Chapter Text
Chapter One
November 1991
“Stop your crying, girl!”
The young girl fought back a whimper as something hit her on the side. She just kept her head ducked and let the hand around her arm pull her toward the car. She fought a shiver as her aunt dragged her outside. She wasn’t allowed to call her Aunt Sharon anymore, they weren’t family anymore. In her own mind though, she just couldn’t help it.
“I should never have taken you in,” her Aunt opened the door to the backseat of the car and threw her in. She barely got her legs in when the door was slammed closed. “I should have never spoken up and let the police find the man on your birth certificate, then you could have been his problem this whole time.”
The girl curled up in her seat as her aunt continued her tirade against a man she’s never met. A week ago her aunt saw an ad for a museum with a new dinosaur skeleton. It was found a few years ago by some big time scientist. Once she saw his name, things changed. She became meaner.
“If he is a deadbeat and doesn’t want you, don’t bother trying to come back,” Her aunt sneered as she gripped the steering wheel. “I refuse to have such worthless baggage I should never have asked for. No, if he doesn’t want you then you just stay gone. Who would ever want someone whose parents didn’t even want them.”
The girl just looked at the landscape as it streaked by. Other than the mentions of her father, it wasn’t anything she hadn’t heard before. Her aunt loved to tell her that her mother tried to kill them both in an accident. Only she didn’t have the decency to die with her mother and became a plague on her aunt.
Her mother died when she was five and the memories she had of her had slowly started to fade. All that was left was the memories of pain and hunger.
Her only bright spot was when her aunt let her get a library card. That way after school she could just go to the library and her aunt wouldn’t have to pay for an after school program. The librarian is nice and helps her find all of the interesting books. She once told her about the bruises, but nothing happened. She quickly learned not to say anything. It never helped. Her aunt was just too convincing.
The girl jolted out of her thoughts as the car slammed to a stop. She looked around wide eyed at that large imposing building. Large windows bordered the doors that led inside.
“Come on, girl,” her aunt snapped as she got out of the car.
The girl scrambled out of the car and tried to keep up with her aunt’s long strides. Her aunt led her to a large group that milled around in the large foyer.
“Here, girl, hold onto this until you meet a man with the name written on the front,” her aunt thrust an envelope out to her. “You make sure he gets this.”
The girl looked down and read the name on the envelope. Was that her father? She looked up to ask her aunt, but she was gone. The girl’s heart started to pound as she looked around wide eyed in a vain effort to find her aunt in the crowd. She was truly gone…she had left her.
The large group started to walk away as they followed their tour guide. The girl quickly followed and though she was distracted by everything, she made sure not to be left. She needed to find the man on the envelope. A man named Alan Grant.
—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“Found in 1988 on federal land near the Fort Peck Reservoir, it took our Palentologists two full seasons to fully excavate,” the tour guide said as a group followed her. “The excavation was led by our very own, Dr. Alan Grant! As you can see even all these years later, we are still cleaning and studying the Wankel T-Rex. The position you see the T-Rex in is the same position it was found in, called its death pose or opisthotonic posture.”
Alan bit back a groan as the tour guide started to work her way to him. He knew this was another part of the job, but he just wanted to look at some bones today. He plastered on his public speaking smile and waited for the group to come closer so he could explain further. As he continued to talk and answer questions, he noticed a little girl in the back. She was a small thing, probably no older than nine. There was something about her he could not place.
Her clothes were much too thin for the Montana winter, her lack of coat just brought attention to how she swam in the clothes. Either they were much too big for her or she was terribly underweight. Her light brown hair, even from this distance, looked tangled and dirty. She had her arms wrapped around herself, but it was her eyes that caught him. They were too focused on him, too interested beyond a child’s curiosity in dinosaurs.
His partner, Dr. Ellie Sattler, seemed to notice the girl as well since she moved from her spot toward her. The girl seemed to tense as Ellie got closer, but she seemed to respond when spoken to. He watched Ellie speak quietly with the girl as he continued to answer questions. Soon the tour guide directed the group to continue on. The girl looked between the group and him with conflicted eyes and bit her lip.
Ellie said something softly to her until she looked up at her with wide eyes. With one last look to the retreating group, the girl began to make her way to him. As she got closer, Alan could see her eyes were a light hazel and there was a dark spot on her cheek. It was either dirt or a faded bruise…he hoped it was dirt. His chest ached slightly at the second thought of what the spot could be.
“A-are you really Alan Grant?” She asked in a soft voice. Her head was down and her tense shoulders were up to her ears.
Alan looked at Ellie with a raised eye brow and lowered himself to a crouch to be less imposing to the small girl. He could easily recognize the posture. It was one he adopted when he was much younger and lived with his abusive alcoholic father. Since his childhood wasn’t the best he had decided he didn’t want kids of his own…too afraid he would fail at the task.
