“Okay, fine. I’ll be waiting. It’s not like I’m going anywhere.”
I peeked through the clusters of branches and green stems. The creature cocked its head and swung its heavy tail that must have weighed more than my dad’s boat. The T-rex let out a roar; there were too many teeth to count in its gaping mouth.
“I hear something,” Mike called.
“Quiet!” I warned in a hushed tone. I opened my mouth to speak when the T-rex took a step toward the hole, its tail swishing back and forth, like a cat waiting for a mouse to come out of its hole. A scream froze in my throat.
“Casey! Jack!” Mike was one of the few people in the world who could ignore the roar of a prehistoric beast and not realize the imminent danger. “You guys still there?” He spluttered a few times, his arms splashing in the water, foolishly drawing more attention to him.
As bad as I felt for not answering, I didn’t dare draw the T-rex’s focus to me. The thing was even closer now. Mike was a big boy, and he could take a few more minutes of silence until I found a way to get rid of the monster. I was trying to save all of our lives, and if the silent treatment accomplished that, so be it.
The T-rex let out another roar, this time louder than before. My heart started racing, and my breathing was labored, like I’d just run a marathon. I knew if I wanted to survive this mess without ending up as a dino treat, I had to do something more useful than sitting around panting like a dog. Pressing a hand against my chest, I tried to still my frantic breathing as the T-rex growled like some kind of angry Rottweiler. Breathe in, breathe out. Gosh, that thing is so...so...so huge. Breathe in, breathe out. And hungry. Big, giant letters blasted onto the screen in my mind: KEEP IT TOGETHER.
Jack whispered, “Gimme me your cell.”
I shot him a disbelieving look. “We’ll never get reception here.” I wondered why the heck he wanted a cell phone. It wasn’t like he could call 911 or Animal Control. But boy, those nifty tranquilizer darts would come in handy right about now.
“Casey, please!”
I shrugged and reached in my pocket to retrieve the silver phone for Jack. I slid it sideways on the ground toward him. Jack pulled the phone slowly to his side and held it up through a gap in the bushes, a deep frown planted between his brows.
There was a bright flash, and then a vertical shaft of light reflected off the smooth chrome-like surface of the phone. Jack squinted against the sunshine and adjusted the angle. The beam bounced around the creature’s face until finally Jack found his mark: right in its huge eyes. Jack was like some kind of teenage MacGyver, and I was almost sure he could disarm a bomb with a bobby pin, probably even while blindfolded.
Mike often accused him of being boring, but I thought Jack was the cleverest, most resourceful, most ambitious, most down-to-Earth person I’d ever met.
Blinking wildly at the reflected sunlight, the T-rex moved back a few steps, jerking its head from side to side. It opened its mouth and released a high-pitched screech, obviously distracted and annoyed, and then closed its eyes. Jack was an absolute genius.
I sucked in a quick breath, staggering to my feet as my heart started speeding up again. “It’s working!” A splash caught my attention. Mike! I ran back to the front of the hole and picked up the vine, gripping it tightly. “Hold on, Mike. I’m coming!”
I dropped to my knees and peered inside. Brown water swirled around the deep pit, but Mike was nowhere to be seen. I slapped my forehead, and my stomach lurched as I realized he must be drowning.
I trembled. “Mike? Mike! Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry.” I took a deep breath, ready to dive in, and suddenly, I felt a tug, sending a wave of relief over me.
“Mike!?”
Bracing myself against a tree, I put one foot in front of the other and pulled back with every ounce of my strength. I tried to ignore the T-rex that was less than fifteen feet away. Its slashing claws could kill me with one single swipe, if it didn’t smash me into a pancake first, but I had to try and save Mike. I knew he would risk as much for me if the situation were reversed.
Mike choked and sputtered. “I’m okay.”
“Climb!” I yelled.
“Where’s Jack?” He could barely get out the words.
I gulped. “We ran into a small glitch, and he’s fixing it.”
“A small glitch?” repeated Mike.
“Actually, it’s sort of a big glitch,” I said, pulling back harder. I hoped he’d stop his interrogation for once so I could focus on my task. It was so typical of Mike to keep chatting while fighting for his life—or worse, to keep chatting while others fought to save his butt…again.
Mike spoke between breaths. “I heard those roars. Didn’t sound like Jack. Where is he?”
