A/N

Hey guys! I hope life is good for you!

xxXScotsbritXxx, Carnifex is Sobek's biological son, and this chapter explains what happened to the mother.

Annonymous, I needed that comment before yesterday's chapter, but it's all good. I don't think I'll give him a middle name since, in this case, the Judge will also act as the jury.

thesecondoreo, my goodness, I really liked that! That was very poetic and beautiful; thank you for sharing that.

Thank you guys much and mighty for all your reviews! I love them, and I love you guys! Have a good day/night!

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"Please."

"Alright, Elise. Not considering the fact you and Owen screwed around on training, you did really well. I think you found Derick in a timely manner."

Elise beamed happily as she continued to clean Owen. He wasn't getting out of this grooming. It was almost time for her last show, and the smeared berries were still on his shirt. They tasted very good, and Owen knew they weren't poisonous.

Sam snorted at Owen's defeated look; a little kid who was forced into a bath. Barry was bringing a new shirt, but Elise insisted. The bear of a man glanced down at his notebook before adding, "But, you need to focus a little more; there were a couple times that you seemed to zone out, and I didn't like that. Every second counts, I know this is just training, but it's going to get you used to working under pressure."

Elise agreed with that; she had taken her time because she wanted to explore. It was fun getting out of her paddock with Owen. She knew she would never be that relaxed in a real emergency, but Sam had a good point.

She wanted to see that old building again; it held a certain air about it. Like it was very important. She had actually calmed down with the peacefulness around it before she heard the old vehicle snarling into life.

Claire had agreed to allow Elise to explore the Restricted Area at certain times when she was with Owen. It would be good for her to know the lay of the land; it would help make her a little more accepted in Emergency ACU.

Owen had heard plenty of things about them team's reaction. None of them were very good, and he didn't blame them. He knew it was a good idea to Elise to use, ACU was a perfect job for Elise.

If she hadn't butchered many of the team's members; including Commander Hamada.

So many avoidable mistakes could have saved precious lives.

Owen cringed when Sam added, "I talked to Miss Dearing; Commander Blake will be joining us in the next training session."

"And, uh, when will that be?"

Sam glanced up before dryly saying, "Tomorrow, Grady. I don't like to waste time. We'll be in another section of the Restricted Area. Commander and Elise get to find you and Derick."

Owen pressed his lips as he glanced at Elise currently grooming his arm. He cleared his throat before saying, "Maybe we should reinforce a little more positive behavior with the training before sticking her with Blake, Sam. They don't get along. She really did bury him alive."

"Elise is going to have to get over it."

Owen crinkled his nose when Elise softly licked his face clean of the berry juice; that wasn't what he had meant. He knew Elise would pretty much work with anyone willing to cooperate with her.

"Maybe we should try the Emergency Commander first; Elise will work with him more often than not."

Sam rolled his eyes, but he knew it was a valid point.

"Fine; I'll talk to him and see what I can do."

Owen was glad for that; he knew for a fact that this new Commander was freshly hired. He hadn't been here when Elise had gone on her rampage.

Elise paused from her grooming when Sam shut the book. He checked his bag to make sure he had all the cameras, Lowery had slipped in some duct tape, and he slid the bag over his shoulders before saying, "I'll be off then. Good work today, Elise. I think we can train you on looking for illegal substances. One thing at a time though, we'll get through search and rescue first."

Elise garbled as she gave a final kiss on Owen; she had kept him safe, and she rescued Derick. She felt good about herself today because she was doing something aside from loving on the little ones. Now she could be really good like Owen; a protector.

She crooned a farewell to Sam when he left; Derick had already gone home. Sam swore the man was waddling just the slightest, and he laughed until he cried.

A content growl grabbed Elise's attention, and she glanced down to see Blue and the girls still cleaning their lips of a very good kill. Owen peered over before paling, and he quietly pulled out his radio.

"Hey, Tim?"

Elise knew the girls hadn't eaten Tim; Rexy wouldn't allow that to happen, and she had told them not to touch Tim. Tim was very important to Rexy, and that's all Blue needed to hear. Pack protected one another, and pack did not hurt each other.

There was a silence, and Owen licked his lips nervously before Tim suddenly said, "Yeah, what's up?"

