Jurassic World Chaos Theory: "Prehistoric Paradox"

S1E3: Down On The Ranch

As I sat in my seat scrolling through my phone, engrossed in a video game, I wasn't worried about being tracked. My coding skills and occasional hacking ensured my privacy. I had plenty of special talents.

Darius enjoyed his bag of chips and impressively tossed one into Ben's mouth. I uncapped my flask, sipping from it, until I noticed Darius and Ben's worried expressions.

Ben quickly turned the wheel, switching lanes to drive onto the overpass. I recapped my flask and put it away, wanting to save some of the drink. I had already gone through four bottles, but it worked for me.

As we approached a ranch coming into view, Darius leaned forward in his seat. "Is this it?" he inquired.

"I think so," Ben replied, glancing around.

I got out of the van and took a look around the farm, taking it all in. It was beautiful, and Sammy had done well with it. I listened to the chiming of the wind chimes and breathed deeply, appreciating the serene surroundings.

"Okay. We get in, tell Sammy what's up, get her to come with us, and get out," Ben instructed, formulating the most direct plan while tying his laces with his foot on the van's bumper.

"The direct approach. I like it," Darius said, his hands in his jacket pockets as he walked.

I walked beside them. "Yeah, it's better than confusing her by easing into it and talking about the weather like you did with us," I teased, cracking my neck and stretching my arms.

Ben smirked as he stood up. "It's really humid here," he joked, playing along with my teasing.

"Let's just make it quick so we can get back on the road," Darius said, adjusting his clothes.

"So you do believe we're being hunted," Ben stated, eyeing Darius with a tilt of his head.

"It doesn't hurt to be careful. Now hurry up, we don't have all day," I said, walking forward.

The three of us were walking toward the front porch when a strong, acrid smell reached us. Something was burning, prompting Darius and Ben to sprint off. I followed, and Ben opened the house door, releasing a sea of smoke.

"What the fuck," I muttered, covering my mouth to stop coughing. We rushed inside, calling out, "Sammy!" trying to locate her.

Through the smoke, I made out the silhouette of someone holding a pitchfork. "What's with all the shouting?" the person said. I immediately recognized Sammy's familiar voice as the smoke dissipated, revealing her standing there with a pitchfork in one hand and an oven mitt on the other.

Sammy spotted us and gasped before breaking into an excited squeal. She pulled us into a gigantic bear hug, making me groan as I tried to hold in laughter. She ended the hug and said, "Sorry about the smoke. Burnt my pie, but the backup's already in the oven. Always make a backup."

Sammy pulled us in for another bear hug, and Darius groaned, uttering, "Nice to see you too," with a strained voice.

"Ugh, same," Sammy said, breaking the hug and taking in our appearances. "But I remember hugging y'all being a lot easier. You leave any growth spurts for the other guys?" she joked, flicking Ben on the nose. "What are y'all doing here?"

"We're here because we're--" Ben began, but Sammy cut him off. "Come in, come in. Welcome to my home," she said, closing the front door. "She's a bit of a mess right now, but I wasn't expecting guests or anything."

Sammy accidentally stepped on a creaky floorboard. "Whoops! Keep meaning to fix that. Kitchen's this way," she exclaimed, happily taking off the oven mitt. "Gosh, it's just been a minute since I've seen you two. Love the locs, by the way."