CHAPTER 129
Now that Bryce was turned he saw that everyone's firearms had been confiscated and thrown in a pile. Two velociraptors were still poking around at the guns with their feet. Turning them over they studied them with an inquisitive eye that understood the power of the object but knew not how to harness it. It might have been like watching a caveman mull over the mighty force of lightning or try to understand how fire worked. When one of them got their killing talon hooked through the trigger guard of a shotgun the weapon discharged causing both raptors to shriek and jump. As if to call order to the chaos the Mohawk bearing utahraptor took a step past Dianna and bellowed. Every velociraptor in the vicinity ducked its head.
Dianna whispered, "Jesus, Bryce, they're working together."
"More like they're working for them. Look at the velociraptors. They're almost as scared shitless as we are." Bryce gave a subtle nod at the smaller raptors. They were actually timid. It was like they'd been whipped. "I've never seen behavior like this."
Dianna glanced at Seth who was huddled in a ball next to Kyra and Shelly who had thrown their arms around each other. Her eyes shifted over Ms. Bolton, Phill, Gary, and Bill before settling on Ms. Murdock.
Joan was still pinned under a velociraptor and looking as though she were expecting some kind of a signal or sign from one of the doctors.
Dianna said, "Bryce, what the hell are we doing? How do we get out of this?"
Bryce shifted his eyes toward her. He didn't want to tell her they were screwed, and he didn't have to. She could read it on his face.
There was no room for them to think about what that meant. The idea that they were all about to die was not something they were given room to ponder, as the sight they saw next struck a new chord of terror in their minds.
The two velociraptors that had killed Guss and Dr. Ellis reemerged from the shadows carrying the severed heads of their respective victims in their mouths. The heads dangled by their hair from clamped jaws. Blood still trickled from the cleaved throats as they were carried forward.
Ms. Murdock grunted from under the pressure of the foot that pinned her, "What in God's name is this?"
Dr. Conners answered her, "they know we fear death and the sight of our own dead. It may be a message, a warning of some kind, or a threat. It may simply be to scare us out of our wits so we can't function effectively. They might even be testing the extents of our fear. Perhaps they've decided they want to know what makes us tick."
Above Dr. Conner's ramblings Phill began to scream, "oh God, no!" Phill jumped to his feet and dashed toward the emergency bunker. He was crying and shouting, "oh Jesus! Oh Jesus!"
A moment later a velociraptor sprinted after him. Phill reached the door and yanked at the latch, but his feet had not carried him quick enough to beat the raptor. In seconds he was torn to pieces.
Dianna looked away. She couldn't watch. Her eyes went back to Seth who was witnessing all of this gore and killing with an expression on his face that was difficult to read. He looked scared, but there was something else. She knew these events were going to scar him. She wished he'd look at her, but he didn't.
Dianna almost called to her son, but a sound stopped her. Something else was approaching.