Elise snorted at Owen's sigh of relief, and he answered, "Just callin' to say hi. I missed ya."

Tim made a 'pishaw' sound before dryly saying, "I'm sure of it, but your girls caught a wild boar in Elise's paddock. Nasty buggers used to live in Rexy's place until she drove them out. Maybe Blue and the girls can keep that population under control."

"I didn't know we had wild pigs."

"Well, now you know. Good job on training them to hunt down pigs."

Owen gently stepped onto Elise's hand before she easily set him on the ground. Owen pulled out the resonating chamber, and the girls perked up when the warm trill was made. Blue threw her head back in an enthused greeting, and Owen crinkled his nose as he made a few bark-like sounds.

Elise was happy Owen was getting the hang of this, and Blue immediately pressed close to Owen. She rubbed her jaw along his shoulder as he gently scratched the blades of her shoulders. Owen couldn't help his soft chuckle when Blue rested her head in his hands. He gently stroked the crook of her jaw before slightly startling when she suddenly pushed her head against his.

They hadn't done this since she was as tall as his hip. It was a brief lovey stage that Owen never thought he'd see out of her again. Owen was warmed Blue was doing this again, and he ignored the smell of blood.

Until his pocket crinkled. Then Owen rolled his eyes when he realized Blue had been diverting his attention with cuddles.

"You little shit, Blue."

Blue garbled in defeat when she was caught with her hand in the cookie jar. Owen snorted at her, but he gently tossed a cookie over anyways. Blue rewarded his reward with an affectionate flick of her tail as she disappeared back into the brush. Owen scanned his eyes over the other two before greeting, "Hey, girlies. Is Blue behaving, Echo?"

The bronze raptor paused from her grooming, and Owen swore he saw that flash of irritation across her intelligent eyes when she glared at the bush. Owen was glad to see she had mostly recovered from her coffee fit, and Owen turned to the emerald raptor.

"What about you, Delta? You doing good?"

Owen had never been able to read Delta like Barry could, but he loved her nonetheless. The emerald raptor made a soft sound as she trotted over before thrusting her nose into his vest. She liked hiding in there, and Owen could never figure out why. He gently ran his hands along the scaled neck while Delta tasted the smashed berries Elise had somehow missed.

The raptor gave a delighted chirp when she heard the rich voice dryly say, "Owen, you are not supposed to be giving the trainers heart attacks."

Owen grinned sheepishly though Delta gave a little turn at seeing her most favorite person in the whole world. Barry smiled before blowing her a kiss; it was the only trick he had managed to teach Delta before she had gotten too big to really work hands on with, but Owen started laughing when she flopped over onto her side. Barry grinned widely, and said, "Ah, my sweet girl, I brought your very favorite."

Blue was in love with Oreos, Charlie had been over the moon for a bag of Cheetos, and Echo was fine with either.

But nothing made Delta's day more than a fresh churro. Lightly sprinkled with cinnamon, and a bit of sugar.

The emerald raptor leapt high as the stick was tossed down, and she made a muffled sound before disappearing back into thick brush. Echo didn't want anything at the moment; she was full.

Owen shook his head at her, but caught the fluttering shirt that was also tossed down.

"Thanks, man!"

Barry nodded, but called out, "I passed Miss Claire on the way over here, she said your mother called."

"Oh, Jesus..."

Elise tilted her head at the distressed tone; Owen had never talked about his mother to her, or any of his other family. Did Owen have other family? He obviously did if his mother called. Was his mother nice? Why wasn't she nearby, close to her baby?

Elise shifted around; she wouldn't trouble herself over this because she was Owen's family, but Barry cooed to her, "And, Beautiful?"

Elise loved that rich voice that was so full of tender affection. Barry was the second human she had come to love with all her heart; she couldn't exactly remember the first one, but she remembered the love. The Indominus made a loud croon as she rolled onto her back, exposing her underbelly. Barry laughed before saying, "Lowery wanted me to tell you he is sending someone over to get pictures of that beautiful face. He will be here after tomorrow's first show."

Elise was fine with that; she was interested in all the technologies humans came up with. Cameras were an odd creation, but Lowery had shown her pictures of what she looked like.

It was so very odd when comparing them to the children's drawings of her.

