Free Dinosaur Lake 3: Infestation by Kathryn Meyer Griffith

quickly as she could and then stomped down on
the accelerator again and again. The car jumped and bucked. From the squealing
and scratching sounds above her she could tell she’d lost most of her primeval parasites.
In the rear view mirror she saw a bunch of them falling to the ground behind
her. Instead of chasing her, though, they fled off into the trees. Cowards. Good
riddance.
    She didn’t stop. She drove right through the unbarred
exit at the highest speed she could manage, turned off on and headed down the
highway. She was pretty sure she’d lost all her unwanted passengers, but she
wasn’t taking any chances. After about five miles, she pulled over and, saying
a quick prayer, opened a window and stuck her head out to see if she was alone.
She was. No little gremlins anywhere. She closed the window.
    She laid her head on the steering wheel and took
deep breaths. That’d been close. Close to what, she wasn’t sure. Would they
have bitten, mauled or eaten her if they’d somehow gotten inside? She was so
glad she hadn’t found out. They hadn’t been large, as dinosaurs go, but, whoa,
those teeth had been needle sharp. Those eyes, voracious.
    She finally located her cell phone in her purse, it
has slid into a side pocket, and called Henry, but on the other end all it did
was ring and ring. If they were on the lake, as they were supposed to be, they
might be in a dead spot where the phones wouldn’t work. She left an urgent
message telling him what had occurred and warning him that, yes, as he’d
feared, his cat-eating dinosaurs ran in packs. And attacked humans. In cars.
But, yes, she was okay. She didn’t dare tell him why she was out in a car after
he’d asked her to stay in the cabin. She’d explain that to him later, face to
face. And perhaps he wouldn’t get mad at her. Well, except for the scratches
her car must have on the roof and hood.
    Her inner voice told her to turn around and return to
the cabin, but then she’d run into that pack of little terrors again. Something
inside her cringed. She decided it was safer to go on. Get out of the park for
now. Hopefully by the time she returned, the agitated horde would be gone,
moved on to another site. To be sure, on her return trip, she’d drive through a
different entrance.
    She started the car and got back on the highway, praying
her scratching hissing hitchhikers would remain somewhere behind her. Her hands
on the wheel were still shaking.
    She couldn’t get the thought out of her head how
close her attackers had been to the exit. On the fringe of the park’s lands.
Had they already left it? Were they bopping down the roadways and highways
exploring the territory? Gone into the neighboring towns yet? Trying to eat
domesticated pets and…people? Should she call the police or something? No, the
creatures were still contained in the park and Henry was taking care of that.
And what could the police do anyway? Not much.
    As Henry would say, damn dinosaurs .
    A short while later she was pulling up in front of the
Klamath Fall’s IGA. She dashed into the store and got the stuff on Zeke’s list
and dashed back out. She checked her car. There were scratches and puncture
marks across the hood and roof. Darn. She’d need some body work and a new paint
job done. What would that cost?
    Nothing seemed any different as she traveled
through the town. It was an ordinary summer’s day. Heat waves churned across
the asphalt and over the brown grass of the front yards and the hum of air
conditioners were everywhere. People were walking and driving here and there,
going about their daily tasks as if nothing was wrong in the world. Lucky them
for believing that.
    She didn’t see one dinosaur, of any size or variety,
anywhere, thank goodness. Miles away from danger, Klamath Falls was still untouched.
    Then she was parking in front of Zeke’s house.
Before she lugged in the groceries she tried Henry’s cell again. No luck. No
answer. She even tried Justin’s phone.