Chapter 107: Meeting with old friends

After disembarking, Ian, Sarah, Eddie and Nick had immediately left Roland's group. None of them were eager to help him take the spinosaurus to the zoo, much less to meet that damned worm called Ludlow. Unfortunately, even the four of them hadn't been together for long. Eddie had left them almost immediately: as soon as he got off the ship he went to look for a means to return to his city, where his mother apparently was waiting for him. He also claimed to have experienced enough thrills during that time and on top of that the day before he landed he had a bizarre dream in which two tyrannosaurs smashed into his car and devoured him alive, so he had decided to 'stay away from any zoo or wildlife reserve for a while'. Strangely, in his dream, the tyrannosaurs had decidedly more monstrous features than the real ones, as they were devoid of feathers and with protruding teeth. Sarah, Ian and Nick reluctantly said goodbye to their friend, then rented a car and headed to Flagard City. Unlike Roland, they had proceeded more slowly, stopping from time to time at the motorway restaurants to be able to have lunch or go to the bathroom. By the time they reached Flagard City, it was already the day that Spinosaurus ingens would have been revealed to the public. Nick had left them here too: the photographer had no intention of attending the inauguration and preferred to reunite with his 'World first' group to protest against it. Neither Ian nor Sarah blamed him. So Nick was gone and the two boyfriends found themselves alone. Ludlow had made sure they had tickets, so they didn't have to rush to get them; so they had mutually agreed to spend the remaining time at a bar to have a drink. "Listen to how they call it: 'the new king of the dinosaurs'. Sounds like blasphemy" Sarah murmured as she read the Mega Beast Park banner ads from her cell phone. "They call it a king but they put it in a cage" "It is the typical hypocrisy of humanity. By now I have had the callus. You should get used to it" Ian replied as he wiped the sweat from his forehead. Even though it was late autumn, the temperature of the city still felt like a blast furnace. Not only asphalt and concrete absorbed heat, but the recent rise in temperatures due to global warming made the situation even more unbearable. It seemed to be in the middle of summer... "Get used to it, huh? How can I do?" Sarah grumbled, glaring at him. "How do you suppress the disgust?" "I don't do it. I'm just aware that humans are rotten to the core" Ian replied with his usual nihilistic philosophy. "Man's arrogance leads him to believe that he can do whatever he wants with the creatures of this planet, even to display them as if they were trophies or clowns. Even a powerful creature like that spinosaurus can do nothing against the wickedness of humanity. 'The new king of the dinosaurs' is doomed to become our new toy" Sarah's brows arched in anger, but her face betrayed her resignation. In her heart she knew Ian was right. There was nothing she could do to free the spinosaurus, not without endangering every single human life in the whole city. Ludlow would have never let it go, and sabotage would have caused disaster. But suddenly Ian's eyes lit up and he waved his arm: "Hey, look who's here! Hey, Alan, we're here! Come on, come and hug me, old friend!" Sarah looked at the point indicated: a taxi had stopped not far from the bar from which two people were exiting. One was a rather thin boy, while the other was a tall man with a cowboy hat. It was not difficult for Sarah to recognize the unmistakable silhouette of Alan Grant. A few days before disembarking, Alan had contacted Ian and Sarah and had expressed his willingness to meet them in person. He said he already knew he would regret choosing to meet Ian Malcolm, but he wanted to get to know Sarah better in order to discuss their research on Spinosaurus ingens. So both he and Billy had packed their bags and after being told their destination they headed to Flagard City. When Alan saw Ian calling him on his face he painted a very unhappy expression. It was clear as day that he was contemplating getting back into the taxi and being driven at least fifty kilometers away. However, with an inhuman effort he managed to suppress the instinct to escape and reached the couple's table. "Hi, Ian" "Alan, is this how you say hello? This is the right way!" Ian teased him, slapping him hard on the shoulder. The poor professor Grant didn't even try to argue. Instead he turned to Sarah. "Dr. Hardy, it's a pleasure to meet you in person" he said, shaking her hand. "The pleasure is mine, Dr. Grant" Sarah replied, shaking his hand with a little awe. Alan was considered one of the best biologists in the world; for her it was like shaking the hand of a celebrity in the scientific world. "And who is this handsome young man?" Ian said looking at Billy. "Alan, haven't you crossed over to the other side? I understand that you went wrong with Ellie, but..." "I'm Billy, professor Grant's student" Billy anticipated, seeing that Alan already seemed on the verge of nervous breakdown. