Chapter Eleven:

  The train camped a half day’s ride from the ranch. The excitement to get home permeated the air; even the dinos were getting antsy.

  The four cons, now hired hands, sat around a portable heater unit that the trail boss, John, had loaned them. They ate their dinner together in silence as usual, hardly ever speaking, save for the periodic, incoherent grumbling coming from Piggy. The crew had never been especially talkative, but the dinners had been particularly silent since they had been absorbed by the McClintocks.

  Ed finally broke the silence, keeping his voice low. “Do you think they’d let us run? Just ride away.No questions asked. No chasing.”

  “I think they would,” answered Tommy, his voice still slightly watery but much clearer thanks to Calli’s repair. “Why wouldn’t they?”

  “Because they paid money for us, fishboy. I know you're in love with your great dino lords now because they fixed all your boo-boos,” Ed said mockingly. “But money is money, and we, like it or not, are property. People don’t just let that go. And I don’t care how benevolent Mr. high-and-mighty McClintock acts; no one earns power with clean hands. He's probably just as greedy and cruel as the rest of the ruling scum.”

  Tommy’s face became angry at the insult, and he started to stand, but Laura waved him down. The timid little man had begun to show a serious spine since his health had been improved a week earlier, she noted.

  “First off, I don’t know what you intend to ‘ride away’ in, because we only have the one hover truck, and none of us know how to ride one of these dino monsters without being eaten. And I’M sure as hell not walking my ass all the way to wherever we’re going,” Laura said, her tone equally mocking. Ed scoffed, and the other two men smirked.

  “I don’t trust anybody, and I'm not planning to change that, but they could have killed us. Easily. But they didn’t. They clothed us, fed us, and healed our hurts. And when I killed... when I killed Eugene,” she said with disdain, “I saw McClintock’s face. By law, the same law he used to buy us, he should have put me down, right then and there. But he didn’t. I think he understands the difference between ‘law’ and ‘justice.’ I say let's let this play out for a while. At least get these collars out of our necks. And don’t knock Tommy for getting treatment from the Doctor. I did it too. It’s the first time I haven’t had a headache without booze or drugs in years.” Laura closed her eyes and rolled her neck. “Feels like she pulled a nail out of my head that I didn’t know was there.”

  Tommy nodded in agreement. “She also said that she couldn’t completely reverse our splicing, but she could alter the genes further to repair damage. And they’ll give us nanites if we work there. The real ones that keep working for life.”

  “I heard that, too,” Laura said with a skeptical look. “Let's not get too excited yet. I’m for giving this a cautious chance, but I wanna see the fine print first.”

  Piggy nudged Ed and grumbled something to him. Ed reared back and raised an eyebrow at the strange little man. Piggy just raised his hands and shrugged in response. “You too, Piggy, really?”

  “What?” Laura and Tommy questioned.

  Ed’s voice change tone again,as it always did when he spoke for piggy, “Piggy says, there was at least $2.3 million worth of merchandise in that cave, and the McClintock man's only debate was to burn it or give it to the law, and not to keep it.” Piggy grumbled something again to Ed, who translated. “Piggy says, no one walks away from a clear fortune like that unless they are a fool or a true believer.”

  “A true believer can be a dangerous thing, too,” Paul Tinhorn said, appearing next to the group's tent. All four of them stood, surprised by the man's sudden, silent appearance. “And I've witnessed Mr. McClintock be a fool on more than one occasion. If you ever get the chance, you should ask him to tell the story about what happened in Yuma, when he and the Mexican Emperor negotiated a trade deal. It involved a herd of Metamynodons and a case of tequila.”

  Paul had his usual friendly grin spread across his face as he came to a stop just outside the ring of new ranch hands. “I’m sorry, please sit back down, finish your meals. Would you mind if I joined you? We need to discuss some things before we ride in tomorrow.”

