Chapter Ten
A Parents' Mistake
His face twisted in pain as he attempted to hold back from wincing, Grant staggered along the uneven terrain, blood continuing to seep between his fingers and drip onto the grass, leaving a perilous trail. He knew he was putting the group in more and more danger the longer he waited to patch up the wound. Yet, he was worried that stopping would place them at the mercy of whatever carnivores were surely following his blood stream.
Billy stumbled along beside his mentor, constantly flickering his eyes worriedly at Grant's arm, which was now covered in bright, sticky blood. A half-hour into their trek, Billy put a halt to the madness by grabbing Grant's shoulder. "Enough." The young assistant looked back at the others. "Anyone have a first aid?"
Udesky frowned. "I did, but it's back there," he pointed in the direction they had come from. Grant had released him from the pack so that Udesky could run and climb faster. Now the short, redheaded booking agent wondered if that had been such a smart move after all.
Nash patted his vest down. "No. Cooper was carrying the other one."
Billy's eyes suddenly widened. "Cooper? Do you think he's still alive?"
Paul shrugged. "The last time we saw him, he was heading off to set up the perimeter."
"Do you think we should look for him," Nash asked, helping Grant rip off the remaining part of his already torn sleeve. The bulky African American then tied the bloodied cloth around the doctor's arm in order to stop the bleeding.
"Hey," Amanda intervened. "If we're going to look for Cooper then we're going to look for Eric."
Grant grimaced as Nash tightened the tourniquet. "What was your son doing here anyway, Mrs. Kirby?"
"He was parasailing with a friend…my friend."
"We divorced three years ago," Paul explained quietly, glancing away. He felt guilty for deceiving Grant, but he had done what he had to do. Eric was, after all, his son.
"Why drag me into it," Grant inquired sharply. "Why not contact the Costa Rican government? Or the US Embassy?"
"We did," Amanda answered hurriedly. "We were told to accept the inevitable!"
Paul placed a hand on her shoulder soothingly. "So we decided to come and look for ourselves, but Udesky said we needed someone who had been on the island before."
"Yes," Udesky admitted. "But I didn't tell you to kidnap anyone."
Grant barked a sour laugh. "Maybe next time you should do better researching, Mr. Kirby."
"What do you mean?"
"I have never been on this island."
"Sure you have. You wrote that book."
"That was Isla Nublar. This is Isla Sorna."
"You mean there are two islands with dinosaurs," Udesky asked.
"Way to go on keeping up with your current events," Billy muttered.
"I didn't realize," Paul mumbled. "If I had known…"
If Grant hadn't been injured he would've punched the son-of-a-bitch. "What? Then you would've kidnapped Ian Malcolm?"
"Eric is our son," Amanda admonished. "What would you have done, Doctor Grant?"
"I wouldn't have allowed my son anywhere near these godforsaken islands to begin with," Grant snapped. "What kind of idiots sends their child near a dinosaur infested island?"
Paul and Amanda exchanged sullen glances. Grant had a valid point. Why did they ever agree to let Ben take Eric parasailing on the coast of Isla Sorna?
End Chapter Ten
Chianna: Thank you very much. I was crushed when we found out that Ellie was married to Mark. And then she got such a small role. Oh well. That's what fanfiction is for, right?
MadgeSmith: How is your Dreams story coming along?
Amanda: You know, most people like the idea of Alan and Ellie. So, there were probably a ton of irritated fans when her husband, Mark, walked into the yard. laughs
SimCatz: Thanks. And Grant can be attacked as many times as he wants, but I refuse to kill him. So…he is safe…I think…
Oogie Boogie: I was very annoyed when they killed off Cooper and Nash right in the beginning. It only left Udesky to die (because you just knew that they weren't going to kill off Grant, Billy, or the Kirbys). So, yes, Nash lives…for now?
Neovator: saluts Yes, sir/ma'am (sorry, can't tell from your name whether your male or female). laughs
Megazord Master: Thanks! In the movie, they killed Cooper, Nash, and Udeksy off way to early. I just couldn't have that. laughs