This probably was one of the reasons that led to people’s common misconception that he didn’t like kids. Many assumed because he was rather gruff and, in some cases, overly detailed in his explanations about dinosaur behaviour to kids, that he has little patience for them. He did in fact like kids, they tended to share his enthusiasm in dinosaurs. Sometimes it was just hard to interact with them outside of dinosaur conversations.
“I am, did you have a question about the dinosaur?” He asked softly.
The girl peaked up at him and her eyes widened when she realized he was crouched. Now that he was a lot closer, could just barely make out the mark as a bruise. She chewed on her lip as she fiddled with an envelope. She slowly held it out to him.
“My aunt told me to give you this,” she said softly. “She said to make sure you get it.”
Alan looked between the girl and the envelope tightly clenched in her hand. Her hand shook slightly as he reached forward to take it.
“Thank you for giving this to me,” he said as he read his name scribbled on the front. “How about Ellie and I take you to the vending machine for a snack while I read this?”
The girl looked between him and Ellie with a wary look before she gave them a slow nod. She followed them to some nearby benches by a row of vending machines. He took a seat on one as Ellie led her to pick a snack and drink.
She frowned slightly as she looked between the machine and Ellie. As if she didn’t know what she would be allowed to ask for. With a frown, Alan turned to the envelope in his hand. With a shake of his head he ripped it open and pulled out the letter within and saw two more tucked within.
Alan Grant,
If you’re reading this then the girl has found you. I don’t know why my sister never told you, but this is your daughter. I saw your name in an ad about some relic and I figured it was time for you to take this burden.
I don’t want her, so I enclosed the child’s birth certificate and social security card. The rest is up to you, I’m done.
Alan looked at the letter with wide eyes before he pulled out the two mentioned documents. Inside he could see the top of a form for her to formally relinquish her rights and custody of Willow. His heart thudded against his chest as he read the larger document.
Name: Willow Harlow Grant DOB: 02/14/1981 at 9:00 AM
Weight: 5.5 pounds
Height: 18.3 inches
Hospital: St. Vincent Hospital Billings, MT
Mother: Michelle Christine Harlow DOB: 07/26/1955
Father: Alan James Grant DOB: 04/30/1953
Alan’s head snapped up to look at the girl as she sat beside Ellie and drank from a bottle of water, a bag of pretzels lay next to her unopened. The thing he couldn’t place when he looked at her, she looked like her mother. Michelle Harlow, the woman who illustrated his book. Willow had her mothers hair, nose and mouth but she had his eyes. They were a lighter blue than his.
“Everything okay, Alan?” Ellie asked as she looked at him over his daughter’s head.
His daughter.
His daughter, who was ten but looked like she was eight. His daughter, who had a faded bruise on her cheek, was covered in dirt and was underweight.
“Yeah,” he said. “Yeah, uh, I just learned something shocking about our new friend here.”
He handed the letter to Ellie, but noticed a spark of hope in Willow’s eyes before she smothered it. As if she had guessed who he was and was afraid to hope it was true.
“Ellie, this is Willow Grant…my daughter.”
Ellie looked between him and Willow before she gently took the letter to read. Alan got up and crouched in front of his daughter.
“It’s nice to meet you, Willow,” he said softly.
He could see Ellie frown in the corner of his eye as she turned the page over to see if there was anything else written. Willow shifted on the bench and clutched the bottle of water tightly in her hand until it crinkled.
“You-you’re not mad?” Was her quiet reply.
Alan tilted his head as he looked at the girl. Her shoulders slowly rose to her ears as her hands shook.
“Why would I be mad?”
“My aunt said my dad wouldn’t want me since my mom didn’t,” her eyes flicked up to his and must have seen his confusion since she continued. “She said mom got into an accident to kill us both but since I didn’t die with her no one would want me. She said my dad wouldn’t want me if my mom didn’t want me enough to live.”
Ellie sucked in a breath at his daughter’s words. Alan felt like he’d been sucker punched. Who said that to a child? It made it all the worse that she said it so flatly, as if it was said so much around her it must be true.
“Well your aunt is wrong,” he said as he ducked his head until their eyes met. Her blue eyes were dull. “I am happy to know you and to know that you are my daughter. I am worried that you look far too skinny and what made that bruise on your cheek. But that has nothing to do with you.”
Willow shifted on the bench and chewed on her lip as she studied his face. Her shoulders loosened slightly when she found what she was looking for.
“What now?” She asked it so quietly he almost didn't hear.
“Well, Ellie, if she is okay with it, will go get our things,” he said Ellie nod as he spoke. “Then we are going to take you to the hospital. You aren’t in trouble, but I do want to make sure that you are okay. Okay?”
Willow looked at him warily before she gave him a soft, “Yes sir.”
