Chapter 7

David usually hated wearing suits. The shoes felt like they had no sole, and the tie was too tight. Not to mention how hot he would be as soon as he stepped outside. But those thoughts were pushed into the back of his mind as he walked down the long hallway. Mr. Hammond's home was lavishly decorated, and gave off the feel of a museum. The house had not one but two spiral staircases that David had seen. The man had money, and David now knew that firsthand.

Two days before, a large black Lincoln had pulled up outside David's apartment in Chicago. A well-dressed woman somewhere in her thirties had stepped out along with a middle-aged man in black sunglasses. David had thought the man looked like someone from the secret service. The woman had introduced herself as the head of Injen's Public Relations. She had said Mr. Hammond requested David's presence at his home on the east coast to "discuss the events of three weeks ago". Before David had had a chance to ask questions, the woman had presented him with a plane ticket and bid him have a good afternoon. David chuckled as he saw "first class" on the ticket.

David had been greeted at the door by a butler who led him into a large room that resembled a conference room in an office building. A huge oak table filled the center of the room, with several chairs lining every side. However, only a few were filled. The woman was there, as was Mr. Hammond himself, flanked by half a dozen lawyers. Mr. Hammond welcomed David and offered him a drink before taking his place between the lawyers at the head of the table. David listened as Hammond began a long-winded speech about the cleanup efforts at Jurassic Park. He assured David that all of the other staff members had been accounted for as had all the guests, including his grandchildren. It had all seemed somewhat scripted to David, like Hammond had given this speech several times before this. As Hammond finished, one of the lawyers stood up. The thin, hook-nosed man passed several papers down to David and began reading over them. David knew what it was: a nondisclosure agreement. After reading through each page, and with Hammond pleading how sorry he was that the whole incident had occurred, David was handed another piece of paper. It was a personal check, signed by Hammond himself, for a million dollars. Hammond also said that he would find David a job at any landscaping firm in the country, and make sure he was well-paid.

David reached the front doors of Hammond's house and stopped as the butler graciously opened them.

"A car is waiting for the both of you, sir," the butler said with a slight bow.

"Wait, what?" David's head was still somewhat foggy after the meeting, so he thought he may have misheard the butler.

"This time you won't have to do the driving," said a familiar voice. A young woman walked out from one of the side rooms. David hadn't seen her since they left the island together on the helicopter. She looked as beautiful as the day they'd first met at the medical center. The two embraced with a laugh.

"You clean up pretty nicely," April said as she wiped the corners of her eyes. She looked David up and down. "No hint of mud on your shoes anywhere."

They had talked several times on the phone since the incident, but had never managed to set up a meeting, though both had wanted to.

"Come on, let's catch up in the car." April took David's hand as together, they descended the stairs to the waiting limousine.

"Did you take it?" April asked as they reached the bottom of the steps. David knew what she was talking about.

"I did," David said. He paused and patted the inner pocket of his jacket. April nodded and pointed to her small purse. "This might have paid for our silence, but do you think anyone would have ever believed us anyway?"

"No."

The limo driver opened the door and David followed April inside the car. They sat together, April resting her head on David's shoulder.

"You know," she began, "there are quite a few hospitals in the Chicago area. Any good landscaping firms there?"

The limousine drove down the lane and made a left turn toward the airport.