The Island In The Mist: A Dinosaur Thriller

by C. G. Mosley

  “Where do we go from Atlanta?” Jonathon asked, seemingly relieved that the flight wouldn’t take long.

  “Once we land, we’ll board Mr. Wedgeworth’s private jet and fly down to a small airstrip near Miami. At least that’s the way I understood it,” she replied.

  “Oh great, we’re going to land and then go right back into the sky again?”

  She nodded. “Sorry. You didn’t have to come,” she reminded him playfully.

  Once back on the ground, Jonathon was pleasantly surprised at how quickly they were ushered through Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport to a small hanger outside where Angus’s private jet awaited them. The plane was sleek and beautiful. The white paint looked practically brand new, and the light blue stripes that zigzagged own the fuselage gave the plane a speedy look. The tail fin had a large blue “W” displayed proudly on both sides.

  The door was open and a man in his forties hopped down the steps and greeted them.

  “Afternoon, folks, my name is Eric Gill. I’ll be your pilot today,” he said proudly.

  Jonathon sensed the guy was cocky. He figured most pilots were, but something about the guy’s smirk and his perfectly combed dark hair bothered him. Angus stopped near the steps and motioned for them to climb aboard. Lucy smiled brightly and eagerly climbed into the luxurious plane. Jonathon spotted Eric eyeing her closely. Once she passed him and entered the plane, he leaned backward and watched her walk down the aisle. Jonathon rolled his eyes. Lucy was a very pretty woman; he was used to seeing other men gawk at her. There was a time when he was amused by it. Now, with their relationship hanging in the balance, it only sickened him.

  “Gorgeous plane,” he said as he got within arm’s length of Eric.

  “Yes, it is,” he agreed. “This is a Gulfstream III, brand spanking new.”

  Eric held out a hand and Jonathon shook it reluctantly.

  “Nice to meet you, I’m Jonathon,” he said, trying to be polite.

  “Nice to meet you too, Jonathon,” Eric said, still shaking his hand. Suddenly, he leaned over close. “Listen,” he whispered. “Who’s the brunette?”

  Jonathon clenched his jaw. “My girlfriend,” he growled, pulling the brim of his hat down. Eric was taken aback, but did his best to disguise it. “Oh, I see,” he said calmly. “Sorry.”

  Jonathon turned away and sat down next to Lucy. “He seems like a nice guy,” she said when he sat.

  Jonathon didn’t respond.

  “Something wrong?” she asked.

  “No…everything’s just swell,” he replied gruffly.

  Someone approached him from behind and put a firm grip on his shoulder. Jonathon looked back to see a large balding man, with dark eyes looming behind him.

  “Travis Mills,” the man said, holding out a bulky, callused hand. Jonathon looked at the hand and cautiously offered his. Travis squeezed it tightly as he shook it and stared Jonathon in the eyes.

  “I’m Mr. Wedgeworth’s bodyguard,” he said. “I heard that you are a last minute guest on our little expedition.”

  “Yeah,” Jonathon answered.

  “We’re not gonna have any trouble out of you, are we?”

  Jonathon felt his blood pressure rise, and he was contemplating asking Travis what his problem was when Angus intervened.

  “Travis,” he said, almost in a fatherly tone. “Be kind to our guests. I invited Jonathon along. He’s a good man and no one for you to be concerned about.”

  Travis kept his gaze steady on Jonathon.

  “That’s good to know,” he said. “I’m sure we’ll get along just fine.” He winked at Lucy mischievously and plopped back down in his seat. Another younger man sat behind Travis and Jonathon assumed by his appearance that he was a bodyguard too.

  “He was kind of a creep,” Lucy whispered. “The other one is named Frank, he doesn’t say much. They both seem angry all the time.”

  Jonathan turned toward her and smirked. “Yeah, good thing you’re not all alone with these guys, isn’t it?”

  She smiled sheepishly, getting his point. As much as she didn’t want to admit it, she was quickly becoming relieved Jonathon came along. Something about the way Travis winked at her bothered her.