Ellie gave him a soft smile and left to get their things. Alan settled onto the bench and leaned forward to rest his elbows on his knees.
“While we wait, tell me about yourself?”
“What do you want to know?”
“Anything…what’s your favorite food or color? What do you like to do for fun?”
Willow’s nose scrunched as she thought.
“I guess I like blue, like the sky…I don’t really have a favorite food,” her eyes flicked to him before she looked back to the plastic bottle. “I like to read. My aunt finally let me have a library card, so I can wait for her to get off work there.”
“What books do you like to read?” he asked.
“I was reading the Lord of the Rings before my aunt made me return it to the library,” she said as she picked at the label on the bottle. “She said I wasn’t smart enough to understand it, but I did. She did let me borrow books on the stars and dinosaurs.”
“Did you like those?”
“Oh yeah! I think they’re really interesting,” she said as a small smile appeared. “Did you know, after further study into the complete skull found in 1988, the Herrerasaurus is now considered an early dinosaur? Or that in 1985 the Maiasaura peeblesorum became the state dinosaur for Montana?”
Before he could say anything Ellie returned from the back with their things.
“Alright, Willow, let’s go.”
It did not take them long to get to the hospital and they must have arrived in a lull, because the wait wasn’t as long as it could have been. He had Willow wait in the hall with Ellie, when a triage nurse called him up to get her vitals and verify why they were there.
“Grant,” a nurse called from the doorway. She gave them a smile as they stood and headed toward her. Alan watched as her expression became fixed the more she cataloged everything about Willow’s appearance. “Just follow me.”
They followed her through the halls until they got to a room.
“Alright, little lady, let's get you up on the table,” the nurse smiled as Willow got onto the exam and swung her legs. “Now, the doctor asked for me to get some blood samples so we can get that started, is that alright?”
Willow’s eyes flicked to his before she slowly nodded. The nurse got to work getting her arm prepped for the blood draw. Willow turned her head away from the needle but didn’t flinch when it was inserted.
“What a strong one you are, not even a flinch,” the nurse said as the blood filled the little tube. “Alright, just a quick cheek swab…”
Willow opened her mouth when instructed, Alan had to bite back a chuckle when her nose wrinkled once the swab was removed.
“That should be it, I’m going to take these off to the lab,” the nurse said as she placed a hospital gown on the bed. “I need you to change into this, so dad will step out with me until you’re ready, okay?”
Willow looked between the nurse and Alan before she said softly, “Yes ma’am.”
“Do you want me to stay or do you want me to wait outside with your dad?” Ellie asked gently. He was incredibly glad for her at that moment.
“Can you stay with me please?” Willow bit her lip and looked at the other woman with wide eyes.
“Of course, sweetheart. I’ll be with you every step of the way.”
The nurse gestured for Alan to step out to the hallway.
“Just let dad know when you’re ready for him to come back in, okay?” Willow just nodded and he followed the nurse into the hall. “Okay dad, let’s swab your cheek now.”
Alan opened his mouth for the nurse to take a quick swab before she gave him a small smile and left. He rubbed his face as he leaned against the wall until he could go back in.
What was he going to do? He did not do well with kids, how is he going to raise one? It wasn’t like he had much experience with positive male figures. An image of Willow hunched into herself flashed in his mind. Despite his worries, he wouldn’t leave her. She was his and ready or not he would not let her down like everyone else has. It wasn’t long until Ellie called him back in.
The next few hours passed in a whirlwind of people. The doctor came in to discuss the results of the labs, it was confirmed she was his. Along with her being deficient in all kinds of vitamins and everything else caused by lack of food and nutrition.
A social worker came in just before the exam and was present during the whole thing. Alan felt his heart constrict when he saw more of the bruises and abrasions on her arms, legs, stomach and back. The doctor asked Willow all kinds of questions about her home life with her aunt.
Was it only her aunt that hit her? Yes.
Did she ever withhold food as punishment? Yes
When was the last time you ate? Yesterday was a slice of toast.
And so on. As the hours ticked he could see Willow get tired and more and more withdrawn. Until the doctor and the social worker got everything they needed at that moment. He filled out the forms to get emergency custody filed so he could get permanent custody later.
Unfortunately, due to the resulting chaos of hearings, meetings and paperwork, Thanksgiving was skipped over with little fanfare. He was never more thankful for Ellie being in his life than during this time. She was always there to help pick up the slack when he became stretched too thin.
Everything worked out, because everything was official. Alan Grant had permanent custody of his daughter and Sharon was arrested for child abuse, neglect and abandonment. Willow seemed to settle into her new life with him rather well. She started to smile more, small and infrequent as it was, but it was a start.
She would accompany them to the museum and either observe as they worked or walk around and look at the exhibits. Slowly she started to show an interest in drawing. In the last few days he could find her in front of an exhibit as she tried to draw what she saw.