I peered over at Jack, struggling to maintain the right angle with my cell phone and said, “He’s tied up at the moment. Mike, there really is a T-rex. I’m not kidding. Hurry!”
“Yeah, very funny,” Mike muttered. “Really, where is he?”
I rolled my eyes and pulled harder, my arms straining with the effort. “Jack’s busy saving our butts. Now hurry up!”
As he climbed, he called out Jack’s name.
“Jack tilted the phone at just the right angle and sent out another blinding glare. “Uh, I’m a little busy at the moment, but if you prefer, I could abandon my position and let you have your moment in the limelight once we get you out.”
“That was close.” Mike popped his head over the edge, spitting out a mouthful of water and coughing. He hurled himself over the edge and dropped down on the ground. Letting go of the vine, he rubbed his face, his breath coming in short, ragged gasps. Then he sat up and peered at me, oblivious to the huge predator lurking right behind him.
I pointed upward with a trembling finger. Words couldn’t describe what we were up against; it was something he had to see for himself.
Mike turned, his eyes bulging as he took in the view. “Oh, man! You weren’t joking. It’s…Sue.” Sue was the largest, most complete T-rex in the world on exhibit at their museum back home, at least for the next three months.
“Hurry up!” shouted Jack. “I don’t know how much longer I can hold her off.”
As much as I would have liked to wrap my arms around Mike, there was no time. Dinnertime was near, and we were about to become the main course.
Mike jumped to his feet, holding on to me as water dripped from his body. “Let’s go,” he whispered into my ear.
As the dinosaur took a step forward, I could feel the intensity of its red-eyed stare. Raw fear gripped me, making my stomach churn. The cell phone trick wasn’t working anymore, and any minute, the animal would pounce.
* * *
Jack was able to distract the T-rex by reflecting a blinding glare into its eyes using my silver cell phone. It gave me the precious time I needed to help Mike out of the pit, but unfortunately, the trick wasn’t working anymore.
“Get the angle right!” yelled Mike.
Holding the edge of the cell in his fingers, Jack tilted it back and forth. “I’m trying! The clouds are rolling in, blocking out the suns.”
According to movie logic, another prehistoric animal was supposed to jump out at the T-rex so they could battle to the death so we could escape, but no one seemed to be reading that script. I had no idea how to appease the monster. It wasn’t like we could send it flowers or a box of candy, and the only young maiden around for sacrificing was me. I was also pretty sure running would do no good. In the movies, those things caught up with a speeding Jeep in a heartbeat, so I knew we had little chance on our tiny human legs and feet.
Jack slid the phone in his back pocket. “They can’t swim! Let’s jump into the river and hope for the best.”
I turned and scanned the water. Was he crazy? Crocodiles the length of buses sunned themselves on the opposite bank like tourists sprawled across Miami Beach. “Too many crocs.”
“I know! Show her the eggs,” yelled Mike. “They must be hers, and maybe she’s just comin
g to check on them. Where’d you put them?”
“There!” I pointed to a mound of vegetation between two towering trees. The predator lowered its gigantic head and sniffed at my body, its breath hot on my neck. I couldn’t help but focus on the mouthful of steak knives just inches from my face. I screamed, sending flurries of goosebumps down my arms.
Mike darted over and frantically searched through the pile of giant fan-shaped leaves. He snatched up a baby T-rex and yelled Mama Sue, but she ignored him, her eyes still focused on me.
“What’s the best way to call her?” came Mike’s frantic voice.
Long distance—from a phone millions of miles away from here on the other side of the globe. My knees threatened to buckle. “Give the baby a poke.”
“Hey, Sue! I’ve got your little monster.” Mike dropped the squirming creature in front of him on a thick patch of grass. It squawked like a wounded bird and spread out its legs, like a doe slipping on ice.
The T-rex cocked her head and let out a small whistle. The baby grew still and then screeched. Rising slowly, the tiny creature wobbled toward its mother like a newborn colt, but Sue’s attention was still focused on me—and not for being a hero and rescuing her babies, but as a trespasser. I was beginning to think the whole island operated under an eat-first-ask-questions-later kind of policy. Fortunately, I remembered to breathe as I watched Mike creep back toward us. Clearly, daredevil DNA was programmed somewhere in his genetic code.
