Dino Island 2

by J R Hogan

  And the smaller load would have to be second, for obvious reasons.

  I guess I was going to find out how fast I could move with over a hundred and sixty pounds of extra weight.

  I locked the car and ran. Ten steps later, I slowed to a brisk walk.

  Plenty of students were crisscrossing the campus despite the late hour, but no one paid much attention to my bizarrely huge parcels. A few smiled and nodded, but I just raced past.

  I arrived, sweating, at the lab with eight minutes to spare. It seemed best to simply drop the three bags outside the door; I didn’t have time even to take them inside. Besides, I had no desire to alert Melvin to my presence until it was in my best interests to do so.

  I didn’t worry about theft; if someone wanted to steal enough toiletries to outweigh a newborn horse, more power to them.

  I ran.

  Gasping for air, I arrived at my car with six minutes left. I was cutting it close, especially since I’d be starting the final leg completely out of breath. But I just might make it.

  That’s when I noticed the campus security officer standing by my car, recording my license plate number and making a call on his walkie talkie.

  I moaned.

  He looked up at the sound, peering at me with beady eyes. “This your car?” he asked with the tone of a man who expected respect that he did not frequently receive. “You think you can break the law just because you’re a professor?”

  I exhaled.

  Then I moved to the trunk. “You must be new here,” I explained, pulling out my keys as I focused on the task ahead.

  “Started three weeks ago, but that doesn’t mean you can pull anything past me, pal.” He folded his arms.

  “Well then, let me bring you up to speed,” I offered, rolling up my sleeves. “I don’t think I can break the law just because I’m a professor.” He stepped closer as I reached inside the trunk.

  That’s when I wrapped the AR-15 sling mount around my shoulder and pulled the katana into view.

  “I think I can break the law because I have more weapons than you do.”

  His eyes dilated like his face was giving birth to twin octopi and he staggered backwards, falling on his ass. Sensing a ‘now or never’ moment, I grabbed the backpack and hefted it over my other shoulder. Then I turned and ran onto campus, the exposed weapons bouncing off my chest as the shotgun barrel pointed straight above my head and into the night.

  Students ducked out of my way this time, clearing a path as they gawked at my weapons. I ignored gasps of “are those real guns?” while they parted for me.

  My bloodstream flooded with the lactic acid that burned my chest in the final stretch of every race.

  I stole the briefest glance at my watch: under three minutes.

  I found a second wind as I rounded a corner and Melvin’s lab rolled into view. It took less than a minute to cover the final gap; I threw the backpack to the ground with the other three bags as I stopped to take great, heaving breaths just outside the door.

  “Professor Swift?” a voice announced from behind me.

  I spun around to find three grave-looking senior CampSec officers staring back.

  “We hear that you might have some information about weapons being smuggled onto campus.”

  Hands shaking, I peeked down at my watch.

  Two minutes to go.

  CHAPTER TEN

  TOC

  I focused on regaining my composure, breathed deep, and put on my best ‘professor’ tone. “There’s a new security officer. Three weeks on the job, a bit edgy. You know the man of which I speak?”

  “Yes,” the head guard said, stepping forward. We’d known each other for years, and I just might be able to play that in my favor. I stepped away from the weapons to divert their focus. “He said something over his walkie that we couldn’t understand. Did you see anything?” she asked sharply.

  I nodded. “I ran into him in the East Parking Lot. I think he actually brought a sword onto campus. He looked drunk. He was talking to himself and waving the walkie talkie around.”

  They stared at me in utter silence.

  The head guard finally sighed. “That fucker Ernie, I knew it was a bad idea to take him on. Come on guys, let’s go make sure he doesn’t hurt anybody.”

  Then they turned and hurried away.

  Less than a minute.

  I pulled open the lab door, threw the AR-15 and katana onto my shoulders, slung the backpack on, pulled the camping pack onto the front of my torso, grabbed the two duffels, and lifted.

  Nothing happened.

  Then I closed my eyes, told myself to stop being weak, tried the hardest I could, and slowly rose to my feet.

  I bounced like a pinball as I squeezed through the door and hobbled to the place I’d re-appeared six hours ago. Melvin’s voice barely registered as I staggered past him and halted in the exact spot.

  The duffels made a double thonk as I dropped them and slid my backpacks off. I melted to the floor in utter exhaustion and hugged my equipment so that it would, ostensibly, transport with me.

  From this angle on the ground, I was able to pivot my watch into view.

  Ten seconds left. I had made it.

  I was too tired to smile as the time ticked down to zero. I just made sure that my fingers had weaved themselves through every available strap and latched on tight. I held my breath.

  Nothing happened.

