The sun was already high in the sky when Erik woke. Sunshine was streaming in through cracks in the door to the water truck. It took him several minutes to figure out where he was. When he did, he felt a mixture of emotions. Relief at being alive was mixed with disappointment that this hadn't been a bad dream. After the events of the previous evening, he hadn't been too sure that he would survive the night.

Erik cautiously opened the door to the water truck and looked around. There was no sign of any dinosaur. He figured it was safe to leave the door open to get some air and light into his new home. Sighing, he sat back on his bed and finished off the can of pork and beans he had opened the previous night. Hopefully his rescuers would come today. As he finished his cold breakfast, a terrible thought entered his mind. What if no one came to rescue him? Maybe the men in the boat had not told anyone where they were going. He knew that this island was off limits to anyone. What if no one knew where to look for him? No, he couldn't allow himself to think that way. His mom would know where to find him. She knew where Ben was taking him. She would make sure that someone rescued him.

After breakfast he decided to look around the island. He knew that he could play it safe and just stay in the truck, but he would also go out of his mind with boredom. Taking his bedding out and hanging it from the cab of the water truck, he closed the door behind him and headed back to the building. He would explore all of the buildings before exploring the jungle around him.

Once inside the building he began looking around to see if he could find something that he could use as a weapon. It took him only a few minutes to find a room that obviously had held weapons at one time. Boxes of ammunition littered the floor, open lockers that were labeled; rifles, scopes, and tranquilizer darts were a reminder of just how dangerous this place really was. Looking around Erik realized that the weapons had not been left behind like the food. After several minutes of searching he found half a dozen tear gas grenades and a cattle prod that had been missed when the facility was packed up. Erik gathered them up, placed the grenades in a bag, and carried the cattle prod under his arm.

He continued to explore the building, hoping to find anything else that might be of use. After searching all of the labs, he turned his attention to various private offices. He searched all of the desks and was about to give up his search when he hit the jackpot. Deep inside one desk drawer was a box of chocolate bars. Erik stuffed the bars in the bag containing the gas grenades and headed back to his new home. He placed his new finds in the truck and collected his bedding that had been airing in the sun.

As he entered the truck he heard some low, chirping sounds. Looking around he saw several dozen compys scurry out of the jungle and into the clearing near the compound. Erik froze, hoping that they hadn't seen him. The small creatures paused and looked around. They chirped and snapped at each other. Erik closed the door and turned on his lantern. Barely daring to breathe he sat there listening. He knew that the compys could not get into the truck, but he didn't want them to know he was there either. He was afraid if they found out he was there they would attack him sometime when he was out exploring.

The heat from the sun beating down on the tank finally drove him out of his hiding place. Erik slowly opened the hatch and looked around. There was no sign of the compys. Deciding it was safe to venture out; he climbed out of the truck and closed the door behind him. He decided to explore a different building; hopefully there would be something he could use.

This building was in worse shape than the first building Erik had explored. A tree had fallen on the roof, tearing a large hole in it, and rain had ruined everything that had been left behind. Sighing, Erik moved on to the third building in the compound. Here he found a small library full of books. Sorting through them, he finally settled on a few books about dinosaurs and prehistoric plants.

Erik took the books back to his home and opened another one of the cans. It was far past lunch time and he was starving. This time the can contained cream style corn. Not one of his favorites, but it was filling. After lunch he treated himself to one of the Hershey bars.

Looking around his tiny home, Erik decided that it was time to organize things so that he would be comfortable until help arrived. He placed his gas-grenades and cattle prod as far as possible from his bed. He didn't want them to come in contact with his battery powered lantern. He stacked his books near his bed. The cans of food were stacked on the other side of his bed along with the bottled water and can opener.

Surveying his sleeping area, he decided that he would go out and see what he could scrounge up from one more building before it got dark. He carefully made his way out of the truck and across the compound to a small building surrounded by dense vines. A quick peek in the door told him that it was a tool shed and held mostly lawn care equipment. He grabbed a shovel and a pitchfork. The pitchfork could be used as a weapon and he could use the shovel to bury his empty food cans. Open food cans, even empty ones, could attract unwanted attention. As he was leaving the shed and flash of bright yellow caught his eye. It was a length of nylon rope coiled up on a hook in the corner. He could use it to secure his door so the nothing could pull it open while he was sleeping. He put both of the tools in the cab of the truck where they would be out of the way and took the rope with him to the tank.

He decided against any more exploring for that day. It was starting to get dark, shadows were deepening, and it was getting difficult to see objects in the clearing. It was too dangerous to be out now. Smaller dinosaurs could sneak up on him before he even knew they were there.