The T-rex sniffed the air and turned its head toward the crying baby. The plan’s working! I glanced around for the best escape route. “C’mon guys, let’s go!”
I turned to run, but Jack grabbed my trembling hand. “Not yet. Just give her a minute to notice her baby.”
“This better work,” said Mike. “’Cause we’ll never outrun her.”
I let out a long breath.
“You know, I liked Sue much better at the museum,” said Mike, revealing fear in his tone.
Jack nodded, letting out a breath. “Yeah, me too. Nothing beats a dusty skeleton.”
“Look! She’s sniffing her baby.” My stomach clenched as I realized this might be our one and only chance to escape. “Let’s make a break for it.”
The Tyrannosaurus rex opened her trap-like jaws and roared, showing off gigantic, serrated teeth. Showers of saliva splattered. Three-toed feet with sharp claws came crashing down around us. The giant mud splatter offered us the perfect opportunity for escape. I didn’t have time to think; I just acted.
When the creature lunged forward, snapping its jaws, I ducked, adrenaline pumping through my body. I took off as fast as my legs would carry me, past tree limbs that hit my tired muscles and cut into my burning skin like a whip. My body ached from the thrashing I took, but my mind stayed surprisingly clear. My panting was almost as loud as the animal’s snarls behind me and the crashing thunder shaking the ground underneath me.
A large shadow rolled over us. Jack pointed, while Mike yelled to run faster. I glanced up at the soft whirring above me. No way! I thought when I realized the flying disk had joined the pursuit. I grunted at the double whammy we were being faced with. My mom had once told me, “You haven’t lived life to the fullest until you’ve ventured out of your comfort zone.” I was pretty sure being chased by a Tyrannosaurs rex and a UFO at the same time qualified as a whole different ZIP code than my comfort zone.
Jack was only a few steps in front of us, casting up swirls of mud in his wake. His whole body moved like lightning and then disappeared. I held in my breath, peering ahead. He did see the cliff edge, didn’t he? “Jack!” I shouted, but it was too late. Jack’s bloodcurdling scream cut through the air as he tumbled over the edge. Mike hurried after him, holding out his arm to try and grab hold of his friend; there was no way he could leave us, not like that. I slid to the edge, flinging out my hands, teetering and struggling to regain my balance.
I took a step back as the acrid stench of sulfur filled the air, assaulting my nostrils. As if in slow motion, I watched Jack plummet and fall. He spun in midair, his arms and legs outstretched like he was doing jumping jacks. Hundreds of feet below, an orange lake bubbled and boiled, jets of lava spurting upward like a giant fountain. White-tinged vapors rose from the crater, and a gush of heat hit my face. A blue ray of light from the UFO struck Jack seconds before he hit the giant roiling cauldron beneath him.
I froze to the spot, my mind devoid of any thought. This can’t be happening—not to Jack. This was just supposed to be a…a vacation! A fun time for all of us! And now Jack is...he’s gone! Trembling, I forced air into my lungs. I wondered if he’d been disintegrated by the flash of light, vaporized right before my eyes, but then I realized the UFO must have taken him. Again, my heart started to race. Mike stared over the cliff in a daze. I buried my face in my hands to suppress a sob as I whispered, “Oh, Jack.”
A snarl pierced the air. I swung around. The creature stood about twenty feet away, and I wondered why it refused to attack. All I could assume was that it was frightened by the UFO. “Go be with your babies!” I said. The T-rex cocked her head to let out a sophisticated range of guttural sounds as it backed away into the vegetation and disappeared. Why was it acting like that? Was it really that scared of the ship? I let out a sigh of relief, glad the thing was finally gone, whatever the reason.
Tears spilled down my cheeks. My heart sank and I dropped to my knees. I looked up at the cruel ship. “One minute you’re trying to kill us, and the next, you’re trying to abduct us? Why did you take Jack? Tell me why you’re doing this to us?” I screamed to the silver disk, but I got no answers other than its vile hum and a few flashes of light.
Mike stooped over, and I felt a touch on my shoulder. I stood, my stomach in knots, and took a deep breath to calm myself. Staring at the hard contours of his face, I softly cupped his cheek. He wrapped an arm around my waist and pulled me under a giant sequoia-like tree. Standing out in the open wasn’t such a smart idea, but I wasn’t thinking straight.