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Dr. Malcolm" "I'm not a doctor anymore... thank you anyway" Ian replied. "Now let's sit down. Do you want something?" "Yes, two good coffees. It's been a long journey" Alan said as he sat down. "So... how was it for you?" Alan was clearly referring to the fact that Ian and Sarah had often been held against their will. However Sarah immediately reassured him: "Don't worry, we got away with it" "Yes, between one imprisonment and the next, everything went well" Ian added. Alan ignored him. "I'm happy. I was worried that something had happened to you. That Ludlow is really a slimy..." "Yes, but he's not crazy enough to kill people when he doesn't need to do it" Sarah grumbled. "This is flattering" Alan said. "Now, Miss Hardy, I would like to talk to you about the latest research on Spinosaurus ingens..." Alan and Sarah talked for more than an hour. Sarah described to professor Grant all of her progress, which ranged from measuring the bite force to measuring the dinosaur's IQ. She also explain how he understood the dinosaur's locomotion. In addition, Sarah had been able to highlight an improved circulatory and nervous system that allowed the pumping of blood and the correct reaction to stimuli throughout the body despite its gigantic size. Alan had also conducted his own experiments. After having theorized and partly proved that the hardness of its scales was due to a chemical factor, he had carried out several researches to be able to discover what could produce superdense matter. Unfortunately, his results had been inconclusive: the only methods for obtaining superdense matter known to humans were extremely complicated and certainly could not have occurred in nature, since they required disproportionate pressures and conditions. Spinosaurus ingens, therefore, could be the key to the discovery of a chemical process unknown to humanity, which could have made it possible to create superdense matter much more easily, provided of course that it could be reproduced in a laboratory. "That animal has still many secrets that we need to discover. By the way, will you go to the inauguration?" Alan asked at one point. "Ludlow made sure we had the tickets" Sarah grumbled. "How nice" Billy commented, clearly sarcastic. "Already. Basically he wants to scream us in the face that he won" Sarah said. "That worm wants to humiliate us" Alan inspired deeply; "So you won't go?" "We don't know yet" Sarah answered. "Personally, I don't like the idea of seeing that poor animal in a cage, but... well, we'll see. And you?" "We didn't have time to get the tickets. When we tried to buy them they were already sold out. Too bad, I wanted to see that animal in person" Alan explained with a touch of bitterness in his voice. Suddenly Ian interrupted them: "Er... guys, sorry, but am I wrong or is that limousine parking right in front of us?" The four all looked in the direction Ian indicated. A huge vintage limousine was parked in front of the bar that was probably worth more than the annual salary of all the people in the neighborhood combined. A butler got out of the driver's seat and opened the door to allow the transported person to get out. To everyone's surprise, the owner of the limo turned out to be an elderly man with a white beard and little hair. He was slightly hunchbacked and had to be held on to a stick on the tip of which was set a fragment of exquisitely polished amber. "Hello everyone. Nice to see you again" he said as he looked in their direction. Neither Ian nor Alan could stop themselves to scream. "John Hammond!?" It was really him. The old tycoon smiled. Even though he had expected that reaction, their faces were still hilarious, especially Alan and Ian's. "Seriously, not even a hello?" he joked amused. "Wait... John Hammond? That John Hammond!?" Billy exclaimed, and then he jumped up and ran towards the now former tycoon. "It is an honor for me to meet you! My name is Billy, I am a student of professor Grant... he has talked to me a lot about you, I know you are an extraordinary man..." "Maybe I was once. Anyway, thanks for the compliment" Hammond replied shaking his hand. Billy seemed as thrilled as he has rarely in his life. Sarah also seemed ecstatic, but she managed to contain her emotions better: "It's a pleasure for me to meet you too, Mr. Hammond. Your contribution to the world of genetics has been incomparable. I have read about you in many of the university books" "Thanks, but I was just putting on the money and the smile. It was my scientists who did all the work" Hammond replied, shaking her hand too, then looking at Alan and Ian: "So, you two! How long are you going