Kingdom of Deception

Chapter 7: Auction and Escape

Eli had led me out to the front steps, where an older man was waiting for us. Night had fallen and it was starting to get cold out, making goosebumps appear over my skin. "Stand here. Greet the guests politely." Eli looped my arm around his, as black cars began to roll into view. I nodded and moved closer to him. He was not making me feel any safer, but he was warm. Strangers walked up to us and shook hands with Eli and the other man. Some would nod at me, but most would ignore me altogether. "Eli," I leaned up to whisper to him, "who are these people?" He glanced down at me, an unreadable look on his face. "You don't need to know that." I fell back on my heels, knowing that I wouldn't get an answer. A gust of wind blew by and I moved closer to Eli in hopes of getting warmer. I felt his arm tense and he squirmed a bit as I readjusted my hold on his arm. There was an awkward tension in the air as the last few guests walked in.

"Follow Mr.Eversoll into the building. And don't try anything."

Eli was walking toward a hallway I hadn't seen before but was called off by another man in work clothes. It was just me and Mr.Eversoll, who led me to a large, brick room. Everything was darkly colored and only lit by a few sconces on the walls. The people that came into the building earlier were all seated in rows of chairs, and their chatter filled the room. Every noise echoed off the walls and back to me as I looked around. "Come on." Eli had reappeared at my side, pulling me toward two chairs set on a small stage. "What is going on? Eli, what are you doing?" Fear etched it's way into my voice, as I sat down the chair felt excessively uncomfortable against my back and my palms were starting to sweat. "We are making the greatest profit in your family's history," Eli said as he turned to an open laptop, which was sat on a table. "How?" I asked, even though I had a hunch about the answer. "By auctioning off the dinosaurs to their fullest potential." I didn't know how to respond, but I did know that I was in for one hell of a night.

    "Do you remember the first time you saw a dinosaur?" Claire asked me. We were sat in a cell in the basement of the Lockwood estate, listening to the growls and grunts of the animals around us. "First time you see them, it's like a miracle. You read about them in books, see the bones in museums." I thought back to my years in the park, training the raptors when they were hatchlings. "But you don't believe it," Claire continued, "Kind of like myths, and when you see the first one alive..." Silence settled against our small cell. I looked up to see Claire staring out, through the bars, at the animals. "This is not your fault," I told her. Her shoulders visibly relaxed as she let out a short breath, "But it is," She tried to reason, but I interrupted her. "This one's on me." I sighed as I let my gaze settled on my hands. I could hear Claire turn toward me, and I know she's going to deny my statements, "I showed them the way." I said as I stood up and brushed myself off.  Again, Claire took a breath to say something, but I kept speaking. "You and I will have plenty of time to talk about this later," I stated as I studied the cinderblock cell that held us captive. "If there is a later." Claire sighed. She had given up, but I had started to form a plan. "Yes, there is, I have a cabin to finish." An animalistic grunt drifted in from the small, barred window of the cell. "What was that?" Claire asked as we shuffled through the hay toward the window. I jumped and grabbed onto the bars, lifting myself up to peer into the other cell. "Well look who just woke up," I muttered as I gazed at the young stygimoloch, which was wandering haphazardly around its cell. I whistled for it and it looked in my direction, "We're gettin' out of here." I told Claire as I hopped down. I whistled loudly and waited, taking a step back. A loud impact was heard on the other side of the wall, and dust fell from the bricks. I whistled again and a visible dent resulted from the dinosaur's hit. "What are you doing?" Claire whispered harshly from beside me, my eyes never left the wall as I whistled once again, "Saving us," I whispered back as the bricks started to lose structural integrity. I whistled once more and the wall broke down, leaving a hole for the stygimoloch to walk through. As it wandered in, I walked slowly toward the cell door, positioning myself in front of the lock. "Are you sure about this?" Claire asked. "Nope," I replied, before whistling again. The dinosaur barreled toward me, but just before impact I jumped up and grabbed onto the bars to keep me from getting gored. Claire and I ran out of the cell, stopping in the middle of the walkway. "Hey! You're welcome!" I yelled toward the dinosaur as it crashed through the lab.