  Ed was the one to offer him a seat, just another overturned crate, which Paul happily took. “Thank you, sir, much appreciated. Now, I’ll try not to take too much of your time, but we want to make sure you know what to do tomorrow. Once we get past the gates, riders will start peeling off to go their separate ways. You four will need to follow the trail boss John and Kate on their Allosauruses. They and the riders with them will be headed to the bunkhouses, and John will set you up with temporary bunk assignments until we can sort out where you all will be going.”

  “Going? I thought we were all going to the ranch?” Laura said.

  “Yes, but the ranch is a big place. And depending on where you're assigned, you might need to be set up with accommodations elsewhere. We can’t expect you to be at the bunkhouse if your work station is a day’s ride away.” Paul explained.

  “How big is this Ranch?” Ed asked.

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  “It’s spread out over about 200,000 square kilometers,” Paul stated, leaving a look of shock on their faces. “Most of which belongs to the McClintocks. The main dino ranch is centered in the red rocks close to Oak Creek, commonly referred to as Thundersaur valley.There are several operations that are owned by myself and a few others spread throughout the territory. But the majority is his.”

  “Where does his land begin?” Asked Laura.

  Paul smiled faintly. “We’ve technically been on his land for a day or more now.” Stunned silence held the group.

  “Now, the day after you all will be escorted to the main office to be interviewed so we can figure out where your talents lie and we can use you best.”

  “I just assumed we would be shoveling dino scat for the rest of our lives,” Ed said, confusion on his face.

  “Well, dino scat is not out of the realm of possibilities.” Paul said with a straight face, “We make quite a lot of money from that area. Did you know a cubic meter of Stego or Tric dung can fertilize an acre of farmland, not to mention its use as a medium in battery crystal production?” Ed's mouth hung slack.

  Paul continued, “We also have other industries, such as logging up north and feed production. We are also one of the number one producers of produce for the Western, Southern, and Central Territories. And of course, our biggest trade is dino breeding and selling, which we distribute throughout the continent. I actually have a specific job in mind for you, Tommy, if you're amenable to it.”

  Tommy straightened. “Me? Uh, what is that?”

  “Well, I don’t know if you want to get back in the water or not, but we have a large hydro farm for both vegetation and fish. It’s one of the areas I run. It’s not like working in the ocean, but you may be perfectly suited for it. Ms. Kate was telling me about your mechanic skills. Again, only if you're interested.”

  Tommy’s shock waned to what looked like relief.

  Paul continued, “I’m sure we can find somewhere suitable for all of you. Also, Doctor McClintock informed me that before any of you could start, there may be some needed medical procedures, so we'll keep that in mind before we ship you out anywhere. Are there any questions before I let you all return to your evening?”

  Piggy grunted something to Ed. “Piggy asks, ‘How does one man hold so much land?’” All four people turned, looking very interested.

  Paul stared at the pair, noticing the strange dynamic between the two, then held up his hands. “Well, part of it has been in the McClintock family for several generations. It used to be that no one wanted this wild land, filled with monsters and dangerous prehistoric jungles in the middle of nowhere. After about 200 years of hard work, struggle, and no small amount of blood, the McClintocks and other families like mine turned this area into a wild, almost paradise. The rest of it came during the chaos after the Barons fell.”

  He paused, his voice turning somber. “Men like Mr. McClintock and Quirtzquip and a few others stepped up and brought order to the bloody mess the lizards worshipers and the Barons left behind—running off the marauders and the warlords, not to mention the conniving carpetbaggers from the Western cities, all who tried to prey on the scared and confused during the upheaval. When the dust settled, we had built a figurative financial barrier around the southern tip of the Western Free Zone, and where it was needed, we built actual physical barriers when ownership wasn’t enough.”

  A deep, prolonged thunder suddenly rang out, bringing the entire camp to a standstill. It sounded wrong—there wasn't a cloud in the sky, and it lasted way too long. It sounded far away as it rang out again, a sound less like lightning and more like a colossal horn being blown deep within the earth. Laura felt a shiver shoot down her spine, and everyone else appeared equally unnerved.

