CHAPTER 328

Lew Dodgson stood back where Daniel had left him in the dust. He stared down the dirt road, still trying to wrap his head around the position he was in. The presence of three sneering velociraptors around him was very much blaring. Dodgson finally turned around to face all three of them who were snarling and scowling. He sized them up, twisting his face into the most intimidating manner he could conjure. Then he said, "well what the hell are you lookin' at, ugly?"

Roadkill fixed his eyes hard on Dodgson and sauntered forward until they were face to face. Ghost and Needles closed in around Dodgson's flanks.

Dodgson held his composure. He knew that with Daniel gone, showing any sign of weakness was going to leave him a dead man.

Roadkill loomed over Dodgson and uttered, "bitch."

Dodgson turned in his skin, but before he could escalate there was a loud crash that came from the other end of the access tunnel. Everybody neutralized, and the volley of insults ceased. All heads turned to the tunnel where they saw a tree coming down at the mouth of the far end. Then an enormous shape fell over it.

Around him, Dodgson saw all three velociraptors flit away like small fish in the water.

"God damn it!" Lew's head snapped to the jungle at his right, where the undergrowth was still settling despite the raptors having long disappeared within it.

Dodgson ran for the brush and dove in. From behind the fronds of a short palm tree he peered back at the tunnel. Before he got a good look he felt a snag at his collar. Dodgson would've yelped, but his shirt was choking him. Whatever had him pulled him far deeper among the foliage, and then it released him.

Dodgson whipped around and saw Roadkill. He put up a finger. He was fuming and ready to spit words.

"Shh!" Roadkill hissed at him in a way that sounded like a human shushing, and he nodded to the tunnel.

Behind him Dodgson heard huffing and growling. He turned. The sounds grew. A scraping noise of huge claws on concrete could be heard. Soon the snout of the beast protruded out from the hollow. Then the rest of the head, neck, and body followed. The creature was crawling as the clearance was too low for it to stand. As it exited the tunnel it pushed its belly up from the ground and stood.

"My God," Dodgson beamed.

Dr. Wu had leaked information to him about Version B and the implications of its potential as a ruthless and aggressive killing machine, but seeing it in the flesh was something else entirely.

The animal's eyes prowled around, and its long crocodile jaws parted. The spinosaurus sniffed the air, and its skin twitched. With its tail still lingering in the tunnel it wagged slowly and thumped against the concrete wall.

Dodgson was admiring the powerful talons on the carnivore's hands as they flexed and opened when he realized the spinosaurus was looking directly in his direction. His heart stopped.

The dinosaur turned its body and lurched forward. With a growl it swung its head at the tree line and snapped its jaws. Upper branches shook and rustled as the carnivore banged its teeth against them. Dodgson saw something fall. It was small. The spinosaurus crouched and stabbed one set of her heavy fore talons into the bracken below her. Dead palm fronds and other rotting leaves came up with the dinosaur's hand and fell away. On her claw was a shriveled and picked over fish carcass. Dodgson remembered that Daniel had said the pteranodons were fed fish. One of them must have dropped it from above.

The spinosaurus took one snort at the decayed fish and threw it aside. Her eyes pierced the tree line again, and Dodgson felt like his whole body was locked in a suspended animation. Every function ceased, right down to the vibration of the smallest molecule. He swore the spinosaurus had met his eyes, but then she looked away. The carnivore carried her huge body off down the dirt road, and Dodgson's insides slowly reanimated until he took a breath.

When the spinosaurus was well out of view he turned around to find Roadkill still breathing down his neck. There was a showdown of glares, but Roadkill had the first word.

"Bitch."

"Get over it, Road Garbage." Dodgson's neck tightened.

He turned to his right and found that Ghost had materialized out of nowhere without a sound. They were nose to nose.

"Jesus!" Dodgson jumped back. When he did he bumped into Needles, who hadn't been there a moment ago.

Lew faced the prickly velociraptor and straightened his collar. The dinosaur was sneering.

Dodgson's ego was getting the better of him, and he raised his chin at the raptor. "You gonna take a poke at me?"

Needle's killer claws began to twitch, and he curled his scaly fingers against his sides.

"That's what I thought." Dodgson turned to walk away. "Lead the way, Road Carcass."

Dodgson lifted a leg to move, but he felt a snag at the cuff of his pants. Needles had hooked a killer claw in. The dinosaur yanked back, slamming Dodgson's face into the ground.

Dodgson didn't skip a beat. "Big mistake, Pin Cushion."

He jumped to his feet. Spinning around, his brass knuckles flashed out and connected with Needle's face. The velociraptor's head snapped to the side. Lew cocked his fist for another throw, but he was tackled to the ground, not by Needles, but by Roadkill.

Dodgson was pinned on his back. His arms were trapped under heavy claws. He stared up into a jigsaw of sharp bearing teeth. Saliva poured down his nose as Roadkill snarled.

Dodgson became very cool, very icy, and he spoke. "Go ahead. Do It. Kill me. You think you're so smart. You can't even get off this shitty little rock without our help. You have no idea what's in store for you in the real world. Now get off me, you genetic garbage."

Roadkill's jaw quivered. Dodgson felt the raptor's grip tighten around him. He stared back at the dinosaur and did not flinch. Roadkill sat on him like that for another moment and then eased away.

Dodgson heard the same insult again in a hushed murmur.

"Bitch." Roadkill walked over Dodgson, letting the word trail behind him.

As soon as Roadkill was out of the way Dodgson had another velociraptor face looming over him. It was Needles, and he had something in his mouth. It was Dodgson's brass knuckles. He hadn't noticed them leave his hand, and he squeezed his empty fingers to confirm that he was seeing what he was seeing.

Needles spit the brass knuckles down onto Dodgson's chest with a heavy thunk. Lew couldn't help a grunt. Needles walked over him to follow Roadkill, leaving Dodgson with the same biting whisper.

"Bitch."

Dodgson watched the dinosaur's tail lash away. He was about to get up when he felt a chill at the side of his face.

"You're only gonna get to play that trick on me once." Dodgson leaned away from the chilly feeling and then turned to face it. Sure enough, Ghost was right there.

"Let me guess," Dodgson then mimicked the other two raptors, "bitch."

Ghost pondered for a moment, then said, "asshole."

Like a shadow in the dark, Ghost slipped away after the others.

Dodgson took the brass knuckles off his chest and curled his fingers through them. He got to his feet and straightened himself out with a sour look on his face. All the while he kept his eyes on the three velociraptors. He had half a mind to go his own way. Perhaps he'd be better off. The sound of cawing pteranodons above strongly swayed him otherwise. These velociraptors, after all, were technically precious cargo. Dodgson just hoped they didn't turn on him before they reached the main land.

"All bets are off, Lew." Dodgson tightened his grip on his brass knuckles and followed the raptors.