Elise had seen a picture of herself; the sharp teeth lined a scarred jaw that was slightly offset. Her talons were curved dangerously that left marks in the smooth cement, and her own eyes practically glowed against the snowy scales.

Elise felt like she looked scary.

But the children's drawings portrayed a much different creature. A kind being with a wide smile. The teeth were rounded, and claws merely longer fingers. The bloody crimson orbs were but a soft red. Her healing scars were hardly noticed, but the occasional child drew their own self kissing it better.

Children were not afraid of Elise; it was what had made her so happy with the drawings. She would only have to look at them to know how the little ones viewed her.

"Why is my mother calling Claire?"

Barry rolled his eyes as if it were obvious and dryly said, "Because her son doesn't keep a cell phone on him. She said to use the same Skype your father has. She wants a call tonight."

Owen nodded; he would do that. He assumed his mother wanted to talk about bringing Rosie here. He wondered if she would visit as well; she was always a little disapproving of the creating of dinosaurs.

His mother did not care that dinosaurs had existed; she just felt like the creation of these dinosaurs was playing God. She didn't like that, but she had only said something when Owen announced he would be the Velociraptor trainer.

She begged him to do something else; she had even called Vic without his knowing to try and transfer him to the Petting Zoo. Barry never let him live that down.

Owen couldn't stop himself from smiling when Elise gently nuzzled him. He scratched the jaw as he said, "We ready for the next show?"

Elise immediately nodded, and Owen winked at her as he said, "You and me, Baby. We'll make it a good one."

Elise didn't want it any other way.

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Claire sighed as she went through the last of her emails for the day. Her bare feet swung back and forth as the high heels were tossed aside. No one would see that she had kicked off her shoes, and that was a relief.

It hurt walking in the damned things all day, but it was what looked good on her. She liked being taller as well. She did feel good in them; she felt prettier.

And for some reason, she felt like Owen wouldn't care if she wore them or not.

That made Claire smile; Owen was a funny man, but he was so...Owen. Claire didn't have words to describe the complicated man. Maybe she would ask him onto the third date, and take him somewhere nice. She didn't think he would care for anything fancy, but maybe the Steakhouse again.

She glanced at the clock; it was nine. She was sure Owen was talking to his mother right now; he liked to be in the Call Center when things were at their quietest. Claire didn't blame him though she wouldn't pity him for being a cheap person.

His mother was funny, and Claire really liked her. His father was hilarious as well. He sounded very much like Owen, and she wondered who he looked like more. Claire smiled; she would find out in a week.

Claire's smile left her face when the notification came up, and she sighed. She really had thought the blonde had died. She answered the call before dryly saying, "Back from the dead, Mr. Bridges?"

The blonde gave a tired chuckle, and Claire raised an eyebrow at seeing what looked like mud on his white shirt. His tie was gone, and so was the pressed suit.

"Is everything fine, Mr. Bridges? You look..."

"Tired, my dear, and a little stressed. I apologize for not showing up; I had poachers on my island. They injured one of my most important dinosaurs. I just got done helping hose him down."

Claire blinked a few times as she eyed the dirty shirt and messed up hair.

"I didn't think you to be...hands on."

Bridges gave a short laugh before retorting, "Miss Dearing, if I wasn't so tired, I would make a bad joke."

Claire raised an eyebrow; Bridges was tired if he wasn't in the mood to make jokes. She scratched her wrist before saying, "I have the videos of Elise's training. One of my workers figured out how to get the camera on Elise. She did very well; she needs a little focus, but I think she enjoys this. I'll send it over to you."

Bridges gave a quiet sigh before suddenly saying, "I have faith in how you'll train Elise, Claire. I know you treat all your animals well."

Bridges held up a hand; he was aware he had crossed the informal line between them, and he said, "That's exactly why I am calling you. I need a very massive favor from you. I need you to take this very special animal onto your island because I can't take care of him here."

Claire was not in the mood to take any animals from Bridges, and she said, "Mr. Bridges, I don't keep males on this island. We have things figured out with our females, and I don't know what adding a male would do to that species."

"You don't have this species...anymore."

Claire was confused; Bridges always made her pay good money for animals she didn't own. He used it as leverage and bragging to keep his island just as important.

"What species is this?"

Bridges pressed his lips as he tried to think of a way to say this without getting an immediate no. He ran his hand through his hair tiredly before quietly saying, "A Spinosaurus."