  Minutes later, the Gulfstream was airborne and they were above the puffy clouds again. The plane was considerably smalle,r and it seemed much harder for Jonathon to feel comfortable. Turbulence rocked and shifted the tiny plane around the sky, and when he peered out the window and saw the wings shaking, his stomach began to roll.

  “I think I’m going to be sick,” he moaned and he fanned himself with his hat.

  Lucy noticed his observation and laughed. “We’re going to be fine, airplane wings do that,” she said reassuringly.

  Jonathon closed his eyes and didn’t open them again until he knew they were descending to the small airstrip near Miami.

  Chapter 10:

  The Gulfstream touched down a few minutes after five o’clock. Eric brought the plane to a stop near a small hanger at the end of the runway. He opened the door and they all clambered out into the bright Florida sunshine. Jonathon placed his hat back on his head and pulled the brim down low to shield the bright sun. The building they were near was red, trimmed in white, and looked more like a barn than an airplane hangar. There were a few prop planes inside it and those were the only other aircraft he spotted on the property. There was another shed roughly fifty yards from them that housed an old fire truck and a tractor. Another building next to it was apparently used as the airport office. There was nothing but open pastures on either side of the runway. A gravel road ran parallel to the runway and disappeared behind some large oak trees. Once outside the Gulfstream, Jonathon walked out toward the runway and surveyed the land around him. He caught Angus creeping up beside him out of the corner of his eye.

  “Let me guess, you own all of this,” he said glancing at him.

  Angus grabbed him by the neck; once again, he seemed fatherly. “Yes, I just bought it six months ago. It’s not much now, but I’ve got plans for a few improvements.”

  He took a deep breath. “Fresh air. It seems that it’s getting hard to come by now.”

  Jonathon shrugged. “Yeah, there’s plenty of it out here,” he replied, wondering what that had to do with anything. The old man stood beside him silently as if he wasn’t sure what to say next. It soon occurred to Jonathon that Angus was simply trying to make conversation. A desperate attempt to make peace. He couldn’t oblige him…at least not yet. He looked back at the plane where Eric, Lucy, and the two bodyguards were unloading the baggage and preparing to take it toward a van near the airport office. Poor Lucy was struggling to carry his bag and her bulky suitcase at the same time. She dropped his bag, and when she bent over to pick it up, he noticed Eric and Travis smiling lustfully and whispering as they stared at her behind. He shook his head. I really don’t like those guys.

  “Why don’t you trust me?” Angus suddenly asked.

  Jonathon stirred up some dust with his boot. “Don’t take it personally; I don’t trust a lot of people.”

  “I don’t buy that. You don’t trust me and I’m fine with that, but I would just like to know why.”

  “Well, Angus, I’ve heard a lot of stuff about you. Bad stuff. And before you ask, yes I believe most of it,” Jonathon replied, still staring out across the pasture.

  Angus nodded silently. “Well, regardless of what you’ve heard, I swear to you that there are dinosaurs alive and well on an island that has remained virtually untouched for millions of years. I want you and Lucy to be a part of that. You will soon see that I’m not lying to you.”

  “I’ll believe it when I see it,” he replied. The truth was, Jonathon really was beginning to believe it. He’d overheard Travis and the other bodyguard speaking about dinosaurs on the plane and Angus seemed to be telling the truth. He couldn’t put a finger on it, but something still seemed wrong. It was just a vibe that he felt. He didn’t trust Angus, and he didn’t know if he
ever could.

  “I will earn your trust,” Angus said, seemingly hearing his thoughts. “When we arrive on the island, you’ll be so impressed you’ll probably even apologize for some of the rude things you’ve said to me.”

  Jonathon wasn’t sure if the old man was joking or serious, but he laughed anyway. “Just know that I’m watching you and those three apes you’ve got working for you. Don’t try anything funny with me and Lucy or I swear I’ll kill all four of you.”

  His words were cold, and they seemed to get the point across because Angus was clearly taken off guard. He opened his mouth but no words came out. Jonathon casually walked away and left Angus standing alone, shocked.