  I shook my watch. But it scrolled merrily onward, oblivious to the fact that it had gone well past its deadline and was now heading into uncharted territory.

  Melvin moved a few steps closer. “This was timed precisely.” He looked confused. “Chastity, what happened? Professor Swift shouldn’t still be here. Granted, it seemed unlikely that he would show at all, but he just made it. You owe me a Coke!” Then he turned around and regarded me with interest. “Looks like my calculations were off, and you’re not going anywhere after all. We’re still learning, but I thought I had this particular nut cracked. Chastity, did you give me the wrong data? I knew I shouldn’t have trusted a woman assistant with something so important, because I’m sure I did my part correctly. See if Professor Swift has anything on his body that might cause an unexpected variable.”

  I nervously looked from the sword, to the assault rifle, to the shotgun barrel, and considered the trouble I was about to face. Hell, CampSec was going to have some very interesting questions if I was stuck here.

  My stomach dropped as I thought of Jessica, Ling, Sarah, and Daisy. If I didn’t return, the last thing they would ever know from me was abandonment without a goodbye.

  Chastity’s heels clacked loudly as she drew near. I wrapped my equipment ever tighter; I felt the need to protect the items that I’d sacrificed everything to procure, even if they were about to prove dangerously useless.

  “Mark,” she cooed, bending down and stroking my shoulder. I hated how good it felt. Then she placed the briefcase by my head, hooked a hand under my arm, and tried to pull me to my feet. “I was wrong. I really didn’t think you’d come back for the girls. Come with me. You don’t need to stay here any longer.”

  No, no, no, no, no, no, no. I closed my eyes and pushed away from her, unwilling to accept it. Not after I’d sacrificed everything for those women. Not after I realized that I had nothing before those women.

  It was too much to face.

  Chastity sat on one of the bags and wrapped her hand around my fingers. “I can be a bitch sometimes, Mark, because I have to be. Everyone I’ve ever met has done their best to confirm that men like you don’t make it this far in their lives without trying to become the biggest asshole they can.” She squeezed.

  Then she leaned in and kissed my cheek.

  “Come with me, Mark.”

  I couldn’t decide what to feel. I had my life back, and I hated it. I wanted to hate her.

  But when she kissed me, somehow… I couldn’t.

  For three seconds,
I was calm.

  Then thoughts of the four women waiting for me flooded back into my head. I understood then that I could never simply forget them; even if I put them out of my mind for a moment, they would always come back.

  I’d never stop trying to get back to them.

  “You knew, didn’t you? You lied to me on purpose, Chastity.” My face burned. “You’re a-”

  “Gullible idiot, but a useful one,” Melvin interrupted as he paced on the other side of the room, his greasy hair waving. “Because I just remembered why it didn’t work. I told you 10:03, which was a lie. The real goal was one minute later. Your clock will stop at 10:04.”

  Chastity and I whirled to face him.

  He smiled, showing off his crooked teeth. “There was no other way to convince Chastity to return with you, Mark. But I knew she’d walk right into the oncoming path if you needed consoling. Toodles!”

  Chastity sprang to her feet, but it was too late. I clutched the bags as dizziness erased all sense of balance while the world went wavy.

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  TOC

  I awoke face down in the dirt, surrounded by the sound of a thousand impossible insects, wondering what was crawling up my arm.

  “Again?” I mumbled aloud.

  I tried to focus as a blurry black mass swam into my vision. My stomach turned when I realized that a beetle the size and weight of a tennis ball was trying to crawl into my shirtsleeve. It made a sucking sound as I pushed it off and it thudded in the dirt.

  My mind grew sharper.

  The bags.

  Chastity.

  The girls.

  I leapt to my feet and saw some of it nearby. Heart pounding, I realized that I’d landed in the same spot as my very first arrival, which now seemed like a lifetime ago. I knelt down and saw that the two large duffels had made the trip with me; Chastity’s briefcase had as well, though I couldn’t see her. I spun around to try finding the rest.

  That’s when my ass slammed onto the ground. Stars of pain exploded before my eyes as I looked to see what I’d tripped on.

  It was my camping backpack, which was good news despite my quickly bruising glutes.

  So I was just missing one weapons bag, and one travelling companion. I got shakily to my feet and looked around.

  The verdant, hopelessly wild jungle was already starting to feel like home. In a twisted way, it evoked the sentiment of getting off a plane and heading into your home city’s airport. The green canopy shaded the harshest rays of a setting sun, but trapped steamy heat that never seemed to dissipate. The bugs chittered ceaselessly; I could almost feel the trees breathe.

  It was time to hunt.

  I needed a weapon, but that was the one bag I couldn’t find. I was scanning the ground when my eyes stopped suddenly.

