LITTLE MISS LINDY
It would be six o'clock when Lindy's first day would be over, and she flopped backwards onto the bench provided, sighing loudly. She was sweating buckets, having been stuck under the sun and helping Barry with the menial chores around the paddock from changing the raptor food and water, cleaning the pen and watching the raptor's behavior for a good hour or so and making notes. She did all these tasks with no complaint, although her stomach grumbled halfway through. Finally finished, Lindy slipped her feet out of her boots and rubbed at her aching feet. She'd been on the move the entire time, having to run or walk around and stand for lengthy periods of time. She had a really bad cramp in both ankles and wrists and the weather was not helping. Inside the paddock and the raptors didn't seem to mind, considering how vocal they sounded. She could hear them chirping and chirruping to each other. Meanwhile, Owen stood at the catwalk, issuing commands. He seemed fine, also.
"Day two hundred and eighty with no accidents!" One of the employees in one corner was yelling, "Good work, everyone!"
There was cheering all around the paddock but Lindy chose not to join in.
"Are you okay, Miss Lindy?" Barry asked as he passed her, carrying more feed sacks over his shoulders as though the weight and heat didn't bother him. "Are your feet sore?"
"It's just cramp. It should go away soon, Barry; thanks for asking." She replied, wiping at her neck.
"It's tough." He commented, "But you'll get used to it. I have something for the cramps if you need it."
"That sounds good."
"Great, remind me to bring it to you before we finish up for the day."
"Thanks." She said, watching as he disappeared into the raptor's storage pen where he deposited the sacks in one corner and grabbed a checkboard affixed off the wall, scribbling something down with the pen provided. Lindy glanced away from Barry and to Owen; he's been training them all day, she thought as she wiped the sweat from her brow with a tissue. It was roasting and she finally understood why everyone here dressed so casually ranging from vests to board shorts. Having to stay under the sun all day long meant it was not wise to be in a shirt or suit or any kind of inappropriate shoewear. She was grateful for her boots all of a sudden and proceeded to lie on the bench to rest for a brief moment.
She watched as Owen finished up with the raptors, or the 'girls' as he affectionately called them. He noticed that she was glancing at him and he grinned at her direction, then returned to the catwalk, in a seemingly good mood; Lindy was stretched over the bench, panting, although once she spotted him emerging into view she immediately bolted upright, not wanting to have been seen slacking off even if it was for a short period in time.
He didn't seem too bothered by her resting, however. "You don't look so good, Miss Lindy." Owen said, "Want a lift to the dormitory?"
"I think my luggage is still in your house." She pointed out.
"So they are." He said, before he dug a hand into his pockets and fished out a pair of keys. "C'mon, let's go then. The rest of the boys will tidy up."
Nodding, she peeled herself off the bench and trotted towards him. He watched her for a few seconds before grinning, "You look beat."
"S-sorry. I'm okay, honestly."
"S'alright. It's your first day and this isn't the easiest job in the world." He patted her on the shoulder, "Take it easy."
She nodded again. Before they headed to the humvee, Barry handed Lindy the medicine for cramps and she thanked him and bade him goodnight to which Barry responded with a polite 'See you tomorrow morning'. Owen climbed into the humvee driver's seat and found his sunglasses in the glove compartment which he proceeded to put on. Lindy was left to squint as the sun glared in her face. Owen steered the humvee out of the paddock and onto the road, back towards the direction of his bungalow. The journey was silent, with the humvee going over bumps in the road.
"You'll be staying in the employee's dormitory from now on." He said all of a sudden.
"Is it communal?"
"You'll probably need to share the bathroom and the kitchen or something. That okay with you?"
"Yeah. I lived in the university dormitory with three other people so nothing new."
"Do you have any family, Miss Lindy? Any brothers or sisters?"
"I'm an only child. It's always been myself and my mom." She replied, and she wondered if she should ask Owen the same. No harm in asking, right? No harm in wanting to get to know the boss better, correct? "What about you?"
"...Hm." was his reply, "And where did you live?"
He didn't even answer my question! She thought. She told him where she used to live as requested. Determined to find out a bit more about her new employer, she asked, "How long have you been working here?"
"Just a couple of years."
At least he answered that one.
"I was in the navy." Owen continued; occasionally, he would turn to her as he drove when he spoke, "And when I left, I was headhunted. They heard about me there and how I spent my time training new troops."
"Humans and raptors are very different though." Lindy said, "I'm surprised you aren't afraid of them."
He chuckled loudly. "When you've been through what I've been through, nothin' really scares you anymore."
"But every day can be dangerous."
"My job in the navy was dangerous too. I faced danger every day. Makes no difference to me."
She pondered his words for a while but ultimately deduced: He must enjoy living life in the edge. "You're a very brave man, Mr Grady." She said, before she realized how she had addressed him. With a gasp, she turned to him, "Sorry, I mean – "
However, Owen merely chuckled loudly. "And you're a very brave woman too, Miss Lindy."
