CHAPTER 22
Jackson shoved his shotgun in the passenger seat and shifted the rover into first gear. Toiling the tires in a spray of loose dirt he skidded the vehicle forward and cut off the three young tyrannosaurs as they made their approach.
The rexes shuddered to a halt and roared at the car. In an angered retaliation they snapped their teeth against the window cages and kicked at the passenger side doors.
Jackson snatched his shotgun and jumped out of the vehicle. "Get in the rover now!" He began to unload gun blasts past Page and Baily.
Page grabbed Baily by his good arm and hoisted them both to their feet. She took the remaining rubber loaded shotgun off his shoulder, and they made a dash for the rover. The two velociraptors wove behind them, making it difficult for Jackson to gun them down. As Page ran she saw one of the juvenile tyrannosaurs circle around the hood of the rover and go for Jackson. With her boots still pounding the dirt, Page raised her weapon and fired three rubber bullets into the rex's thigh. With a bellow the young tyrant recoiled but still appeared to have it out for Jackson. Page fired a fourth shot at the corner of the animal's jaw. This time the young rex stood down, whimpering and limply flapping its gums as though it had been punched in the face.
Among the volley of gunfire Page hadn't noticed that Baily was lagging. A desperate shriek behind her clued her in. By the time she turned around Baily was on his back, and the male velociraptor was running a killer hind claw through his windpipe. Page fired a rubber bullet into the raptor's ribcage at close range, and it immediately dropped to the ground. As the male gasped for air Page spotted the female velociraptor analyzing her from a ten-foot distance. Its eyes shifted to Jackson and then quickly back to Page. Then it looked up at the second and third tyrannosaurs that were making their way around the back end of the rover. With a caw the female raptor made up her mind. Page stood firm with her gun as the swift predator fled for the northern forest.
"Page, get in the rover." Jackson could smell the breaths of the young tyrants as they encroached the vehicle.
As Page backed up against the rear door of the car she found herself remembering the names of the tyrant youths. Each one of the tyrannosaurs was an earthy red with black markings. Flash was the one with a distinct jagged streak running down her snout, Laser had tiger stripes all over her body, and Jigsaw was the one with the teeth that grew in crooked.
Flash was sniffing at the maimed velociraptor male that was painfully writhing in the dirt. Page however had Jigsaw and Laser's full attention.
As she fumbled with the door handle behind her the two tyrants lurched closer. Laser redirected her focus onto Jackson while Jigsaw remained fixed on Page. Page finally got a good hold on the door latch, and it popped ajar. She held her breath, opening the door without any sudden moves. Next to her, Jackson was ducking into the driver's seat when the tyrants made an attack.
Page threw herself backwards into the rover as Jigsaw's crooked teeth slammed against the doorframe. From the floor of the back seat Page heard Jackson scream as his left ankle was crushed in the driver's door. Laser repeatedly smashed her snout against the side of the vehicle, shattering Jackson's shin. With a bite of her teeth the carnivore flung the door back open and ripped Jackson from the rover by his leg.
Page listened to her colleague's shrieks from the back seat, but they were quickly extinguished upon a crunch of bones. She squeezed her eyes shut and tried to think about something else, anything else to keep her thoughts from fixating on the gruesome death her co-worker was falling victim to. Nothing came to mind. She couldn't seem to get her ears to filter out the sound of Jackson's bones being chewed and splintered to bits. As much as she tried it was all she could hear.