Lots of fabulous reviews, so I wanted to say 'thank you' :) :) :) . Nice to know I'm doing the site and the story justice. Now, sit tight and don't blink for this one 'cuse a LOT happens!
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Maisie... in the desert... Claire wanted to process that as something other then it implied. Only Kolov took advantage of that second, snapping the crown of his head into Owen's face. Claire started as they tumbled backward, Owen's hand pulling Kolov down with him so he couldn't have the gun. "Owen!"
"Get him!" Owen waved wildly at her. Claire then realized that Dr. Wu had the elevator doors open. And was trying to close them. Claire jumped through, catching his hand with the card. "Henry-"
"I came here with a goal!" Henry pushed her back, ramming a button. "Don't think you're going to keep me from it."
Claire's ears stemmed as her fist jabbed him across the chin. He hit the wall as the doors clamped shut, pure shock over his face. "Is brute force all you people believe in!"
Claire steadied herself with the whoosh of gravity, pulling them below the building. "What're you planning to do once you're down there?"
"Establish whatever reason and order might be left in this whole mess."
"It isn't about order Henry, it's about a child's future." Claire insisted. "You can't justify-"
"I've had to fight my whole life to justify what I'm doing!" Dr. Wu's face broke in the most emotion she'd ever seen from him. "What can't I make anyone understand that, much less appreciate it? Years of my life, hours in a lab, sacrifices all for an inch closer to the impossible. And everyone simply wants it forgotten!"
"No one's forgetting, Henry." Claire sighed at him. "But how will people remember it?"
Any haughty answer was cut off with the release of the elevator doors. Claire looked out. The low lighting and sophisticated hallway was betrayed by the strong scent of blood. Claire hesitiated, but followed it out... at the same time Dr. Inger came through some automatic doors. Behind her came a man in a pressed suit and angered face. And...
"Mr. Aldovich." Claire spoke without thinking. A gun was out from Aldovich's coat as Dr. Inger gaped at Claire. "Mrs... Grady. Dr. Wu!"
"Out." Mr. Aldovich commanded. Henry stepped out slowly, letting the elevator swipe off their escape. Claire risked a look through the glass wall, finding a lab. It was a mess and where the deathly scent was coming from. No... Claire saw trails of maroon up the hallway; they stopped a few feet from her toes. What had stopped them? She raised her head in slow realization, getting a second look at the cages within the glass. Claire saw a five-pack of compsognathus and a juvenile pterodactyl. And she saw what they were eating!
"Mrs. Grady." the man in the suit broke into her sights. He took pains to step around the crusting blood, extending a hand to Claire. "I'm Kassian Gavrill."
That name snapped Claire back into focus; and anger! She eyed Gavrill hard, his face, clothes, and usually calm countenance. "My husband filled me in."
Gavrill glanced at the elevator, then nodded. "Attending to Kolov, then?" Claire's silence answered him and he chuckled. "He'll enjoy that."
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Franklin whined at the third firewall he hit as he hacked away at cyberspace. He wanted to be ready and in control when Claire gave the go ahead, but the system was more sophisticated then expected. Was this Dr. Inger a computer whiz too?!
"Would you have better chances at the shed?" Zia suggested through his phone speaker. She remained hidden with the rifle on the ridge, but Franklin had called her for the sake of human contact. He was learning more and more then he didn't like going solo. Franklin shook his head. "We want to control the system, not shut it down. If I can trick it into thinking I'm a regular login-"
He yelped as the earth rattled beneath the car, catching his laptop before it fell from his lap. He massaged his eyes. Don't look. Just don't... don't look...
But he did, through the backseat window. With another jump, the monstrous outline of the t-rex showed itself, only a few dino steps behind the InGen building.
"Zia-" Franklin shakily brought his phone up.
"Just keep doing what you're doing." Zia reassured him. "Stay calm and still... oh no."
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The bullet grazed Owen's ear, shattering the window behind him. His skin screamed at the heat, but he kept his hand over Kolov's, desperate to get the gun away from him. Rather then slow him down, the shot shoulder and bum knee had made Kolov angrier and more determined to kill! Seeing his eyes, Owen again saw the hunger and bloodlust he'd spotted in the Indoraptor. Only Kolov hadn't been programmed for destruction; he liked it. His analysis was broken by Kolov's fist hooking him, getting Owen to loosen on the gun. Kolov had him by the shirt then, flinging him into the nearest desk. Owen grabbed the edge, keeping himself from falling.
"Inger's got big plans for your little lab rat." Kolov's sick smile returned.
"Don't talk about Maisie like that." Owen growled, ignoring the pain pinching his spine. Kolov raised his brow. "Ha, you think saying her name's gonna make my heart bleed, American?"
