A/N

Hey guys! How's life? I hope it's good!

Anyways, thesecondoreo, I don't know why I found your comment fitting, but I did.

As far as this chapter's title goes, this is the title of a song by Hozier. Yes that was intentional; I found it fitting of Bridges. I don't own the song.

Thank you much and mighty for your reviews! Much love to all you beautiful people! Have a good day/night!

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"Arsonist's Lullaby."

"Elise! I love you!"

The child gave a loud kiss on the snowy cheek, and Owen felt himself go soft at the warmth turning the crimson eyes a gentle cinnamon. Elise never grew tired of the bestowed love in its purest form. An almost ache where it threatened to burst the chest with the warmest of feelings and painted the world with the most vivid of colors.

Owen loved Elise like that, and he knew she felt the same. He wasn't sure if that was parental love, but he simply knew this was a pure love.

A precious treasure.

The white dinosaur made a low, soft croon that sent the child skittering away with a delighted laugh. Happy, chiming bells that were always a welcome sound in the air.

Elise loved how the room smelled when it was filled with children, and their happy smells were almost enough to dilute the smell of death.

Almost.

It was odd to watch the man out of the corner of her eye; when he thought no one was looking. His demeanor changed; he almost looked dead. The icy blue eyes turned dark and flat, and the pale skin looked unhealthy. He continued to fiddle with something in his pocket; seemingly turning it over and over.

Or he was simply standing in a particularly dark spot in the room; the lightbulb above him had flickered before dying not long after he had claimed that small spot against the wall as his own. Elise wasn't exactly sure what that meant, but she knew it wasn't very good. She didn't like how the children would create an arc around him as they walked by; it disturbed her how they seemed unaware of what they were doing.

Bridges was tall, almost lanky, but the lean muscle gave him shape. Elise knew he was handsome by human standard; the females here liked to stare at him frequently. How could they not smell Death's strong cloak around him? Elise wondered if Owen could smell the decay; Claire would curl her lip like she could. Claire was standing across from Owen, and away from Bridges.

Blue was on edge below her; she could smell the dead one with a beating heart. It was what Blue had named him. Dead One. She was pacing around Elise's feet as she waited for one excuse to rip the Dead One apart. She was nervous enough to make Echo move much further into the ferns, and Delta was to remain hidden as well. Elise didn't want Bridges to see how big her family was; she didn't want him to see anything about her family.

But Blue would never yield without very good reason; she would defy Death, and she would not run at his mere scent. She was staying close to her Alphas in case they needed help. Elise would admit she was grateful for the raptor's presence; Blue was not going to abandon them.

She would be the first into a fight, and the last one to leave.

Elise glanced to the side of her when Owen smiled as he said, "Thank you for stopping by, ladies and gentlemen. I hope you enjoy your visit here."

As always, the most enthused children darted forward to give one more declaration of love to the white dinosaur before returning to relaxed parents; adults simply grateful for finding an attraction that was in a shady spot and kept their children's attention. Elise gave the vibrating, almost purr that never failed to entice smiles, and she rested her head on the cement as the guests trickled out. Her gaze fell to a particularly bouncy, adorable toddler teetering next to her mother. The sky blue dress with colorful flowers stitched on made Elise grow soft before the toddler suddenly tripped and fell onto the cement.

And a polished black shoe retracted back underneath its owner before the mother could even look down.

Elise saw red when the small girl began to cry, and the rawness of scraped knees showed themselves. Flat, blue eyes immediately flickered to Elise, and the Indominus stiffened. She curled her lip in anger as the crooked grin was but a mere ghost in the dark light. It quickly hid itself when the mother glanced up, and Bridges made a sympathetic face as he continued to lean against the wall.

Refusing to claim his cruel deed of tripping a child.

Owen jumped when Elise snapped her jaws, but she didn't growl; no growling in the presence of a child. The toddler gave a sniffle, and Elise made a soft croon when the child looked at her. She would never sleep well again if she scared a child. Children were a blessing, and Elise would never take them for granted; she would comfort and protect them only.

The mother gave a soft smile at Elise for being concerned, but she could handle it. The toddler was comforted by her mother's tender kisses, and a little hand waved goodbye to Elise.

The Indominus waited for the footsteps to fade before she snapped her livid, burning gaze into Bridges. The man blinked innocently as her, and Elise gave a hushed snarl at him.

"What?"

Bridges truly acted like he had done nothing wrong, and Elise was briefly fooled until that crooked grin ghosted once more. Elise curled her lip higher as she brought her clawed hand into the room. Bridges kept his attentive gaze on the hand when Elise snapped her fingers shut like a mouth as she gave a firm shake of her head.

"No."

Bridges got the message, but he gave a slight shrug as he said, "Sweetheart, I don't know what you're talking about. The kid tripped over her own feet; honest to God."