  He made his way over to the van, but Lucy and the others weren’t there. All of the bags were already loaded, and he figured the only place they could’ve gone was the office. It was a one-story steel building painted blue with only a few windows. A large metal sign next to the door confirmed his assumption that it was indeed the airport office. He went inside and was surprised at how cool it was when he entered. He heard voices and laughter down a hallway and he followed it to find Lucy, the bodyguards, Eric and a couple of other people he hadn’t met yet. One was an older man sitting at a table, probably in his late fifties or early sixties. For his age, he was very athletic looking and seemed very strong. His hair was blonde and he had a full beard. He was dressed like a man prepared to go on a safari. He had on a tan button-up short sleeve shirt, and tan shorts. A large tan bush hat adorned his large head. The man looked very familiar, but he couldn’t place where he’d seen him before.

  The other individual sitting on the edge of the table really got Jonathon’s attention. It was a young woman, probably early twenties, and she was stunningly beautiful. Her hair was a deep red; it was long and full of body. She wore a tight-fitting teal tank top and gray shorts, cuffed at the bottom. He had a feeling she had to wear a lot of sunscreen to protect her cream-colored skin, and the candy-apple red lipstick she wore accentuated her pouty lips. She looked him straight in the eyes when he appeared at the doorway and gave a slight smile. For a second, he forgot all about Lucy…until she spoke.

  “Jonathon, there you are!” She walked over to him and took him by the arm. “I want you to meet someone,” she said, leading him toward the safari man. “This is Silas Treadwell.” She said his name in such a way that she expected Jonathon to recognize it. He didn’t and his expression gave him away.

  The safari man shifted in his chair and laughed. “Dear, I’m afraid he doesn’t know who I am,” he said.

  “Jonathon,” she said, surprised. “You don’t know who he is?”

  He crossed his arms and stared at the man a moment. “I’m sorry, although you do look vaguely familiar, I can’t place where I’ve seen you,” he said.

  The room erupted in laughter, and suddenly Jonathon felt like he was in the middle of some sort of joke. Lucy continued to stare at him, surprised.

  “Jonathon, Silas has a national television show. You’ve never seen it?”

  “I don’t watch a lot of television,” he confessed.

  “You’ve never heard of the television show Wild World?” she asked, seeming to hope that he would remember.

  “Actually, I think I do remember hearing of that show,” he lied. “I’m sorry, I just don’t watch it. As I said, I don’t watch a lot of television of any kind.”

  Silas stood up from the table and shook his hand. “That’s quite alright. It’s actually refreshing to meet people every now and then that haven’t heard of me,” he said. “I visit different regions of the world and hunt all sorts of animals, especially dangerous ones.”

  “And now you want to hunt some dinosaurs,” Jonathon blurted out.

  Silas chuckled. “Not exactly, at least not yet. I’ve known Angus a long time. I wouldn’t call us close friends, but we’re acquaintances. He called me and asked me to join him. My experience with wild animals may come in handy. I’ll get some of the credit for the discovery and the eventual plan is to bring Wild World to the island to give the public the first glimpse of it. Can you imagine how the world will react?”

  “Yeah, I’m sure they’ll eat it up,” he answered grumpily as he walked over to a refrigerator in the corner of the room. He was thirsty. Inside the fridge, he found a variety of sodas to choose from. He reached in and grabbed an orange-colored can.

  “Jonathon doesn’t believe that we’re going to find any dinosaurs,” Lucy explained. “He’s seen the pictures and everything, but he still doesn’t believe.”

  Silas smiled widely. “Really? You don’t believe.”

  Jonathon opened the soda can and took a swig. He nodded his head as confirmation.

  Silas walked over to him.

  “That’s great, because the truth is, I don’t either.”

  Jonathon grinned and suddenly felt a great deal of relief to know he wasn’t the only one who was skeptical.

  “You two will get along nicely then,” Angus announced as he entered the room.

  “I’ve seen them with my own eyes,” Eric said. “Travis and Frank have seen them too. They are real and you two will see soon enough.”

  The redhead approached Jonathon and held out her hand to introduce herself. Jonathon took it and wanted to hold on to it for a while, but forced himself to let go.

