Jurassic Park / Парк Юрского периода. Майкл Крайтон

to insist you see it, Dr. Grant. You’d find it fascinating.”

      “I’m in the middle of Grant said.

      “Say, I’ll tell you what,” Hammond said, “I’m having some of the people who consulted for us go down there this weekend. Spend a few days and look it over. At our expense, of course. It’d be terrific if you’d give us your opinion.”

      “I couldn’t possibly,” Grant said.

      “Oh, just for a weekend,” Hammond said, “That’s all I’m talking about, Dr. Grant. I wouldn’t want to interrupt your work. But you could hop on down there this weekend, and be back on Monday.”

      “No, I couldn’t,” Grant said. “I’ve just found a new skeleton and we’ve just received some evidence for a very puzzling find, a living procompsognathus.”

      “A what?” Hammond said, slowing down. “I didn’t quite get that. You said a living procompsognathus?”

      “That’s right,” Grant said. “It’s a biological specimen, a fragment of a living animal from a beach called Cabo Blanco.”

      “You don’t say,” Hammond said. “A living animal? How extraordinary.”

      “Yes,” Grant said. “We think so, too. So, you see, this isn’t the time for me to go anywhere.”

      “I see.” Hammond cleared his throat, “And when did this, ah, specimen arrive in your hands?”

      “Just today.”

      On the speaker, Hammond coughed. “Ah, Dr. Grant. Have you told anybody about it yet?”

      “No.”

      “Good, that’s good. Well. Yes. I’ll tell you frankly, Dr. Grant, I’m having a little problem about this island. This EPA thing is coming at just the wrong time.”

      “How’s that?” Grant said.

      “Well, we’ve had our problems and some delays… Let’s just say that I’m under a little pressure here, and I’d like you to look at this island for me. I’ll be paying you the usual weekend consultant rate of twenty thousand a day. That’d be sixty thousand for three days. And if you can spare Dr. Sattler, she’ll go at the same rate. We need a botanist. What do you say?”

      Ellie looked at Grant as he said, “Well, Mr. Hammond, that much money would fully finance our expeditions for the next two summers.”

      “Good, good,” Hammond said politely. “Now, I’m sending the corporate jet to pick you up at that private airfield east of Choteau. It’s only about two hours’ drive from where you are. You be there at five p.m. tomorrow. Can you and Dr. Sattler make that plane?”

      “I guess we can.”

      “Good. Pack lightly. You don’t need passports. I’m looking forward to it. See you tomorrow,” Hammond said, and he hung up.

      Cowan, Swain and Ross

      In the San Francisco law firm of Cowan, Swain and Ross Donald Gennaro listened on the phone and looked at his boss, Daniel Ross.

      “I understand, John,” Gennaro said. “And Grant agreed to come? Good, that sounds fine to me. My congratulations, John.” He hung up the phone and turned to Ross.

      “We can’t trust Hammond any more. He’s under too much pressure. The EPA’s investigating him, he’s behind schedule on his Costa Rican resort, and the investors are getting nervous. There have been too many rumors of problems down there. Too many workmen have died. And now this business about a living procompsit – whatever on the mainland…”

      “What does that mean?” Ross said.

      “Maybe nothing,” Gennaro said. “But we’ve got to inspect that island right away.”

      “And what does Hammond say?”

      “He insists nothing is wrong on the island. Claims he has all these security precautions.”

      “But you don’t believe him,” Ross said.

      “No,” Gennaro said. “I don’t.”

      Donald Gennaro had come to Cowan, Swain and Ross as a specialist in investment banking. One of his first assignments, back in 1982, had been to accompany John Hammond while the old man, then nearly seventy, put together the funding to start the InGen corporation. They eventually raised almost a billion dollars.

      “Hammond’s a dreamer,” Gennaro said.

      “A potentially dangerous dreamer,” Ross said. “In any case, I agree that an inspection is overdue. What about your site experts?”

      “I’m starting with experts Hammond already hired as consultants, early in the project.” Gennaro tossed a list onto Ross’s desk. “First group is a paleontologist, a paleobotanist, and a mathematician. They go down this weekend. I’ll go with them.”

      “Will they tell you the truth?” Ross said.

      “I think so. None of them had much to do with the island, and one of them – the mathematician, Ian Malcolm – was openly hostile to the project from the start. Insisted it would never work, could never work.”

      “And who else?”

      “Just a technical person: the computer system analyst. Review the park’s computers and fix some bugs. He should be there by Friday morning.”

      “Fine,” Ross said. “You’re making the arrangements?”

      “Hammond asked to place the calls himself. I think he wants to pretend that he’s not in trouble, that it’s just a social invitation. Showing off his island.”

      “All right,” Ross said. “But just make sure it happens. Stay on top of it. I want this Costa Rican situation resolved within a week.” Ross got up, and walked out of the room.

      Plans

      “This just came,” Ellie said the next day, walking to the back of the trailer with a thick manila envelope. “It’s from Hammond.”

      Grant noticed the blue-and-white InGen logo as he tore open the envelope. Inside was a thick book. As he flipped open the book, a sheet of paper fell out.

      Dear Alan and Ellie,

      As you can imagine we don't have much in the way offormal promotional materials yet. But this should give you some idea of the Isla Nublar project. I think it's very exciting!

      Looking forward to discussing this with you! Hope you can join us!

Regards, John

      “I don’t get it,” Grant said. He flipped through the sheets. “These are architectural plans.” He turned to the top sheet:

      VISITOR CENTER/LODGE

      ISLA NUBLAR RESORT

      The next page was a topographical map. It showed Isla Nublar as an inverted teardrop, bulging at the north, tapering at the south. The island was eight miles long, and the map divided it into several large sections.

      The northern section was marked VISITOR AREA and it contained structures marked “Visitor Arrivals”, “Visitor Center/Administration”, “Power/Desalinization/Support”, “Hammond Res.”, and “Safari Lodge”. Grant could see the outline of a swimming pool, the rectangles of tennis courts, and the round signs that represented planting and shrubbery.

      “Looks like a resort, all right,” Ellie said.

      There followed detail sheets for the Safari Lodge itself: a long low building with a series of pyramid shapes on the roof. But there was little about the other buildings in the visitor area.

      And the