"No."

"Would I lie to you, Sweetheart? I swear on Jesus' holy name.

Owen darkened as he flickered his gaze between his tough baby and the blonde man. Elise looked ready to snap the man in half, and Bridges looked like he was having fun with this.

"Don't antagonize Elise for a reaction. Back off."

Bridges seemed startled that Owen butted into the argument, and Elise didn't like how the icy eyes turned dark with irritation. Elise gave another snap of her jaws in warning before he flickered his gaze back to her. They darkened with mischief before Bridges retorted, "Look, I can't help if some snotty kid trips in front of me, Sweetheart. They're klutzy things, kind of like your handler over there."

Owen blinked at the insult, but Elise bristled as the smoldering crimson gaze threatened to burst into the raw, bloody fire. She was going to drag him out of here, and dangle him in the trees for the cawing black birds to peck his eyes out. She would bury him a blind man, and hope the sweet earth could suck the poison from his filthy corpse.

If not, she would simply pile more dirt on him; deem him a lost cause.

It wasn't until that crooked grin just couldn't contain itself that Elise paused. He looked excited, not terrified; he wanted her to lose her temper, but she didn't know why. Elise was disgusted by this human who had the audacity to bring an innocent child into their little battle. She would not tolerate this; it was unacceptable.

Bridges relished this attention from her, and she would not be giving it.

The blonde man lost his smile when Elise's expression became unreadable, and she slowly backed away. The Indominus refused to look at him as she tenderly scooped up her human before puffing air onto the redhead. Claire startled when Elise slid her window shut, and set Owen on the ground.

"Sweetheart?"

Claire stared at Bridges when he walked over to the window. Elise's head was still visible as she stared directly in front of her with the log to the side of her, and the business man tapped on the glass; confused by this move.

"Hey, Sweetheart, come on; we can work this out. Talk to me."

Elise gave absolutely no indication of Bridges' existence, but she did glance down when Owen's muffled voice drifted up. Bridges banged on the glass with a little more force as he snapped, "Hey! Sweetheart! Elise! Don't ignore me!"

Claire raised an eyebrow when Bridges suddenly growled, "Open this window."

It wasn't until he snapped his light, icy blue eyes at her that Claire realized he had just barked an order at her. Claire stiffened as she stood taller before coolly saying, "Mr. Bridges, I will not provide you an opportunity to further insult my most patient dinosaur or her hot tempered caregiver."

Bridges turned to face her fully with a dangerous look, and Claire would admit he was very intimidating. A dark look seemed to shade his flat eyes when he lowered his brows in a deep frown.

But Rexy wouldn't back down, and neither would Claire.

She only stood taller like her Mama would, and she firmly said, "Let me remind you that you are here as a guest, and we haven't signed any papers finalizing our settlement. Do not push me."

Bridges paused when he caught the threat. Claire didn't know why he was against the DNA test, but it would be her leverage against him. She would take him to court with the lab results, and she would fill her labs with a new generation of geneticists who would be loyal to her. Jurassic World had been content to lean on another company to provide the dinosaurs. InGen owned the machines, but Claire was willing to make an investment to make her company fully independent.

She intended to do that regardless of Bridges' decisions. He was too dangerous, and Claire didn't want another muck up. She didn't want to be at the mercy of another company.

Claire always hated how quickly Bridges could snap out of his current mood; the swings were harsh enough to give whiplash, and he reverted back to his charming, sweet self.

He wasn't ready to show his colors.

Bridges cleared his throat as he purred, "I...apologize for that. It wasn't my place. I would just hate to leave on a bad note with her."

Claire flickered her gaze over to Elise, and felt a little better when she realized the Indominus was carefully watching. Elise knew she would be provoking him somehow, but she wouldn't leave Claire alone to deal with the temper.

Bridges gave a small sniff as he shoved his hand into a pocket before fiddling with something in it. Claire briefly wondered if the man would pull out a gun to shoot her, but the pocket was far too small for that. Bridges gave a much gentler knock on the clear window as he called out, "It's fine, Sweetheart; we'll figure it out later. We'll finish this conversation when you're ready. I'm not mad at you, okay?"

Claire had to work very hard to hide her grimace; this was not normal. She knew people reacted differently to something new, but Bridges was...acting creepy for lack of a better word. She would never talk to a stranger like that, and Elise was a stranger to Bridges.

The Indominus gave no indication of hearing Bridges, and the man let out a humored huff. A smile tugged his thin lips into a crooked smile, and he turned back to Claire with a shake of his head. Claire suddenly wished Elise had snapped Bridges, but the man only good naturedly said, "It seems I've worn out my welcome; shame on me."

Claire hid behind her poker face, and Bridges checked his watch before saying, "I should get out of your hair then, Miss Dearing. We'll get the papers signed, and InGen will get right back to work."