  Paul’s arm bracer beeped, and beeps could be heard from all over the camp as people returned to their activities. He looked at the message and released a breath. “Not to worry, we’re okay, everything's okay.” Paul said reassuringly.

  Tommy looked ready to bolt. “What the hell was that?”

  Paul’s grin returned as he answered, “Spinosaurus. The lookouts say it's far away, though, and moving away from the camp. Probably just caught its dinner for the night.”

  “That was a living creature?” Ed blurted out.

  “Oh yeah,” Paul answered. “They’re all over the area, but they mostly stay in the deep canyons. That's where the name comes from: ‘Thundersaur Ranch.’”

  Laura looked horrified. “You breed those things?”

  Paul shook his head. “Oh, no. No one does anything with the Thundersaurs other than get out of their way. We have monitors around their territories to track their movements. Don’t worry, usually if you just stay out of their territory, they’ll leave you alone. Unless you have popper plums on you. Or if they just decide to rampage for no reason. You learn to live with it. It's fine.”

  Paul stood and brushed himself off. “Well, if there's no other questions, I’ll leave you all be.”

  As Paul started to walk away, he stopped and turned to Ed. “You know, there is one more quick thing.” Paul locked eyes with Ed. “I couldn’t help but overhear your conversation as I walked over, and I wasn’t going to say anything, but I changed my mind.”

  Paul removed his jacket and turned his neck and shoulders to the group, displaying a large, circular scar at the base of his neck with a thick line marked through it. “You see this big ol’ circle with a line slashed through it?” Ed nodded his head. “Mr. McClintock has the same scar, as does Dr. McClintock and a few others our age. You're going to receive something similar in the next few days if you let Calli remove those collars from you—just a lot less prominent looking. These newer collars are a lot easier to deal with than the old ones were.”

  Paul leaned over and got very close to Ed’s face, speaking in a quiet, deadly serious tone. “No man that has felt the weight of real shackles can abide putting them on someone else. We knew what it was to live under the boot of a tyrant, and we will burn this world to the ground before we let one rise again here in the Valley. So yes, if you want to leave, you can go.”

  Paul stood and reached into his pocket, pulling out a small leather bag. He shook several gold, silver, and copper coins out emptying the bag and handed them all to Ed. It was more money than Ed had ever earned 'legally' in his life. Ed could only stare at the man, dumbfounded by the gesture.

  “If you’re wise with it, that could probably buy you transport and entrance to the Mexican Empire down south. The Empire doesn’t care about contracts or warrants from the Western cities, or anywhere else for that matter. We don’t make any promises of an easy life here; if you stay, every one of you will earn everything you get and nothing more. But what you earn will be yours, free and clear. You might not understand now, but there is a peace that can’t be bought that comes from this kind of life. But you have to choose it. Make sure you choose wisely.” Paul tipped his hat, and his easy smile returned to his face as he turned and walked away.

  The next morning, as the train rode the final stretch home, Lin rode towards the front of the pack, happily singing one of her songs as Buddy hummed along—as much as a giant Brontosaur can hum. Sarah simply bounced her head and tapped her foot to the tune.

  Marsh rode up astride on Cookie and joined in on the song. He had taught it to Lin years ago, and it had become one of her favorites, always sung when the surrounding rocks and cliffs began to turn from the usual browns and tans to shades of red, and the giant gates of the ranch came into view. It was an ancient song, composed by the great songwriter Denver, that perfectly encapsulated the romanticized nostalgia for home and the urge to return to it.

  Sarah finally noticed the impressive, gleaming metal entrance with its 16-meter tall gates built into the equally tall, man-made red rock wall that extended both directions as far as the eyes could see. Atop the gates was a single, large Spinosaurus skull that shone with a metallic coating, and the ranch's brand—a stylized T/R—beneath it. She stood in the wagon and pointed, eyes wide.

  Lin nodded and smiled at the girl's quiet excitement.

  “Yep, that’s it. Thundersaur Ranch, we’re home!”