Claire accidentally knocked her cup of water off her desk, but she didn't hear the clinking splash. Bridges didn't do anything when she exclaimed, "Absolutely not, Mr. Bridges! I will not have another Spinosaurus on this island, let alone a male Spinosaurus."

"She still entertains your guests, doesn't she?"

Claire felt her jaw drop before she pointed in the direction, and snapped, "She is sitting in our plaza! Even as a skeletal display she causes us grief! I have never had one skeleton collapse so many times! I told you once, and I will tell you again, I will not have a Spinosaurus as a replacement for Rex-"

"Sobek isn't much younger than Rexy. Maybe five years at the least."

Claire was not comforted by that fact, and she took a breath before calmly saying, "Mr. Bridges, Mr. Masrani took that female in because we thought she would be a sensible addition to our park. In one day she managed to cause more chaos in this park than what Elise could even dream of accomplishing. The only reason that Spinosaurus didn't get us shut down was because the park was closed to guests, and she made the stupid mistake of breaking into Rexy's paddock. Rexy took care of her, and before the day was over, we had a dead Spinosaurus. The only thing we could do was make a display from her skeleton. Do you know how much that skeleton still reeks even ten years later? Do you know how hard it is to create a skeletal display from something of that size? Our guests had refused to even go near that skeleton because of its stench."

Bridges chewed the inside of his cheek; he had heard plenty about that, and he would admit the bones still smelled on a hot day, but Claire wasn't done. She leaned closer to the screen as she dangerously added, "Do you know how much Spanish I know, Mr. Bridges? I know very little, but I learned her name really fast. The workers had named her before she even stepped off the boat. Madre del Diablo. I have never heard such a fitting name in my life. The Devil's mother indeed."

Bridges didn't think Claire needed to know that Spinosaurus had the name before stepping onto the boat. She really had been crazy; to the point where Bridges feared her. He couldn't justify putting her down either. He thought mellow Sobek would have been able to calm her down, but she got worse. Much worse.

Madre hadn't wanted to be a mother, and it was another reason why Bridges had taken Carnifex as his own. The Spinosaurus had refused to make a nest let alone take care of the egg. There was a screw loose in her head that scared everyone. At least Sobek looked sane even if he was terrifying; Bridges found him very brave to somehow copulate with Madre. Bridges knew there was no way Sobek would have been able to force himself onto Madre; she had been too crazy.

Bridges didn't think Wu used bovine DNA in Madre's genetics, but he knew a general rule of thumb amongst cattlemen. He learned it from his grandfather who had been an rancher.

The more whites around the eye, the crazier the cow.

Madre had a lot of white around her eyes, and those eyes had even bugged out when she got super angry. She would look like a stress toy being squeezed.

"Sobek isn't Madre, Claire. He's a very mellow dinosaur. Please, at least come look at him; I know he'll grow on you. He's nothing but a gentleman who has done this island well."

"He is a male Spinosaurus, Mr. Bridges. Elise is compatible with Spinosaurus. If you think I will allow that sweet girl-"

"Sobek can't breed."

Claire paused before narrowing her eyes, and she snapped, "And how do you know that?"

Bridges rubbed his forehead; he couldn't help dryly saying, "My biology class. Sobek has been castrated."

"...You...castrated...?"

Bridges still felt like he had betrayed Sobek by authorizing that surgery; that had been a night-terror all its own. A level of hell no one knew even existed until that dark day reaped havoc amongst them. No one could look Sobek in the eye after that, and Romano was still sure he would be killed by the Spinosaurus as revenge. Sobek just seemed to know Romano had been the one with the knife.

There was a look of betrayal on Sobek's face. Bridges didn't care if animals couldn't use facial expressions like humans, that Spinosaurus had looked betrayed. They had broken the Bro Code, and Sobek knew it.

"He had testicular cancer, Miss Dearing. Sobek is castrated, the cancer is gone, and he is much more mellow after that surgery. Please, I wouldn't ask if he wasn't important to me. Sobek is calm."

