me the excuse," he added. "I can be by in five days, I gotta get some things together." He paused and looked at her. "I can be with you for your investigation, and everything else. But if you have to go to that, that island, then you'll have to find someone else," he said with a shake of his head.
"Nor would I ask you to," Maria said with a shake of her head. It was the last place she wanted him to be. Though she was merely twelve at the time of his departure with the Kirby's, she still vividly remembered the chaos that hit the family when he returned barely clinging to life. She remembered the nights where he woke up screaming, the days where he couldn't go outside because the birds were out. How he still had problems with things flying near him, be it bug or avian.
Billy gave her a reassuring smile. "I'll call when I hit the docks," he promised. "Love you, sis."
"Love you," Maria said with a smile before the call ended.
Leaning back in her chair, she looked out the window. The sun was shining, the dinosaurs on the island calling out their good mornings. And somewhere, on another island, was Henry looking out over his own dinosaurs. He wasn't always like this, she knew that. She remembered his talks about the first park, how full of passion his voice was at the memory. Somewhere, somehow, that passion had died and in its place was a dangerously curious scientist who didn't know when to quit.
She wasn't sure she'd be ready when the time came and they'd have to take him down.
So, I really do love Isla Sorna and miss it so I'm forcing it's comeback here and now. Some other people may or may not be making a comeback from the third movie (hint hint)
I'm also heavily debating on a romance for our dearest Maria, if anyone would be interested in that? The first two arcs of her story was dealing heavily on recovering from loss and forming a new family/pack. I think she'd be at the place now where a romance wouldn't mess her up mentally or emotionally.
And sorry for the lack of Ripper in these past few chapters, don't worry once we hit the main part of the arc our boy is going to hold a main presence in the story. you all will be so proud of him