Won't Let You Go | Owen Grady

Chapter Twenty

The trio moved through the jungle, Owen using his gun to push the underbrush out of their path as they ducked below branches and around vines. If things weren't so urgent, Charlie might actually enjoy this little nature walk. As seriously as she took her job, she didn't have a lot of time to explore the park, unless she was headed out to visit a dino in a remote location for checkup or procedure. But they didn't have time to enjoy the beauty of the nature around them. Besides, being in the company of Claire and Owen didn't exactly make things better. They were bickering like an old married couple.

As if on que, Claire let out another groan of frustration. "Isn't there a...more civilized path we could be taking right now?" Charlie was thankful she was walking in front of her, so Claire couldn't see the blonde roll her eyes. However, Owen, on the other hand, caught her reaction as he glanced over his shoulder.

"Claire," he sighed, turning back to face the jungle as he pushed another branch out of the way. "You asked me to track the kids so I'm tracking the damn kids. You didn't have to come, you know. You insisted on it."

Claire opened her mouth to speak again, but Charlie held up a hand, silencing all of them. "Wait," she said, looking at the two of them. "Be quiet for a second. Do you hear that?"

They all paused, listening to the quiet din of the jungle around them. Charlie had been certain she had heard something, though now she was listening so hard that she could hear the blood pumping through her ears. But wait....there it was. The same sound she had heard only moments ago. A low growl, growing, louder and louder.

It was a vehicle of some sort, probably another Jeep or a four wheeler or something similar. But there weren't any tracks out as deep as they were...this was the dinosaurs' natural habitat, and they didn't make it practice to go galivanting everywhere the dinosaurs spent time. So it had to be the kids. No one else would be out here right now.

"That way," Charlie whispered encouragingly, pushing forward ahead of the others, through the brush, until she dumped into an opening in the trees and nearly slipped on the wet mud beneath her feet. Owen reached out to grab her right arm, steadying her. "Thanks," she said automatically, looking up to meet his eyes for a moment, before looking away.

At the top of the clearing was an open garage, albeit half of it was covered with draped vines and other overgrowth. Yet, there was an unmistakable set of tire marks leading out and away from them. There was one other Jeep left inside, covered in brush. And that thing was old. Nothing like the model Charlie drove around or was used to seeing. So these....these must have been left over from the original park. Goosebumps started to sprout over her bare arms. If one were to believe in bad omens...this has to be a sign.

"Hey," Owen said, pushing through some of the vines and leaning down to grab something blue and muddy from the dirt floor. "Is this one of theirs?" He looked over his shoulders at Claire, holding it up so she could see the item.

"Yes, yes that's Zach's," Claire said insistently, grabbing the blue shirt and holding it close to her chest. "They were definitely here. He was wearing this this morning."

"It's covered in grease," Charlie noted. "That sound we heard, they must have gotten the other vehicle up and running." She crossed her arms over her chest, casually walking towards the back of the garage, looking at the dusty tool bench built along the back wall. "Smart kids," she noted, mostly to herself.

"How the hell did they even manage to get one of these rust buckets running?" Owen muttered, walking through the garage to stand beside her, surveying the tools available. As he did so, his tan forearm brushed up against hers and the both of them froze for a moment. Charlie looked down at their arms and then up at him. Their fingers were so closed she could also wrap her pinky around his.

"Charlie," he said, voice quiet enough so that only she could hear it. "I think after all this world ending shit is over, we should have a talk. Just you and me." His words made her want to both smile, and run for the hills. How could one guy have all this crazy amount of sway over her? It didn't make sense.

Charlie opened her mouth to reply when suddenly, a heavy footstep shook the foundations of the building they were in. Dust fell around them from the beams above. She pulled her hand up from the table to cover her mouth and keep from letting out a small gasp in surprise. In an instant, Claire was in the back of the garage with them, hands visibly shaking. The three of them crouched down in front of the white jeep, Owen's hand resting lightly on Charlie's arm, filling her with some semblance of calm even in this urgent situation.

Other dinosaurs live out here, she thought to herself. It doesn't have to be the one hunting people and eating them. There were plenty of other creatures that used this forest as a shelter. It could be a nice, big, leaf eater. But something in her gut told her that wasn't the case.

The footsteps continued, and the three dropped even lower, now sitting on the ground, backs against the grill of the car. Owen's hand rested atop Charlie's, but neither of them moved to change it. Charlie looked over to meet his gaze, only to see he was looking around the edge of the Jeep. His gun. He had left his gun leaning against the side of the car. Fuck.

Suddenly he turned back to face her, eyes wide. The step that fell next shook the building even further, louder than the pounding of her heart. Looking over at Owen, she saw a large, grey, scaled head start to poke into the garage. Her eyes shifted back down to meet Owen's as his hand closed over hers, squeezing tightly. She tilted her head forward ever so slightly, her forehead touching his as she stared into his eyes. As betrayed as she had felt by him in the past, there wasn't time for that now. This was it. They were going to die in here.