This helped him and Ellie decide on her presents for their first Christmas together. A sketchpad and pencils and various books on dinosaurs and astronomy, that she seemed to still enjoy.
It wasn’t until Willow’s birthday in February where they first realized she might not be as adapted as they thought.
“So, Willow, your birthday is next week,” Ellie looked at the young girl over the fossil in front of her. “Was there anything you wanted to do?”
Alan noticed Willow flick her eyes between him and Ellie with a look of confusion.
“Why would we go anywhere for my birthday?”
“We wanted to celebrate it with you,” Ellie said. “Why wouldn’t we want to celebrate your birthday? You are part of the family as well.”
This seemed to make her more confused, but she must have seen their expressions begin to change since she dropped her gaze back down to her sketch pad.
“Oh…I don’t know,” she said softly with a slight shrug. “Whatever you two want to do is fine.”
Alan and Ellie exchanged a look before they looked back down at the girl. Once the silence seemed to stretch for a second longer, her shoulders began to tense.
“Well, you seemed to want to try that pizza place…MacKenzie River Pizza Grill I think it’s called,” Alan said as he ducked until they made eye contact. “Would you like to try there?”
“Yeah, that’s fine,’ was the soft reply they got.
After she gave them a hesitant acceptance to dinner out, she seemed to withdraw into herself. There were also moments when she would watch them from the corner of her eye. The dinner itself was fine, though she did seem to get overwhelmed with the noise by the end of the night. Though happily, she did bring up the pizza a few days later. Alan swore he saw a small smile on her face and he could still feel the burst of warmth in his chest at the sight.
—-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
June 1993
Isla Nublar, an island located a hundred and twenty miles from the coast of Costa Rica, was braced for a long night.The night air was thick with humidity and tension. The only light was from the one or two spot lights that left large areas swathed in shadow. Nearby foliage rustled and cracked as something large got closer and closer. Workers gathered with hard expressions and ready postures. Robert Muldoon, the game warden, walked forward and took center point position as everyone prepared for what was to happen.
There was a rumble and the workers raised their guns and tasers. The crack of limbs echoed around the space as something large approached. Slowly the trees parted as something shrieked. It was a large metal container. As it got closer men started to shout in Spanish to direct the forklift operator to the gate of the paddock.
Gently, the container is lowered to the platform. The walls of the container were made of thick steel with small square holes for ventilation. From inside, huffs and clicks could be heard.
“Pushing team, move in there!” Muldoon ordered.
A group of men ran forward toward and took their positions around the container.
“I want tasers on full charge!” Muldoon was soon drowned out by a shrill screech that emanated from within the container. The pushing team jumped back as it rocked with more screeches. One man got a glimpse of what was inside, his face showed nothing but his horror and fear.
More men run forward with shouts in Spanish. With a command of “Push” they all act as one and the container glides forward. As it moves it triggers the sensors connected to lights on either side of the gate. Yellow, almost there until…green it was connected.
“We’re locked, team step away!” Muldoon commanded and the men moved quickly. “Gate Keeper!”
A lone man stepped forward and started to climb onto the metal container. Once in position the man hesitated as he felt something watch him as noises could be heard underneath him.
“Jophrey, raise the gate!” Muldoon said.
Jophrey shook himself as he turned and crouched. With a better grip he slowly pulled up as he stood to gradually raise the gate. Once halfway open, the creature within rushed forward but it was too low. The resulting impact was hard enough the entire container jolted and Jophrey fell. Unfortunately, the container continued to slide.
In a split second of access the creature within grabbed Jophrey, who still lay on the ground winded. Jophrey lets out a pain and terror filled scream as he is pulled back toward the opening of the container. In a desperate attempt at salvation, Jophrey grabbed to the edge of the opening and tried to pull himself out.
“Don’t let her get out!” Muldoon shouted as he ran forward to grab Jophrey.
The other men rush forward and begin to use their tasers on the creature through the ventilation holes. Angered the creature within jerks on Jophrey. The man cries out in pain and desperately tries to hold onto the container as more men try to help Muldoon pull him out.
“Work her back!”
Men run to the other side of the container to taser the creature from both sides in an attempt to move her away from their colleague. The creature shrieks from within and in that moment she makes eye contact with Muldoon. His eyes widened at the intelligence held with that one calculating gaze.
“Shoot her!” Muldoon shouts as Jophrey lets out another strangled cry. His body slowly began to slip from his grasp. “Shoot her!”
As his arm slipped from Muldoon’s grasp amidst the cacophony of shots and animalistic screeches, Muldoon looked to see all that was left of the man. It was his orange hardhat. Jophrey’s blood was splattered across the front. He ice chilled his veins as some drops of blood fell from the jaw of the skeletal silhouette of the T-Rex. Until the logo beneath bled red, the letters flashed a crimson beacon that simply read - Jurassic Park.