  Chastity’s briefcase. She obviously was keeping several important things in there, and one of them was a pistol. I snatched it and prepared to open the latches.

  “I’ve got something of yours,” a voice called out from behind me.

  I wheeled around to see Chastity. Neither of us was smiling.

  She held my final bag in front of her.

  “Chastity!” My voice felt like wood. “You found my bag. And you’re safe! Thank goodness I found you.”

  We eyed each other without joy.

  “And you have something of mine, Mark. I’m a reasonable woman, and you can be a reasonable man.”

  I froze. “You’re proposing a trade between colleagues.”

  “Better than a misunderstanding between a man who’s in way over his head and the heavily armed woman he pissed off.”

  I squeezed the briefcase. Did I trust her?

  I closed my eyes and shook my head at the ridiculousness of the question.

  Of course I didn’t trust her. Chastity Wiggum was an intelligent, dangerous person.

  “What’s in the briefcase, Chastity?”

  “Open it and find out,” she responded with eerie calm as she stroked the barrel of the shotgun.

  I narrowed my eyes. “You know more about this place, and about what can get the women home, than you’re letting on.”

  She flashed a look of disgust. “Do you really think I wanted to come on this trip?”

  I paused, letting the gears in my analytical mind do their spinning. I blinked. “To be honest, Chastity, I really don’t know.”

  “Then you don’t trust me.”

  “Somewhat.”

  She scowled. “You’ve got two choices, Mark,” she spat. “The first option is that you trust me, which means you can stop worrying about what’s in that briefcase and we’ll mutually benefit from an even trade. The second is that you don’t trust me, in which case you’ll never get to see what I’m hiding in briefcase, because the person you distrust has more weapons than you do. You’re well versed in Game Theory, so tell me the next move.”

  The gears spun faster.

  “I’ll put the briefcase down twenty feet behind me, then return to where I’m standing. You’ll drop the bag of weapons and walk to me. We’ll meet in the middle and walk toward our respective bags.”

  “Aren’t you afraid I’ll shoot you?”

  “No, you need me alive more than you need me dead, both for survival and for research.”

  “And how do I know you won’t turn this gun on me?” She folded her arms.

  “Because, if you’re to be believed, I’m the one guy you’ve ever met who isn’t an asshole, and you find that charmingly naïve but trustworthy.”

  She raised an eyebrow. “You’re a pain in my ass.”

  “And you’re the reason my entire life has been turned upside down, so you’ll forgive my lack of contrition.”

  Without waiting for a response, I turned and walked several steps back, set the briefcase on the sand, and returned. My stomach dropped as I realized that my lone bargaining chip, my only safety net, was gone.

  Now everything depended on Chastity not being a lying bitch.

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  TOC

  She eyed me silently for several seconds. I felt naked as she stood before me, fully armed, consuming me with her mind.

  I didn’t trust her in the least, but I did have confidence in her tendency to act prudently in her own best interests.

  Of course, every part of this journey had been influenced by my tendency to underestimate the women who came with me.

  I held my breath.

  Then Chastity placed my bag on the ground at her feet and slowly walked toward me, somehow smiling without moving her lips. She came close enough to brush me as she passed. Her hair smelled like licorice.

  I grabbed her wrist. She stopped and gazed up at me.

  We stayed like that for a moment.

  Then she raked her fingertips across my stomach with her other hand. My grip weakened, and she slid her arm from my control.

  She had nearly crossed the distance to her briefcase by the time I realized that I’d taken far too long watching her ass in that lab coat. Shaking my head, I turned and raced for my bag, snatching it off the ground as quickly as I could.

  We turned to face each other.

  Neither one moved.

  Then I looked down. “There was, um, an assault rifle-”

  “And a Samurai sword, I believe.” Her response was calm. Crisp.

  “Um. Yes.”

  “I left them right where you’re standing now.”

  I looked closer to see that she was, in fact, telling the truth.

  “Ah. Thank you.”

  I bent down and grabbed the weapons, removing the bag so I could wrap the AR-15’s sling mount around my shoulders before strapping the katana to my back.

  Then I turned to face her. She hadn’t moved.

  “Well?” she asked. “What now?”

  I stared back. She had a way of making me feel constantly out of place and unsure of myself. It was an undercurrent, not an overpowering force
. But it was relentless. Around Chastity, I was always at least partially an awkward junior high schooler whose only assurance about social interactions was that I was saying the wrong thing.

  I looked up at the jungle’s leafy ceiling, evaluating the long, slanted rays peeking through. “We need to get back to camp as soon as possible,” I began, “but we don’t have much longer before sunset.”