to be stunned there? I wouldn't be your best friend, but I think I deserve at least a greeting" "Uh... yeah, right" Alan exclaimed who seemed to have just recovered from the trance. "It's nice to see you again, John, but..." "But how did you know we were here?" Ian anticipated outspokenly. Hammond smiled wryly. "Oh, I got a little help. By the way, Ian, there is a person who wanted to see you..." The door behind him opened and a dark-skinned girl with coal black hair emerged. Alan and Billy didn't understand, but Ian nearly choked on his own saliva and Sarah's eyes widened too. "Katy?" "Hi, dad" the girl replied, looking at Professor Malcolm with a murderous look. "I guess your little trip went well if you came back to a seedy bar to have a coffee instead of saying goodbye to your daughter" "Wait, daughter? So do you really have a daughter?" Alan exclaimed in surprise. Despite the situation Ian found the strength to look at him badly: "I told you, don't you remember?" "Yeah, but..." Alan didn't know what to say. Ian had actually told him, but at the time he thought he was just kidding... well, from professor Grant's point of view, any woman who had the misfortune of expecting a baby from Ian Malcolm should have preferred to shoot herself in the womb rather than let it born. Fortunately for him, Ian avoided digging deeper, more concerned about what his daughter was doing there. "Why are you here, Katy?" "Do you even dare to ask me?" the girl snarled with a look that seemed to want to tear Ian to bits. "You told me you were going to be gone for a month at most, but instead you disappeared in the jungle for three! You barely called me once every two weeks and when I tried to call you I ignored me and then answered with a text message! I talked more with Sarah than with you! You missed my dance competition you promised to attend! I was stuck for three months with a babysitter I had never even seen! And when you finally return to the civilized world instead of coming to pick me up you prefer to come to this city and spend your time with your girlfriend and your friends in a seedy bar, because apparently science and a stupid dinosaur matter more than your own daughter!" "Seriously, Ian? A call every two weeks and a text message sometimes?" Sarah said with a reproachful look. Seriously, but did that man have a minimum of dignity? Even she, who wasn't even Katy's biological mother, had called her at least once every three days to make sure she was okay. Sarah knew that Ian Malcolm loved Katy. The problem was that he didn't know the slightest bit about her. As Katy used to say, Ian liked having children but not having to deal with them. Ian knew he was wrong, so he didn't even try to justify himself: "Yes, that's right. Sorry, a lot of things have happened, but I should have worried more about..." "It doesn't matter what it did or what didn't happen! I care that you didn't care about me in the slightest! It didn't even cross your mind that maybe I was anxious about you, right?" Katy asked. "No, of course! After all, why should I worry when my father is almost on the other side of the world in the middle of a forest full of the most dangerous predators that ever existed? When you weren't answering my phone calls, I certainly didn't imagine that you were in danger, or worse that you had already been torn apart! What could possibly have happened? A fire? A t-rex? Maybe a whole herd? What a joke! The great Ian Malcolm is certainly not afraid of these little problems, so why should he waste his time telling his daughter that he is fine?" Alan wanted to say a few words for Ian, but he couldn't find any. He didn't know what the relationship between the two was like, but it certainly wasn't the best and surely it was professor Malcolm's fault. While Katy was busy berating her father and Sarah seemed to be preparing to beat him up, Alan and Billy decided to give them space and turned to Hammond: "Er... so, how did you find us?" "Katy came to see me at my villa a few days ago. Apparently she had escaped from her home and walked through half the country alone" Hammond replied. "When she arrived she offered me an agreement: she would have me do a 'reunion with old friends' and in exchange I would have to take her to her father. Even though I certainly didn't need her for a 'reunion', I decided to help her anyway" "Yes, but how did you find us?" Ian asked. "Katy has installed a geolocation application in your cell phone, so she can find him wherever he is" Hammond answered. Alan raised an eyebrow. A daughter who watches over her father's cell phone... shouldn't it be the contrary? "Did you know her? I mean, if she came to you..." "No, but she knew me from her father's stories. And she knew that I have a private plane" Hammond explained. Ok, now everything was explained. "Why did you come here, John? I doubt you only accepted for a reunion" "Actually I had already