No, just the rest of you. Owen locked eyes on Kolov; and the door behind him. With a mad grunt, Owen got him in a bear hug that propelled them back. This force cracked Kolov's skull against the door jamb and tumbled them both out onto the sidewalk. Owen rolled away to ready himself for the next assault- only to freeze. Dust blew up and the cars shivered with the fall of the t-rex's left foot. Heart stalling, Owen looked up- right as the t-rex turned its head and saw them.
Owen, on his hands and knees, checked his peripheral for Kolov. Who was already scurrying back inside. At this, the t-rex roared, diving forward. Owen was up, barely making it back inside before the large, wet nose broke the door and the jaws caved a hole through the cement and ceiling. Owen covered his head and dared an awed look back. The t-rex wriggled viciously to widen the hole, desperate for the food it knew was there. Trouping a dry valley for days, barely any animals or water to gulp... it had to be starving!
Owen scrambled under a corner desk, only to have Kolov grab his ankle. "Not running away now are you?"
What was this guy's problem?! Owen kicked out. "Get down... and stay still."
The t-rex's massive breath filled the room, carrying its smell with it. Concrete and tile heaped about. Remaining lights flickered, lose wires sparking against the dinosaur's tough scales. Its chin bore down, snapping the desk in front of Owen and Kolov like kindling. Owen swallowed, forcing himself still, while Kolov seem fueled by their situation. He suckered punched Owen's clawed ribs. "Never seen a feeding up close."
Owen curled in at the biting pain, giving Kolov enough leverage to yank him up in a choke hold. The muscles tightened against Owen's windpipe and Kolov drew them closer as the t-rex's head swung side to side again. Owen dug his heels in, fighting to stay awake. Kolov whooped, gaining the t-rex's attention. "Been waiting for this. Doubt you'll taste as good as your wife though."
Heat flamed through Owen's body and he twisted himself, getting his own hold on Kolov's neck. He ducked and rolled, bringing the crazy Russian with him under the hulking neck of the t-rex. Owen got a firm handful of Kolov's hair and slammed his head into his knee. They separated as the t-rex raised its head again. Debris hit Owen across the shoulders and back, but he still managed to get back outside as the t-rex closed its jaws around Kolov. Bones crunched, blood splattering Owen across his arms and neck. Thankfully though, the screams were only a few seconds long.
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Maisie kept her arms wrapped around her stomach, telling herself it was almost over. She had baffled the soldiers by stumbling into their army camp, but they now had her sitting in the medic tent. A check-up from Private Seaver confirmed that her temperature was back and a water bottle was combating her dehydration. A lot of questions were asked when Private Seaver looked at the wound on her forearm. "The skin was removed... professionally."
"A woman did it." Maisie had rushed in. "I... got scrapped by one of the dinosaurs. She said she needed it for research."
That was as much of a lie as she could muster. Truth be told, Maisie didn't even know if she wanted to lie. Dr. Inger and the men ought to go to jail for kidnapping her... but then, the reason for her kidnapping would come out. Maisie held on to this inner turmoil, nibbling on a trail mix of dried fruit and nuts; the protein only reminded her of how weak the cold had made her body. Maisie turned her pen through her fingers again, thinking on the syringe and bottles Dr. Inger had explained at the lab. But how could that be any different from the medicine at the hospital?
"Look what I found."
Maisie looked up to see Private Seaver. Her curly blonde hair bounced as she knelt down, holding a humungous sat phone in front of her. "This baby'll get through to anywhere in the world. You can contact your folks no problem."
"Thank you!" Maisie exclaimed, aches and weakness forgotten as she grabbed it. She slipped the pen into her pocket, eager to dial.
"Placer's company is approaching!" Someone yelled through the tent's front flap. "They've got wounded!"
Private Seaver shot up, worry arching her thin eyebrows. "Wounded!? How?"
"That creature got loose somehow."
Private Seaver didn't blink, but took Maisie's hand. She lead them out the back, caught Maisie's eye, and pointed to the tent straight across. "Maisie, wait there for me. And don't call until someone's with you."
Maisie's heart dropped. "But-"
"I know," Private Seaver squeezed her shoulder, eyes showing remorse. "Just be patient. We'll get you home soon."
A commotion erupted at the front of the medic tent and Seaver disappeared back inside. Maisie stared down at the phone, itching to punch out Claire or Owen's number. She held her head up, fighting tears of exhaustion, frustration, and loneliness. She realized then that the tent flap hadn't closed all the way. And Maisie couldn't miss the men being carried in. Once on the cots their vests were ripped off, dropped to the floor to soak in the blood that dripped down. Masked, Private Seaver was attending the first victim with two fellow medics.