“Remember Jack’s words from the Army Ranger handbook?” Mike wisely asked. “Vanquish fear and panic. Value living. Remember your goal…getting out alive.”
I nodded.
“Value your life, Casey! Try to remember our goal of getting the heck outta this crazy place alive and in one piece.”
Another tear fell down my face. I had stayed strong up to this point, never giving up hope, but losing Jack pierced my heart like a knife. I had reached my breaking point, but thankfully, Mike’s words gave me the motivation I needed to fight for my life. “You’re right. We need to get to that city and find Jack. The UFOs are hovering there, so I’m pretty sure that’s where they’re planning on taking him.”
Mike gently clasped my face with both hands and gently wiped the tears off my cheeks with his thumbs. “Let’s get moving then.” He pointed toward the hovering ship. “We’ve gotta get out of here before it comes for us—that is, if we’re not eaten by Sue first. That isn’t what Jack would’ve wanted.”
He was right, but that still didn’t stop the tears. Letting the UFO beam us up would get us to the city faster, but I had a feeling we’d be more in charge if we made our way on our own terms rather than as captives. I thought it best to get moving and act fast before something else stopped us, but my legs felt as heavy as lead, stubbornly ignoring my brain’s commands. Mike raised his eyebrows impatiently, and I knew if I didn’t get moving soon, he’d probably swing me over his shoulder like his surfboard and drag me away. I sucked in a shuddering breath and nodded.
Out of the corner of my eye, an arc of light flashed through the tall canopy of leaves. A beam of blue light swung like a pendulum toward me, stopping just inches from my foot. Eyes wide, I jumped. “They’re shooting at us!”
Mike yanked me behind the broad tree trunk. “No! Those beams were red, remember? They switched to blue when they decided they wanted to kidnap us. They’re trying to beam us up! We’ve got to get out of here.”
A resounding thud shook th
e ground, as if thousands of wild horses were thundering toward us. As I whirled around, my knees nearly gave out. Instead of wild stallions, a pack of monstrous T-rexes stomped through the wild terrain, headed in our direction, their heavy footsteps thumping hard and fast. There had to be at least a couple dozen of them, bolting through a river of splattering mud.
My life flashed before my eyes. A UFO was stalking us, and an army was out to destroy us, dressed to kill in camouflage and armed with sharp daggers. My mouth gaped as Mike gave me a yank.
“We have to go now!” he said. “Mama brought reinforcements.”
* * *
Grabbing Mike’s hand, I sprinted, snarls echoing through the air behind us. As thundering feet grew closer, I leapt over a log, but it was too late. With a powerful thrust of a meat hook claw, a dinosaur grabbed me by the back of my shirt. My stomach lurched as my shirt collar tightened around my neck like a noose. I screamed as I was hoisted up into the air. Dangling high above Mike, I yelled out to him. “Keep running!” I swung my arms and kicked my feet about, refusing to let the thing eat me alive, but at this rate, I was going to die of suffocation first. My heart pounded like a hammer as I wriggled some more, gagging on the stench coming from the creature’s foul breath. But no amount of twisting allowed me a fresh breath; every time I even tried to inhale, I could smell and almost taste the nasty aroma, like someone hadn’t taken the garbage out for weeks.
Mike picked up a handful of rocks and hurled the largest one at the dinosaur; but it was about as effective as throwing a marble at a skyscraper. What is he doing, playing hero? Why isn’t he running while he still has legs? I thought. He hurled another stone, and I watched as it whizzed by and bounced off the creature’s armored skin, barely making a scratch. “Mike, find something bigger…and aim for the eyes!” I screamed.
He flung another stone, but the creature didn’t even flinch. I was sure it represented a new class of tank.
A T-rex stretched its neck and let out a long roar, taking a few steps in Mike’s direction. Mike scrambled backward into a group of towering ferns. At this point, the dinosaurs didn’t seem bloodthirsty like the ones in all the sci-fi and horror films, but one thing I’d learned was that wildlife could be unpredictable, just like Jack said. I had seen cats playing with rodents and birds before, capturing and releasing them as part of some game, and I wondered if the T-rexes were anything like that.
Trapped in the Hollow Earth Novelette Series Omnibus Edition (Books 1 - 4) Page 24