  “Hi, I’m Annie,” she said cheerfully.

  “Hello, Annie. What about you? Do you think there are some real dinosaurs hiding out in the Atlantic?”

  She nodded and smiled, revealing a mouth of perfect, pearly white teeth. “I kind of have to.”

  He raised an eyebrow. “What you do mean you have to?”

  “Because Uncle Angus says he’s seen them. I believe him,” she answered, her green eyes sparkling.

  Jonathon glanced at Angus who approached and put an arm around his niece.

  “Uncle Angus, huh?” he said.

  “I’m afraid so,” Angus answered. “Annie is a freelance photographer, and I’ve hired her to photograph our expedition. She will, no doubt, have a Pulitzer Prize winning photo to take home soon.”

  Travis walked over to Lucy. For the first time, Jonathon noticed his incredibly large arms. His biceps seemed to be on the verge of ripping the sleeves apart on his shirt. He placed one of the massive appendages around Lucy. “What about you, sweetheart? We know where everyone else stands. Do you believe there are dinosaurs or not?” He held her against his body tightly and Jonathon resisted the urge to say something…for now.

  “She’s with us, Travis,” Angus said. “She’s just as excited as the rest of us.”

  “I have no reason to doubt Mr. Wedgeworth,” Lucy said, pulling away from Travis. “Although, I understand Jonathon and Silas’s reluctance to believe,” she added.

  The smirk on Travis’s face disappeared when she pulled away from him and walked over to Jonathon. He focused his steely eyes on Jonathon, but he did his best to hide his anger and said nothing.

  “Well, there’s one thing I know for certain,” Silas said, apparently growing tired of the discussion. “You’re never going to change my mind if we just sit here debating everything. What are we waiting for? Let’s get going.”

  Chapter 11:

  As it turned out, the small airport they arrived at was much closer to Fort Lauderdale than Miami. Travis drove the van along a strip of highway that ran parallel to the beach. Angus sat in the passenger seat next to him. The bench seat behind them is where Lucy and Annie sat. They had been chatting ever since they left the air strip, and Jonathon wondered if Lucy would be so friendly with Annie if she knew how much he’d been distracted by her good looks. The seat behind them is where Silas and Jonathon sat. He had hit it off with the older man pretty quick and he considered himself lucky to have found an ally. Silas wanted to know everything he could learn about dinosaurs in the short amount of time he had before they arrived at the island. He quizzed Jonathon relentlessly about all the different types of dinosaurs and their behavior. Not su
rprisingly, the game hunter wanted to know everything he could about Tyrannosaurus rex. That particular dinosaur clearly interested him most as it did almost everyone. After all, tyrannosaur was the most famous and fearsome of all the carnivores that had been discovered. The last seat in the van is where Frank sat. He remained silent as he always did, but he seemed to be listening to everything that was being talked about in the van. Frank looked just as menacing as Travis, but Jonathon didn’t seem to feel nearly as threatened by him. Nevertheless, he was nowhere near trusting him either. Eric Gill remained at the airstrip where he would await their return. The fact that he wasn’t coming along was a much-needed relief for Jonathon. Eric had shown a lot of interest in Lucy, and Jonathon was going to have a hard enough time keeping an eye on Travis.

  Jonathon gazed out across the vast Atlantic Ocean and thought again of the real possibility that there were dinosaurs living and breathing somewhere out there. He’d tried desperately to hang on to the belief that this was all some sort of trick, but it was becoming very apparent that they were indeed going to be boarding a ship soon. As much as he wanted to continue to believe that Angus was up to no good, he couldn’t find any evidence to support it. They’d been treated very well and everything seemed to be happening exactly the way they were told it would. Travis had been the only part of the entire trip that was unpleasant, but even he was tolerable. He found himself feeling anxious and even a little excited about what was ahead. However, if they did arrive at an island inhabited by dinosaurs, extreme caution would have to be exercised. He wondered if stubborn Angus would truly listen to his advice as he said he would. It bothered him even more when he thought of the monumental task of getting Travis to heed his warnings. You’re getting ahead of yourself, he thought. Wait until you see a dinosaur first.