Climbing back into his tank he took one last look around before closing the hatch. He could hear animals moving in the jungle. Strange noises could be heard nearby. High pitched hoots and mournful howls were interrupted by low growls and grunts. Every once in a while he would hear the roar of something much larger. He strained his eyes, trying to figure out if the movement at the edge of the jungle was just the shadows or if there was something alive moving in the trees. Deciding that he was tempting fate by standing there he crawled into the truck. He turned on his battery operated lamp and closed the door. Looking around, he saw a metal screw sticking out of the inside of the tank. He tied one end of the rope around the handle of the door and then wound the other end around the screw. Pulling the rope tight, he tied a knot in it. Satisfied that he had made things as secure as possible, he finished off the can of creamed corn. Tomorrow he would go and get some more canned food and bottles of water.

It took him longer to fall asleep than it had his first night on the island. He was not as tired as he had been and he kept wondering just how long it would be before he was rescued. What if help never came? He pushed that thought away. Of course help would come. His mom knew where he was and she would make sure that someone came for him.

Erik could clearly hear dinosaurs moving around now. He wondered if they could pick up his scent and track him back to the truck. He checked the rope holding the door shut again to make sure that it was secure. The moon had not risen above the tree-line yet so the truck tank was in total darkness. Erik wanted to turn on the light, but didn't want to waste the batteries. He finally fell asleep clutching the end of the rope almost like a security blanket.

Just before dawn it started to rain. Erik was awakened by the sound of thunder. At first he thought he was back home in Enid and he was hearing a typical summer thunderstorm. When he realized where he was he sat up in a panic, thinking that he was hearing the footsteps of an approaching dinosaur. He calmed down when he realized it was only thunder. He turned on his lamp and lay back down with his hands under his head. On rainy days like this in Enid, he would either play video games with friends or head to the mall. He might even see if his mom would take him to the video store, and then pick up pizza before heading home. Tears welled up in his eyes when he thought of his mom. She must be going out of her mind worrying about him. He wondered if she had gotten in touch with his dad yet. Boy, would he be mad when he found out that his mom had not only allowed him to go para-sailing with Ben Hildebrand, but had lost him on an island full of dinosaurs. His dad was always the practical one; he would have never allowed Erik to do anything as dangerous as para-sailing. Up until now he had thought his mom was great fun and that his dad was just too cautious. Now he wasn't so sure about that.

After eating some mixed vegetables for breakfast Erik decided to head back to the kitchen to see if he could find something else to eat. He knew that the only food that would still be edible would be in cans, but maybe he could find something besides vegetables. He was getting pretty tired of a vegetarian diet. Vegetables were okay, but they sure didn't stick with you very long.

Once inside the building he quickly made his way to the kitchen. Even though he had been there before, he had an uneasy feeling about it. He grabbed four large cans and six smaller cans off of the shelf before turning to go back to the safety of the water truck. He had only taken a few steps when he heard glass crunching and heavy footsteps thumping on the tiled floor. In a panic he turned and headed back into the kitchen, looking frantically around for a place to hide or a way out. A door that was half hidden behind a food service cart caught his eye. He pushed the cart out of the way as quickly and as quietly as he could and hurried out into the rain. He ran along the side of the building. Movement caught his eye just as he was about to turn the corner. Several dark shapes ran from the building to the jungle. Raptors. His heart pounded in his chest as he tried to figure out what to do. They were between him and the truck. The sounds that he had heard in the building were probably raptors too. Looking around the compound he realized that the only place he could hide was the tool shed. Before he could lose his nerve he ran to the shed, yanked the door open, and ran inside. He hadn't seen anything moving, but it was several minutes before he could relax enough to put down his sack of cans. The door had a lock on the inside. Erik quickly locked the door and sat down on the damp floor. He was grateful that there were no windows and that the building and its door were made of metal. He sat there shivering from fear and from the dampness that was seeping through his clothing. How long would he have to stay here? There was no way to know where the raptors were. He didn't want to alert them to his presence by opening the door to check on them. Erik decided that he would wait until it started to rain harder, or the thunder increased to mask the sound of the door. He found an old tarp, spread it out on the floor, and lay down.

Several hours later Erik awoke with a start. The crash of thunder was almost constant and the sound of the rain on the metal roof was deafening. Gathering up his courage he carefully unlocked the door and opened it a few inches. Seeing nothing, he opened the door far enough to see the entire compound. He couldn't see any sign of the raptors. Maybe they didn't like to hunt in the rain. Maybe it made it difficult to track their prey. Deciding that it was now or never he grabbed his bag, closed the door behind him, and ran to his truck. He couldn't hear if anything was pursuing him over the rain and thunder. When he finally reached the truck, he pulled the door open and threw himself in. He pulled the hatch shut and tied it down. He didn't bother turning on his lantern for fear that it would attract unwanted attention. Water dripped off of his hair and face onto the floor of the tank. He listened intently to see if he could hear any sign of the raptors. After several minutes he began to relax. If they were going to attack, they would have done so already.

Using one of his blankets to dry off Erik realized that this was the first shower he had had in days. Shivering, he wrapped the blanket around himself and lay down on his bed. He lay there, listening to the rain, wishing that he were home in his own bed.

Exhausted from the stress of the afternoon, he fell asleep without bothering to see what the cans he had retrieved held.