The Lost World

The radio crackled. "Yes, I’m here! Dr. Thorne!"

"But how the hell did he – "

"Dr. Thorne! Get in the car!"

Thorne turned purple with anger. He bunched his fists. "How did that little son of a bitch manage to do this?" He grabbed the handset from Eddie. "Arby, God damn it – "

"It’s coming!"

Eddie said, "What’s he talking about? He sounds completely hysterical."

I can see it on the television! Dr. Thorne!"

Malcolm looked around at the jungle. "Maybe we should get in the car, he said quietly.

"What does he mean, television?" Thorne said. He was furious.

Eddie said, "I don’t know, Doc, but if he’s got a feed in the trailer, we can see it too." He flicked on the dashboard monitor. He watched as the screen glowed to life.

"That damn kid," Thorne said. "I’m going to wring his neck."

"I thought you liked that kid," Malcolm said. "I do, but-"

"Chaos at work," Malcolm said, shaking his head. Eddie was looking at the monitor.

"Oh shit," he said.

On the tiny dashboard monitor, they had a view looking straight down at the powerful body of a Tyrannosaurus rex, as it moved up the game trail toward them. Its skin was a mottled reddish brown, the color of dried blood. In dappled sunlight, they could clearly see the powerful muscles of its haunches. The animal moved quickly, without any sign of fear or hesitation.

Staring, Thorne said, "Everybody in the car."

The men climbed hurriedly in. On the monitor, the tyrannosaur moved out of view of the camera. But, sitting in the Explorer, they could hear it coming. The earth was shaking beneath them, swaying the car slightly.

Thorne said, "Ian? What do you think we should do?"

Malcolm didn’t answer. He was frozen, staring forward, eyes blank.

"Ian?" Thorne said.

The radio clicked. Arby said, "Dr. Thorne, I’ve lost him on the monitor. Can you see him yet?"

"Jesus," Eddie said.

With astonishing speed the Tyrannosaurus rex burst into view, emerging from the foliage to the right of the Explorer. The animal was immense, the size of a two-storey building, its head rising high above them, out of sight. Yet for such a large creature it moved with incredible speed and agility. Thorne stared in stunned silence, waiting to see what would happen. He felt the car vibrate with each thundering footstep. Eddie moaned softly.

But the tyrannosaur ignored them. Continuing at the same rapid pace, it moved swiftly past the front of the Explorer. They hardly had a chance to see it before its big head and body disappeared into the foliage to the left. Now they saw only the thick counterbalancing tail, some seven feet in the air, swinging back and forth with each footstep as the animal moved on.

So fast! Thorne thought. Fast! The giant animal had emerged, blocked their vision, and then was gone again. He was not accustomed to seeing something that big move so fast. Now there was only the tip of the tail swinging back and forth as the animal hurried away.

Then the tail banged against the front of the Explorer, with a loud metallic clang.

And the tyrannosaur stopped.

They heard a low, uncertain growl from the jungle. The tail swung back and forth in the air again, more tentatively. Soon enough, the tail brushed lightly against the radiator a second time.

Now they saw the foliage to the left rustling and bending, and the tail was gone.

Because the tyrannosaur, Thorne realized, was coming back.

Re-emerging from the jungle, it moved toward the car, until it was standing directly in front of them. It growled again, a deep rumbling sound, and turned its head slightly from side to side to look at this strange new object. Then it bent over, and Thorne could see that the tyrannosaur had something in its mouth; he saw the legs of a creature dangling on both sides of the ‘aws. Flies buzzed in a thick cloud around the tyrannosaur’s head.

Eddie moaned. "Oh, fuck."

"Quiet," Thorne whispered.

The tyrannosaurus snorted, and looked at the car. It bent lower, and sniffed repeatedly, moving its head slightly to the left and right with each inhalation. Thorne realized it was smelling the radiator. It moved laterally, and sniffed the tires. Then it lifted its huge head slowly, until its eyes rose above the surface of the hood. It stared at them through the windshield. Its eyes blinked. The gaze was cold and reptilian.

Thorne had the distinct impression that the tyrannosaur was looking at them: its eyes shifted from one person to the next. With its blunt nose, it pushed at the side of the car, rocking it slightly, as if testing its weight, measuring it as an opponent. Thorne gripped the steering wheel tightly and held his breath.

And then, abruptly, the tyrannosaur stepped away, and walked to the front of the car. It turned its back on them, lifting its big tail high. The tyrannosaur backed up toward them. They heard the tail scraping across the roof of the car. The rear haunches came closer…

And then the tyrannosaur sat down on the hood, tilting the vehicle pushing the bumper into the ground with its enormous weight. At first: it did not move, but simply sat there. Then, after a moment, it began to wriggle its hips back and forth in a quick motion, making the metal squeak.

"What the hell?" Eddie said.

The tyrannosaur stood again, the car sprang back up, and Thorne saw thick white paste smeared across the hood. The tyrannosaur immediately moved away, heading down the game trail, disappearing into the jungle.

Behind them, they saw it emerge into the open again, stalk across the open compound. It lumbered behind the convenience store, passed between two of the cottages, and then disappeared from sight again.