Claire raised her eyebrows, but she still wasn't convinced, and Bridges desperately said, "Claire, I am begging you to give Sobek a chance. I don't have a place to put him, and he needs to be babied in his old age. I just don't-"

Bridges paused to wipe his mouth as he shoved his hand into his pocket; Claire would admit she had never seen Bridges so distressed looking, and he finished, "I just don't think I could live with myself if he ended up suffocating under his own weight. I don't want to put him down when I know he still has plenty of years in him. I know you take wonderful care of your animals. Please, I'll rent a space if you have one, I'll pay the vet bills, and feeding costs. Claire, please don't make me put Sobek down."

Claire believed the sincerity and desperation in Bridges' voice. As much as she hated to admit it; Bridges was acting a lot like Owen did when Elise had almost been put down. She never thought Owen could get so attached to the point of begging. Bridges was in a similar situation, but Claire pressed her lips.

Businesses didn't run on pity. Even if Bridges was willing to pay for Sobek, Claire would have to up security, expand her ACU team, and worry. Rexy had been accepting of Elise, but how would she react to seeing a full grown, wild, male Spinosaurus?

Claire flickered her gaze back to the screen when Bridges pleaded, "Please, just come meet him at the very least."

Owen had asked her to get to know Elise too, but she just couldn't see how this was going to work. Madre had been a traumatic experience. Rexy was the only reason why this island was safe, and everyone deemed her the Big Boss after that.

Her gaze wandered back over to the windows on her screen. She still had the documents on Elise's reproductive breeding system up. She couldn't shake the feeling that Bridges had access to Wu somehow. As much as Claire hated to do it; she had leverage here. She had no need nor desire to bring a Spinosaurus here.

But she needed Elise's records; they were vital to her health. Claire still felt guilty for leaving Elise to rot next to her sister's skeleton. Now Claire had a vague understanding of what it was like to have a child; Elise was becoming her baby.

Claire wanted those records; even if it meant twisting Bridges' arm, but she was sure the sonofabitch had done it several times to other people. She took a deep breath before saying, "I will come look at Sobek with Mr. Grady."

Bridges brightened, and Claire quickly added, "After I get Elise's records."

The blonde swallowed before hoarsely saying, "You have everything I do, Miss Dearing."

Claire kept her poker face when she retorted, "I think you still keep in contact with Wu. I want Elise's records, and you may call me as soon as you have them, Mr. Bridges."

Claire didn't think she would be so bold if Bridges was actually in front of her instead of on screen. He was dangerous, and she didn't like how he darkened. She was pushing him on some fine line, she just knew it, but she held her ground because Rexy would do the same.

Bridges suddenly snapped from his dark side as he calmly said, "If I find more records, you agree to come look at Sobek. If you want those records then you agree to take Sobek. I will pay for his stay, and you just give him the same attention you do all you other animals."

Claire wasn't surprised Bridges had found his own way to twist her arm, but she didn't doubt it would take no less than a miracle to get Wu to talk. She didn't need bad blood between their companies, and Bridges would be in her debt if she took Sobek in.

That was a very big if.

"I can work with that, Mr. Bridges. Now if you will excuse me, I think we have both had a long day."

Claire suppressed a shiver when the man gave an emotionless smile before saying, "It has been one of those days, Miss Dearing; full of pests and stress. I will see what I can dig up, and I will call you when I have something."

Claire nodded before she signed off, and Bridges was still for a few minutes. He clenched his fist on his desk, not hearing Carnifex pace around his paddock. He always paced when Bridges was on edge; it was the oddest thing. They weren't attached to each other, but they were.

He suddenly raised his fist before smashing it into the polished wood.

"Fuck!"

Bridges ignored the throbbing in his hand and the mark in the wood. He leaned back into his chair as he tried to calm himself with deep breaths. The lighter continued to flicker on and off as the demons all had their own ideas. Bridges didn't like any of them, and he winced at the throbbing headache; the punishment for being so ungrateful for the offered help.

Claire had a very simple trade. Elise's records, and then Sobek would be safe.

But Bridges had to convince Wu to give that up, and there was no way in hell that would be happening.

Carnifex gave another furious roar, and a little demon whispered an idea to Bridges. The blonde immediately agreed, and he stood before leaving. He was pressed for time in saving Sobek. Romano wanted an answer by tomorrow, and he would have it.

Wu probably wouldn't blink an eye at being in hell, but Bridges had a better place to convince Wu to see reason.