A few hours later, back at the Visitor Centre control room. Hammond was furious.
“I make a surprise visit to my island and the first thing I see is Muldoon playing high noon with my Rex!”
He paced around the room, as Arnold and Nedry watched on from their stations.
Hammond continued. “I want to know what went wrong and I want to know now!”
“We checked everything” Arnold retorted. “The system just-”
“Rats.” Nedry muttered.
Hammond stopped in his tracks. “What did you say to me?”
“Rats… ate through the cables… tech confirmed it. I had a feeling… so I sent ‘em to check.”
Nedry was shifty. “It was rats.”
Hammond exhaled, stunned at the information Dennis had provided.
“Unbelievable… The whole project almost brought down because of rodents eating through some cables.”
“No real harm done.” Nedry was back looking at his console, disinterested. “The dinos are back in their paddocks. The problem is being delt with. No biggie.”
Hammond ambled across the room and leant into Nedry, brandishing his amber cane at the programmer.
“No biggie? Two mauled stegos, one dead, and you, you have the gall to-”
“Do I get a bonus for figuring it out” Nedry interjected.
“You arrogant little snot” snarled Hammond. Exhasperated, he stormed out of the room.
Nedry glanced over at Arnold, who glared at him. “Well ain’t that just par for the course.”
*
In the park’s containment area, Muldoon knelt next to the sedated Tyrannosaur. He was close enough to smell the foul stench of death on its breath. It looked up at him with glazed over eyes, but the fire of prehistoric rage was still visible, even if faint.
“Save your dirty looks. You got greedy. Let your guard down. You didn’t follow by the first law of the jungle. But don’t worry. I know you’re out of practce. I won’t plan on being so lucky next time.”
Muldoon heard someone approacing up the dirt path.
“Robert!”
It was Hammond. He groaned as he rose to meet his boss. “Oh great.”
“Don’t start.” Muldoon said sternly. “It’s been a rough day.”
“So I heard.” Hammond exclaimed. “And saw!”
Hammond sidled up to Robert to gaze over the tranqulised behemoth in front of them. It was humbling to see such an immense predator so close. Of course, Hammond had been there for this animal’s birth, but hadn’t been so close in years since it had matured into adulthood. The stood for a moment in silence, Hammond calming down. He turned to Robert.
“Bit of a screw up… eh?”
Muldoon didn’t avert his gaze. “You could say that.”
“At least it’s over. It won’t happen again.” Hammond was equally stern, but the wistfullness had begun to creep back into his demenour. His determination to make this place work wouldn’t falter.
Muldoon set off across the containment yard to inspect the other animals temporarily held there. Hammond followed at a slower pace.
“Pretty stupid stunt on that beach with that rex?” Hammond jibed.
Muldoon grunted in response. He was focused on a containment cage in front of him.
“...Nearly a disaster” Hammond continued.
“It could have been worse.”
“Oh? And how do you figure that?”
“We could have had those on the loose.”
Muldoon gestured toward the containment cage in front of them. It was deathly silent. The only sign of life was a singular predatory green eye watcing them from behind the heavy steel bars of the cage. Watching, and waiting.
End… for now...