The redhead gave a nod before the man gave another glance at Elise to see if she was ready to acknowledge him, but the dinosaur hadn't moved an inch. She was completely oblivious to his existence. Bridges gave another chuckle as he walked out, and Claire paused before following.

She didn't feel good with him wandering her park unsupervised.

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"Yeesh, anyone else want to say troubled childhood?"

Vivian pressed her lips as she silently nodded at Lowery's exclamation. He glanced around the Control Room before staring at the Security section. Vivian was already ahead of him, and began to talk into her mic.

She wanted security guards to keep an eye on the two CEO's walking through the streets. Vivian made up a reason, but Lowery was grateful to see the protective, blue uniforms moving across the several different cameras. He was glad for the amount of security here.

Lowery leaned back into his chair as he scratched at his jaw; he could feel the stubble growing, but he turned his gaze back to the side of him. The Manella folder was already filled with paperwork, and he was excited to get the job started.

This was going to be an awesome hologram.

It was going to take a couple weeks to make if he didn't run into major problems; he hadn't met his help yet, but Claire had cut his shifts short by three hours to focus on making Elise's hologram. He would be head of a small amount of people, and that was fine. He could get this done easily.

He needed physical data first, and he intended to collect that after meeting his little team. There would probably be two other people, three at most. Claire was effective at creating projects that could be managed by as few people as possible.

But Lowery still had another hour of work to go, so he would focus on that. He didn't want to be caught slacking. He had been given a second chance, and he intended to prove himself.

Things were pleasantly normal as Control worked quietly, and Lowery would admit he was happy with it. It was nice to have a little peace though he found it funny how Owen was being tackled by his raptors as they rubbed their bodies against him.

Owen must have smelled funny to them.

The Control paused when someone in the front suddenly asked, "You know what? Bridges said something that really bugged me. It's not David and the lions' den, it's Daniel."

Lowery raised an eyebrow as he said, "So? Not everyone knows the Bible; they're close names."

The man twisted in his chair, and furrowed his brows before replying, "Yeah, but for a guy who's willing to make that many promises on 'Jesus' holy name', don't you think he'd know his stuff a little better? He sounded like a little bit of a religious fanatic to me at first..."

Lowery pressed his lips at that, but he didn't want to doddle on it. He scratched at his head before saying, "I don't think he's the first businessman to hide behind a good name."

"He's a liar."

Lowery was quick to retort, "He was a lawyer; that job is all about lying and being the better debater in all honesty."

It was just another good job that had been turned upside down by the people with the most money. Men educated in the law were hired to protect citizens from mistakes. Now it was who could convince twelve, tired people to give them their vote.

It was just a big debate.

But Lowery would agree that Bridges looked like a liar.

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"Alright, alright! Off, Blue! I'm serious!"

Owen spluttered when the meaty breath assaulted his nostrils as the raptor ran her rough tongue over his cheek again. His face felt raw from the rough scrubbing, and he had no idea what had gotten into Blue. She had never done this before, and he had thought she was trying to eat him at first.

It wasn't all that pleasant to see the gaping maw full of ivories coming right at his face. Then the rough scratching; it was like she was trying to clean him, and Owen didn't understand it. Another rough swipe made Owen plant his hands on the raptor's chest before firmly pushing her away as he said, "Stop."

Elise let out a humored snort as Blue gave a huff through her nostrils. She carefully tasted the air around Owen before she went back into the brush. His scent had been mostly cleaned of the Dead One's. Owen wiped his face with his arm before giving Elise a dry look.

"Did Bridges really trip that little kid?"

Elise gave a firm nod, and Owen didn't question it. He trusted Elise; she wouldn't lie to him. He had no idea why Bridges would do that, even Vic hadn't tried to provoke the girls. Barry had said the man had tried to establish a connection with them.

Bridges didn't do that, and for once in his life, Owen found himself wondering if he had the misfortune to meet someone a little crazier than Vic. Vic had been crazy for wanting to use the girls in warfare, and he was crazy for wanting to use the girls to hunt down Elise.

But never had Vic intentionally riled up the girls.

It seemed like that was what Bridges had wanted, but how far did he want to push Elise? Owen wasn't that kind of a gambler. Wasn't Bridges afraid of irritating Elise to the point of snapping? Owen would have been afraid of that.

"I'm glad you didn't lose your temper, Sunshine."

Elise snorted before making the 'Y' with her hand, and sliding it back and forth between her and Owen.

'Me too.'

Owen chuckled at her as he glanced at him girls. He was glad to see they had mostly calmed down; Blue had calmed down. She was the one who had make the thick trail around Elise's feet, and he glanced back at Elise before asking, "Want to learn more sign?"

'Yes!'