Once Owen had drove to his bungalow, he fished out all her bags and suitcases from within, loaded the humvee, and they were off again. The dormitory was further away from the paddock than she realized and she wasn't sure if she was going to like staying there considering she would need to have access to a vehicle to get to the paddock in time each morning.
The dormitory appeared to be a small building that resembled the typical roadside motel. It was two stories high, all lined with doors and windows. With swipecard in hand, she found her door and unlocked it; the room was musty and stale from the heat and she switched on the light to reveal a small room with a single bed in the middle, a flatscreen TV attached to the wall, a desk and chair and mirror and a tall lamp standing in the corner. Another door at the far end revealed an en-suite consisting of toilet and shower.
She stepped inside and Owen followed shortly. "Looks nice." He commented, as he propped her bags and suitcase in one corner.
Lindy was also surprised that her accommodation was far more spacious than she had imagined. It was basic but still generous. Turning to Owen, she smiled at him aloofly as he marveled the interior. "Thanks for the lift."
He grinned. "Will you be okay for tomorrow?"
She nodded. "I'll be fine. I remember the way to the paddock."
"Great." He replied, "Well then, goodnight Miss Lindy. See you tomorrow."
"See you."
"Night."
"Goodnight." She closed the door after he left, peeping inbetween her blinds to see him climb into the humvee; he seemed to shoot another glance over his shoulder at her door and she quickly ducked away from view, and she heard him start the engine again after a few seconds. When she deemed it safe, she left the window. Glancing around her room, the first thing she did was kick off her boots and sweaty socks, leaving them on the floor in a messy pile. Then she grabbed hold of the bottom of her t-shirt and pulled it off herself, dropping it carelessly on the bed, then she began to unloop the belt on her waist and pulled down her denim shorts to her ankles and then -
The door opened.
"By the way, I forgot to - "
Lindy glanced up and swerved her gaze over to see Owen at the door, hand on the knob. He seemed to have stopped in mid-sentence once he got an eyeful of her dressed in nothing but her bra and panties. "ARGHHH! OWEN?!" She screamed, covering herself with her arms and diving for the bed, getting her feet tangled within her denim shorts in process and tumbling in mid-step. "Oof!"
She couldn't see him, but she could hear him spluttering somewhat: "It's okay, it's okay! I didn't see! I didn't see much!"
"Much?"
He could see her bare feet sticking out, still stuck in her shorts. Owen blinked blankly at the scene, but then he couldn't help but grin at the comedic side of it all. A fraction of a second later, he shook his head, scrubbing a palm over his face. Whoa, no, no, no grinning at a time like this. Stooop. Clearing his throat, he said as calmly as he could, "Honestly, Lindy, I didn't see a thing - Sorry, I shoulda knocked." He hastily dropped off what he had forgotten on her nearby desk, "See ya."
The door slammed to a close and Lindy glanced over the bed and to the door. He was gone. For a few seconds, she did not move, but this time she definitely heard the humvee leave the premise. Lindy tiptoed out and proceeded to lock the door, her cheeks warm with embarrassment. She then checked what he had left behind – it was a map of the park which would definitely come in handy.
What a day, she thought, folding the map away, Well, lesson learnt. Number one, always lock the door. Number two, don't immediately get undressed to your underwear. What a crazy day...
After she unpacked all her belongings, she grabbed her nightwear and jumped into the shower. Once that was done, she switched on the TV – albeit she wasn't surprised to see various Jurassic World channels. No doubt, this was playing on every hotel TV right now. She sat cross-legged on the bed, drying her damp hair with a towel and flicking through her photos on her DLSR camera. Suddenly, she heard her cellphone ringtone chiming and quickly plucked her phone out from her bag; she kept it on silent the entire time and saw on the screen that an unknown number was calling her. She accepted the call as quickly as she could, holding the phone to her ear.
"Hello." She said.
"So, how was it?" said a male's voice from the other end.
"It was good, very interesting."
"Did you get anything?"
"Nothing really." She replied, as she put away the camera to one side to hold the phone closer over her ear, "They don't seem to have any problems using live animals as bait, that's for sure. The animal rights activists will go crazy."
"They're already protesting so that's nothing new."
"What do you propose?"
"We need a death. A human-related death. I want a T-rex to kill and eat someone. A raptor to tear someone's arm or leg off. I want the Mosasaur to swallow someone whole. I want something big. I know something like that has already happened before, but this is Simon Masrani we're talking about."
It took her a while to reply. "T-that wasn't part of the plan."
"Lindy," The man chuckled, cooing at her as she stammered over the phone, "Lindy, Lindy, naive Little Miss Lindy. Haven't you heard the saying? Sacrifice one for the good of many. There are billions of humans on this planet...so one less doesn't really matter, does it?"
Note:
And the plot thickens :D