planned this trip" Hammond's face darkened. "My nephew invited me to the inauguration of the new... attraction" Alan immediately understood the reason for Hammond's sudden change of mood. Mega Beast Park had been Hammond's jewel when he ran Ingen, and then it had gone bankrupt. By inviting him to the inauguration, Ludlow was literally slapping him in the face. "Will you go there?" "Yes. I have decided that I will attend. If I didn't participate, my nephew would think he won" Hammond replied. "I have some more reserved seats, if you want" Alan's eyes sparkled at the invitation. Although he despised Ludlow and didn't think it was appropriate to keep the spinosaurus in a cage, he was eager to see it. "Thanks, John! Would there be a place for me and Billy?" "Absolutely yes" Hammond smiled. Even though he was now old enough to barely stand and only with his cane, his smile was still what it once was. Alan considered that point. Hammond seemed to be fine, but Alan could see that his hands were shaking slightly and that he was struggling to keep himself on his feet. His wrinkles and sunken skin were signs of profound weariness, and his pale skin showed that it hadn't been out in the sun for a long time. His breathing was strangely loud and his laugh was peppered with coughing, even as Hammond tried hard to not let them hear it. Alan remembered what Ian had told him: until a few months ago, Hammond was barely able to get out of bed. Even though he seemed a little more energetic now, he was probably just concentrating all his energy to appear that way. The elderly former tycoon was now nearly eighty years old and it was likely that he didn't have many years left to live. Alan wasn't fond of Hammond to the point of considering him a friend, but he was certainly a person dear to him; knowing that his life would soon have been over was really depressing. He was about to seriously ask Hammond how he was, but was interrupted by Sarah, who had abandoned Ian as he was scolded by her daughter: "Did I hear you right? Are you all coming to the inauguration?" "Of course, Dr. Hardy" Hammond said. "If you want, I have places for you too..." "No, no need, Ludlow... your nephew was kind enough to provide them" Sarah answered. "Ah understood" Hammons grumbled. "He really likes to humiliate people from what I see" "What?" Sarah certainly didn't expect that reaction. Hammond laughed sadly. "Did you expect me to defend him? I know very well he's an asshole" he said. "I apologize for what he did to you. I know that it was you who discovered the animal and that he deprived you of the privilege of choosing a name, effectively trampling your role as a scientist" Sarah stared at Hammond intently, as if trying to uncover some deception, but soon afterward she relaxed. "You don't have to apologize. It's not your fault" "No, but Ludlow is still a member of my family. Although we have cut ties with each other, I still have some responsibility for his actions" the former tycoon said. Alan almost laughed at Sarah's shocked expression. He certainly couldn't blame her. Most of the millionaires he was used to (as well as many other scientists) were just like Ludlow: opportunistic, greedy, and ready to slip away from their responsibilities. Unfortunately, it was really true that in most cases, money corrupted the soul. But Hammond was different: he had never run away. Not even in his darkest hour had he denied his responsibilities. Perhaps, Alan thought sadly, that was precisely why Hammond had lost everything and Ludlow had taken everything: in the world of the rich it was much easier to be slimy and manipulative than honest and dreamy. Soon the group was joined by Ian and Katy. The girl was still sidelong at her father, but she was holding his hand firmly. Sarah sighed: after all, she knew that if there was one thing Ian was good at doing, it was making up for it. Who knows why, Professor Malcolm's words always managed to convince anyone. "Have you reconciled?" "Something like that" Ian said, while Katy commented with an angry snort. "So... what were you arguing about?" "We are also coming to the inauguration" Alan replied. "John offered to let us in" "By the way, we should hurry. The inauguration is in just over an hour and with this traffic it is better to arrive a little earlier" Hammond said looking at the sky, which was starting to darken. With the arrival of the cold season, the days were getting shorter: even if it was not so late, the sun was already starting to set. "I can give you a lift if you want" The four scientists briefly considered whether they should still benefit from Hammond's generosity, but then remembering the price of the Flagard City taxi they chose it to be much cheaper. "Yeah, it seems like a good idea" Alan said as he got into the car, followed by everyone else. Under Hammond's instructions, the driver started the engine and headed for Mega Beast Park.