Owen laughed; warmed by her enthusiasm, and he slowly sat in a pile of ferns.

"Alright, let's work on the alphabet again...Sweetheart."

Maybe Owen was a little more comfortable with poking fun at Elise than he should have been, but it was still funny when the Indominus narrowed her eyes before flipping him off.

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"Thank you again for your hospitality, Miss Dearing."

Claire only gave a stiff nod as she glanced at the waiting helicopter. Bridges gave his winning smile before adding, "I'll have my men picked out and sent over in the next few days; no need to keep Elise waiting."

"I appreciate your thoughtfulness."

Bridges chuckled before turning to get into his chopper. Claire squinted her eyes against the strong gust of wind as it lifted into the air, and she gave a sigh of relief when the chopper flew off. Bridges always made her tired, and she wanted to spend time with her nephews today.

But she still could, and maybe she could get another movie night with Elise too.

A third date with Owen.

Claire gave a small smile to herself as she began to walk away before suddenly pausing. She stared at the chopper flying away as she realized something.

Bridges hadn't pushed for a dinner.

And he hadn't made a pass at her.

Claire wasn't sure if that was a blessing or not, but she couldn't stop the shiver from going up her spine. Maybe she should have let Rexy eat the man.

But she didn't want Rexy to get sick.

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"Everything went well?"

Bridges adjusted himself as he dug into his pocket before pulling out the deep red rectangular comfort. He turned it over in his hand as he nodded before answering, "Wonderful, I met the most interesting woman today."

The dark haired assistant blinked his brown eyes, and asked, "What about the Indominus?"

"Elise. She has a name; I think it's a pretty name."

Bridges pretended not to notice his assistant as he began to rub his thumb along the length of the deep red. It was a simple object, but it could always be found in his pocket. It was a comfort.

"Are we still going to try and take her to Isla Sorna?"

Bridges pressed his lips as he contemplated that, but shook his head as he answered, "No. She's untouchable as far as I'm concerned. She's too famous, too many people adore her. It would be like taking Koko the gorilla and trying to use her for experiments. People would throw a fit. Besides, I like Elise; she's fun."

Bridges smiled as he flipped the red around before pressing his thumb on the rough wheel. A sharp click was heard, and the lighter made a small, orange flame. Bridges liked to stare at fire, it calmed him down, and helped him think. The small flame danced around enticingly as the blonde said, "She already agreed to the training; we'll use that data."

"But tha-"

The flame went out, and Bridges snapped, "They don't know that, and that's where Hart comes in."

His assistant nodded, and Bridges huffed as he clicked the calming flame back to life. He could already feel the soothing warmth washing over his bones as muscles relaxed at the glowing orange. He ignored the bumping of the chopper, and suddenly asked, "How is Clementine doing? Did she like the gift?"

"Yes; she called to say thank you."

Bridges gave a wide smile as he sank into his chair. He continued to stare at the flame as he said, "I want flowers sent to her by tomorrow morning. Nothing too over the top, but don't get cheap. Make sure those flowers are her favorite color. Purple."

"Yes, Sir."

"She's important; I want her happy."

"Of course."

Bridges glanced out the window to see some seagulls flying nearby; he didn't care for birds, but he loved dinosaurs. Elise was a lot of fun; she was a spitfire.

Bridges loved fire; it was powerful, and he suddenly gave a chuckle.

"Ah, she's got those people so fooled."

The assistant blinked before asking, "Who?"

Bridges snorted as he pointed his thumb at the disappearing island, and answered, "Elise. That is an Indominus Rex, an Untamable King, and she's playing those guests with her adorable colors. Smart girl she is; she has all those people wrapped around her finger. I don't think that old T-Rex is the King anymore; I think Elise is."

His assistant scrunched his nose before quietly asking, "Don't you mean queen?"

Bridges raised an eyebrow, and asked, "Do you know what the word rex means?"

"I, um..."

"It's Latin for king. Tyrannosaurus Rex is 'king of the tyrant lizards'. Indominus Rex is Untamable King. Elise is an Untamable King. She's no Regina. Do you know what that means?"

"...Queen?"

Bridges nodded as he turned his icy gaze back to the flame.

"She is a King, plain and simple. Don't you think there's a little more power to the word king? I don't care if she's female, and I bet she can wipe out a T-Rex no problem if she has the right motivation. She's got a temper on her, Jacky, and it's exciting. She's smart though; she's going to keep me on my toes."

Jack didn't reply to that, and Bridges was fine with that. He knew Elise would be fascinating, but he never expected this challenge out of her. She was like fire. She was a little flame around her loved ones, but Bridges was willing to bet it would be a grand time when that little flame decided to become a raging fire.

Fire was powerful and unpredictable. As far as Bridges was concerned, Elise was the same thing.

And Bridges loved fire.