"A stegosaurus did this?" One of them gagged.
"He got in the way of its tail." Private Seaver's warm tone was hard and dry as she worked. "His lung collapsed! I need doxycycline and get an IV going-"
The flap closed, muffling the voices. Maisie backed away, hugging the phone. She warned herself not to throw up, focusing on the short walk to the tent Priavte Seaver had indicated. It was deserted, all the able bodies out helping whoever had just pulled in. Something rattled, then moaned beyond the nylon wall... Maisie then realized this was the tent closest to the cages.
Private Seaver had told her this was the location decided for the dinosaurs' 'extermination' as she put it. They had a triceratops and her baby, an allosaurus, and...
A stegosaurus. Maisie put it together. She wondered to a chair opposite the cage wall, feeling sick. Pressure was nagging at her temples and she just wanted to close her eyes-
The flap flew back, startling Maisie as a solider stomped in. Helmet unstrapped, he flung it across the room. Hair clumped and sweaty, he leaned on a card table, taking deep breaths. Maisie stayed still, hoping he didn't notice her. He did.
"The heck you come from?" he blurted out, perplexed. Maisie shrugged. "The desert. I... I was lost."
He assessed her with precise eyes, then relaxed, going for his helmet. "Sorry to scare you."
Maisie eased back in her chair. "You're upset."
The solider snorted. "Perceptive. It's been a long day..." he put his helmet on the table. "Long week." Then saluted at her. "Colonel Placer."
"Maisie-"
The allosaurus gave a shrill cry, cutting her off. Colonel Placer glared in their direction, his disgust clear. "Don't worry, they're caged. Not dead yet, unfortunately. Were you running from them?"
He hates them. Maisie saw. A tail clamored the cage bars and she cleared her throat. "Yes and no. You probably wouldn't believe me."
Placer laughed dryly. "Dinosaurs are alive, Maisie. I might as well believe anything... hey, you ok?"
Maisie righted herself from tilting in her chair. She was so tired. "I want to go home."
Her plea worked and Colonel Placer backed off, grinning. "We'll see what we can do."
Maisie's eyes closed before he was gone, relieved at not having to focus. She had forced herself to stay alert since running away from Dr. Inger. Like staying awake til midnight on your first New Year's; or so she'd told herself while following Blue. Maisie remembered that, obsessing over the clock in the family room, bouncing on the couch to prove she wasn't sleepy. She'd been four and Iris carried her to bed at 10:55. Grandpa had come along at some point to carry her the rest of the way.
That was Maisie's first real memory; she would always remember the change in arms. From firm and sturdy to tender and cautious. Like Grandpa feared dropping her. Was that why he always acted so gentle with her? Dr. Inger treated her like that, but it wasn't the same. Like a doll she needed kept perfect for display. Maisie pulled her arm to her chest, feeling the new gauze wrapped over her stolen skin. I wonder... what Blue's first memory is.
The shift in thoughts stirred Maisie from her daze, but she was happy to forget about Dr. Inger. It'd be nice if she was four and Grandpa could hold her again. No, wait, the arms she was imagining were real. Maisie felt their weight and heat, picking her up. Pulling her brain from its grog, Maisie searched for a face. "Grandpa?"
"Go back to sleep."
Maisie opened her eyes. And her heart dropped. I saw you with Dr. Inger! "You-"
"Just stay quiet." Sergeant Terry ordered her, his pace quickening.
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The scents repealed Blue as she circled the camp. Her instincts warned her; these humans intended death. For her and her species. She'd seen the cages, but she hadn't seen Maisie. She was frustrated with her decision to come back. But Maisie was a member of Owen's pack. If she was harmed... it would hurt him. Blue struggled with her motivation as she spotted a gap in the humans patrolling the camp. Hunkered low, she darted ahead until she was in the shadow of the tent. She sniffed again; no Maisie. She looked up at an eager squack, and saw the cages across the way. The bars she'd hated, two dinosaurs rammed against now, seeking freedom.
Blue's head cocked, studying the cages farther. Much like ones that'd held her... until that one female had opened it. Blue watched and waited; then stole between the tents to the cages. The dinosaurs panicked, clamoring into the farthest corner. Blue sniffed around the frame, until she came to the door. But she stopped, nose tilting in the air. Maisie?
She looked out, where voices went back and forth and a car engine started. One of the dinosaurs moaned again. Blue looked back at them, at the handles locking them in. Could she free them? Should she?
Disclaimer: This bit is based on an idea from Youtuber 'Nando v Movies'. He made a video called 'Pushing the Dinosaur Button', where it might have been plausible for Blue to free the dinosaurs in Fallen Kingdom. The idea is his, I own nothing. It was just too awesome a concept not to address.